Market Timing – Weekly Stock Market Strategy – December 2010

Weekly stock market strategy updates that went out to subscribers during December 2010. To receive current weekly update sent to your email, click on the FREE TRIAL link at the top of the page.

Weekly Market Update 12/5/10

The US stock market indexes had a very good week. It appears the gains had a lot to do with a rebound in the Euro and decline in the Dollar. Now the US indexes are all near their November highs, and showing a negative divergence with RSI. I would not recommend trading based on the negative divergence, for me it is more of a caution sign. This week could prove interesting. Will the dollar continue to decline? Will a decline in the dollar be enough to push the indexes above their November highs? The dollar is pretty oversold on a short-term basis. If the rally in the Dollar from its November lows is truly a change in trend, and I am not sure it is, there should not be much left in this pullback for the dollar. I think this week might see a modest move above the November highs in the US indexes followed by some consolidation.

Weekly Market Update 12/12/10

The US indices had a modest move up for the week. The good news is that the November highs have been taken out. This move came while the dollar gained for the week. That is contrary to the dollar based move we have seen over the last several months. Bullish sentiment numbers continue to increase and suggest that a top may be near. For this reason I will be moving the stop on our SPY position to 120.50.

Weekly Market Update 12/19/10

This feels like it is starting to get a bit repetitive. The markets moved modestly higher this week. There has been, no real surprises, on the economic front. The dollar has managed to find a trading range. And, market sentiment continues to get more bullish
For this reason I will be moving the stop on our SPY position to 122.75.

Weekly Market Update 12/27/10

The markets moved modestly higher again this week. Market sentiment is at levels usually only reached during market tops. That being said as long as the FED continues purchasing our national debt, I am reluctant to call the top. I will be moving the stop on our SPY position to 123.50.

Market Timing – Weekly Stock Market Strategy – August 2010

Weekly stock market strategy updates that went out to subscribers during August 2010. To receive current weekly update sent to your email, click on the FREE TRIAL link at the top of the page.

Weekly Market Update 8/1/10

The market finished the week basically where it started. The bulls and bears are in a tug of war, and the outcome has yet to be determined. I would say that positive earnings are what is driving the bulls. While weak economic numbers and, a unclear future, are what is guiding the bears. I am leaning slightly toward the bear camp. If the SPY can manage a couple closes over 112, I would have to reconsider my stance. Right now I am happy watching the tug of war from the sidelines.

Weekly Market Update 8/8/10

The SPY managed a couple closes over 112 this week. These higher closes were able to get the 14 period RSI to close over 60 on the daily charts. This triggered my RSI buy setup that will move our intermediate term market call to bullish if the SPY can close at 113 or higher.

Except for Friday’s price action most of the week was spent trading between 112 and 113 on the SPY. Friday’s action showed some early weakness on the monthly employment figures, but manage to recover most of the day’s losses near the close. The inaction early in the week was a result of traders waiting on Friday’s employment data. The hesitation in the market is due to uncertainty as to weather we will see a “V” or a “W” shaped recovery. A “W” shaped recovery is a double dip and seems like the most likely outcome. This is not a forgone conclusion though and has a great deal to due with the current market uncertainty. Traders will be looking to various economic reports to give signals as to which type of recovery is most likely. Increased volatility in the coming months is almost a certainty.

Weekly Market Update 8/15/10

Talk about pennies from heaven. The SPY closed Monday at 112.99, literally a penny from where I thought I would have to turn my intermediate term call to bullish. I don’t know if that was dumb luck or not but I am glad we did not go long before the sell-off began. The indices took a hit this week, losing 3-5%. The market is now oversold going into the weekend. The question is, are we oversold enough to find support or, will this level just be a speed bump on the way to lower prices? If we do not start seeing some positive economic numbers, I will be leaning toward the speed bump scenario.

