Treasury Yields --- 2-Year vs. 30-Year

Crude Oil --- Nears 200-day m.a.

Crude Oil -- Last 2 years

S&P500 Returns : During earnings season , earnings off-season

Commodity Currencies

In the last 9 months we've seen some very sharp drops in two major commodities, oil and copper . Oil has fallen from $78/bbl to $56/bbl. , and Copper has dropped from $4.05/lb. to $2.60/lb. . One of the ramifications of a commodity drop is the influence that it holds on a Commodity-based economy's currency . As commodity prices rise , more currency is needed to buy it and in turn the currency rises ..... and as the commodity's price falls , less currency is needed , thus putting downward pressure on that "commodity currency " . A great example of this is the Canadian Dollar which has seen its value fall from 91-cents to 85-cents in the last five months . Examinations of the Australian Dollar , New Zealand Dollar and South African Rand have also exhibited the same negative action

TLT --- Head and Shoulders ???

TLT .... the 10-year Treasury Note ETF ( proxy for debt markets) looks as if it may be setting up for a Head-and-Shoulders pattern with yields rising ( and thus prices falling )

Housing Starts and Permits

For a good idea of what's happening in Real Estate , we can see the demand destruction brought about by over-building over the last 5 years