US & Canada Archives - Page 98 of 177

September 15, 2013

Dow, S&P 500 selling pressure but VIX bullish

Dow Jones Industrial Average put in a strong blue candle last week, but 13-week Twiggs Money Flow bearish divergence continues to warn of a reversal. Exercise caution until there is a breakout above the August high of 37% on TMF following an index breakout above 15660. Failure of primary support at 14500 would confirm a reversal, but continuation of the up-trend now seems as likely.

Dow Jones Industrial Average

The S&P 500 displays a similar bearish divergence on the daily chart, indicating selling pressure. 21-Day Twiggs Money Flow is now rising and follow-through above the July high at 23% would negate the warning. As would breakout above 1710 on the index chart, signaling a long-term advance to 1900*. Respect of resistance remains as likely, however, and reversal below 1670 would test the then primary support level at 1630.

S&P 500 Index

* Target calculation: 1710 + ( 1710 – 1630 ) = 1890

Despite the bearish divergences, VIX below 20 continues to suggest a bull market.
VIX Index

September 12, 2013

US & China lift ASX

The S&P 500 rallied strongly this week despite a weak bearish divergence on 13-week Twiggs Money Flow warning of selling pressure. Recovery above 1700 would indicate another advance, while a new August high on Twiggs Money Flow would further strengthen the signal, offering a target of 1850*. Reversal below 1630 is unlikely, but would re-test primary support at 1560.

S&P 500 Index

* Target calculation: 1700 + ( 1700 – 1550 ) = 1850

Dow Jones Industrial Average displayed a stronger bearish divergence on 13-week Twiggs Money Flow, increasing the likelihood of reversal below 14800. But positive sentiment is growing and recovery above 15650 now seems as likely.
S&P 500 Index

China’s Shanghai Composite penetrated resistance at 2200 and the descending trendline, suggesting that the down-trend is ending. Reversal below the rising trendline would warn of another correction to test primary support at 1950, but breach of support is now less likely. Rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow indicates medium-term buying pressure; a trough above zero would strengthen the signal.

Shanghai Composite Index

The ASX 200 is testing resistance at 5250, buoyed by positive sentiment in China and the US. Breakout would suggest a primary advance, but a lower peak on 13-week Twiggs Money Flow would continue to warn of selling pressure. Reversal below 5150 remains as likely, and would test medium-term support at 4900/5000.

ASX 200 Index

* Target calculation: 5250 + ( 5250 – 4750 ) = 5750

September 9, 2013

Canada: TSX buying pressure

Canada’s TSX Composite is testing resistance at 12900 on the weekly chart. Rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow indicates medium-term buying pressure. Breakout (above 12900) would signal a primary advance, with a long-term target of 14000*. Respect of resistance is unlikely, but would test support at 12400. The wild card is the Dow Industrial Average: if it signals a reversal, all bets are off.

TSX Composite Index

* Target calculation: 12900 + ( 12900 – 11800 ) = 14000

September 9, 2013

Dow warns of reversal but S&P 500 hesitates

Dow Jones Industrial Average bearish divergence on 13-week Twiggs Money Flow warns of a reversal. Failure of primary support at 14500/14600 would confirm. Recovery above 15000 would defer the test of primary support, but strong selling pressure should not be ignored.

Dow Jones Industrial Average

Friday’s long-legged doji candle on the S&P 500 (daily chart) indicates hesitancy. Follow-through above the descending trendline would suggest that the correction is over, while a fall below the longer-term rising trendline would warn that momentum is slowing and another test of primary support at 1560 is likely. Bearish divergence on 21-day Twiggs Money Flow indicates selling pressure. In the long-term, failure of primary support would offer a target of 1400*.

S&P 500 Index

* Target calculation: 1550 – ( 1700 – 1550 ) = 1400

VIX below 20, however, continues to suggest a bull market.
VIX Index

Rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow and consolidation above the preceding peak at 3040/3050 on the Nasdaq 100 also favors continuation of the primary up-trend.

Nasdaq 100 Index

Signals are mixed at present, but a stronger bear signal on the Dow, or an upward spike on the VIX, would tilt probabilities towards a reversal.

September 5, 2013

Forex: Euro weakens but Aussie, Yen resilient

The Euro followed through below $1.3150, after breaking support at $1.32, confirming a correction to primary support at $1.2750/1.2800. Reversal of 63-day Twiggs Momentum below zero would strengthen the signal.

Euro/USD

Sterling penetrated the descending trendline (weekly chart) against the euro, suggesting the primary down-trend is over. Breakout above €1.19 would complete a double bottom with a target of €1.24*. Recovery of 13-week Twiggs Momentum above zero also indicates a primary up-trend. Reversal below €1.16 is unlikely, but would warn the down-trend may continue; failure of primary support at €1.14 would confirm.

Sterling/Euro

* Target calculation: 1.19 + ( 1.19 – 1.14 ) = 1.24

The greenback broke out of its triangular pattern (weekly chart) against the Yen, but too close to the apex to have much significance. Follow-through above ¥101.50 would offer a long-term target of ¥114*. Reversal below ¥96 is unlikely, but would test primary support at ¥94.

USD/JPY

* Target calculation: 104 + ( 104 – 94 ) = 114

Canada’s Loonie is testing primary support at $0.9450 against the greenback. Respect, indicated by recovery above $0.96, would test the descending trendline (weekly chart) and resistance at $0.9750. Failure of support is as likely, however, and would warn of another decline.

Canadian Loonie

The Aussie Dollar penetrated its descending trendline (daily chart) against the greenback, suggesting the primary down-trend is weakening. Breakout above $0.92 would complete a double-bottom reversal with an initial target of $0.95*. Respect of resistance remains likely, however, and would signal another test of primary support at $0.89*.

