Markets gapped up about two-thirds of a percent higher in the large-caps and above 1.4% in the QQQ.  After the gap-up, large caps ground sideways, while the QQQ sold off before starting its sideways grind about 11am.   This left us with a Gap-up Doji in the SPY, a large white bullish candle in the DIA (which closed at an all-time high close), and a large ugly black candle in the QQQ.  On the day, DIA gained 1.48%, Spy gained 0.58%, and QQQ lost 0.29%.  The VXX fell over a percent to 14.60 and T2122 rose deep into the overbought territory at 96.05.  10-year bond yields fell slightly to 1.521% and Oil (WTI) rose a percent and a quarter to $64.80/barrel.

The economic news on the day was that there was enough demand for 10-year bonds at the government auction that yields pulled back slightly (higher bond prices mean lower bond yields).  However, the demand was not enough to drive bond yields down strongly.  All-in-all, this is an indication the bond market thinks inflation is in check for now.  In addition, the House passed the $1.9 trillion relief bill as expected.  So, we can expect consumers to have an injection to start spending as soon as the end of the month.

Related to the virus, US infections are starting to plateau at a level above the fall level after a month and a half of steep and steady decline in new cases. The totals have risen to 29,862,124 confirmed cases and deaths have now passed half a million at 542,191 deaths.  As mentioned, the number of new cases fell again to an average of 57,621 new cases per day.  Deaths, which have always lagged, was flat at 1,477 per day.  President Biden directed the DHS to purchase 100 million more doses of the JNJ vaccine on Wednesday.  In addition, more states eased restrictions on the day.  MD is allowing “high traffic” businesses like restaurants, gyms, and retail to open without restrictions.  CA announced they will be opening theme parks and outdoor stadiums as of April 1, although at reduced capacities.

Globally, the numbers rose to 118,739,789 confirmed cases and the confirmed deaths are now at 2,634,166 deaths.  The trends have been good, but we saw a significant uptick today.  The world’s average new cases have up-ticked again slightly to 408,286 per day.  Mortality, which lags continued to tick down slowly, now at 8,517 new deaths per day.  In Central and Eastern Europe, the pandemic is picking up steam again.  Among the countries seeing a “third wave” are Poland, Czechia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Hungary.  Meanwhile Denmark has suspended use of the AZN vaccine after reports that a number of patients have developed blood clots after vaccination.  In Brazil, for the 2^nd straight day, that country reported a new record number of covid deaths, this time almost 2,300.

Overnight, Asian markets were strongly in the green.  China led the gainers with Shanghai and Shenzhen both posting +2.36%, Hong Kong up +1.65%, and Taiwan up +1.68%.  In Europe, markets are mixed, but leaning to the green side so far today on modest moves.  The FTSE (-0.27%) and DAX (-0.08%) are slightly lower, while the CAC (+0.16%) is slightly higher.  The smaller exchanges are leading to the upside such as Portugal (+1.44%) and Denmark (+1.20%) at this point in their day.  As of 7:30 am, US futures are pointing to a gap higher.  The DIA is implying a +0.31% open, the SPY implying a +0.67% open, and the QQQ implying a major gap up of +1.75% open.

The only major economic news on Thursday are Weekly Initial Jobless Claims (8:30 am) and Jan JOLTS (10 am).  Major earnings reports before the open include GCO, JB, OPCH, PAE, PRTY, and REV.  Then after the close, ULTA and MTN both report.

It looks like traders are reversing the recent rotation into value names this morning. The Tech sector, which has been beaten up in the recent pullback, is looking to roar back on broad pre-market moves. There may also be general market optimism as leaks from the White House suggest President Biden will lay out a “path to normalization” in his speech tonight. Regardless of the reason, it looks like the bulls are chasing back toward new all-time highs across the board.

With that said, don’t blindly chase the gaps you miss. Make sure you are not buying into a volatility move or fade of that gap. Follow the trend, respect support and resistance, and remember another trade will be along any minute. So, control your FOMO. However, also do not try to predict reversals, just follow the market. Most importantly, keep taking your trade goals (profits) off the table when you can and stick to your discipline.  Consistency is the key, not occasional home runs.

Ed

Swing Trade Ideas for your consideration and watchlist: HON, VZ, HAL, KR, JPM, ATKR, K. You can find Rick’s review of tickers on his YouTube Channel here. Trade your plan, take profits along the way, and smart. Also, remember to check for impending earnings reports. Finally, remember that any tickers we mention and talk about in the trading room are not recommendations to buy or sell.

🎯 Mike Probst: Rick, Got CTL off the scanner today. Already up 30%. Love it.

🎯 Dick Carp: the scanner paid for the year with HES-thank you

🎯 Arnoldo Bolanos: LTA scanner really works $$, thanks Ed.

🎯 Bob S: LTA is incredible…. I use it … would not trade without it

🎯 Malcolm .: Posted in room 2, @Rick… I used the LTA Scanner to go through hundreds of stocks this weekend and picked out three to trade:  PYPL, TGT, and ZS.   Quality patterns and with my trading, up 24%, 7% and 12%…. this program is gold.

🎯 Friday 6/21/19  (10:09 am) Aaron B: Today, my account is at +190% since January. Thanks, RWO HRC Flash Malcolm Thomas Steve Ed Bob S Bob C Mike P and everyone that contributes every day. I love our job.

Hit and Run Candlesticks / Road To Wealth Youtube videos

Disclosure: We do not act on all trades we mention, and not all mentions acted on the day of the mention. All trades we mention are for your consideration only.

Free YouTube Education  •  Subscription Plans • Private 2-Hour Coaching

DISCLAIMER: Investing / Trading involves significant financial risk and is not suitable for everyone. No communication from Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates or representatives is not financial or trading advice. All information provided by Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates and representatives are intended for educational purposes only. You are advised to test any new trading approach before implementing it.  Past performance does not guarantee future results.  Terms of Service

Bond yields pulled back overnight, leading to a gap strong gap higher by markets on Tuesday.  After this, markets rallied all morning (strongly in the QQQ and more slowly in the large-caps).  The afternoon saw more sideways action across all 3 major indices until a selloff the last 30 minutes of the day.  This left us with gains, but large high-side wicks, especially the large-caps.  On the day, QQQ +3.94% led the way higher, with SPY +1.40%, and DIA +0.11% flat on the day.  The VXX fell 4% to 14.77 and T2122 fell a bit, but remains in over-bought territory at 85.11.  10-year bond yields fell sharply, but remain elevated at 1.537% and Oil (WTI) fell almost 2% to $63.83/barrel.  It’s worth noting that after a brutal week or so, TSLA led the way in the Nasdaq at +19.64%.

Bloomberg reported an interesting fact on Tuesday afternoon.  Bear in mind, it’s quite possible to drown in a river that is “on average” half an inch deep.  In the article and story Bloomberg reported that analysts have looked at the S&P500 during periods of interest rate increases of at least 1.5%.  That had happened 13 times since 1962 and 10 of those 13 times the S&P500 also rose.  The average across all 13 instances was an S&P gain of 15%.  While rates have not currently risen 1.5%, they are headed that direction with many traders eyeing inflation with fear.  It’s worth considering.

The OECD released its economic forecast for 2021.  They are predicting global economic growth of 5.6% on the year, with +6.5% in the US, +7.8% in China, +12.6% in India, and +3.9% in the EU compared to last year.  In other economic news, US mortgage refinancing demand is down 43% from a year ago even as home purchase loan demand rose 75 for the week.  This comes as average loan rates rose three basis points on the week. In addition, the $1.9 trillion covid relief bill is expected to pass today and head to the President’s desk for signing.

