**This chart analysis is for educational purposes only, and should not
be construed as a recommendation to buy, sell or sell-short said securities**
Stocks started September with strength as the Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ) and the Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) advance around 2% in a shortened week. All sectors were up last week with industrials, healthcare and finance leading the way. Tech stocks got a lift from big gains in networking and semis as the Networking iShares (IGN) and the Semiconductor SPDR (XSD) both surged over 4%. The market is a bit split right now. Last week's bounce carried IWM and SPY into resistance zones marked by key retracements and gaps. While the 5-6 day trends are up, the 5-6 week trends remain down. And resistance is nigh. QQQ, on the other hand, held support in late August and is now challenging its August highs. QQQ and techs show relative strength. At this point, I would not be surprised to see more choppy and indecisive trading. The economic docket is light this week, but we do have Retail Sales on Friday, the 13th. Also note that the Fed starts its two-day meeting next Tuesday.
be construed as a recommendation to buy, sell or sell-short said securities**
Stocks started September with strength as the Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ) and the Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) advance around 2% in a shortened week. All sectors were up last week with industrials, healthcare and finance leading the way. Tech stocks got a lift from big gains in networking and semis as the Networking iShares (IGN) and the Semiconductor SPDR (XSD) both surged over 4%. The market is a bit split right now. Last week's bounce carried IWM and SPY into resistance zones marked by key retracements and gaps. While the 5-6 day trends are up, the 5-6 week trends remain down. And resistance is nigh. QQQ, on the other hand, held support in late August and is now challenging its August highs. QQQ and techs show relative strength. At this point, I would not be surprised to see more choppy and indecisive trading. The economic docket is light this week, but we do have Retail Sales on Friday, the 13th. Also note that the Fed starts its two-day meeting next Tuesday.
**************************************************************************
**************************************************************************
**************************************************************************
**************************************************************************
**************************************************************************
Key Reports and Events (all times Eastern):
Wed - Sep 11 - 07:00 - MBA Mortgage Index
Wed - Sep 11 - 10:30 - Crude Oil Inventories
Thu - Sep 12 - 08:30 - Initial Jobless Claims
Thu - Sep 12 - 10:30 - Natural Gas Inventories
Fri - Sep 13 - 08:30 - Retail Sales
Fri - Sep 13 - 08:30 - Producer Price Index (PPI)
Fri - Sep 13 - 09:55 - Michigan Sentiment
Tue – Sep 17 – 09:00 – FOMC Meeting Begins
Wed – Sep 18 – 14:15 – FOMC Policy Statement
Fri – Sep 06 – 08:30 – Employment Report
Sun – Sep 22 – 10:00 – German Elections
Tue – Oct 15 - 09:00 – 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.
Learn More
