How to Trade the Gap & GoWelcome to the final instalment of our 7-part Power Patterns series where we aim to give you the skills to trade powerful price patterns which occur on any timeframe in every market.
Last but by no means least is the Gap & Go pattern. Price gaps epitomise power and the Gap & Go is must for any active trading looking to take advantage in a spike in volatility.
We’ll teach you:
How to identify the best Gap & Go patterns
Why the catalyst behind the pattern is crucial
A simple technique for managing a Gap & Go trade
I. Understanding the Gap & Go:
The Gap and Go pattern revolves around a simple concept: market shocks take time to fully price in.
A price gap occurs when a stock "gaps" higher or lower from its previous closing price when the market opens. The price gap represents a shock and in certain circumstances traders can anticipate a continuation of price movement in the direction of the price gap.
Here are the key components of the Gap & Go trade setup:
Identify the gap: The first step is to identify stocks that exhibit a noticeable price gap between the previous day's closing price and the current day's opening price. This gap can be either bullish (a gap up) or bearish (a gap down).
Breaking structure: The price gap should break above or below a level of resistance (or support). Gaps that break key structural levels are likely to draw in a higher level of participation.
High volume: The price gap should occur on higher-than-average volume. Higher volume indicates increased participation and suggests that a significant number of market participants are actively reacting to the news or event that caused the gap.
Bullish Gap & Go:
Bearish Gap & Go:
II. Know the catalyst behind the gap:
Stock prices can gap higher or lower for a multitude of reasons and some of the reasons make better trading catalysts than others.
As a general rule, you want the gap to form on a piece of stock-specific newsflow that has recalibrated market expectations.
Remember, central to the pattern working is that the shock which caused the gap must take time to price in – hence mechanical events such as dividends and corporate actions are of no use, so too are confirmed bids.
The best catalysts for Gap & Go trades will be earnings surprises (good or bad), and a change in outlook (good or bad). In general, trading updates tend to lead to more surprises that Interim and Annual Reports, as they occur within reporting periods.
Good catalysts:
Trading update
Interim results (change of outlook)
Annual results (change of outlook)
Bid rumour
Broker upgrade / downgrade
Bad catalysts:
Ex dividend
Corporate actions
Global news event
Confirmed bid
Top Tip: For the stocks you like to trade, make sure you add a calendar alert for when the company releases Trading Updates and Interim/Annual Reports. This may help you to anticipate price gaps.
III. How to Trade the Gap & Go:
Whilst the Gap & Go pattern can be traded in many different ways and on many different timeframes. We favour getting to grips with this pattern on the hourly candle chart first. On this timeframe gaps will be clear, levels of risk can be kept relatively small, and trades can play out across one or two trading days.
Here’s how to start trading the Gap & Go on the hourly candle chart:
Entry : Wait for prices to stabilise following the opening rotations. The gap should be maintained after the first hour of trading and there should be no signs of exhaustion. Enter during the second hour of trading.
Stop-loss placement : Traders can either place a stop above (or below) the 9 period exponential moving average (EMA) or use a multiple of the Average True Range (ATR) above (or below) the entry price.
Price targets : The expectation for the Gap & Go trade setup is to catch a clean swing of price movement in the direction of the gap. For this reason, the 9EMA is a useful tool as a dynamic profit target – traders should close their position on a close back above (or below) the 9EMA. This method does not cap upside in fast moving markets but ensure discipline and allows traders to attempt to capture the ‘meat of the move’.
Bullish Gap & Go Trade Setup:
Bearish Gap & Go Trade Setup:
IV. Managing risks and pitfalls:
Be wary of opening reversals: It is important that prices stabilise and maintain the gap before entering a Gap & Go trade. On occasions, prices will gap lower only to reverse sharply during the first hour of trading. The stronger your understanding of the subtle nuances of trading around the open, the better you will be at trading the Gap & Go pattern.
Risk management: The Gap & Go pattern by definition is trading during an expansion in volatility. Therefore, it is essential that traders implement proper risk management techniques, such as position sizing and diversifying your trading portfolio.
Disclaimer: This is for information and learning purposes only. The information provided does not constitute investment advice nor take into account the individual financial circumstances or objectives of any investor. Any information that may be provided relating to past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results or performance.
Community ideas
Markets embrace the Higher-for-Longer themeIt has been a big week of central bank policy announcements. While central banks in the US, UK, Switzerland, and Japan left key policy rates unchanged, the trajectory ahead remains vastly different. These central bank announcements were accompanied by a significant upward breakout in bond yields. Interestingly most of the increase in yields has been driven by higher real yields rather than breakeven inflation signifying a tightening of conditions. The bond markets appear to be acknowledging that until recession hits, yields are likely to keep rising.
Connecting the dots
The current stance of monetary policy continues to remain restrictive. The Fed’s dot plot, which the US central bank uses to signal its outlook for the path of interest rates, shows the median year-end projection for the federal funds rate at 5.6%. The dot plot of rate projections shows policymakers (12 of the 19 policymakers) still foresee one more rate hike this year. Furthermore, the 2024 and 2025 rate projections notched up by 50Bps, a signal the Fed expects rates to stay higher for longer.
The key surprise was the upgrade in growth and unemployment projections beyond 2023, suggesting a more optimistic outlook on the economy. The Fed’s caution is justified amidst the prevailing headwinds – higher oil prices, the resumption of student loan payments, the United Auto Workers strike, and a potential government shutdown.
Quantitative tightening continues on autopilot, with the Fed continuing to shrink its balance sheet by $95 billion per month. Risk assets such as equities, credit struggled this week as US yields continued to grind higher. The correction in risk assets remains supportive for the US dollar.
A hawkish pause by the Bank of England
In sharp contrast to the US, economic data has weakened across the board in the UK, with the exception of wage growth. The weakness in labour markets is likely to feed through into lower wages as discussed here. After 14 straights rate hikes, the weaker economic backdrop in the UK coupled with falling inflation influenced the Bank of England’s (BOE) decision to keep rates on hold at 5.25%. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) was keen to stress that interest rates are likely to stay at current levels for an extended period and only if there was evidence of persistent inflation pressures would further tightening in policy be required.
By the next meeting in November, we expect economic conditions to move in the MPC’s favour and wage growth to have eased materially. As inflation declines, the rise in real interest rates is likely to drag the economy lower without the MPC having to raise interest rates further. That said, the MPC is unlikely to start cutting rates until this time next year and even then, we only expect to see a gradual decline in rates.
Bank of Japan maintains a dovish stance
Having just tweaked Yield Curve Control (YCC) at its prior Monetary Policy Meeting (MPM) on 28 July, the Bank of Japan decided to keep its ultra easy monetary settings unchanged. The BOJ expects inflation to decelerate and said core inflation has been around 3% owing to pass-through price increases. Governor Ueda confirmed that only if inflation accompanied by the wages goal was in sight would the BOJ consider an end to YCC and a rate shift.
With its loose monetary policy, the BOJ has been an outlier among major central banks like the Fed, ECB and BOE which have all been hiking interest rates. That policy divergence has been a key driver of the yen’s weakness. While headline inflation in Japan has been declining, core inflation has remained persistently higher. The BOJ meeting confirmed that there is still some time before the BOJ exits from negative interest rate policy which is likely to keep the Yen under pressure. The developments in US Monetary Policy feeding into a stronger US dollar are also likely to exert further downside pressure on the Yen.
