A Glitch In the Bull Matrix; Crude Dives To Six-Week Low

If anyone can call today's range of 70 points - top to bottom on the Dow - trading, they'd need to be making it up on volume, as the old misnomer suggests. Today's market saw neither opportunity nor volume, so, the traders made the day up. After a quick dip to the lows of the day just after the first hour of trading (10:40 am EDT), the Dow and other indices went choppy, but without significant movement (welcome to late summer).

Nearing the end of the session, the Dow stood almost where it ended the previous day and made all of the losses into the close in the final half hour (welcome to day-trading).

Most of the action was inconsequential, as it has been the past few weeks.

Taking a quick look at the past four weeks (20 sessions) on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, 11 of the 20 saw gains or losses of less than 100 points. For perspective, a move of roughly 125 points would equate to 1/2 percentage. In other words, more than half of the sessions in the past month have been mostly range-bound and more noise than substance.

Today was no exception. Even though the Dow was the biggest percentage mover of the major indices, it only registered a move of -0.18%. The others closed at less than one tenth of a percent from where they started.

So trading? Hardly.

The only people making money in this market are the brokers, and they aren't making that much.

Commodities are perplexed. Crude futures fell dramatically.

Investing.com - WTI crude oil prices settled at six-week lows Wednesday after data showed U.S. crude stockpiles fell less than expected and U.S.-China trade tensions intensified.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude futures for September delivery fell 3.2% to settle at $66.94 a barrel, while on London's Intercontinental Exchange, Brent fell 3.26% to trade at $72.22 barrel.

Precious metals have become an afterthought for now. Gold and silver have been trading below where they were two years ago, trending in a tight range and looking likely to collapse into an even deeper abyss. An ounce of gold today will not even purchase a high end cell phone. It's looking pretty dismal for the gold and silver bugs, who have managed to hold onto the most abused financial assets for far too long. Their day may come, but that day may be a long way off.

Trading baseball cards or comic books might be more exciting and profitable than the current regime of stocks, bonds, and commodities. Those markets are too well-known and over-saturated. However, they are the backbone of global commerce, and, as such, will not be discarded lightly.

Dow Jones Industrial Average August Scorecard:

Date	Close	Gain/Loss	Cum. G/L
8/1/18	25,333.82	-81.37	-81.37
8/2/18	25,326.16	-7.66	-89.03
8/3/18	25,462.58	+136.42	+55.05
8/6/18	25,502.18	+39.60	+94.65
8/7/18	25,628.91	+126.73	+221.38
8/8/18	25,583.75	-45.16	+176.22

At the Close, Wednesday, August 8, 2018:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 25,583.75, -45.16 (-0.18%)
NASDAQ: 7,888.33, +4.66 (+0.06%)
S&P 500: 2,857.70, -0.75 (-0.03%)
NYSE Composite: 12,987.91, -11.68 (-0.09%)

Stocks Barely Moved on Low Volume Trading

The last days of the year are usually among the more sluggish in terms of trading volume, and this year is certainly no exception to the rule. The major indices were flat almost all session long, with the Dow ending up slightly positive due to some small buying interest in the latter part of the day.

The commodities complex was taken down another notch, with oil, gold, silver and most of the edible varieties lower.

It is difficult to read much of anything into any market moves at this point of the year, though there seems to be an overriding sense of smug complacency after one of the best years for stocks on record.

With the limited activity these past few days, a January rally out of the gate would surprise nobody, so expect stocks to languish tomorrow, but get a huge boost on the 2nd of January, the first official trading day of 2014.

DOW 16,504.29, +25.88 (+0.16%)
NASDAQ 4,154.20, -2.40 (-0.06%)
S&P 1,841.07, -0.33 (-0.02%)
10-Yr Note 98.09, +0.82 (+0.85%) Yield: 2.97%
NASDAQ Volume 1.27 Bil
NYSE Volume 2.21 Bil
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 2747-1966
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 327-65
WTI crude oil: 99.29, -1.03
Gold: 1,203.80, -10.20
Silver: 19.62, -0.434
Corn: 423.50, -4.00

Just Numbers

DOW 16,478.41, -1.47 (-0.01%)
NASDAQ 4,156.59, -10.59 (-0.25%)
S&P 1,841.40, -0.62 (-0.03%)
10-Yr Note 97.86, +0.57 (+0.58%) Yield: 3.00%
NASDAQ Volume 1.17 Bil
NYSE Volume 2.05 Bil
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 2714-2958
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 455-72
WTI crude oil: 100.32, +0.77
Gold: 1,214.00, +1.70
Silver: 20.05, +0.133
Corn: 427.50, +1.25

Friday Brings Out Just a Few Bottom Fishers in Flat Market

There was a bit of moderation on Friday, at the end of a week which saw the major averages give up plenty of downside.

