We finished the month on a positive note as the Dow gained 199 points on heavy volume.  The advance/declines were slightly positive.  The summation index is moving up.  My SPY December calls somehow made it back into the black.  Not sure exactly what we saw in the market today unless it already knows there will be good news coming out over the weekend.  Monday still hinges on the China/US meeting tonight.  It's simply a guess as to what transpires there.  The short term technical indicators for the S&P are getting overbought.  The weekly chart for the S&P looks like it could be a double bottom.  The indicators there are trying to turn around and if they do the double bottom will be confirmed but it hasn't happened yet.  A lot depends on outcome of the G-20 meeting.  GE was off almost 1/2 today on heavy volume.  No bottom here yet I guess.  Gold lost a couple bucks as the US dollar was higher.  The XAU and GDX had slight fractional losses again and finished up from the lows of the session.  Volume was light.  I'm leaving my open order for the GDX January calls out there.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  Another volatile month for stocks but it appears that a bottom may be in place.  Temporarily at least.  We'll still need to see the VIX crack the 15 to 16 level to the downside for the all clear on a rally.  Getting short term oversold there though and any negative headline could easily see us heading back towards 20.  Three weeks to go in the December option cycle.  The fact that my SPY options were dead and have came back to life cannot be ignored.  The question now is do I just get out and save the money for another trade or do I hold on and see if the market really has formed a double bottom?  I'm leaning towards the latter.  I will have to check all the charts over the weekend though.  Plenty of economic data due out next week once we digest the results of the China/US get together.  So there will be plenty to consider moving forward from here.  I'll try to remain objective as we start the month of December.  We'll see if the seasonal strength decides to kick in or not.  Asia was higher and Europe lower overnight.  It's Friday afternoon and time for a break. 

A bit of downside today and that is to be expected after yesterdays huge run up.  The Dow fell 27 points on average volume.  The advance/declines were slightly negative.  The summation has turned around again and is trying to head higher.  My SPY December calls are back to break even.  It looks like that this will be a trade that is held onto for a while.  End of the month tomorrow and I would not be surprised to see some more selling.  The market will be waiting to see what happens with the US/China meeting over the weekend.  That will probably be the market mover for Monday.  GE was up almost 1/4 on heavy volume.  Has a bottom been put in here?  I would expect some more selling in December but we'll see what happens.  Gold and the US dollar finished little changed.  The XAU and GDX had small fractional losses on light volume.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  The VIX remains elevated so I would expect volatility to continue.  If we can somehow get below the 200 day moving average here at around16, then I think we have the chance for a sustainable rally.  For now the S&P 500 is really just bouncing around roughly between the 2800 and 2650 levels.  Any break in either direction will tell where we're going.  On the plus side if we break the declining tops line on the S&P, that will also take us above the 50 and 200 day moving averages.  That would be a strong positive and no doubt would lead to higher prices.  But we certainly haven't seen that happen yet.  A drop and close below 2650 would put the bears back in charge.  So we'll have to see how it plays out.  Europe and Asia were both higher overnight, following the US lead.  We'll close out the week and the month tomorrow.

The Fed spoke and the market liked what it heard as the Dow staged a powerful rally and was up 617 points on heavy volume.  The advance/declines were 4 to 1 positive.  This will turn the summation index back up.  We'll need to see more good breadth to keep this indicator moving higher.  Is there anything different in the market from yesterday to today?  Not really.  But this game runs on emotions both ways.  It appears that perhaps now a double bottom is in for the major stock averages.  However we need to break through the declining tops line that began at the end of September to really be out of the woods.  Hasn't happened yet.  The short term technical indicators have turned back up.  My SPY December calls are now actually showing a small profit.  That is a small miracle.  GE was up 1/3 on heavy volume.  Gold gained $7 on the futures as the US dollar fell.  That was to be expected after the dovish Fed.  The XAU added two points and GDX rose 1/2.  Volume was good.  I'm leaving in my open order for the GDX January calls.  Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired, did not sleep well.  After a six hundred point gain, I'd expect the market to take a breather here before we finish off the month.  The next event will be the US and China over the weekend.  This too has the potential to be a major market mover one way or the other.  I probably need to seriously consider getting out of the SPY trade since it has already come back from the dead.  But who knows?  There's plenty of time left in the December option cycle and perhaps it will turn into a winner.  However in the near term ahead of the weekend I'd expect things to have a cautious tone.  The technical picture has improved though and if the positive seasonal factor kicks in maybe we'll continue the rally.  Asia rallied but Europe was little changed overnight.  We'll see how things go tomorrow.