This year global investors have taken note that Japanese stocks are benefitting from the weaker Yen, relatively cheaper valuations and a long-waited return of inflation. Japanese companies are also becoming more receptive to corporate reform and shareholder engagement.
Adopting a hedged Japanese exposure
Taking a hedged exposure to dividend paying Japanese equities would be a prudent approach amidst the weaker yen. This goes to a point we often make - currency changes do not need to impact your foreign return, and you can target that local market return by hedging your currency risk. A hedged Japanese dividend paying equity exposure could enable an investor to hedge their exposure to the Yen.
This material is prepared by WisdomTree and its affiliates and is not intended to be relied upon as a forecast, research or investment advice, and is not a recommendation, offer or solicitation to buy or sell any securities or to adopt any investment strategy. The opinions expressed are as of the date of production and may change as subsequent conditions vary. The information and opinions contained in this material are derived from proprietary and non-proprietary sources. As such, no warranty of accuracy or reliability is given and no responsibility arising in any other way for errors and omissions (including responsibility to any person by reason of negligence) is accepted by WisdomTree, nor any affiliate, nor any of their officers, employees or agents. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the reader. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.
Gasoline futures portend pleasure at the pumpAmong my favorite charts this time of year is that of RBOB gasoline futures. Often as Halloween approaches, wholesale gasoline costs start coming down significantly from highs in the summer. Call it a nice treat for commuters and families around the country. As it stands, the prompt-month of RBOB is now under $2.20 - that's a fresh 10-month low should we close here.
RBOB at $2.18 means that retail pump prices should continue their recent trend lower, eventually finding the $3.20 mark if the historical premium of about $0.95 holds. It's key to remember that the price difference between the futures and the retail cost of a gallon of regular unleaded depends on a host of factors - taxes, transport costs, refiner margins, and refinery outages being among them.
I see a bit more downside ahead on the chart. Consider that, according to seasonal data from Equity Clock, RBOB tends to move lower from mid-October through early December. That could mean gas prices under $3 in terms of a national retail average by, say, Christmas. Keep your eye on the low from last December - $2.05. Another layer of possible dip-buyers could come into play near $1.95. On the upside, I see resistance near $2.45 - the range lows from this past May and June.
The US Super Bubble Theory Credit for this perspective goes to u/RS3175. They shared their log Elliot waves with me and I found it so interesting I had to chart it up for myself. They've done better labelling of the wave than I have. I'll post their pic at the bottom of the page.
Firstly, what are we looking at? A logarithmic chart covering all of the SPX trading history with the entire thing fitting inside the context of the Elliott Wave Theory.
Unless you really like Elliot, I'm sure you're beyond sceptical but let me tell you a few things of note about Elliot. Elliot lost his job in the depression and started to study markets trying to work out why. This was how he devised his theory. The rally up to the high and the depression crash is a literal textbook example of the Elliot Wave.
Even if you don't think Elliot Waves work - Elliot based his wave theory on this move. This IS the original Elliot Wave.
What Elliot noticed was that this shape occurred over and over again on small timeframes and built up to a huge version on a bigger timeframe. Like Russian Dolls, but in reverse. Elliot published his theory in the 40s and died soon after. Elliot would be dead before the the depression high was broken.
In his 1940s book Elliot referred to the depression as a typically ABC correction. Implicate to this statement is a forecast of a new bull market and that bull market developing in five main waves before then entering into a bigger correction. And that was a very good forecast of what would happen over the next 25 years.
So Elliot deserves some credit. There would not have been many people who made forecasts of new highs and trending through them in 1940.
Elliot deserves a lot of credit, to be honest. Because here was the next moves.
Paul Tudor Jones famously shorted this 1987 crash and there are documentaries from 1985-1986 in which Jones and his team are using a mixture of Elliot Wave theory and matching up moves of last decade relative to the 1920s. They were running a computer program tracking correlation, finding it incredible high and betting on it.
Jones was long the rally and short the drop - And it's documented a year before the crash trade that he was using Elliot for his forecast of it. If you look up Jones forecasts at the time he was actually completely wrong. He thought it was heading into a depression. There'd be the first break and then there'd be the 1930s style downtrend.
They thought this because the correlation of price moves in their time relative to 1987 were so high (I can't remember specifically but I think it was over 80%).
I think this lends a lot of credibility to Elliot's work. Not only would his 1940's book forecast these types of 5 leg bubble moves and then sharp corrections but it was also famously used in real time to trade the rally and crash of the 1980s. If you do not think Elliot Wave works, is has! On a big scale, it has worked so far. Elliot's implied forecasts happened.
When DJI was $100 Elliot was hardly going to call DJI to $33,000 but if he'd taken the perspective that the Depression was wave 2 - what he would have forecast would be an extremely accurate forecast of what went on to happen in markets for decade after decade to come.
One would have to think if Elliot was with us today, he might well be a bear.
Here's @RS3175's chart: www.tradingview.com
The implied swings of this would match up with my Elliot bear waves forecast of 2021 (Even though we've took very different routes there).
Would the Middle East Conflict Push Gold and Oil Prices Higher?NYMEX: WTI Crude Oil ( NYMEX:CL1! ), COMEX: Micro Gold Futures ( COMEX_MINI:MGC1! )
Over the weekend, military conflict in Gaza between Israel and Palestine shocked the world. I condemn violence against civilians and pray for the victims and their families.
In the following paragraphs, I will discuss how the prices of strategically important commodities, namely gold and crude oil, might respond to the eruption of a global crisis.
Firstly, let’s look back into the recent past for those crises arising to a global scale. In the last five years, the world has witnessed three major crises of very different natures:
• US-China Trade Conflict: from January 2018 to January 2020, the world’s two largest economies imposed import duties to each other in a series of escalating actions and retaliations. A major event occurred on September 18, 2018, where President Trump added 10% tariff on nearly all Chinese-made products. The US-China trade conflict forever altered the global supply chain, with its impact being felt till today.
• Covid-19, the most severe pandemic in a century, from its outbreak in January 2020 to 2021. A big event that sparked market fear occurred on February 2, 2020, where the US imposed travel restrictions on incoming air passengers.
• Russia-Ukraine Conflict: the first military conflict in Europe since World War II, from February 14, 2022, till now.
Secondly, let’s measure how gold and WTI crude oil responded to these crises. For my analysis, I denote the day before Event Day as T0, where we may find last market prices before the impact hit. Event Day will be T+1, and then 1-week after (T+7), 1-month after (1M), 3-month after (3M), all the way through 1-year after (1Y). Here are what I found:
US-China Trade Conflict
• Gold spot price (T0) = $1,201.90 per Troy Ounce
• Price changes by time: -0.1% (T+1), +0.1% (T+7), +2.3% (1M), +3.3% (3M), +8.6% (6M), +11.6% (9M), +25.0% (1Y)
• Comment: Trade tension between US and China could push the global economy into a recession. Gold, a safe-haven asset, saw its market value growing 25% in a year.
• WTI crude oil spot price (T0) = $69.86 per barrel
• Price changes by time: +1.2% (T+1), +6.3% (T+7), +4.3% (1M), -27.7% (3M), -14.2% (6M), -24.6% (9M), -8.4% (1Y)
• Comment: High tariff raised the price consumers had to pay, hence reducing demand. Crude was down 28% three months after the all-in tariff was imposed.
Covid Pandemic
• Gold spot price (T0) = $1,574.75 per Troy Ounce
• Price changes by time: -1.0% (T+1), -0.1% (T+7), +2.6% (1M), +8.5% (3M), +24.4% (6M), +21.2% (9M), +16.6% (1Y)
• Comment: We saw the biggest stock market selloff in March 2020. Gold price was down initially as stock traders needed to raise money and meet margin calls. However, a flight to safety eventually took place, and gold was up 24% in six months.
