US economic growth continues to move forward with better-than-expected employment numbers and a booming housing market going full speed ahead. Growth is the primary catalyst that's driving the S&P 500 to new all-time highs each week and helping the US dollar appreciate in value. Year-to-date, the PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish ETF (UUP), which we buy when we want to get long the US dollar, is up +2.52%. As long as economic recovery in the United States continues, the US dollar is quite capable of gaining strength. That in turn drives down the price of commodities, including crude oil (OIL) and gold (GLD), which helps drive growth via consumption.
