From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

Just a week ago, we captured the entire precious metals space in a single sentence: 

"Nothing bullish is happening for precious metals, while silver slides below multi-year support."

Is it really that simple?

Let’s take a look at an interesting development in precious metals that might change our minds…

She was always the one.

All along it was the US dollar that was the best indicator.

Old reliable.

So why should we abandon it now?

Look at the US Dollar Index overlaid with the short ETF for the S&P500.

In other words, when the blue line goes up, that means stock market shorts are making money (along with rising dollars). But when the blue line falls, that means the shorts are losing and people who own stocks are the ones making money (with dollars falling):

It's the weekly commodity edition of What the FICC?

The wheat complex looks interesting at current levels, offering trading opportunities in either direction.

Check it out!

This is the weekly post that aggregates all the charts we put together throughout the week and organizes them all into one, easy to flip through deck.

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

Last week I covered the soybean complex and corn.

As promised, I’ll cover the wheat complex this week, rounding out our coverage of the grain markets.

Let’s dive in!

Before we start, check out this breakdown of the different types of wheat varieties. I love to nerd out on this stuff – anything that involves maps, I’m hooked!

Today I’ll cover the most actively traded US contracts; Chicago Soft Red Winter Wheat (SRW), Kansas City Hard Red Winter Wheat (HRW), and Minneapolis Hard Red Spring Wheat (HRS).

The first two contracts trade on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), with soft red wheat first trading on the CBOT in 1877. Minneapolis spring wheat trades on the Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MGEX).

These different types of wheat derive their names from their growing regions, where they initially come to market, and even their protein levels (hard = higher protein, soft = lower protein).

From the desk of Steve Strazza @Sstrazza and Alfonso Depablos @AlfCharts

Our International Hall of Famers list is composed of the 100 largest US-listed international stocks, or ADRs.

We’ve also sprinkled in some of the largest ADRs from countries that did not make the market cap cut. 

These stocks range from some well-known mega-cap multinationals such as Toyota Motor and Royal Dutch Shell to some large-cap global disruptors such as Sea Ltd and Shopify.

It’s got all the big names and more--but only those that are based outside the US. You can find all the largest US stocks on our original Hall of Famers list.

The beauty of these scans is really in their simplicity.

We take the largest names each week and then apply technical filters in a way that the strongest stocks with the most momentum rise to the top.

Based on the market environment, we can also flip the scan on its head and filter for weakness.

Let’s dive in and take a look at some of the most important stocks from around the world.

Here’s this week’s list:

It's the weekly bond edition of What the FICC?

Developed European benchmark interest rates are posting fresh highs. Those potential failed breakouts back in early January have quickly turned into nothing more than false or premature moves.

And while US yields continue to climb, their recent rise pales compared to their European counterparts.

Check it out!

From the Desk of Ian Culley 

Markets churn sideways, plagued with indecision. But one thing is certain…

The global rising rate environment remains intact.

Developed European benchmark interest rates are posting fresh highs. Those potential failed breakouts back in early January have quickly turned into nothing more than false or premature moves.

And while US yields continue to climb, their recent rise pales compared to their European counterparts.

What does that imply for domestic rates in the coming weeks and months?

For the past year and a half, we have turned to developed European yields for insight into the direction of domestic interest rates. 

The analysis proved insightful as the rising rate environment has been global in scope. Europe has given a nice heads-up regarding the direction of yields stateside. And the market continues to support this approach. 

Check out the German 10-year yield:

From the desk of Steve Strazza @Sstrazza

Welcome to the 2 to 100 Club.

As many of you know, something we've been working on internally is using various bottom-up tools and scans to complement our top-down approach. It's really been working for us!

One way we're doing this is by identifying the strongest growth stocks as they climb the market-cap ladder from small- to mid- to large- and, ultimately, to mega-cap status (over $200B).

Once they graduate from small-cap to mid-cap status (over $2B), they come on our radar. Likewise, when they surpass the roughly $30B mark, they roll off our list.

But the scan doesn't just end there.

We only want to look at the strongest growth industries in the market, as that is typically where these potential 50-baggers come from.

It's the weekly currency edition of What the FICC?

Instead of allowing the market to dictate your emotions along with the herd, let it simply highlight the path of least resistance.

That’s what I’m doing.

Check it out!

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

Markets continue to churn sideways, frustrating most investors.

Instead of allowing the market to dictate your emotions along with the herd, let it simply highlight the path of least resistance. That’s what I’m doing.

Today, I want to share with you two ways to trade the British pound – regardless of its next directional move…

The structural trend for the pound undoubtedly points sideways. A zoomed-out weekly chart makes that clear:

Yes, it has reclaimed a critical shelf of former lows. But it’s messy. And while I believe the pound and other currency pairs will begin to trend in the coming weeks and months, I have no idea what direction they will take.  

So I’m prepared to trade the British pound in either direction.