One of the frequently voiced misgivings about systematic trading strategies usually goes like this: “yes, but your model can’t know if tomorrow XYZ happens and market prices go haywire…” The immediate aftermath of U.S. elections saw fairly volatile market reactions particularly in equities and treasuries. Both had previously turned slightly bearish but on November 4, … Continue reading I-System trend following vs. unforeseen market events
CTAs and the treasuries reversal: time to pay attention?
One thing I have learned over time is the best thing to do is let market price action guide your decision-making and then try to understand the fundamentals as they become more evident and comprehensible."Paul Tudor Jones, "The Great Monetary Inflation" - May, 2020 Institutions like Nomura, JPMorgan, Rabobank and others watch CTA hedge funds' … Continue reading CTAs and the treasuries reversal: time to pay attention?
Inflation: we passed the phase transition
During the 1970s inflation, M2 money supply growth never surpassed 14% per annum. This year we just blew past 23%. It is time to start paying attention!
I-System and the 2020 oil price roller-coaster…
Oil price has had a wild ride this year, crashing nearly 80% from January through April. I-System strategies navigated the event remarkably well, capturing more than $42/bbl in profits. At the time, I summarized this in my article, “With I-System through the storm… with flying colors!” But trend following does less well during trend reversals … Continue reading I-System and the 2020 oil price roller-coaster…
Inflation: lessons from last empire’s collapse
In spite of the obvious differences betewen the Soviet and U.S. economies there are disconcerting parallels between the systemic roots of their respective crises (USSR in 1980s and USA today).USSR's stalling GDP growth, growing 'defence' budget and balooning budget deficits ultimately led to currency debasement and high inflation. There's every likelihood that U.S. dollar will … Continue reading Inflation: lessons from last empire’s collapse
Market trends are the most potent driver of long-term investment performance
In my April report I suggested that effective trend following required discipline and a good deal of patience. In this report we discuss the strategy’s proper objective, which leads compellingly to the conclusion articulated in this article's title. We are after outsized, long-term windfalls Many individual traders obsess over short term gains or even day … Continue reading Market trends are the most potent driver of long-term investment performance
Trend following is the only valid answer to the problem of uncertainty
The most fundamental determining fact in connection with organization is the meeting of uncertainty. The responsible decisions in organized economic life are price decisions; others can be reduced to routineFrank Knight, "Risk, Uncertainty and Profit" Over the years I’d written many articles suggesting that price forecasting based on market fundamentals is a waste of time … Continue reading Trend following is the only valid answer to the problem of uncertainty
Bear market or bubble reflation: what comes next?
In March 2019, I published an article looking at historical perspective on boom/bust cycles in SeekingAlpha. I suggested then that, “the (still) festering economic imbalances might get resolved along two alternative scenarios. Either we’ll have a full-blown deflationary depression that could see asset prices drop by 50% or more, or we’ll have a strong and … Continue reading Bear market or bubble reflation: what comes next?
Why hedging is key!
Lately I got into arguments about the proper role of hedging with some individuslas who, I thought, should know better. Their belief, essentially, is that operative businesses - mining firms, oil & gas producers, airlines... - should always hedge their price exposure and focus on generating value on their operations. In other words, ignore the … Continue reading Why hedging is key!
With I-System through the storm… with flying colors!
Recent weeks brought severe price shocks in many markets. Their timing and severity took most participants by surprise. In these circumstances, I-System strategies performed superbly well. As this post shows, a few strategies sustained negative results, but this is to be expected. This is why, rather than formulating a trading strategy, we built a stable … Continue reading With I-System through the storm… with flying colors!
