Yesterday’s trade started with extremely low volume on Globex, only 33k ES traded, the overnight trading range was only 6 handles from 2683.50 to 2689.50. With many overseas markets closed, people in the U.S. still celebrating the Christmas holiday, and Apple reducing its Iphone X manufacturing orders, the S&P 500 futures (ESH18:CME) opened at 2684.50 down -1.50 handle or -0.04%.
After the open, the ES rallied up to 2688.25, pulled back under the vwap to 2585.00, double topped at the early high, and then sold off under the vwap and double bottomed at 2685.00. Over the next 3 hours the ES traded in a 2 handle range. Total volume at 11:30 was only 210,000 contracts. The longer the day wore on, the narrower the trading range became. After the MiM came out showing $115 million to sell, the ES sold off down to 2684.25, and on the 2:45 cash close the ES traded 2686.75.
It was a very slow day in terms of the overall volume and trade. With most U.S. students not going back to school until after January 1st, the market will more than likely remain in a quiet, low volume upward chop. As we have always said, we love writing about the markets, but there just is not much to say. The weakness in APPLE helped push several supply companies down. Chip maker Broadcom was down 1.6%, while Skyworks Solutions fell 1.9%.
Two bright spots were the retailers and energy stocks. U.S. retail sales in the holiday period rose at their fastest pace since 2011; Macys rose 4.6%, Kohls jumped 6%, and JC Penny was up 5.4%. Energy stocks led S&P 500 advancers as U.S. crude oil futures briefly hit $60 for the first time in 2½ years when news of an explosion at a crude pipeline in Libya broke.
In the end the S&P 500 futures (ESH18:CME) settled at 2687.00, up +1.00 handles, or +0.03%; the Dow Jones futures (YMH18:CBT) settled at 24,792, up +26 points, or +0.10%; the Nasdaq 100 futures (NQH18:CME) settled at 6460.00, down -23.75 points, or -0.36%; and the Russell 2000 (RTYH18:CME) settled at 1547.50, up +3.80 points or +0.24% on the day.
Below is a good read if you want to learn about what ‘rebalancing’ means…
Financially Speaking: Portfolio rebalancing and tax moves to make
From Saratogian Business
As stocks are soon to exit calendar year 2017, if you haven’t done it already, now might be a good time to consider conducting a personal financial check-up. Some items on that list might include the following.
As always, please use protective buy and sell stops when trading futures and options.
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- In Asia 8 out of 11 markets closed higher: Shanghai Comp -0.93%, Hang Seng +0.07%, Nikkei +0.08%
- In Europe 9 out of 12 markets are trading lower: CAC -0.12%, DAX -0.28%, FTSE +0.22%
- Fair Value: S&P +5.26, NASDAQ +24.54, Dow +29.20
- Total Volume: 374k ESH & 146 SPH traded in the pit
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Disclaimer: Trading Futures, Options on Futures, and retail off-exchange foreign currency transactions involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for all investors. You should carefully consider whether trading is suitable for you in light of your circumstances, knowledge, and financial resources. Any decision to purchase or sell as a result of the opinions expressed in the forum will be the full responsibility of the person(s) authorizing such transaction(s). BE ADVISED TO ALWAYS USE PROTECTIVE STOP LOSSES AND ALLOW FOR SLIPPAGE TO MANAGE YOUR TRADE(S) AS AN INVESTOR COULD LOSE ALL OR MORE THAN THEIR INITIAL INVESTMENT. PAST PERFORMANCE IS NOT INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS.
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