Stochastic

Based on what we can see on its GBP/USD weekly chart, there is a few interesting things: 1. The appearance of Bearish Divergent between Stochastic with GBP/USD. 2. The appearance of Bearish Three Little Indian (Cyan circle). 3. The appearance of Rising Wedge weakening Pattern. 4. There is a Wolve Waves Pattern.     Based on those facts above, Cable seems has the chance to continue its quite huge downward tren, maximum in the next 2 weeks where as long as there is no upward correction rally that exceeds the 1.2850 level, GBP/USD will try to fall down towards the trend line ETA Line of its Wolve Wave or at least to the 1.2307 level as its main target.     

NAS100 Daily   It is currently trading within a zone that has been notable as resistance since the start of last year, with the price failing in February and March of 2022 and again in June and July this year. A move above this zone could be a very bullish signal and a sign that the tide has turned for the tech space. Above here, 16,000 and 16,500-16,700 will be interesting as well, having been significant when it peaked back in 2021. But with so much enthusiasm around AI, if interest rate risks and economic fears do subside, there may be a question of whether those levels could be tested earlier than some even recently assumed. Of course, these things don’t always move so smoothly and there’s been plenty of setbacks in recent years. A break of the blue trend line could suggest the market has become overbought or such as setback has occurred. But right now, enthusiasm only appears to be building and the stochastic may be saying something similar, having produced some higher highs recently. The MACD still looks less convincing.    

Chinese stimulus hopes fails to lift the FTSE Unilever among the best performers in the index after reporting earnings UK100 not far from all-time highs   It’s been another relatively flat session for equity markets, with investors seemingly having one eye on the Fed and ECB later in the week despite a strong showing in Chinese stocks earlier in the day. They were lifted by the promise of Chinese stimulus following the Politburo meeting this week and some potential relief for the property market. It’s been a tougher re-emergence from zero-Covid than many anticipated, with consumers still seemingly holding back and the property sector still reeling from the previous crackdown. The enthusiasm hasn’t filtered through to Europe and the US though, perhaps due to the lack of detail currently on the stimulus measures, but also the distraction of the central bank meetings over the next 48 hours. Progress on inflation could mean both the Fed and ECB are about to announce their final rate hikes of the tightening cycle; the question is will they acknowledge that or maintain a hawkish position over the rest of the summer? Unilever rallies amid hints at price pressures easing Unilever is among the top performers on the FTSE 100 today, buoyed by a surge in profits in the last quarter. It comes at a challenging time when high inflation is pushing up costs and there is a growing spotlight on producers and supermarkets amid claims of profiteering. What’s more, the cost-of-living crisis is pushing consumers toward cheaper own-brand products which partly contributed to a decline in sales volumes. The company did reassure investors that pressures are easing though which should be good news for households and the share price is also reaping the rewards, up around 5%.     Can the UK100 take the next step? The UK100 has been on a good run over the last few weeks, taking it towards 7,700 where it is now running into some resistance.     This has previously been a very notable area of resistance, most recently in the middle of June, and so overcoming it could be a significant bullish signal for the markets. The index is not trading too far from its all-time highs at this stage and so a break of this could draw attention to a few notable levels. We’ve seen 7,800 and 7,850 provide plenty of support and resistance over the course of this year and so that area stands out on the chart. After that, there are a few more areas where price previously ran into some difficulty ahead of the high just above 8,000. Around these levels, the stochastic and MACD indicators could offer some useful information on how much momentum remains with the rally and whether we’re potentially seeing doubts or profit-taking kicking in.

Strong run continues Chinese data doesn’t hinder the rally Momentum may be key as price approaches August highs   Oil prices are nudging higher again today, technically on course for a fifth day of gains in six in Brent – six in a row in WTI – although broadly speaking they’re just a little above the middle of what appears to be a newly established range. Brent peaked near $88 a few weeks ago and bottomed around $82 last week as we await more direction on the economy and therefore demand. Data this week has been on the weaker side, although it’s the jobs report tomorrow we’re most interested in. The Chinese PMIs overnight had something for everyone. Manufacturing was unexpectedly improved but still contracting at 49.7 while services were quite the opposite, expanding but at a slower pace than anticipated. All in all, it continues to paint the picture of a sluggish economy that’s showing few signs of bouncing back stronger.   Head and shoulders not meant to be The head and shoulders that formed over the last month appears to have failed before it even completed, with the recent rally taking the price above the peak of the right shoulder.     BCOUSD Daily   While these formations are never perfect, as per the textbook, and it could be argued that a decline from here could still potentially qualify as a second right shoulder, that may be clutching at this point. It’s peaked a dollar above, even if it only looks relatively minor on the chart which suggests to me the previous formation – which is only complete with a break of the neckline – is now null and void. Perhaps I can be persuaded otherwise if the price heads south from here. The question now is how bullish a signal this actually is? Are we going to see a run at this month’s highs? A break above $90? I’m not convinced at this stage. Recent momentum looks quite healthy but which could be a promising sign. But that will only be put to the test as we near the previous highs around $88. If the MACD and stochastic keep making higher highs as the price approaches $88 then that would certainly look more promising.  