Related to the virus, US infections are starting to plateau at a level above the fall level after a month and a half of steep and steady decline in new cases. The totals have risen to 29,801,506 confirmed cases and deaths have now passed half a million at 540,574 deaths.  As mentioned, the number of new cases fell again to an average of 58,564 new cases per day.  Deaths, which have always lagged, was flat at 1,640 per day.

Globally, the numbers rose to 118,257,673 confirmed cases and the confirmed deaths are now at 2,624,252 deaths.  The trends have been good, but we saw a significant uptick today.  The world’s average new cases have up-ticked again slightly to 404,475 per day.  Mortality, which lags continued to tick down slowly, now at 8,649 new deaths per day.  Mexico announced it should see results of the NVAX vaccine phase 3 trials in April.  Meanwhile, Brazil reported its highest daily death total of almost 2,000.  

Overnight, Asian markets were mixed again on more modest moves.  Australia (-0.84%) led the losses while smaller country exchanges led the gains.  China and Japan were flat on the day. In Europe, so far today markets are mostly green.  The FTSE (-0.18%) is down, but the DAX (+0.36%) and CAC (+0.68%) are more typical of the continent as of mid-day.  As of 7:45 am, US Futures are mixed and flat.  The QQQ is pointing to a -0.13% open, the SPY to a +0.11% open and the DIA to a +0.35% open.

The major economic news on Wednesday includes Feb. CPI (8:30 am), Crude Oil Inventories (10:30 am), and Feb. Federal Budget Balance (2 pm).  Major earnings reports before the open include CPB and UNFI.  Then after the close, BEST and ORCL both report. However, there is a US bond auction today and given the focus that has been placed on rising bond rates recently, this auction may be a larger driver of markets than a typical auction.

With the relief bill and reopening of the economy now priced into markets, inflation has been a key focus of traders. The handicapping seems to be that if rates rise too fast, even at low levels, markets fear the Fed going to a more hawkish stance. On the contrarian side, as I pointed out above, analysis shows that most of the time, as rates rise the market goes up. Either way, that seems to be the backdrop of market direction now. As always, it’s not the news, but how the market reacts to the news this time that matters.

Follow the trend, respect support and resistance, and don’t chase those moves that you miss.  Another trade will come along any minute. Don’t try to predict reversals, just follow the market. Keep taking your trade goals (profits) off the table when you can and stick to your discipline.  Consistency is the key, not ocassinoal home runs.

Ed

Swing Trade Ideas for your consideration and watchlist: SNDL, MSFT, MOMO, BCRX, AA, FTNT. You can find Rick’s review of tickers on his YouTube Channel here. Trade your plan, take profits along the way, and smart. Also, remember to check for impending earnings reports. Finally, remember that any tickers we mention and talk about in the trading room are not recommendations to buy or sell.

🎯 Mike Probst: Rick, Got CTL off the scanner today. Already up 30%. Love it.

🎯 Dick Carp: the scanner paid for the year with HES-thank you

🎯 Arnoldo Bolanos: LTA scanner really works $$, thanks Ed.

🎯 Bob S: LTA is incredible…. I use it … would not trade without it

🎯 Malcolm .: Posted in room 2, @Rick… I used the LTA Scanner to go through hundreds of stocks this weekend and picked out three to trade:  PYPL, TGT, and ZS.   Quality patterns and with my trading, up 24%, 7% and 12%…. this program is gold.

🎯 Friday 6/21/19  (10:09 am) Aaron B: Today, my account is at +190% since January. Thanks, RWO HRC Flash Malcolm Thomas Steve Ed Bob S Bob C Mike P and everyone that contributes every day. I love our job.

Hit and Run Candlesticks / Road To Wealth Youtube videos

Disclosure: We do not act on all trades we mention, and not all mentions acted on the day of the mention. All trades we mention are for your consideration only.

Free YouTube Education  •  Subscription Plans • Private 2-Hour Coaching

DISCLAIMER: Investing / Trading involves significant financial risk and is not suitable for everyone. No communication from Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates or representatives is not financial or trading advice. All information provided by Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates and representatives are intended for educational purposes only. You are advised to test any new trading approach before implementing it.  Past performance does not guarantee future results.  Terms of Service

Markets gapped slightly higher Monday, but then diverged.  The DIA surged higher and then pulled back while being able to hold onto a white candle, leaving a high upper wick that could be seen as a shooting star if you squint.  This came largely on a pop by DIS on reports that their Disneyland resort is expected to reopen April 1.  At the same time, the SPY and especially the QQQ sold off hard to put in ugly black candles.  On the day, DIA was up 0.95%, SPY was down 0.50%, and QQQ was down a whopping 2.83% (closing down 11% from the Feb. 12 record high).  The VXX rose a little under 2% to 15.39 and T2122 drove higher, well into the overbought territory at 90.44.  10-year bond yields spiked again to 1.601% and oil (WTI) sold off over 2% to $64.74/barrel.

It was announced Monday that over the last week the US has averaged more than 1 million airline passengers per day.  This is the first time in a year the US has reached that level of travel.  This announcement came the same day that the CDC said it was okay for fully-vaccinated people (at least 2 weeks post-vaccination) to meet indoors without masks.  Small steps, but signs of progress as the country is vaccinating more than 2 million people per day.

Related to the virus, US infections are starting to plateau at a level above the fall level after a month and a half of steep and steady decline in new cases. The totals have risen to 29,744,652 confirmed cases and deaths have now passed half a million at 538,628 deaths.  The number of new cases fell again to an average of 58,798 new cases per day.  Deaths, which have always lagged, also fell again to 1,623 per day.  The Houston Health Dept. found a fairly large amount of the UK variant in their wastewater testing.  The House now plans to vote (pass) on the Covid Relief Bill on Wednesday since the Senate has not yet delivered the bill as passed in their chamber. In good news, lab studies are hinting that the PFE-BTNX vaccine can give protection against the Brazilian mutation.

Overnight, Asian markets were mixed.  China led the losses again as Shenzhen (-2.84%) and Shanghai (-1.82%) were down sharply. However, Japan (+0.99%). Hong Kong (+0.81%), and India (+0.95%) led to the upside.  In Europe, markets are mostly green, with a couple smaller exchanges being just on the red side of flat so far today.  The FTSE (+0.67%), DAX (+0.32%), and CAC (+0.36%) are all positive, with a few of the smaller exchanges being major outliers to the upside, like Denmark (+2.39%) and Portugal (+2.32%).  As of 7:30 am, US Futures are strongly higher across the board as bond yields pulled back (but remains above 1.5%) overnight.  The DIA is implying a +0.50% open, the SPY implying a +0.99% open, and the QQQ implying a +2.19% open.

The only major economic news on Tuesday is a Fed speaker (Kaplan at 6:05 pm).  Major earnings reports before the open include DKS, NAV, and THO.  Then after the close, ABM reports.

Softening bond yields overnight seem to be giving the bulls energy this morning. With no planned economic news and no real major earnings, that may be enough to help them run on the day. However, there is a lot of technical damage to overcome. So, while a “V reversal” could happen, it is more likely we will see some chop as bulls become more sure of the footing before running wild. So, be prepared for volatility and one-day directional moves.

Follow the trend, respect support and resistance, and don’t chase those moves that you miss.  Another trade will come along any minute. Don’t try to predict reversals, just follow the market. Keep taking your trade goals (profits) off the table when you can and stick to your discipline.  Consistency is the key, not ocassinoal home runs.

Ed

Swing Trade Ideas for your consideration and watchlist: WBA, JETS, PM, JWN, UAL, DIS. You can find Rick’s review of tickers on his YouTube Channel here. Trade your plan, take profits along the way, and smart. Also, remember to check for impending earnings reports. Finally, remember that any tickers we mention and talk about in the trading room are not recommendations to buy or sell.

🎯 Mike Probst: Rick, Got CTL off the scanner today. Already up 30%. Love it.