• WTI crude oil spot price (T0) = $53.09 per barrel
• Price changes by time: -5.0% (T+1), -11.9% (T+7), -77.1% (1M), -61.4% (3M), -23.1% (6M), -31.1% (9M), +0.9% (1Y)
• Comment: Rapid Covid outbreaks stroke fear. Lockdowns put global activities to a pause. The pandemic wiped out oil demand, with WTI falling 80% in a month. April 20, 2020 made history as oil price of the expiring contract went below zero. As storage cost more than selling price, traders were willing to pay others to take away the crude for free.
Russia-Ukraine Conflict
• Gold spot price (T0) = $1,854.60 per Troy Ounce
• Price changes by time: -2.5% (T+1), -2.5% (T+7), +6.5% (1M), -1.8% (3M), -2.8% (6M), -5.0% (9M), +5.0% (1Y)
• WTI crude oil spot price (T0) = $91.25 per barrel
• Price changes by time: +4.7% (T+1), +5.3% (T+7), +30.7% (1M), +12.90 (3M), +1.1% (6M), +0.6% (9M), -17.2% (1Y)
• Comment: A major military conflict in Europe significantly raised the global risk level. Gold, the safe-haven asset, and crude oil, an energy commodity critically important in wartime, both went up in the first month, by 6.5% and 30.7%, respectively.
• However, the impact was short-lived. On March 16, 2022, the Fed begin hiking interest rates, which has become the driving force in global market. Impact from Russia-Ukraine became a secondary factor and sat in the back burner.
To sum up the above examples, I observe that gold prices usually go up in the aftermath of a global crisis. Crude oil has a mixed bag of reactions. If a crisis results in economic recession and a consequential reduction in oil demand, oil prices would go down. However, in the case of a major war, oil price would go up due to its strategic importance.
Review: Event-driven Strategy focusing on Global Crises
In June 2022, I introduced a three-factor pricing model for commodities futures:
Commodities Futures Price = Intrinsic Value + Market Sentiment + Crisis Premium
Intrinsic Value is the baseline cash price of the underlying commodities, determined by available supply, demand, inventory, shipping costs, and factors affecting these variables.
Market Sentiment indicates if investors are bullish or bearish. Whether speculative investors place more money on the long side or the short side affects the price of a futures contract. Market sentiment could be either positive or negative, resulting in a price premium or a discount of the intrinsic value.
The new Crisis Premium factor captures “Event Shock” during a global geopolitical crisis.
Previous trade example:
Russia and Ukraine together accounted for 28% of global wheat export. Wheat price shot up by 75% following the start of the conflict. I designed a Long Strangle options strategy on CBOT Wheat futures, and simultaneously bought out-of-the-money (OTM) call and put options. A “risk-on” outcome could push wheat price higher, making the calls more valuable, where a “risk-off” outcome would pull wheat price back down, making the puts in-the-money (ITM).
Trading Opportunities with Micro Gold
Since the September FOMC meeting, gold prices suffered a 6.3% drawdown, sending the futures price from $1,969 to $1,845. Friday settlement price was nearly 9% below the yearly high.
On the one hand, high-interest money market funds beat out non-interest-yielding gold investment; on the other hand, strong dollar raised the cost of gold purchase by foreign investors. As a result, gold prices have been under pressure.
However, my analysis illustrates that gold prices could rise in response to geopolitical conflicts. Since its founding, Israel had five major wars with its Arab neighbors. We do not know whether this time it would be contained as a regional conflict or spark a chain reaction of a global war. By the intensity of how it started, it doesn’t seem like a short one.
To express a view of rising gold prices, we could consider a long position in COMEX Micro Gold Futures ( AMEX:MGC ). The December contract (MGCZ3) was settled at $1,845. Each contract has a notional value of 10 troy ounces, or $18,450 at market price. CME Group requires an initial margin of $780 per contract.
Hypothetically, if gold futures go back up to $2020, its yearly high, the $175 ($2020-$1845) price increase would translate into $1,750 for a long futures position. If gold price goes down instead, each dollar of decline would result in a loss of $10 per contract.
Alternatively, we could consider the newly launched Micro Gold Options. A Long Strangle Options Strategy, where simultaneously buying OTM calls or puts, could be deployed if we expect a big move in gold price, but not certain of its direction.
Trading Opportunities with WTI Crude Oil
Since June, WTI crude oil first staged a nearly 40% rise, from $67 going to $93. However, it has seen a 9% drawdown since the Fed meeting on September 20th.
A major military conflict in the Middle East, the world’s most important oil producing region, threatens to interrupt oil supply and push up oil price. If the conflict is escalated to involve major oil exporting nations, the situation could be dire.
To express a view of rising crude price, we could consider a long position in NYMEX WTI Futures ( NYSE:CL ). The December contract (CLZ3) was settled at $83.18. Each contract has a notional value of 1,000 barrels, or $83,180 at market price. CME Group requires an initial margin of $6,186 per contract.
Hypothetically, if WTI futures go up above $100, which we saw from February to July 2022 in the first months of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the $17 price increase would translate into $17,000 for a long futures position. If crude oil price goes down instead, each dollar of decline would result in a loss of $1000 per contract.
Similarly, the newly launched Micro WTI Options could express a view that a big move in oil price is expected, without knowing its direction.
Happy Trading.
Disclaimers
*Trade ideas cited above are for illustration only, as an integral part of a case study to demonstrate the fundamental concepts in risk management under the market scenarios being discussed. They shall not be construed as investment recommendations or advice. Nor are they used to promote any specific products, or services.
CME Real-time Market Data help identify trading set-ups and express my market views. If you have futures in your trading portfolio, you can check out on CME Group data plans available that suit your trading needs www.tradingview.com
Storms are Brewing: Is your Portfolio Weatherproof? Risk strikes when least expected. Optimism peaks before a downturn strikes. Chart below shows remarkable spike in articles mentioning soft-landing before recession hits. Human brain is engineered to think linearly.
Anything non-linear tricks the mind. Recession is non-linear which muddles up investor estimates of recession, its timing and impact.
Count of Soft-landing Articles & US Recession (Source: Bloomberg )
The US Federal Reserve in its fight against inflation has lifted rates by an unprecedented 525 basis points since the start of 2022.
Yet the American economy, US corporations, and the US consumer are remarkably resilient. Non-Farm Payrolls last week came strong. When the Fed is tightening its levers to slow the economy, nothing seems to stop its rise. What explains this anomaly?
Three words. Monetary Policy Transmission.
Monetary policy transmission takes time, lulling many to believe that consumers and corporates are resilient. When in fact, they are yet to face the consequence of constrained credit markets which will manifest itself in myriad ways from reduced availability of financing, high cost of funding, and rising bankruptcies, just to name a few.
This paper is set in two parts. First part describes monetary policy transmission. Part two dives into storms forming in the horizon. The paper concludes with a hypothetical trade set-up using CME Micro S&P 500 Options to defend portfolios from deepening polycrisis.
Despite the risk narratives, a soft landing may still be possible. However, the combined impact of Fed’s hawkish stance, rising geopolitical tensions, continuing auto workers strike, tightening of financial conditions, and elevated oil prices & yields renders the likelihood of a soft landing, super slim.
