Art's Charts

SPY Forms Bearish Belt Hold Pattern

Arthur Hill

Arthur Hill

Chief Technical Strategist, TrendInvestorPro.com

Despite a strong open and weak close on Monday, the overall picture for SPY remains unchanged. A bearish Belt Hold formed on Monday. These are long black candlesticks that form after an advance. Neckline resistance from the inverse head-and-shoulders breakout turns into the first support zone to watch on any pullback.

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There is no change on the 60-minute chart, which shows a falling flag breakout with the gap above 133. The flag target is to around 138.5 (129.5 + 9 = 138.5). RSI moved into bull mode with the surge above 65 on April 20th and remains bullish until a break below 35.

110503spyi

Key Economic Reports/Events:
           
Tue - May 03 - 10:00 - Factory Orders   
Wed - May 04 - 07:00 - MBA Mortgage Index
Wed - May 04 - 08:15 - ADP Employment Report   
Wed - May 04 - 10:00 - ISM Services        
Wed - May 04 - 10:30 - Oil Inventories   
Thu - May 05 - 08:30 - Jobless Claims
Fri - May 06 - 08:30 - Employment Report
Fri - May 06 - 15:00 - Consumer Credit    
           
Charts of Interest: Tuesday and Thursday in separate post.

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This commentary and charts-of-interest are designed to stimulate thinking. This analysis is not a recommendation to buy, sell, hold or sell short any security (stock ETF or otherwise). We all need to think for ourselves when it comes to trading our own accounts. First, it is the only way to really learn. Second, we are the only ones responsible for our decisions. Think of these charts as food for further analysis. Before making a trade, it is important to have a plan. Plan the trade and trade the plan. Among other things, this includes setting a trigger level, a target area and a stop-loss level. It is also important to plan for three possible price movements: advance, decline or sideways. Have a plan for all three scenarios BEFORE making the trade. Consider possible holding times. And finally, look at overall market conditions and sector/industry performance.
Arthur Hill
About the author: , CMT, is the Chief Technical Strategist at TrendInvestorPro.com. Focusing predominantly on US equities and ETFs, his systematic approach of identifying trend, finding signals within the trend, and setting key price levels has made him an esteemed market technician. Arthur has written articles for numerous financial publications including Barrons and Stocks & Commodities Magazine. In addition to his Chartered Market Technician (CMT) designation, he holds an MBA from the Cass Business School at City University in London. Learn More