A Narrow Strip to Pass Through Autumn

Equities are largely mixed and still soft in many places after the latest jobs report this morning. On the back of the unemployment percentage headline number ticking lower, despite less-than-expected jobs created, rates are moving higher yet, likely pricing in a more certain imminent future Fed rate hike. 

Tech seems to be leading lower, with the QQQ ETF off by 0.50% as I write this. I am currently hedged up with a few carefully selected large cap shorts inside Market Chess Subscription Services to pair off against my open longs. I am eyeing other shorts like IBM INTC SBUX, though we know this market has not necessarily rewarded aggressive bears in quite some time. 

So even if the longstanding resilience of this market continues, and the current soggy action remains shallow if not tedious, there is no denying that the tone and tenor of the market is still one of rather narrow pockets of strength for bulls. 

My WING long, for example, has bumped me around the last few weeks as though I were a passenger on a puddling-jumping propeller plane, but is now trying to break higher. It may struggle again to clear $70 for a sustained breakout. But with my short hedges on I can wait a little longer to see if the breakout materialized here. 

Finally, this has been a quietly impressive week for quite a few insurance stocks like PRU. The KIE ETF for the group overlooked by most traders. However, insurers have a knack for performing well in a higher rate environment and it would be instructive to research more of those names this weekend.