'Sin' stocks

"Sin" stocks have had a rough go during this recession despite a reputation as one of the safer spots to park your money during downturns. Gambling, booze, and cigarette firms all have loyal (addicted, even) customers who are supposed to keep coming back no matter how bad the rest of the economy gets. Unfortunately, as with many other bits of the market, this time is different. Americans are cutting back on vice, though the reasons are very likely more economic than puritanical. They're reconsidering spending on a drink, a smoke, or an hour at the tables and trading down on everything from six-packs to weekend jaunts to Vegas as looming uncertainty and rising joblessness take some of the fun out of recreational abandon.

Tracking the Dow on Wednesday,29/07/09.

9:30am:--A 20.0 points gap-down with another bearish spike down.

Durable goods orders for June fell 2.5% after climbing a downwardly revised 1.3% in May. The drop in June was worse than the 0.6% decline that was expected and marked the first downturn since March.
10:30am:--Opening gap being fully filled by the bulls ended at session high with pullback to MAV.

The dollar is trading higher, adding further price pressure on precious metals.

11:30am:--A double bottom hammering.

Energy is now the worst performing sector as it slides to a 2.7% loss. The decline comes as oil prices drop 4.5% to $64.20 per barrel in the wake of an unexpected build to weekly inventories.

12:30noon:--Retracement to MAV with graveyard doji star.

The stock market is down in range-bound fashion and health care is outperforming.
1:30pm:--Another pullback to find its day 's low with a bullish inverted hammer.

The Fed's Beige Book has just been released. According to Dow Jones, most districts see the recession easing even though economic activity is still weak and commercial real estate markets have weakened further.

2:30pm:--A retracement to MAV line and being checked by bears again.
Amid the choppy trading this session, the Volatility Index, which is often dubbed the "Fear Index" and is a gauge of expected volatility, is up 4.5% to just above 26. The VIX hasn't been above 26 in two weeks.

3:30pm:--Last few minutes short-covering.

4:00pm:--Bulls are continuing its short-covering
The bullish momentum of the Dow is still intact as profit-taking activity did not pierce through last Thursday's candlestick body.
The current consolidation is holding at the launching pad of a platform waiting for the 52 weeks MAV resistance breakout.

'Naked' Short-selling ban.

The Securities and Exchange Commission made permanent an emergency rule targeting so-called "naked" short-selling, which was due to expire Friday.
Short-sellers bet against a stock. They generally borrow a company's shares, sell them, and then buy them when the stock falls and return them to the lender -- pocketing the difference in price.
"Naked" short-selling occurs when sellers don't even borrow the shares before selling them, and then look to cover positions sometime after the sale.

Brokers acting for short sellers must find a party believed to be able to deliver the shares within three days after the short-sale trade. If the shares aren't delivered within that time, there is deemed to be a "failure to deliver." Brokers can be subject to penalties if the failure to deliver isn't resolved by the start of trading on the following day.

"Flash trading," enables some big Wall Street banks and hedge funds to get an advance look at investors' stock orders before they hit the market.These are the actual people who should be punished for eating the flesh of all uninformed investors acting to their own advantage.
These are the actual rogue short-sellers who started the world's financial turmoil. They have already known before the markets got the news by disseminating the good and the bad. .So finally they are the only one that is left unscathed because they knew their timing.Anyway the market is very cruel because of all these traitors.

Tracking the Dow on Monday,27/07/09

9:30am:--An opening hangman with bullish harami.

Citigroup (C) is down nearly 3% to $2.65 per share after the company announced that some $20 billion of preferred and trust preferred securities were tendered in its exchange offer of publicly held convertible and nonconvertible securities.

10:30am:--After spiking to its early high,short-sellers have finally wipe-off the gains and landed at session low.

New home sales for June came in at an annualized rate of 384,000, which is well above the 352,000 that were widely expected.

11:30am:--A retracement to the MAV ended with a graveyard doji.

Profit-takers are taking over the wheel.

12:30noon:--Indicies are now lying low in the bear county but noticeable bulls are dabbling around.

1:30pm:--The 2nd session started with a near day's low forming a double bottom.

The bulls are bringing it back to the MAV line.

2:30pm:--The bulls have securedly hold the indicies above the MAV bull county.

Weakness in the U.S. dollar helped commodity prices at the open of the pit trade, but prices generally came back in as the dollar strengthened.

3:30pm:--A pullback to the MAV support.

The market seems to be under enormous selling pressure by the bears taking advantage of a market that has shot up too fast in just a week.

4:00pm:--1,2 & 3 bulls shooting.

The follow through will be a pullback after the victory lap.
Index futures in the Far-East like Thailand,Singapore,Hong Kong and Malaysia will be expiring on Friday,last day of the month.

The Dow is just about 78.28 points to reach the 52 weeks MAV resistance (9,186.79) which is going to be the turning point with the short-selling bears taking charge of the market.

The Dow is scrambling slowly and systematically to accomodate its Asian peers.

The 2 spinning tops might be a warning.The dollar seems a bit strengthening and might be the added sign.

Dow's lightning speed.

