Good Morning,
I wanted to publish today’s video cause there is a lot going on. It’s going to be WILD so hold on to your hat!

Economic news was terrible and everyone is talking about a recession the past two days and with today’s data its clear we are in one or darn close. I’m sure there is some regulation that Obama made that says no one can use the word “Recession”. They will think of a new word for this.

If you are still short the SP500 like I am it would be wise to take a partial profits this morning or exit your position to lock in the gains. The market typically moves in certain percentage waves and we have just reach an extreme level where bounce may take place. We have made the easy money on this one and will be more than happy to reload at higher prices. We are up over 6% in 3 days.

Anyways, the video shows what has unfolded this morning and what my thoughts are going forward.

Morning Market Analysis Points:
–    Economic News was all TERRIBLE
–    Money is moving into gold and gold miners
–    Silver is trading slightly higher but gold is key safe haven.
–    The dollar is higher but not at much as one may think. The data today was on the USA so it’s not that bullish for the dollar but money is still coming out of equities and going into the dollar.
–    Bonds are up over 1.5% rocketing higher and almost reaching our measured move goal.
–    Oil is down 3.3%, Nat Gas is down 2.8% both starting to get close to major support.
–    SP500 was down over 2% but is starting to bounce and now down 1.8%

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I also wanted to mention that on Sunday we close down our 30 day trial to our trading and investing video newsletter so if you want to know what is happening in the market and where your money should be each day/week then join our service. You get both Chris Vermeulen’s and JW Jones’ trading videos valued at $155 per month to test drive for a buck, then only $19.99 a month – www.TradersVideoPlaybook.com
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Chris Vermeulen

By: Chris Vermeulen – www.GoldAndOilGuy.com

The past two months we have seen all the focus from traders and investors be on the equities market. And rightly so and stocks run higher and higher. But there are two commodities that look ready to explode being gold and oil (actually three if you count silver).

Below are the charts of gold futures and crude oil 4 hour charts. Each candle stick is 4 hours allows us to look back 1-2 months while still being able to see all the intraday price action (pivot highs, pivot lows, strong volume spikes and if they were buyers or sellers…).

The 4 hour chart is one time frame most traders overlook but from my experience I find it to be the best one for spotting day trades, momentum trades and swing trades which pack a powerful yes quick punch.

As you can see below with the annotated charts both gold and silver are setting up for higher prices in the next 1-2 weeks from a technical point of view. That being said we may see a couple days of weakness first before they start moving up again.

 

4 Hour Momentum Charts of Gold & Oil:

 

Watch Full Video Analysis:

By: Chris Vermeulen – www.GoldAndOilGuy.com

This week may provide some trading opportunities for us if all goes well now that most traders are investors are all giddy about stocks again. Last week we saw money move out of bonds and into stocks and the bullishness vibe in the air reminds of many market peaks just before a 5%+ correction in stocks.

Depending how the SP500 unfolds we may be going long or short equities, long precious metals, long bonds, and our VXX trade may spike in our favor.

Bonds: After last week’s strong move down in bonds as the HERD moved out of bonds and into stocks it may be providing us an opportunity to catch a dip or bounce in the price of bonds. If the stock market sees strong selling this week money will run back into bonds.

Looking at precious metals it looks as though gold, gold miners and silver may still head lower this week. The charts are still bearish and pointing to another multi percent drop in value. Gold will look bullish around $1600, Gold miners (GDX) around $48, and Silver around $30 but we need to see one more wave of strong distribution selling for that to take place.

Crude oil has recovered nicely from its 5 wave correction which shook us out of the trade for a profit. I still like the chart for higher prices but with it trading at resistance and a high possibility of sellers stepping back in at this level I am not getting involved here.

The SP500 made a new high last night but has run into sellers early this morning taking prices straight back down. The chart in pre-market looks as though we will see lower stock prices later today and with any luck the fear index (VIX) will continue to rise in our favor.

Watch Live Video Analysis: http://www.thetechnicaltraders.com/ETF-trading-videos/

Chris Vermeulen
http://www.GoldAndOilGuy.com

This morning we are seeing the US Dollar index move higher retesting a short term breakdown resistance level. What this means is that the dollar fell below support and is not slowing drifting back up to test the breakdown level. As we all know once a support level is broken it then becomes resistance. So if that holds true with the current move in the dollar we should see stocks and commodities find a short term bottom and continue higher today or tomorrow from the looks of things.

