Weekend Wrap: This Is Bad; Oil Crashes; Stock Futures Limit Down; Global Market Panic in Progress

Thanks to a late-day ramp on Friday afternoon, the week turned out to be mostly positive for the investor class, though it certainly didn't seem to be that way most as the days wore onward.

With a 600-point buying spree on the Dow Jones Industrial Average - which pulled all the other indices higher as well - stocks finished with gains instead of substantial losses. After a week of wild swings, the mood had turned ugly, accentuated by cascading drops on Thursday and Friday at the opening bells both days and concerted selling in airline stocks, banks, and hospitality.

As pronounced as the near-panic over the prior five trading sessions was, what's ahead on Monday will be worse by orders of magnitude.

Beginning with the coronavirus (COVID-19) decimating economies and social structure from China to Italy to South Korea, Iran, and beyond, slumping demand and forecasting of a bleak near-term future prompted extreme action from Saudi Arabia over the weekend. On Friday, when Russia refused to go along with a planned 1.5 million barrels a day reduction in crude production by OPEC+ nations, the Saudis decided to put the screws to everyone in the oil business by slashing their rates and ramping up production.

The impact of this momentous decision on Saturday was immediately felt across not just the oil futures markets but equity and credit markets around the world. With all major indices closed as usual on Sunday, focus was attuned to futures, which were being hammered lower by as much as seven percent in some cases. In the US, futures trading was halted when the Dow, S&P, and NASDAQ futures fell by five percent, otherwise known as limit down.

Crude futures were down by extreme amounts. WTI crude was last seen at $32.07 per barrel, a 22% loss from Friday, when it was selling in the low 40s per barrel.

Bonds were being battered as well, with reports that the benchmark 10-year note was trading with a yield below 0.48% (at one point yielding an all-time low of 0.31%) and other bond yields were being destroyed in markets that began to open, first in Japan, China and the Far East, then to Europe. If fear of COVID-19 contagion was palpable, the contagion from the economic fallout had become all to real.

With US markets set to open in an hour, the condition is dire.

A quick rundown of the carnage on major indices around the world:

• NIKKEI (Japan) -5.07%
• 
  
• Straits Times Index (Taiwan, Pacific Rim) -6.03%
• 
  
• SSE Composite (China) -3.01%
• 
  
• Hang Seng (Hong Kong) -4.23%
• 
  
• BSE Sensex (India) -5.17%
• 
  
• All Ordinaries (Australia) -7.40%
• 
  
• KOSPI (South Korea) -4.19%
• 
  
• MOEX (Russia) -3.45
• 
  
• Jakarta Composite (Indonesia) -6.58%
• 
  
• FTSE Bursa (Malaysia) -3.97%
• 
  
• DAX (Germany) -7.00%
• 
  
• CAC-40 (France) -7.14%
• 
  
• FTSE 100 (England) -6.93%
• 
  
• EuroNext 100 (Europe composite) -7.50%

Suppression of the precious metals, the only remaining asset class that may hold some value, continues unabated as global economies come under severe pressure. Gold gained marginally, to $1678.00 per ounce, following a banner performance last week. Silver is under even more pressure, trading at $16.83 on futures markets, making a mockery of the gold/silver ratio, which is nearly 100:1. In more measured times - as in all centuries prior to this one - the gold silver ratio was pretty steady at 12:1 to 16:1. The current measure is a bad joke on a bad day, told by bad people with nothing but evil intentions (central banks).

Silver would have to rise to $100 per ounce for the gold/silver ratio to be anywhere near historical norms. With gold on the verge of a major breakout above $2000 per ounce, silver should - some day, maybe - be worth over $150 per ounce or similar equivalent in some other currency.

Monday's open should be epic. The aftermath, and the expected coordinated response by central banks figures to be a complete clown show, highlighted by massive injections of cash, POMO, TOMO, market-neutral rates, negative rates, and eventually, some collapsing banks. Couldn't happen to a more deserving crowd.

