Investors spent Monday walking on eggshells. Do they perhaps think that by acting so meekly they’ll be able to avoid confronting all of  the important economic data due out this week? We’ll be better able to judge for ourselves this morning, when figures for existing home sales in January are released. The consensus expects a very mild rise of 0.3%, which is likely to cheer no one. But who knows? Perhaps if the number is awful enough it will stimulate the endorphins of the many who, one surmises, have been praying for Fed stimulus?

Whatever the case, prayerful investors had better be careful not to allow themselves to get over-stimulated, since any bad-new-is-good-news tidings could be reversed on Wednesday, when data for new home sales in January are scheduled to be released. What could be more confusing to investors than a bad-news-is-good-news kinda day followed immediately by a bad-news-is-bad-news kinda day, or even more vexatious, a good-news-is-bad-news kinda day.

Gold Consensus

However Wall Street receives the latest statistical nostrums, we can be reasonably certain it will not cause a panic in the Rick’s Picks chat room. In fact, it sometimes seems as though the room temperature varies inversely with the Street’s, and that, the duller things are on the stock exchanges, the more interesting the chat-room discussion. Concerning Gold, the consensus as of yesterday seemed reasonably confident that higher prices are coming. My own minimum target for the April Comex contract over the near-term is above $700, so check out the Chat page (or Tuesday’s Touts) if you’re interested in further details, since the day’s discussion will remain posted until the next commences.

The chat room continues to evolve in ways I could not have predicted, but one thing is apparent: Hidden Pivot expertise in the room has reached a critical mass. This has produced, if not bold certitude about where this or that stock may be headed, a rough consensus that can help bolster the confidence of novices looking for technical insights. There is also some real expertise when it comes to mining stocks, and a few of those who are in the room regularly appear to follow the industry very closely. But the discussion is often wide-ranging and yesterday included some observations about Martin Armstrong’s cyclical work, which points toward an imminent, and presumably important, stockmarket downturn from these levels. Again, if you’re interested in further details they are still available in the room.

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Wagga Wagga  Seminar

Wagga Wagga?!?  I just wanted to see if you were paying attention. In fact, I’ve received numerous requests to offer a Hidden Pivot seminar in Boca Raton, Florida, though not in the South Pacific, and will do so if there is sufficient interest. Please let me know if you would be seriously interested in attending a Florida class.  The two-day session would be held sometime in the Spring of 2007. To get on my mailing list, drop me an e-mail, including your contact information. The cost would be $1,500 USD.