Gold has been pulling back the past couple trading session on light volume which healthy price action. It has done the opposite of what the dollar did above. Gold broke through a key resistance level and is slowly drifting back down to test the breakout level to see if it is support. If so then gold should continue higher in the coming days.

 

Both silver and gold miner stocks are lagging he price of gold. They have yet to break through their key resistance levels. That being said it could happen an day now as they have both been flirting with that level for a couple trading sessions now.

 

Crude oil continues to hold up strong and is headed straight for its key resistance levels without any real pullback. Chasing price action like this is not something do often because risk: reward is not in your favor. I am staying on the sidelines for oil until I see a setup that has more potential and less risk.

The equities market remains in a strong uptrend at this time. I do feel a 1-3 weeks pause/pullback could take place at any time but in the grand scheme of things we could be only half way through this runaway stock market rally as noted in the video.

The equities market is going to gap down this morning which is typical in a bull market. Remember. in an uptrend the stock market tends to gap lower at the open and close higher into the close. And it’s the opposite in a down trend with stocks gapping higher and sell off through the trading session.

Watch my detailed video analysis for this week: http://www.thetechnicaltraders.com/ETF-trading-videos/

Chris Vermeulen
www.TheGoldAndOilGuy.com

For the first time since the last week of December of 2011, the S&P 500 Index closed lower on the weekly chart. Recently I have been discussing the overbought nature of stocks based on a variety of indicators. However, the real question that should be asked is whether last week was just a short term event or if we see sustained selling in coming weeks.

 

The issues occurring in Greece spooked the markets somewhat on Friday as Eurozone fears continue to permeate in the mindset of traders. The U.S. Dollar Index is the real driver regarding risk in the near and intermediate term future. If the Dollar is strong, market participants will likely reduce risk. However a weakening Dollar will be a risk-on type of trading event which could lead to an extended rally in equities, precious metals, and oil.

 

Friday marked an important day for the U.S. Dollar Index futures as for the first time in several weeks the Dollar held higher prices into a daily close. The U.S. Dollar appears to have carved out a daily swing low on the daily chart from Friday. Furthermore, the potential for a weekly swing low at the end of this week remains quite possible. The chart below illustrates how the 100 period simple moving average has offered short term support for the past few weeks.

 

U.S. Dollar Index Futures Daily Chart


I would also point out that the MACD is starting to converge which is a bullish signal and the full stochastics are also demonstrating a cross on the daily time frame. As long as the 100 period moving average holds price, a rally is likely in the U.S. Dollar Index in coming weeks.

 

Should that rally play out, it will likely push risk assets lower. My primary target for the S&P 500 would be around the 1,300 – 1,310 price range if the selloff transpires. It is important to note that  headlines coming out of Europe could derail this analysis in short order.

 

Assuming that a selloff in the S&P 500 occurs it will present a difficult trading environment for market participants. Market participants are going to be in a tough position around the 1,300 price level. A rally from 1,300 could  serve to test the 2011 highs. In contrast, a confirmed breakdown of the 1,300 price level could initiate a more significant selloff towards the 1,250 area.

 

Should price move towards the 1,300 price level the bulls and bears will be battling it out for intermediate control of price action. This is my preferred scenario for the short-term time frame, but I would only give it about a 60% chance of success at this point in time. We simply need more time to see how price action behaves the first few session of the forthcoming week.

 

S&P 500 Index Bearish Scenario

 

 

The alternate scenario which has about a 40% chance of success would be a sharp rally higher which likely would be produced by news coming out of Greece and/or the Eurozone that pushes the Euro higher. Right now risk is high due to the sensitivity of price to headline risk. With that said, the bullish alternative scenario is shown below.

 

S&P 500 Index Bullish Scenario

At this point we just do not have enough price information to give us clarity regarding the most probable outcome. The price action in the Euro is going to drive price action for the S&P 500 and other risk assets in weeks ahead.

 

Anything is possible in the short-term, but I have to give a slight edge to the bears simply based on the price action Friday and the fact that almost every indicator I follow is screaming that the equities market is severely overbought. The price action this week should be telling. Headline risk is excruciatingly high, trade safely in the coming week!

