Karpel’s Corner: Commodities Under Fire; Blue Chips Challenging Highs

Welcome to Karpel’s Corner. This is where I throw out my thoughts on the markets and share some of my favorite strategies. I keep it market-focused, and never miss an opportunity to teach trading strategies and commentate on the latest trends affecting the financial markets. Hope you enjoy today’s post!

The EU markets got a boost from news of a cease fire in the works for Ukraine. We saw the Russian markets really bounce on that news. $RSX, the ETF that tracks the Russian markets, popped 6 percent. This also improved their neighbors to the west, France and Germany. At this stage, all boats are rising with this tide.

This has been a positive for the equity markets, but it has not been so pretty for the Commodities ($DBC), which are trading on lows that we have not seen since January of this year. The strength in the Dollar ($UUP) and the weakness in the Euro ($FXE) is putting pressure on this space that looks like it will continue for the near future.

If this space starts to firm up, names like $ADM, $TSN, and $HRL should be on your bullish radar. If the sector cannot turn around, then keep an eye on $DE and $MOS for some bearish trades. As always, check out our Bull and Bear tools to get these ideas and much more.

See you next time at the Corner!