Aussie Dollar

* Target calculations: 0.92 + ( 0.92 – 0.89 ) = 0.95; 0.89 – ( 0.92 – 0.89 ) = 0.86

The Aussie penetrated its descending trendline (weekly chart) against the Kiwi, suggesting that the primary down-trend is over. Breakout above $1.16 would confirm, while reversal below $1.12 would signal another decline.

Canadian Loonie

September 5, 2013

Fed’s Fisher Slams Congress Over Fiscal Policy | WSJ

Rob Curran at WSJ reports on a speech by Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher:

Speaking at a luncheon hosted by financial-industry trade group the Dallas Estate Planning Council at the Dallas Country Club, Mr. Fisher said the central bank has done all it can to stimulate the U.S. economy. He said members of Congress–both Republicans and Democrats–have failed to do their part. Elected officials have “sold our children–and our grandchildren–down the river,” Mr. Fisher said. “We haven’t had a budget for five years; no one knows what their taxes are going to be; no one knows what spending is going to be.”

The Dallas Fed president has long maintained that the missing ingredient in the economic recovery is a sound fiscal policy.

via Fed’s Fisher Slams Congress Over Fiscal Policy – Real Time Economics – WSJ.

September 3, 2013

Sarah Palin: ‘We’re bombing Syria … and I’m the idiot?’ | Washington Times

Jessica Chasmar at The Washington Times:

“So we’re bombing Syria because Syria is bombing Syria? And I’m the idiot?” Mrs. Palin asked on Friday. “President Obama wants America involved in Syria’s civil war pitting the antagonistic Assad regime against equally antagonistic Al Qaeda affiliated rebels. But he’s not quite sure which side is doing what, what the ultimate end game is, or even whose side we should be on.”

September 3, 2013

Global markets bearish but ASX, India find support

US markets are closed for Labor Day. The S&P 500 ended last week testing its rising trendline and support at 1630. Breach would reinforce the bearish divergence on 21-day Twiggs Money Flow, indicating a test of primary support at 1560. Recovery above the descending trendline is unlikely at present, but would warn the correction is ending. In the long-term, failure of primary support would offer a target of 1400*.

S&P 500 Index

* Target calculation: 1550 – ( 1700 – 1550 ) = 1400

VIX below 20 suggests a bull market.
S&P 500 Index

The FTSE 100 closed above initial resistance at 6500. Follow-through would suggest the correction is over and another attempt at 6750 likely. Strong bearish divergence on 13-week Twiggs Money Flow, however, warns of selling pressure and breakout above 6750 is unlikely. Reversal below 6400 would warn of a test of primary support at 6000.

FTSE 100 Index

Germany’s DAX encountered stubborn resistance at 8500. Reversal below 8000 would test primary support at 7600, while breakout above 8500 would offer a target of 9000*.

DAX Index

* Target calculation: 8400 + ( 8400 – 7800 ) = 9000

Japan’s Nikkei 225 recovered above 13500 and follow-through above the descending trendline would suggest the correction is over and another test of resistance at 15000 is likely. Reversal below 13200, however, would indicate a test of primary support at 12500. Earlier bearish divergence on 13-week Twiggs Money Flow warns of long-term selling pressure.

Nikkei 225 Index

China’s Shanghai Composite is testing resistance at 2100/2120. Bearish divergence on 13-week Twiggs Money Flow warns of selling pressure. Reversal below 2050 would indicate another test of primary support at 1950. Breakout above 2200 and the descending trendline is unlikely, but would suggest that the down-trend is ending.

Shanghai Composite Index

India’s Sensex encountered strong support at 18000/18500, evidenced by the long tails on the weekly candles and rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow. Expect another test of resistance at 20500. Follow-through above 19000 would strengthen the signal.

BSE Sensex Index

The ASX 200 is headed for a test of 5250 after breaking resistance at 5150. Rising 13-week Twiggs Money Flow indicates medium-term buying pressure. Breakout above 5250 would be a welcome sign, suggesting another primary advance, but respect of resistance and a lower peak on Twiggs Money Flow would warn of a reversal.

ASX 200 Index

* Target calculation: 5250 + ( 5250 – 4750 ) = 5750

August 31, 2013

John Mauldin: Effect of the taper

The last two times the Fed has ended a period of quantitative easing, the air has come out of the market balloon. Has this coming move been so telegraphed that the reaction will be different than in the past, or will we see the same result? Want to bet your bonus on it? Or your retirement?

~ John Mauldin

See graph at Mauldin Economics

August 29, 2013

The Qatar Problem – By Jeremy Shapiro | The Middle East Channel

Jeremy Shapiro at Foreign Policy discusses the role played by Qatar in the Middle East, their expansion of Al-Jazeera into the US, and their support for the Muslim Brotherhood:

On the face of it, Qatar has been one of the United States’s most valuable allies in the Middle East over the last decade. Qatar hosts a large U.S. Air Force base in the Persian Gulf and has often provided political and financial support for U.S. initiatives in the Middle East. Indeed, Washington has often encouraged Qatari activism to legitimize U.S. diplomacy, including its political support at the Arab League of a potential U.S. strike against Syria.

But Qatar’s role in the United States’s Middle East policy is far more problematic than is commonly recognized. The tiny yet ambitious Gulf emirate has sought to use its immense hydrocarbon wealth to finance and arm civil wars in Libya and Syria, to support Hamas in Gaza, and to mediate disputes in Sudan and Lebanon. Its interest sometimes align with the United States’s — but too often, they do not. The launch of Al-Jazeera America, the news network its government owns, should redirect attention to Doha’s goals and means……