Are Global Stocks Poised to Run?

Almost 9 years later it appears as if global stocks are ready to break out above their 2008 highs. As you can see in the chart of ACWX below, an aggregate index of global stock markets, excluding the US, is sitting just under prior highs. This area has acted as resistance and was rejected the past 3 times it tested it from below.

It is said the more times price tests a certain level the more likely it is to break through. If the 4th time is the charm, it would add another feather in the hats of stock market bulls. While the US broke out years ago, most countries around the world have not. As such a breakout would send a strong message and confirm investors strong risk appetite.

The Wall of Worry

It is said the stock market climbs a “wall of worry”. This expression was coined in the 1950's and depicts a sustained stock market rise during a time of economic, financial or political stress in which stock prices are said to be ascending a "wall of worry".  What greater stress is there than having a nuclear-armed, narcissistic nutcase as your nearest northern neighbor?

It appears as if South Korea has been able to overcome this wall as you can see in my chart of their stock market ETF proxy, EWY, below. It had been trapped in a huge 7 year, 35% sideways range, going nowhere offering buy and hold investors little to no stock market gains. But all that may have changed 3 short weeks ago.

As you can see, price gapped above long term resistance on more than a 50% increase in volume (lower pane) on the breakout which also pushed momentum (upper pane) into the bullish territory for the first time in many, many years. This is all very constructive and opens the door for additional and possibly significant future gains.

Even with the very positive outlook the charts are telling us as a backdrop, do your inner spidey-senses continue to tingle knowing you could be one bad hair day away from “a merciless sacred war” that will turn Seoul into “a sea of fire” or “reduce it to ruins with weapons of absolute justice”? If this were to happen I would guess it just might be one wall their stock market might not be able to climb. I don’t know about you but for now I am going to err on the side of caution and watch this all unfold from the sidelines in spite of the opportunities it presents.

Blockbuster or a Flop?

US bank stocks went on a tear after the Trump election. The promise of a pro-growth agenda combined with higher rates the FED was proclaiming set up an ideal environment for them to prosper and roll in the dough. Unfortunately, the promises and proclamations ran into political reality and as such that ideal environment is becoming a distant memory.  As you can see in my chart of the US bank sector ETF, XLF, below, banks ripped higher, topped and are close to breaking down out of a very symmetrical and almost ideal head and shoulders (topping) pattern. A breakdown below the blue horizontal neckline and hold, points to a downside target at, T1.  Since there is little support at that level, it is likely if T1 is hit, they continue lower down to the T2 zone as that is a level of major support.

On the flip side, some European banks which, many were on the precipice of default and setting up the potential for another 2008 banking-type crisis, look exactly like the US banks.  Except upside down.  A good example of this is represented in the chart of Deutsche Bank, DB, below. Like their US brothers, they have not broken out of their almost symmetrically ideal (inverse) head and shoulders (bottoming) pattern. A break and hold above the blue horizontal neckline points to an upside target at T1, some 40% higher. If it really has some legs and slices right through T1, the T2 zone represents a level of major resistance where it will likely struggle as supply is likely plentiful. I find this situation unique and interesting as investors are potentially setting their sights on Europe.  If so, this would be a major fundamental shift.

Patterns in development are nothing but a potential setup for a future investment.  Until either one of these confirms they should be viewed only as you would a trailer to an upcoming movie. Something to grab your interest but sometimes turn out to be the highlights of a studio flop.

A Hundred Times

Baidu (BIDU) which literally translated means “A hundred times” is one of the largest internet companies in the world and China’s search engine leader.  Since reaching an all-time high in late 2014, found a bottom a year later. Since that time it has been making a series of lower highs but higher lows essentially going nowhere. This, as we know, creates a symmetrical triangle pattern. A break out of the pattern can occur in either direction and because of its unreliability, an investor who took a position in the direction of the break needs to be alert for the possibility the break was a fake and price quickly reversing in the opposite direction. With all this uncertainty and potential management headache many investors will be better off ignoring these patterns and move onto something with a higher probability.  But those willing to take the risks see the upside targets these patterns offer well worth their hazards and Baidu is no different. 

After last week’s breakout from the pattern on some 20% increase in volume combined with momentum above 50 and rising, provides some level of comfort this move is real. Baidu’s (BIDU) first conservative upside target is back up to prior highs at $250, some 30%+ higher.  Beyond that is anyone’s guess as once price has moved onto new highs and it gets into rarefied air, reasonable target estimates become fuzzier. An investor who wants to wait for a confirming move higher this week could buy the breakout and place a stop just under the breakout level. A move back into the pattern would invalidate it and provide the reason to exit the position. Using this management framework offers the investor an excellent opportunity to make $4 for every $1 invested. Personally, I would take an opportunity offering this risk to reward ratio a hundred times out of ahundred.

$60 Trillion of World Debt

I saw this chart posted by visualcapitalist.com and had to forward it along. While it has little to do with investing, it is an obsession of mine. I am a firm believer that one day we will have to face the piper and have our day of reckoning.  While debt isn’t evil, the level of debt we (the US) have almost fits that description. But the interesting thing is, and maybe provides some solace, is looking across the global landscape it appears as if there are a few countries/regions that may have to face the piper before we do. Ultimately though, our day will come.

As you can see the chart breaks down $59.7 trillion of world debt by country, as well as highlights each country’s debt-to-GDP ratio using color. The data comes from the IMF and only covers public government debt. It excludes the debt of country’s citizens and businesses, as well as unfunded liabilities which are not yet technically incurred yet. All figures are based in USDollars.

The numbers that stand out the most, especially when comparing to the previous world economy graphic:

• The United States constitutes 23.3% of the world economy but 29.1% of world debt. It’s debt-to-GDP ratio is 103.4% using IMF figures.
• Japan makes up only 6.18% of total economic production, but has amounted 19.99% of global debt.
• China, the world’s second largest economy (and largest by other measures), accounts for 13.9% of production. They only have 6.25% of world debt and a debt-to-GDP ratio of 39.4%.
• 7 of the 15 countries with the most total debt are European. Together, excluding Russia, the European continent holds over 26% of total world debt.
• Combining the debt of the United States, Japan, and Europe together accounts for 75% of total global debt.  Yet, combining their population they account for less than 25% of the world’s total humans