Travis Esquivel is an engineer, passionate soccer player and full-time dad. He enjoys writing about innovation and technology from time to time.

AUD/USD Price Analysis: Likely Test Ascending Triangle’s Breakdown Near 0.6520
Mar28

AUD/USD Price Analysis: Likely Test Ascending Triangle’s Breakdown Near 0.6520

 finds support slightly below the psychological support of 0.6500 in the early American session on Thursday. The Aussie asset discovers some buying interest as the US Dollar retreats after refreshing six-week high. However, the broader appeal of the Aussie asset is still downbeat as investors remain uncertain ahead of the United States core Personal Consumption Expenditure  (PCE) data for February, which will be published on Friday.The core PCE will provide cues about when the Federal Reserve (Fed) will begin reducing interest . The annual underlying inflation data is estimated to have grown steadily by 2.8%, with monthly growth declining to 0.3% from 0.4% in January.The  failed to sustain six-week highs near 104.72 despite the final estimate from the US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) for the final quarter of 2023 showing that the economy grew by 3.4%. As per the preliminary estimates, the economy expanded by 3.2%.Meanwhile, the Australian Dollar broadly remains on the backfoot as the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) higher Official Cash Rate (OCR) has deepened the cost-of-living crisis. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that monthly Retail Sales grew at a slower pace of 0.3% in February, against expectations of 0.4% and the former reading of 1.1%.AUD/USD is expected to test the breakdown of the Ascending Triangle  pattern near 0.6520 formed on a four-hour timeframe. The upward-sloping border of the aforementioned pattern is plotted from February 13 low at 0.6442 while the horizontal resistance is placed from January 30 high at 0.6626.Downward-sloping 20- and 50-period Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs) at […]

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Walgreens Beats Estimates In Fiscal Q2
Mar28

Walgreens Beats Estimates In Fiscal Q2

 Image Source:  Walgreens Boots Alliance reported its financial results for Q2 today. Here’s what its CEO Tim Wentworth said in a press release on Thursday. WBA is currently down close to 20% versus the start of this year. Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (Nasdaq: ) is trading slightly up in premarket on Thursday after reporting upbeat financial results for its second quarter.  Walgreens’ guidance for the full yearInvestors are cheering also because the management issued encouraging guidance for the future. WBA now forecasts its adjusted per-share earnings to fall between $3.20 and $3.35 in fiscal 2024.Analysts, in comparison, were at $3.24 per share. Tim Wentworth – the chief executive of Walgreens Boots Alliance said in a  today:  We remain confident in our goal of achieving $1 billion in cost savings this year. We are continuing to strategically review our portfolio over the next three months in an effort to ensure it drives growth and delivers value. Walgreens expects its U.S.  adjusted EBITDA to break even this year. Wall Street currently has a consensus “hold” rating on WBA.  Walgreens Q2 earnings snapshot Lost $5.9 billion that translates to $6.85 per share Had $703 million in net earnings a year ago Adjusted EPS printed at $1.20 as per the earnings report Sales jumped 6.3% year-over-year to $37.1 billion Consensus was 82 cents a share on $36.48 billion in revenue Walgreens took a rather sizable $6.0 billion goodwill impairment charge related to VillageMD in the second quarter. Still, CEO Wentworth said on Thursday:  We’re encouraged by our […]

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Crude Oil Forecast: Continued Support
Mar28

Crude Oil Forecast: Continued Support

The market breaking above the recent high suggests that we are going to go looking to the $85 level.  The WTI crude oil market has initially fallen during the trading session on Wednesday but found plenty of support at a major support level in the form of $80. With that being the case, I think you’ve got a situation where as long as the $80 level holds as support, you have to be looking at this as a buy on the dip market. The market breaking above the recent high does suggest that we are going to go looking to the $85 level. The $85 level is a large round figure and an area where we have seen a lot of noise previously. We also have the  underneath where the 50-day EMA breaks above the  and a lot of longer term  are interested in that for more of a buy and hold market in general. I like the idea of taking advantage of cheap oil in this market. This is probably how we will be looking at this market for the next several months, as the market will continue to see a lot of demand over the next few months, due to travel season, etc.(Click on image to enlarge) BrentThe Brent market also fell only to turn right back around at the crucial $84.50 level the $84.50 level is an area that previously has been very important, and therefore I don’t think you can fight it. Ultimately, I like the idea of getting long, […]

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S&P 500 Bounced – Will It Attempt To Break The Record?
Mar28

S&P 500 Bounced – Will It Attempt To Break The Record?

Stock prices bounced, but will they resume the uptrend before a long holiday weekend?Stock prices broke their short-term losing streak yesterday, as the S&P 500 index gained 0.86%. Earlier this week, the market kept retracing its last week’s record-breaking rally; however, it was doing so at a very slow pace. Last Thursday, the S&P 500 reached a record high of 5,261.10, and on Tuesday, it traded as low as 5,203.42. Last week, stock prices were influenced by the FOMC Rate Decision on Wednesday; this week, investors are bracing for economic data releases, including tomorrow’s Friday’s Core PCE Price Index. However, with as the long holiday weekend approaching, volatility may be decreasing.This morning, the S&P 500 futures contract is gaining 0.1%, indicating a neutral opening of the index. The question remains: will the last Thursday’s surge lead to a downward correction and a potential retracement of the advance? From a contrarian standpoint, such a correction seems likely, but the overall trend remains bullish. “Despite concerns about stock valuations, the market rallied to new record highs, fueled by hopes of the Fed’s monetary policy pivot and the AI revolution.”. And last week, it was all about that Fed pivot, hence a positive market reaction. The S&P 500 index still seems to be crawling a wall of worry here.While indexes were hitting new record highs, most stocks were essentially moving sideways. So, the question is – is this a topping pattern before a more meaningful correction? Still, there have been no confirmed negative signals; however, one might […]

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Federal Reserve Refuses To Provide Records Of Foreign Gold Holdings
Mar28

Federal Reserve Refuses To Provide Records Of Foreign Gold Holdings

By Ken Silva,  Weeks after Chairman evaded a sitting congressman’s questions about the central bank’s foreign gold holdings, the Fed has also declined to comply with a Freedom of Information Act request for records about such holdings.The Federal Reserve’s lack of transparency comes amidst reports that countries are removing their and other assets from the U.S. in the wake of the unprecedented Western sanctions imposed on over its invasion of . According to a , a “substantial percentage” of central banks expressed concern about how the U.S. and its allies froze nearly half of Russia’s $650 billion gold and forex reserves.Rep. , R-W.Va., asked Powell about the matter in a , only to have the Fed chair respond last month with , telling him that the Federal Reserve does not own gold but holds it as a custodian for other entities—a fact that the congressman presumably already knew.Following Powell’s evasive response, Headline USA filed a FOIA request with the Fed for records reflecting how much gold the Federal Reserve Bank of New York currently holds in its vault, as well as records reflecting the ownership stake that each of FRBNY’s central bank/government clients have in that gold. The FOIA request also sought records about the Fed’s gold holdings prior to Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.However, the Federal Reserve denied the FOIA request on Wednesday.“Board staff consulted with staff at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (‘Reserve Bank’) and have been advised that such records, if they exist, would […]

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