Brent rally cools after another strong week Tight market continues to support price No sign of technical divergence near $90 in Brent Oil prices are a little flat today after rallying another 5% last week. Brent hit a new high for 2023 in the process and, despite paring earlier gains today, there still appears to be plenty of momentum in the rally. That there is still plenty of momentum so close to $90 a barrel may suggest we could see a strong push to break above which would represent a big shift in the market dynamic in quite a short period of time. Saudi Arabia and Russia have been managing additional voluntary cuts on a monthly basis and could withdraw them at any point but I can’t imagine they’ll be in any rush and risk sending the price tumbling again.   Can Brent break $90? From a technical perspective, the most striking thing is the MACD and stochastic, both of which are continuing to trend higher alongside price.   Source – OANDA on Trading View When approaching areas of resistance, divergences between price and these momentum indicators can indicate the trend is weakening but so far that isn’t clear. Even on a lower timeframe chart, like the 4-hour, the last rally was matched with higher highs. So despite trading at the highest level this year and near $90, there is still plenty of momentum that could aid a powerful push against this resistance zone.   BCOUSD 4-Hour    

UK contracts faster than expected One-off factors largely behind the decline, BoE still expected to hike Major support being tested in cable The UK economy contracted faster than expected in July which is weighing on the pound this morning. GDP fell 0.5%, much faster than the 0.2% contraction that was expected, but as has been the case throughout this year, one-off factors played a big role. Strikes and the weather were largely blamed for the steep decline although some are clearly worried that overall momentum in the economy remains weak. I’m not sure the data will really sway the Bank of England at all next week. Not against the backdrop of such strong wage growth, as was reported yesterday. Markets are now pricing in a rate hike at around 75% which seems overly cautious to me but then, perhaps Bailey’s words last week are continuing to ring in the ears of traders. The Governor and his colleagues indicated the discussion will be more balanced than people seem to think which suggested a hold is very much on the table this month. That seems a little far-fetched at this stage and I think the words are probably intended for a little further down the line in November but then it wouldn’t be the first time the BoE has surprised us. That said, it also wouldn’t be the first time they’ve hinted at something and not followed through.   A pivotal level for cable? Cable has continued to drift lower after today’s GDP figures but there appears to be a little less vigor in the decline which may raise a few questions.     Is the decline of the last couple of months running on fumes? If so, are we going to see a correction or has this been a correction in the broader uptrend? The answer to the second question is that we’ll only know in time, should we see a big move higher from here. On the first question, there are signs that the sell-off is losing momentum. The drop today doesn’t appear to have been backed by moves lower on either the stochastic or the MACD. That in itself doesn’t mean the pair is about to reverse higher. But that it occurs around the 200/233-day simple moving average band and the 50/61.8 Fibonacci retracement zone – March lows to July highs – may suggest it could be early signs of struggles which could continue if tested again. A rotation off here would be interesting as it could signal that the sell-off since July has just been a bullish retracement. In that case, the 55/89-day SMA band above could be very interesting. A move below the 200/233-day SMA band and Fib levels could be a very bearish development, on the other hand, especially if back by momentum. And interesting one to watch over the coming days and weeks.  

Saudi and Russian cuts continue to drive the price higher Could a cooler economy push it back? Momentum indicators continue to support the rally This oil rally has been relentless and I’m not seeing any signs of exhaustion yet. A 15% rally in the space of around three weeks to trade at levels not seen since last November and not far from triple figures, it’s been an impressive move and there could be more to come. Saudi Arabia and Russia have been very effective in squeezing a tight market that much further to create a situation in which oil prices are trading well above the zone they’ve been stuck around for much of the year. You would imagine there’ll be a limit to their ambitions, not to mention their desire to continue the additional voluntary cuts but that may well depend on the demand side over the coming months. They’re committed until the end of the year but if demand softens as those additional cuts expire then the price could cool somewhat. The group has been heavily criticized over the last year for what were labelled unjustified cuts but for the bulk of that time, the price hasn’t risen as much as thought. Is this a sign of cuts going a step too far or will demand weaken to the point of prices pulling back again?   No lack of momentum in the rally The key to this chart after such a powerful rally is the momentum indicators at the bottom and neither the stochastic nor MACD are showing signs of divergence.   BCOUSD Daily Source – OANDA on Trading View That doesn’t mean the price can’t fall or correct lower but it does suggest the rally is healthy, even after such a large move. If the rally does continue, it will be interesting to see whether divergences form on approach to $100. Psychology can often play a role in the markets and that could be the case again. This is also where the price failed last October and November barring a couple of brief moments above. $98 may also be an area of interest having been so at times in the past, although at that point I expect all of the talk will be about whether it can breach triple figures once more, and if so, where next?

Fed signals three rate cuts in 2024 ECB and BoE to announce decisions shortly Dow hits record highs after the Fed The most hotly anticipated central bank meeting of the year did not disappoint on Wednesday, with the Fed potentially delivering this year’s Santa rally. I don’t think many will have expected the Fed to go as far as it did in forecasting three rate cuts next year only three months after suggesting the tightening cycle is not over. But clearly, it’s not just investors that have been impressed with the data we’ve seen so far in the fourth quarter and now they’re getting more carried away than before. There’s been a lot of debate in recent weeks about whether investors are getting ahead of themselves, too optimistic about how quickly the Fed will cut rates but the message from the central bank is that is not the case. And in typical fashion, investors have now gone further, pricing in six rate cuts next year starting in March. That’s also forced investors to reassess whether they’re in fact too pessimistic with other central banks too, with the ECB now expected to cut rates by 150 basis points over the next 12 months and the BoE between 100 and 125 basis points. Both now have a lot to live up to today and Christine Lagarde, in particular, may not be thanking her US counterparts for whipping investors up into a frenzy right before their announcement and press conference. A repeat performance from the ECB could leave investors going into the end of the year in a much more festive mood.   New record highs in the Dow Markets got an early festive treat from the Fed, with the Dow hitting fresh record highs on the back of the Fed announcement almost two years after it last achieved that feat. US30 Daily Source – OANDA Now that it’s in uncharted territory, momentum indicators will be much more useful as we don’t have past levels to look to. And we are seeing some sign of exhaustion occurring in the MACD histogram, although not yet in the moving averages or stochastic.