Broadcom (BRCM) looks good to go as it emerges from a bull flag. Semiconductors in general are screaming higher today, reaching a new high for the year.

Take a look at the action in the Semiconductor Index ($SOX). Today's high of 415 is a new one for 2008.

BRCM is mirroring the action in the SOX. The stock is cracking its very short-term descending resistance line. Look for confirmation with an advance past $28. Target between $29 and $30 in the next few days for a quick trade.

The Japanese yen, which you can trade via the FXY just like any other stock or exchange traded fund, is an excellent way to hedge against further downside in stock market. The FXY generally moves inverse to equity prices.

It's been a while since I've highlighted the FXY. Earlier this year, we made a killing by simply buying on the many breakouts from bull flags:

Japanese Yen Signals More Trouble for Stocks

Sagging Dollar Yields Huge Moves in the Market

Watch the Japanese Yen When Timing Buys

I want to put the FXY back on the radar today not only as a potential trade, but as an indicator for the broader market. The FXY has been pulling back since mid-March, while stocks have been rallying. The FXY is rebounding today, from a long-term ascending trend line, and trying to breakout from its short-term descending trend.

A clean break of $97.50 would mark yet another bull flag for the FXY. It might also signal that stocks have further to fall going into next week.

Please tell me that you got long some Anadarko Petroleum (APC) yesterday, after I highlighted its breakout from the bullish flag. The stock's up by 10 percent today! Put another way, it's good to be long natural gas.

Obviously I'm excited about the move in APC today, along with the continued upside in the Natural Gas Fund (UNG), which is an exchange traded fund that tracks the commodity.

But no matter how excited I get or how confident I am that a trade will work, it's incredibly important to remember to never over-leverage a single sector. Natural gas is great and I think the sector will continue higher, but you can't take excessive risks. Stay diversified!

Google (GOOG) is consolidating its $100 rally following its earnings report about two weeks ago. The stock is trading in a tight $20 range between short-term horizontal support and resistance. If GOOG's going to breakout from the bull flag, it should do so in the next few days.

In the short-term, the stock could bolt up to $580, using the distance between support and resistance and adding this $20 to the upper-end of the bull flag.

Looking out further, GOOG could make its way above $600 if it breaks the bull flag. Look for a break and close above the $560 level to inspire further short covering and additional momentum buying.

About six days ago, I alerted readers to a breakout in the UNG from a bullish triangle. The UNG is an exchange traded fund that tracks natural gas -- the commodity. The UNG has since moved higher, but the stocks in the natural gas sector have exploded.

Here's the post from last week.

Just take a look at the charts of the seven stocks I listed:

If you're in any of these trades, or others in the natural gas space, now is a great time to raise stops and start locking in gains. Additionally, it's a good time to start thinking about the time horizon for these stocks. Are you an investor or trader? If you're the former, then you can sit back and let the bullish trends run higher. If you're a trader, however, now might be a good time to focus on taking profits.

If you're not in any natural gas trades, it's too late. Wait for the next consolidation before pulling the trigger.