1. Caravans from S. America rushing the southern border
2.Merkle calling for countries to give up their sovereignty
3. Dems getting ready to investigate Trump every which way from Sunday come January.
4. Mueller read to release his report on Trump
5. Russia taking over 3 Ukraine ships
6. A GOP that will not fight back, and will not support a President that saved them the Senate.
And what do we have on a Monday morning? Dow +300 and hour before the open:)
News to watch this week is Powell speaks on Wedn and the Trump/Xi meeting later this week.
Tough markets to trade, to say the least, but if you’re not losing your grip you are doing ok right now. Not making money but not getting torched like many investors that have not been through this before are doing.
I had a 2-day trade on a 1/2 position in SPY vis SSO for a 2-day trade that I exited at the close on Friday for a small loss.
I still have a 1/4 position on.
Also, I am well positioned if we get a solid bounce in some options. So, I am prepared if we get this rally and if not my losses will be limited.
In normal times, I would expect Powell to give some positive news for the markets. There is just too much going on in the U.S. and in the world to think that raising rates is a good idea. But, I am not the head of the Fed:) And so far he has given no inclination to moderate.
Trump/Xi, If Trump were a politician a deal would be struck come hell or high water. He has taken a lot of heat on these China Tariffs and has lost some support in the Farm Belt over this.
But, Trump does what he thinks is the correct thing to do for the Country not what is best for his political future. So, who knows how this is going to go. Now, what Trump thinks is correct and what is correct is a debate you can argue. But in my mind, Trump’s motivations are pretty clear by all except those that have become unthinking zombies by the media.
This is coming from someone that Voted for Obama his first term and was far from a Trump supporter heading into 2016.
But I look and evaluate, and draw my own conclusions, not what crooked politicians and biased media want me to think.
And by any stretch of the imagination, Trump has been good for the country. The bad is coming from the people that will do anything to get him out of office. They have their motives but its not because he is not doing well for the Country.
And that is the problem the market faces. As the more Trump gets resistance and attacks the more the market is going to become unnerved.
So, do not think this is going away anytime soon. Now, if the Fed starts getting at least neutral, and Trump gets his DOJ in order, with Mueller out of the picture, maybe then things will settle down a bit.
But all those things happening is a long shot at this point. Sessions have pretty much hamstrung Trump for his first term if not crippled him before this is over.
The other problem that is going to be a big one is that I fully expect Articles of Impeachment to come out of the House in 2019.
At a time when the country desperately needs to come together, the country is going to have to go through this circus.
Whether they have the votes in the House or not, I am not certain at this point. I refuse to think that every Dem is going to vote along party lines on this. But I am an idealist. Most likely they will, and it will lead to a trial in the Senate, which will fail.
But the mindless will be triggered, the media will continue their 24/7 divisive attacks on Trump and the country and the markets will either go nowhere or head south.
So, its headwinds as I see it for the next 2 years.
If the winds change I will point that out.
But there is still money to be made. Interest rates are still low. Unemployment is low. Full-time jobs are available to almost anyone at this point. The Korean war is almost over.
These are positives.
A complicated mess so to speak. But the world almost always is:) After all, its run by humans. what do you expect? Vulcans, you might see entirely different picture right now
If you want to follow some of my trades along with my thoughts typically given after the open you can go to @rickjswings. Typically I talk about the overall day expected with the markets and also give some levels on the ES and NQ for failed breakout scalping.
It’s my private twitter feed for the stock market and its free. Sports Handicapping is the subscription-based part of this site. But considering the cost of joining it’s almost free:)
Good Luck Today
RickJ
RickJ’s Handicapping Picks
https://rickjshandicappingpicks.com/investing
Skype: Ricca
