It's hard out there for a gold bug.
Gold is having a terrible year, losing nearly 8 percent in the last three months and 11 percent from its 2018 high as the U.S. dollar has gained ground against foreign currencies, weighing on the dollar-denominated asset.
But this bloodbath is leading to a buying opportunity. The biggest reason for that lies in "commitment of traders" data, which details open interest on futures and options on futures markets each week.
As expected, the herd has chased gold's move lower. Poor market sentiment right now leads me to wonder, if everyone has gotten out of gold, who's left to sell?
According to the CFTC's CoT data, managed money short positions have outweighed long positions for four weeks now, amounting to a near-record short position. Traditionally, it's the opposite; gold sits in a net long position, meaning managed money longs outnumber shorts. We've only seen this kind of pattern twice, and both times, gold has rallied.
The first time was in July 2015. Gold bottomed within two weeks, and rallied 11 percent. The second such time was in November 2015, and gold bottomed within three weeks before ultimately rallying 32 percent.
This signals that gold is creating a bottom near the psychological $1,200 mark. Gold was trading at $1,221.50 per ounce on Monday.
Jeff Saut, chief investment strategist at Capital Wealth Planning, says investors are not only cautious, but they are 'scared to death' of the bull market ending.
The first leg in the U.S. and China's long-awaited trade agreement provides a catalyst for stocks heading into next year, market professionals say.
As stocks cross into the next decade at records, one top investor sees a major market shift underway toward value and away from growth.
Oppenheimer's Ari Wald says financials stocks have some big tailwinds that could send the sector even higher.
Mona Mahajan, senior investment strategist at Edward Jones, Brian Levitt, global market strategist at Invesco, Ben Mandel, head of portfolio strategy at Itaú Asset Management, Mark Grant, chief global market strategist at B. Riley Securities, and Peter Andersen, chief investment officer at Andersen Capital Management, discuss their expectations for stocks in 2022.
Jim Bianco of Bianco Research highlights data showing used car prices are up more than 20% in the past four months while bitcoin is up about 5%, as of Dec. 23.
Jim Bianco of Bianco Research is worried about a bubble in the used car market.
Gina Sanchez of Chantico Global says a North Korean attack, should one occur, isn't likely to cause significant long-term market impact.
Boris Schlossberg of BK Asset Management says the ISM non-manufacturing report is key to watch ahead the jobs data released Friday.
Chad Morganlander of Washington Crossing Advisors is watching the dollar this week and expects it'll begin to strengthen heading into the second half of the year.
Trading Nation is a multimedia financial news program that shows investors and traders how to use the news of the day to their advantage. This is where experts from across the financial world – including macro strategists, technical analysts, stock-pickers, and traders who specialize in options, currencies, and fixed income – come together to find the best ways to capitalize on recent developments in the market. Trading Nation: Where headlines become opportunities.
Michael Santoli joined CNBC in October 2015 as a Senior Markets Commentator, based at the network's Global Headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, N.J. Santoli brings his extensive markets expertise to CNBC's Business Day programming, with a regular appearance on CNBC's Closing Bell (M-F, 3PM-5PM ET). In addition, he contributes to CNBC and CNBC PRO, writing regular articles and creating original digital videos.
Previously, Santoli was a Senior Columnist at Yahoo Finance, where he wrote analysis and commentary on the stock market, corporate news and the economy. He also appeared on Yahoo Finance video programs, where he offered insights on the most important business stories of the day, and was a regular contributor to CNBC and other networks.
Follow Michael Santoli on Twitter @michaelsantoli
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