🎯 Dick Carp: the scanner paid for the year with HES-thank you

🎯 Arnoldo Bolanos: LTA scanner really works $$, thanks Ed.

🎯 Bob S: LTA is incredible…. I use it … would not trade without it

🎯 Malcolm .: Posted in room 2, @Rick… I used the LTA Scanner to go through hundreds of stocks this weekend and picked out three to trade:  PYPL, TGT, and ZS.   Quality patterns and with my trading, up 24%, 7% and 12%…. this program is gold.

🎯 Friday 6/21/19  (10:09 am) Aaron B: Today, my account is at +190% since January. Thanks, RWO HRC Flash Malcolm Thomas Steve Ed Bob S Bob C Mike P and everyone that contributes every day. I love our job.

Hit and Run Candlesticks / Road To Wealth Youtube videos

Disclosure: We do not act on all trades we mention, and not all mentions acted on the day of the mention. All trades we mention are for your consideration only.

Free YouTube Education  •  Subscription Plans • Private 2-Hour Coaching

DISCLAIMER: Investing / Trading involves significant financial risk and is not suitable for everyone. No communication from Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates or representatives is not financial or trading advice. All information provided by Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates and representatives are intended for educational purposes only. You are advised to test any new trading approach before implementing it.  Past performance does not guarantee future results.  Terms of Service

Markets gapped up a percent Friday on a major beat by the Feb. Nonfarm Payrolls (379k vs 182k est.) while unemployment dipped to 6.2%.  However, that gap was met with an immediate 2% selloff as fears of inflation resurfaced.  Then about 11:30am, the bulls stepped in to defend the lows as bond yields lessened a touch from their highs.  This led to a rally that lasted the rest of the day.  This left all 3 major indices with long-wicked White-bodied Hammer type candles.  On the day, the SPY gained 1.84%, the DIA gained 1.83%, and the QQQ gained 1.51%.  The VXX fell 7% to 15.12 and T2122 rose back up to just outside the overbought territory at 77.18.  10-year bond yields spiked again to 1.577% and Oil (WTI) rose almost 4% to $66.28.

The Democratic relief bill hit a few snags on Friday.  First, the President had to agree to a reduction from $400/week extended unemployment to $300/week.  Then a WV Senator held the bill hostage for several hours related to various unemployment aspects.  In the end, the Senate passed the bill Saturday in a 50-49 party-lines vote (one Republican was absent).  The bill is now expected to be passed (as amended by the Senate) in the House on Tuesday before being signed by President Biden.  The bill gives $1,400 direct checks to those making less than $80,000, extends unemployment at $300/week through September 6 and makes the first $10,200 of unemployment tax free for households making less than $150,000.  Even with Senate passage, futures are pointing lower.  So, apparently Mr. Market has already baked-in the stimulus and has moved on to other concerns.

After the close Friday, the SEC charged T and 3 of its executives with selectively sharing non-public information about the company’s investments to certain stock analysts.  In return, those analysts lowered their earnings estimates to just below the level the company then reported.  In other words, the SEC is claiming that T bought an “earnings beat” by giving insider data to certain specific analysts. In other market news, Pot stocks slumped for the second straight week last week.  This comes as the partisan nature of Washington is being seen by industry analysts as making it much harder to get national legalization (which many had expected from a Biden administration).  And in commodity news, OPEC+ members unexpectedly agreed to keep output restrictions in place.  This triggered another rally in oil which now has the price of oil above the balanced-budget required price of three large producing countries. This includes Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman, with UAE and Kuwait only about $3/barrel from their own break-even prices.  This was before Brent topped $70/barrel over the weekend on the OPEC+ restriction extension news.

Related to the virus, US infections are starting to plateau at a level above the fall level after a month and a half of steep and steady decline in new cases. The totals have risen to 29,696,250 confirmed cases and deaths have now passed half a million at 537,838 deaths.  As mentioned, the number of new cases fell again to an average of 59,777 new cases per day.  Deaths, which have always lagged, also fell again to 1,725 per day.  In good news, the US has now hit the milestone of doing over 2 million vaccinations per day.  However, Health officials again warned over the weekend that it is too soon to ease social distancing and especially mask mandates.

Globally, the numbers rose to 117,509,784 confirmed cases and the confirmed deaths are now at 2,606,789 deaths.  The trends have been good, but we saw a significant uptick today.  The world’s average new cases have up-ticked again by 10,000 over the weekend to 399,523 per day.  Mortality, which lags continued to tick down slowly, now at 8,715 new deaths per day. Among the places seeing a surge is Brazil, which reports it highest daily increase in new cases in over 2 months.  

Overnight, Asian markets were mixed, but mostly red Monday.  Shenzhen (-3.24%), Shanghai (-2.30%), and Hong Kong (-1.92%) led the move lower as China bore more most of the brunt of rising oil prices.  However, Singapore (+1.90%) gained on that news.  In Europe, stocks are green across the board so far today.  The DAX (+1.38%) and CAC (+0.88%) are typical of the continent, but the FTSE (+0.21%) lags.  As of 7:30 am, US Futures are mixed but generally down.  The QQQ is implying a -1.32% open, the SPY implying a -0.49% open, but the DIA remains flat, implying a -0.01% open.

There is no major economic news on Monday. There are also no major earnings reports before the open.  However, after the close, CASY and WISH report.

Inflation fears continue to grip Wall Street. Even clearing another major hurdle toward the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill has not helped the weekend mood. It looks as though Friday’s strong day is being answered by the bears pushing back today. The trend remains to the downside, but remember the bulls have recently defended a level not far below. So, volatility is to be expected.

As always, don’t try to predict, just follow the market. It’s the big money that makes the market move and we just need to tag along for the swings. Follow the trend, respect support and resistance, and don’t chase those moves that you miss.  Another trade will come along any minute. Keep booking your trade goals when you can and stick with your discipline. 

Ed

Swing Trade Ideas for your consideration and watchlist: DFS, DIS, F. XRT, MO, PFE, WMT, LUMN, NLSN, IVZ, MA. You can find Rick’s review of tickers on his YouTube Channel here. Trade your plan, take profits along the way, and smart. Also, remember to check for impending earnings reports. Finally, remember that any tickers we mention and talk about in the trading room are not recommendations to buy or sell.

🎯 Mike Probst: Rick, Got CTL off the scanner today. Already up 30%. Love it.

🎯 Dick Carp: the scanner paid for the year with HES-thank you

🎯 Arnoldo Bolanos: LTA scanner really works $$, thanks Ed.

🎯 Bob S: LTA is incredible…. I use it … would not trade without it

🎯 Malcolm .: Posted in room 2, @Rick… I used the LTA Scanner to go through hundreds of stocks this weekend and picked out three to trade:  PYPL, TGT, and ZS.   Quality patterns and with my trading, up 24%, 7% and 12%…. this program is gold.

🎯 Friday 6/21/19  (10:09 am) Aaron B: Today, my account is at +190% since January. Thanks, RWO HRC Flash Malcolm Thomas Steve Ed Bob S Bob C Mike P and everyone that contributes every day. I love our job.

Hit and Run Candlesticks / Road To Wealth Youtube videos

Disclosure: We do not act on all trades we mention, and not all mentions acted on the day of the mention. All trades we mention are for your consideration only.

