The Dow got crushed today as it fell 628 points on average volume. The advance/declines were shy of 2 to 1 negative. The summation index continues to trend lower. We did get a signal from the McClellan oscillator on Friday for a big move within the next two sessions and the Dows move lower today takes care of that. Both the NASDAQ and S&P 500 fell to begin the week but certainly not as much as the Dow. The NASDAQ dropped the least and the bulls will point to that. Many of the short term indicators for the S&P 500 are moving lower. The S&P now sits on the up trend line that began in April on the daily chart. We are at the moment of truth here. I still like the idea of the SPY September puts but it just might be too late. Inflation data on Thursday and Friday but it looks like the market isn't going to wait for that. I may place an order overnight for the SPY puts in case things reverse tomorrow. Gold was off $71 on the futures. The US dollar was lower and interest rates ticked up. The XAU dipped 1 2/3, while GDX slipped around 3/4. Volume was light. The short term indicators for GDX are turning lower. I do have an idea for the GDX September calls but will have to see what happens this week before taking on that trade. It would be a pretty risky one with time running out in the September option cycle but it will be based on the technical condition for GDX ahead of the Fed next week. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today which fits the down market. The short term indicators here have turned back up with room to go. Still a low reading for the VIX but the gap up today could spell trouble for the bulls. Asia was lower and Europe little changed overnight. We'll see how it goes tomorrow.

The employment report was much stronger than expected but stocks didn't enjoy that news as the Dow fell 272 points on light volume. The advance/declines were about even. The summation index is stalling here. Will it turn around with a stock rally or roll back over with a market decline. Always plenty of questions with no clear answers ahead of time in this game. The Dow led things lower and that's not the most bearish scenario. The short term indicators on the S&P are now mixed. I'm waiting to see if we can move higher ahead of the inflation data next week to try the SPY September puts. No clear signal either way as of now but I'll be checking things over the long holiday weekend. Gold lost $58 on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates were up slightly. The XAU fell almost 7 points and GDX lost 2 1/4. Volume was average. The short term indicators for GDX took a step back today. Not sure if I'm going to trade the GDX options ahead of the data next week but might try them the following week with the Fed meeting. There really isn't a clear signal here either right now. Only nine days left in the September option cycle. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. The VIX was up slightly today but remains at a very low level. The short term indicators here are oversold but not completely. Not sure what comes next for the VIX. Plenty of time this long weekend to go over the charts and get a game plan for next week. All the players should be back on Tuesday. Asia was higher and Europe mixed to close out the week. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

A good day for the bulls as the Dow climbed 624 points on light volume. The advance/declines were positive. The summation index is beginning to stall. The NASDAQ led the way higher. I had expected perhaps a quiet session ahead of tomorrows jobs report but that was not the case. Probably some short covering in there with the buyers. The short term indicators for the S&P 500 are moving up. If we continue to rally from here, new all time highs could be on the table for next week. I am still considering the SPY September puts though if things line up for that idea ahead of the inflation data due out late next week. However we also have to consider that the support at 7600 on the S&P held up and the up trend line that started in April is still intact on the daily chart. Gold took off to the upside as the futures gained $105. The US dollar fell sharply and interest rates dipped. The XAU added 12 1/4, while GDX was up 3 7/8. Volume was good to the upside. The short term indicators for GDX have turned around from the mid-range level. I canceled my open order for the GDX September calls as it appears that GDX is not going to get completely oversold as I had hoped. Another missed opportunity but we will wait and see if GDX can get above the recent highs. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower which fits an upside day for stocks. The short term indicators here are heading down but not yet completely oversold. Not sure what to expect with the market reaction to the jobs report but if today is any indication stocks will most likely continue higher. Asia lower and Europe higher overnight. We'll close out the trading week ahead of a long weekend tomorrow.