With a dearth of data and corporate news, there were probably more than a few active traders taking the early train out of town during the lackluster session. Some bottom fishing did occur - though not much - as belied by the A-D line, which favored advancing issues, for a change and very low volume.

For the week, the Dow lost 264.84 points (1.65%); the S&P gave up 29.77 (1.65%); the NASDAQ fell 61,54 points (1.51%); and, the NYSE Composite declined by 176.38 (1.74%).

A telling sign of overall weakness is represented by the broadest index (NYSE Comp.) being the worst performer for the week in percentage terms. Notably, the composite average broke through its 50-day moving average yesterday and stabilized below it today. Each of the other indices have room to spare above their respective 50-day lines.

New lows continued their dominance over new highs for the third straight session, 147-114. While that is by no means a trend, experience suggests that it could be marking a market top if new lows exceed the number of new highs for an extended period of eight or more consecutive sessions. More likely would be a back-and-forth between the daily highs and lows in a sideways trading pattern as a precedent to the market direction being decided.

The week was the worst for stocks since October, but by no means indicative of anything other than some late-year selling, fears of Fed tapering and the usual yin and yang between buyers and sellers.

More time and data need to be collected before calling for a change in direction, though the measured belief is that it is overdue, at least in the medium term. Strong support was tested and bounced off of at the lows of the day on the Dow, around 15,723.

DOW 15,755.36, +15.93 (+0.10%)
NASDAQ 4,000.98, +2.57 (+0.06%)
S&P 1,775.32, -0.18 (-0.01%)
10-Yr Note 99.02 +0.75 (+0.77%)
NASDAQ Volume 1.49 Bil
NYSE Volume 3.05 Bil
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 3257-2361
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 114-147
WTI crude oil: 96.60, -0.90
Gold: 1,234.60, +9.70
Silver: 19.60, +0.151
Corn: 425.50, -8.75

Syria Euphoria Sends Stocks Higher; Trading Volume Hits 15-Year Low

The Dow added more than 250 points over the past two days and the NASDAQ hit fresh 13-year highs, meaning only one thing: we're officially in vapor-land as S&P equity trading volume hits fresh 15-year lows.

Meanwhile, the Syria story gets more and more confusing and confounding, the President's address tonight at 9:00 pm EDT (we do hope he'll be on time for once) probably just adding more layers of confusion to this twisted international story presaging World War III, which is bound to happen anyway, one way or another, the crux of the argument being Iran's nuclear ambitions and the US (and Israel's) attempts to defuse them.

So, how's that 401K looking? Pretty peachy, huh? Well, that's until the authorities come to confiscate it as happened in Poland last week.

A major financial disruption is just weeks away, be it the default of Deutsche Bank on some of their massive, unregulated CDS, Italian bank defaults or maybe, just maybe a big resounding thud from the likes of JP Morgan, or, our favorite, Bank of America.

The system is completely stressed out, trading on razor-thin volume while Peace President O-Bomber gets an itchy finger over Syria and a false-flag operation that hasn't convinced anybody of anything. What could possibly go wrong?

Russia's Vladimir Putin is playing Obama like a banjo, plucking his strings with the talent of a virtuoso. Other outlets have compared the recent developments over Syria as Putin playing chess while OBozo struggles with checkers.

We think the analogy is apropos. The US government will soon be on its knees, begging forgiveness from a broken-hearted world and US population. There will be no mercy given to the betrayers of the constitution.

And, by the way, the NSA is FOS.

Dow 15,191.06, +127.94 (0.85%)
Nasdaq 3,729.02, +22.84 (0.62%)
S&P 500 1,683.99, +12.28 (0.73%)
10-Yr Bond 2.96%, +0.06
NYSE Volume 3,911,199,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,767,686,125
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 4249-2265
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 403-52
WTI crude oil: 107.39, -2.13
Gold: 1,364.00, -22.70
Silver: 23.02, -0.701

Stocks Advance on Lowest Volume of Year

Just in case you're one of those "converts" awaiting to Buy the Dip, you'd be best advised to do so before noon in US markets.

As has been the case for the last four+ years, stocks will simply not go down in any depreciable manner until Ben Bernanke and other central banks stop the presses printing endless amounts of cash on a regularly scheduled basis.

In the absence of any material news - or volume, for that matter - stocks nose-dived out of the gate, fell to the lows of the day around the lunch hour and then proceeded to levitate into the close, keeping alive the day-trading dream pattern of up-down-up-down through a thirteenth straight session.