Driven by better-than-expected profit reports from the likes of Ford, eBay and AT&T, the Dow Jones Industrial Average leapt 188.03 points to 9069.29, surging back above 9000 for the first time since early January.
The bear rally is heading for a breakout to the upside.Investors in US stocks will soon be able to realised their return of equity investment back to their net worth and intrisic value.
I have noticed that some of the stocks of late have undergone a series of reverse share-split and thus enhancing its value again.
example:AIG previously USD1.16, FAS previously USD9.65, FAZ previously USD4.85.All these just a few weeks ago prices.Is this the hints of the pre-planned moved by Obama's economic team to somehow or rather push the Dow index back to pre-crisis level?Are they using this shadowy Dow index tool to offset the weak dollar?
So when the Dow goes higher and will crude-oil as well but the dollar will remain weak.
The USDollar is an international currency and when the dollar is weak countries would be able to purchase more quantity of oil with lesser currency...however this is only when OPEC keep the prices stable.
Crude oil is mainly traded in US dollars, and when the US dollar weakens the crude oil market participants (speculators, producers, refineries, etc.) push the price of crude higher on the expectations that oil producers are entitled to at least the same prices as before in their own currencies, after exchanging US dollars into their currency. In economics such relationships are explained by Purchasing Power Parity theory.
So in the end oil consumers will suffer with high inflation thus forcing central banks to raise interest again.
Stocks will start falling again when we see signs that the Fed grumble too much about inflation.That's the time we have to bail out from stocks completely and aim for bonds.

Tracking the Dow on Thursday,23/07/09.

9:30am:--A small bullish hammer from overnight low with no gapping play.

Initial jobless claims for the week ending July 18 totaled 554,000, which is slightly less than the 557,000 initial claims that were widely expected.
10:30am:--The bulls charges with strong spike up.

On the evening of July 14, Intel (INTC 19.22, +0.08) posted one of its best quarterly reports in years and induced buying in the broader market.

11:30am:--Morning high with a graveyard doji pullback being checkmate by the bulls.

Among equities, small-cap and mid-cap stocks are seeing some of the best gains this session.

12:30noon:--The pullback time for the 1st half session is still clinging near the high.

It will be very difficult for the index to pullback to the MAV level judging from the very big range.

1:30pm:--A bullish spike to another high with some mild profit-taking.

The major indices are taking a breather from their ascent and are now trading sideways. Gains remain impressive and widespread.

2:30pm:--The pullback is again being checked by the bulls.

Existing home sales in June increased 3.6% month-over-month to an annual rate of 4.89 million units, which is generally in-step with what was expected and marks a third straight increase.

3:30pm:--Bearish profit-taking.
Better-than-expected earnings announcements from a wide range of industry players have helped fuel broad-based buying.

4:00pm:--The closing day doji star indecision ended with a bull.
Commodities also benefited from broad-based buying, which pushed the CRB Commodity Index 1.8% higher in its best percentage gain since mid-June.
The Dow is just inches away from the 52 weeks MAV>(9,186.79)

The breakout is going to see the demise of the bear rally.

The real bulls party are about to begin.

With the US equities going back to previous years level,the Americans will be having more money to spend again and thereby boosting airline travels and tourism.The pensioners will be more happy to cheer again after all their 401k fund have diminished in value during the financial turmoil.

There are many cheap airline stocks which have been hammered to scout around like Thai Airways,Cathay Pacific,Qantas to name a few.

IMF china report.

China has room to launch another stimulus aimed at increasing domestic consumption and swinging the economy away from its dependence on exports, the International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday.

It also said unemployment would probably rise as China tried to rebalance the economy and jobs were lost in export sectors. However “over a longer horizon, the employment gains from rebalancing towards domestic consumption and an increase in service sector employment should outweigh short-term losses”.

The economic assessment is meant to be issued annually but had been blocked by China until now over fears about how the IMF would label its currency, which some complain is kept unfairly low to make exports more competitive.

International financial institutions expect China to reap quicker trade benefits from a global upturn later this year that will be led by emerging economies.
Meanwhile, China, which notched up year-on-year growth of nearly 8 per cent in the second quarter, remains the top destination for future foreign direct investment (FDI), according to a survey by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development released on Wednesday. The 240 multinationals that responded to the questionnaire put the US in second place, followed by India, Brazil and Russia.

Tracking the Dow on Wednesday,22/07/09
9:30am:--Pivot day of week,a mild gap-down 30.0 points followed by bullish gap filling.

Morgan Stanley said it lost more than $1.2 billion in the second quarter as it took charges to cover continuing losses in its real estate investments and its repayment of government bailout money.

10:30am:--After finding its high,(+33.86 points),bears pulled it back to MAV line and slightly below it.

General Motors Co., which has received $50 billion in U.S. government aid and emerged from bankruptcy protection on July 10, said it sold 1.94 million vehicles worldwide in the April-to-June period, despite a 32 percent decline in North America.

11:30am:--A technical rebound failed to test earlier high and pullback to MAV line.

Crude futures settled down 21 cents at $65.40 a barrel .A mix of earnings reports drove trading.
12:30noon:--End of first session saw the bulls lifting the index to another double top with hangman.

The U.S. dollar hovered close to a seven-week low, with traders basically tracking equity markets as a gauge of investor penchant for risk taking.The relationship between the dollar and global equities has been strong since March, when investors began to cut their holdings of cash and other safe havens and increased exposure to stocks and other relatively risky assets.

1:30pm:--A spike down for the third attempt to break the MAV line,this time with tri-star doji spin to do the job.

2:30pm:--Bearish harami with hammer.
3:30pm:--Bullish inverted hammer at a new day's low.

4:00pm:--Bullish harami.
The 3 white ascending soldiers have finally reached the peak and needs a breather to plan the next forward strategy.

It's the new high of the month and the overall candlestick for the month remains bullish.

Wednesday's pullback is just within the white body of Tuesday and retraced leaving a small shadow calling it a bearish spin.

Any pullback will be right to the bull-pivot and then rebound again.

