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. 

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Market Bounces Off "Yellen Low"

Charles Schaap -

On Thursday, the market retested the "Yellen sell off low" from Wednesday, and price held above it. This established a support level for the market to bounce. Small caps and mid caps under performed. The S&P and Dow advanced more than the Nasdaq, closing up +108 points (+0.67%) and +11 points (+0.60%), respectively. The Naz gained +11 points (+0.27%).

Volume was higher on the S&P, but lower on the Nasdaq. NYSE decliners and advancers were closely matched, with a slight edge to the decliners. However, up volume bested down volume by nearly 2 to 1. Overall, today's market action simply regained Wednesday's losses, but it did not advance the market to new highs, nor did it provide a strong statement by either the bulls or bears.

The up day left all three indices (Nasdaq, S&P, and Dow) above their 10 SMAs. While not a strong bullish statement today, getting above the 10 SMA allows price a higher support level from which to attempt to move to the upside. 

Initial jobless claims increased slightly. Existing home sales dropped. 

Friday is Quadruple Witching, a day which usually is higher in volume and volatility.

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