Some buyers returned to action today as the Dow was up 295 points on light volume. The advance/declines were positive. The summation index is still heading lower. The Dow led things higher and that isn't the most bullish outcome. We had a rally early on and then traded sideways for the rest of the session. The S&P 500 is still above the support at 7600. Its short term indicators are trying to turn back up. My guess is that we'll be in a holding pattern tomorrow ahead of Fridays jobs report. Gold was up $36 on the futures. The US dollar was a bit lower as were interest rates. The XAU was up 11 3/4 and GDX added almost 3. Volume was average. The short term indicators for GDX are beginning to stall at the mid-range level. I did place an overnight order for the GDX September calls but it will take more of a drop in GDX for it to get filled. But I do have to wonder if this is the place for that trade if the mid-range level on the indicators proves to be support. The trading is never easy. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and some of its short term indicators have turned back down. The daily candlestick chart here now looks like it wants to go lower. Not sure what's next for the VIX. Simply waiting for the employment report at this point unless some overnight news gets things going early tomorrow. A long weekend on the horizon but everybody should be back at their desks by Tuesday. Asia and Europe closed lower overnight. I'll keep watch on the overnight developments.

Heading down as the Dow fell 419 points on light volume. The advance/declines were better than 2 to 1 negative. The summation index is moving lower. The NASDAQ led things down and that is not a plus for the bulls. The S&P 500 had a decent drop and the short term indicators here are now more oversold. It remains above the support at 7600. It appears that it is too late for the SPY September puts but you never know. Gold fell $107 on the futures. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU lost 15 3/4, while GDX shed 3 3/4. Volume was good to the downside here. The short term indicators on GDX are moving down but are not yet short term oversold. When it gets there we will most likely try the GDX September calls. That is the plan at the moment. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX moved higher today and that fits with a down market. The short term indicators here are moving up but not yet overbought. Still far below the 20 level on the VIX. With the summation index moving down the path of least resistance is lower. The key is what happens at 7600. There is support from previous tops along with the near term up trend line that began in April. We should know what happens by the end of the week. Asia and Europe were lower overnight. I'll keep an eye on tonights headlines.

Lower to start the week on the last day of August as the Dow fell 374 points on good volume. The advance/declines were negative. The summation index is moving lower. The NASDAQ and S&P 500 posted small losses. The Dow leading the way down isn't the worst possible scenario. The short term indicators for the S&P appear to be rolling over in oversold territory though. Near term support on the S&P is still at around the 7600 level. Gold was off $26 on the futures. The US dollar was lower and interest rates were higher. The XAU fell 5 1/2, while GDX slipped 1 1/8. Volume was light. The short term indicators for GDX are still trending lower with room to go. I am still looking at the GDX September calls but will wait for now. Getting back to short term oversold on the gold shares before option expiration would be the ideal time for this idea but markets rarely cooperate. I am also in favor of the SPY September puts at some point unless things simply unravel from here. The volume was better today so perhaps players are back at their desks ahead of Labor day. Or it could just be the result of the end of the month squaring. The VIX was higher today which fits a down market. Its short term indicators are trying to turn back up. That would not bode well for stocks if it happens. Plenty of economic data out this week highlighted by the jobs report on Friday. Europe and Asia were generally lower to begin the week. We'll see how the market starts the month of September tomorrow.

An up and down session to end the week that finished mostly lower across the board. The Dow only fell 9 points on light volume. The advance/declines were negative. The summation index is still trending lower. The Fed chairman spoke and the market sold off. The NASDAQ led the way down. The short term indicators for the S&P 500 are starting to roll over. We still like the idea of the SPY September puts. But will everybody be back at their desks next week or do we have to wait until after Labor day? No clear signal that I can see on what happens next. Gold got slammed and the futures fell $158. The US dollar jumped and interest rates were higher. The XAU lost 15 1/3 and GDX shed 4. Volume was heavy to the downside. The short term indicators on GDX have begun to move lower but are still on the overbought side of the ledger. The question is whether or not this is the opportunity to try the GDX September calls. We'll consider the answer over the weekend. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was a touch lower today which doesn't fit with a down market. Some of the short term indicators here are beginning to turn sideways. Yesterday the VIX looked like it wanted to go lower but now the picture isn't as clear. What is clear is that the breadth remains lousy and the NASDAQ has yet to confirm the other averages recent new all time highs. I'll be going over the charts as usual this weekend. Europe and Asia were higher to end the week. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.