Three Steps and a Stumble
Similar to Zweig’s Fed policy indicator and in line with the desire to measure when the Federal Reserve is tightening credit, Edson Gould, a legendary technical analyst from the 1930s through the 1970s, developed a simple rule about Federal Reserve policy that has an excellent record of foretelling a stock market decline. The rules states that “whenever the Federal Reserve raises either the federal funds target rate, margin requirements, or reserve requirements three consecutive times without a decline, the stock market is likely to suffer a substantial, perhaps serious, setback” (Schade, 2004). This simple rule is still relevants. Although it tends to lead a market top, it is something that should not be disregarded.
Source: Kirkpatrick, Charles and Dahlquist, Julie. Technical Analysis: The Complete resource for Financial Market Technicians; (c) 2007.