Monday, June 20, 2016

Markets Get Boost On Brexit Opposition; Fake Move Fades Throughout Trading Session

When equity prices jump suddenly at the opening bell by one percent or more - as they did today in New York - the only ones who benefit are those already in the market, with positions in the "selected" stocks.

Average investors have no opportunity to partake in the market's sudden generosity. Hedgers and speculators who played properly prior to the open are the big winners. Wealth is not created in any way, shape, or form, other than in a paper manner. It's a trade and soon enough it vanishes.

Stocks, for whatever they're worth (caveat emptor), lost half of their gains over the course of the day. The NASDAQ was up 88 points and closed up 36 and change. The S&P was up 29 points - hitting the magic 2100 spot, again - before falling throughout the day to close up a mere 12 points.

Blue chips fared no better. The Dow was up a whopping 271 points by 10:00 am EDT, but ended the day disappointing to all but the HFTs, who were no doubt front-running every single trade (it's rumored that there were a few hundred bettors in the game), ahead by only 129.

Most of the euphoria at the open was due to a media frenzy over the prospect of England remaining in the European Union. Polls have been tight, but the mainstream media continues to portray Thursday's upcoming vote as a referendum on patriotism for Brits. Vote to stay in the EU, you're a good citizen; vote to leave, or Brexit, you may just be a terrorist sympathizer.

Of course, the media spin is just that, all noise and no substance. Not only would leaving the EU be better for most working Britons, it would also send a powerful message to the status quo that their form of governing is no longer working, and must go. With so many government jobs on the line, the mainstream is pushing hard for a "stay" vote.

Last laugh of the day went to silver holders. Even the best efforts of the central bank cabal could not keep gold's little brother down, closing at 17.52 per troy ounce.

On that note, Hugo Slainas Price proposes a Silver Ruble for Russia. Interesting reading for anyone considering honest money.

Stormy Monday?
S&P 500: 2,083.25, +12.03 (0.58%)
Dow: 17,804.87, +129.71 (0.73%)
NASDAQ: 4,837.21, +36.88 (0.77%)

Crude Oil 49.17 +2.48% Gold 1,292.70 -0.16% EUR/USD 1.1307 -0.11% 10-Yr Bond 1.67 +3.21% Corn 422.75 -3.43% Copper 2.09 +1.80% Silver 17.52 +0.63% Natural Gas 2.97 +2.67% Russell 2000 1,158.05 +1.17% VIX 18.20 -6.23% BATS 1000 20,677.17 0.00% GBP/USD 1.4685 +1.52% USD/JPY 103.8550 -0.84%

No comments: