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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. 

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S&P Slides for 5th Consecutive Day

Charles Schaap -

On Thursday, the Dow and S&P both declined for the 5th consecutive day. The Nasdaq recorded its 3rd down day out of the last 5. But volume was lighter than Wednesday, and price did not decline below Wednesday's low. The price action was more of a "drifting" down and lacking conviction. 

Decliners beat advancers by a 2 to 1 ratio, and down volume beat up volume by a 2 to 1 ratio as well. The Nasdaq closed down a mere -4 points (-0.12%). The S&P fared worse, declining -7 points (-0.43%), and the Dow fell -68 points (-0.43%). The range for the S&P was only 9 points today, making this a narrow range, inside day.

This is a market searching for support and more economic information on which to trade. RSI for the Nasdaq daily is at 61, clearly not a sign of weakness. The S&P's RSI is 54 and the Dow's is 52. The 50 EMA for the S&P is 1,757 which is 28 points below the current price. While that is the potential downside, short-term, the market is still in position where it can advance. 

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