Free YouTube Education  •  Subscription Plans • Private 2-Hour Coaching

DISCLAIMER: Investing / Trading involves significant financial risk and is not suitable for everyone. No communication from Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates or representatives is not financial or trading advice. All information provided by Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates and representatives are intended for educational purposes only. You are advised to test any new trading approach before implementing it.  Past performance does not guarantee future results.  Terms of Service

Markets started off with an up-and-down first hour Thursday, but then the bulls rallied us back to the highs.  Unfortunately, at noon, while he tried to be dovish, Fed Chair Powell indicated inflation lies ahead.  This caused a massive and steep selloff that lasted 2 hours.  Bulls were able to pull stocks up off the lows the last two hours, but much of the damage was done.  This left all 3 major indices with big, ugly black albeit indecisive (large-wicks) candles.  On the day, DIA lost 1.09%, SPY lost 1.23%, and QQQ lost 1.64% (turning negative for the year).  The VXX rose over 4% to 16.26 and T2122 fell back into the oversold territory at 12.50.  10-year bond yields spiked on the inflation fears and closed at 1.545% as oil gained almost 5% to $64.24.

The Senate agreed to 20 hours of debate on the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill.  However, that time does not start immediately as WI’s GOP Senator Johnson forced clerks to read aloud the entirety of the bill (which will take several hours of in-session time).  As of now, the bill is still on track to be passed and then the reconciled bill to be passed in both houses of Congress just in time for a Wed. signature by president Biden.  This is the deadline because the previous stimulus bill expires on that day.  This said, it will be a razor-thin margin in the Senate and the GOP may have other procedural tricks in addition to Democrats playing hold-out to get favors and pet projects from their own leadership.

Potomac Economics (an independent watchdog group) found that the TX ERCOT power grid left its emergency price of $9,000/kwh in place for 2-3 days longer than their own metrics show it should have been in place.  This means that ERCOT overbilled their customers (who passed the costs on to consumers) by as much as $16 billion during the winter freeze. This falls in line with the criticism of ERCOT’s power company customers, the largest of which has already filed for bankruptcy because the financial cost (and two others defaulted on the charges and have been banned from the grid).  Since the CEO of the ERCOT grid has already been fired and most of the board has already resigned, it is unclear who will get blamed and how (if at all) things will be put right.  However, this is sure to become a political football as soon as the Texas Energy Commission meeting today as politicians try to keep the blame for not adhereing to decades of advice squarely on ERCOT and not of themselves.

Related to the virus, US infections are starting to plateau at a level above the fall level after a month and a half of steep and steady decline in new cases. The totals have risen to 29,526,086 confirmed cases and deaths have now passed half a million at 533,636 deaths. As mentioned, the number of new cases fell slightly again to an average of 64,110 new cases per day.  Deaths, which have always lagged, also fell slightly to 1,854 per day.  Yet more states are ignoring health experts and loosening their pandemic restrictions.  This cuts across party lines as CT is among the latest.

Globally, the numbers rose to 116,322,289 confirmed cases and the confirmed deaths are now at 2,583,546 deaths.  The trends have been good, but we saw a significant uptick today.  The world’s average new cases has up-ticked again to 388,894 per day.  Mortality, which lags continued to tick down slowly, now at 8,853 new deaths per day. In Europe Germany says they are seeing a rise in cases and that 40% are of the UK strain.  Italy banned shipping vaccine out of their country and France is considering following suit.  In Asia, Japan extended the state of emergency in Tokyo for another 3 weeks.  In better news, Australia announced that it has enough AZN vaccine to cover them until domestic production can get ramped up.  

Overnight, Asian markets were slightly mixed, but mostly red in modest trading. Malaysia (+1.19%) and Thailand (+0.65%) led to the upside while Australian (-0.74%) and South Korea (-0.57%) led to the downside.  In Europe, we see a similar picture so far today.  The DAX (-0.59%) and CAC (-0.31%) lead to the downside while the FTSE (+0.38%) and some of the smaller exchanges lead on the green side.  As of 7:30 am, US Futures are pointing to a flat open.  The DIA and SPY are just on the green side of flat, while the QQQ is just to the red side of break-even.  This comes as markets wait for the data dump at 8:30 am.

The major economic news for Friday includes Feb. Avg. Hourly Earnings, Imports/Exports, Feb. Nonfarm Payrolls, Feb. Participation Rate, Jan. Trade Bal., and Feb Unemployment Rate (all at 8:30 am), US Federal Budget (2 pm), and a Fed speaker (Bostic at 3 pm).  Major earnings reports on the day include BIG and GLP before the open.  There are no major earnings reports after the close.

Inflation fear remains in charge on Wall Street. After the ADP miss earlier in the week, look for all eyes to be on the Feb. Employment Report as traders look for any sign of overheating in the economy. That said, the bulls did push us up off the lows late Thursday, so they may be looking to defend a potential support level below. Volatility seems to be the only thing assured in the market now. So, preparedness is the key here.

As always, don’t try to predict, just follow the market. It’s the big money that makes the market move and we just need to tag along for the swings. Follow the trend, respect support and resistance, and don’t chase those moves that you miss.  Another trade will come along any minute. Keep booking your trade goals when you can and stick with your discipline.  And don’t forget it’s Friday…so take a paycheck off the board too.

Ed

Swing Trade Ideas for your consideration and watchlist: No trade ideas for today. You can find Rick’s review of tickers on his YouTube Channel here. Trade your plan, take profits along the way, and smart. Also, remember to check for impending earnings reports. Finally, remember that any tickers we mention and talk about in the trading room are not recommendations to buy or sell.

🎯 Mike Probst: Rick, Got CTL off the scanner today. Already up 30%. Love it.

🎯 Dick Carp: the scanner paid for the year with HES-thank you

🎯 Arnoldo Bolanos: LTA scanner really works $$, thanks Ed.

🎯 Bob S: LTA is incredible…. I use it … would not trade without it

🎯 Malcolm .: Posted in room 2, @Rick… I used the LTA Scanner to go through hundreds of stocks this weekend and picked out three to trade:  PYPL, TGT, and ZS.   Quality patterns and with my trading, up 24%, 7% and 12%…. this program is gold.

🎯 Friday 6/21/19  (10:09 am) Aaron B: Today, my account is at +190% since January. Thanks, RWO HRC Flash Malcolm Thomas Steve Ed Bob S Bob C Mike P and everyone that contributes every day. I love our job.

Hit and Run Candlesticks / Road To Wealth Youtube videos

Disclosure: We do not act on all trades we mention, and not all mentions acted on the day of the mention. All trades we mention are for your consideration only.

Free YouTube Education  •  Subscription Plans • Private 2-Hour Coaching

DISCLAIMER: Investing / Trading involves significant financial risk and is not suitable for everyone. No communication from Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates or representatives is not financial or trading advice. All information provided by Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates and representatives are intended for educational purposes only. You are advised to test any new trading approach before implementing it.  Past performance does not guarantee future results.  Terms of Service

Markets made a small gap-down to open the session Wednesday.  However, the bears had the whip in hand all day as inflation fears loomed.  Bond yields rose over 8 basis points before settling back.  This left us with big, ugly black candles that have either are forming (DIA), have formed (SPY), or have broken out of (QQQ) a Dreaded-h pattern.  All 3 major indices closed on the lows.  On the day the DIA (buoyed by BA and JOM) lost 0.38%, the SPY lost 1.32%, and the QQQ lost 2.88%.  The VXX rose 4.28% and T2122 rose a bit to 39.01, but remains on the lower side of mid-range.  10-year bond yield closed up significantly to 1.469% and Oil (WTI) jumped 2.5% to $61.25/barrel.

After the close, DIS said they are closing 20% of their brick-and-mortar stores in order to shift more focus to e-commerce.  President Biden made a concession Wednesday by announcing his support for a reduction in the earnings cap qualification for direct payments.  The new number will be $80,000, down from the original $100,000.  This would disqualify about 12 million people.  This comes as the Senate began debating the bill on Wednesday evening.

AAPL is now facing a new antitrust probe in the UK.  This is based on app developer complaints about the Apple app store.  Specifically, the 30% fee and long approval process are being challenged. AMZN also made news in the UK, though for better reasons.  AMZN opened its first cashier-less retail shop, where customers just pick out their items and leave.  The system works on smartphones and an AMZN phone app.  An AMZN-backed food delivery service (Deliveroo) also chose London as the location of its first operation.

