SP 500 and NDX Futures Daily Charts - Risk On For Whatever Reason On Light Volume

Retail sales tomorrow along with PPI.

The retail sales number will include Amazon's big Prime Day promotion.

Have a pleasant evening.

Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Up On Falling Dollar Early, Hit in the NY Trade

"In an age where everything is for sale, ethical accountability is rendered a liability, and the vocabulary of empathy is viewed as a weakness, reinforced by the view that individual happiness and its endless search for instant gratification is more important than supporting the public good and embracing an obligation to care for others.

Americans are now pitted against each other as neo-liberalism puts a premium on competitive cage-like relations that degrade collaboration and the public spheres that support it."

Henry Giroux

Gold and silver were rallying early, breaching 1350 and moving higher, on a weaker dollar and a 'risk off' reaction to the latest round of buying of financial paper.

However, gold was hit in the NY trade, and recovered only some of that, but still closing higher around 1347 with silver hanging another close over 20.

The chart formations remain highly positive for both gold and silver, but the needed breakout continues to elude.

The Royal Bank of New Zealand will be looking at a cut in their interest rates later tonight our time.

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

The warehouses were quiet.  Gold 'deliveries' continue brisk for August, on paper at least.

Have a pleasant evening.

SP 500 and NDX Futures Daily Charts - Wobbly Bobbly

Stocks were on the weak side today, although even the selling volumes were light.

VIX crept back up a little. But the momentum in the market remains subdued in all directions.

Any event at this point will trigger a reaction, and perhaps outsized.

Have a pleasant evening.

Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Dollar Lower, Metals Up, Silver in the Lead - Power Coiling

“Love can change a person the way a parent can change a baby—  awkwardly, and often with a great deal of mess.”

Lemony Snicket


"Gentleness is everywhere in daily life, a sign that faith rules through ordinary things...Even in a time of elephantine vanity and greed, one never has to look far to see the campfires of gentle people. Lacking any other purpose in life, it would be good enough to live for their sake."

Garrison Keillor

Even if the opposition party were to nominate a trained chimpanzee, which I do not think is beyond question, I could never find it in my heart to vote for such an iconic figure for almost everything that has gone wrong with the American dream and the Democratic Party as Hillary Clinton.

Never having voted for her or her husband is one of the few things in my life of which I am completely content, and I would hate to lose that slim comfort, especially given the times to come.

Better to vote non-Establishment with a clear conscience, than to have to choose between the banality of narcissistic avarice and his more cunning sister.

Silver led the way higher, moving towards the 20 handle, with gold hanging in to a little more than unchanged.

The dollar gave up some ground which certainly helped.

The Comex stats were so-so.

Some joker was saying that silver is in such an obvious bubble.   So I have included the gold:silver ratio below.   Also the 'technical' indicators for the precious metals.

The metals look to be coiling, and barring a severe market selloff, I think silver is going to be outpacing gold higher. Neither metal is overbought at this point, and their charts are full of power yet to be realized.

Still, all in all the markets are quiet, very much the dog days of Summer.

Have a pleasant evening.

SP 500 and NDX Futures Daily Charts - Stocks Wallowing On Lower Volume

Stock continued to wallow in a low volatility, lower volume trading range best described as 'lackluster.'

I suspect quite a bit of this is due to the vacations being taken in this hot August by the seniors, leaving the markets in the hands of those who are under instructions to pretty much do little and not screw it up.

Certainly there is little organic purchasing of stocks at these prices. Besides the Feds and company stock buyback programs determined to skew the results for bonus purposes, who would bother?

Aggregate demand is sluggish, revenues are flattish to declining, and profits are not worth the accounting ink which dreams them up.

A friend and I were considering the economic forecasts past by government tools, otherwise known as big name expert economists, and for the most part they were very high end fantasy in retrospect, and not worth the electrons used to transmit them.

Are they just that bad? Or just that servile to what their paymasters demand? One can only wonder.

Have a pleasant evening

Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Marking Time In a Dollar World

It certainly seems as though some entities with real clout have had the markets in a virtual lockdown since Brexit.

Gold and silver continue chopping sideways in a relatively tight range, with exceptions for the usual shenanigans, and stocks have been trading in less than 1% moves daily.

The 'deliveries' for gold on the Comex continue, with little action in silver this month, and the usual playing with their food in the precious metals warehouses.

I know, it is a bit boring.  I could just make things up, and maybe one of them would be right.

Or I can skip the legendary predictions game and just say that the metals look quiet, but are continuing to coil, perhaps winding up for a move out of these chart formations.   It is worth watching.

Have a pleasant evening.