Money Daily will provide updates as time allows. Panic is a mild term for what's about to occur.

At the Close, Friday, March 6, 2020:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 25,864.78, -256.52 (-0.98%)
NASDAQ: 8,575.62, -162.97 (-1.86%)
S&P 500: 2,972.37, -51.57 (-1.71%)
NYSE: 12,352.03, -240.97 (-1.91%)

For the Week:
Dow: +455.42 (+1.79%)
NASDAQ: +8.25 (+0.10%)
S&P 500: +18.15 (+0.61%)
NYSE: -28.94 (-0.23%)

US and European Markets All Suffer End-of-Session Dumping

The major indices - not just in the US, but it Europe as well - fell victim to late-day large scale stock dumping, with all US indices, along with Germany's DAX, France's CAC 40, Britain's FTSE, and the Euronext 100, closing at the low points of their respective sessions.

This can only indicate one of two things: a rebalancing was taking place in the indices, or, big moneys getting out of stocks before Wednesday's opening.

The first case is probably not feasible, since these various indices do not rebalance all on the same day. That would lead to serious dislocations and confusion. Thus, that leaves the second case, in which some large traders with inside information made a hasty exit in anticipation of something terrible on Wednesday. What that terrible thing may be is currently unfathomable, but will probably come to light when European markets open on the morrow.

Market conditions such as this cannot be viewed as one-offs, as they are occurring with too much regularity. There's far too much volatility and sudden reversals to be credited to randomness; it's much more likely that markets are being manipulated by a cartel of central banks and their agencies, the major brokerages, meaning that the average investor is once again left holding a bag of stocks worth less than they were the day before.

One can claim conspiracy often enough to attract attention, and then division, which is why the regulars in the financial media will never let loose with any opinion even tangentially touching upon a conspiratorial theme. Those outside the mainstream have no such binding authority as a job or a narrative, so it's left to bloggers and speculators to sort out the less-than-obvious maneuverings in the market.

While the losses were not large, they were uniform, which indicates at least some coordination.

At the Close, Tuesday, August 20, 2019:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 25,962.44, -173.35 (-0.66%)
NASDAQ: 7,948.56, -54.25 (-0.68%)
S&P 500: 2,900.51, -23.14 (-0.79%)
NYSE Composite: 12,599.41, -88.51 (-0.70%)

Buyers Emerge, Sending Stock Rally To Third Straight Day Of Gains; World Markets Higher

Experts had been saying that once the earnings reporting blackout ended, many companies would begin share repurchases, and that seems to be exactly what has occurred, as stocks extended their rally to three days, opening the month of November with a rip higher on all the major exchanges.

This factoid does nothing to explain the rise in stocks around the world, other than perhaps they are following the US lead. Overnight the Hang Seng jumped by more than four percent in Hong Kong and Japan's NIKKEI posted a 2.50% gain, boosting the index by 556 points.

Early trading in Europe has all the major indices higher as well, with Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 leading the move.

With non-farm payroll data due to roll out at 8:30 am ET, stocks are poised for another big move up at the open. Expectations are for a jobs gain of more than 200,000 in October.

Dow Jones Industrial Average November Scorecard:

Date	Close	Gain/Loss	Cum. G/L
11/1/18	25,380.74	+264.98	+264.98

At there Close, Thursday, November 1, 2018:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 25,380.74, +264.98 (+1.06%)
NASDAQ: 7,434.06, +128.16 (+1.75%)
S&P 500: 2,740.37, +28.63 (+1.06%)
NYSE Composite: 12,356.50, +148.44 (+1.22%)

Stocks Rebound, 11 Major Stock Indices In Correction, Down 10% Or More

Knee-jerk. That's all today's trading was. It evolved as an opportunity to see how many trades could be made on the assumption that stocks will continue to rise, that they are still good values, that despite the fact that major indices of at least 10 different important countries are in correction (down 10%), the US is still the best dirty shirt in the laundry, or something like that.

