"Naughty or Nice?"

Hi There! During a recent walk, an interview with Arthur C. Brooks struck a chord with me. He said, “Love is the opposite of fear, love will actually neutralize inappropriate fear or excessive fear.” Reflecting on this, I realized that fear had been a driving force in my life - fear of failure, the unknown, and letting down my loved ones. Acting out of fear, I found myself in entanglements with worry, anxiety, and sometimes anger. But this past year has been transformative. I've engaged in deep, introspective work, confronting hard truths and actively overcoming my fears. In doing so, I’ve taken ownership of my challenges and sought meaningful solutions with courage and determination. I did it afraid!

However, the real transformation came when I began acting out of love instead of fear. This shift brought an overwhelming sense of peace, gratitude, and honesty into my life. It made me realize that love is not just an emotion but a powerful practice that opens doors to happiness and abundance.

Love is a potent antidote to fear and the key to true happiness.

Alright, let’s dig in!

Last week, the stock market witnessed a positive trend, buoyed by encouraging economic indicators and a steady approach from the Federal Reserve. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) showed a slight deceleration, moving from 3.2% in October to 3.1% in November, signaling a potential easing of inflationary pressures. Additionally, the Producer Price Index (PPI) remained unchanged, further stabilizing market sentiments. The Federal Reserve's decision to hold interest rates steady, coupled with hints at potential rate cuts in 2024, also contributed positively.

The S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq Composite all made their seventh consecutive week of gains. The S&P 500 rose about 2.6%, the Dow advanced nearly 2.9%, reaching a new high, and the Nasdaq gained slightly over 2.9%.

Oil prices, while settling lower last Friday, showed a modest increase over the week due to a weaker dollar and an optimistic demand outlook for 2024.

Meanwhile in the crypto market, Bitcoin experienced a pullback to its 20-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA), hovering around the $40,000-ish level. Bitcoin price fluctuated between $43,524 and $40,400, leading investors to speculate whether this could be a setup for a potential 'Santa rally' or if it would consolidate near the 20-day EMA.

The Solana-based meme coin Bonk (BONK) emerged as the top gainer following its listing on Coinbase. This development propelled Bonk to become the third-largest meme coin on the platform, trailing behind the more established Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB).

Here are other key highlights from last week:

• FIFA is offering fans digital collectibles and world cup tickets

• Despite the bear market, NFT technology remains promising

• Blankos Block Party PC version discontinued on December 18, 2023

• Chainlink Data Feeds are now live on Polygon zkEVM

Another week with markets at all-time highs:

Key US Economic News this week to watch:

• Tuesday

  • Building Permits Report for November

• Wednesday

  • Consumer Confidence Report

  • Existing Home Sales

• Thursday

  • Q3 Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

• Friday

  • PCE Inflation and New Home Sales Reports

The most anticipated earnings releases this week are outlined in the chart below.

This Week’s High-Impact Global Economic Data Highlights:

• Bank of Japan (BoJ) Interest Rate Decision

• Euro Area CPI (Nov)

• Canada CPI (Nov)

• UK CPI, Retail Sales, Core PCE (Nov)

This week's anticipated bias (not financial or investment advice):

• Monday (12/18/23) - Trade what you see

• Tuesday (12/19/23) - Bearish

• Wednesday (12/20/23) - Trade the trend

• Thursday (12/21/23) - Expect a drop

• Friday (12/22/23) - Bullish

Trading Tip: The charts do not lie!

Week 12/10/23 - 12/16/23 Recap

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• Alerts:

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• News & Analysis:

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• Advanced Financial Tools:

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    Source: Investing.com

Disclaimer: This newsletter is strictly educational. The information this report provides does not constitute investment, financial, trading, or any other advice. You should not treat any of the report’s content as such. Please be careful and do your research.