Monday, May 16, 2011

Don't Be Against the Trend

SUMMARY:

- Different day, a different theme . . . yet again.
- Buyer and Seller conflict continues to the end of the week. What does it tell us?
- CPI shows the core is rising but still tame. Sure wish I could eat and drive in the core.
- The irony of rising Michigan Sentiment
- European style growth versus US style growth.
- Don't bet a lot against the trend, but don't bet everything on it.

MARKET SUMMARY

The sellers put it right back in the buyers' face.

It was a different day and a different theme in the market yet again. On Friday the stronger dollar/weaker commodities/weaker stocks theme reemerged. On Thursday it was the weaker dollar/stronger stocks/stronger commodities theme. It has been flip-flopping back and forth all week. After a good start, things took a turn for the worse in terms of stocks and commodities but not necessarily for the dollar.

The session started out looking weak, but it tried to bounce back after the open with the SP500 just about positive. Then things took a turn for the worse through lunch as the indices sold off to session lows. All of the indices were well below 1% on the day. There was an afternoon "rally," but it was not much of one. It was a steady relief move up off the lows, and even it tailed off in the last couple of hours. That left the indices down sharply. NASDAQ, -1.2%; SP500, -0.8%; Dow, -0.8%; SP600, -1.3%; SOX, -1.4%; NASDAQ 100, -1.2%.

Looking at the daily chart, it was back and forth since the start of the week. The old theme from two Thursdays back has reappeared on an every-other-day basis. That theme is a stronger dollar and weaker commodities that saw gold, oil, and silver dive. That kept the market stagnant for the week, unable to close above the February high on both SP500 and the NASDAQ.

The old buyer-versus-seller conflict continued through the end of the week, and it did not resolve the rubber match week. This was the week where we wanted to say we had a nice up run, we had the pullback to test that move, the breakout above the February peak, and then we were going to have the rally back up to the upside that should have continued the rally. It was all good through Tuesday. Nice move on Tuesday, although Monday and Tuesday did show low volume on the upside. That was a concern, but they still broke above the February high again and looked solid. Then the old theme reasserted itself. The dollar rallied and commodities and stocks sold on Wednesday. On Thursday the dollar started stronger, but it turned weaker and stocks rallied. Then Friday we had the problem again with the dollar moving back up and everything else moving back down.

Typically when the dollar would move higher, stocks would move higher. A strong dollar reflects strong economic growth; that reflects good earnings by companies, and that would support stronger stock prices. These are not normal times, however. There has been too much tinkering by the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department. After all, we have run up $14T+ debt. There are a lot of skewed relationships. They are skewed to the point of inversion as seen in the dollar and stock relationship. One thing we do know is that these abnormal, inverse relationships will ultimately revert back to normal. The problem is that getting there often causes a lot of stress, angst, and a lot of pain.

The Federal Reserve views the inflation pressures as transitory. Those are Bernanke's words. In the bigger picture they likely are transitory. After all, in the 1930's, Germany's hyperinflation was transitory. It did not last forever, but Germany's economy had to collapse before that hyperinflation became transitory. That is what I mean by a lot of angst and pain when transitory imbalances revert back to the norm.

We are trying to resolve a debt and credit crisis by creating more debt and credit. You may think that is crazy and it cannot work. Maybe the government is taking the view of curing an alcoholic by giving him all the alcohol he can drink. He either gets sick and stops or he will die. Maybe the government wants the economy to die so it can reset and start back over. I am just speculating. I am not a conspiracy theorist in most instances, but it is hard to understand what the government is doing.

What is likely happening is a race against time. They are hoping against hope that the economy will catch hold and really start to run. I am not just talking about the big multinationals (the only ones making real money right now), but small business as well, the real guts of our economy. They hope it will catch and run and create real wealth again before we reach the point of hyperinflation. It is a dangerous gambit against time.

What makes it even more frightening is no country in history has ever been successful doing this. Of course we are smarter and know what we are doing this time, so we will be able to pull it off. That is what we are told and are supposed to believe. Maybe it is too far gone to do anything about it. We are told we should not worry about raising the debt limit. We are told it would be irresponsible to do that. We are told that a lot of the cuts that are being offered are simply too small and will not make a difference. But if we do not show the world that we are at least trying to do the right thing, then we will never get there. Well, we will get there, but it will be more like Germany in the 1930's than the scenario of just working our way out of it that the federal government is trying to spin.

