The market managed to keep some small gains, closing on a strong note. Techs were a bit weaker. Metals and energy groups showed a lot of strength. XLE (energy) added nearly +2.89%. The familiar energy names were mostly up: DVN +6.47%; CLR +7.28%; HES +5.64%; HK +8.43%. Oil services continued where they left off yesterday with RIG +2.86%, SLB +2.95%, and NOV +6.78%. Solar stocks soared! This weekend, in my Market Forecast, I focused a little more on the solar stocks and said,
“Last week, LDK reported great earnings and jumped a whopping +28%! On Friday, SPWR signed a huge contract with GE and flew up almost +18%. Tomorrow, Monday morning, TSL will announce its quarterly earnings. FSLR really has not moved yet. STP added +9.39% on Friday and has lots of room to recover. ENER (we have a position in this) closed above $70 and could be ready for a breakout.”
This morning, STP reported stellar earnings and raise its forecast for 2008! STP shares soared +12.44%. FSLR added +5.51%, or $14.25. TSL finally moved, up +7.8%, and, should have a lot more room to go. ENER indeed broke out and jumped more than +10%! CSIQ flew up +15.22%.
I closed the position on ENER for a +85% gain:
12:10 | HappyTrading ENER ($77.30) Sold to Close EQIIM Sep 65 calls, at $15.00 +85%
These options close at $15.3 and went as high as $15.5.
The Dow was up +68.88 points (lots of “8?s, hmmm….); SPX added +7.85 points; Nasdaq gained +4.72 points:
VIX closed down 4.04%. Techs were a bit on the weak side. SOX (semiconductors) and SWH (software) managed to close in the green. OIH (oil services) added another +3.17%. XME (metals and mining) garnered +3.7%. USO (oil) was up +1.34%, while UNG (natural gas) gained +1.66%. MOO (agriculture) advanced +2.42%. FXI (Chinese ADRs) finally bounced, up +5.53%!
SPX
SPX gained +7.85 points to close at 1274.54. It closed at its 20-day MA. The MACD flattened.
Nasdaq
Nasdaq added +4.72 points to close at 2389.08. It closed between its 10-day and 20-day MAs. The MACD flattened a bit.
The market is working hard, trying to keep its recovery working. FNM and FRE are certainly putting pressure on the financials, although XLF managed to close up +2.06%, somehow. Metals and energy plays are being snatched up at much cheaper prices. The market is still in a precarious place and we certainly need to see more improvements in the financial sector. There are mixed signals on the market, leading to lots of debates as to where the market stands. It does seem like the commodity-related sector are trying to establish bottoms (also discussed in my Market Forecast). The question for me is whether the techs and financials can keep on gaining, or, is the market still in this “seesaw” environment where money jumps from side to side. In order for the market to continue higher, SPX needs to break 1300, which perhaps may require most major sectors to work together. On the downside, breaking the 30-day MA, could lead to another test of 1240. Again, be very careful.