It was kind of a mixed market today but the Dow did manage a gain of 108 points on average volume.  The advance/declines were negative though.  The summation index is basically heading sideways.  The RUT and NYSE were down on the session.  We'll see how the market reacts to the Fed tomorrow and go from there.  We've got the end of the month coming up as well.  My SPY December calls remains losers.  GE was off 1/8 on heavy volume.  Gold fell eight bucks as the US dollar continues to climb.  The XAU lost 1 1/8, while GDX dropped 1/3.  Volume was good.  I did place an open order for the GDX January calls.  We'll have to see some more decline in the gold shares for this trade to be triggered.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  Waiting on chairman Powell at this point in time.  That is all that we can do as the market will react one way or the other to what he says.  The short term technical indicators for the major averages remain oversold.  How they move tomorrow may lend a clue as to where we're heading.  This is a seasonally strong period for stocks usually.  However so far this year the usual seasonal factors for various groups has not panned out.  We'll see what happens this time around.  Asia was generally higher and Europe lower in last nights trade.  We'll see what tomorrow brings.

We got a much needed bounce today as the Dow soared 354 points on average volume.  The advance/declines were shy of 2 to 1 positive.  This should turn the summation index back up.  One day does not make a trend so we'll have to see if we get any follow through.  Once again I cannot stress the importance for the bulls for things to turn around here.  If we fail to hold the lows there will be plenty of more trouble.  the potential for a double bottom exist but it hasn't been proven yet.  My SPY December calls are deeply in the red.  Only a stunning year end rally into expiration will save them.  GE was flat on the session on very heavy volume.  It did finish off of its lows though.  I'm looking for a bottom here in December to make a longer term investment.  Gold finished little changed on the day as the US dollar was a bit higher.  The XAU and GDX had slight fractional losses on very light volume.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  A rally that springs out of nowhere is a classic bear market move.  However if we continue higher from here it could validate the potential double bottom.  So we'll simply just have to wait and see.  The short term technical indicators for the major averages are trying to turn back up.  We've got the Fed head Powell speaking on Wednesday and that has some market moving potential.  Later on this weekend the US and China will sit down for a chat.  What happens there probably has more importance for the market at this stage.  On the economic front we'll get housing data and the Fed minutes on Thursday.  So there's a lot to digest after the long holiday weekend.  Europe and Asia were higher overnight.  We'll see if that continues tomorrow. 

It was a holiday shortened session but that didn't stop the sellers as the Dow fell 178 points on very light volume.  The advance/declines were negative.  The summation index is heading lower.  My SPY December calls are showing big losses.  In a week that is historically positive, the market was very negative.  We're short term oversold and staying that way.  We're also below the zero line on the summation index.  It appears that there is no hope for the bulls.  RUT managed to finish in the plus but unless we hold up right here and right now, the market will be in for even more downside.  GE was off over 1/8 on light volume.  Gold lost a few bucks as the US dollar was a bit higher.  The XAU lost almost two points, while GDX shed 1/2.  Volume was light.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  A long holiday weekend in the US so you can't put much stock in what happened today.  But like I said, if we don't hang in here on the major averages, the damage will get much worse.  And it does appear that's where we're headed.  I'm simply stuck in another losing trade and that has been the story all year.  I don't think there's anything that will happen over the weekend to change the direction in stocks.  The charts all look very negative.  More of the major indexes are ready to have their 50 day moving averages cross through their 200 day moving averages to the downside.  The carnage should continue.  Europe and Asia were generally higher though.  It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