Just to placate the unbelievers, here is a partial list of stock indices already in correction or worse:

• DAX, Germany
• FTSE, Great Britain
• CAC 40, France
• Nikkei 225, Japan
• Hang Seng, Hong Kong
• SSE Composite, China
• SENSEX, India
• KOSPI, South Korea
• Jakarta Composite, Indonesia
• MERVAL, Argentina
• IPC, Mexico

Ummm, that's 11, but who's counting?

Bear in mind, some of the biggest gains are made during periods of volatility and the beginnings of bear markets. For proof of that, just go back to the NASDAQ in 2000, or the Dow in October of 2008. There were plenty of big days to the upside. Unfortunately, for those taking positions in stocks during those periods, the downside prevailed, and in vey large ways.

Put in perspective, today's broad gains covered about 2/3rds of yesterday's losses. That's not enough, and there is absolutely no guarantee that tomorrow is going to be a repeat performance.

Dow Jones Industrial Average October Scorecard:

Date	Close	Gain/Loss	Cum. G/L
10/1/18	26,651.21	+192.90	+192.90
10/2/18	26,773.94	+122.73	+315.63
10/3/18	26,828.39	+54.45	+370.08
10/4/18	26,627.48	-200.91	+169.17
10/5/18	26,447.05	-180.43	-11.26
10/8/18	26,486.78	+39.73	+28.47
10/9/18	26,430.57	-56.21	-27.74
10/10/18	25,598.74	-831.83	-859.57
10/11/18	25,052.83	-545.91	-1,405.48
10/12/18	25,339.99	+287.16	-1,118.32
10/15/18	25,250.55	-89.44	-1,207.76
10/16/18	25,798.42	+547.87	-659.89
10/17/18	25,706.68	-91.74	-751.63
10/18/18	25,379.45	-327.23	-1,078.86
10/19/18	25,444.34	+64.89	-1,013.97
10/22/18	25,317.41	-126.93	-1,140.90
10/23/18	25,191.43	-125.98	-1,265.88
10/24/18	24,583.42	-608.01	-1,873.89
10/25/18	24,984.55	+401.13	-1,472.76

At the Close, Thursday, October 25, 2018:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 24,984.55, +401.13 (+1.63%)
NASDAQ: 7,318.34, +209.94 (+2.95%)
S&P 500: 2,705.57, +49.47 (+1.86%)
NYSE Composite: 12,118.85, +149.11 (+1.25%)

Global Rout Continues; All 30 Dow Components Lower; China A 50% Loser Since 2015

Stocks took another beating on Thursday, though not quite as extensively on the tech side as was the case in Wednesday's rout. The Dow Industrials took another two percent hit, sending the 30 blue chips down another 546 points. The combined losses in the six sessions following the all-time high close of 26,828.39 on October 3rd at 1,775.56 or 6.69%, a figure that should not, in and of itself, inspire much fear, though the rapidity, persistency, and consistency of the losses are not exactly inspiring much in the way of investor confidence.

All 30 Dow stocks finished in the red. Spared from most of the carnage was Microsoft, which closed at 105.91, down a mere 0.25 points, or 0.24%. No other Dow issue reported a decline of less than one half percent. Leading the way down was Phizer, with a 3.82% loss. Other stocks finishing down three percent or more included JP Morgan Chase (3.00%), Traveler's (3.01%), Proctor and Gamble (3.16%), McDonald's (3.21%), Cisco Systems (3.31%), Chevron (3.40%) and Exxon Mobil (3.45%). The Dow's gain year-to-date is a now a mere 333 points, or less than two percent. There was nothing even approaching good news as third quarter reporting approaches.

The NASDAQ fared much better than the three percent decline it made on Wednesday, dropping less than 100 points, though that was hardly cause for optimism. Having reached a peak of 8102.04 on October 1, the index has shed some 673 points, putting it close to correction (-10%). NASDAQ shares are down a cumulative 8.3%.

