Some downside in the stock indices today as the Dow lost 170 points on good volume. The advance/declines were 3 to 1 negative. The summation index had turned higher yesterday but has taken on a sideways movement lately. Volatility picked up today in front of the Bernanke Jackson Hole speech. I don't know what the markets are looking for him to say but whatever happens in the market reaction is what to look for. Not really overbought or oversold here on a short term basis, so I guess we could go either way. It certainly hasn't been a slow summer. GE was down 1/4 on average volume. Still waiting for the right time to get the calls there. The gold futures ended up by $5 on the day after being lower early. Gained a bit more in the aftermarket. Not a bad showing considering yesterdays debacle. The XAU gained 3 1/2. ABX rose a buck, GG gained 1 1/8 and NEM tacked on 1/2. Volume was lighter than lately. The US dollar gained a bit today. My ABX calls are still in the black. I'm holding on for now but could exit anytime at this point. Yes there is plenty of time left for them but the tone of the gold market has changed with this weeks 100 point down day. We'll see what gold does after Bernanke. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. All eyes and ears are on the Jackson Hole speech tomorrow. There certainly is a lot of hype for this event and I don't think that it can possibly live up to it. We'll see. It's been a positive week for the stock indices so far and we'll see if they can hold onto the gains.