Narratives around the soft-landing aside, CTAs have dumped nearly USD 40 billion worth of S&P 500 futures positions marking the fastest unwind on record over the last two weeks as reported by Goldman Sachs.
PART 1: MONETARY POLICY TRANSMISSION
Monetary policy operates with long and unpredictable lags. Monetary Policy Transmission is the process through which a Central Bank’s decisions impact the economy and the price levels. The flow chart below schematically describes the downstream impact of quantitative tightening.
Monetary Policy Transmission Takes Time (Source: ECB )
Changes made to official interest rates affect markets in diverse ways and at distinct stages. Central bank's interest rate decisions impact the markets in the following seven ways:
1. Banks and Money Markets: Rate changes directly affect money-market rates and, indirectly, lending and deposit rates.
2. Expectations: Expectations of future rate changes influence medium and long-term interest rates. Monetary policy guides expectations of future inflation.
3. Asset Prices: Financing conditions and market expectations triggered by monetary policy cause adjustments in asset prices and the FX rates.
4. Savings & investment decisions : Rate changes affect saving and investment decisions of households and firms.
5. Credit Supply: Higher rates increase the risk of borrower default. Banks scale back on lending to households and firms. This may also reduce consumption and investment.
6. Aggregate demand & prices: Changes in consumption and investment will change the level of domestic demand for goods and services relative to domestic supply.
7. Supply of bank loans: Changes in policy rates affect banks’ marginal cost for obtaining external finance differently, depending on the level of a bank’s own resources/capital.
The mechanism is characterized by long, variable, and indefinite time lags. As a result, it is difficult to predict the precise timing of monetary policy actions on economy and inflation.
For some sectors, monetary policy transmission can take as long as 18 to 24 months. In other words, the full force of the Fed’s 525 basis points spike since 2022 will not be felt until early 2024. Added to that, the Fed may not be done hiking yet.
Probabilities of Rate Anticipation in Prospective Fed Meetings (Source: CME FedWatch Tool )
PART 2: STORMS ARE FORMING
Not one but three major storms are brewing in parallel, namely (1) Worsening Geo-politics, (2) US Sovereign Risk Fears, and (3) Tightening Financial Conditions. One or more of them could unleash havoc, sending financial markets into a tailspin.
1. WORSENING GEO-POLITICS
Adding to the geopolitical conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Hamas attack on Israel over the weekend has elevated geo-political tensions. If counter strikes escalate to a wider region impacting Strait of Hormuz, then oil prices could spiral up sharply, sending shocks across financial markets.
Oil prices lost steam last week. That doesn’t guarantee lower prices. Eerily, this month marks 50-year anniversary of oil emergency in 1973 which led to oil prices spiking 3x back then.
The US Strategic Petroleum Reserves are at a 40-year low. The reserves are at 17-days of consumption compared to an average of 34-days consumption observed over the last thirty years.
2. US SOVEREIGN RISK FEARS: The US government is facing multiple challenges of its own. The government narrowly avoided a shutdown and has kicked the problem can down the road only by six weeks. Long before investors take relief, the shutdown fear will resurface again.
Add to that is the rising US debt levels. With a debt burden of USD 33 trillion, the government debt is forecasted to reach USD 52 trillion by 2033.
With rates remaining elevated, a substantial chunk of US Government debt will be directed towards interest payments. Is there a risk of US debt default?
To compensate for that risk, bond yields are climbing. The 10-Year treasury yields rose to 16-year high of 4.6%. With jobs market remaining solid, the data-driven Fed might have to keep the rates higher for longer.
The futures market implies a probability of 42% for a rate hike during the Fed’s December meeting. Any further hikes can tip the recovering housing market back into crisis due to exorbitant mortgage rates. High yields also cost it dearly for firms to borrow.
3. TIGHTENING FINANCIAL CONDITIONS: Dwindling liquid assets, resumption of student loan repayments, stringent lending practices atop heavy debt burden on US Corporates are collectively weighing down on investor sentiments.
Student Loan Repayments: After 3.5 years of loan servicing holidays, millions of students will resume student loan repayments. Bloomberg estimates that these repayments can shave 0.2% to 0.3% off US GDP.
Depleted Savings: Strength of the US Consumers will be put to stress tests. Extra savings from pandemic stimulus checks have been depleted to below pre-pandemic levels for low-income categories. Consumer strength could turn into weakness in the coming weeks.
Inflation Adjusted Liquid Asset Holdings by Income Group (Source: US Fed and Bloomberg Calculations )
Stringent Lending Standards: The Fed’s Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey (SLOOS) on Bank Lending Practices points to 50% of the banks imposing stringent criteria for commercial & industrial loans. Lending conditions are at levels last seen during 2008 global financial crisis. Impact of this will be felt in Q4 when business will be stifled from access to funds.
Tightening Standards of Commercial & Industrial Loans (Source: July 2023 SLOOS Survey )
Corporate Debt Burden: Years of extremely low cost of funding have tempted US corporates into a debt binge. With rates rising, the debt burden is getting heavier on corporate balance sheets, cash flows, and profitability as reported by Bloomberg. Leverage ratios are rising. Interest coverage ratios are falling. Average Free Cash Flow to Debt ratios are plunging.
Debt burden amid rising rate environment is hurting US Blue Chips (Source: Bloomberg Intelligence )
HYPOTHETICAL TRADE SETUP
Against the backdrop of these risks, this paper posits a hypothetical back spread with puts to gain from sharp index moves. Unlike a long straddle, this option strategy delivers (a) outsized gains when markets plunge, and (b) limited downside risk if market remains flat or rises despite the risks.
This strategy involves selling one unit of at-the-money puts to finance purchase of two units of out-of-the-money puts. This strategy can be executed either for net positive premium or net negative premium depending on the choice of strikes.
Specifically, the hypothetical trade illustration is built around CME Micro Monthly S&P 500 Options expiring on 29th December 2023 (EXZ3). The strategy involves (a) selling 1 lot of EXZ3 at a strike of 4400 collecting a premium of USD 655 (131.16 index points x 1 lot x USD 5/index point), and (b) buying 2 lots of EXZ3 at a strike of 4300 paying a premium of USD 950 (95.041 index points x 2 lots x USD 5/index point).
The hypothetical trade involves a net debit of USD 295 (58.922 index points * USD 5/index point). This trade breaks even when S&P 500 (a) falls below 4141, or (b) rises above 4400.
Pay-off from Back Spread with Puts Trade Strategy (Source: CME QuikStrike )
Summary pay-off from this trading strategy is illustrated in the table below.
MARKET DATA
CME Real-time Market Data helps identify trading set-ups and express market views better. If you have futures in your trading portfolio, you can check out on CME Group data plans available that suit your trading needs www.tradingview.com
DISCLAIMER
This case study is for educational purposes only and does not constitute investment recommendations or advice. Nor are they used to promote any specific products, or services.
Trading or investment ideas cited here are for illustration only, as an integral part of a case study to demonstrate the fundamental concepts in risk management or trading under the market scenarios being discussed. Please read the FULL DISCLAIMER the link to which is provided in our profile description.
Is Stock Market Recovery Possible? Trading Idea for 05/10/2023A unique situation has arisen in the market where the reward for the risk associated with stock investments is nearly equivalent to the yield on 10-year US government bonds. The prices of debt securities are steadily declining, and only a substantial collapse in the stock market can restore demand for them.
Barclays' analysts share a similar viewpoint. However, there are currently conditions for a stock market recovery, especially if the unemployment rate in the US exceeds analysts' expectations.