Jollibee Fast Food

Jollibee is a Philippines based fast food franchise which began as a two-branch ice cream parlor in 1975 offering hot meals and sandwiches became incorporated in 1978 with seven outlets to explore the possibilities of a hamburger concept.

It became the first Philippine fast food chain to break the P1 billion sales mark in 1989. In 1993, Jollibee became the first food service company to be listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange; thus broadening its capitalization and laying the groundwork fo r sustained expansion locally and beyond the Philippines.

With its success, a Jollibee franchise has now a tag price of P25+ Million (US$ 500,000+). Wow!
The founder:-Tony Tan Caktiong the third of seven siblings born to poor parents who migrated from the Fujian province in China to look for a better life here in the Philippines. His father began as a chef in a Chinese Temple. Not later on his father was invited to open a restaurant business in Davao so the whole family moved south.

Tracking the Dow on Tuesday,21/07/09.
9:30am:--A strong bullish open of about 80.0 points followed by a bearish spin.
A boost from Caterpillar (CAT) which reported second quarter earnings per share of $0.72, easily ahead of the $0.22 First Call consensus.

10:30am:--Opening gap being filled 3/4 of the body and rebounded to end with a bearish engulfing.

With the Dow near its high point for the year, there is an expectation from the bears a pullback of some sort is inevitable.

11:30am:--Bearish hammer filling up fully the opening gap.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, said in both a Wall Street Journal op-ed column and in congressional testimony that the central bank will move to curtail inflation only when the economy is moving quickly enough to warrant tighter policy.
12:30noon:--No sign of retracement to the morning session MAV line.Current situation is a bearish harami.

Oil futures rose 74 cents to $64.81 per barrel in New York.

1:30pm:--A rebound from day's low now with the inverted bullish hammer and dragon-fly doji's
securing its position.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said in testimony before a congressional panel that mounting joblessness, slumping home values and tight credit were likely to curb consumer spending -- a major driver of U.S. economic growth and corporate profits.

2:30pm:--A bearish harami.

Traders are digesting the Fed's testimony.In regulatory news, the U.S. Treasury Department sent to Congress a draft bill that would curb the power of credit ratings agencies.

3:30pm:--A last minute retracemnt to MAV line.

Investors were paying close attention to financial reports from the second quarter for a sense of how companies are managing to navigate the downturn.

4:00pm:--Two bullish hammer and a last bull to end the 6 month high bear rally.

A slight pause and pullback is inevitable.

Weak bulls have been lifting the Dow for the past few days and I presume that they are trying to take a brake with a final spinning doji which has a longer lower shadow.

Their resting point might be at the first spin of Thursday after a big spike up.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told lawmakers Tuesday that the economy has started to show signs of stabilization, although he cautioned that improvement is uncertain and likely to be gradual going forward.

China's credit for Asean

China plans to provide US$15bil commercial credit to Asean, including US$1.7bil preferential loans to the regional grouping, in the next three to five years.
In a joint communique issued at the end of the 42nd Asean Foreign Ministers Meeting in Phuket(Thailand), the ministers also appreciated China’s active role in developing transportation infrastructure between the country and Asean.
The 10 ministers said they welcomed the establishment of the US$10bil Asean-China Fund for Investment Cooperation which would significantly contribute to the completion of transportation links in the region.

Tracking the Dow on Monday,20/07/09
9:30am:--Nearly 80.0 points gap-up with extended unshaven bull.

CIT Group (CIT) appears to have reached an agreement securing $3 bln in last-minute rescue financing from its bondholders Sunday in a deal that should keep the lender out of bankruptcy court.

10:30am:--Bears pullback the open up gap to find its double bottom.

Moody's has commented that the global banking system has finally gotten to its feet, but it is still struggling to stand up straight.

11:30am:--A technical rebound to current session MAV with a bullish spin.

Currently, crude is 0.9% higher at $64.16 per barrel.August gold is currently 1.3% higher at $949.80 per ounce, while September silver is 1.7% higher at $13.64 per ounce.

12:30pm:--The end of morning session saw the indicies piercing through the MAV resistance with a graveyard doji pause.

1:30pm:--Pullback to MAV support line but a bullish inverted hammer prevented it from falling.

Atlanta Fed President Lockhart said that the economy is stabilizing, forecasting a recovery in the second half of 2009, according to Dow Jones.

2:30pm:--Hammering the bears above the MAV line.

The New York-based Conference Board's index of leading economic indicators rose 0.7 percent last month,another sign pointing toward the recession ending later this year.
3:30pm:--A sudden spike up is bringing the Dow to session day high.

Stocks extend rally as worries over CIT ease.

4:00pm:--A bearish harami is attempting to check the index further advance.
Investors signaled optimism about second-quarter financial reports bringing the Dow to 4days of consecutive advancement.

Monday's Dow lift-off to a very good July index futures after the expiry of June contract last Friday.

July's candle is now a bullish hammer of a downtrend.It has broken the 52 weeks Bear resistance as the bears are now incapable to withstand the summer heat.Another 747.29 points is need to reach the 52 weeks MAV and thereafter the start of a real bull rally.

CIT Group:-No bail.

Cit Group Inc.,(NYSE:CIT) (USD1.64)
The Obama Administration drew a line in the sand on financial bailouts on Wednesday, July 15, denying emergency aid to CIT Group , a struggling commercial lender on the brink of bankruptcy.
The nation's two largest trade groups for retailers and clothingmakers sent urgent pleas to Washington on Wednesday asking for government aid to save CIT Group Inc., saying the finance company's failure would exacerbate an already weakened industry
CIT Group Inc. operates as the holding company for CIT bank that provides commercial financing and leasing products, and management advisory services to the small and middle market companies worldwide. Its products principally include asset based loans; secured lines of credit; operating, capital, and leveraged leases; vendor finance programs; import and export financing; debtor-in-possession/turnaround financing; acquisition and expansion financing; letters of credit/trade acceptances structuring; and small business loans.