Maybe we should not raise the debt ceiling. Maybe we should say will not raise it but will cut spending. We will pay all of our creditors, as we always do, but we will just not spend. We will start making the hard choices that only get kicked down the road further when you raise the debt ceiling. But I digress.

I want to talk about what this back-and-forth action meant on the week. What does it tell us? For one, all of the indices are holding their bigger uptrend. Indeed, SP500, NASDAQ, the SP600, and the Dow 30 industrials are all holding a nice uptrend. They do not look to be in danger. The Dow looks perfectly healthy. Odds are there is nothing wrong with them. We have a lot of liquidity out there. The Fed is still saying it will continue to put more liquidity in the system or continue it in a different name. As long as the money is there, it tends to drive the stock market. Indeed, that is what has driven it up to this point.

A big positive is that the market is still holding the uptrend. We also have some high-quality leaders that are performing just fine, although there was some erosion on Friday. AAPL broke below its 50 day EMA with a rather sharp move. CAT had a nice doji at its 50 day EMA, but it showed an engulfing pattern to the downside on Friday. When market leaders are starting to roll over and show these engulfing patterns at a key support level, you have to take a bit of pause. Overall, the quality stocks are moving quite well, however.

What is the other side of the coin? We have to look back at what happened over the past few weeks to put it in perspective. We had the rally, an inverted head and shoulders, a breakout over the February high, a test, and then a resumption of the breakout move. That is where everything stopped. It simply could not continue on with the breakout. There has been no follow-through to this point. Instead you have back-and-forth action like a tennis match. The buyers come out and hit stocks higher one day, and then the sellers slap them right back down.

We have no follow-through and the inability to continue the breakout. We have sellers that have become equally powerful as the buyers. There has been no headway over the past two weeks since the peak. The sellers are matching blow-for-blow with the buyers where the buyers have been in charge before. Now that does not seem to be as clear.

We also have quite volatile action. The VIX is not surging higher. It is still holding down in the bottom of the range. What I am talking about is the day-to-day volatility where there are not big moves up and down in the range, but there are big moves day-to-day inside the large range. It is unsettled. There is not one side in charge, and it is occurring on some higher-volume. The selling was on higher volume, the rebound was on low volume. Over the past three sessions it has been decent volume as the buyers and sellers traded blows. We have volatility. After a long run, volatility typically spells selling. Or, if you have had a downtrend, it typically tells you a turn is coming.

In December through February we had a long, straight run with barely a hiccup along the way. There was volatility in late February and early March, and then the volatility resulted in a selloff. Now we have a strong run again that broke out of the pattern, a pullback to test, and now volatility. The point I am getting at is that volatility suggests change is coming, just as storms usually accompany the change in seasons. There are steady, cool temperatures in the winter. When things start to warm up, the air moves and cold air masses start hitting warm-air masses. The next thing you know, you have volatile storms. When the summer gets here, things settle down into another routine summer pattern. When the fall comes around, northers come blowing down and jumble everything up. Then the action gets a little wild again. Volatility signals that there could be change. Thus far the trends are holding, but we see volatility. As in February and March, that can lead to some selling.

We have both sides of the coin. There was no answer this week to the rubber match, but the fact that there was no answer to the question makes you to take notice. The buyers were caught by the sellers and could not shake them. That tells us a few things. Do not load up on any one upside position. Do not get overly aggressive with any one particular play. Keep good stops in place and start looking at the downside plays as something of a hedge. We have some we are in right now. The SPYders, the QID, and a couple of other downside plays on individual stocks. Volatility is a sign, and you need to pay attention to it.

Volatility will either have to subside in a consolidation or be convincingly defeated by the current trend. That would mean a strong break to the upside on good volume that holds with follow-through. That would put to rest any of the worries that the sellers have been throwing at the market over the past two weeks.

Again, this week did not answer the questions. It deferred to next week, so we will have to see what happens in the coming week. You know the saying, "Sell in May and go away." The volatility has a lot of heads talking about what could be a selloff ahead. Why? A strong rally, a good base and breakout, but it is unable to follow through thus far. It is important to note that the breakout did not go anywhere. This was a nice, long rally. We have a base, but it has not done anything with it. That tells a story in itself. You do not want to bet heavily against the trend, but you do not want to bet everything on the trend right now given the action.