Related to the virus, US infections have plateaued (after almost 2 months of fall) at a level above the fall level after a month and a half of steep and steady decline in new cases. The totals have risen to 29,456,377 confirmed cases and deaths have now passed half a million at 531,652 deaths.  As mentioned, the number of new cases fell just slightly again to an average of 65,322 new cases per day.  Deaths, which have always lagged, also fell very slightly to 1,922 per day.  President Biden, the CDC, and Dr. Fauci (NIH) all derided states who are lifting restrictions now before the virus and its variants are fully beaten.  In the Senate, GOP members are planning “made for TV” testimony sessions that will likely delay a Senate vote until next Wednesday.

Globally, the numbers rose to 115,869,639 confirmed cases and the confirmed deaths are now at 2,573,690 deaths.  The trends have been good, but we saw a significant uptick today.  The world’s average new cases has up-ticked again to 388,447 per day.  Mortality also ticked up again, now at 8,955 new deaths per day.  The WHO weighed in to say that after many weeks of falling, the number of cases is ticking up and that variants are to blame. In better news, the UK has now said that like the US, they will fast-track modified versions of vaccines to deal with variants rather than require the full 3-phase trial process.  In Germany, the governement finally approved the AZN vaccine for people over 65.  And in India, an Indian vaccine (Covaxin) has been found to be 81% effective in trials on almost 26,000 people, based on results from 43 patients.  (36 who had gotten the placebo contracted Covid while only 7 who had gotten the real vaccine also contracted Covid).

Overnight, Asian markets were red across the board.  Hong Kong (-2.15%), Japan (-2.13%), and Shenzhen (-2.90%) highlighted the losses, but the red was widespread and strong everywhere.  In Europe, markets are also in the read all across the continent so far today.  Smaller exchanges like Finland (-1.36%) and Belgium (-1.21%) are leading the losses.  However, the FTSE (-0.86%), DAX (-0.38%), and CAC (-0.22%) are all headed lower as well at this point in their day.  As of 7:30 am, US Futures are pointing to a very modestly red open.  The DIA is now implying a  -0.14% open, the SPY implying a -0.23% open, and the QQQ implying a -0.23% open.

The major economic news for Thursday includes Weekly Initial Jobless Claims, Q4 Productivity, and Q4 Unit Labor Costs (all at 8:30 am), Jan. Factory Orders (10 am), and Fed Chair Powell speaks (noon).  Major earnings reports on the day include BJ, BURL, CNQ, CIEN, GMS, KR, MIK, SRLP, and TTC before the open.  Then after the close, AVGO, COO, COST, and GPS report.

Inflation fear still grips Wall Street. While pre-market futures are just shy of flat, we still have a shot of data coming before the open. Also, with Fed Chair Powell speaking again today (I don’t know if he will be taking questions), markets may be waiting on more reassurance that inflations will be ignored the rest of the year. All we know for sure is that despite a pullback of late, we are still not far from all-time highs and the market is seriously worried about the Fed maybe changing course later this year. So, preparedness is the key here.

Follow the trend, respect support and resistance, and don’t chase those moves that you miss.  Another trade will come along any minute. So, forget about predicting reversals or breakouts. Just book your trade goals when you can and stick with your discipline.  Achieve your ambitions in the long-run by taking short-term trade gains off the board consistantly as they are met, over and over again.

Ed

Swing Trade Ideas for your consideration and watchlist: SQQQ, BIDU, HON, EMR, KHC, KEYS, PFE, EEM. You can find Rick’s review of tickers on his YouTube Channel here. Trade your plan, take profits along the way, and smart. Also, remember to check for impending earnings reports. Finally, remember that any tickers we mention and talk about in the trading room are not recommendations to buy or sell.

🎯 Mike Probst: Rick, Got CTL off the scanner today. Already up 30%. Love it.

🎯 Dick Carp: the scanner paid for the year with HES-thank you

🎯 Arnoldo Bolanos: LTA scanner really works $$, thanks Ed.

🎯 Bob S: LTA is incredible…. I use it … would not trade without it

🎯 Malcolm .: Posted in room 2, @Rick… I used the LTA Scanner to go through hundreds of stocks this weekend and picked out three to trade:  PYPL, TGT, and ZS.   Quality patterns and with my trading, up 24%, 7% and 12%…. this program is gold.

🎯 Friday 6/21/19  (10:09 am) Aaron B: Today, my account is at +190% since January. Thanks, RWO HRC Flash Malcolm Thomas Steve Ed Bob S Bob C Mike P and everyone that contributes every day. I love our job.

Hit and Run Candlesticks / Road To Wealth Youtube videos

Disclosure: We do not act on all trades we mention, and not all mentions acted on the day of the mention. All trades we mention are for your consideration only.

Free YouTube Education  •  Subscription Plans • Private 2-Hour Coaching

DISCLAIMER: Investing / Trading involves significant financial risk and is not suitable for everyone. No communication from Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates or representatives is not financial or trading advice. All information provided by Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates and representatives are intended for educational purposes only. You are advised to test any new trading approach before implementing it.  Past performance does not guarantee future results.  Terms of Service

Markets opened modestly higher Tuesday and then roller-coastered all day.  However, a selloff the last 45 minutes of the day left all 3 major indices closing near their lows.  All 3 printed big ugly black candles, but the QQQ was the sorts of the lot, printing a Bearish Engulfing candle.  On the day, SPY lost 0.78%, DIA lost 0.44%, and QQQ lost 1.60%.  The VXX only gained nine-tenths of a percent to 14.97 and T2122 fell all the way back down to 30.00.  10-year bond yields fell significantly to 1.405% and Oil (WTI) lost two-thirds of a percent to $59.35/barrel.

Manufacturing data Monday showed that the US economy is exploding (in a good way) even as the $1.9 trillion relief bill is being debated in the Senate and is expected to pass in the next two weeks.  The Atlanta Fed real-time GDP estimates are showing that Q1 may exceed even the most optimistic estimates, now estimating Q1 to see at 10% GDP gain.  However, not all sectors are in good shape.  Mortgage demand fell again as rates rose again to the highest level since last July.  In terms of counter-intuitive thinking, this may be bad for markets as traders fear the Fed will have to go back on its word and take a more hawkish stance by the end of the year. 

President Biden invoked the Defense Production Act Tuesday and then negotiated an agreement between JNJ and MRK.  As a result, MRK will use two of their manufacturing plants to make the JNJ vaccine and the delivery schedule for JNJ vaccine has been accelerated by two full months.  In the early evening, President Biden said this will ensure that the US has enough vaccine to vaccinate every American adult by the end of May (versus the old schedule which would have reached that point by the end of July).  Obviously this is great news for the economy and theoretically for businesses as well.

Related to the virus, US infections are starting to plateau at a level above the fall level after a month and a half of steep and steady decline in new cases. The totals have risen to 29,370,705 confirmed cases and deaths have now passed half a million at 529,214 deaths.  As mentioned, the number of new cases fell slightly again to an average of 66,307 new cases per day.  Deaths, which have always lagged, also fell slightly to 1,932 per day.  TX dropped all mask and building capacity restrictions Tuesday.  On the same day OH, MI, and several southern states also partially eased restrictions.  Time will tell if going wide open now is another mistake or not.

Globally, the numbers rose to 115,076,964 confirmed cases and the confirmed deaths are now at 2,552,234 deaths.  The trends have been good, but we saw a significant uptick today.  The world’s average new cases has up-ticked again to 387,769 per day.  Mortality also ticked up, now at 9,041 new deaths per day.  In the UK, the latest data shows that even a single vaccination of a 2-dose regimen cuts the risk of hospitalization by 80% in people over 80 years old at least after 3-4 weeks of time for the vaccine to work.  The study was only of PFE-BTNX and AZN vaccines.  People aged 70-80 got only 61% protection from the PFE vaccine and 73% from the AZN.  In Asia, China has now said more that 500 million of their population will have been vaccinated by the end of June.

