This market just cannot make up its mind. It has been “seesawing” back and forth. For the past 5 trading sessions, it has been closing in the opposite direction as it has opened. When the market opened up, it closed down; when the market opened down, it closed up!
Today, the market opened up! By the end of the day, the Dow was down 142.96 points; SPX lost 17.5 points; and Nasdaq stumbled 27.32 points.
We did pretty well though, catching the big jump by RIMM. We opened a position yesterday on RIMM with March 100 calls and cashed out this morning for a +175% gain!
Here’s how the market closed:
Most sectors traded lower.
INX2 (Internet),
BTK (biotechs), and
SWH (software) were down 1.59%, 1.54%, and 1.21%, respectively.
GLD (gold) made a new all-time high today, but, closed flat.
USO (oil) cooled off with a 2.51% decline, as
OIH (oil services) also saw profit-taking, down 2.2%.
FXI (Chinese ADRs) dropped 3.87%.
SPX
SPX lost 17.5 points to close at 1342.53. It tested its 30-day MA again, but, still could not hold above. Instead, it closed just below the 10-day MA. The MACD flattened a bit.
Nasdaq
Nasdaq stumbled 27.32 points to close at 2299.78, just below the support at 2300. This is critical. If the techs don’t bounce off tomorrow, the immediate support is between 2200-2250.
Although the overall market is in a better shape than the techs, with SPX having a support at 1325, it is certainly having a hard time establishing a bottom without the techs showing strength. So, tomorrow is going to be very important. Any weakness could bring the market to test the lows again. The daily MAs are getting pinched closer and closer together, a solid move up could still shift the market tone. Cash may still be the safer place, until this market gets off the seesaw!
This morning, CPS announced that it has agreed to be acquired by Reed Elsevier for $3.6 billion in cash. Its stock surged a whopping +43.4%! RIMM saw its shares jump $12 in the morning as it raised its forecast for subscribers in 4Q. Its shares closed up almost +9%. TEX reported earnings that soared past expectations. Its shares went up more the +7% today. ABX delivered solid earnings and is looking to buy Cortez Gold Mine Stake from RTP. Both ABX and RTP closed just slightly green, although I do think that both of these stocks could be ready to go higher.
Good night and HappyTrading! ™
