Wednesday May 1st, 2019 by Mike Paulenoff Over the last three decades, one gauge of healthy, robust global economic growth has been and presumably still is the condition of South Korean (Taiwanese and Singapore) exports of electronics. Economists view demand for electronics shipments as a meter gauging the health of the global consumer. The attached charts show demand for such products has nosedived in recent months, and in the case of the technical set up of EWY (South Korea ETF) shows the glaring lack of upside progress compared to either SPY or QQQ, for instance, both of which have climbed to new all time highs. As we speak, EWY is 29% off of its all time high at 79.07 hit on 1/26/18! Is this divergence a BIG WARNING about the health of the consumer in the U.S.? Maybe the U.S. consumer IS tapped out-- also suggested by the consumption component of Q1 GDP released last Friday, which is exactly what 10 year YIELD sees over the horizon, and what the Fed will eventually see as a need for lower rates rather than a pause in its three year rate hike cycle. If there is some merit to this analysis, then the equity markets are approaching the "discovery" stage of their post-2009 bull market run. That is, trying to discover if the Fed can successfully-front run an approaching recession, or if Powell and Company might remain too tight for too long? Could Trump be exactly correct in his assessment of the need for lower rates and the re-imposition of QE (apart from his unconventional, bull-in a-china shop approach)? 5 01 19 SKorea Taiwan and Singapore electronics exports GIF $SPY $DIA $QQQ $EWY Mike Paulenoff is author of MPTrader.com, a real-time diary of his technical analysis & trade alerts on ETFs for precious metals, energy, currencies, and an array of equity indices and sectors, including international markets, plus key ETF component stocks in sectors like technology, mining, and banking. Sign up for a Free 15-day Trial! * I really like Mike's charts and analysis. This is shared with my readers here via MPtrader.com *Disclosure: I may trade in the ticker symbols mentioned, both long or short. My articles represent my personal opinion and analysis and should not be taken as investment advice. Readers should do their own research before making decisions to buy or sell securities. Trading and investing include risks, including loss of principal. If you liked this article, please click the LIKE (thumbs up) button. Feel free to leave any comments, question, or opinions. Follow us and check back occasionally for additional articles or comments.