Good morning traders. I did a fair amount of reading this weekend, both business and non-business related. Regarding the news papers I read through, Europe and Greece were of course the lead stories - no real surprise there. What I did find very interesting though were the tone and content of some of the articles. Here are the two main themes I took away from a trading/investing standpoint:

• Price action is largely driven by politics and sound-bite headlines - and these are coming at a very high frequency. While politics has always been a key part of navigating emerging markets where political coalitions are often fragile and fluid, developed markets too are becoming fragile and fluid
• Portfolio managers are bemoaning about how challenging and 'untradeable' the markets are.

I am real keen to focus on the second point from above. It demonstrates to me the vast difference between the way managers have been approaching the markets since 1982 - ever since that period, except for the last decade, where managers have done their funamental analysis, bought every dip and rarely gave a thought to the future health of the global macro economy as a whole. After 10+ years though of markets essentially offering no real return for those believers in 'buy and hold', i.e. buy and hope, managers are starting to consider alternatives. This is good, any professional needs to regularly assess their process and enhance/alter it accordingly. What I find odd though is that none of the articles made note of managers resorting to price action, i.e. technical analysis. Instead, one manager has resorted to hiring former politicians and prime ministers to assist in gauging outcomes. While I certainly would not argue with that approach, I still find myself asking, 'why not invest in a four monitor system, buy a Motive Wave license and really add some clarity to your forecasts?'

We would agree that the current market has plenty of challenges, but to say it is untradeable is a bit of a stretch. We are coming off 2 very solid months in the service while many other services and/or FX programs are struggling. Is that due to our heavy reliance on technical analysis? It is certainly a big part, but as Todd and I have always stressed, to limit your analysis to just one approach does not make much sense. Our willingness to explore Intermarket Analysis and Account/Risk Management (the other 2 components of the IPA Method) is what we feel offers the edge. Here is a summary of how we see the market overall:

S&P 500: bearish technical backdrop since the July 7th high. However, the rally off the October lows has been challenging and persistent. Maintaining short positions in here has been tough unless you were making tactical trades on smaller time frames

Dollar Index (DXC): this has been a puzzle at times too. A couple of weeks ago it looked as though the bears were set to resume control on the break of 76.36. Our view has since changed and we are bullish DXC - but like the S&P's, there are few sustained moves - remaining nimble is key.

Bonds: bonds are poised for big gains from a technical viewpoint and that move, once underway could see yields dip towards 1.5% on the 10-year Treasury. This fits in well with a bearish S&P outlook

Copper: the rally off the October lows appears complete as of October 27th but since then prices have not made a decisive break lower. This will be key.

FX: many pairs and crosses have clearly defined patterns, but here too, to maintain bullish or bearish positions is tough as market gyrations really test ones nerves.

Non-Technical Observations:

• The total return for the month of October 2011 of 10.92% ranks as one of the best Octobers in history, however, the ten largest monthly market gains have all occurred during secular bear markets.

• Central Banks, particularly the Fed, remain a wild card for the bulls. Any sign of further economic weakness and QE 3 or some derivative of will be unveiled - this of course would be very bullish and is likely the reason why sustained moved lower are infrequent.

• The US, despite the calls for a recession, seems unlikely to go into one. Anemic growth triggers a far different environment versus one of robust or negative growth. Sadly, anemic growth can also mean anemic trading conditions at times.

• Europe: it is anyone's guess as to how all of this plays out. Until headlines and sound-bites stop ruling the day, the volatility will continue.

• The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has cut rates with more cuts likely in the future. This is a change worth noting.

In sum, the point in all the above commentary is to demonstrate that despite a whole host of cross-currents, differing viewpoints and manic price action, there are opportunities - you just have to work really hard to find and execute them. For us, that boiled down to a solid reliance on the IPA Method - we really do not see how anyone can consistently maneuver in this market without deploying all 3 of the IPA components. To say that the market is untradeable is a sure sign that the markets have thrown such a massive curveball to the trading/investment management industry that longtime market participants are getting rather anxious about their ability to use the same tired old analysis tools that have been used for 3 decades. With experience, perspective and the IPA Method at our disposal, we welcome the days, weeks and months ahead as there will certainly be ample trading opportunities.

For more from Dave, visit Aspen Trading for more updates.