US equity markets continue to trade sideways as investors are digesting mixed inflation data. Interestingly, this pause also lines up with historical trends for the month of February:
Sectors within the S&P 500 are also showing mixed signals, indicating that the market is taking more of a pause:
Longer-term trends are still in place, favoring growth names over value:
The US dollar has been showing some short-term strength. Whether this is the start of another move upward, or just an oversold bounce has yet to be seen. But it has been having a negative impact on US equities:
For now, investors seem to be taking a “pause” to see what the US dollar will do next, and if the historical patterns emerge in March – which favors a strong move upward from here.
John Rothe, CMT
