Just more of the same today. The bulls can’t be happy with the action since the Fed decision yesterday afternoon. Things were looking good this morning but that changed as the day wore on. It’s looking like it’s time to retest the July lows…
The Nasdaq had a nice rally working today on the back of Cisco (CSCO) but it ended in the red after tagging the May – July trendline. Note that On Balance Volume made a new low for the year.
Broken record time — the S&P failed at 1,280 again, broke its 200-day moving average and its On Balance Volume looks horrible.
Another grreater than 1% loss for the Russell 2000…
The Bank Index (BKX) got hit for 1.25% today. That’s not what the bulls want to see the day after the Fed took a break from the string of interest rate hikes.
No changes today
| Trend | Nasdaq | S&P 500 | Russell 2000 |
| Primary | Down | Lat | Lat |
| Intermediate | Down | Up | Lat |
| Short-term | Down | Down | Down |
(+) Indicates an upward reclassification today
(-) Indicates a downward reclassification today
Lat Indicates a Lateral trend
Hi Mike,
I have a question regarding simple vs. exponential moving averages. Most traders seem to stick to one type or the other. Some books say for short term (5/10/20 days) we should use simple averages, while exponential ones may be preferred for longer term (50/200d), since they reflect the most recent changes faster.
The fact is for high-priced stocks with big gaps up or down, the difference between the longer term averages may be quite significant. Sometimes I notice stocks may find support at an EMA, other times at an SMA.
For example, looking at AAPL and GOOG, both are currently under the 200d SMA, but still above the 200d EMA (GOOG just barely so, and its 200d EMA also flats out right now.)
If we use the 200d EMA, both stocks are still not “officially” in bear territory yet, but this is definitely the case if 200d SMA is used.
Obviously you prefer the SMA, but do you think the 200d EMA in these cases deserve some merits?
Thanks,
D
Dave,
I don’t really think it matters. Some stocks work better with EMAs, some better with SMA…and some don’t work well with either. I think the key is to find what works for you or a particluar stock and then be consistent.
When it comes down to it they’re all just self-fulfilling. They work to the extent that people follow them.