Pro Blog

Staying in touch with current events and market action is important for trading success. This blog contains topics of interest that relate to individual stocks, market indices, market sectors/industries, and ETFs. 

← Back to ProTrend ProFiles

Market Sets Intraday Bear Trap

Charles Schaap -

On Monday, the market opened with an intraday bear trap. The S&P futures dipped to -15 points before turning up and forming an intraday V-bottom. By 11 am, the S&P had returned to Friday's closing price of 1,881. It closed slightly higher at 1,884, up +3 points on the day (+0.19%)

The Nasdaq closed up +14 points (+0.34%) and the Dow gained +17 points (+0.11%). Volume was weaker than Monday's volume, and all three indices traded below average volume. Breath, which went as low as -1718 in the morning session, closed a -69, not strongly positive. Advancers and decliners were about even, although down volume was heavier with a 3-to-2 edge over up volume.

Today was a missed opportunity for the market to have strong up day by taking advantage of a down open that trapped shorts. Instead, the Nasdaq close below Friday's high and still below its 50 EMA. The S&P also closed below Friday's high. So we're still in "wait" mode to get a strong statement about market direction.

September Could Be Worse than August
Charles Schaap - August 30, 2013

Historically, August is one of the 4 worst performing months for the S&P 500 (source: Stock Trader's Almanac). This year, the S&P's performance in August fit the history, falling -2.8% during a market correction. The large, blue arrow represents the month of August....keep reading