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Weekly Commentary 10/19/12

By Lawrence G. McMillan

A week ago, stocks seemed to be on the brink of breaking down. But the bulls regrouped, and $SPX rallied strongly off of that support base. Hence, the 1425-1430 area is now stronger support than ever.

Equity-only put-call ratios are the most bearish indicator of the lot.  They continue to rise rapidly, after having given sell signals last week.  Since they are still rising, they are still on those sell signals.

Market breadth indicators are hovering right on the edge of sell signals.

Stock bulls have the upper hand — for now

By Lawrence G. McMillan

MORRISTOWN, N.J. (MarketWatch) — The stock market has generally been declining since September 14th — the day after the Fed announced the latest round of Quantitative Easing.

Not only was the market overbought at that time, but the Fed’s announcement was widely anticipated news.

The trend remains the most important indicator

By Lawrence G. McMillan

$SPX rallied strong yesterday, bouncing off the support at 1425-1430, and that support was/is bolstered by the rising trendline at the bottom of the trading channel that has defined this bull market since June.  The buying accelerated late in the day, and it seemed as if the bears were capitulating to some extent.   Overnight, S&P futures have been strong again – gaining another 7 points in Globex trading.

Weekly Commentary 10/12/2012

By Lawrence G. McMillan

We have been bullish continuously since early June. But recent events and indicator changes have put this short-term forecast into jeopardy.

$SPX has support at 1430 from two downward probes in September. This week, that has also been the low. Hence, it has become important support.

One of the more negative developments is the fact that both the standard and the weighted equity-only put-call ratios are on sell signals now.

In focus: Bulls are exhausted

By Lawrence G. McMillan

As readers know, we have been bullish continuously since early June. Even as late as a week ago, it still seemed possible for this market to move higher over the short term. But recent events and indicator changes have put this short-term forecast into jeopardy.

Weekly Commentary 10/5/12

By Lawrence G. McMillan

The stock market continues to mark time, in the wake of the massive overbought condition that arose on September 14th -- right after the Fed announced the latest round of Quantitative Easing.  This type of action will, in my opinion, lead to a rally to new highs.

$SPX remains well within the bullish channel that has defined this market since the early June lows.

In focus: Short-term correction is almost over

By Lawrence G. McMillan

The stock market continues to mark time, not really declining much as it works off the overbought condition from a couple of weeks ago. It is still our opinion that once this short-term correction is over, higher prices will lie directly ahead. 

Weekly Commentary 9/28/2012

By Lawrence G. McMillan

The broad market, as measured by the S&P 500 Index ($SPX) remains in a bullish uptrend. The recent selling has drawn the index down from the top of the bullish channel that has defined this uptrend since early June (see Figure 1), but it only pulled back about halfway through the channel.

Equity-only put-call ratios are mixed. The standard ratio (chart, above left) continues to decline nearly every day. Thus it remains on a buy signal. The weighted ratio has now curled upward and is marked as a sell signal.

In focus: Correction

By Lawrence G. McMillan

The long-awaited correction appears to have begun. So far, the damage is minimal and is completely within the realm of an overbought correction. However, all declines start out looking “normal,” so we must be alert as to the possibility of a more serious technical breakdown.

Weekly Commentary 9/21/2012

By Lawrence G. McMillan

The stock market continues to be resilient, if dull.  The bears have not been able to force prices downward, despite what was a very overbought condition a week ago.

Equity-only put-call ratios remain bullish.  Both the standard and weighted ratio have now made new lows for this recent move, and that confirms their buy signals.

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