Relative Strength Technical Scores Showing Deterioration in New Highs

Earlier today we commented on our proprietary scores of relative strength point & figure stock charts and highlighted areas of relative strength and weakness in the market place based on these scores. In this post we'd like to make another interesting observation related to one component of our proprietary scoring model. Specifically, we'll be honing in on the percent of stocks that are at new cycle highs on a relative strength basis.

In the table below we show, on a monthly basis, the percent of stocks in each MSCI region that are at new cycle highs. It is evident when looking at the table that in each region the percent of stocks at new highs has deteriorated markedly over the last few months. North America has seen the largest decline in stocks at new relative strength highs as just four months ago 23% of stocks were at new highs and today only 6% of stocks are. The second table shows the breakdown by sector.