Robert Kagan on Why the World Needs America – WSJ.com

Many foreign-policy experts see the present international order as the inevitable result of human progress, a combination of advancing science and technology, an increasingly global economy, strengthening international institutions, evolving “norms” of international behavior and the gradual but inevitable triumph of liberal democracy over other forms of government—forces of change that transcend the actions of men and nations.

……But international order is not an evolution; it is an imposition. It is the domination of one vision over others—in America’s case, the domination of free-market and democratic principles, together with an international system that supports them. The present order will last only as long as those who favor it and benefit from it retain the will and capacity to defend it.

via Robert Kagan on Why the World Needs America – WSJ.com.

Canada: TSX 60 retreats

Canada’s TSX 60 index retreated to test support at 700. Failure would warn of trend weakness, while recovery above 715 would confirm the primary up-trend.

TSX 60 Index

* Target calculation: 715 + ( 715 – 645 ) = 785

Dow and S&P 500 test key resistance

Dow Jones Industrial Average is testing resistance at 12800. A large bearish divergence would be completed if 13-week Twiggs Money Flow retreated below 10% — and would warn of a bull trap. Reversal below medium-term support at 12300 and the rising trendline would also warn of trend weakness, while respect of these levels would indicate a primary advance to 13400*.

Dow Jones Industrial Average

* Target calculation: 12300 + ( 12300 – 11200 ) = 13400

The S&P 500 displays similar weakness on 13-week Twiggs Money Flow, but rising 63-day Twiggs Money Flow indicates trend strength. Breakout above 1370 would indicate an advance to 1450*.

S&P 500 Index

* Target calculation: 1300 + ( 1300 – 1150 ) = 1450

The Nasdaq 100 made a strong breakout above 2400, indicating a primary up-trend. Expect a retracement to test the new support level (2400); respect would confirm the up-trend.

Nasdaq 100 Index

* Target calculation: 2400 + ( 2400 – 2150 ) = 2650

Did Economy Really Create 500,000 Jobs? – WSJ

A recent study by economists Katharine Abraham and John Haltiwanger at the University of Maryland, Kristin Sandusky at the Census Bureau and James Spletzer at the Labor Department found “substantial discrepancies” between employee payrolls and the household survey used to calculate Unemployment.

Some 6.4% of people who showed up as holding jobs on employee records were recorded as unemployed in the household survey. Many of them were 65 and older — which suggests they were people who considered themselves retirees even as they continued to draw some sort of paycheck. An even larger 17.6% of people who counted as employed in the household survey didn’t show up on employee records. Many of them had demographic characteristics, such as low education levels, that suggested they were working off the books.

via Did Economy Really Create 500,000 Jobs? – Real Time Economics – WSJ.

US Labor Force Participation Rates

The Chicago Fed attributes part of the decline in US labor force participation to the baby boomer phenomenon producing a growing number of retirees, but this chart from their newsletter excludes retirees and highlights the real problem.

Female LFPR are expected to fluctuate by about 1 percent (from 1987 to 2020) while male college graduates have fallen by about 2 percent. Male high school graduates, however, have fallen by 6 percent and do not look like recovering any time soon. The primary cause is the declining manufacturing sector and loss of construction, banking and real estate jobs as a result of the housing market crash.

US Labor Force Participation Rates, Ages 25 to 54

Peter Schiff Speaks to James Rickards, Author of Currency Wars | Peter Schiff | Safehaven.com

James Rickards: The dollar is not necessarily on the road to ruin, but that outcome does seem highly likely at the moment. There is still time to pull back from the brink, but it requires a specific set of policies: breaking up big banks, banning derivatives, raising interest rates to make the US a magnet for capital, cutting government spending, eliminating capital gains and corporate income taxes, going to a personal flat tax, and reducing regulation on job-creating businesses. However, the likelihood of these policies being put in place seems remote – so the dollar collapse scenario must be considered.

via Peter Schiff Speaks to James Rickards, Author of Currency Wars | Peter Schiff | Safehaven.com.

Canada: TSX 60

Canada’s TSX 60 index broke resistance at 715 to signal a primary up-trend. Rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow indicates buying pressure. Target for the initial advance is 785*.

TSX 60 Index

* Target calculation: 715 + ( 715 – 645 ) = 785

Bull market signaled as liquidity soars

Central banks are flooding the markets with liquidity, causing stocks to rise despite weak fundamentals. Large bearish divergences on 13-week Twiggs Money Flow for Dow Industrials and the Nasdaq 100 highlight the precarious nature of the current rally. But, as I said earlier, don’t bet on this ending before the November election.

Dow Jones Industrial Average broke resistance at 12800, joining the Nasdaq 100 above its 2011 high. All four major indices display a primary up-trend, collectively signaling a bull market. Rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow indicates medium-term buying pressure on the Dow and target for the initial advance is 13400*.

Dow Jones Industrial Average

* Target calculation: 12300 + ( 12300 – 11200 ) = 13400

The S&P 500 is a little way behind, but rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow indicates buying pressure. Breakout above 1370 is likely to confirm an advance to 1450*.

S&P 500 Index

* Target calculation: 1300 + ( 1300 – 1150 ) = 1450

The Nasdaq 100 index followed through above 2500, confirming the primary up-trend, while rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow indicates medium-term buying pressure.

Nasdaq 100 Index

* Target calculation: 2400 + ( 2400 – 2150 ) = 2650

Dow Jones Transport Average is also in a primary up-trend; and headed for a test of resistance at 5600. New highs on 13-week Twiggs Money Flow indicate long-term buying pressure.

Dow Jones Transport Average

* Target calculation: 5000 + ( 5000 – 4500 ) = 5500

Forex: EUR, GBP, AUD, CAD, JPY, ZAR

The euro remains in a strong primary down-trend. The current rally is testing resistance at $1.32, but 63 -day Twiggs Momentum continues to trend downwards. Breach of support at $1.26 would signal a down-swing to $1.20*.

Index

* Target calculation: 1.26 – ( 1.32 – 1.26 ) = 1.20

Pound Sterling has breached its declining trendline against the greenback, warning that a bottom is forming. Breakout above $1.62 would complete a double bottom  reversal, testing the 2011 high at $1.68.

Index

* Target calculation: 1.62 + ( 1.62 – 1.53 ) = 1.71

Canada’s Loonie also signals that a bottom is forming.  Breakout above $1.01 would indicate the start of a primary up-trend, with an initial target of $1.06*.

Index

* Target calculation: 1.01 + ( 1.01 – 0.96 ) = 1.06

The Aussie is testing resistance at $1.08. Breakout would similarly signal a primary up-trend with an initial target of $1.18*.

Index

* Target calculation: 1.08 + ( 1.08 – 0.98 ) = 1.18

The greenback is testing primary support at 76 against the Japanese yen. Breakout would offer a target of 72*. Recovery above the declining trendline, however, would suggest that a bottom is forming — confirming the large bullish divergence on 63-day Twiggs Momentum — while breakout above 80 would signal a primary up-trend.

Index

* Target calculation: 76 – ( 80 – 76 ) = 72

The South African Rand is strengthening against the US Dollar, while encountering resistance at R8.50 against its Australian counterpart. Downward breakout from the ascending triangle would warn of a correction to test the long-term trendline at R7.50, while breakout above R8.50 would indicate another primary advance, with a target of R9.50*.

Index

* Target calculation: 8.50 + ( 8.50 – 7.50 ) = 9.50