OTHER MARKETS

Dollar: 1.4108 Euro versus 1.4299. Here is one reason you do not bet everything on this trend given the inverse relationship between the dollar and stocks. The dollar rallied sharply again. It had a strong week even though it had its hesitation from time to time and the doji on Thursday. The dollar has broken the 50 day EMA on the close, something it has not done since early January of 2011.

The dollar is in a strong move. Is it because the economy is going to be so strong, or is it because other economies are going to be so weak? For example, today it was announced that Germany had a 1.5% GDP growth rate. France had a 1% rate. This was heralded as "great" by many commentators in Europe and some European commentators here in the US. That is why I fear becoming like Europe. We had a 1.8% GDP reading in Q1. That is terrible by our standards, but it would be great by European standards.

Do we want to move to European styles of growth? Of course not. That would be terrible for us. We cannot create enough jobs in the US to cover everyone coming out of college or vocational schools if we are not making 2.5-3% growth rates and that is just keeping even. We need more than that. Think long and hard before you consider whether we should adopt policies that are prevalent in Europe although we are already adopting them with national healthcare and other actions that limit workers going out and actual working. They limit companies from starting businesses where they want to start businesses. They limit professions to certain places where they can work based upon how the government has set up the game.

I digress again, but this is very important. This tells the story of our economy and the future for us and our children. 1.5% growth is not great in any book. Sorry Germany. Again, compare that to the kind of growth we had coming out of the 1981-82 recession. We had multiple quarters of 7%+ growth in GDP. What did we have last quarter when we are supposedly recovered? 1.8%. It does not take a great economist with a bunch of letters after his name to figure out that this really is not a great recovery.

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Bonds: 3.17% versus 3.23% 10 year US Treasury. Bonds continued to rally. They took a little pullback on the week, but they look like they are ready to make a break higher and continue their series of higher highs and higher lows. Bonds are rallying; something is not right. If the economy is supposedly stronger, it should not be supporting higher bond prices. It should be supporting higher bond yields, which would mean lower prices. There is still something out there scaring the bond market.

http://investmenthouse.com/ihmedia/tlt.jpeg


Gold: $1,493.10, -13.70. Gold had an off session. It is trying to consolidate above the 50 day EMA, and it may do it. It is still in a very strong uptrend, and it is working inside. It can even set up an ABCD pattern if it undercuts the 50 day EMA. We will have to see. It does not look like it is trying to sell off just yet, but it has been beaten down.

http://investmenthouse.com/ihmedia/xgld.jpeg


Oil: $99.65, +0.68. Oil was up modestly. Not a big day for the black gold, but it has tried to put in a double bottom over the past week and a half. This was a major selloff and it broke major support. It sold off sharply on Wednesday, and it is struggling right now. Hopefully gasoline prices will fall. They have fallen modestly but not nearly enough due to worries about the floods hitting the lower Mississippi and what it will do to some key refineries in the area.

http://investmenthouse.com/ihmedia/xoil.jpeg


TECHNICAL SUMMARY

INTERNALS.

On the day, the internals were not too impressive or exciting.

Volume. Volume dropped 13.5% on NASDAQ to 1.93B, so it was not high-volume distribution. Volume fell almost 6% to 896M. Again, no high-volume distribution and that is better. That goes with the theme that the market is still in its uptrend, and it is holding it despite all the hits it has taken over the past two weeks as the sellers try to assert themselves.

Breadth. Breadth was somewhat negative. Pretty much everything was down. -3:1 on NASDAQ, and -2.4:1 on the NYSE. There was highly-negative breadth, and a lot of stocks did not fare too well on the session.


CHARTS

SP500. Looking at the chart, you can see the day-to-day, up-and down action on the SP500, but it is still holding the near trend. Of course, the overall longer-term trend remains well in place. You can take comfort that the trend is in place, but you also have to watch for potential trend turns. Turns in the market are what really hurt investors. They get everything going in the market and they have some great success moving in with the existing trend. When it changes, however, it can change hard. That is what crushes a lot of traders because they get out at the wrong time.

We just tighten up and take some gain as we have been doing. Then you watch and do not get too stretched thin when the market starts to show some volatility at a key high as it is showing now. I want to stress that it is a key high that makes this so important.

NASDAQ. NASDAQ is the same picture. Back-and-forth, day-to-day volatility at these key resistance levels. The sellers are showing as much strength as the buyers. They have stymied the move right now, and we have to see if they will be able to turn the tide. Volatility suggests they are trying to turn the tide, but it does not necessarily mean they will. In the past when we have seen these moves, it has led to at least a bit further of a pullback after the up-and-down, back-and-forth volatility.

