On December 13, the Dow Jones Industrial Average officially closed above its old high... The index hadn't made a record high since January 2022.

Editor's note: The markets and our Chaikin Analytics offices will be closed Monday, December 25, for Christmas. So we won't publish the Chaikin PowerFeed e-letter that day. You'll receive your next issue on Tuesday, December 26. Enjoy the holidays! The Dow's New High Is a 'Bullish' Sign By Vic Lederman, editorial director, Chaikin Analytics On December 13, the Dow Jones Industrial Average officially closed above its old high... The index hadn't made a record high since January 2022. Now, I understand if your first reaction is, "Who cares?!" After all, the Dow is 127 years old. And it only tracks a basket of 30 large U.S. companies. Heck, despite its official name, the index isn't even that "industrial" anymore. Tech giant Microsoft (MSFT) is one of the top 10 holdings. And Salesforce (CRM) is a major holding. But today, let's talk about why we should care about this milestone... Recommended Links: Doc's Special Holiday Invitation Dr. David "Doc" Eifrig has achieved the "impossible" – racking up 184 winning trades in a row and counting – with ZERO losers. Now, he's throwing a celebration, and all the "gifts" are for you. In the spirit of the holidays, Doc is reopening his best offer EVER on his No. 1 favorite strategy of all time... and the greatest, by far, for this confusing market. Click here for full details from Doc. Sell Your Stocks by January 1, 2024? It doesn't matter if you have money in the markets right now, or you're waiting on the sidelines. The early days of 2024 could have the power to make – or destroy – fortunes. And what you do with your money before January 1 could determine your wealth for the next decade. See what's happening and how to prepare immediately. First, as I said, the Dow is really old. It's the second-oldest stock market index in the U.S. It was created in 1896. (If you're curious, the Dow Jones Transportation Average is the oldest index. It started in 1884.) Admittedly, the Dow isn't perfect... You see, most indexes these days are "market-cap weighted." That means stocks with the highest market caps make up a bigger chunk of the index. But the Dow doesn't work like that... Instead, it's "price weighted." That means the company with the highest share price is the largest holding. Right now, that's UnitedHealth (UNH). Its stock is around $520 per share. This type of weighting is nonsense... After all, we live in a world of stock splits and fractional shares. That means a company can adjust its share price at any time without changing the true value of the shares. So why does an old index with a goofy measurement system matter? That's easy... It tells us something important is happening with the broad market. These days, the world's largest companies by market cap dominate indexes like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100. As a result, many so-called "broad market" exchange-traded funds ("ETFs") just measure what the biggest players are doing. They struggle with measuring actual economic activity. So it's incredibly important to see the Dow making new highs. Despite the index's flawed weighting system, this basket of stocks gives us a vital look at the U.S. economy. Even better, history tells us that new highs for the Dow are a "bullish" sign... I recently looked at the Dow going back to 1950. And what I found was clear... After a new 52-week high in that span, the Dow went on to gain an average of 7% over the next year. The average return over all one-year periods since 1950 is only about 4%. This indicator has a 71% win rate, too. That means 71% of the time since 1950, the Dow has been higher a year later. In other words... history tells us to expect more good times in 2024. It's no wonder the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average Fund (DIA) receives a "bullish" rating from the Power Gauge. Based on history, it's likely headed even higher over the next year. Now, that doesn't mean we should just pour our money into this ETF. After all, the Power Gauge helps us spot specific sectors and industries that are outperforming right now. Still, it's great to see the broad market surging. Even the Dow is on the move today. Good investing, Vic Lederman Market View Major Indexes and Notable Sectors     # Hld:     Bullish     Neutral     Bearish Dow 30 +0.830% 11 17 2 S&P 500 +0.940% 165 267 65 Nasdaq +1.170% 47 43 8 Small Caps +1.770% 0 0 0 Bonds -0.630% Consumer Discretionary +1.490% 20 29 4 — According to the Chaikin Power Bar, Small Cap stocks and Large Cap stocks remain Bullish. Major indexes are mixed. *  *  *  * Sector Tracker Sector movement over the last 5 days Communication +1.97% Discretionary +1.07% Information Technology +0.56% Energy -0.02% Materials -0.37% Industrials -0.51% Health Care -0.71% Staples -0.79% Financial -0.83% Real Estate -2.27% Utilities -4.13% *  *  *  * Industry Focus Oil & Gas Equipment Services 3 22 6 Over the past 6 months, the Oil & Gas Equipment Services subsector (XES) has outperformed the S&P 500 by +7.62%. However, its Power Bar ratio, which measures future potential, is Weak, with more Bearish than Bullish stocks. It is currently ranked #19 of 21 subsectors. Indicative Stocks RIG Transocean Ltd. CLB Core Laboratories In VAL Valaris Limited *  *  *  * Top Movers Gainers MU +8.63% VFC +7.08% CTAS +6.56% CCL +6.20% WDC +6.01% Losers PAYX -7.01% PARA -2.77% WRK -2.35% AON -2.02% WBD -1.46% *  *  *  * Earnings Report Reporting Today Rating Before Open After Close No earnings reporting today. Earnings Surprises CCL Carnival Corporation & plc Q4 $-0.07 Beat by $0.06 NKE NIKE, Inc. Q2 $1.03 Beat by $0.18 CTAS Cintas Corporation Q2 $3.61 Beat by $0.12 PAYX Paychex, Inc. Q2 $1.08 Beat by $0.01 *  *  *  * You have received this e-mail as part of your subscription to PowerFeed. If you no longer want to receive e-mails from PowerFeed, click here. You're receiving this e-mail at edwardlorilla1986.paxforex@blogger.com. For questions about your account or to speak with customer service, call +1 (877) 697-6783 (U.S.), 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Eastern time or e-mail info@chaikinanalytics.com. Please note: The law prohibits us from giving personalized investment advice. © 2023 Chaikin Analytics, LLC. All rights reserved. Any reproduction, copying, or redistribution, in whole or in part, is prohibited without written permission from Chaikin Analytics, LLC. 201 King Of Prussia Rd., Suite 650, Radnor, PA 19087. www.chaikinanalytics.com. 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