Therefore, our focus today is on the SPY ETF, which invests in companies comprising the S&P 500 index.
On the D1 timeframe, resistance has formed at 430.30, with support at 420.12. If quotes consolidate above 425.01, this will likely trigger the beginning of an upward trend. Additionally, the price has moved closer to the 200-day Moving Average, which typically results in a rebound.
On the H1 timeframe, the short-term target for the price increase is around 435.80, while in the medium term, it could reach 445.75.
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ES1! & SPY: Happy October!Hopefully you all love Halloween and fall.
Because I am obsessed and I went as extra as extra will allow.
And you can expect this to continue until next month :p.
Let's hope for a straight forward week this week. This would be for SPY to come up and reject 431. Remember, we have been rejecting that 431 repeatedly (which is our bearish condition on the 6 month) and have had 4 successful closes below it:
If we break over it, its fine really. Because, as promised, we have 6 month levels on ES1! now and we can take a look at those here:
Bearish condition on ES1! on the month is at 4486. So we can go back up there, we just need to reject there. Let's just hope it keeps it to the point with a rejection of 431. Its going to be bullish on Monday, probs agree and with the news catalyst of a government deal, its probably going to be excitable. But yeah, we need to just see rejection at 431 to see some continuation to the downside. It really should be swift, the move to the 6 month low targets, and then we see bounce and chop. It's usually how it plays out. But it could, technically and realistically, just chop its way down there.
The velocity in tanking is not the same degree we had in 2022 where it was straight down, most of the time. There is a bit more bouncing here.
Another thing of note, we missed the 99 on ES1! last week, which generally means the sentiment is overwhelming in one direction or another. In this case, that would be bearish. The last time ES1! missed a bullish 99, it tanked dramatically the next week, so of course be cautious here. I don't necessarily think that will happen this week, but it is a possibility.
ES1!'s price targets for the week are listed in the chart above, for SPY, here they are:
99 this week is at the bullish condition on the week. So let's see what we get.
That's it for now, I am bearish but obviously its contingent on us rejecting or staying below 431 on SPY. So let's see what happens with that, then we go from there.
For Monday, I am bullish provided we open below 431.
Will update as we see more!
Yen Drops Below 150 Per Dollar - Exercise Caution in TradingThe Japanese yen has recently dropped below the critical threshold of 150 per dollar, primarily due to mounting concerns regarding intervention measures. In light of this situation, I strongly urge you to exercise caution and consider pausing yen trading until further clarification is obtained.
The sudden decline in the yen's value has raised concerns among market participants, as it suggests the possibility of intervention by the Japanese government or central bank. Intervention refers to deliberate actions taken by authorities to influence their currency's exchange rate, typically through buying or selling large amounts of their own currency in the foreign exchange market. Such interventions can have a profound impact on the currency's value and create significant volatility in the market.
Given the uncertainty surrounding the current situation, it is prudent to reassess our trading strategies and ensure that we are not unnecessarily exposed to potential risks. Therefore, I strongly recommend that you temporarily halt yen trading until we receive further guidance or clarification from reliable sources regarding any potential intervention measures.
In the meantime, I encourage you to closely monitor the latest news and market developments related to the yen. Stay informed about any official statements or actions from the Japanese government or central bank, as these can provide valuable insights into the future direction of the currency. Additionally, consider diversifying your portfolio to reduce reliance on yen-based assets until the situation stabilizes.
Please remember that our primary objective is to protect our investments and mitigate risk. By exercising caution and temporarily pausing yen trading, we can better position ourselves to navigate the current market uncertainties and make informed decisions when clarity emerges.
If you have any questions or require further guidance, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or our dedicated support team. We are here to assist you and ensure that you have the necessary information to make well-informed trading decisions.
BTCUSD: Long Position with a Target Price of 29221In the dynamic landscape of cryptocurrency trading, the BTCUSD pair has emerged as a focal point for investors seeking opportunities for growth and capital preservation. This analysis delves into the factors shaping the current trajectory of Bitcoin (BTC) and the US Dollar (USD) pairing, with an optimistic outlook projecting a rise to a target price of 29221.
Underlying Catalysts: A Comprehensive Approach
Growing Demand:
The surge in demand for BTC is propelled by increased adoption and the growing interest of institutional investors. This heightened interest not only signifies a changing perception of cryptocurrencies but also establishes BTC as a sought-after asset.
Inflation of the US Dollar:
The recent injection of trillions into the US economy has triggered concerns about inflation. As investors seek refuge from potential devaluation, BTC emerges as a compelling alternative, acting as a store of value amid uncertainties.
Technical Analysis:
Technical indicators reveal a bullish trend, with the second re-test of the 4H diagonal resistance line solidifying the upward trajectory. Technical analysis, a pivotal aspect of market dynamics, augurs well for those eyeing a favorable position in the market.
Market Sentiment:
Positive market sentiment, buoyed by the US government's avoidance of a shutdown, has cast a favorable light on cryptocurrencies. As sentiment influences investor behavior, this positive outlook could be a driving force behind the upward momentum of BTC.
Conclusion:
Considering the combined impact of growing demand, concerns about US dollar inflation, positive market sentiment, there is a compelling case for a long position on BTCUSD. Technical analysis further supports the bullish outlook.
Trade Parameters:
Entry Price: After Bullish Reversal Confirmation around 27447-27062.
Stop-Loss: Set below recent support levels to manage risk.
Take Profit: Target price of 29221.
Risk-Reward Ratio: Ensure a favorable risk-reward ratio by adjusting position size accordingly.
Risk Factors:
Market Trends: Monitor broader market trends for potential shifts.
Economic Indicators: Keep an eye on key economic indicators, especially those related to inflation and the US dollar.
Geopolitical Events: Any unexpected geopolitical events can influence market sentiment.
It's crucial to conduct ongoing analysis and adapt the trade strategy based on changing market conditions. Always be aware of potential risks and use risk management tools effectively.
Navigating Rocky Oct After a Crushing Sept in US EquitiesSeasonality is pervasive in financial markets. Some are benign while others are not. The “September Effect” refers to a month when equity returns gets crushed. Typically, this is followed by a volatile October.
Other well-established pattern in equity markets is the "Santa Claus Rally" which is known to occur during December. Equities go bullish with increased optimism, holiday spending, and portfolio rebalancing before the end of the year. Then, there is also the "January Effect" where small-caps tend to outperform large-caps in the early part of the year.
Essential to remember that historical trends do not guarantee future performance. This paper delves into the September Effect followed by the volatility which tends to be witnessed during the month of October.
Portfolio managers can prudently position their portfolios to gain from rising volatility and sharp price moves in October and the rest of the final quarter.
WHAT EXPLAINS POOR EQUITY RETURNS IN SEPTEMBER?
There is no exact rationale explaining why September is historically the worst month of the year for equities. Over the last 94 years, September is the only individual month that has declined at least 50% of the time.
Scott Bauer, CEO of Prosper Trading Academy surmises in an opinion note that three drivers plausibly explains this:
1. Post Summer Vacation: In the lead up to summer in Europe, average trading volumes grind lower resulting in lower volatility from June to August. When portfolio managers and investors return in September, their collective rebalancing of portfolios cause panicked exits as they create space for new holdings. This mass-exodus of selling shares pushes prices lower making September the worst month for stocks.
2. Year-end for Mutual Funds: Many mutual funds close their fiscal year in September. These funds purge their portfolios during this ill-fated month.
