Taking A Big Step Back

Uncertainties created by President Trump’s curbs on travel and immigration contributed to a sell-off in stocks Monday. The monthly S&P 500 chart below allows us to filter out some of the day-to-day volatility. As of this writing, three positive developments remain in place: (1) the breakout above the multiple-year consolidation box (point A), (2) a retest of the breakout (point B), and (3) a bullish MACD crossover near point C.

(Click on image to enlarge)

A December 2 analysis provides some historical context (1993-2017) for the bullish monthly MACD cross shown above.

The View From 90,000 Feet

This week’s stock market video covers an extremely rare breakout attempt that is being made by the broad NYSE Composite Stock Index and puts the development into some long-term historical context (1965-2017).

Video length: 00:31:49

Trump Moves On Regulatory Reform

As outlined on November 11, reducing regulations could have a positive impact on earnings. Monday, President Trump moved on regulatory reform. From Reuters:

President Donald Trump signed an order on Monday that will seek to dramatically pare back federal regulations by requiring agencies to cut two existing regulations for every new rule introduced. “This will be the biggest such act that our country has ever seen. There will be regulation, there will be control, but it will be normalized control,” Trump said as he signed the order in the Oval Office, surrounded by a group of small business owners.