A supposed truism on Wall Street is that betting against the crowd is always a wise move. And these days, the crowd is decidedly bullish. Yes, that's often a sign that the end is near. But right now, a good argument can be made that things will still get better.
A rising stock market next year is becoming an article of faith. But beneath the bullish sheen of several positive reports, many other key indicators are bearish or neutral. Investors might want to balance the widespread confidence by looking at these eight.
For a host of reasons, when the dollar spikes, stocks drop, and when the dollar falls, stocks soar. Right now, with dollar sentiment reaching maximum bearishness, contrarians are preparing for the next shift. If the dollar rises again, stocks could reverse.