Amid Signs Of Fatigue, Potentially Bullish ‘What If’ For US Stocks

Arguably, US stocks are giving off some signs of fatigue.  The S&P 500 large cap index (2840.35) is still below its late-January high of 2872.87.  The Nasdaq 100 index (7395.49) in the week before was rejected at six-month-old channel resistance; … Continued

XLF Bulls Manage Another Crack At 2007 Resistance, Meet With Failure Again

posted in: Credit, Economy, Equities, Technicals | 0

Once again, XLF (SPDR financial ETF) has been denied at resistance that goes back a decade. In December 2015, for the first time since July 2006, the Fed raised the fed funds rate.  It was a 25-basis-point increase to a … Continued

FOMC Next Year To Look Whole Lot Different From This Year’s — With Repercussions

posted in: Credit, Currency, Economy | 0

The usual middle-of-the-road approach.  Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen’s Humphrey Hawkins testimony to the Senate yesterday, that is.  (She appears before the House later today.) There were no hints as to if she was ready to vote for a rate … Continued

Amidst S&P 500’s 3.6% Fri Tumble, Looking For Signs Of Reversal N/T On Spot VIX

Last Friday, post-Brexit win, the 10-year Treasury yield declined 16 basis points to end the session at 1.58 percent.  It fell as low as 1.53 percent at one point during the session.  The drop ensured 10-year yields remained below support … Continued

Negative Interest Rates As Panacea Fresh Wishful Central Bank Thinking?

posted in: Credit, Currency, Economy | 0

Negative interest rates have been in the headlines for a while now.  Since Janet Yellen’s, Fed chair, Congressional testimony last week, it has been doing so with increasing frequency. Does the Fed even have the legal authority to use negative … Continued

Central Banks Trying To Put Mr. Market On Notice?

posted in: Credit, Currency, Economy | 0

In the past couple of weeks, there have been three important developments on the central-banking front, including the first hike by the Fed in nine years (Chart 1). It is too soon to say with conviction, but are major central … Continued

One Major Problem Plaguing US Banks: Below-Average Loan-To-Deposit Ratio

posted in: Credit, Economy | 0

Through Wednesday, three major U.S. banks have reported third-quarter results, and if there is one common theme, it is the top line.  There is no growth. JPMorgan Chase (JPM) reported revenues of $23.5 billion, versus $25.1 billion last year.  For … Continued

Fed In ‘Heads You Win, Tails I Lose’ Situation

posted in: Credit, Economy | 0

The Federal Open Market Committee begins its two-day meeting today, the significance of which cannot be stressed enough.  A lot is riding on this.  After this meeting, there will be two more left this year – one late October and … Continued