From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

I’ve had palladium on my mind for a while – long before gold posted a new all-time high.

Why palladium?

It all started with an extreme Commitment of Traders (COT) profile…

Check out the longer-term chart of palladium futures with the COT in the lower pane:

Commercial hedgers posted a new record-long position back in April.

Notice the sustained trends following similar commercial positions in 2012, 2016, and 2018. 

Commercials represent the strongest hands with the deepest pockets. Plus, they have inside knowledge of the supply and demand dynamics of the market in question. It’s OK to think of them as “smart money.” 

But record-long positioning isn’t a signal on its own. It doesn’t help us define our risk. It simply indicates the market structure.

Case in point: Record-breaking long positioning became the norm for commercials as price continued to fall throughout the year.

Holding a long position since the spring required deep pockets and proved a painful opportunity cost.

But the pain of owning palladium is likely behind us as long as the futures...

From the Desk of Steve Strazza and Alfonso Depablos

The most significant transaction on today’s list comes in a Form 4 filing by Chipotle Mexican Grill $CMG director Gregg Engles.

Engles reported a purchase of $2 millions in CMG.

As we always like to say around here, it's a market of stocks.

When we refer to "the stock market", let's remember that there are 500, or so, stocks in the S&P500. There are 3000 stocks in the Russell3000.

It's a market of stocks.

That's how we knew the market started to improve 18 months ago, because the list of stocks making new lows peaked in June 2022.

Even in the most recent correction in Q3 this year, the new lows list peaked on October 3rd.

On the other side of that formula is the list of stocks making new highs.

The list of stocks on the NYSE making new highs is the longest its been in over 30 months.

The list of stocks making new highs keeps getting longer. The list of...

I've been getting emails and messages all year about how it's possible that Wall Street could have gotten this year so wrong.

The financial media with all their gloom and doom has missed the entire bull market.

How could they be so dumb? How could they have been so wrong?

Let me be clear: They are not dumb. They are not trying to avoid being wrong.

It's malicious.

This is the weekly post that aggregates all the charts we put together throughout the week and organizes them all into one, easy to flip through deck.

From the desk of Steve Strazza @Sstrazza

Our Hall of Famers list is composed of the 150 largest US-based stocks.

These stocks range from the mega-cap growth behemoths like Apple and Microsoft – with market caps in excess of $2T – to some of the new-age large-cap disruptors such as Moderna, Square, and Snap.

It has all the big names and more.

It doesn’t include ADRs or any stock not domiciled in the US. But don’t worry; we developed a separate universe for that. Click here to check it out.

The Hall of Famers is simple.

We take our list of 150 names and then apply our technical filters so the strongest stocks with the most momentum rise to the top.

Let’s dive right in and check out what these big boys are up to.

Here’s this week’s list:

*Click table to enlarge view

We filter out any laggards that are down -5% or more relative to the S&P 500 over the trailing month.

Then, we sort the remaining names by their proximity to new 52-week highs.

This leaves...

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

Metals are beginning to shine.

Gold’s new all-time high has captivated the masses. But all that glitters isn’t gold.

In fact, base and industrial metals are also providing ample trading opportunities.

Check out ol’ Dr. Copper challenging near-term resistance:

A decisive close above 3.91 set the path of least resistance toward the year-to-date highs at approximately 4.25.

It’s difficult to imagine a more bullish scenario for global equities aside from a continued expansion in the new highs list.

As much as I enjoy trading futures, I can’t ignore the money flowing into stocks.

If the expansion in new highs isn’t enough, stocks outperforming commodities should grab your attention.

With that in...

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

The bond market is turning the page. 

Our long US Treasury trades are finally working. And investors are reaching for high-yield debt.

On the surface, it’s a positive shift for the hardest-hit markets in 2022. 

But it also sends a clear message to stock market investors…

Buy!

Credit spreads are contracting as the iShares High Yield Corporate Bond ETF $HYG trades at fresh 52-week highs relative to the iShares 3-7yr Treasury Bond ETF $IEI:

It’s classic bull market behavior.

But that’s not all…

The newest junk bonds to hit the street are catching higher on an absolute basis. 

Check out the Fallen Angel High Yield Bond ETF $ANGL:

Stocks have a strong tendency for positive gains when investors are...

Short-term traders will classify today's trade as a "hard trade."

We're positioning in a stock that has already had a significant run over the past two months. But if we widen out our lens and look at weekly or monthly candles, we'll see that this stock is making fresh all-time highs out of a monster base which can fuel a dramatic push higher.

Check out this chart of Lululemon $LULU:

In today's Daily Digest, we'll review:

1. No new position today.
2. Defensive adjustment in XHB.
3. No exits since the last report.
4. Current status of open campaigns.

Let's dig in!

From the Desk of Steve Strazza and Alfonso Depablos

The most significant transaction on today’s list comes in a Form 4 filing by Baker Bros Advisors LP.

The hedge fund reported a purchase of $30 million in Madrigal Pharmaceuticals Inc $MDGL.

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

Bing Crosby dreamed of a White Christmas.

Who hasn’t?

Growing up, I wished for a white Christmas every year. I knew snow was a stretch living in Florida. But a kid can dream… 

This season, stock market bulls hope for quite a different, serene vision: a weaker dollar.

Based on the charts, they might just get their wish.

Check out the updated US Dollar Index $DXY chart:

DXY has respected key retracement levels on the way up and down over the past six months. The repeated touches add to my conviction in these levels.

Today’s breakdown below 102.54 suggests further weakness toward the year-to-date lows. A fall to those former lows would undoubtedly stir tailwinds for global equities, producing joy and cheer among investors worldwide.

The 102 area also carries...