One asset class that did not require a recovery rally to charge into new-high price territory was the precious metals space. Spot Gold ($XAU/USD) came within a hair of the $5,000 level in a continued uptrend before ending the week at $4,984.10 while Spot Silver ($XAGUSD) cleared the $100 Century Mark to end the week at $103.07.
Copper, what Gil likes to refer to as the other precious metal, has also been trending higher with gold and silver. After a sharp pullback earlier in the week, the United States Copper Fund (CPER) found support along the 20-dema, otherwise known as heavy volume without further price support downward, as Bill O'Neil used to refer to it, before launching on a buyable gap-up (BGU) move on Friday. Copper previously cleared the $6.00 level for the first time the prior week and may be setting up for more new highs in 2026. 
Over the past few weeks and months we have reported on copper miners as they have continued to trend higher off the lows of April and after setting up in late summer. Ero Copper (ERO) has been one name we have followed during its current uptrend and the stock came through once again, this time with a strong-volume pocket pivot off the 10-dma. It has tended to obey the 20-dema on the way up, so we would certainly like to see a pullback to the 20-dema as a potential, opportunistic entry, but so far the stock refused to give way at even the 10-dma. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) is the big-stock leader in the group and reported earnings on Thursday before the open. it promptly face-planted into the 10-dma on heavy selling volume despite crushing earnings estimates of 29 cents with 47 cents in profit. Note, however, that this merely created a long entry opportunity as FCX posted an MAU&R at the 10-dma on Friday and turned higher on heavy volume and that would remain the case on any further pullbacks to the 10-dma, in our view.
Aluminums have also continued to trend higher. Alcoa (AA) reported earnings on Thursday after the close and initially sold off before finding its feet to post both a price U&R at the prior 58.57 January low and an MAU&R at the 20-dema. Both were actionable and remain within buying range using either the 20-dema as a selling guide.
Furthering the argument that money has been rotating into commodity-related stocks is the action in uraniums. On January 2nd we issued Pocket Pivot Reports on five uranium names as they attempted to post bottom-fishing pocket pivots at various moving averages along recent lows. Of the six shown below, Cameco (CCJ), NexGen Energy (NXE), the Direxion Daily Uranium Bull 3X (URAA) ETF and Energy Fuels Corp. (UUUU) successfully traded high enough volume for valid pocket pivots on that day. Uranium Energy Corp. (UEC) did not, however, but that did not prevent it from moving higher with the group.
We are now moving into the heart of Q4 2025 earnings season in late January as we will see a number of big-stock semiconductor leaders and lagging big-stock NASDAQ names report this week. Among big-stock NASDAQ names Meta Platforms (META), Microsoft (MSFT) and Tesla (TSLA) all report on Wednesday after the close, while Apple (AAPL) reports Thursday after the close. These have the potential to affect the general market so should be monitored closely for their potential impact on market direction this week.
Big-stock semiconductor leaders reporting this week include ASML Holdings (ASML) which is expected to report on Wednesday before the open while fellow semiconductor equipment makers Lam Research (LRCX) and KLAC Corp. (KLAC) report after the close on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. Memory makers SanDisk (SNDK) and Western Digital Corp. (WDC) both report on Thursday after the close. Note that SNDK triggered a Century Mark short entry at the $500 level on Friday after rallying to an intraday high of 506.30 and then reversing to close at 473.83.Memory makers and semiconductor equipment names among the semis have been a strong area of tech leadership in the New Year, and earnings reports this week from this key group of stocks will certainly determine whether these strong trends can continue if they can pass the earnings test.
Recent semiconductor meme and FOMO name Intel (INTC), which has been running mostly on the support of the U.S. government and Nvidia (NVDA) investments in the company in late 2025, did not pass the earnings test, however, ending the sharp rally in the stock so far in 2026. We initially identified and issued a report on INTC as it posted a bottom-fishing pocket pivot (BFPP) through the 50-dma on January 2nd. The stock has had a very strong run since then but appears to have topped in the near-term as it triggered a short-sale entry at the 10-dma on Friday. We will see whether other semiconductor leaders reporting earnings this week can do better, so stay tuned.
Another name that has performed well since we reported on the stock as a bottom-fishing pocket pivot (BFPP) on January 2nd as well is Applied Digital (APLD). The stock then gapped up after earnings a few days later and is currently attempting to build the handle area of a potential cup-with-handle formation. On Friday we reported on the stock once again as it posted a pocket pivot off the 20-dema. For now we would be inclined to buy such pullbacks to 20-dema support as the stock again tests the prior highs, putting it out of near-term buying range.
2026 is just getting started, and has so far has been an eventful year with the massive run in silver past the $100 level and three Orange Swans, Black Swan events created by the actions of the Orange Man himself, President Trump, hitting the market on the first three successive weekends in January. These were the U.S. military intervention in Venezuela, the serving of subpoenas on the Federal Reserve and finally threats of tariffs on European countries if the U.S. is not allowed to usurp Greenland. Amid all this we have been able to find strong profit opportunities in the right areas off the market in the New Year. This week big-stock earnings reports along with the first Fed policy announcement of 2026 on Wednesday will likely keep things lively.The Market Direction Model remains on a buy signal.