3. New Bond Issuances: Like equity trading activity, bond issuances ease during summer and return with vengeance and spikes in September. New issuances channel existing money into bonds forcing investors to rotate out of equities and into bonds.
SEPTEMBER US EQUITY MARKET PERFORMANCE IN THIS MILLENNIUM
Does the September effect prevail in the current millennium? Since start of 2000, September indeed is the worst month for S&P 500 stocks with average returns of -1.8%.
Surprisingly, the months with the highest occurrence of negative returns is not September but January. Over the last 23 years, January had 13 months of negative returns. June along with September rank second with 12 occurrences of negative returns during the same period.
The chart below summarises average monthly returns of S&P 500 index. Clearly, on average, September stands out as a poor performer while April is the best .
Interestingly, the S&P 500 shares tend to deliver positive returns with average upside performance of 3.22% in the fourth and final quarter of the year.
Likewise for Nasdaq 100, the September Effect is even more pronounced with index plunging 2.61% on average.
Unlike S&P 500, February (14 of 23) has the highest number of months with occurrence of negative returns. The month with the second highest occurrences of negative returns are September, June, and December with 12 of 23 years marking a negative return.
The chart below summarises average monthly returns on the Nasdaq 100 index. While September crushes Nasdaq stocks, October is the best month thus far this millennium.
October and November deliver positive returns with a pullback in December. On average, Nasdaq 100 upside performance stands at +2.44% in the fourth quarter.
A CRUSHING SEPTEMBER IS FOLLOWED BY A ROCKY OCTOBER
While September is the king of worst month for stock returns, October claims the crown for being the most volatile.
Over the last 23 years, the S&P 500 equity returns show the largest exaggeration in October. Range as used below is defined as the high minus the low of the month and then expressed as a percentage as month’s opening level.
Analysis shows that equity returns move by 9.1% in October compared to 6.9% on average for the rest of the months in the year.
Similarly, observations in Nasdaq-100 also point to exaggerated range of returns during the month of October.
Range in Nasdaq monthly returns stand at 11% in October compared to 9.2% on average for the rest of the months in the year.
Based on expected returns and volatility, investors in S&P 500 can expect large swings in returns in October as evident from the chart below.
Likewise, Nasdaq 100 investors can expect large swings in October returns based on observations over the last 23 years.
OUTLOOK FOR FINAL QUARTER OF 2023
Twenty-three years of historical observations point to a positive upward bias in equity returns for the last three months of the year. This time however, the outlook going into the final quarter is beset with head winds. Not one but five of them approaching in parallel. Risk lurks in many places.
Strong dollar. Oil skirting near $100/barrel. Resumption of student loan repayments. Record high mortgage rates driven by higher for longer policy stance. Automotive workers striking at multiple plants potentially leading to higher labour costs and automotive inflation.
Dollar is trading at 10-month highs. The US 30-year mortgage rates at record high levels unseen in 23-years. The 10-year US yield are at levels last observed during 2007.
Gathering of these dark clouds are starting to show up in the University of Michigan’s US Consumer Confidence index. Since June, American exceptionalism boosted the index to 71.73 clocking a 52-week high. However, with a raft of concerns weighing on the consumers, the index has started to drop the last two months.
HARVESTING VOLATILITY EXPANSION USING CME MICRO OPTIONS ON S&P 500 AND NASDAQ 100 INDEX
In times of uncertainty, where seasonality leans towards a bullish rally but fundamentals signal a bearish grind, portfolio managers can position to gain from volatility expansion and sharp index moves in either direction.
Options can be used to engineer a convex portfolio. Convexity in finance refers to portfolio strategies which enjoy outsized and solid gains while limiting downside risks. Convex strategies deliver non-linear returns with substantially higher gain for every unit of pain.
LONG STRADDLE USING OPTIONS ON CME MICRO E-MINI S&P 500 FUTURES
Long straddles involve holding a simultaneous long call and long put position at the same strike price for the same expiration period.
Let’s look at a hypothetic long straddle using Micro E-Mini S&P 500 Options expiring on 29th December 2023 at a strike price of 4400. The straddle pay-off is visualised in the chart below.
This trade will generate positive returns when (a) index rises above 4655, or (b) index falls below 4145, or (c) volatility expands .
The premium required for this trade (as of 2nd October 2023): (Premium for Call Option + Premium for Put Option) = (USD 631.7 + USD 636.65) = USD 1268.35.
If index rises 10% to 4840: Call option would pay out ~USD 1568 = ((4840 – 4400) x 5 – Premium for Call Option) = (440 x 5 – 126.34) while the put option would expire worthless, so, net profit would be: (Net PnL from Call leg – Net PnL from Put Leg) = (1568 – 636.65) = ~USD 932
By the same measure, the long straddle will suffer losses if the index remains flat or its moves are muted. It also loses money if volatility remains flat or contracts.
If index remains at 4400: Both options would expire worthless, so, the position would lead to a net loss of the premium paid = Loss of USD 1268.35.
LONG STRADDLE USING OPTIONS ON MICRO E-MINI NASDAQ 100 FUTURES
Let’s look at another hypothetic long straddle using Micro E-Mini Nasdaq 100 options expiring on 29th December 2023 at a strike price of 15250. The straddle pay-off is visualised in the chart below.
This trade will generate positive returns when (a) index rises above 16416, or (b) index falls below 14084, or (c) volatility expands.
The long straddle will endure losses if the index remains flat or its moves within a narrow range. It will also lose if volatility remains flat or shrinks.
MARKET DATA
CME Real-time Market Data helps identify trading set-ups and express market views better. If you have futures in your trading portfolio, you can check out on CME Group data plans available that suit your trading needs www.tradingview.com
DISCLAIMER
This case study is for educational purposes only and does not constitute investment recommendations or advice. Nor are they used to promote any specific products, or services.
Trading or investment ideas cited here are for illustration only, as an integral part of a case study to demonstrate the fundamental concepts in risk management or trading under the market scenarios being discussed. Please read the FULL DISCLAIMER the link to which is provided in our profile description.
Watch TLT Support at Multi-Decade LowsPrimary Chart : Monthly Chart of TLT Showing Multi-Decade Support Levels.
A fair amount of charts have been published lately on the importance of interest rates, and conversely, long-term bonds, government or high-yield bonds. One well-known TradingView publisher @scheplick went so far as to describe the chart of the US 10-year yield as the most important chart for understanding financial markets in this season. His post was entitled, " The Most Important Chart in the World :
TLT is an iShares ETF that tracks the performance, generally speaking of long-term US Treasury bonds. Specifically, iShares describes TLT as an ETF that "seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of U.S. Treasury bonds with remaining maturities greater than twenty years."
TLT has been in a severe downtrend since March 2020. Bonds yields move inversely to price, and TLT represents, in a rough sense, the price of an index or basket of long-term US government bonds with maturities greater than 20 years. So if long-term bonds remain in a downtrend, then this corresponds to the uptrend in long-term yields that has continued to break higher than anyone expects.
The Primary Chart shows TLT having reached long-term, major support at 2009-2010 lows. But a careful examination of TLT's recent lows reveals that it broke slightly below those lows, which isn't a good look for bond bulls in the long term. Supplementary Chart A shows 2009-2010 lows on a monthly chart (similar to the Primary Chart above).