That stocks rose was certainly not the story today. The headline belonged to volume, which, despite being seminally weak over the past two years, today was the lightest of 2013. That's really saying something, specifically, that this rally is nothing but vapor, because without solid volume, all rallies are entirely suspect and easily torn down.

With little invested at current levels, traders are cautious and will exit at the first signs of trouble. That line of thinking, of course is based upon years of data and research which probably doesn't apply to the current market, which is completely an apparition, a fraud, the manipulated product of excess liquidity in the system which has nowhere to go but into risk assets.

Based on the volume figures from the past six, twelve or 18 months, today's numbers indicate that not only are individual investors completely out of the market and not coming back, but even seasoned investors are fleeing from stocks in droves, leaving the algos and computers to trade against each other. Eventually, a system like this must fail, though predicting the date of such eventuality is a fool's game.

Trading in thin markets are likewise the work of rookies, speculators and pros, though nobody from any group can claim a level of expertise that would lead directly to profitable trades, except for extremely short term or hedged activity.

Today's volume figures are so horrifyingly low that one might suspect the end is near, though that end has been in the headlights for some time now and just like this market, continues to present itself as a mirage on the horizon.

A day will come when the skies clear and the end becomes tangible, touchable and irreversible. Those who have traded in honest markets in the past are patiently awaiting that day.

Dow 14,613.48, +48.23 (0.33%)
NASDAQ 3,222.25, +18.39 (0.57%)
S&P 500 1,563.07, +9.79 (0.63%)
NYSE Composite 9,046.87, +46.62 (0.52%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,294,793,750
NYSE Volume 2,927,141,000
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 4180-2254
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 244-44
WTI crude oil: 93.36, +0.66
Gold: 1,572.50, -3.40
Silver: 27.14, -0.082

Split Indices, Tight Ranges, Soft January

"As January goes, so goes the year."

This tired line of non-logical thinking gets bantered about every year around this time, but is especially in vogue this year after the huge ramp-up in equities on January 2nd, when fresh bank capital (courtesy of the Fed) flowed into the markets in an effort to lure in retail investors.

It's not working.

Since the biggest gain on the Dow Industrials to start a new year (January 2nd, 2013... this year) stocks have gone, well, not very far. The total gain on the Dow over the past eight sessions, including today, is less than 100 points. Big Hooray!

On the S&P 500, the gain has been a whopping eight points. The NASDAQ? 5.24 points since the massive, 92-point gain of January 2nd.

So, the point is that while CNBC and Bloomberg have been crowing about the huge "inflows" to equity funds, the truth is that there has been a net outflow from equity funds )as it has been for the past two years), and the money-creation-machine known as the Fed and its primary dealers have rigged the market higher (as usual).

Today's bid-less action, including the absurd 60-point top-to-bottom range on the Dow, was driven primarily by a rumor that two private equity firms were interested in doing an LBO on Dell. The story, broken by Bloomberg and without any supporting evidence or data, shot Dell shares through the roof and triggered a circuit-breaking halting trading.

The story was likely pure fabrication, because the markets are so dead right now the algos needed a boost to get the indices off UNCH and got it from the Dell "rumor."

Nothing is moving. Volume on the NASDAQ - despite the Dell joke and Apple (AAPL) being sold down the river - was less than 3 billion shares, an oddity even in this low-volume regime. Nobody is trading - not retail investors, at least - because the fraud and rigging has finally reached a point at which the markets cannot be trusted at all. They are controlled by the same people and companies that brought us the sub-prime mess, resultant crash and the current, fudged "recovery."

Perception being more powerful than reality, there's a very good chance that the major indices could stagnate for the rest of the month and the same talking heads on the financial networks will tell us it's going to be a great year because January was positive.

It's. Not. Working.

Dow 13,507.32, +18.89 (0.14%)
NASDAQ 3,117.50, -8.13 (0.26%)
S&P 500 1,470.68, -1.37 (0.09%)
NYSE Composite 8,717.45, +5.05 (0.06%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,879,408,375
NYSE Volume 2,956,360,000
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 3118-3099
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 370-10 (ridiculous)
WTI crude oil: 94.14, +0.58
Gold: 1,669.40, +8.80
Silver: 31.11, +0.702

Nothing Moves in Advance of Draghi's ECB Announcement

Remember those days of late August, when the markets traded in narrow ranges and closed within a tiny fraction of a percentage point on super-low volume?

Today was another one of those days. Stock pickers are waiting for the ECB meeting on Thursday, when president Mario Draghi is supposed to release details of his plan to fund all of the peripheral nations that are broke, bankrupt or about to be.

