They keep telling you that interest rates are going down.

But interest rates keep going up.

The US 10-year Yield and US 30-year Yields are hitting the highest levels since Mid-November.

In the near-term rate markets, US 1-year and 2-year yields have been up and to the right all year, also hitting the highest levels since November.

Meanwhile, your boy Joe Biden is literally out there telling people that rates are going down.

He said it again yesterday.

This Biden guy is either lying to you. Or he hasn't even bothered to look.

And regardless of which side of the aisle you sit on, neither one of these answers is acceptable.

Why is the President of the United States lying to you about falling interest rates?

The most profitable part of a new market regime is how long it takes most investors to come around to it.

Humans are creatures of habit.

It's not easy to just shift an entire mindset, especially one that was over a decade in the making.

"I'm a Growth Investor"

"There is no reason to invest outside the United States"

"Stocks & Bonds. What are Commodities?"

"Why would I invest in Gold, when I can own more Tech?"

"The government will never let Crude Oil get to $200"

These are all things people say and actually believe.

It's taken a long time for people to convince themselves of these.

But over the years, I've learned (the hard way) that there is a time and a place for everything.

The bet we're making is that people will continue to believe all those things mentioned above, until it's too late.

From the desk of Steve Strazza @Sstrazza

We held our April Monthly Strategy Session earlier this week. Premium Members can access and rewatch it here.

Non-members can get a quick recap of the call simply by reading this post each month.

By focusing on long-term, monthly charts, the idea is to take a step back and put things into the context of their structural trends. This is easily one of our most valuable exercises as it forces us to put aside the day-to-day noise and simply examine markets from a “big-picture” point of view.

With that as our backdrop, let’s dive right in and discuss three of the most important charts and/or themes from this month’s call.

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

Can we all give the rate cut debate a break?

Everyone is obsessing over the Fed’s rate cut plans. Meanwhile, interest rates are climbing to their highest level since early December.

Instead of following Fed gossip and what-ifs, focus on what is: Yields continue to creep higher as inflationary assets rip.

Check out our Global Benchmark Rate Composite, an equal-weight basket of Developed Market 10-year yields (Germany, UK, Canada, France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Japan, Australia, and the US):

Our global composite is holding well above the lower bounds of a yearlong range, catching toward the underside of a flat 200-day moving average. 

Yields on sovereign debt show no signs of an imminent collapse.

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

The Fed abides.

Three rate cuts remain the base case for 2024. Everyone had this scenario penciled in, including the bond market.

The US benchmark yield is holding at the same levels as last month. T-bonds are catching a modest bid. And bonds are…well, boring. 

Perhaps it’s not an ideal scenario for bond bears, but stock market bulls are welcoming the muted response…

The Bond Market Volatility Index $MOVE—the credit market’s equivalent to the VIX—is registering its lowest reading since spring 2022.

The last time the MOVE hit these levels, the Fed had yet to embark on its current hiking cycle. (We all know what followed—an epic downturn for bonds and stocks.)

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

A risk-on revival has captivated the markets.

Investors are rising to their feet…

They’re buying stocks. They’re buying crypto. They’re buying gold.

Hell, they’re even buying high-yield Emerging Market bonds!

Check out the Emerging Market High Yield Bond ETF $EMHY breaking to a new multi-year high:

I throw this EMHY breakout into the same camp as the Biotech ETF $XBI blast off — risk-on.

It’s downright impossible to hold a bearish outlook while investors dance with the riskiest bonds on offer.

This is the video recording of our March 4th Monthly Charts Live Strategy Session

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

US Treasuries are taking a back seat to risk assets.

Bond market volatility is declining. Credit spreads are tightening. And Emerging Market high-yield bonds ($EMHY) are breaking out. 

Meanwhile, stocks are posting new all-time highs.

So, how high will interest rates climb over the near term?

My gut tells me not far — at least not in the coming weeks or months…

Check out the US benchmark rate finding resistance at approximately 4.33:

Last month’s high marks a logical ceiling for the US benchmark rate. 

This is the video recording of the February 2024 Mid-month Conference Call.

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

Fed Chair Jerome Powell continues to rule the markets with an iron fist, mercilessly punishing any who doubt his supreme will. 

Or maybe I should stop daydreaming at my desk. 

Either way, this little fantasy is a helluva lot more entertaining than the monotonous uptrend in US Treasury yields. 

But I’ve found boredom – when not taken seriously – can lead to neglect.

That’s where process steps in to save the day. 

It’s hard for the market to catch us off guard if we’re constantly reviewing the charts.

And these next two bond charts demand our full attention…

First, the High Yield Bond ETF $HYG relative to the US Treasury Bond ETF $IEI: 

The only real safe haven out there continues to be the US Dollar.

That's it.

When money flows into the Dollar, stocks are under pressure. You may not always see it at the index level, but you can certainly see it when you count and go one by one across the stock market.

The US Dollar bottomed on December 27th. That was also the day that the Advance-Decline line on the NYSE put in its top. It was also the day that the Russell2000 Small-cap Index peaked.

Here's the Dollar now making new 3-month highs:

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

Whenever a fellow parent asks what I do, I tell them I comment on interest rates.

I’m not involved in the semiconductor industry or the AI revolution. I don’t rob community banks (a personal favorite, despite mixed reactions). And I certainly do not analyze fixed-income, forex, and commodity markets (that’s a show-stopper).

The only thing people want to know these days – whether they’re navigating Wall St. or Main St. – is where rates are headed. 

But no one seems to be listening to the one person who has a direct impact on the direction of US Treasury yields…