Tracking the Dow on Wednesday,15/7/09 (THE PIVOT DAY OF JULY)
One more day to Friday's Index Futures Expiry.
9:30am:--Bulls early strike with a 100.0 point gap-up.

The New York/Empire State Manufacturing Index for July came in at -0.55, which was better than the -5.00 that had been expected. The latest reading was also up from the -9.41 that was registered in June.

10:30am:--!st hour no sign of pullback to fill the opening gap.Session high.

Core CPI for June increased 0.2% month-over-month. It was expected to increase 0.1%, which was also the rate of change registered in May. Year-over-year, the CPI fell 1.4%, which was less than the 1.5% decrease that was expected. Core CPI increased 1.7% year-over-year, as expected.

11:30am:--2nd hour holding at another high.

The Wall Street Journal reported that consumer prices in the 16 countries that use the euro fell on an annual basis for the first time on record in June. More specifically, consumer prices increased 0.2% for the month, but were 0.1% lower for the year in June.

12:30noon:--The end of morning session find it difficult for any pullback to MAV,too far a distance.

A thoroughly impressive quarterly report Intel (INTC), which announced last evening better-than-expected earnings and even issued an upside revenue forecast is holding strenght.

1:30pm:--The session started with ascending soldiers.

Crude oil futures are now up 2.5% near $61 per barrel.

2:30pm:--Bullish inverted hammer at session high.

Meanwhile, industrial production fell once again. In June, production fell 0.4%, but that wasn't as bad as expected. Capacity utilization was in-line at 68%.
3:30pm:--A slight profit-taking.

Many participants are likely waiting to see if earnings announcements continue to top expectations. JPMorgan Chase (JPM 36.26, +1.56) . Bank of America (BAC 13.42, +0.51), Citigroup (C 3.17, +0.25), and General Electric (GE 12.24, +0.60)

4:00pm:--A very strong day high close.

Alas,the bull pivot has been pierced through.The bulls are now on safe ground and the Spanish bull-run Pampanga fiesta is about to begin.

The Asian chinese will be lighting up the candles for the Mid-Autumn Festival.

The begining of the 2nd half year is about 500.0 points away to be called the bull-rally.
A mild-profit taking with a doji type formation to ensue in view of the unshaven top & bottom of yesterday's candlestick.

Thailand Ford Motor Company.

Auto Alliance Thailand (AAT), the 50-50 joint venture of Ford Motor and Mazda Corp, opened its new $500-million compact car plant yesterday aimed at positioning Thailand as a global manufacturing hub for the two international automakers
The plant in the eastern seaboard province of Rayong is a joint venture between the two companies to produce the Mazda2 and Ford Fiesta compact cars, they said in the joint statement.
The cars will be sold domestically in Thailand and exported to Southeast Asian countries, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
Southeast Asia is a "critical component of our overall growth strategy in Asia," said David Alden, Ford's president for Southeast Asia and Japan.
Thailand is already a major production and export center for pickup trucks. Its passenger car production is dominated by Japanese automakers such as Toyota and Honda.
Ford Motor Co. is the only one of the Detroit "big three" auto companies that has managed to stay out of bankruptcy during the global recession.
Tracking the Dow on Monday 13/07/09.

(3 market days left to Friday's Dow Futures Expiry)
9:30am:--A mild bullish open followed by a bearish harami to fill up the gap.

There aren't any market-moving earnings or economic releases in store for this morning.
10:30am:--A first hour low with bullish spin and inverted hammer.

Encouraging comments about financial firms from highly regarded Wall Street veteran Meredith Whitney.

11:30am:--(2nd Hour)Bullish spike up to session high with further breakway spinning dojis.

Finanical stocks are looking strong following Meredith Whitney's upgrade of Goldman Sachs.

12:30noon:--(3rd Hour)As usual the pullback for the lunch break but did not touch the current session MAV.

Oil prices are now down 2.0% to $58.65 per barrel after opening pit trade with a modest gain.

1:30pm:--Ascending soldiers moving forward to new high with a doji pause.

An article from The Wall Street Journal that stated the recession, plunging air passengers travel, and tough lending standards are weighing on the airline industry. The article was bold enough to say that if conditions don't improve by winter there could be bankruptcy filings.

2:30pm:--Bulls holding position at high ground.

Stocks continue to trade with impressive gains, but in quiet fashion.

3:30pm:--A slight bearish pause at near session high with a dragonfly doji appearing again.

The Volatility Index is down a sharp 8.7%, which has the VIX at 26.5. Its low for the year stands at 24.80, which was reached July 1
4:00pm:--A bullish spike up closing getting ready for the spillover.
The Dow is just -2.15 points to pierce through the MAV but with reluctance.Since the July high has a variant of just merely a 132.94 points up,the chances of the Dow transforming into a bullish stance or trap is also great after expiry day.

Meredith Whitney is holding the joker card all this while.She managed to slot it in today when the market has no other moving news.So she has sucked up all the world's financial pool money.Isn't this a great pre-emptive market manipulation?Upgrade or downgrade,that's the powerful tool the ratings people have in dictating to the market.

Obama's half-brother.