Last week, everyone waited for the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, to give a speech at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and signal that the Fed was soon to unleash more free capital into the corrupt, dysfunctional, insolvent banking system.

Now we wait for Draghi. It's a complete disaster unfolding right before our eyes and barely worth commenting upon because Bernanke didn't say anything the markets didn't already know, and, in all likelihood, neither will Draghi. Either that, or he'll do what the Europeans are so good at, making funny noises, promising something for a later date, your basic can-kicking exercise.

The clock is ticking...

Dow 13,047.48, +11.54 (0.09%)
NASDAQ 3,069.27. -5.79 (0.19%)
S&P 500 1,403.44, -1.50 (0.11%)
NYSE Composite 7,992.01, -10.31 (0.13%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,432,807,125
NYSE Volume 2,782,468,000
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 2308-2724
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 274-59
WTI crude oil: 95.36, +0.06
Gold: 1,694.00, -2.00
Silver: 32.33 -0.08

Stocks Split in Another Lackluster Session

There were heaps of indecision and disbelief after yesterday's rise and fall led to a stumbling session for US stocks on Wednesday, with the major indices split after a midday rally pushed the S&P and NASDAQ modestly into positive territory, but left the Dow and Composite with marginal losses.

With literally no data points on which to trade, investors were mostly in a defensive posture until FOMC minutes were released at 2:00 pm EDT. The idea that the Fed might still be considering some easing before the November elections lit a fire under some traders, though the size of the move was unconvincing.

It's unlikely that the Fed would move decisively soon unless there are overt signs of weakness in the economy to a greater degree than has already been proven. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and the rest of the world's elite traders, economists and analysts will gather at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, next week for an annual economic symposium, though skepticism over whether the Chairman will make any earth-shattering announcements abounds.

That is primarily what has the the bulls running for cover, because the economy has been sullen and without forward momentum, even while stocks have recorded strong gains through the summer. The entire June-August rally may have been built on false hopes and pipe dreams of another round of quantitative easing.

Without a monetary boost, stocks could suffer anything from a mild to severe correction within the next two weeks, and the charts are beginning to show signs that Tuesday's double top was something to actually be concerned about.

With little in the way of economic data this week (New and existing home sales, initial unemployment claims and durable orders), traders have little upon which to trade, so the late summer doldrums should continue, at least into the early portion of next week and possibly through Labor Day.

After that, the experts will be back on the street with new strategies or old ones, based entirely on best guesses as to the outcome of the elections and how long European leaders can keep their juggling act going without dropping all of the balls.

It's a strange state for the markets, full of uncertainty and doubt, though very close to 52-week highs. It's ripe for something - either a breakout to the upside or a 5-15% slide. And, while everyone has opinions, nobody is really putting out convincing arguments on either side.

The market bears close scrutiny at this juncture, as the next move may be decisive and worth playing, but only if one has guts and conviction to stick with trades over the next couple of months, because, as has been shown all year long, this market likes to gyrate like a lithe belly dancer without giving off any signs of where it's headed next.

Our money is on the downside, but we've been in that posture for a long time and have been in cash or equivalents for the better part of the past four years. If the precious metals continue to gather momentum, that could convince us to take a flier on some puts or shorts in selected stocks or indices. If new highs - new lows continue to compress tomorrow and the A-D line opens negative, we could be all in on Diamond (DIA) and/or Spider (SPY) October puts.

Both gold and silver have broken out of their recent ranges and could put in a long, strong run through the end of the year, so the buying opportunity window may be closing quickly on the metals, a favorable trade the past twelve years, despite persistent meddling and price fixing by major and central banks.

Dow 13,172.76, -30.82 (0.23%)
NASDAQ 3,073.67, +6.41 (0.21%)
S&P 500 1,413.49, +0.32 (0.02%)
NYSE Composite 8,079.02, -3.66 (0.05%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,426,827,000
NYSE Volume 2,809,365,750
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 2122-3396
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 93-53 (compression)
WTI crude oil: 97.26, +0.42
Gold: 1,656.80, +16.30
Silver: 29.84, +0.28

Wall Street's Summer Doldrums Extend Into 8th Day

For nearly two weeks running, trading ranges on the major indices have been slim and volume exceptionally light, as Wall Street sees no reason to rush either in or out of positions late in the summer.

This kind of trading regime is of no particular value to anybody, even to insiders who depend on at least some shred of volatility to move stocks in one direction or the other.

There's no catalyst for stocks at the present time, a condition which could persist until the elections in November or whenever the Europeans decide to actually do something about their ongoing crisis.

