Reference · Indicator glossary

The eight indicators, in plain English.

MacroPulse scores the same eight indicators every day, across three tiers. Each entry below explains what the indicator measures, why it matters to the cycle, and how it scores into the call.

Tier 1 · Macro backdrop

Global M2 (liquidity)

The total broad money supply across the major economies — US, Eurozone, China, Japan, UK — measured in US dollars.

M2 is the single most important macro tide. When the global money stock is expanding, oxygen is reaching risk assets; when it contracts, the air thins. Crypto, as the most liquidity-sensitive asset class on a multi-year basis, tends to follow this measure more closely than any other.

MacroPulse watches the year-on-year growth rate and the 13-week direction, not the absolute level. A 4-week trend up while major central banks are easing is treated as decisively supportive.

Tier
Tier 1 · Macro backdrop
Source
Cross-bank composite (Fed H.6, ECB BSI, BoJ, PBoC, BoE)
Supportive when
4-week trend up
Headwind when
Contracting on a YoY basis
Tier 1 · Macro backdrop

ISM Manufacturing PMI

A monthly diffusion index of US manufacturing activity, scored 0–100. Above 50 is expansion; below 50 is contraction.

PMI tracks where the business cycle is in real time. Crypto rallies tend to coincide with PMI bottoming and turning up; corrections often follow PMI peaking above 60 (the classic late-cycle overheating reading). It's a leading indicator with practical sensitivity.

MacroPulse treats sustained moves above 50 as a confidence input to BTC accumulation, and PMI readings approaching 60 as the flag that closes a cycle — the "Take Profit" trigger.

Tier
Tier 1 · Macro backdrop
Source
ism.org / Institute for Supply Management
Supportive when
Above 50 and rising
Headwind when
Below 48 and falling, or above 62
Tier 1 · Macro backdrop

Dollar (DXY)

The trade-weighted strength of the US dollar against a basket of major currencies (EUR, JPY, GBP, CAD, SEK, CHF).

The dollar is the global tightening channel. A rising DXY drains liquidity from non-dollar economies and risk assets simultaneously — including crypto, commodities, and emerging markets. A falling DXY does the reverse, easing financial conditions everywhere at once.

MacroPulse scores the DXY against absolute thresholds rather than relative direction. A reading below 97.5 indicates a meaningfully weak dollar — supportive of crypto and broader risk. A reading above 100 marks a strong-dollar regime — a structural headwind. The 97.5–100 band sits between the two and scores neutral: the dollar is neither pushing risk forward nor pulling it back.

Tier
Tier 1 · Macro backdrop
Source
ICE Dollar Index spot (DXY)
Supportive when
Below 97.5
Neutral when
97.5–100
Headwind when
Above 100
Tier 2 · Rates & liquidity

Real yields

The inflation-adjusted return on US 10-year Treasuries — the real cost of long-duration capital.

Real yields are the gravity that pulls capital toward and away from risk assets. When real yields are high, the risk-free option is genuinely attractive and capital prefers it; when they're low or negative, capital is pushed out the risk curve toward equities, credit, and crypto.

MacroPulse references the 10-year TIPS yield directly (FRED's DFII10), which prices real yields without needing a separate CPI subtraction.

Tier
Tier 2 · Rates & liquidity
Source
FRED series DFII10 (10-year TIPS)
Supportive when
Falling or below 1%
Headwind when
Rising and above 2%
Tier 2 · Rates & liquidity

Yield curve (2s10s)

The difference between the 10-year and 2-year US Treasury yields. Positive when the curve is normal, negative when inverted.

A persistent inversion (negative 2s10s) historically precedes US recessions by 12-24 months. Re-steepening — moving back from inversion toward positive — is the textbook signal that growth expectations are improving and the early part of the next cycle is forming.

MacroPulse watches both the sign and the rate of change. A steepening curve with rising PMI is the strongest macro setup the framework recognises.

Tier
Tier 2 · Rates & liquidity
Source
FRED DGS10 minus DGS2
Supportive when
Positive and steepening
Headwind when
Deeply inverted (< -50bps)
Tier 2 · Rates & liquidity

Fed balance sheet

The total assets held by the US Federal Reserve. Expanding when the Fed is buying bonds (QE); shrinking when the Fed is letting them mature (QT).

Direct measure of US dollar liquidity. Expansion injects reserves into the banking system, easing conditions globally. Contraction does the reverse. The pace matters as much as the direction — aggressive QT is a meaningful drag; well-telegraphed slow QT is mostly priced.

MacroPulse tracks the FRED weekly H.4.1 release. Transitions from QT to neutral or QE are regime-level events.

Tier
Tier 2 · Rates & liquidity
Source
FRED series WALCL
Supportive when
Expanding (QE) or holding flat
Headwind when
Aggressive QT with rising overnight rates
Tier 3 · Crypto-market structure

BTC funding rates

The fee paid by long traders to short traders (or vice versa) on Bitcoin perpetual futures. Reflects the cost of holding directional exposure.

Positive funding = longs paying shorts = bullish positioning bias. Negative funding = shorts paying longs = bearish bias, often a contrarian-bullish signal for spot when extended. Elevated positive funding is the classic late-cycle warning — crowded longs paying for the privilege.

MacroPulse reads negative-or-near-zero funding as "clean positioning" and persistent positive readings above ~0.04% as crowded.

Tier
Tier 3 · Crypto structure
Source
Coinglass exchange-weighted average
Supportive when
Near zero or slightly negative
Headwind when
Persistently above 0.04%
Tier 3 · Crypto-market structure

Stablecoin dominance

The share of total crypto market capitalisation sitting in dollar-pegged stablecoins (USDT, USDC, and others).

A rising share of capital in stables means crypto holders are moving to cash — defensive positioning. A falling share means capital is rotating from stables into risk assets — offensive positioning. Direction often leads price moves by days to weeks.

MacroPulse watches the 30-day direction. Stables draining out is a tailwind; capital piling into stables is a quiet warning sign.

Tier
Tier 3 · Crypto structure
Source
CoinGecko global page
Supportive when
Falling on a 30-day basis
Headwind when
Rising on a 30-day basis

← Back to methodology