Mark Ndesandjo is the son of Barack Obama’s late father and his third wife, an American woman named Ruth Nidesand who runs the up-market Maduri kindergarten in Nairobi.
Obama, however, refers to him simply as “my brother” and says he was the only uncontested heir after their father, a Kenyan, died in a car crash in 1982.
His half-brother submerged himself in the crowds of the most cosmopolitan city in China. Friends say he has a long-term Chinese girlfriend in her 20s from Henan, a poor landlocked province that sends millions of migrants to the coastal cities.
He lives in Nanshan, a brash new district of high-rises and streets teeming after dark with young migrants eating spicy street food and cramming into bars, karaoke joints and massage parlours.
Ndesandjo, who had an elite education in the United States, collecting a degree from Brown University, a masters in physics from Stanford and an MBA from Emory, did not share Obama’s emotional view of his roots.
Barack Obama senior fathered eight children by four different women.
(source:timesonline.co.uk by Michael Sheridan Shenzhen, China )
Tracking the Dow on Friday,10/07/09.(4 market days to Index Futures Expiry)

9:30am:--Opening slide of 40.0 points followed by bullish spin within the body.

A disappointing consumer sentiment number provided by the University of Michigan got in the way.

10:30am:--Opening gap-down being completely filled with a double top.Bearish hammer.

The U.S. trade deficit fell to the lowest level in more than nine years in May as exports posted a small gain while the weak American economy pushed imports down for a 10th straight month.

11:30am:--The morning session low with the bull being checkmate by the bears but managed to squeeze through.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Friday the Obama administration's economic stimulus plan is on the "expected path."

12:30noon:--A technical rebound to MAV line usually at this time.

The Treasury Department is selling its financial stakes in bailed-out banks for one-third less than they're worth, potentially shorting taxpayers up to $2.7 billion, a bipartisan congressional watchdog says.

1:30pm:--After touching the MAV line, a slight pullback but still bullish.

Benchmark crude oil for August delivery fell 52 cents to settle at $59.89 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, but at one pointed traded as low as $58.72.

2:30pm:--Another pullback but again the bulls provided the support.

Investors have sent major indexes down about 7 percent since mid-June on the belief that a more than 40 percent run-up in stocks this spring was unwarranted considering the problems that still plague the economy such as rising unemployment and flagging consumer confidence.

3:30pm:--It's injury time,the indicies are holding strong near the MAV.A morning star seen.

Expectations are generally low for the news expected to come out of the second-quarter earnings season.

4:00pm:--The bulls have taken it up above the MAV line and hold it securedly in the bull county but the triple doji stars are blowing off the lighted candle again.

An extremely low trading volume equivalent to that of 1st day of July.

The overall candlestick for July is now very bearish.

Any rebound will be shortlive and to struggle to reach the MAV is still promising but difficult task.
The spinning dojis at the bottom of the bearish Tuesday candle is a signal of short-covering to come near Dow futures expiry day.

The Thai Kingdom

American-born King Bhumibol, 81, whom many Thais regard as semi-divine, ascended the lotus throne in 1946, when Harry Truman was in the White House and Josef Stalin ruled the former Soviet Union. He has been the lone stabilizing presence in a land that has been rocked by 15 successful or attempted coups d’etat, 16 different constitutions and 27 changes of prime minister during his reign. The stern-faced monarch with few official powers but much influence has at least twice intervened to halt bloodletting.
Street demonstrations organized by the rival factions led to the occupation of Bangkok’s two main airports in November and triggered the cancellation of an April meeting of Asian leaders -- events that brought unwelcome publicity to the Land of Smiles.
Amid the chaos, some investors see opportunity in Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy behind Indonesia.
Marc Faber who manages $300 million in Asian shares at Hong Kong-based Marc Faber Ltd. has been buying shares in Thai banks and food producers this year.
Swiss-born Faber first visited Thailand 36 years ago and moved his home there in 2000. Today, he lives in baronial splendor, surrounded by first editions of books such as Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations, in a teak house on the banks of the Ping River just outside the 1,000-year-old walled city of Chiang Mai.

Tracking the Dow on Thursday,09/07/09.(5 market days before Dow Index Futures expiry on 17/07/09)

9:30am:A bullish 40.0 points lift-off but a spin at the upper shadow blew the lights -off.

According to the latest government statistics, 565,000 initial jobless claims were filed for the week ending July 4. That is short of the consensus estimate, which called for 603,000 claims
10:30am:--After filling the opening bulls santuary,the bears have penetrated further down.

Just hitting news wires, wholesale inventories for May decreased 0.8%, which is less than the 1.0% decrease that had been expected. Wholesale inventories for April were revised slightly higher to reflect a 1.3% decrease.

11:30am:--The morning session new low has been completed and it's time for a rebound to the MAV line.

Amid the rebound, financials have emerged to trade with the most handsome gains of any major sector; they are up 1.4%.

12:30noon:--It's consolidation time at the MAV indecision line getting ready for the 2nd session assault.(we have the shooting stars,hangmen and bears)

Crude oil prices have surrendered early gains and now trade with a 0.8% loss at $59.65 per barrel. Should the loss hold, oil will log its seventh straight loss.

1:30pm:--An opening bearish harami warning.

Part of the Dow's relative weakness stems from weakness in big pharma stocks like Johnson & Johnson (JNJ 56.49, -0.59) and Merck (MRK 26.94, -1.10), which were actually leaders in the previous session.

2:30pm:--A sudden spike up retracing to the day's high(double top) with a bullish hammer.
A bull trap.Dow component Alcoa started earnings season last night by reporting a loss for the second quarter, but the shortfall wasn't as bad as what had been expected. That has helped the broader market make modest gains in the face of choppy, listless trading.

