Stocks started the day weak with some selling pressure on the open, but quickly firmed as the major index ETFs worked their way higher the rest of the day. SPY and MDY closed near their highs for the day, which also happen to be 52-week highs. On a percentage basis, the moves were small and insignificant. They simply extended the current uptrends a little further. All nine sectors were up with the Finance SPDR (+.77%), the Basic Materials SPDR (+.56%) and the Healthcare SPDR (+.52%) leading the way. XLF hit another new high and continues to lead. XLB is playing catch-up this month and challenging its January highs. February was most defensive as healthcare, utilities and consumer staples outperformed. March has turned offensive as finance, consumer discretionary and technology outperformed. Note that I substituted the S&P 500 Equal-Weight Technology ETF (RTY) for the Technology SPDR (XLK). XLK is underperforming in March, but RYT is outperforming. Finance is clearly the big winner so far as big banks and the Regional Bank SPDR (KRE) lead this March market madness.
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Key Reports and Events (all times Eastern):
Wed - Mar 13 - 07:00 - MBA Mortgage Index
Wed - Mar 13 - 08:30 - Retail Sales
Wed - Mar 13 - 10:00 - Business Inventories
Wed - Mar 13 - 10:30 - Crude Inventories
Thu - Mar 14 - 08:30 – Initial Jobless Claims
Thu - Mar 14 - 08:30 – Producer Price Index (PPI)
Thu - Mar 14 - 10:30 - Natural Gas Inventories
Fri - Mar 15 - 08:30 – Consumer Price Index (CPI)
Fri - Mar 15 - 08:30 - Empire State Manufacturing
Fri - Mar 15 - 09:15 - Industrial Production/Capacity Utilization
Fri - Mar 15 - 09:55 - Michigan Sentiment
Fri - Mar 17 – 12:00 – Erin go Bragh!
Wed – Mar 27 - 23:59 – Government Shut Down Deadline
Wed – May 15 - 23:59 – Debt Ceiling Deadline
Charts of Interest: Tuesday and Thursday
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.
About the author:
Arthur Hill, 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.
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