Tag Archives: market lab report

MLR – PMP 12/2/14

Major averages fell yesterday on higher volume. The price of gold surged 4% due to investors searching for safe assets amid concerns about slumping global economies such as Japan who had its bonds downgraded, weak manufacturing data out of China and the eurozone, and news of weak holiday sales. The weakness in the US dollar also supported gold’s rally. Apple (AAPL) which makes up about 8% of the NASDAQ Composite Index dove as much as -6.5% on a mixed basket of news items, some which were positive analyst price target upgrades, though Morgan Stanley announced it was trimming its position of 1% as AAPL has advanced nearly 50% this year, which may have sparked other institutional selling. With a current market cap of $677 billion making it the largest company in the world, it begs the question how much higher AAPL can go. AAPL finished the day down -3.25%.

MLR – PMP 12/1/14

Major averages finished mixed on Friday on light half-session volume, though volume was higher on a same-time basis than the day before. Oils and commodities plunged as OPEC decided not to lower oil production, keeping ts production rate pat. Growth in oil-related jobs which have been strong over the last few years could be threatened. So while lower oil prices are good for the consumer, oil-related jobs could come under pressure, thus contribute to unemployment. Over in Japan, Moody’s Investors Service downgraded Japan’s government debt rating citing “heightened uncertainty” over Japan’s ability to cut its fiscal deficit after Prime Minister Abe decided last month to delay an increase in the national sales tax scheduled to take effect in October 2015. It was the first downgrade by Moody’s since 2011. Abe decided to postpone the tax rise after a similar increase in April contributed to two consecutive quarters of contraction in Japan’s economy. Abe has been a staunch supporter of quantitative easing to spur Japan’s flagging economy as he hopes to end deflation that has plagued Japan since the 1990s. Futures are slightly lower at the time of this writing as commodity prices continue to fall, and downbeat economic data out of China contributes to the somewhat bearish tone. Tesla Motors (TSLA) is set to gap just below its 50-day moving average, bringing that moving average into play as a guide for a tight trailing stop for an existing short position taken higher up in the pattern, or as an initial entry using the moving average as a tight upside stop. We currently have a position in the stock.

MLR – PMP 11/28/14

Major averages rose Wednesday on light pre-holiday volume. Today will be a half session that ends at 1pm EST. OPEC has sent the price of oil plummeting by deciding not to cut oil production, keeping production at 30 million barrels a day. Oil prices have fallen around 35% since June, and are at a four-and-a-half year low. Low oil prices are good for anyone who uses oil/energy, but less good for the ECB who’s concerned about deflation. The market remains a story of individual stocks. We note that Alibaba (BABA) is sitting at its 10-day moving average, putting it in position for a possible continuation pocket pivot. Members should watch for this. We have a position in the stock. Tesla Motors (TSLA) remains a short-sale target and is gapping down slightly this morning. A breach of the 50-day moving average that holds would be a sharp negative for the stock. We continue to view this as a short using the 251-252 price area (essentially around the intraday highs of last week’s gap-down move) as an upside guide for a stop. We have a position in the stock.