1. Markets are catching a bid today to start the week. It looks as if it is taking its cue from a move down in interest rates and a slightly weaker dollar. Bothing the yield chart and the dollar are short term overbought and due for a breather. Going into today the major indexes were a bit oversold too.

2. Natural gas is up again today trading higher by 5%. Nat gas has certainly had a powerful move last week and is starting out strong again this week. In my opinion, this move is just getting started.
Full disclosure: I own UNG and UNG call options.

3. Crude oil is a little on the weaker side today, but that is still trading above the important February 6th pivot. A close below that would be a very negative indication for crude.

4. Gold futures (GC) are catching a bid today. They have been hammered as of late. Gold is also very oversold and due for a minor bounce. I think the weaker US dollar is helping it today. Silver seems to be moving mostly in tandem with gold for now as it gets ready for its next advance.

5. Bitcoin is on the move again today. Believe it or not, the daily chart is signaling more upside in the near term and that should be respected. Unfortunately, the bigger picture is still seeing much more downside, but for now it lives to fight another day.

1. Markets are under some major pressure after the core-PCE Price Index came in hotter than expected. Many investors believe this index is the Federal Reserve Bank's favorite indicator. Well, that tells us they need to raise rates further and that is the last thing the bulls want to hear. Most traders are now going to be watching to see if the S&P 500 Index closes below the 50-day moving average today. This key moving average was defended yesterday.

2. Yields are rallying higher again today. The highly followed 10-year note yield is now around 3.95%. While this yield is important, the better yield that everyone should track is the 2-year note. That is now around 4.80%. This is the yield where the fed funds rate needs to be at. They caught up in January and you see how the markets rallied, now they are behind the curve and the markets are falling.

3. Gold is down again today. We are also seeing a big decline in copper. Today, I closed out a put play for 30% in Southern Copper Corp (SCCO). I still think copper has lower to go, but remember, nothing goes down in a straight line.

1. Markets were slammed yesterday in a broad based decline. Traders sold the markets sharply after a long 3-day weekend. This is a bit unusual to see as often there is a holiday hangover. Traders and investors should be a bit cautious here as the recent rally is showing some signs of fatigue.
Today, the major stock indexes are trying to bounce at the start of the session. Either way, it has a lot of work to do to try and reverse yesterday's decline which was to the tune of 2%.

2. Toll Brothers (TOL) is a major home-builder that reported earnings last night. The stock is acting well by trading up 4.0% to $58.03. Most of the leading home-builder stocks were very strong during the recent stock market rally. Today, yields are pulling back after a recent surge so that is certainly helping Toll Brother today.

3. Gold is flat today, There is still some daily chart support for gold around the $1830 area, but the pattern must be watched closely. Should gold consolidate then that would lead to another bear pattern and another leg down for the precious metal.

4. Later today at 2pm ET, the FOMC minutes will be released. Many traders and investors want to hear what the central bank has to say regarding interest rates. Lately, there have been several Fed heads saying that rates need to rise. I just say, follow the 2 year note yield. That should tell us what we need to know.

1. The highly anticipated CPI report was released yesterday. The market seemed to struggle on how to interpret it. It was a whipsaw Tuesday so to speak, but by the closing bell the markets were flat. Hence the old saying, it's not how they open but how they close. So far, the trend re,mains up and stocks are battling this week to continue climbing.

Either way, this is an options expiration week and there are a lot of games that will get played this week in many popular stocks. I always say, expect the unexpected.

2. There are still lots of earnings pouring in. Next week, Nvidia (NVDA) is scheduled to report and that is a major semiconductor stock. Almost every trader and investor is waiting to hear from this semi behemoth. I believe most of the good news should be factored into this stock already as it has run up a lot recently.

3. Gold is under pressure today again. On Monday I said that the $1830 area would be next as far as the daily chart downside goes and we are getting closer to that level. Overall, there could be even more downside than that, but I like to see the first level break before looking further.

4. Bitcoin is holding up well today trading higher by 2.0% to 22750. I think this will hold up as long as the liquidity rally remains intact, but once it ends then Bitcoin should fall back down. For now, it lives to fight another day.

1. This coming Friday is option expiration for February. By now, everyone knows this is a week of institutional game playing. The large institutions calculate where the small retail options trader has placed his bet and they will usually take stocks and move it away from that popular strike price this week.

2. Tomorrow the CPI report will be released at 8:30am. This report has been a market mover throughout 2022 and could be again tomorrow. Remember, a hot number would definitely signal to the market that the Fed needs to continue its rate hikes. A weak number would be the opposite. As I always say, let's see the market reaction.

3. Gold is a bit weak this morning. I'm still in the camp that gold should coninue to trade lower from here. Obviously, there is a war going on in Ukraine with a lot of NATO involvement so it is difficult to get too bearish on the precious metals.