On the S&P 500, the percentage decline was almost identical to that of the Dow, losing 57.31 points, down 2.06 percent. The losing streak of the S&P has now reached six straight days. It also closed at an all-time record of 2947.25 on October 1, but has since fallen 219 points, a 7.4% loss in just eight sessions.

Year-to-date, the S&P is up by only 55 points, a gain of just over two precent.

Stocks were also being sold off in droves on foreign exchanges. In Germany, the DAX continued its descent with a loss of 173.15, another 1.48% drop, sending it further into correction. Joining the DAX in the down 10 percent or more club was Britain's FTSE, losing 138.81 points (-1.94%). France's CAC 40 is teetering on the brink, down more than nine percent off recent highs.

On Pacific Rim exchanges, Japan's NIKKEI was down 3.89%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 3.54%, but both were outdone by China, where the SSE Composite Index closed down 5.22%. China's stock market is the world's basket case, down a full 50% from its all-time high of 5,166.35 in June of 2015, the chart bearing a striking resemblance to the NASDAQ's dotcom bust of 2000. The SSE closed Thursday at 2,583.46.

What comes next for markets is anybody's guess. Analysts and economists range from complacency to panic and everything in between. The losses this week rival those from February of this year, when major US indices touched briefly into correction.

Bonds firmed on the day, with the 10-year note finishing with a yield of 3.13%. Oil was hit hard again, with WTI crude losing nearly three percent, closing just a shade under $71/barrel.

The only bright spots were in precious metals. Gold had its best day in months, gaining $34 to $1,227.70 per troy ounce. Silver followed along dutifully, picking up 28 cents per troy ounce, at $14.61.

Dow Jones Industrial Average October Scorecard:

Date	Close	Gain/Loss	Cum. G/L
10/1/18	26,651.21	+192.90	+192.90
10/2/18	26,773.94	+122.73	+315.63
10/3/18	26,828.39	+54.45	+370.08
10/4/18	26,627.48	-200.91	+169.17
10/5/18	26,447.05	-180.43	-11.26
10/8/18	26,486.78	+39.73	+28.47
10/9/18	26,430.57	-56.21	-27.74
10/10/18	25,598.74	-831.83	-859.57
10/11/18	25,052.83	-545.91	-1405.48

At the Close, Thursday, October 11, 2018:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 25,052.83, -545.91 (-2.13%)
NASDAQ: 7,329.06, -92.99 (-1.25%)
S&P 500: 2,728.37, -57.31 (-2.06%)
NYSE Composite: 12,349.53, -272.61 (-2.16%)

How To Tell The Economy Is Really Horrible

A number of interesting developments highlighted today's off-the-street action concerning US stock markets and the general global economy. They were all internet-related, but have nothing to do with the share prices of the companies affected, but first, let's take a recap of the actual carnage in the markets today.

Asia was awash in red ink, as Japan circles the monetary drain (must be Adam Smith's "invisible hand" pulling the plug) sending the Nikkei down to new depths, as noted below, along with Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index, which suffered an even more severe loss in points and percentage:

Nikkei 225: 15,713.39, -372.05, -2.31%
Hang Seng Index 18,545.80, -742.37, -3.85%

With China's markets closed for the week as the country celebrates Chinese New Year, over in Hong Kong, it was back to work after a three-day hiatus. The HSI fell out at the open and never recovered. As many in the US apparently do not know, all of Asia's major markets - including Australia, recently - are in bear market territory. The Hang Seng topped out at 28,588 in late April, 2015. Today's loss puts it down 35% from its highs.

While the Asian markets were spitting up blood, Europe opened with a bang to the downside, as Sweden announced its central bank was cutting interest rates further into the negative. Sweden’s Riksbank cut its benchmark interest rate from -0.35% to -0.5%. So, theoretically, anyone wishing to keep 100,000 Krona in a Swedish bank has the awesome privilege of paying the bank 500 of those Krona for the year.

