Stocks Climb on Gloomy Data

January 27, 2023

Happy Friday!

Closing out the week, stocks saw their highest levels since early December, providing a strong January.

So far, the job market has remained upbeat despite a slowing economy.

Most of the high-profile layoffs have been in tech, which raced to expand after the pandemic sent demand for technology soaring.

Earnings season has kicked off and it's been a mixed bag of results and forecasts.

We're experiencing a tug-of-war between two market theories.

One side worries about stocks plunging with a severe recession for the economy.

The other hopes are that cooling inflation may allow the Fed to take it easier on rates.

Economic data on Friday shows that inflation continues to moderate.

So far we're seeing a risk-on mentality, despite the Fed signaling higher interest rates to keep inflation from rising too quickly.

The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) closed this week at 18.50.

That's a 1-point increase from last week.

So that means volatility is on the lower end, which could help with more of a short-term rally.

But remember, we're still in a bear market.

Now let’s talk shop.

Portfolio Update

We closed our second double-digit gain for the year in MRO.

Here’s a recap of what we did this week.

On Thursday:

  • Sell-to-close MRO Jan 27, 2023, $28 call

Right now, we’re holding:

  • WWE Feb 17, 2023, $95/$100 call spread

Have a great weekend and it's time to enjoy an ice-cold spicy margarita - TGIF! 

Joshua M. Belanger

Joshua M. Belanger
Joshua Belanger is founder of CounterVest and the editor of Hot Money Trader. He has been providing ordinary investors blockbuster returns since 2008. In 2018, the average return of Hot Money Trader beat the markets by over 15%
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