TIB: Today I Bought (and Sold) - An Investors Journal #494 - Gold Mining, 3D Printing, US Retail, Thailand, Cybersecurity, Silver Mining, Agricultural Commodities, Bitcoin, Ethereum

Just spent a week away in Thailand. Two reports to catch up - this one for the week to December 15. Trade action is a little bottom fishing and profit taking in silver mining. Agriculture suffers though the trade wobbles.

Portfolio News

Market Rally

All eyes are on the trade talks with the December 15 tariff deadline looming.

Noise was that the phase 1 deal would be signed and markets kept edging higher. China was also making positive noises. Possibility of December 15 tariffs had not been resolved before the weekend.

Bought

Rite Aid Corp (RAD): US Retail. Averaged down entry price and rounded out holding to 100 shares to be able to write covered calls. Price chart looks like this may have found a bottom and has made a higher low and a higher high.

The theory of drawing trend lines (especially on a weekly chart) is to draw a line through the tops but one can draw through the most number of touches. The top trend goes through the tops and shows price reaching up to the downtrend and rejecting it - this trade is really looking for a break through from here. The more recent downtrends have all been broken. If price was to make a higher high, one would be confident that the bottom has been found.

3D Systems Corp (DDD): 3D Printing. Price appears to have found a bottom and starting to move ahead. Averaged down entry price in one portfolio. Also added a May 2020 9/12 bull call spread with a net premium of $0.76 offering maximum profit potential of 294% for a 39% move from $8.60 closing price. I chose May expiry as that is the furthest out month offering 9 as a strike. I funded part of the premium selling a January strike 8 put option. This increases the profit potential to 417%. Risk in the trade is if price does not pass $9 before May expiry or drops below $7.82 before January expiry.

The chart is a bit messy as it has other trades still standing. The new trade is shown (in the middle) with flouro green rays (the new sold 8 put not showing). Prior big price moves have followed consolidations similar to what we have seen since Q1 2019. Get a repeat of one of those from the lows, this trade will make the maximum. The other two trades will be profitable but not at the maximums.

Fireeye (FEYE): Cybersecurity. In one portfolio, used a pullback in price to add to the position to be able to write covered calls.

iShares MSCI Thailand Capped (THD): Thailand Index. Just spent a week visiting Thailand. While the Thai economy has been battered by the strong Thai Baht, all I could see was a skyline filled with building cranes. Shopping centres were a bit quiet but it is winter season and not peak holiday season.

Sold

Hecla Mining Company (HL): Silver Mining. With price closing at $2.95, closed out December 2019 strike 2 call options for 191% profit since June 2019. The updated chart shows this trade as the blue rays with price pushed past the 100% profit mark.

The blue arrow price scenario looks a bit steeper than the way price has moved previously though it is now as steep since the end of the short consolidation (the new right hand price arrow shows that)

Agricultural Commodities

Agricultural commodities are an important part of the US-China trade discussions. Prices are volatile and reflect very closely what is going on in the discussions with moves down on any bad news. Sensible trading practice is to run stop losses especially on leveraged (i.e., CFD) trades. This is what I have been doing - it triggers losses periodically with this week giving 3 out of 4. From now I will trail stop losses once price passes breakeven plus spread.

Soyabeans Futures (SOYB): Soyabeans. 1 contract closed for $0.40 per contract profit (0.04%)

Chicago Wheat Futures (WEAT): Wheat. 1 contract closed for -$6.90 per contract loss (-1.32%)

Corn Futures (CORN): Corn. 2 contracts closed for average -$4.70 per contract loss (-1.24%)

Income Trades

VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX): Gold Mining. Sold strike 26 naked puts for December 27 at 0.85% premium with 3.5% price coverage from $26.94 close.

Added one new covered call on Rite Aid Corp (RAD) at 3.2% premium and 16.92% coverage. Average premium overall for the month is now 1.09% with coverage of 9.25% = a tidy month writing covered calls

Cryptocurency

Bitcoin (BTCUSD): Price range for the week (Dec 9 to 15) was $659 (8.6% of the high). Price drifted lower into the middle of no-mans land all week. This seemed to mirror the way the US-China news was going (i.e., drifting nowhere).

1 contract closed for $34.76 per contract profit (0.47%)

Ethereum (ETHUSD): Price range for the week was $12 (7.9% of the high). Price made a higher high on first day of the week and then tested down through support at $146 and in the process made a lower low.

1 contract closed for $2.60 per contract profit (1.78%)

Ripple (XRPUSD): Price range for the week was $0.01682 (7.2% of the high). Price retreated from higher high made the week before and drifted lower to the lower third of no-mans land.

Note: data source changed from Kraken to Bitfinex as Kraken did not report weekend data the week before.

CryptoBots

Profit Trailer Bot No closed trades

New Trading Bot Trading out using Crypto Prophecy. No closed trades

Currency Trades

Outsourced MAM account Actions to Wealth closed out 18 trades on EURUSD, AUDNZD, EURJPY, USDCAD, AUDUSD, USDJPY for 0.81% profits for the WEEK. Trades open on EURUSD, AUDUSD (just negative)

Cautions: This is not financial advice. You need to consider your own financial position and take your own advice before you follow any of my ideas

Images: I own the rights to use and edit the Buy Sell image. News headlines come from Google Search. All other images are created using my various trading and charting platforms. They are all my own work

Tickers: I monitor my portfolios using Yahoo Finance. The ticker symbols used are Yahoo Finance tickers

Charts: http://mymark.mx/TradingView - this is a free charting package. I have a Pro subscription to get access to real time forex prices

Bitcoin: Get started with mining Bitcoin for as little as $25 http://mymark.mx/Galaxy

December 9-13, 2019