SP600. SP600 looked beautiful yesterday. It wiped away those moves today, but it still looks just fine. This is a very solid uptrend. Higher highs and higher lows. It may turn if the rest of the market breaks, but it is hard to get really negative about the small caps. There is a bit of a divergence on MACD, however. There is the higher price high in late April/early May, but MACD made a lower price high. We are losing some momentum. This is not definitive in itself, but it is something to watch out for. There was a lower high on the MACD, and now we have had a lower high on this last bounce. That could set up a head and shoulders, but it still has to defeat the rising trendline; there is some power there. This is a classic case of why you like the trend but you have to watch out when you start seeing this kind of action.

SOX. SOX was down 1.4% on the session. It is still moving laterally above the 50 day EMA. It looked like it was making a seminal move on Thursday. It did not work out, but it is still in the range. It has been very quiet, moving laterally, and that can result in something good. We need to see some leadership by the SOX to help pull the market out of this funk.


LEADERSHIP

The leadership picture may have you thinking the market is ready to correct back some more.

Industrial equipment. Last night I talked about CAT being on the 50 day EMA with a nice doji. As a matter of fact, I said it has been there and pulled off nice bounces. It showed an engulfing pattern on Friday. That is where it rolled over, swallowing up the prior day on volume. Remember, it has the MACD that was lower. It is a risk there is a chance of it actually falling further to the downside. DE is struggling. It has had a tough week, accelerating to the downside with rising volume. A High-volume selloff on Wednesday and a high-volume selloff on Friday. These are two important stocks that are heading lower.

Financial. Financials look like crud. JPM broke below the lows in its range on rising, above-average volume. Same story: Sharp volume and downside on Wednesday, and then sharp volume and downside on Friday. WFC is not as dramatic, but it is sagging below its recent range.

Metals. Metals have problems as well. FCX tried to bounce but rolled over on the session. Not on engulfing pattern, but a downside piercing pattern. AKS broke sharply lower, below the 200 day EMA on rising volume. Commodities do not look good.

Technology. AAPL broke sharply below its 50 day EMA and recent consolidation. GOOG turned down after a double top at resistance at the gap point. It could be heading lower as well. Compare that with some of the software companies. ORCL is doing fine in its uptrend. It is suffering a bit of the same kind of action, but it has not broken through its 20 day EMA at all. CERN is moving laterally in a nice pennant pattern. Software is not being bothered. There are still leaders out there.

Retail. AMZN was down on Friday, but it is still very strong. BWLD is moving laterally this week, but in a nice, strong uptrend.JWN is moving up as well. TJX is doing fine.

There are stocks doing fine, even within the technology sector and within retail which continues to do well. As a matter of fact, we took some gain on DDS as it exploded higher on a good report. They are out there making moves. We just have to take advantage of them when we can. At the same time, you do not want to overload on any position.


THE MARKET

VIX. It was not spiking up on the day-to-day volatility in the indices. That is often what you see in a turn, and it is a part of the equation that many do not talk about. That back-and-forth action, day to day after a solid trend has been in place is just as indicative of a turn as is a sagging volatility index if there has been a strong run in the stock market.

We see a break higher and a higher low. We see a lot of intraday, day-to-day volatility in the VIX as well. It could be setting up for a selloff. This is not one that has been rallying necessarily with the stock market. This has been the inverse. These moves up were a move down in the SP500. It is not doing the really scary stuff where it rises as the stock market rises. That is good, but what we are seeing is a higher low. We could be getting a break higher in volatility that is coincident with a stock market pullback.

VIX: 17.07; +1.04
VXN: 18.4; +1.41
VXO: 17.02; +1.23

Put/Call Ratio (CBOE): 0.94; +0.1

Bulls versus Bears:

This is a reading of the number of bullish investment advisors versus bearish advisors. The reason you look at this is that it gives you an idea of how bullish investors are. If they are too bullish then everyone is in the market and it is heading for a top: if everyone wants to be in the market, then all the money is in and there is no more new cash to drive it higher. On the other side of the spectrum if there are a lot of bears then there is a lot of cash on the sideline, and as the market rallies it drags that cash in as the bears give in. That cash provides the market the fuel to move higher. If bears are low it is the same as a lot of bulls: everyone is in and the market does not have the cash to drive it higher.

