Slope of Hope Blog Posts

Slope initially began as a blog, so this is where most of the website’s content resides. Here we have tens of thousands of posts dating back over a decade. These are listed in reverse chronological order. Click on any category icon below to see posts tagged with that particular subject, or click on a word in the category cloud on the right side of the screen for more specific choices.

The Inexorable Grind

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I think if there were one word I would use to describe this market, it would be annoying. And I'm sorry if I've written that exact same sentence recently; I truly can't remember if I have or not; but this is definitely how I feel!

It's gotten to the point that when I wake up to start a new day, I feel like I'm about to walk into a boxing ring again and wondering how many sucker-punches I'll need to endure. All too often lately, I will be showing very fat profits in the middle of the day, and this end-of-day nonsense comes along and evaporates them. I'm not getting stopped out, but it's like the profits are being dangled before me, in a teasing and taunting manner. It gotten really old.

I went through over 1,000 individual charts in the past 24 hours, and there wasn't a single one – not one – that appealed to me on the long side. There were an abundance that looked intriguing on the short side, however (hence my prior post of ideas).

The three charts below are all of major indexes, and they all suggest to me the same thing that I've been feeling lately, which is that a meaningful descent makes the most sense now (most of the big indexes fell a little today, but it surely didn't feel like it, since there were down so much more before).

I've also tinted in an area I'll call "the zone of doubt"; if these confounded indexes manage to shake off their malaise and push higher, I think these tinted areas show the hefty amount of risk bears are facing, since there's not much standing in the way of these markets pushing through the entirety of these regions if they can get above the current range.

0610-$compq

0610-$mid

0610-$rut

I'll see you in the morning after Retail Sales are announced. I've had enough for today.

List of Short Ideas and Stop Prices for Tomorrow

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ADM 29.31
AKAM 23.59
AKS 20.27
ALB 30.01
ALV 35.22
AMX 39.56
AN 19.60
ANAT 82.47
APH 35.38
ARG 45.28
ASH 29.80
ATI 44.37
AXP 28.46
BA 53.40
BBD 16.13
BBY 41.59
BMS 26.33
BOOM 23.18
BP 53.62
BRY 23.21
BWA 39.45
CELG 46.09
CERN 60
CME 343.24
CMG 89.56
CMTL 34.99
CNQ 63.35
CNX 44.14
CTV 27.85
CYH 28.80
DIN 34.72
DIOD 17.21
DNR 18.77
EAT 18.86
ERF 24.95
FDX 59.39
FISV 47.34
FOSL 28.39
GD 61.13
GEF 49.47
GES 29.41
GIL 17.70
GMXR 19.11
HXL 13.46
ICE 121.94
ICLR 21.42
ISLE 14.50
ISRG 164.51
LMIA 11.57
LUFK 48.17
MCRS 28.66
NFLX 41.91
NXY 26.21
OI 30.90
OII 54.26
PBR 44.62
PENN 34.51
QDEL 14.76
RATE 31.87
RAVN 29.84
RSG 23.72
SBAC 26.06
STT 49.21
SU 36.89
TLM 16
TMX 16.82
TSN 13.95
TWTC 12.79
UTX 56.92
WDC 26.01