From the desk of Steve Strazza @Sstrazza

Our Top 10 Charts Report was just published.

In this weekly note, we highlight 10 of the most important charts or themes we're currently seeing in asset classes around the world.

False Start of Failed Breakout?

The markets have been a bifurcated mess for more than a year now. During this time the relative strength from commodities and commodity-related stocks has stood out. Both have been on a tear and continue to rip higher. But despite the broad strength in commodities, Copper has gone nowhere since many risk assets peaked in May of last year.

That changed last week when Copper printed fresh all-time highs. Those new highs were short-lived though, as price quickly slipped back within its prior range. So was last week’s move in Copper a false start or a failed breakout? As any good technician, we want to err in the direction of the underlying trend, which is higher. But, we need to see prices agree before we have any conviction. For now, we want to remain patient and look to the key risk ratios and the bond market for clues to Copper’s next directional move. The direction in which...

From the desk of Steve Strazza @Sstrazza

Check out this week's Momentum Report, our weekly summation of all the major indexes at a Macro, International, Sector, and Industry Group level.

By analyzing the short-term data in these reports, we get a more tactical view of the current state of markets. This information then helps us put near-term developments into the big picture context and provides insights regarding the structural trends at play.

Let's jump right into it with some of the major takeaways from this week's report:

* ASC Plus Members can access the Momentum Report by clicking the link at the bottom of this post.

Macro Universe:

• Our macro universe was red this week, with 85% of our list closing lower with a median return of -1.95%.
• This week, US 10-Year Yield $TNX was the winner, closing with a massive 16.24% gain.
• The biggest loser was Copper $HG, with a weekly loss of -6.35%.
• There was an 11% drop in the percentage of assets on our list within 5% of their 52-week highs – currently at 19%.
• 13% of our macro list made fresh 4-week highs,...

From the desk of Willie Delwiche.

Stocks attempted to rally this week. Following Tuesday’s abortive attempt to regain the considerable ground lost on Monday, the S&P 500 posted its best daily gain since 2020 on Wednesday (+2.65). The S&P 500 is still down on the week as I write this, but if the right headlines cross the wire this afternoon, anything could happen. That’s the kind of environment we are in. One filled with plenty of day-to-day noise. Stepping back, the S&P 500 attempted to rally off the lows in both January and February as well. Then, lower highs were ultimately followed by lower lows. The consistent theme as the indexes have moved lower off of their early year highs has been weakness beneath the surface. The number of stocks making new lows has been persistently higher than the number of stocks making new highs. When that changes, and we see evidence of meaningful improvement in breadth, we can take a more constructive view of rally attempts. For they deserve skepticism. Let’s make it a mantra (or at least a T-shirt): “No Thrust? No Trust!”  

...

This is the video recording of the March 10th Weekly Town Hall w/ Willie Delwiche

03/10/22 2:00 PM ET

From the desk of Willie Delwiche.

This isn't a post about nuclear Armageddon or a survival guide for a post-apocalyptic world.

But it is about recognizing when something has ended.

In rare cases, we know when an end is coming and can try to prepare. This was the case with my son's final grade school basketball game. The season-ending tournament was on the calendar months in advance. But even still, there were a few tears when the final buzzer sounded.

In other cases, we might not know in advance that an end is coming, but can quickly recognize that it has arrived. Think about going home from the office for the last time as the COVID crisis was intensifying in Spring 2020. Few knew when they shut their computers down for the day that it would be weeks or months (if ever at all, in my case) until they returned. Though unexpected, that reality became obvious in short-order.

From the desk of Willie Delwiche.

Key Takeaway: Put/call ratios are high, there are more bulls than bears on both the AAII and II surveys (a rarity over the past decade) and active investment managers have slashed equity exposure. If the conditions that have been in place since the Financial Crisis lows (which occurred this week in 2009) are still in place, it is hard to argue that sentiment is not a meaningful tailwind for equities and is fuel for a rally. Two cautions: Sentiment is a condition, but rarely a catalyst. This means price action needs to improve to bring bulls back on board. But more significantly, there is still evidence that the speculative unwind that began last year is still ongoing and strategic positioning indicators show little improvement that would indicate longer-term risks are subsiding. Those get exacerbated as the Fed starts to raise interest rates and withdraw liquidity.        