That, in addition to the ongoing banking collapse (Duetshe Bank, in particular), sent Euro stock bourses reeling. Germany's DAX was off 2.93%. In England, the FTSE was down 2.36%. France's CAC 40 fell by 4.05%, and the Euro Stoxx 50 was battered some 108 points, a 3.90% downside.

US traders left no stone unturned, sending the markets close to the August lows and the NASDAQ within 50 points of the magic bear market line (-20%), until a spurious story about Saudi oil cuts saved the day around 2:30 pm. The Dow was down more than 400 points at the lows, and there was some talk about the S&P bouncing off a key level at 1812. Truth be told, key levels and support lines aren't going to matter much in coming days, weeks and months, because there is growing evidence that recession has arrived in the US, just as it has washed up on the shores of Asia and Europe.

Now, back to those off-Wall Street developments that offer many clues on how to know the economy isn't doing very well.

First, there was the outage at ZeroHedge.com just as the market was opening. Anybody who wants the straight, uncensored, bearish view of markets instinctively heads for "the Hedge" as it is known, the site famous for it's inveterate grinding on the wheels of finance. An apparent DDOS attack took the site offline for about 30 minutes and was the second such attack in as many weeks.

While the culprit is unknown, tin-foil cap types point to the NSA or another government agency which wishes to keep at least a leash on the unruly junkyard dog.

Second, MSN Money disabled comments on all its stories. While news of this was not reported widely, its unknown exactly when the company decided it didn't want to hear from its readers. MSN Money follows the lead of Bloomberg, which disabled commenting across its web properties last year. Censorship. It's what's for dinner, and you can't complain about it.

Third, Janet Yellen completed her annual testimony to congress today with a visit to the Senate Banking Committee, chaired by Richard Shelby (R-AL), and failed to goose the markets. When the Fed Chair has less influence on markets than a teen beauty queen at a gay pride rally, take that as a sign markets are more than a little jittery.

Gold and silver continued to rally, with gold up more than $50 at one point in the day. Silver was fast approaching $16/oz. It was under $15 as of Monday's fix. The two precious metals are the best-performing assets (along with select bonds) of 2016.

And finally, Yahoo Editor-in-Chief, Andy Serwer, had to pen this little gem of statist nonsense, explaining that nobody knows why stocks are going down. Server proves that he has quit an imagination, or none.

All in all, it appears the media, government, and the financial world are not about ready to let the muppets get a feeling that something bad is heading their way, despite Yellen fielding questions about the Fed being "out of bullets" and negative interest rates.

The status quo is getting very, very nervous and it's beginning to show. With the US heading into a three-day weekend (Monday is President's Day. In case your boss didn't tell you, you don't have to come in.) and China's markets re-opening on Monday, tomorrow's trading might be more than just a little interesting. The week has gone badly so far, and it is doubtful many will want to head into the break long.



Hate Crime for Thursday:
S&P 500: 1,829.08, -22.78 (1.23%)
Dow: 15,660.18, -254.56 (1.60%)
NASDAQ: 4,266.84, -16.76 (0.39%)

Crude Oil 27.30 -0.55% Gold 1,247.00 +4.39% EUR/USD 1.1316 +0.32% 10-Yr Bond 1.64 -3.58% Corn 360.00 -0.07% Copper 2.01 -0.72% Silver 15.80 +3.36% Natural Gas 1.99 -2.79% Russell 2000 953.72 -1.01% VIX 28.14 +7.04% BATS 1000 19,734.69 -1.33% GBP/USD 1.4484 -0.35% USD/JPY 112.5900 -0.01%

Reality Bites: Stock Charts Hit with Deflation Ugly Stick

One look at any of today's major index charts - or European charts, for that matter - tells the real story of the world economy and the overall effects of globalization, fiat money and constant Keynesian-modeled tinkering.