Bulls: 51.1% versus 52.8% prior. The selloff after the breakout mitigated the bullish spirit for a second week but it is still fairly spry. Held at 54% for a few weeks before this slip. Remains close enough to that 60+ level that indicates some trouble for a bull run. Hit 55.1% in January and 58.8% on the December high on this leg. It is matching those readings in a string of high readings but below the 5 year high at 62.0. Fading back from the level considered bearish, i.e. where so many are in the market and believe it is going up that the ammunition to send it higher runs low. This is where you start to be careful and watch for breakdowns, but there is also a lot of liquidity being pushed into the market and that can continue the move despite excess bullishness. The crossover level at 29% bulls is long gone, but it did its job. The high on the last leg was 56.0% after starting at 35.6% on the low in February, the lowest it has been since July 2009 . . . until this last leg. 35% is the threshold level suggesting bullishness. Again, to be seriously bearish it needs to get up to the 60% to 65% level.

Bears: 18.5% versus 16.5%. Right back up to 18.5% registered three weeks back. Down from 23.1% to start April, but making their way back. Fell like a stone on that decline, moving below the April 2010 low. 28.3% in September 2010. The 37.7% peak at the height of the crossover is well in the rearview mirror but bears remain well below the 35% level, above which is considered bullish for the market overall. Hit 18.7% on the low in April. Hit a high of 27.8% level on the prior leg in February. For reference, cracking above the 35% threshold considered bullish. Hit a high on the prior run at 47.2%. For more reference, bearishness hit a 5 year high at 54.4% the last week of October 2008. The move over 50 took bearish sentiment to its highest level since 1995. Extreme negative sentiment. Prior levels for comparison: Bearishness peaked at 37.4% in September 2007. It topped the June 2006 peak (36%) on that run. That June peak eclipsed the March 2006 high (33%) and well above the 2005 highs that spawned new rallies (30% in May 2005, 29.2% in October 2005). That was a huge turn, unlike any seen in recent history.


NASDAQ

Stats: -34.57 points (-1.21%) to close at 2828.47
Volume: 1.93B (-13.58%)

Up Volume: 244.03M (-1.026B)
Down Volume: 1.66B (+713.61M)

A/D and Hi/Lo: Decliners led 3.13 to 1
Previous Session: Advancers led 1.89 to 1

New Highs: 93 (-21)
New Lows: 53 (-4)

NASDAQ CHART: http://investmenthouse.com/ihmedia/NASDAQ.jpeg

NASDAQ 100 CHART: http://investmenthouse.com/ihmedia/NASDAQ100.jpeg

SOX CHART: http://investmenthouse.com/ihmedia/SOX.jpeg


SP500/NYSE

Stats: -10.88 points (-0.81%) to close at 1337.77
NYSE Volume: 896.76M (-5.59%)

Up Volume: 165.15M (-372.88M)
Down Volume: 721.72M (+319.5M)

A/D and Hi/Lo: Decliners led 2.42 to 1
Previous Session: Advancers led 1.65 to 1

New Highs: 199 (+1)
New Lows: 44 (-20)

SP500 CHART: http://investmenthouse.com/ihmedia/SP500.jpeg

SP600 CHART: http://investmenthouse.com/ihmedia/SP600.jpeg


DJ30

Stats: -100.17 points (-0.79%) to close at 12595.75
Volume DJ30: 170M shares Friday versus 216M shares Thursday. Hardly any heavy selling as DJ30 looks great.

DJ30 CHART: http://www.investmenthouse.com/ihmedia/DJ30.jpeg


MONDAY

There will be a lot of news out next week. Several of the regional manufacturing reports will hit, starting with the New York PMI on Monday. Then there are other important numbers such as housing starts and capacity utilization. FOMC minutes come out on Wednesday. Thursday we have initial claims, existing home sales, and the Philly Fed.

All important, but we have to look back at what the market is doing and everything I have talked about to this point. We are at a point where the trend is still in place. You do not want to say the trend will break simply because it is struggling. It has done this before and has not broken at all. Back in November and December of 2010, it struggled and broke higher in nice, strong runs.

We have a few more issues on the table right now. We are seeing some leadership crack and break lower. We are also seeing a solid base break out, but it has been unable to deliver any serious follow-through to the upside thus far. As I said before, it is a time where change is trying to occur. When change is trying to take shape, it does not behoove us to rush out and continue with necessarily the same approach that we have been using when the market was solidly moving higher or looked to be solidly moving higher again with a breakout.