3:30pm:--Pullback to bear zone but a bullish harami checkmate the slide.

The U.S. dollar has fallen under increasingly stiff selling pressure, which has taken the Dollar Index to a 1.2% loss. The dollar's decline has provided a boon for commodity prices.

4:00pm:--A bullish harami.

There might be some good economic news Friday.(export and import price data for June ,the trade balance report for May, the preliminary consumer sentiment survey for July is due from the University of Michigan .)
Volumes have spiked up on Wednesday,the usual bullish retracement time before index expiry.

The double spinning stars are awaiting to pierce through the bear pivot.
Thursday gains were tempered by weak sales reports from retailers and evidence that the labor market is still hurting.

Credit card delinquencies.

In May, U.S. President Barack Obama signed into law the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act, setting new restrictions on card rates and fees.
But card companies got a break because the law does not take full effect until next February, giving them a window to change some of their policies.
Bank of America Corp and JPMorgan Chase & Co are switching some customers who have fixed-rate credit cards to potentially higher variable rates, acting before a new law takes effect that limits what card issuers can charge.
Soaring unemployment and the housing bust are leaving consumers hard-pressed to make loan payments on everything from credit cards to cars.

Tracking the Dow on wednesday,08/07/09
9:30am;--Bullish 40.0 points gap up with a follow up hangman.
G8 leaders believe that the global economy continues to face significant risks and may need further help.

10:30am:--The first hour high being set with a shooting star.

Sellers are now focusing their efforts against financial stocks.

11:30am:--The second hour pullback with session low followed by bullish inverted hammer.

Oil prices are down 3.7% to $60.60 per barrel in the face of relatively bullish inventory data, which was overshadowed by bearish gasoline inventories.

12:30noon:--The morning session ended with another new low with a bullish spin.

Energy commodities and precious metals were the hardest hit, down 4.0% and 2.7%, respectively.

1:30pm:--Retracement to MAV with a bearish engulfing.

2:30pm:--Another descent to a new low with a dradonfly doji sighted for a rebound.
3:30pm:--Bulls holding position above the MAV line.

4:00pm:--A bearish dark cloud cover closing.

A late-stage rally brought stocks off their lows on hopes that the quarterly earnings season would deliver good news.
Aluminum giant Alcoa Inc (NYSE:AA ) reported a smaller-than-expected loss that gave a positive tone to the start of the second-quarter earnings season. Its shares jumped 7 percent to $10.07 in extended trading.
Wednesday closed with a bullish spin,so we are not having an alternate bear,it's the bull to take over.

Structured notes sales ban

Singapore's central bank banned 10 financial institutions from selling structured notes for improperly marketing US$655 million of the bonds that were linked to U.S. brokerage Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.
The banks and brokerages can't sell structured notes for between six months and two years, the central bank, known as the Monetary Authority of Singapore, said in a statement late Tuesday.
The bank said some of the financial institutions assigned risk ratings that were inconsistent with warnings stated in the notes' prospectus, and salespeople were ill-trained to sell the notes.
The structured notes were linked to the risk of a bankruptcy occurring to one of the reference entities, such as Lehman.
The Lehman collapse last fall led to a default on the dividend payment of some of the bonds, most of which had a maturity of 5 to 7 years and a yield of about 5 percent.
About 10,000 investors bought the notes, and financial institutions have compensated about 4,000 of them, the bank said.
Similar structured notes were sold in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Indonesia.
The 10 financial institutions banned by the central bank are DBS Group, UOB Kay Hian, OCBC Securities, ABN AMRO's Singapore branch, Maybank Singapore, CIMB-GK Securities, Hong Leong Finance, DMG & Partners, Phillip Securities and Kim Eng Securities. -

Tracking the Dow on Tuesday,07/07/09
9:30am:--A bearish 20.0 point gap down followed by graveyard doji.

There are no market-moving earnings announcements, economic data, or Fed speakers scheduled for today.

10:30am:--Session low with bearish engulfing.

President Obama said a second stimulus package could be a possibility.

11:30am:--Three bearish crows at another low.

Losses are steepest among energy stocks (-1.2%). Oil prices is now at $63.50 per barrel.

12:30noon:--Another 3 black crows

Health care is the only major sector to trade with a gain.

1:30pm:--A technical rebound to only the bear pivot to end the morning session with a graveyard doji.

Optimistic and encouraging comments from Alcoa's (AA 9.59, +0.33) chief executive have won support for shares of the metals and mining giant.

2:30pm:--A double graveyard doji mourning the death of king of pop icon.
Michael Jackson memorial currently held at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles.

3:30pm:--Bearish harami.

Mariah Carey and Trey Loenz sing "I'll be there" but the market said "Beat It"
4:00pm:--A closing bearish hammer again.
The afternoon sell-off was generally an extension of the market's recent weakness, which became more recognizable following last week's disappointing jobs report. Buyers are also showing reluctance ahead of earnings season.

Whenever the market got no economic news nor Federal speakers,the market will always sing to the tune of "Beat It"

It's the beginning of the raining season and wall street is going to be very slippery with the beating of the falling rain.
This is going to be a bearish month with a long black candlestick.Any rebound will be near to the MAV line and another hammer.
The bulls are being cornered and left in Islands in the Stream.

King of Pop financial backers.

