SIZ11

The futures had recouped most of Thursday's bearish impulse leg at the bell, but they'll need to rally above 34.810 today to equalize the give-and-take between bulls and bears ahead of the weekend.  More bullish still would be a close above 34.990, since that would put in play the 37.870 target of a larger pattern begun on October 20 from 29.935.

The December contract ended the day with a downtrend in progress that projected to as low as 33.135 over the near term. However, the pattern was sufficiently clear to suggest that bottom-fishers would enjoy favorable at the 33.665 Hidden Pivot midpoint associated with that target  A stop-loss as tight as three ticks can be used there, but you'll be on your own if the order fills. A decisive breach of this support would portend more slippage to the 33.135 'D', at least.

The futures played toe-sies yesterday with a Hidden Pivot resistance at 35.010, presumably marking time while Gold recovers its footing. The gratuitous chop did nothing to alter the short-term picture, although the intraday peak brought the futures a little closer to late October's challenging peaks.  Note that one of them, at 35.450, is the kind that we thrive on, since a thrust exceeding it slightly, followed by a b-c pullback similar to the one shown, could provide an excellent opportunity to get long with relatively little risk.  My hunch is that such an opportunity would come and go quickly, and that is why I am recommending a timed buy-stop entry.  That means that if and when you are triggered long at an 'x' entry point similar to the one shown, you need only stick with the position for perhaps 60 seconds to determine whether it is going to go quickly your way.

Tonight's stall at 35.010 implies the futures will be on their way to exactly 36.205 once the lower number, a midpoint resistance, has been decisively exceeded.  The pattern, both clear and compelling, is shown in the accompanying chart. I have also labeled a look-to-the-left peak at 35.090 that is not a true peak on the hourly chart but which becomes one on intraday charts of lesser degree. It can be used for initiating a camouflage long entry, since any pullback from just above it could create the abc pattern we need to generate a subtle entry signal with relatively little risk.  Want to learn how to nail swing highs and lows precisely, and to manage trade risk yourself? Click here for information about the upcoming Hidden Pivot Webinar on November 16-17 and a $50 discount.

Big-picture rally targets at 36.450 and 37.870 remain valid, but more immediately, we should focus on the 35.440 target of the pattern shown.  The futures have been struggling with its midpoint sibling at 34.625 since Friday, and although they traded briefly higher than that as the week drew to a close, the resistance was impeding buyers late Sunday night. There was a potential camouflage entry opportunity developing nonetheless that is also shown in the chart. If it hits 'x' after creating a single-bar 'C' on the 15-minute chart, my advice is to buy-stop your way aboard and take half the position off at the p midpoint. ______ UPDATE (10:59 a.m. EST):  Close but no cigar. The futures shot up to 34.535 overnight, but it was off a double-bar point 'C' that was best avoided by camouflageurs.  For now, the midpoint resistance at 34.625 remains the number for bulls to beat.

Silver refreshed the bullish energy of the intraday charts yesterday by surpassing a recent peak, but the effect was not quite so strong as the one we saw in December Gold. assuming the latter drags the former higher today, look for the rally to continue to at least 36.450, the Hidden Pivot target of the pattern shown.  A close above that number would portend more progress when the new week begins to as high as 37.870, the target of the larger pattern shown.

A look-to-the-left peak at 36.680 (see inset) is analogous to one we're using in Gold to determine whether the correction that has dominated since April is at an end. So that we're not likely to be fooled by a half-hearted rally, let's stipulate that the thrust that takes the December contract above the two peaks shown (see inset) be unpaused once the first at 35.700 is exceeded. More immediately, it'll take a pop above 33.785 today to turn the minor trend bullish. Failing that, the futures would be vulnerable to a swoon down to 32.355, a Hidden Pivot support that can be bottom-fished with a stop-loss as tight as four ticks.  This strategy will remain viable as long as 33.665 hasn't been exceeded to the upside overnight.

As is the case with December Gold, the vicious selloff in this vehicle tonight is not quite as bearish as Friday's rally was bullish.  The bad guys could still take charge by pushing the futures beneath a 32.05 'external' low recorded on 10/25, but there's no reason to give them the benefit of the doubt before they have done so. Alternatively, bulls would be back on the attack with a print exceeding the 35.365 midpoint resistance of the pattern shown. if that were to occur, we should infer more upside is likely to at least 36.640, its 'D' sibling.

Shortly before 4 a.m., the futures had exceeded our 34.935 'D' target, a Hidden Pivot, by 77 cents, and gone on to exceed yet another at 35.655 by five cents.  This is healthy action and suggests it is Silver that will pull Gold higher today, rather than the other way around. There is but one rally target left that we can extract from the hourly chart -- 36.885, a Hidden Pivot whose pedigree is shown in the inset.  We'll use it as a minimum upside projection for now while noting that it would take a downdraft today to 35.055 to even hint of trouble for the short-term.