This is not a correlated market. The dollar is Up+ and Crude is Down- which is normal and the 30 year Bond is trading Higher. The Financials should always correlate with the US dollar such that if the dollar is lower then bonds should follow and vice-versa. The S&P is Lower and Crude is trading Lower which is not correlated. Gold is trading Higher which is not correlated with the US dollar trading Up+. I tend to believe that Gold has an inverse relationship with the US Dollar as when the US Dollar is down, Gold tends to rise in value and vice-versa. Think of it as a seesaw, when one is up the other should be down. I point this out to you to make you aware that when we don't have a correlated market, it means something is wrong. As traders you need to be aware of this and proceed with your eyes wide open. Asia traded Mixed with only the Aussie and Nikkei exchanges Higher. All of Europe is trading Mixed with only the London and Spanish IBEX exchanges trading Higher.

Possible Challenges To Traders Today

ADP Non-Farm Employment Change is out at 8:15 AM EST. Major.
FOMC Member Quarles Speaks at 9 AM EST. Major
Fed Chair Powell Testifies at 10 AM EST. This is Major.
Crude Oil Inventories is out at 10:30 AM EST. This is Major.
FOMC Member Williams Speaks at 1 PM EST. This is Major.
Beige Book is out at 2 PM EST. This is Major.

Treasuries

Traders please note that we've changed the Bond instrument from the 30 year (ZB) to the 10 year (ZN). They work exactly the same.

We've elected to switch gears a bit and show correlation between the 10 year bond (ZN) and The S&P futures contract. The S&P contract is the Standard and Poor's and the purpose is to show reverse correlation between the two instruments. Remember it's liken to a seesaw, when up goes up the other should go down and vice versa.

Yesterday the ZN made it's move at around 8:45 AM EST. The ZN hit a High at around that time and the S&P moved Higher. If you look at the charts below ZN gave a signal at around 8:45 AM EST and the S&P moved Higher at around the same time. Look at the charts below and you'll see a pattern for both assets. ZN hit a High at around 8:45 AM EST and the S&P was moving Higher shortly thereafter. These charts represent the newest version of MultiCharts and I've changed the timeframe to a 15 minute chart to display better. This represented a Shorting opportunity on the 10 year note, as a trader you could have netted about 20 ticks per contract on this trade. Each tick is worth $15.625. Please note: the front month for the ZN is now Mar '21. The S&P contract is also Dec '20 as well. I've changed the format to Renko bars such that it may be more apparent and visible.

Charts Courtesy of MultiCharts built on an AMP platform

Bias

Yesterday we gave the markets an Upside bias as both the USD and the Bonds were trading Lower yesterday morning and this usually reflects an Upside day. The markets didn't disappoint as the Dow gained 185 points and the other indices gained ground as well. Today we aren't dealing with a correlated market and our bias is to the Downside.

Could this change? Of Course. Remember anything can happen in a volatile market.

Commentary

Yesterday morning the markets were correlated to the Upside and they didn't disappoint. However we should never overlook the importance of fundamental news as well. Case in point: yesterday Fed Chair Powell and Treasury Secretary Mnuchin testified to a Congressional committee; both of them specified the importance of additional stimulus for the US economy and the markets applauded this and went Higher. But what if they said otherwise? The markets probably would have dropped and that is why we always say this too could change. The good news is both Powell and Mnuchin agree that stimulus is necessary and Powell believes in the CARE Bill passed by the House last May and in six moths time has languished in the Senate. Chair Powell will have another to speak today at 10 AM EST.

Author

Nick Mastrandrea

Market Tea Leaves

EUR/USD flat lines below 1.1900; divergent Fed-ECB expectations offer support

The EUR/USD pair struggles to capitalize on the overnight bounce from the 1.1835-1.1830 region and oscillates in a narrow band during the Asian session on Thursday. Spot prices currently trade around the 1.1875 area, remaining nearly unchanged for the day and staying within striking distance of an over one-week high, reached on Tuesday, amid mixed cues.

GBP/USD slips heading into the Thursday trading window

The Pound Sterling pulled back from four-year highs on Wednesday, weighed down by a combination of Bank of England dovishness and UK political uncertainty, even as the US Dollar weakened on soft labor market revisions.

Gold posts modest gains above $5,050 as US-Iran tensions persist despite strong labor data

Gold price trades in positive territory near $5,060 during the early Asian session on Thursday. The precious metal edges higher despite stronger-than-expected US employment data. The release of the US Consumer Price Index inflation report will take center stage later on Friday.

Bitcoin holds steady despite strong US labour market

Bitcoin briefly bounced from $66,000 to above $68,000 but slightly reversed those gains following Wednesday's US January jobs report. The top crypto is hovering around $67,000, down 2% over the past 24 hours as of writing on Wednesday.

The market trades the path not the past

The payroll number did not just beat. It reset the tone. 130,000 vs. 65,000 expected, with a 35,000 whisper. 79 of 80 economists leaning the wrong way. Unemployment and underemployment are edging lower. For all the statistical fog around birth-death adjustments and seasonal quirks, the core message was unmistakable. The labour market is not cracking.

XRP sell-off deepens amid weak retail interest, risk-off sentiment

Ripple (XRP) is edging lower around $1.36 at the time of writing on Wednesday, weighed down by low retail interest and macroeconomic uncertainty, which is accelerating risk-off sentiment.