9:00am (EST)
You knew the market would bounce back at some point following this week’s steep losses and yesterday was the bulls’ day to flex their muscles. Futures were pointing towards a strong open as the major indexes bounced back solidly for much of the day and those gains held as the market closed near its highs.
We went over key technical levels yesterday so let’s see where we are at.
The Dow was up 161 points, or 1.4%, and traded to a high of 11,800 before closing at 11,774. This was the EXACT number we said to watch for and we were looking for a close above this level. The low of 11,614 was at the open and higher than Thursday’s close for the Dow. Although the 11,800 level didn’t stick, it was encouraging to see much of yesterday’s gains hold.
The S&P 500 added 17 points, or 1.3%, to finish at 1,273. The index kissed 1,279 and we were looking for a close above 1,275. The low on Thursday was 1,261 so the bulls managed to hold 1,250 which is a pivotal level going into today’s trading. We would like to see a push towards 1,300 so watch all three of these numbers today if we do get extra volatility.
The Nasdaq gained nearly 20 points, or 0.7%, and closed at 2,636. Tech traded up to 2,660 but once again didn’t have the mustard to make a run past 2,700. We were looking for at least 2,650-2,675 on the close but Tech has lagged the market on up days and led the way lower on down days. This worries us a little but futures are pointing towards another leg higher to start today’s session.
There won’t be much in the way of economic news today and we mentioned that March options expire today. Earnings will also be a non-factor as the bears will try to hold down resistance. The bulls are getting good news on the Libya front as the United Nations (UN) declared a no fly zone last night for the country with possible military action. We have now learned as we head to press that Libyan’s FM has halted military operations in line with the UN no-fly decision and futures got another big push and took another leg higher.
As we head to press, Dow futures are up 124 points to 11,835 while the S&P futures are higher by 15 to 1,284. The Nasdaq futures are showing an 18 point pop and are at 2,244. We will be back in the afternoon with an update on Nike (NKE, $85.41, up $0.59) which missed earnings expectations after the bell last night and a look at where the markets stands heading into the weekend. (Shares of Nike are down $6 to under $80 in pre-market trading so lock in profits into weakness!).
We may also release a NEW TRADE if we can get good entry prices on a few names on our Watch List so stay close to your computer and check for updates at 10am or 11am.
Subscribers, check the Members Area for the current updates and for our fresh ideas. We have 12 candidates, yes 12, possible trades we are watching.
Back at 1…
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