On the other hand, this just could be the "new normal" for US markets, since the triumvirate of high frequency trading (HFT), insider trading and the utter lack of individual investors to trust in the markets, has rendered just about all investment decisions a moot point.

Zero interest rate policy (ZIRP) by the Fed and general fraud on the part of the nation's biggest banks - in collusion with the federal government - have many otherwise investor types on the sidelines in cash or other hard assets like gold, silver or real estate.

About the only thing showing any movement are commodities, and they're moving in a very dangerous direction, with corn prices escalating and oil jumping back up into nose-bleed territory. In a macro sense, high food and energy prices will derail any kind of recovery, even the one we haven't had for the past three years.

Stocks, however, continue to levitate at unreasonable levels, another reason why there isn't much in the way of buying activity, but the conundrum is why there hasn't been more selling, either for profit-taking (and there's been plenty of profit of late) or out of a sense that the bottom is going to fall out of the global economy any day now.

In either case, one would expect some kind of movement, and most likely not to the upside. Corporate profits in the second quarter were barely as good as lowered estimates, small business continues to struggle along, housing is not fixed and unemployment remains stubbornly high.

Perhaps the lesson to be taken from this summer respite is that one can only kick a can so far down a given road until either the road ends or somebody picks up the can for a nickel deposit return.

Something will change to get Wall Street out of its rut, but timing such an event could prove costly and dangerous.

Dow 13,164.78, -7.36 (0.06%)
NASDAQ 3,030.93, +13.95 (0.46%)
S&P 500 1,405.53, +1.60 (0.11%)
NYSE Composite 8,030.08, +10.55 (0.13%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,498,334.250
NYSE Volume 2,527,355.50
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 3628-1915
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 152-57
WTI crude oil: 94.33, +0.90
Gold: 1,606.60, +4.20
Silver: 27.81, +0.05

Wall Street Remains a Dead Zone; Habits of the Rich

It was another day of lackluster trading on US exchanges, with stocks spending most of the session in positive territory before sliding in the afternoon back to near opening levels.

This is the seventh straight session in which stocks have more or less meandered across and along the unchanged mark on ridiculously low volume, with no catalyst for change on the horizon.

Even economic data was dull or given the short shrift, as retail sales for July posted their best showing since February, a gain of 0.8%, though that was counterbalanced by a revision of June's figures from -0.5 to -0.7.

PPI showed some nascent signs of inflation, gaining 0.3% for July, with the core coming in at a somewhat surprising 0.4%, sparking fears that inflation has emerged from the core of food and energy, though the numbers lack any definitive pattern.

That was about it, as the masters of the universe were more likely pondering the upcoming presidential election or the bottom of a cocktail glass out at the Hamptons.

Since Wall Street seems preoccupied or disinterested in the capital markets for the time being, let's take a look at the habits of the rich, courtesy of author Tom Corley's recent work, Rich Habits, from whence came the following quiz:

1 Do you read at least one career-related educational book a month?
2 Do you engage in aerobic exercise of 20-40 minutes a day for at least 4 days a
week?
3 Do you eat 300 calories of less in junk food per day?
4 Do you set monthly, annual and long-term goals?
5 Do you spend 20-30 minutes each work day reading career-related magazines,
trade publications, newsletters etc.?
6 Do you limit T.V. and Social Media to one hour per day?
7 Do you regularly save 10% or more of your gross income?
8 Do you call everyone you know to wish them a happy birthday? This includes
family, friends and business contacts.
9 Do you create daily "To Do" lists and complete at least 70% or more of your
daily tasks?
10 Do you call or send thank you cards to everyone who has done something that
helped you in your career or life?

The author posits that if you perform six or more of the above on a regular basis, you have the kernel of success flowing through your veins.

Of course, the quiz is somewhat simplistic, though it maintains that an ordered life, with goals and aspirations, plus dollops of common sense, may eventually lead to a life of leisure and contentment.

Other virtues that may lead one to find happiness and success include perseverance, decisiveness, objectivity, passion, organization and a positive direction. Starting off a professional career with a fat salary and some quality guidance certainly helps, though those final accoutrements are not always afforded to the vast majority.

Dow 13,172.14, +2.71 (0.02%)
NASDAQ 3,016.98, -5.54 (0.18%)
S&P 500 1,403.93, -0.18 (0.01%)
NYSE Composite 8,019.53, +0.90 (0.01%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,569,593,500
NYSE Volume 2,918,056,000
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 2453-3094
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 178-53
WTI crude oil: 93.43, +0.70
Gold: 1,602.40, -10.20
Silver: 27.76, UNCH