US stock markets rose firmly last week, reaching new record highs.

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The major equity indices the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 and the Dow Jones 30 all made new record highs last Friday.

Short term price action looks bullish, so trend traders will want to be involved on the long side, and day traders may consider trading these indices long if they show momentum after the market opens. The S&P 500 is well above the key round number of 5000 yesterday.

Cocoa futures rose extremely strongly last week, by more than 11%, to again reach a new multi-year high price Friday, which will keep trend traders interested in this commodity on the long side. It has been exhibiting a powerful bullish trend for well over one year. Cocoa futures are up by more than 25% since the start of 2024.

In the Forex market, the Euro has been the strongest major currency since the Tokyo open today. The New Zealand Dollar has been the weakest, despite comments from the Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand stating the inflation remains elevated and that is why the relatively high interest rate of 5.50% has been maintained. The greatest volatility recently has been seen in the USD/JPY currency pair, and in Yen crosses, although this is starting to decline. The US Dollar is moving little, as it seems to be consolidating ahead of tomorrow’s release of key US CPI (inflation) data, which will be very closely watched.

Bitcoin made its highest daily close yesterday in over 20 months but is showing signs of making a bearish double top as it rejects the key resistance level at $48,675. I think bulls will be wise to wait until a daily close above the big round number at $50,000 before entering any new long trade here.

The British Pound will be in focus this week as the UK releases new CPI and GDP data, which may confirm the UK is technically in a recession. However, it is notable that the British housing market has been showing some signs of renewed strength in recent weeks.

As it is a Monday today with no high-impact data releases scheduled, markets are likely to be relatively quiet.

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