Weekly Market Update 8/22/10

The markets were mixed this week. On a short-term basis we have found a range between 107 and 111 on SPY. The 107 level has become a kind of line in the sand. If the market cannot hold this level the July lows near 102 will be tested. On the other hand we are somewhat oversold here so anything is possible. We may have to see how the economic reports come out this week. Lately they have pointed toward a weaker economy.

Weekly Market Update 8/29/10

The 107 level on the SPY was breached on Tuesday. It looks like the 104 level is going to act as support. I thought that since that level was broke in early July it might not act as support this time around. Judging by Friday’s price action I guess I was wrong.

The stock market is oversold on many levels but, one thing is bothering me. We haven’t had a high volume capitulation like sell-off. When everyone seems to have given up then we can start to look for at least a bounce. Friday’s unemployment numbers has the potential to set the trend for the next few weeks. Just keep in mind the initial move is sometimes corrected by the end of the day.

Market Timing – Weekly Stock Market Strategy – February 2010

Weekly stock market updates that went out to subscribers during February 2010. To receive current weekly update sent to your email, click on the FREE TRIAL link at the top of the page.

Weekly Market Update 2/6/10

I recommend going 60% long on
the open Monday if the SPY is trading above 106.66 but below 107.73.
Once filled place stop at 104.25.

My thoughts on this week’s market

As expected the market managed a modest bounce early in the week. For
those inclined it set up a nice opportunity to sell on Thursday. That,
however, is not the purpose of this newsletter. The market continued
to sell-off until the final hours of the week. The sell-off that
began on Thursday seemed to be brought on by fears of possible debt
defaults by a few of the smaller members of the European Union, and
fear about pending jobs data. What brought the market from -1.75% to
close with a modest gain on Friday, is a little less certain. It
appears that the rebound was technical in nature. Be that as it may,
it is a positive sign that investors became less fearful of holding
stocks over the weekend. I think the lows put in on Friday could
possibly be at least an intermediate term low, that should hold for
a least a month.

In previous emails I have mentioned my use of the 3-period RSI on
daily charts. I like to use it on the weekly charts as well. The
3-period RSI closed below 20 on Friday. This sets up what I believe
is a good point to buy on the intermediate time frame. The last such
opportunity came in July of last year. I am recommending a buy on
Monday morning if the SPY is trading above Fridays close at 106.66.
There is a real possibility the market could gap open significantly
higher. If the gap up is over 1% or 107.73, I would recommend
waiting for a better entry. Friday’s low of 104.58 should hold if
this pullback is over.

Midweek update 2/8/2010

The follow through I was anticipating has not materialized. If you
place your trades for the close, do not place your trade today. If
you did buy this morning as the SPY traded briefly above 106.66,
exit the trade on your first profitable close.

I apologize I was expecting more follow through on the open. A lack
of follow through changes my outlook.

Weekly Market Update 2/14/10

I had recommended going long
last Monday but the opening was not as strong as I had anticipated.
For that reason I sent out an email Monday suggesting no entry or
getting out on the first profitable close. The first profitable close
would have been Tuesday, so thankfully nobody should have taken a loss.

My thoughts on this week’s market

As you know I had expected some follow through from the market
activity of Friday February 5th. When the Mondays open looked as
though the open would be unchanged to modestly higher, I became
suspect. If the market couldn’t pick up any more believers over the
weekend I figured the upside this week would be limited. That is
exactly what we got. The market has seen some serious technical
damage over the last few weeks. At the very least we should see a
test of the February 5th lows and we could possibly see a move lower.
For that reason I think it is best we sit on the sidelines and wait
for a better entry.

