With market logging its 7^th straight weekly loss
in a row, prospects have dimmed for the usually quiet trading during the week
before Memorial Day. In the Stock
Trader’s Almanac, we show how the market trades around Memorial Day.

In the table below we went back to 1971, the year the Uniform
Monday Holiday Act took effect, moving Memorial Day and most other federal
holidays to Monday. In recent years, the Friday before Memorial has become
getaway day on The Street and volume is often diminished and trading
uninspired.

DJIA is the weakest in the week before Memorial Day up 26 of
the past 51 years and a paltry 0.01% average gain. S&P is a bit better, up 62.7%
of the time with an average gain of 0.2%. NASDAQ is up 64.7% of the time,
averaging a gain of 0.29%. But the Russell 2000 small caps take the lead ahead
of the official kick-off to summer up 74.4% of the time with an average gain of
0.6%.

But with the market getting hammered the last 7 weeks straight,
NASDAQ already in bear market territory and S&P on the brink it is hard to get
bullish on the market even for pre-holiday inspired trading. Our weekly
losing streak study from last week does show a short pop across the board
when these losing streaks end – but they have to end.