The Dow tried to log a gain today but failed.  After being up over 200 points the Dow actually fell a point on light volume.  The advance/declines were 3 to 1 positive though.  The summation index is still moving down.  The overall market was stronger than the Dow but finished well off of their highs as well.  Buying is met with selling and I don't see any change with that on the horizon.  It is the worst Thanksgiving week trading for the bulls in decades.  Perhaps the market knows something that we don't.  My SPY December calls are now solid losers and they are probably not coming back.  At this point I'm resigned to waiting for the G-20 summit and hoping for the best.  That isn't really a viable trading strategy.  Still short term oversold on the S&P 500.  GE had a slight gain of over 1/8 today on lighter volume.  Gold found a bid as the futures rose $5.  The US dollar was little changed.  The XAU added two points, while GDX rose 1/2.  Volume was good.  The gold shares are overbought but acting well.  If they get oversold again in December, I will try the January GDX calls.  the market rarely cooperates though and it appears that I've missed this trade.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  An anemic attempt at a rally today and that is not good news for stocks.  In a very favorable historic time period the market has tanked.  If it doesn't hold up here we will be going much lower.  And that is the most likely outcome based on this week.  We'll get a day off tomorrow and a shortened session on Friday.  There are no reasons to buy and plenty of excuses to sell.  RUT held up where it had to today and that is the only plus along with the breadth that I see today.  But it isn't much.  Asia was generally lower and Europe higher overnight.  Happy Thanksgiving everybody.

The rout continues as we had a gap down at the open.  The Dow fell 551 points on very heavy volume.  The advance/declines were over 5 to 1 negative.  The summation index is heading lower.  We are now back at the previous lows set at the end of October.  It doesn't feel like they will hold.  No buyers to be found as selling now is the name of the game.  The usual positive Thanksgiving week period is not happening this year.  We are short term oversold but with the gap down today it appears lower prices are in the offing.  My SPY December calls are now even bigger losers and there is little hope of this trade turning around.  Maybe a gap opening tomorrow would save the day but that isn't going to happen.  The game has changed and we'll have to see just how low we go.  GE off over an 1/8 today and the volume remains heavy.  Maybe I'll step in here next month.  Gold was off a few bucks as the US dollar turned around.  The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on lighter volume.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  So we're at the point of either a double bottom or the market will continue to collapse from here.  the fact that the summation index made it almost back through the zero line but turned around is a big negative.  It looks like I'm headed for yet another losing trade this year.  Despite the fact that there is well over four weeks left in the December option cycle, we've already dropped so much that a minor miracle will have to occur just to break even.  Looking at the bigger picture, the S&P 500 now has a huge double top put in on a weekly basis.  The measuring objective is much lower than where we right now.  That is what we have to look forward to in the weeks and months ahead.  The normal bullish seasonality is not going to work this time around.  There will be plenty of excuses but at least be aware of what is going on.  Rallies are getting sold.  I'd expect more selling tomorrow ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.  There is nowhere to hide.  Europe and Asia were sold off as it is a global liquidation of stocks.  We'll see what tomorrow brings.

A downer to begin the holiday week as the Dow lost 395 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were 3 to 1 negative.  This will turn the summation index back down.  My prognosis for an up week for Thanksgiving will obviously be wrong.  The tech wreck continues and if the NASDAQ doesn't hold up right here things will get a lot worse.  My SPY December calls are now losers.  Even though there is plenty of time for this trade, my idea was to get out on strength this week.  That plan is now in doubt.  RUT got pounded today as well and it looks like more is on the way.  It appears that rallies are to be sold.  I'll wait to see what happens tomorrow but things for the bulls are looking bleak.  GE was off about 20 cents and the volume remains heavy.  Perhaps when the tax loss selling is over in December I'll take a look at buying some shares for the long haul.  Gold was up a bit and the US dollar was a bit lower.  The XAU and GDX were little changed on average volume.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  It looks like we'll be heading lower here for the week.  I do not think that waiting for the G-20 summit and a resolution to the US vs. China problem to suddenly appear is the right strategy.  However that may be what I'm left with unless things turn around to the upside for the rest of the week.  The short term technical indicators are oversold but not completely blown out.  They do have room for more downside.  Perhaps I'll just take the loss tomorrow and call it a year.  It's something to ponder overnight.  Asia was higher and Europe lower overnight.  We'll keep an eye on the S&P futures in tonights trade. 