Supplementary Chart A
However, TLT's reaching such a major support level, with a lower wick forming (at least initially), could imply a move higher in bonds and a concomitant move lower in yields in the near term. But remember that fighting a predominant trend (mean reversion) when it becomes extended can be one of the trades having the lowest success rate. But it can also have a higher reward rate if risk is managed well. SquishTrade does not recommend being long bonds here but rather commenting on how traders may react to major support levels in TLT's downtrend. They may be right or wrong—recall that no one likely expected long bonds to fall as far as they have, and many have been positioned long bonds since TLT was in the upper $90s!
The next few supplementary charts emphasize the nature and severity of the downtrend in long-term bonds, as represented here by TLT. The first shows TLT's 200-day simple moving average (SMA). Price is about –12.11% below the 200-day SMA as of mid-session on Friday, September 29/
Supplementary Chart B
Next, the VWAP anchored to TLT's long-term cycle high is shown in black. This confirms a long-term, and extreme downtrend in long duration US Treasury bonds. Long-term VWAPs do not always have such a noticeable downward slope. Even a bounce to $125 could present just a mean reversion (retracement) within this downtrend despite creating an uptrend on the daily or even weekly chart, which would be necessary to reach that distant level.
Supplementary Chart C
A Fibonacci channel below has been applied to a weekly TLT chart. Notice how the channel shows support right where the weekly lower wick formed—the 1.618 level of the channel. To be sure, this does not necessitate a long-term trend reversal (though anything is possible, and this could be the spot). But it does suggest the potential for a near term bounce in the shorter cycles.
Supplementary Chart D
Anyone wondering whether a long-term uptrend is still in place from the start of TLT's price history should consider the following chart. This shows decisive breaks of several long-term (and progressively accelerating) uptrends.
Supplementary Chart E
Year-end flows can be supportive of equities, though not always—note the late 2019 exception for CBOE:SPX and $NASDAQ:NDX. If some relief materializes in long-term to intermediate-term bonds, then this could coincide with some support in broader equity markets into year end, though this is by no means guaranteed.
Consider the following posts and charts on yield curve inversions posted by @SPY_Master and this author on TradingView:
These charts of yield-curve inversions should give one serious concerns about the near-term (3 months to 2 years) health of the stock market.
This post is in no way advocating any particular investing or trading strategy. Short-term trading and long-term investing can both be either devastating or profitable (or somewhere in between those extremes) to the person engaging in it.
And thanks for reading this and for your encouragement and support.
________________________________________
Author's Comment: Thank you for reviewing this post and considering its charts and analysis. The author welcomes comments, discussion and debate (respectfully presented) in the comment section. Shared charts are especially helpful to support any opposing or alternative view. This article is intended to present an unbiased, technical view of the security or tradable risk asset discussed.
Please note further that this technical-analysis viewpoint is short-term in nature. This is not a trade recommendation but a technical-analysis overview and commentary with levels to watch for the near term. This technical-analysis viewpoint could change at a moment's notice should price move beyond a level of invalidation. Further, proper risk-management techniques are vital to trading success. And countertrend or mean-reversion trading, e.g., trading a rally in a bear market, is lower probability and is tricky and challenging even for the most experienced traders.
DISCLAIMER: This post contains commentary published solely for educational and informational purposes. This post's content (and any content available through links in this post) and its views do not constitute financial advice or an investment or trading recommendation, and they do not account for readers' personal financial circumstances, or their investing or trading objectives, time frame, and risk tolerance. Readers should perform their own due diligence, and consult a qualified financial adviser or other investment / financial professional before entering any trade, investment or other transaction.
Gold Tracks Purchasing PowerYES, gold does track your purchasing power over LONG PERIODS of time.
It tracks the inflation ADJUSTED US Dollar more accurately than it does either the US Dollar OR Inflation.
It is a better way to understand macro tides which move the price of gold.
While there are periods of lower/diminishing correlation... you should really keep your eye on what has been happening now!
Gold has been in a period of INCREASING, statistically significative correlation with Purchasing Power.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?
Well, when gold sniffs out the end of the current rally for US Dollar versus Inflation, then it will tell us on its price chart.
You might want to reshare this post and maybe pin it.
I will.
========
Below is why I did this post.
What makes gold move?
I see soo many focus too much on either inflation or the US Dollar.
They are often wrong for 2 reasons:
1- Gold tracks neither per say, but inflation adjusted US Dollar (purchasing power).
2- Gold has a tendency to move 3 to 6 months ahead of the next move in purchasing power.
Use charts for unbiased, objective evidence gathering.
Forget headline news, stories, and narratives.
#gold #usdollar #dxy #purchasingpower #inflation
How to Altseason Cycle || Cheat Sheet || Bitcoin DominanceMonitoring Bitcoin dominance (BTC-DOM) is a valuable tool for crypto traders. It provides insights into the relationship between Bitcoin (BTC-USD) and altcoins (ALT-USD), helping you make bette decisions about your altcoins and tokens.
Spotting Altcoin Seasons:
Altcoin seasons are periods of heightened interest in different cryptocurrencies and tokens, often causing their total market cap to surpass that of Bitcoin.
Understanding BTC-DOM's movements can help you anticipate how the market might react:
1. BTC-DOM Goes UP:
When BTC-DOM rises and BTC-USD also climbs, it often indicates a bullish phase for Bitcoin. During this time, ALT-USD may stay relative stable and face sideways.
If BTC-USD experiences a decline while BTC-DOM is on the upswing, ALT-USD might witness a significant dump.
When BTC-USD moves sideways and BTC-DOM follows suit, ALT-USD tends to maintain a stable course.
2. BTC-DOM Goes SIDEWAYS:
If BTC-DOM remains relatively stable and BTC-USD sees an uptrend, ALT-USD often mirrors this upward movement.
Conversely, if BTC-USD takes a dip while BTC-DOM remains flat, ALT-USD tends to follow suit with a decline.
When both BTC-USD and BTC-DOM exhibit sideways patterns, ALT-USD typically remains in a state of relative stability.
3. BTC-DOM Goes DOWN:
A decrease in BTC-DOM coupled with a rising BTC-USD often leads to a pumps for ALT-USD.
When BTC-USD experiences a decrease while BTC-DOM falls, ALT-USD may stabilize or enter a sideways phase.
If BTC-USD moves sideways while BTC-DOM declines, ALT-USD often witnesses an upward movement.
Remember that while these trends offer valuable insights, the crypto market is highly volatile. Low cap altcoins can behave unexpectedly even when Bitcoin dominance suggests a particular trend. Therefore, use Bitcoin dominance as one of many tools in your investment strategy, and always conduct thorough research before making decisions.
NIKE | JUST BUY ITNike topped Wall Street estimates for first quarter profit on Thursday as higher prices of its sneakers and apparel helped offset a hit from waning demand and persistent cost pressures, sending its shares up about 8% in extended trading.
Nike (NKE) is the largest apparel company in the world, with leading positions across different categories and regions. The company is currently facing challenges such as elevated inventory levels, inflationary pressure, and slow growth in China. Such issues have resulted in the stock dropping by 19% YTD. Although these headwinds are serious, I believe the company's durable brand, leading position, and high-quality products should allow it to come out stronger on the other end.
'Nike is a brand that is of China and for China' -John Donahoe
Like every other apparel and retail company, Nike thought post-pandemic demand would continue, so it increased production, which led to inventory levels hitting an all-time high in Q1-FY22, but as we know, that wasn't the case. Although NKE's inventory level is down from all-time highs, investors are still concerned, especially when inflation is eating into people's pockets and growth in China is slowing.
