TECHNOLOGY BREAKS 200-DAY LINE... The Nasdaq 100 achieved its first Friday close above its 200-day average since last March. That's a good sign both for technology and the rest of the market. That's because the market is usually in better shape when technology is... READ MORE
RETAIL BUYING... Retail stocks are experienceing strong buying today across the board. Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF), one of todays NYSE most actives, is gapping up above its 200-day moving average. The stock appears poised to challenge its December high. Best Buy (BBY) is gapping up. The next level of... READ MORE
NASDAQ RALLIES ON INCREASED VOLUME - 40 WEEK MOVING AVERAGE CHALLENGE... The Nasdaq Composite rallied 2.67% to close above its 40-week (200-Day) moving average. However, a Friday close over the moving average is necessary to validate an upside penetration on the weekly chart. Heavier volume is also encouraging... READ MORE
KEY TEST OF OVERHEAD RESISTANCE... The Nasdaq market is testing a key resistance barrier at its 200-day moving average. The test is important because the 200-day line is one of the key indicators in determining whether a market is in a bull or bear market. The first chart... READ MORE
ALCOA IS BIGGEST DOW LOSER... Alcoa fell over 10% today -- on very heavy volume. Chart 1 also shows the big aluminum producer falling under previous chart support at its December lows. That breakdown helped set a gloomy tone for the Dow and the rest of the market. If that wasn&... READ MORE
ENERGY STOCKS DROP... Energy stocks are down sharply today with stocks in the oil drilling industry experiencing the heaviest selling. Transocean (RIG) appears to have completed a two month topping formation (see shaded area). In addition, the stock has fallen below its November low and the bottom of its neutral... READ MORE
EMC AND ORCL RALLY ON MASSIVE VOLUME... EMC surged up today to close above its 200-day moving average on massive volume and appears poised to challenge its December high (see circle). The RSI line (above chart) is trending upward. The MACD histogram (below chart) has turned positive, which reverses... READ MORE
FINANCIALS ARE STRONG... The Financials Select Sector SPDR is one of the day's strongest performers. Prices have climbed to a new monthly high -- and are nearing a test of the November high -- and 200-day moving averages. Banks and brokers are the two strongest groups. The Broker/Dealer... READ MORE
BANKS AND UTILITIES SHOW BIG GAINS... The presidential plan to eliminate taxes on dividends gave a big boost to dividend-paying stocks today. Among the biggest beneficiaries were banks and utilities. The Bank Index is within striking distance of its August/November highs. The BKX also closed above its 200-... READ MORE
SOME MONTHLY SIGNALS ARE POSITIVE -- EXCEPT MACD LINES... What better time to review the market's longer range trend than the start of a new year - and after three years of decline. We think the best way to do that is to look at monthly charts -- and their accompanying... READ MORE
NASDAQ'S MOST ACTIVES - CSCO, INTC, AND MSFT LEAD TECHS HIGHER... Today's NASDAQ rally is being lead by the following top five most actively traded technology stocks: Cisco, Intel, Sun Microsystems, Microsoft, and Oracle. Cisco is currently sandwiched between its 50 and 200-day moving averages (see... READ MORE
DOW, NASDAQ, S&P 500 SURGE ON BELOW AVERAGE VOLUME... Today's broad based market rally is the best new year start we've seen in 15 years. (Historically, January 4th, 1988 was the last time the market had such a robust start.) The Dow marched ahead... READ MORE