Weekly Market Update 2/20/10

The markets had a good week this week. Even though it looks as
though we may have seen a tradable low, I am not convinced. I don’t
know about you, but I am hearing “trillion dollars,” with a little
too much frequency. This week’s edition came in the form of the Pew
Report. I will some it up for you, our states have a trillion dollar
gap in pension liabilities. The states can’t print money, so they
will have to raise taxes, reduce liabilities or both. Raising taxes
and reducing expenditures do not sound like ways to get out of a
recession.
From a technical standpoint the markets are now overbought. The
question is, is the market in a trading range, overbought in a new
down leg, or still in an uptrend? I think it is one of the first two.
If we are in a trading range it is most probably bound by January
19th high and the February 5th low, and the market would probably be
stuck in that range for 4 to 6 months. I however think it might be a
little more likely that we are currently overbought in a new down
leg. If I am correct we probably won’t see the markets trade much
higher than Fridays close this coming week.

Weekly Market Update 2/27/10

It was a relatively tame week. The SPY’s range for the whole week
was slightly more than the 2%. The highs from last Friday did hold
as predicted. The market has come off overbought levels and where it
goes this week is a little less certain. There is resistance at
111.60; we could test that this week. If we see a close over 111.60
then the January highs near 115.15 would probably be the next target.
On the other hand if the market is unable to close over 111.60 this
week, the February lows are probably going to be the next target.
Overall it is a bit less clear how things will pan out this week.
With a unemployment report coming Friday, it is possible to have
another tame week.

Market Timing – Weekly Stock Market Update

The following emails went out over the last several weeks to our subscribers. If you would like to receive more timely market updates, go to the FREE TRIAL page and enter your name and e-mail address where it says join BuyandHoldisDead.com.

Due to the volatility in the markets I have included the current Market Update that went out to subscribers.

Weekly Market Update 10/3/09

Our profit margin took a hit this week. I have moved the stop for all long SPY positions to 101.49. This stop was sent out in a mid-week update. If we get stopped out we are sitting pretty close to break-even.

The Volatility Index or VXO as spiked higher and generated a sell signal for the SPY. This is part of the reason I am leaving our stop right below Fridays low. I don’t want to get caught long if the market decides to sell off sharply. The RSI, which is one of my favorite indicators, is very close to indicating a change in trend. On Friday the 14 period RSI closed at 43.17. If the RSI closes below 40 for more than a couple days, I would no longer be looking to buy dips.

Mid-Week update sent out 10/2/2009

The market is expected to open down another 1% today. This is on top
of Thursdays sell-off. This is not the time of year I like to see
Sentiment and economic numbers change.
I recommend exiting all long SPY position with a sell stop @ 101.49.
If the market fundamentals improve we can always get back in later.

Weekly Market Update 9/27/09

I am leaving our sell stop at 100.32. We have reached a point in this retracement where it is safe to consider adding to our long position with limited risk on the down side. I am only looking to add an additional 10% to our long position if filled we would be 30% long. I will place a buy stop at 105.46. If the market continues to make lower highs I will be lowering this stop.

Trend Following System

This Trend Following System is derived from the work of Constance Brown. In her book Technical Analysis for the Trading Professional she discusses RSI trading zones for both bull and bear markets. RSI (Relative Strength Index) is a very popular indicator developed by Welles Wilder. It measures gains vs. losses over a defined period and is traditionally used to signal overbought and oversold markets. The formula can be found on several sites on the web so I won’t go into detail here. What Constance points out in her book is that in a bear market the RSI will not typically trade above 60 and in a bull market the RSI will usually stay above 40.

What I have done with this is applied a 14 period RSI to a weekly chart of the SPY. SPY is ETF of the S&P 500. A long signal is generated when the RSI closes above 60 for the week. We will remain long until the RSI closes below 40 for the week. Signals are generated on Friday and trades were taken at the open on Monday. I realize that in most 401k accounts trades are done on the close. This should not significantly change the results.

Caution: This is a rather large file and may be slow in loading.

SPY CHART W/ RSI Trend Following System

 Trend Following System Trade Dates 

Past performance is not necessarily an indication of future performance. Hypothetical or simulated performance results have certain inherent limitations. See full disclosure on disclosure page.