Overnight, Asian markets were green across the board.  Shanghai (+1.95%), Hong Kong (+2.70%), and India (+2.19%) paced the gains.  In Europe, markets are mixed, but mostly green so far today.  There are some major outliers such as Portugal (-1.74%) and Denmark (-1.41%).  However, the FTSE (+0.82%), DAX (+0.90%), and CAC (+0.62%) are more typical of the continent so far today.  As of 7:30am, US Futures are pointing to a green open.  The DIA is implying a +0.65% gap up, the SPY implying a +0.56% gap up, and the QQQ also implying a +0.56% gap open.

The major economic news for Wednesday includes Feb. ADP Nonfarm Employment (8:15 am), Feb Services PMI (9:45 am), Feb. ISM Non-Mfg. PMI (10 am), Crude Oil Inventories (10:30 am), Fed Beige Book (2 pm), and 2 Fed speakers (Bostic at noon and Kaplan at 6:05 pm).  Major earnings reports on the day include DLTR, DY, and PDCO before the open.  Then after the close, AEO, CNR, MRVL, SPLK, and TCOM report.

It seems inflation fears (or the lack thereof on some days) have been the major market drivers recently. While pre-market futures look good to the bulls, the stories of a potential blowout GDP for the quarter are likely to strike fear in traders watching the Fed. Without a crystal ball, the best we traders can do is to have a plan with protection in place to handle the volatility of the market jerks one way and then the other. All we know for sure is that we are near all-time highs in a manic market. So, preparedness is the key here.

Follow the trend, respect support and resistance, and don’t chase those moves that you miss.  Another trade will come along any minute. So, forget about predicting reversals or breakouts. Just book your trade goals when you can and stick with your discipline.  Achieve your ambitions in the long-run by taking short-term trade gains off the board consistantly as they are met, over and over again.

Ed

Swing Trade Ideas for your consideration and watchlist: SPWR, TER, RAD, ROKU. You can find Rick’s review of tickers on his YouTube Channel here. Trade your plan, take profits along the way, and smart. Also, remember to check for impending earnings reports. Finally, remember that any tickers we mention and talk about in the trading room are not recommendations to buy or sell.

🎯 Mike Probst: Rick, Got CTL off the scanner today. Already up 30%. Love it.

🎯 Dick Carp: the scanner paid for the year with HES-thank you

🎯 Arnoldo Bolanos: LTA scanner really works $$, thanks Ed.

🎯 Bob S: LTA is incredible…. I use it … would not trade without it

🎯 Malcolm .: Posted in room 2, @Rick… I used the LTA Scanner to go through hundreds of stocks this weekend and picked out three to trade:  PYPL, TGT, and ZS.   Quality patterns and with my trading, up 24%, 7% and 12%…. this program is gold.

🎯 Friday 6/21/19  (10:09 am) Aaron B: Today, my account is at +190% since January. Thanks, RWO HRC Flash Malcolm Thomas Steve Ed Bob S Bob C Mike P and everyone that contributes every day. I love our job.

Hit and Run Candlesticks / Road To Wealth Youtube videos

Disclosure: We do not act on all trades we mention, and not all mentions acted on the day of the mention. All trades we mention are for your consideration only.

Free YouTube Education  •  Subscription Plans • Private 2-Hour Coaching

DISCLAIMER: Investing / Trading involves significant financial risk and is not suitable for everyone. No communication from Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates or representatives is not financial or trading advice. All information provided by Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates and representatives are intended for educational purposes only. You are advised to test any new trading approach before implementing it.  Past performance does not guarantee future results.  Terms of Service

March started off with a bang as markets gapped up about 1.35% and the bulls kept the rally going (slowly) the rest of the day.  This left us with a Bull Kicker type candle in the QQQ, and strong bullish candles in the SPY and DIA (although the DIA did leave an awful lot of upper wick).  On the day, DIA gained 1.98%, SPY gained 2.42%, and QQQ gained 3.01%.  All in all, this was the best day for the S&P since last June.  The VXX fell almost 7.5% to 14.84 and T2122 jumped from oversold all the way into the lower edge of the overbought territory at 82.42.  10-year bond yields rose again to 1.426% and Oil (WTI) fell half a percent to $60.32/barrel.

In US business news, despite still demanding more government bailout money to avoid laying off thousands of employees, UAL disclosed that it is buying 25 new BA 737 Max planes and has accelerated the purchase cycle on an existing order for 45 of those same model plane (40 of which are now to be delivered in 2022).  This comes as UAL says it now expects a rebound in air travel.  BA stock popped almost 6% on the day on this news. In other stories, the head of NKE North America resigned after it was disclosed that her son runs a sneaker resale business and uses a credit card in her name to buy shoes for that business.  In Texas, Reuters reports that the state’s energy companies have skipped almost $2.5 billion in payments for power and services over the last 2 weeks according to the state ERCOT grid operator.  ERCOT did not name the specific companies and amounts yet, but threatens to do so if the bills are not paid soon.  However, the largest electricity provider in the state (Brazos Elec. Power Cooperative) filed for bankruptcy Monday.

In global business news, a severe drought in Taiwan (most of the country’s reservoirs are down to 20% capacity) is threatening to make the global chips shortage worse.  The country has asked major chipmakers TSM and UMC to cut water usage to 10%.   So far, they are avoiding reducing output by buying and trucking in fresh water for their fabs (factories).  This story was reemphasized when NIO (Chinese TSLA rival) reported that the global chip shortage will cause a cut in their production capacity by as much as 25% in Q2.  It did this while reporting a loss for the most recent quarter.

Related to the virus, US infections are starting to plateau at a level above the fall level after a month and a half of steep and steady decline in new cases. The totals have risen to 29,314,254 confirmed cases and deaths have now passed half a million at 527,226 deaths.  The number of new cases fell slightly again overnight to an average of 68,664 new cases per day.  Deaths, which have always lagged, were flat at 1,996 per day.  

Globally, the numbers rose to 115,076,964 confirmed cases and the confirmed deaths are now at 2,552,234 deaths.  The trends have been good, but we saw a significant uptick today.  The world’s average new cases has up-ticked again to 387,769 per day.  Mortality also ticked up, now at 9,041 new deaths per day.  In the UK, the latest data shows that even a single vaccination of a 2-dose regimen cuts the risk of hospitalization by 80% in people over 80 years old at least after 3-4 weeks of time for the vaccine to work.  The study was only of PFE-BTNX and AZN vaccines.  People aged 70-80 got only 61% protection from the PFE vaccine and 73% from the AZN.  In Asia, China has now said more that 500 million of their population will have been vaccinated by the end of June.

Overnight, the few Asian markets were mixed again.  Shanghai (-1.21%), Hong Kong (-1.21%), and Japan (-0.86%) paced the losses.  Meanwhile, South Korea (+1.03%) and India (+1.07%) paced the gains.  In Europe, markets are mostly green so far today.  The FTSE (+0.70%), CAC (+0.62%), and DAX (+0.54%) are typical of the continent with the odd outlier such as Athens (+1.37%) or Belgium (-0.14%).  As of 7:30 am, US Futures are flat after an overnight rollercoaster ride.  The DIA is implying a -0.05% open, the SPY implying a -0.13% open, and the QQQ implying a -0.20% open.

The only economic news for Tuesday is two Fed speakers (Brainard at 1 pm and Daly at 2 pm).  Major earnings reports on the day include ANF, AER, AZO, IGT, KSS, KTB, SER, and TGT before the open.  Then after the close, BGS, DAR, GO, HPE, JWN, ROST, and URBN report.