Down at the open and no chance of a rally at any point was the order of the day. Markets were completely flattened following Tuesday's slap-happy, bogus insider ramp job. With any luck, the same traders and rich, brassy speculators who made a few ducats on the way up yesterday are upside-down today.

While US markets were royally screwed, European bourses were overwhelmingly slammed to earth, with the major indices whacked more than 1.75%, led downward by the CAC 40, smashed a whopping 2.24% as the EUR/USD sank below 1.24 on its inexorable path to parity and then, extinction.

All indications from not just today's trade, but the overall tenor of markets since the end of April, are that Europe's crisis is not going to be solved easily, if at all. There's no hiding from the big stick of deflation, no crying in a deflationary spiral, except by the weak and unprepared, who deserve nothing but woe, destitution and poverty. May they take all of the major banking interests with them.

The carnage was unavoidable. The US 10-year note fell to an historic low yield of 1.62%, which, along with the German Bund, is headed for negative returns.

Whether or not this is coordinated end-game by the world's central bankers and our own small-minded Ben Bernanke, the siren's cry of lower prices has been heard loud and clear. By the end of fall or sooner, the entire charade should be over, for all intents and purposes. Adam Smith's invisible hand has given globalists the undeniable back-slap one receives for overindulgence, malinvestment and outright economic stupidity.

The pseudo-rally from the depths of 2008-09 is officially defunct and all that's left is picking up the pieces when everything crashes to the floor before falling into the abyss. It's almost as if the ancient tradition of the jubilee - in which all debts are forgiven - has been secretly woven into the fabric of modern economics. The crush of unpaid obligations will affect rich and poor alike. Only those with investments in useful machinery, arable land, real estate and precious metals will be spared, though their lot will no doubt be a difficult one.

Ordinary working class folk should be cheering the downfall of the tyrannical central banking regime, though anyone relying on pensions for retirement cushion should have already begun reordering their priorities. The last three-and-a-half years have been nothing more than a chance to prepare for the ultimate collapse of the global banking and sovereign state cabal and their over-leveraged, inflationist, dangerous, deadly ideas.

Resistance is futile against the wicked spiral of deflation, as it carries the weight of the world down with it, as derivatives are unwound and the banking and finance system breaks down. The worry is that governments will impose iron-fisted regimes and police states to quell the disquiet populace once the rioting begins, and it will, sure as day follows night.

As stocks tumbled, precious metals strengthened today, a significant development not seen in recent months and a trend almost certain to continue. Oil's drop continues and a plunge below $90/barrel today was an event long overdue. The world is absolutely glutted with the stuff as demand continues to plunge. Everything will be - or should be - cheaper as 2012 unfolds further.

The chaos should only worsen in this shortened week as the culmination is Friday's sure to be horrific non-farm payroll report. Tomorrow will afford an early sneak preview as ADT releases their private payroll data for May and hour and a quarter prior to the ringing of the bell at the Wall Street loser's casino. Additionally, Thursday will be heavy with data, with Challenger job cuts, initial unemployment claims and the second GDP estimate all due prior to US market opening. It should almost surely worsen from there forward with Chicago PNI and crude inventories guiding early-day trading.

It would require nothing short of divine intervention or an alien landing for the remainder of the week to be nothing short of a bloodbath.

Free houses for everyone! At least for those who need shelter and have a creative mind and two good hands with which to rebuild, that is.

Dow 12,419.86, -160.83 (1.28%)
NASDAQ 2,837.36, -33.63 (1.17%)
S&P 500 1,313.32, -19.10 (1.43%)
NYSE Composite 7,476.36, -138.68 (1.82%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,629,529,250
NYSE Volume 3,441,592,750
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 1011-4774
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 42-134
WTI crude oil: 87.82, -2.94
Gold: 1,563.40, +14.70
Silver: 27.98, +0.19