Inflation in North America has come down to 3.7% from its peak in June at 9.1%, but it is still a concern in Europe (6.1% in the EU union). As you can see from the graph below, sales in China have been decreasing for the past two years. There are multiple ways one can explain this: COVID related lockdowns resulted in the shuttering of some stores. Plus, Nike and other apparel companies started facing a backlash in China in 2021 due to the alleged use of forced labor in cotton production. However, if the company is successful at expanding into China, then we can expect a lot of room for growth.
Now that I have addressed the problems that are facing Nike, let me explain why I believe the company will overcome them. Nike sponsors the most well-known athletes such as Cristiano Ronaldo (+600 million Instagram followers), LeBron James, Michael Jordan, the late Kobe Bryant, Rafael Nadal, Tiger Woods, and more. This has helped the company build a loyal customer base and further boost its brand equity. With a loyal customer base comes pricing power, and as Warrant Buffet said:
Nike's pricing power is no joke. Its shoes have reached a level where they are considered luxury, with some selling for more than the $10,000 mark. In 2017, Nike's median price for a shoe regardless of gender was $80, which is $10 more than its biggest competitor, Adidas. I know 2017 was a long time ago, but shoe prices have increased since then, and I believe Nike is still in the lead given their dominant market position. Plus, Nike targets mostly the age demographic of 25 and 34. These are people who have not settled in yet. They just graduated college with extra income to spend on things such as expensive shoes. I believe this pricing power will continue as the company continues to sponsor talented upcoming athletes to build trust with customers.
Another way to measure Nike's brand power is by comparing its marketing spending against its peers. Nike's marketing budget in FY 23 was $4 billion, or 7.9% of revenue. On the other hand, Adidas spent 38% and Under Armour 11%. These companies have been allocating more of their revenue towards marketing but have experienced nowhere near the growth Nike has. NKE's association with well-known athletes in the U.S. has allowed them to have a 96% awareness rate, 53% usage rate, and 43% loyalty rate. Going forward, I expect the company's brand will remain high-quality due to sponsorships, high-quality products, and market-leading technology.
Founded by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight in 1994, Nike has come a long way from its first store in Portland, Oregon. As of May 31, 2023, the company had 369 stores within the U.S. and 663 internationally, operating in more than 190 countries. Stores include franchised stores and third-party retailers. The firm owns multiple brands such as Jordan, Converse, and Nike. The company derives sales from four main segments and across four regions. I excluded Converse (4.74% of revenue) from the graphs below because I wanted to focus on the Nike brand. The company's app, NikePlus, has more than 160 million users.
On a trailing free cash flow basis, the stock yields over 3.3% relative to its enterprise value. My ~$104 May 24 PT implies a 28.00x P/E and 20.00x EV/EBITDA. Both multiples are below the ten-year NTM average and in line with the median. I project revenue to compound at a rate of 6.47% over the next three years, driven by market growth and new products, while shares decrease at a rate of 2.67%, driven by stock buybacks. The company is forecast to spend $12.1 billion on share repurchases over the same period.
Additionally, I believe the company still has room for margin improvement driven by price increases and DTC mix (direct-to-consumer). In FY 2019, DTC sales constituted 31% of revenue, and that figure stood at 44% in FY 2023. Although NKE is trading at a premium compared to peers, I believe it is reasonable considering its scale, high-quality products, and strong brand.
The first risk that I would associate with NKE is competition. The company competes with conglomerates such as Addidas, Puma, New Balance, Under Armour, and more. Additionally, e-commerce has made it very easy for anyone to start their own footwear brand. Other key risks to my rating include supply chain distributions, a recessionary environment, and slow growth in China.
Finally, we can point out that NKE appears technically oversold heading into the Q1 earnings report. From the chart , there has been relentless selling pressure over the last four months since NKE was trading at $130 per share.
The potential that NKE delivers a "good" earnings report with encouraging guidance, brushing aside fears the company is facing a deeper deterioration in its operating environment could be enough for shares to reprice higher. Simply put, our take is that NKE bears have gone too far, opening the door for bulls to take control.
The bottom line is that Nike is currently experiencing headwinds such as elevated inventory levels, inflationary pressure, and slow growth in China. Every business goes through similar challenges at one time or another, but I believe Nike is well-positioned to overcome these issues due to its durable brand, high-quality products, and leading position. I expect the company to keep endorsing high-quality athletes to elevate its brand equity and further strengthen its pricing power. My valuation implies a price target of ~$104 for May 31, 2024.
If you into NIKE brand you can watch Air film and read Shoe Dog book as well
EUR/CAD Long and EUR/USD LongEUR/CAD Long
• If price corrects and a tight flag forms, then I'll be looking to get long with either a reduced risk entry on the break of the flag or a risk entry within it.
• If my entry requirements are not met then I will simply wait until another setup which meets my plan materialises.
• If there's any ambiguity then I will not place a trade on this pair.
EUR/USD Long
• If price corrects and a tight flag forms, then I'll be looking to get long with either a reduced risk entry on the break of the flag or a risk entry within it.
• If my entry requirements are not met then I will simply wait until another setup which meets my plan materialises.
• If there's any ambiguity then I will not place a trade on this pair.
Is the Finnish Bank OmaSp about to collapse?The charts are suggesting caution. On the above 10-day chart:
1) Double top in price.
2) Regular bearish divergence.
The higher the timeframe you look the more ugly this divergence is.
Laterally I’m wondering if the small banking crisis that hit the US is now venturing to other parts of the world. OmaSp does not appear to be in isolation.
There were some tell-tell signs before the collapses of Silicon Valley and Signature Banks. (No one in Europe heard of those banks!) They were:
1) Strong bond market exposure.
AND
2) Same TA as above.
“OmaSp has been active in the bond market since 2013” says their website. Very true..
Until recently you could get the information on their Bond market exposure.. You click on the WebPage today and you get:
www.omasp.fi
“Unfortunately the webpage you were looking for can not be found”
Oh dear…
Ww
Type: Trade, short
Risk: <=3%
Timeframe: Candles closing at 19 and under.
10-day Silicon Valley Bank
before
after
10-day Signature Bank
before
after
Crude Oil is Unchanged since 1985Adjusted for inflation as measured by FRED:CPIAUCSL , the price of crude oil hasn't changed since the price peak in 1985.
The back and forth oscillations in supply and demand over the decades has left us right where we started back when I was in college 38 years ago!
The price of a first class stamp in 1985 was 13 cents and is now 66 cents. So, the price of a stamp is up 5-fold but the nominal price of crude oil was $31/barrel back in 1985 and is just over $90 now for a 3-fold increase.
So when you hear over and over in the general media that "crude oil is up" and devastating the economy, you can rest assured that "we have been here before". Yes, prices aren't as low as they were when we had Covid-Crash prices of $25/barrel but at least we don't have $140+ that we had back in 2008 prior to the deleveraging crash called the GFC.
Nvidia Hasn’t Done This Since JanuaryNvidia is on pace for its worst month in a year, but some dip buyers may see opportunity in the semiconductor giant.
The first pattern on today’s chart is the 100-day simple moving average (SMA). NVDA has been holding that line since Thursday, one session after the Federal Reserve hammered the stock under $410. It was the first test of the SMA since early January, when the shares were under $150. Is the long-term trend still intact?
Second, the current price range is near the lows of late June and mid-August. Intermediate-term support may remain in effect.
Third, a falling trendline marks the decline that began in early September. But NVDA made a lower low on Monday and a higher high. That kind of bullish outside day may suggest that short-term slide is nearing an end.
Finally, stochastics are trying to rebound from an oversold condition.
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