9:00am (EST)
We came into the week thinking the bulls might make a little more noise before Wednesday as the market is closed for the holiday and today is a shortened session. We expected resistance to hold which meant there wasn’t much room to the upside and futures were favoring the bears. We also expected the bulls to hold short-term support which didn’t leave much downside action either but there were a few fireworks.
Yesterday’s Institute for Supply Management (ISM) reading shocked a lot of suit-and-ties and the market got rattled as the bears did indeed push support. However, the bulls not only held support, they made a push back to even before the final bell.
The Dow slipped 8 points, or 0.1%, to close at 12,871. The blue-chips traded to a high of 12,902 at the open but dipped to 12,795 shortly after the ISM number. The bears were looking to get a close below 12,800 but the bulls are still eyeing 13,000 and then some. The 100-day MA (moving average) is at 12,854 and it will be interesting to see if the Dow finishes north or south of the level ahead of Thursday’s big events.
The S&P 500 gained 3 points, or 0.3%, to settle at 1,365. The index peaked at 1,366 shortly after the opening bell but kissed 1,356 before lunch. The 1,350 level was prior resistance and held as support. A move above 1,375 today would be bullish for a run to 1,400 by Friday while a close below the 100-day MA at 1,359 could be a hint of bad news to come.
The Nasdaq added 16 points, or 0.6%, to end at 2,951. Tech was pretty strong all session long and actually went out on its high after hitting a low of 2,926. The 25 point increments could provide us with a slight bullish or bearish clue heading into Thursday’s open. A close below 2,925 could be a signal that a drop below 2,900 is on the horizon while a pop above 2,975 could be a sign the bulls will push 3,000 by Friday. The 100-day MA is at 2,953 so the index hasn’t technically cleared this level.
As far as today’s action, the New York ISM figures will be released at 9:45am while Factory Orders are due out at 10am. Auto and Truck Sales are also due out today.
Futures are showing a slightly higher open: Dow (+13); S&P (+1); Nasdaq (+5).
We have some more thoughts to share on what we expect for the rest of the week so let’s get to the Members Area.