Sentiment Report Chart of the Week: Liquidity-Fueled Speculation Now Unwinding

Fed rate cuts in 2019 primed the...

From the desk of Willie Delwiche.

This All Star Charts +Plus Monthly Playbook breaks down the investment universe into a series of largely binary decisions and tactical calls. Paired with our Weight of the Evidence Dashboard, this piece is designed to help active asset allocators follow trends, pursue opportunities, and manage risk.

From the desk of Willie Delwiche.

From the desk of Willie Delwiche.

Key Takeaways:

• Market experiencing most persistent weakness since Financial Crisis.
• Path forward is about finding new opportunities rather than repairing past paradigms.
• Energy & Latin America benefitting from Commodity strength.

We are in the midst of the longest stretch of consecutive days of more new lows (NYSE+NASDAQ) than new highs since the financial crisis. While there have been more intense peak-to-trough drawdowns in the popular averages over the past decade and a half (late-2018 and early-2020 come to mind), it is the persistence of the weakness in the current experience that is noteworthy. Whether looked at from a market perspective or a macro perspective, the longer the disruption, the harder it is to just bounce back...

From the desk of Steve Strazza @Sstrazza

Our Top 10 Charts Report was just published.

In this weekly note, we highlight 10 of the most important charts or themes we're currently seeing in asset classes around the world.

Is This The Beginning Or The End?

Not only did commodities have their best week in more than fifty years, but Copper and Gold broke to new highs – Copper to new all-time highs and Gold to fresh 52-week highs. And similar to the bullish momentum thrust in the BCOM index, when we zoom out on these charts we get the sense we’re at the beginning of a major trend -- not the end of one. Both Copper and Gold are just beginning to break out of decade-long bases. The last time they broke out of similar basing patterns these metals, and commodities as a whole rallied for almost a decade. If these breakouts are valid and we continue to see broad strength among commodity contracts, these raw materials could provide monster returns for years to come.

From the desk of Steve Strazza @Sstrazza

Check out this week's Momentum Report, our weekly summation of all the major indexes at a Macro, International, Sector, and Industry Group level.

By analyzing the short-term data in these reports, we get a more tactical view of the current state of markets. This information then helps us put near-term developments into the big picture context and provides insights regarding the structural trends at play.

Let's jump right into it with some of the major takeaways from this week's report:

* ASC Plus Members can access the Momentum Report by clicking the link at the bottom of this post.

Macro Universe:

• Our macro universe was red this week as 60% of our list closed lower with a median return of -1.27%.
• This week, Oil $CL was the winner, closing with a massive 26.30% gain.
• The biggest loser was US 10-Year Yield $TNX, with a weekly loss of -13.19%.
• There was a 4% gain in the percentage of assets on our list within 5% of their 52-week highs – currently at 30%.
• 38% of our macro list made fresh 4-week highs, 23% made...

From the desk of Willie Delwiche.

Bond market moves are getting plenty of attention this week. 10-year Treasury yields dropped to levels not seen since the opening trading sessions of 2022 and German yields have dipped back into negative territory (and will again have to contend with resistance at zero). Credit has been slower to react. The Moody’s BAA Corporate yield is just a few basis points off its high and upside momentum remains intact. Except for a brief COVID related blip, the six month change in corporate yields is at its highest level since the financial crisis. This matters because all of the net gains in the S&P 500 over the past twenty years have come when corporate yields have been falling. It has been very difficult for the S&P 500 to make any upside progress when the path for yields has been higher. Even before the Fed has started to raise rates or drawdown its balance sheet, the liquidity backdrop has already deteriorated.