The late Michael Jackson not only have music lovers but also financial firms seemed to "get a kick out of having a big celebrity as a client".
Wooed by his global fame and earning power, a bevy of financial firms ponied up tens of millions to finance the singer's luxe lifestyle and kick-start his troubled career.
Financial firms including Colony Capital LLC, Fortress Investment Group and Barclays Bank PLC poured tens of millions into the singer over the years. The cash allowed Jackson, a notorious binge spender, to maintain a lavish lifestyle befitting a global pop star.
Jackson's singular earning power and worldwide appeal seemed to make him a safe bet to lenders, who sometimes seemed starstruck.
In March 2008, the singer defaulted on a $23 million loan to Fortress and nearly had to give up Neverland, the 2,500-acre Santa Barbara property he used to secure the loan. Barrack's Colony Capital stepped in at the last minute and agreed to cover the owed amount. Jackson later signed Neverland over to a joint venture between Jackson and an affiliate of Colony Capital. Jackson got $35 million in the deal -- money Colony hoped to recover from the eventual refurbishing and sale of Neverland.
Colony was also reportedly involved in plotting Jackson's planned comeback, which included 50 sold-out dates in London to begin this month. The shows, which were being staged by promoter AEG Live, brought in some $85 million in ticket sales, according to Billboard magazine. AEG says it will offer full refunds on the tickets.

Tracking the Dow on Monday.06/07/09.

9:30am:--Opening gap-down of 40.0 points.

The relatively downbeat bias comes amid a lack of overall news flow, though there are reports that suggest the U.S. dollar will most likely maintain its status as a primary world currency for many years and won't be discussed in the G-8 meeting.

10:30am:--Opening gap being filled up by the bulls and thereafter pulled back to find an early double bottom.(a dragonfly doji)

Oil futures prices are down 4.5% to $63.75 per barrel in electronic trading; oil prices haven't been so low since the end of May.

11:30am:--The first hour session retracement to MAV resistance.(a dragonfly doji)

The June ISM Services Index came in at 47.0, which is better than the 46.0 that was widely expected. The latest reading also marked an improvement from the 44.0 that was registered in May.

12:30noon:--The dragonfly doji hanging slightly above the morning session MAV bullish zone.

The dollar continues to show strength this morning, keeping precious metals modestly lower. August gold is 0.9% lower at $922.30 per ounce, while September silver is 1.5% lower at $13.21 per ounce.

1:30pm:--The ascending soldiers have pierced through the morning high and is now holding on with a shooting star wit intermittent pullback.

2:30pm:--A dark cloud cover with a slight bullish spike holding near session high.

3:30pm:--Bearish spike down but were holding at the bullish pivot neckline.

4:00pm:--Last minute rebound but hangmen were noticeble.An attempt to light up the upper shadow is also seen.
July's candlestick in the early going depicts that it's going to be a volatile bearish month.

The MAV line is a negative 54.30 point and not a good sign of reprieve.
Investors have become more cautious in recent weeks following a strong rally that began in March. Some traders fear they might have been too optimistic about how soon the economy might recover from a recession that began in December 2007.

Thailand Gold Futures.

Thailand Futures Exchange PCL (TFEX) officially launched its latest product-gold futures on the 3rd February 2009.
Trading gold futures is highly appropriate, either to use as a risk management tool or to enjoy the potential profits from that volatility.

Contract specification
Underlying Assets:-Gold Bullion with a purity of 96.5%
Contract Size:-50 Thai Gold Baht (762.20 grams)(1 Thai Gold Baht = 15.244 grams)
Contract Months:- 3 nearest even month : February, April, June, August, October, December
Minimum Price Fluctuations(Tick Size)
Price quoted per 1 Thai Gold Baht
•Tick size is 10 Baht
Price Limit
+20% from previous day settlement price.
Trading Hours
Pre-open: 9:15 - 9:45 hrs.
Morning session:9:45 - 12:30 hrs.
Pre-open:14:00 - 14:30 hrs.
Afternoon session:14:30 - 16:55 hrs.
Speculative Position limit:-Exchange may announce the position limit as it deems appropriate.
Final Trading Day
The business day immediately preceding the last business day of the contract month. Time at which trading ceases on Final Trading Day is 16.30 hrs.
Final Settlement Price
The Final Settlement Price shall be calculated on
• the basis of the London Gold A.M. Fixing price announced by London Gold Market Fixing Limited on the last trading day and the foreign exchange rate for Baht to US dollars announced by TFEX on the last trading day, after conversion for weight and fineness.
• The formula for its calculation is as follows:
= London Gold AM Fixing x (15.244/31.1035) x (0.965/0.995) x (THB/USD)
Note:
1 troy ounce = 31.1035 grams
1 Thai gold Baht = 15.244 grams
London Gold AM Fixing is based on 0.995 gold
The underlying of gold futures contract is 0.965 gold
Settlement Method:-Cash Settlement
Exchange and Clearing Fee:-50 Baht per contract per side
Brokerage commission:-
Freely negotiable.For one to five contracts per day, the commission will be THB500 per contract; for the sixth through twentieth contract, it will be THB400 per contract and for the twenty-first contract on up, the rate will be THB300 per contract.

Trading Procedure:-Under the ThaiClearingHouse’s clearing rules, all traded futures contracts must be cleared and settled on the next business day (T+1).

Why not have a trial trading account at some of the brokers site herein to see how it function.
Maybe the next time when you intend to retire in Thailand,you can still earn a living here without the need of a work permit. Visa extension run can be made at the Malaysian immigration border checkpoint at Bukit Kayu Hitam.
Broker No:1 BLS Bualuang Securities Public Company Limited

Broker No:42 KEST Kim Eng Securities (Thailand) Public Company Limited

TFEX has 41 members, 36 of which of are general members, while the other five members are gold related agents.