More back and forth for the market on expiration Friday but the Dow did manage a gain of 124 points on pretty good volume.  The advance/declines were slightly positive.  the overall market was weaker than the Dow, with the NASDAQ in the red.  The summation index is moving up but without any conviction.  My SPY December calls are still showing a gain.  The VIX had a pretty good drop today but we didn't see the price gains that you would expect.  Not sure what that means.  RUT did finish higher and that's a plus.  The market is still trying to figure out what to do here as we have positive seasonal effects being weighed down by all the worldwide uncertainty.  It would help the bullish cause if the S&P 500 could get back above its 200 day moving average.  GE dropped more than 1/8 and the volume remains very heavy.  Gold was up $7 as the US dollar dropped again.  The XAU was up over a point, while GDX gained almost 1/3.  Volume was good.  It appears that I've missed the GDX January call trade if we continue higher from here in the gold shares.  I'll just have to wait and see if it gets oversold again.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  Two days into this trade and it is going OK for now.  Next week is usually positive but you never know what headline can come out of left field over the weekend.  I suppose that could work both ways.  The question for me is whether to simply get out of this trade before the end of next week or hold it longer.  As long as the summation index continues higher I'll favor bullish outcomes.  But to really turn bullish I'd have to see the VIX get below its 200 day average and break the 15 level.  I do not think that is going to happen anytime soon.  AAPL has had a couple of up days and if that can get going to the upside it would drag tech stocks along with it.  But it hasn't happened yet.  There is room for the short term technical indicators on the S&P 500 to move up.  That's a plus.  I guess I'll have to look things over this weekend and go from there.  Asia was mixed and Europe lower last night.  It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

Today we opened lower and closed higher for a one day reversal to the upside as the back and forth continues.  The Dow gained 208 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were positive.  The summation index is moving back up.  The short term technical indicators are trying to turn around.  It appears that I was a day early for this SPY December call trade.  The position is showing a profit but I could have gotten a better strike price if I had waited a day.  But hindsight is always after the fact.  You have to go on what you see at the time.  I did think that things were going to turn back up and they have for a day.  But that doesn't mean that the decline has ended for now but I think that it has.  We'll see how things go from here.  I believe that we'll get at least a drift higher next week.  This may or may not be a trade to hold on to.  GE lost fifteen cents and the volume remains very above normal.  Gold and the US dollar finished little changed.  The XAU added 1 1/2, while GDX was up 1/4.  Volume was average.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  We've put a halt to the decline for now.  You might hear some talk of a reverse head and shoulders patterns on some indexes but what it really looks like are some complex bottoms being put in.  That is only if we continue to move up from here.  Nothing is set in concrete just yet.  However I do like the odds of things moving up from here and that is why I was willing to place the trade.  Thanksgiving week should be positive but what happens after that is anybody's guess.  If the technical indicators do in fact turn around here, the chances for a successful trade increase.  But there's plenty of time in the December option cycle and the market will go where it wants.  Asia was higher and Europe lower overnight.  Europe has plenty of uncertainty with the looming deal for Brexit overhanging the markets there.  We'll see how we close out the trading week tomorrow.