Do not necessarily bet against the long-term trend at least we do not want to bet a lot against it yet. We do not want to bet everything on the trend continuing either. We know that markets change and trends change. We are seeing the signs that there could be change in the air with the day-to-day volatility. If we see good upside plays, we will still give them a good look. We will still pick up some positions in them, but we will also give more and more looks to the downside because leadership is turning over.

As noted, we have been taking downside positions as they present themselves. They show up, and you take some of them when things start to look a little uncertain because they can turn out to be good winners for you. We may come up with some more, and I have already pointed out some that could be downside plays for next week. The market has not answered the question as to what it will do yet. Will it resume the uptrend or maybe pull back again a bit deeper? It is occurring just on the heels of a break out of a base that did not get a lot of gain on that initial breakout move.

There will be a lot of news next week, but I do not think that will be the driver. It could be a catalyst that breaks the buyers out of their funk. They may think things look good and buy. But with the dollar still rallying, breaking through the 50 day EMA for the first time since January, you have to take that into consideration. Again, you do not want to bet a lot against the current trend, but you do not want to put everything on the line for the current trend either.

We are in mid-May. The market may already be starting to factor in the end of Quantitative Easing II. The Fed said it would maintain its balance sheet as it did before the end of Quantitative Easing, but that is not exactly the same as saying it will continue indefinitely, no matter what. It does suggest a tightening of the policy. Maybe the market is starting to read that in, and that could be driving the dollar higher. Of course, that should also drive interest rates higher and bonds lower, but it is not doing that yet.

There are a lot of factors in the mix. A lot of irons in the fire. I am trying to use as many metaphors as possible, but you get the point. There are so many variables right now. There are those who look at one of two of them and draw broad conclusions, but that is foolhardy. They may be right, but they may be very wrong. It is hard for anybody or any machine to analyze all the variables right now and come up with any particular, rational course.

We will do what a smart person and a good trader does. We see some change, so we will take some off the table. We have been doing that, both on the upside and with trading stops. We are lightening the load right now. We are starting to branch out with some downside plays, too, for a little hedging. We will just be smart. We do not always have to be fully invested, and we are not right now. It is just a natural occurrence. As the market has rallied, we take gain off the table. As it tops and some stocks struggle, we take gain off the table because we pull the stops up. We are a bit light, but that is good. We are more agile and we can move. We will not get caught in anything too deep.

We will be ready. We will have a bit of downside and a bit of upside, but knowing full well that the "Big M" The Market will have the final say in what we do. The trend is holding. The trend has been our very good friend on this move. At some point it will change. Maybe the end of QE II is factoring in and some the buyers are not being as aggressive and the sellers are being more aggressive. Will that necessarily be the end of the rally? No. The Fed has been clear that it is going to keep providing liquidity, and I guarantee that as soon as we have any trouble, the Fed will pump more liquidity into the system.

The Fed's game plan all along has been to inflate the value of financial assets. That makes consumers and citizens in general feel wealthier and want to go out and spend more money and, hopefully, jumpstart the economy. It has not happened so far. At least not on a broad scale outside of the multinationals that got a lot of the stimulus money and sell a lot overseas. The Fed cannot afford to let it collapse. This is Bernanke's big case study of the Great Depression era and how he would have solved things versus what the central bank did at that time.

He cannot afford not to extend more Quantitative Easing if things get in trouble. At the same time, he has to deal with reality. While maybe he cannot afford to let things get out of control without more Quantitative Easing, he may not be able to help it. We are $14T in debt and our dollar until the last week has been in dire straits. His hand might have been forced on it, and it may still be forced. We always have to worry about those unforeseen events that hit while the government is in the process of major tinkering with the economy.

Remember, the Fed is tinkering, the Treasury is tinkering (I say "tinkering," but they are in it deep), and the administration is tinkering with its manipulation of labor markets and where companies can open new plants, etc. There is a lot of nudging and manipulation going on behind the scenes. Everyone has their own agenda.

Where this could end is somewhat worrisome. We just have to take care of ourselves. We will watch what the market is doing and will be cautious. We will take advantage of opportunity, upside and downside. Be smart and keep stops appropriate. When the market shows us which way it will break, then we will move in. I will posit that it will break pretty big when it does break, whether to the upside or downside. I will admit that I am just not smart enough to say which way it will go. Why? This has never happened before. We have never had this kind of debt or this kind of intervention.