International brokers:-
CS Credit Suisse Securities (Thailand) Limited
JPM JPMorgan Securities (Thailand) Limited

GM bankruptcy hearing.

Lawyers wrapped up their closing arguments in the GM bankruptcy case Thursday, opening the way for the judge to decide whether to approve or deny the sale of the automaker's assets to a "new GM."
GM's lead attorney, Harvey Miller of Weil Gotshal & Manges, urged Judge Robert Gerber to approve the sale of GM's assets, arguing that there was no other option besides liquidation. "No one objector has brought forth a viable alternative other than, 'your honor should deny the application,'" a scenario that he likened to "playing Russian roulette with the government."
Miller said, "in effect, the objectors are saying, 'If I can't get my pound of flesh, then let GM go down in flames.'"
The U.S. Treasury has imposed a July 10 deadline for approving the deal saying that it would otherwise walk away.
Tracking the Dow on Thursday,02/07/09.
9:30am:--Opening bearish 80.0 points gap-down followed by a breakaway bear hammer.

Nonfarm Payrolls report, 467,000 jobs were lost in June and the unemployment rate reached 9.5%, which is the highest level since August 1983.

10:30am:--Mild technical rebound.

The European Central Bank leave its benchmark lending rate unchanged at 1.00%, as expected. According to ECB President Trichet, economic activity over remainder of year is likely to remain weak.

11:30am:--Bearish inverted hammer.

May factory orders surprised to the upside at +1.2% vs the +0.9% expectation.
This is a good sign that suggests industrial production may stabilize, but orders still remain below about 20% the levels of last year.

12:30 noon:--Bears are still holding at session low and difficult for any advance.

The major indices continue to trade with steep losses.

1:30pm:--Graveyard diggers.

Trading volume was extremely light ahead of the long, holiday weekend. Hardly 700 million shares traded hands on the NYSE in what was the most thinly traded session this year.

2:30pm:--Bears still holding at day's low.

Energy was hampered by a 3.7% drop in crude oil prices, which closed at $66.73 per barrel. Crude has fallen for three consecutive sessions. Meanwhile, financials were severely undercut by losses among insurers.

3:30pm:--Double spike down to a new low.

The stock market attempted to pare some of its losses following the orders announcement, but the disappointing jobs report dominated headlines and overshadowed the encouraging orders data.

4:00pm:--Another spike down to end the day's low.

An unshaven black day candlestick.
The unshaven long black day candlestick will normally be accompanied by a technical rebound.

Since there are no upper and lower shadow,a first week setting has been made with a very good range to maneuver.
A rebound will bring us back to the bear pivot area before further hammering continues.
Daily volume has been dwindling,a sign that recession is biting into investors as well.

AIG reverse-stock split.

AIG's Stockholders Meeting on Tuesday, June 30,approved among other things, a reverse stock split of 1:20, meaning that if you had 1,000 shares you'll wind up with fifty. If you had ten thousand shares you'll have 500. They will initially multiply the share value by a like amount, so you won't lose any equity, but your chances of growing your investment have become pretty slim.
The insurance company's rationale is that, because their stock is valued so low -- it just sold for $1.16 -- it has lost institutional investors, many of which will not buy a stock that is priced under five dollars. But worst, they ominously warn, if the stock falls below a dollar as it did up until a couple of months ago, the New York Stock Exchange may delist them. The fact that the stock rose to over two dollars and has never declined below the mid one dollar range in over two months would appear to make this concern overstated.
The last closing price before ex-split was USD1.16 per 1000 shares.This will be translated into 500 shares X 20 = USD1.16 X 20 =USD23.20 per 1000 shares.(Cost price)
When it was open for trading this morning,the day's range was between $17.54 - $22.96 and closes at $18.08 which was up $16.92 a hefty 1,458.62 % gain.
Very misleading.This is a loss of 0.26 cents.($18.08 Divide by 20 = $0.90 cents)

Tracking the Dow on Wednesday,01/07/09.(Pivot Week)
9:30am:--Bullish 50.0 points gap-up.

Oil prices climb 2.3% to $71.50 per barrel ahead of the latest weekly inventory announcement (10:30 AM ET).
10:30am:--Early high with a hangman.

The ISM Manufacturing Index for June came in at 44.8, which is slightly below the 44.9 that was expected. The reading for May came in at 42.8.

11:30am:--Pullback towards the bull pivot with bearish dojis.

Consumer staples stocks are showing the best gains of any major sector.

12:30noon:--Bearish engulfing at bull pivot.

China to debate proposals for a new global reserve currency at next week's Group of Eight summit in Italy.

1:30pm:--The bull pivot hammer.

The latest ADP Employment Change report showed that private payrolls were slashed by 473,000 during June. The consensus called for 395,000 job losses, so the report served as a reminder that job conditions remain weak and participants could be in store for a disappointment with the government's nonfarm jobs report on Thursday.

2:30pm:--Bearish hammer at MAV support line.

A drooping U.S. dollar bolstered precious metals prices in pit trading Wednesday, but energy-related commodities faltered.

3:30pm:--A graveyard doji.

4:00pm:--A hammer warning at the bearish low.

A bullish inverted hammer opening start for July.
Holding below the MAV line which is also at previous month opening level.

Participation was lacking again this session as less than 1 billion shares traded hands on the NYSE. That's the least amount of trading volume in nearly three weeks. Volume is also expected to be light tomorrow since it is the week's final trading session ahead of the long weekend.
U.S. markets will be closed on Friday in observance of Independence Day.