4. Bitcoin is stalling out today. It has had a huge run recently as the markets have inflated. Last week, Fed Governor Christopher Waller commentedon crypto assets; "a crypto-asset is nothing more than a speculative asset, like a baseball card... [if price goes to zero] don't be surprised and don't expect taxpayers to socialize your losses. If that is not telling is something I really don't know what will. They are basically telling you nothing will compete with their currency. Ultimately, that will be the CBDC.

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1. Markets are all over the map today, Google (GOOG) is trading lower by 6.4% and that looks to be weighing on technology this morning. It looks as if Alphabet AI bot gave a wrong answer at the launch event according to the Telegraph UK. This AI craze is really dangerous if you ask me. Just think about if they report something false and people act on it. It already happens in the stock market with these algorithms picking up key words and moving markets.

2. Yesterday, Fed Chairman Jay Powell had a conversation with David Rubenstein live at noon and the stock market took off by the closing bell. The market is expecting the Fed to pivot, but the Fed's balance sheet is 8.5 trillion. I have to think that QT (quantitative tightening) is not going away anytime soon.

3. Gold is flat again today, but it has been a bit weak since last Thursday. Traders should watch the US dollar as a potential headwind for gold in the near term. I would avoid gold at this time.

Direct quote from ChatGPT, "Nick Santiago is a stock trader who runs a financial analysis and investment newsletter service called "In The Money Stocks." He provides stock market analysis and investment recommendations to subscribers. It is important to note that individual investment advice can vary widely, and past performance is not indicative of future results. Before making any investment decisions, it's important to do your own research and consult with a financial advisor."

1. Markets are pulling back today. The decline comes after this Friday's job report was released. The number was very hot with 517K new jobs announced. This hot number has investors thinking that the Fed needs to continue raising rates. In fact, yields have jumped higher on Friday and again are higher today. Obviously, the markets was pricing in a dowvish fed and that could be off the table now.


2. Today, most sectpors are weak with the exception of the defense contractors such as Lockheed Martin (LMT), Nortrop Grumman (NOC) and Ratheon (RTX). These stocks obviously benefit from the escalation in Russia and Ukraine. You also have chatter that the US will possible try and take some type of action against China for the spy balloon incident, so that has a bid in these stocks today.

3. Gold is ticking up a little today, but it was slammed last Thursday and Friday. I'm still in the camp that gold needs to retreat further along with silver in the near term.

4. Bitcoin is also retreating today after its recent monster run.

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1. This is a huge day for markets. It's Fed day. At 2pm ET the FOMC will make its interest rate policy decision for the US. The central bank is expected to raise rates by 25 basis points. As always, that is baked into the cake already, but the verbiage could move markets. Not only will rates be affected, but gold, silver and the dollar could also be volatile or in play after the announcement.
Fed Chairman Jay Powell will hold a press conference at 2pm ET. That could be important and also move markets.

2. Earnings are in full gear this week. Tonight we get earnings from $META (Facebook). Tomorrow night we get earnings from $AAPL $GOOGL and $AMZN. Then on Friday we get the non-farm payroll report which is often a market mover.

3. Markets are trading lower ahead of the Fed decision today. But in all fairness they are still strong on the charts and have had a strong January rally.

4. Gold is down a touch today, but it has held up very well as of late. This will likely be in play after the Fed decision.

5. Bitcoin is also down a touch today after its huge January bounce.

1. The major stock indexes are treading water today. Energy is weak, both oil and gas are trading lower to start the week. The integrated energy stocks such as Exxon (XOM), Conoco (COP) and Chevron (CVX) are having a rough start, but the session is still very early.


2. All eyes will be on the Fed this week. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) begins a 2-day meeting tomorrow. On Wednesday afternoon the central bank will make its interest rate decision for the US. A 25-basis point hike is expected to be announced. The verbiage from fed Chairman Powell could move markets as the hike is already baked in. The Fed has repeatedly said that they want inflation down at 2% and that the fed funds rate will need to be around 5%. We shall see.

3. This is another big week for earnings. Later on Thursday, we get earnings from AAPL, AMZN and GOOGL. Tomorrow morning Exxon Mobil reports before the opening bell. Earnings season is now in full gear.

4. Gold is flat again today, Despite being overbought it is holding up very well. I suspect the escalation in Russia and Ukraine is keeping a bid under the precious metal. The NATO push for war has people running into gold and silver right now.

5. Bitcoin is strong again today. The popular crypto has rallied with the stock market throughout January. Traders should note that the bigger time-frame patterns are still weak and signal another decline down to the 11,000 handle.

1. Stocks are holding up this week. The major indexes have shrugged off the weak earnings and that is a bullish sign. Economic data does not seem to have any negative effects at this time either. So far the January effect is in full force.


2. Tesla is leading the tech heavy NASDAQ with another 3.0% gain. this stock is now trading at $165.00 a share. Last night, earnings from Intel (INTC) and KLA Corp (KLAC) were not well received as these stocks are trading lower by more than 5%. This is not hurting the semiconductor index though as the SMH is trading down just by 0.62%. The semiconductors should be watched closely as they are a leading industry group.

3. Natgas bottomed yesterday. Nick is back in $UNG.

4. Gold down a touch along with silver.

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