There great unknowns here, but we do know that one day, when it does revert, it will revert big. It may not be right now, or for a month, or it may not be for years. I am not smart enough to know that, but I am smart enough to look at the market and see some leadership breaking down. I can see intraday volatility and the bonds rising when they should be falling. That tells me that something is up.

We will just play it a little closer to the vest, be smart about it, and keep a lot of that money we have made. I will see you on Monday. There will be a lot of news and a lot more excitement. We will see what the market shows us.

Have a great weekend!


Support and Resistance

NASDAQ: Closed at 2828.47

Resistance:
2841 is the February 2011 peak
2862 is the 2007 peak
2888 is the recent May peak
2956 from November 2000
3026 from October 2000 low
3042 is the May 2000 low

Support:
The 20 day EMA at 2828
2825 is the 2007 closing peak.
2816 is the early April peak
2802 is the early March intraday peak
2796 is the February gap down point
The 50 day EMA at 2792
2762 is the February low
2729 is the 127% Fibonacci extension of the August 2010 run
2706 to 2705 is the April 2011 low and the February 2011 and consolidation low
2686 is the recent January 2011 closing low
2676 is the January 2010 low
2645-2650ish from December 2010 consolidation
2603 is the March 2011 low
2580 is the November 2010 closing high
The 200 day SMA at 2578
2569 is the November gap up point through the April 2010 peak


S&P 500: Closed at 1337.77
Resistance:
1340 is the early April 2011 peak
1344 is the February 2011 peak
1364 is the March 2007 low
1370 is the August 2007 low
1371 is the recent May 2011 peak

Support:
1332 is the early March peak
1325-27 is the March 2008 closing low and the May 2006 peak.
The 50 day EMA at 1327
1313 from the August 2008 interim peak
1295 to 1294 is the April 2011 low and the February 2011 consolidation low
1275 is the January 2010 low, early January 2011 peak
1255 is the late December 2010 consolidation range
1249 is the March 2011 low
1235 is the mid-December 2010 consolidation low
The 200 day SMA at 1233
1227 is the November 2010 peak
1220 is the April 2010 peak


Dow: Closed at 12,595.75
Resistance:
13,058 from the May 2008 peak on that bounce in the selling

Support:
The 20 day EMA at 12,597 trying to hold on
The 50 day EMA at 12,403
12,391 is the February 2011 peak
12,283 is the March 2011 peak is bending
12,110 from the March 2007 closing low
12,094 is the April 2011 low
11,893 from March 2008 closing low
11,867 from the August 2009 high and peak on that bounce in the selling.
11,734 from 11-98 peak
11,555 is the March low
The 200 day SMA at 11,506
11,452 is the November 2010 peak


Economic Calendar

May 13 - Friday
CPI, April (08:30): 0.4% actual versus 0.4% expected, 0.5% prior
Core CPI, April (08:30): 0.2% actual versus 0.1% expected, 0.1% prior
Michigan Sentiment, May Preliminary (09:55): 72.4 actual versus 69.5 expected, 69.8 prior

May 16 - Monday
Empire Manufacturing, May (08:30): 18 expected, 21.7 prior
Net Long-Term TIC Fl, March (09:00): $26.9B prior
NAHB Housing Market, May (10:00): 16 expected, 16 prior

May 17 - Tuesday
Housing Starts, April (08:30): 565K expected, 549K prior
Building Permits, April (08:30): 590K expected, 594K prior
Industrial Production, April (09:15): 0.5% expected, 0.8% prior
Capacity Utilization, April (09:15): 77.7% expected, 77.4% prior

May 18 - Wednesday
MBA Mortgage Index, 05/13 (07:00): +8.2% prior
Crude Inventories, 05/14 (10:30): 3.781M prior
FOMC Minutes, May (14:00)

May 19 - Thursday
Initial Claims, 05/14 (08:30): 420K expected, 434K prior
Continuing Claims, 05/07 (08:30): 3713K expected, 3756K prior
Existing Home Sales, April (10:00): 5.22M expected, 5.10M prior
Philadelphia Fed, May (10:00): 17.5 expected, 18.5 prior
Leading Indicators, April (10:00): 0.0% expected, 0.4% prior

By: Jon Johnson, Editor
Copyright 2011 | All Rights Reserved

Jon Johnson is the Editor of The Daily at InvestmentHouse.com

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