By: Chris VermeulenFree Weekly ETF Reports & Analysis: www.GoldAndOilGuy.com
Co-Author: JW JonesFree Weekly Options Reports & Analysis: www.Optionnacci.com

This material should not be considered investment advice. J.W. Jones is not a registered investment advisor. Under no circumstances should any content from this article or the OptionsTradingSignals.com website be used or interpreted as a recommendation to buy or sell any type of security or commodity contract. This material is not a solicitation for a trading approach to financial markets. Any investment decisions must in all cases be made by the reader or by his or her registered investment advisor. This information is for educational purposes only.

The last week of the year volume tends to be light due to the fact that big money traders are busy enjoying the holidays and waiting for their yearend bonuses.

I was not planning on doing much this week because of the low volume but after reviewing some charts and risk levels on my top 5 trading vehicles I could not help but share my findings with everyone last Friday.

You can see what I talked about on Friday here: http://www.thegoldandoilguy.com/articles/holiday-short-squeeze-oil-trade-idea/

This Wednesday turned out to be an exciting session with all 5 of my trade ideas moving in our favour right on queue.

Charts of the 5 investments moving in the directions we anticipated …
– Dollar bounced off support

– Stocks are topping and selling off today

– Oil looks to have topped and is selling off

– Gold and Silver are moving lower

– VIX (Volatility Index) just bounced

 

Many of my readers took full advantage of my recent analysis and trade ideas which is great to hear.  All the different ways individuals used to make money from Friday’s analysis is mind blowing…

The most common trade is the oil one with most traders adding more to Tuesday when the price reached its key resistance level on the chart. Also many traders took partial profits Wednesday locking in 3% or more in two days using the SCO ETF.

It’s amazing how many people like to trade the vix using ETFs. The best trade from followers thus far was an 8% gain in TVIX which was bought 4 days ago anticipating the pop in volatility which I had been talking about last week. Keep in mind ETFs for trading the vix are not very good in general. I stay away from them, but TVIX is the best I found so far.

Currently stocks are oversold falling sharply from the pre-market highs. Meaning stocks have fallen too far too fast and a bounce is likely to take place Thursday.

Also we saw some panic selling hit the market today with 14 sellers to 1 buyer. That level tells me that the market needs some time to recover and build up strength for another selloff later this week or next. We will see this pause unfold when the SP500 drifts higher for a session or two with light buying volume. This will confirm sellers are in control and give us another short setup.

In my Wednesday morning video I explained how/where to set stops when using leveraged ETFs because I know 90% of traders using them do not have a clue as to how to do this and they get shaken out of their trades just before a top or bottom. So if you want to learn more about it watch this morning’s video please: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDagN5Vpvys

I hope this helps you understand things more… Over time you will pickup on a lot of new trading tips, tools and techniques with this free newsletter so just give it time and keep trades small until you are comfortable with my analysis.

ONE TIME OFFER for 2012!
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Typically, the week before Christmas, stocks and commodities drift higher due to the lack of participants.  Light volume favours higher prices, which is why stocks want to rise going into the holiday season.

The big money players, like hedge fund managers, are finished for the year.  They’re sitting on the sidelines enjoying the holiday season while waiting for their year-end bonus checks.

Let’s take a quick look at how the week finished…

Friday was an interesting session as stocks and oil reached some key resistance levels.  Below are my thoughts, charts, and a possible trade idea for next week.

Gold & Silver Thoughts:

Looking at the long term charts of gold and silver, I feel they could head much lower in the first quarter of 2012.  The inverse relationship between the dollar index and gold makes me think this is a high probability scenario.

The weekly dollar index chart remains strong at this point and could start another very strong rally any day. Once the dollar starts heading higher, expect precious metals to move down along with equities.

SP500, Dollar and Volatility Index

Below are three charts stacked on top of each other.  They are marked with my analysis and thoughts for next week.  Personally, I don’t feel shorting stocks is a safe play.  The last week of the year, we can see the volatility index (VIX), and the dollar, rise without putting pressure on stocks.  So be aware of that.

 

 

TRADE IDEA – View Chart:

Crude oil looks like a great low risk opportunity (a real “Christmas” present!) from Mr. Market. SCO would be the ETF for US based traders.  HOD, which is listed on the TSX, is good for Canadians.  I favour this setup because I don’t feel that oil will be as affected from the holiday bulge as will American equities.