With no major economic news scheduled and the Senate yet to take up debate on the stimulus bill, it may be inflation and downside protection that drives markets this morning. All eyes will be on the bond market that has pulled back from last week’s highs but is surely trending in the direction of inflation. That said, Monday was a strong day and the bulls liked having the chance to run after a week or slow retreat. We’re close enough to the all-time highs that they can taste it. Be cautious and know the timeframe you are trading. Are you focusing on Monday’s rally, the 2-week pullback, or the post-election rally?

Forget about predicting reversals or breakouts. Just book your trade goals when you can and stick with your discipline.  Follow the trend, respect support and resistance, and don’t chase those moves that you miss.  Another trade will come along any minute. So, achieve your ambitions in the long-run by taking short-term trade goals off the board as they are met, over and over again.

Ed

Swing Trade Ideas for your consideration and watchlist: PINS, PENN, INTC, GE, MARA. You can find Rick’s review of tickers on his YouTube Channel here. Trade your plan, take profits along the way, and smart. Also, remember to check for impending earnings reports. Finally, remember that any tickers we mention and talk about in the trading room are not recommendations to buy or sell.

🎯 Mike Probst: Rick, Got CTL off the scanner today. Already up 30%. Love it.

🎯 Dick Carp: the scanner paid for the year with HES-thank you

🎯 Arnoldo Bolanos: LTA scanner really works $$, thanks Ed.

🎯 Bob S: LTA is incredible…. I use it … would not trade without it

🎯 Malcolm .: Posted in room 2, @Rick… I used the LTA Scanner to go through hundreds of stocks this weekend and picked out three to trade:  PYPL, TGT, and ZS.   Quality patterns and with my trading, up 24%, 7% and 12%…. this program is gold.

🎯 Friday 6/21/19  (10:09 am) Aaron B: Today, my account is at +190% since January. Thanks, RWO HRC Flash Malcolm Thomas Steve Ed Bob S Bob C Mike P and everyone that contributes every day. I love our job.

Hit and Run Candlesticks / Road To Wealth Youtube videos

Disclosure: We do not act on all trades we mention, and not all mentions acted on the day of the mention. All trades we mention are for your consideration only.

Free YouTube Education  •  Subscription Plans • Private 2-Hour Coaching

DISCLAIMER: Investing / Trading involves significant financial risk and is not suitable for everyone. No communication from Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates or representatives is not financial or trading advice. All information provided by Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates and representatives are intended for educational purposes only. You are advised to test any new trading approach before implementing it.  Past performance does not guarantee future results.  Terms of Service

Markets gapped up (slightly in the large-caps and a percent in the QQQ), but then put in a sideways chop that was not far from the highs until the last 10 minutes of the day.  However, Friday ended on a massive selloff on heavy volume to end the week on a down note.  The DIA went out near the lows on a big black-bodied candle while the SPY was a little less decisive and the QQQ put in a black Spinning Top candle.  On the day DIA lost 1.42%, the SPY lost 0.52%, and the QQQ eked out a 0.42% gain.  The VXX fell 4.53% to 16.03 and T2122 fell well into the oversold territory at 10.87.  10-year bond yields fell to 1.407% and Oil (WTI) fell almost 3% to $61.66/barrel.

As expected, late Friday night the House passed the $1.9 trillion relief bill and sent it on to the Senate. As was mentioned Friday, the Senate Parliamentarian has already ruled that the Minimum Wage increase must be stripped out of the Senate version. So, while the Republicans are expected to put up a fight (mostly staking out political positions for the 2022 elections), the bill is expected to pass the Senate, be reconciled with the House and be signed into law in the next two weeks.  As a side note to the ruling by the Parliamentarian, some Democrats are already working on ways to rewrite tax laws to punish large corporations who do not “voluntarily” raise their minimum pay to the $15/hour level.  However, it is unclear if that can make it into law.

Berkshire published Warren Buffett’s annual letter to investors this weekend.  This year Berkshire leaned on stock buy-backs (almost $25 billion worth) instead of deals or company performance to power stock price.  In the past, Buffett derided buybacks as a sign of a company’s management having no better ideas on how to invest.  Bloomberg even published a front-page article critical of this year’s letter, which gave little insight compared to previous years.  It failed to mention the pandemic or climate impacts on the economy or even on the company’s major insurance units.  He did say AAPL was a valuable position for the company (although they unloaded a sizable portion of their position in Q4) and said they paid too much for a $37 billion acquisition 5 years ago.  It also came out that Berkshire owns more of a Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD that does GM, who is another major BYD investor

Related to the virus, US infections are plateauing at a level above the fall level after a month and a half of steep and steady decline in new cases. The totals have risen to 29,255,365 confirmed cases and deaths have now passed half a million at 525,778 deaths.  As mentioned, the number of new cases fell again over the weekend to an average of 68,966 new cases per day.  Deaths, which have always lagged, seem to fall again to 1,989 per day.  Late Saturday the FDA approved the JNJ 1-shot vaccine for emergency use.  This means 4 million additional doses of vaccine will be available this week and the company has promised to deliver 20 million by the end of the month.

Globally, the numbers rose to 1134,753,130 confirmed cases and the confirmed deaths are now at 2,544,452 deaths.  The trends have been good, but we saw a significant uptick today.  The world’s average new cases has up-ticked slightly again to 385,430 per day.  However, mortality ticked down again, now at 8,966 new deaths per day.  In Europe, the UK is desperately seeking to find one of the 6 cases of the Brazil variant that they have identified.  However, data also shows that their vaccination program is having an effect, with deaths among the elderly down dramatically in the last month.  Meanwhile, in Germany, the government reports that the UK and South African variants now account for most of the cases seen in their country.

Overnight, the few Asian markets were mixed, but mostly in the green.  Taiwan (-3.03%) and South Korea (-2.80%) were large outliers.  However, Japan (+2.41%), Shenzhen (+2.42%), and Australia (+1.74%) are more typical.  In Europe we are seeing green across the board so far this morning.  The FTSE (+1.37%) and CAC (+1.25%) are pacing gains with the DAX (+0.87%) a bit behind.  As of 7:30 am, US Futures are firmly in the green and pointing to a gap up.  The DIA is pointing to a -+0.90% open, the SPY is implying a +0.98% open, and the QQQ is implying a +1.19% open at this point.

The major economic news for Monday is limited to Feb. Mfg. PMI (9:45 am), Feb. ISM Mfg. PMI (10 am), and a Fed speaker (Williams at 9 am).  Major earnings reports on the day include BRKB, CORE, CVET, XRAY, FMX, MIDD, and TGNA before the open.  Then after the close, MELI, PRGO, SGMS, and ZM report.

US Futures popped early Monday as inflation fears seem to have come off the front burner. Perhaps it is the new vaccine (JNJ) in the toolbox that has markets looking to run this morning. Regardless, the bulls look to be in-charge when the opening bell rings. That said, the trend has been to the downside of late. So be careful calling a reversal…volatility and intraday reversals have been the norm in the recent chop.

Follow the trend, respect support and resistance, and don’t chase those moves that you miss.  Another trade will come along any minute. So, achieve your ambitions in the long-run by taking short-term trade goals off the board as they are met, over and over again. Forget about predicting reversals or breakouts. Book your trade goals when you can and stick with your discipline. 

Ed

Swing Trade Ideas for your consideration and watchlist: No trade ideas for Monday. You can find Rick’s review of tickers on his YouTube Channel here. Trade your plan, take profits along the way, and smart. Also, remember to check for impending earnings reports. Finally, remember that any tickers we mention and talk about in the trading room are not recommendations to buy or sell.

