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TODAY'S ACTION for Wednesday
Rick's Picks for Wednesday
The 1053.00 target given here yesterday remains valid, but the bullish case for the near term was weakened by the fact that all of yesterday’s action took place below a 1027.75 peak recorded on the way down a week ago. Because the plunge from that peak would have trapped many bulls, we should regard it as daunting if not impermeable. If the futures take a stab at it today, the effort should be considered ineffectual unless it exceeds the look-to-the-left peak at 1031.00 recorded on August 30.
Yesterday’s breakdown was serious, although I’d stipulated that DXY close for two consecutive days below 77.54 before we assume the worst. Tentatively, however, we’ll look for a quick drop to at least 76.05, or to 75.57, the Hidden Pivot given here originally, if any lower. My worst case number for the period preceeding the G-20 meeting in Pittsburgh at month’s end is 72.93. My hunch is that such pronounced weakness in the dollar is unlikely ahead of the meeting, but if it comes, stocks are going to fall too, and steeply.
Silver’s most recent peak at 16.860 fell 8 cents shy of a clear Hidden Pivot at 16.940, so we should assume the December contract has at least a little further to go before it hits something solid. Position traders should consider lightening up, with the goal of replacing on the pullback any shares sold near the target. If the futures close above 16.940 for two consecutive days, or trade more than 10 cents above it intraday, that would be a very bullish sign going forward.
Yesterday’s patently spurious plunge should look more like a swoon by Wednesday mid-morning, when I expect gold will have recovered. The sell-off was very obviously caused by the nasty bull trap that ran stops placed slightly above a 1008.80 high made shortly after 4 a.m. In a bigger picture, the 1074.50 target given here earlier remains valid, although I should introduce another, lesser one at 1016.60 that looks capable of showing some stopping power. The less stopping power it displays, the more quickly and powerfully the next thrust is likely to develop.
It was just coincidence that yesterday’s edition of Rick’s Picks led with a headline about schizophrenia, since a market-watcher could not have asked for a better demonstration of it. At the opening, the futures head-faked the equivalent of 100 DJIA points; then they plummeted the equivalent of 250. Just when things looked darkest, short-covering by bears too stupid and frightened to know when to sit tight drove the futures into a spasm that recouped earlier losses and then some. By day’s end the futures were up 18 points, bears were cowering, Wall Street was jubilant and all was right with the world. I won’t hazard a guess as to where this freak show will head tomorrow, but I should warn bulls nonetheless that the night session is unlikely to deliver much more upside than the 1845.50 target shown. Above it, perhaps after Wednesday’s opening bell, an 1851.75 target will be in play. However, if you plan on intercepting it with a short offer, you had best do so only if you’ve caughta piece of the rally.
Three weeks of ho-hum price action have left the May contract with a mildly bearish bias, although any weakness would likely pick up support from lows near $19 recorded between early December and late January. Alternatively, I’ll stipulate that the futures must close above the 21.168 midpoint pivot of the pattern shown before we infer that bulls are emerging from their torpor. _______ UPDATE (6:02 p.m.): Yesterday’s dive to 19.220 found support just above January’s 19.030 low, but the subsequent bounce is as yet insufficient for us to conclude that the worst is behind. The very lesser charts would turn short-term bullish today on a print at 19.675, but anything shy of that should be regarded as shorting opportunity. All that aside, night owls could attempt bottom-fishing at p=19.335 with a stop-loss as tight as three ticks (see inset, a new chart). _______ UPDATE (11:29 a.m.): This trade worked with absolutely perfect precision, since the overnight low was 19.235 — TWO ticks beneath where I’d suggested putting your bid. A 48-cent rally ensued. (I also drum-rolled the trade, although without giving the exact price, in ‘Today’s Action’. If you filled the order please let me know in the chat room so that I can establish a tracking position for your further guidance.
We don’t pay much attention to this vehicle other than at key turning points, but the short-term pattern shown looks like a lay-up for traders who see futures contracts as no more than bouncing dots on a chart, waiting to be exploited. There are actually two trade possibilities here: 1) a ‘camouflage’ short as USM slips below the 132^13 midpoint; 2) and a very tightly stopped long from within a tick or two of the 131^17 target. Good luck! Please report any fills in the chat room so that I can establish a tracking position for your further guidance. ______ UPDATE (3:17 p.m. ET): The short was tricky to initiate, but once aboard, your reward came quickly with a drop to a so-far low at 131^26. As noted above, the short should be covered and reversed near 131^17. ______ UPDATE (April 6, 3:57 p.m.): The low of Friday’s violent price swings was 131^21 — not quite close enough to have gotten you long easily. Although this could prove to be an important low for the short- to intermediate term, under the circumstances I’ll assume no subscribers were filled. _______ UPDATE (April 11, 1:03 a.m.): Next important stop on the way higher: 135^17.
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SIDE BETS for Wednesday
A minor Hidden Pivot resistance at 10.57 is the nearest impediment, but if UNG gets past it and a peak at 10.75 made in late August on the way down, it would be clearing the path for yet more upside. The implications will not affect the daily chart, however, until 16.27 is touched.
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Jubilant Traders Miss Another Ominous Sign
by Rick Ackerman on September 9, 2009 12:01 am GMT · 7 comments
Yesterday morning, an hour into the new trading week, we covered a small short position in the Diamonds, booking a loss of $92 on some September put options. This speculative bet, initiated on the closing bell Friday, was inspired by a hunch that if Mr. Market really wanted to catch investors with their pants down, the Tuesday after Labor Day would be a perfect time to do it. Alas, even with news that should have been helpful in catalyzing a stock-market plunge, stocks trudged higher. The news concerned consumer credit, and it could have left no doubt about the dire condition of the American consumer. He in fact » Read the full article