Pre-Holiday Trading Conclusion:

I was planning on avoiding the market Friday, but the charts were calling my name…  The session ended with what looked to be a short squeeze. The remaining short positions didn’t get their expected drop in price.  Consequently, when the traders all started to cover their shorts (buy) just before the close, it caused a strong surge higher.

I do not recommend shorting stocks next week because of the light volume.  However, oil looks good to me.

Just thought I would share my end of the week thoughts, and wish you a Merry Christmas!

Cheers!

Chris Vermeulen

– HOLIDAY SPECIAL –
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Yet another major market correction has begun to unfold over the past couple of weeks.

I have a much different outlook on the markets than most everyone else. This likely includes you as well. However, before you stop reading what I have to say, hear me out. My outlook and opinions are based strictly on price, volume, inter-market analysis, and crowd behavior. I hope you will consider my ideas and how they might affect your current positions.

My fundamental thinking is contrarian in nature. I feel that gold and silver have risen because of obvious reasons, those mainly being the printing of money. Also, fears that fiat currencies will become obsolete in the next 5 years continue to push the metals higher.

The flaw with that thinking is that most or all of the bad news has come out with European crisis. We know there are still major issues to resolve, however, the end of the world did not happen. Looking forward 5 years, countries will likely have stopped acting like teenagers who spend more money than they have on their credit cards. Hopefully they start creating budgets which they can and will abide by.

Should this happen, it would mean that the global economy as a whole will be stronger than ever before. We may have a few bumps along the way, but I feel countries and individuals will be better positioned than ever a scant 5 years from now.

Two weeks ago, I sent my “big picture” outlook to my subscribers, followers, and financial websites in which I warned of a major pullback. You can take a quick look at what the charts looked like 2 weeks ago: http://www.thegoldandoilguy.com/articles/the-currency-war-big-picture-analysis-for-gold-silver-socks/

Since my warning we have seen the financial markets fall:
SP500 down 2.6%
Crude Oil down 4.4%
Gold down 9.6%
and Silver down 12.2%

If you had invested in any of the leveraged exchange traded funds of these items, you could have doubled or tripled your returns. The numbers of those who have been cashing in on my advice about these recent pullbacks, have been very gratifying to hear about. The exciting part about trading is the fact that moves like this happen all the time. So if you missed this one, don’t worry because there is another opportunity just around the corner.

While my negative views on stocks and precious metals may rub the gold and silver bugs the wrong way, I just want to point out what is unfolding in an objective way in order for everyone to see both sides of the trade. I also would like to mention that this analysis can, and likely will change on a weekly basis as the financial markets and global economies evolve over time. The point I am trying to get across is that I am not a “Gloom and Doom” kind of guy. I don’t always favor the down side. Rather, I am a technical trader simply providing my analysis and giving odds for what to expect next.

Let’s take a look at some charts and dig right in…

Dollar Index Daily Chart:

 

SP500 Futures Index Daily Chart:

Silver Futures Daily Chart:

Gold Futures Daily Chart:

Crude Oil Futures Daily Chart:

Mid-Week Market Madness Trend Analysis Conclusion:

In short, stocks and commodities are under pressure from the rising dollar. We have already seen a sizable pullback but there may be more to come in the next few trading sessions.

Overall, the charts are starting to look very negative which the majority of traders/investors around the world are starting to notice. With any luck they will fuel the market with more selling pressure pushing positions that my subscribers and I are holding deeper into the money.

Now that the masses are starting to get nervous and are beginning to sell out of their positions, I am on high alert for a panic washout selling day. This occurs when everyone around the world panics at the same time and bails out of their long positions. Prices drop sharply, volume shoots through the roof, and my custom indicators for spotting extreme sentiment levels sends me an alert to start covering my shorts and tightening our stops.

Hold on tight as this could be a crazy few trading sessions….

Get these Free Weekly Reports EVERY WEEK

 

With all eyes on the unemployment report and Europe, the CME Group’s PR Department nearly created an all out panic with their announcement after the market close on Friday relating to futures maintenance margin. The original statement was vague and I was quite concerned until I checked out the CME Group’s web-page and the PR Department sent an update clarifying their position. At this point I think the crisis has been averted, but this is just another reminder that we live in “interesting times.”