🎯 Mike Probst: Rick, Got CTL off the scanner today. Already up 30%. Love it.

🎯 Dick Carp: the scanner paid for the year with HES-thank you

🎯 Arnoldo Bolanos: LTA scanner really works $$, thanks Ed.

🎯 Bob S: LTA is incredible…. I use it … would not trade without it

🎯 Malcolm .: Posted in room 2, @Rick… I used the LTA Scanner to go through hundreds of stocks this weekend and picked out three to trade:  PYPL, TGT, and ZS.   Quality patterns and with my trading, up 24%, 7% and 12%…. this program is gold.

🎯 Friday 6/21/19  (10:09 am) Aaron B: Today, my account is at +190% since January. Thanks, RWO HRC Flash Malcolm Thomas Steve Ed Bob S Bob C Mike P and everyone that contributes every day. I love our job.

Hit and Run Candlesticks / Road To Wealth Youtube videos

Disclosure: We do not act on all trades we mention, and not all mentions acted on the day of the mention. All trades we mention are for your consideration only.

Free YouTube Education  •  Subscription Plans • Private 2-Hour Coaching

DISCLAIMER: Investing / Trading involves significant financial risk and is not suitable for everyone. No communication from Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates or representatives is not financial or trading advice. All information provided by Hit and Run Candlesticks Inc, its affiliates and representatives are intended for educational purposes only. You are advised to test any new trading approach before implementing it.  Past performance does not guarantee future results.  Terms of Service

The large-caps opened flat, but the bears were in control all day.  It was the same story in the QQQ, but with a significant gap down to start the day.  This left us with a Bearish Engulfing signal in the DIA, and ugly large-body black candles in the other two major indices.  On the say DIA lost 1.74%, SPY lost 2.41%, and QQQ lost 3.49%.  The VXX gained almost 16% to 16.79 and T2122 dropped all the way down to the edge of the oversold territory at 20.22.  10-year jumped again to 1.532% as inflation fears spooked markets all day.  Oil (WTI) lost half a percent to $63.18/barrel.

After the close, the Senate Parliamentarian ruled that the Democratic minimum wage hike (to $15/hr.) must not be included in the relief bill since it is being passed under budgetary rules.  On the surface, this seems like a win for the GOP, which has strongly opposed the increase.  However, many Democrats had hoped for this ruling, as it makes it easier for the relief bill to pass the Senate and it removes the potential party split on this topic.  In either case, this makes it much more likely for the President’s $1.9 trillion relief bill gets passed in the next couple of weeks.  The House is scheduled to vote on the bill today.

Another story related to the idea of a trading tax idea (an idea that was quietly revived by Liberals during the Robinhood / Reddit / Short Squeeeze story) has popped up. The idea which is a favorite of populist politicians such as Senators Warren and Sanders (as a supposed way of reducing high-frequency trading by funds), is being adopted abroad as well. In this case, Hong Kong plans to implement the same type of tax.  Overnight, the Hong Kong Finance Secretary (the counter-part to US Treasury Sec. Yellen) told CNBC Asia that the tax will not harm the competitiveness of the Hang Seng exchange.  He went on to say it will bring in much-needed additional government revenue, helping fund the City’s $256 billion deficit for the pandemic year. CNBC did not follow-up on whether he knew something about the plans of other countries or why he specifically feels this increased cost per trade will not make the HSI exchange less attractive.

Related to the virus, US infections are starting to plateau at a level above the fall level after a month and a half of steep and steady decline in new cases. The totals have risen to 29,052,262 confirmed cases and deaths have now passed half a million at 520,785 deaths.  As mentioned, the number of new cases is starting to level-out and uptick at an average of 71,412 new cases per day.  Oddly, deaths, which have always lagged, seem to be preceding this plateau and rose back up to 2,082 per day.  After the close Thursday President Biden celebrated the halfway point toward his promised 100 million vaccinations in 100 days.  The 50million were actually accomplished in 5 weeks.  In other good news, the FDA Advisory Panel will make its decision on the JNJ vaccine on today.

Globally, the numbers rose to 113,643,803 confirmed cases and the confirmed deaths are now at 2,521,185 deaths.  The trends have been good, but we saw a significant uptick today.  The world’s average new cases has up-ticked slightly again to 382,500 per day.  However, mortality ticked down again, now at 9,296 new deaths per day.  In a real show of charity, India has shipped 36 million doses of vaccine to various developing countries.  This is particularly impressive given that they have 1.4 billion people of their own to vaccinate.  Elsewhere in Asian, South Korea has extended its Social Distancing measures through at least March 14 as vaccinations begin in that country.

Overnight, the few Asian markets were mostly strongly in the red, with only 2 smaller markets remaining green.  Japan (-3.99%), Hong Kong (-3.64%) and Taiwan (-3.03%) led Asian markets lower.  In Europe, we see red across the board so far today.  The FTSE (-1.56%) and CAC (-1.03%) are leading stocks lower, but the DAX (-0.67%) is not exactly a bright spot.  Inflation fears seem to be the culprit as was the case in the US on Thursday.  However, another mid-day happening is the Bank of England’s Chief Economist warned that the “inflationary tiger has awoken” which will reinforce market fears over inflation.  As of 7:30 am, US Futures are mixed and flat after a turbulent overnight session.  The DIA is pointing to a -0.10% open, the SPY is implying a +0.10% open, and he QQQQ is implying a -0.07% open at this point.

Major economic news for Friday includes Jan. PCE Price Index, Jan. Trade Balance, Jan. Personal Spending, and Jan. Retail Inventories (all at 8:30 am), Feb. Chicago PMI (9:45 am), Michigan Consumer Sentiment (10 am), and US Federal Budget (2 pm).  Major earnings reports on the day include AMCX, BLDR, CRI, SSP, FLR, FL, LSXMA, and PEG before the open.  Then after the close, COKE reports.

Inflation fears remain the “monster in the closet” for markets today. News out of Europe (contradicting Fed Chair Powell’s reassuring testimony about inflation earlier this week) is likely to reinforce the panic yesterday. It is also month-end, so there may be some balancing sales built into the market today after a strong February. So, have your downside protection at hand, but also be wary of the back-and-forth chop of this week.

The downtrend is obviously back in place for the major indices. If you are going to trade today, follow trend, respect support and resistance, and don’t chase those moves that you miss.  However, remember that you don’t have to trade every day. Part of the trick to trading success is knowing when the market is too volatile to safely trade. Another trade will come along any minute. Achieve your ambitions in the long-run by taking short-term trade goals off the board as they are met, over and over again. Forget about predicting reversals or breakouts. Book your trade goals when you can and stick with your discipline. 

Ed

Swing Trade Ideas for your consideration and watchlist: No trade ideas for Friday. You can find Rick’s review of tickers on his YouTube Channel here. Trade your plan, take profits along the way, and smart. Also, remember to check for impending earnings reports. Finally, remember that any tickers we mention and talk about in the trading room are not recommendations to buy or sell.

🎯 Mike Probst: Rick, Got CTL off the scanner today. Already up 30%. Love it.

🎯 Dick Carp: the scanner paid for the year with HES-thank you

🎯 Arnoldo Bolanos: LTA scanner really works $$, thanks Ed.

🎯 Bob S: LTA is incredible…. I use it … would not trade without it

🎯 Malcolm .: Posted in room 2, @Rick… I used the LTA Scanner to go through hundreds of stocks this weekend and picked out three to trade:  PYPL, TGT, and ZS.   Quality patterns and with my trading, up 24%, 7% and 12%…. this program is gold.

🎯 Friday 6/21/19  (10:09 am) Aaron B: Today, my account is at +190% since January. Thanks, RWO HRC Flash Malcolm Thomas Steve Ed Bob S Bob C Mike P and everyone that contributes every day. I love our job.

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