Keep in mind that if the CME starts raising margin rates across the board for futures contracts in order to protect themselves stocks and commodities could collapse. Silver recently has is margin rates increased and silver since then dropped 25% in value. So imagine if they raised the rates for more commodities…

The current price action in the marketplace pales in comparison to the world’s geopolitical tensions and deteriorating social mood. In my trading career, I have never seen the price action in the indices react so violently to intraday headlines and rumors. Risk is high and the types of traders profiting from this market are day traders and very short term traders with trades lasting  just a couple hours to 24 hours in length. Aggressive trading which small position sizes is all that can be done right now. This is not meant to be investment advice, but more as a function of the market environment in which we find ourselves currently trading within.

Right now it is hard to say where price action in the broader indices heads in the short-run.  One headline out of Greece or Italy could dramatically alter economic history. In the intermediate term I remain neutral to bearish for a number of reasons. One indicator I follow is the bullish percent index on the S&P 500 which at this point is arguing for lower prices.

The chart below illustrates the S&P 500 Bullish Percent Index:

How to trade S&P 500 Headline Driven Market

As can be seen above, the S&P 500 Bullish Percent Index is presently at an overbought status. When looking at the relative strength and full stochastics indicators one would argue that a pullback is warranted. Historically when the S&P 500 Bullish Percent Index is this overbought, a pullback ensues which ultimately sees the S&P 500 Index selloff. The more arduous task is trying to determine just how deep the pullback on the S&P 500 Index might be.

It is critical to point out that while I do believe a pullback is likely, I will not rule out a rally into the holiday season. Much of the near-term price action is going to be dictated by headlines coming out of Greece and the rest of Europe. In addition to Greece, Italy is also starting to see increased concern regarding an unsustainable fiscal condition. Depending on how the European Union handles the varying degrees of risk in the near term, we could see price action react violently in either direction.

With the market capable of moving in either direction, I wanted to point out some key price levels which should act as clues regarding potential future price action in the S&P 500. The two key support levels to monitor on the S&P 500 Index are the 1,240 and 1,220 price levels.

The daily chart of the S&P 500 Index below illustrates the price levels:

How to Trade Large Cap Stocks

For bullish traders and investors the key price level to monitor is the recent highs on the S&P 500 around the 1,290 area. The weekly chart below demonstrates why this price level is critical and which overhead levels will offer additional resistance should the recent highs be taken out to the upside.

SP500 Weekly Chart Analysis:

How to Trade Weekly Charts

While I am neutral in the intermediate to longer term presently, in the short run I have to lean slightly bearish simply because of the future headline risk and also because a major head and shoulders pattern has been carved out on the hourly chart of the S&P 500 Index. This type of chart pattern is synonymous with bearish price action.

 

The hourly chart of the S&P 500 Index is shown below:

How to Trade Hourly Chart

Right now I remain slightly bearish, but should the head and shoulders pattern fail and/or we begin to see multiple positive reactions to news coming out of Europe a strong rally into the holiday season is likely. Unfortunately all we can do is monitor the key price levels and wait patiently for Mr. Market to tip his hand.

Until we see a breakout in either direction, we could see price action inhabit the 1,220 – 1,290 price range for several weeks before we get any more clarity of future direction. Until I see a breakout, I will remain relatively neutral with a slight short term bias to the downside based on price patterns in the shorter term time frames. This is a tough market to trade in, and I don’t want to get chopped around or do any heavy lifting. I’m going to focus my attention on high probability, low risk trade setups until directional biased trades make more sense.

In closing, I will leave you with the thoughtful muse of the late Texas Congresswoman Barbara Jordan,

For all of its uncertainty, we cannot flee the future.

Market Analysis and Thoughts By:

Chris Vermeulen – ETF Trading Videos & Trade Alerts

JW Jones – Options Trading videos & Options Alerts

 

This material should not be considered investment advice. Under no circumstances should any content from this article be used or interpreted as a recommendation to buy or sell any type of security or commodity contract. This material is not a solicitation for a trading approach to financial markets. Any investment decisions must in all cases be made by the reader or by his or her registered investment advisor. This information is for educational purposes only.