More volatility today as the Dow dropped 206 points on heavy volume.  The advance/declines were shy of 2 to 1 negative.  This will turn the summation index back down.  No real news for the market movement today.  It was also a one day reversal to the downside, opening higher and closing lower.  We did finish up from the lows.  My open order for the SPY December puts was not filled on the decline so I adjusted it to a higher strike price.  That order was filled, so I'm in the trade.  The technical indicators are mid-range right now.  We are oversold on one of my other technical indicators.  I may be early on this trade but I do think that it will work barring a complete collapse here.  We do have plenty of room to go lower for a retest of the recent lows though.  GE was off almost 1/3 and the volume remains very heavy.  Gold gained $10 on a flight to safety.  The US dollar was little changed.  The XAU rose 1 2/3, while GDX gained 1/3.  Volume was good.  Perhaps the January gold share calls are a good idea after all.  But one day is not a trend.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  The VIX is back on the rise and there seems to be a plethora of sellers out there.  Why take on a call trade here?  I do think that the coming days are going to tell us a lot about the market.  If we continue going down from here, then things are a lot worse than I think.  If we hold up here and turn back higher, then my idea of getting some SPY calls here is going to work.  There are a lot of negatives technically to contend with here and that is not on my side for this trade.  However things do tend to get stretched both ways in the game.  A lot of what is going on now seems to be due to the decline in AAPL.  This drop won't last forever either.  I also would like to be long ahead of the Thanksgiving week and now I am.  So we'll see how this plays out in the coming sessions.  Europe and Asia were lower overnight.  We'll see what tomorrow brings.

We bounced around today but the Dow finished with a loss of 100 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were slightly negative.  The summation index is still moving higher but without the gusto of a week ago.  The overall market wasn't as weak as the Dow.  I did leave in an open order for the SPY December calls.  Although the technical indicators aren't oversold, we are almost at five down days in a row for the S&P.  I also would like to try and get long here before the Thanksgiving week, which is usually positive.  There's no guarantees of course but unless the summation index turns around, I'll be feeling pretty good if this order gets filled.  We'll get CPI tomorrow and that could be a market mover.  GE found some buyers today and gained almost 2/3 on very heavy volume.  Gold was slightly lower on the futures as the US dollar lost some ground.  The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on average volume.  I'm still considering the GDX January calls.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  The market is trying to figure out what to do here.  The VIX is at 20, which implies that we are still in for some big moves one way or the other in the stock market.  Like I said yesterday, some averages are about to get the kiss of death with regards to their moving averages.  That is not a long term positive.  I am however a believer in the SPY calls here for a trade of about a week or so.  A bit more decline should get the open order filled and then we'll go from there.  Plenty of time in the December option cycle and I will not be trying a November option trade with only three days left.  Things most likely will slow down next week but I believe that there will be a positive bias.  I could be wrong.  Oil is getting slammed and that could be a concern for growth going forward.  Or it may just be a product of that particular market.  We'll know as time goes on.  Asia was generally lower and Europe higher in last nights trade.  We'll keep an eye on the overnight developments. 

The Dow got clobbered today and lost 602 points on average volume.  The advance/declines were shy of 3 to 1 negative.  The summation index is still moving up but not by much.  The short term technical indicators have turned around and they still have plenty of room to fall.  I guess trying to get the SPY puts at the end of last week was the right idea.  But I'm not moving on to the SPY December calls.  If we continue to see weakness this week, that will be the next trade.  The small stocks were weaker today and that is indeed a negative.  We are in a seasonal period of market strength but you wouldn't know it by today price action.  The VIX also spiked again.  It did not make it below the 200 day moving average.  If it can't get below the 15 to 16 level, then I think that we will have to say that the market has changed.  So there is plenty to keep an eye on going forward.  GE continues to drop and lost around 2/3 today.  Volume remains extremely heavy to the downside.  Gold fell as the US dollar rallied to a new recent high.  The XAU dropped 1 1/2, while GDX lost 3/8.  Volume was average.  I'm still considering the GDX January calls but the fundamentals here are not favorable for gold.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  Perhaps today begins the trip back down to retest the lows of the move down in October.  Or maybe the whole market has changed and rallies are to be sold from here on out.  Always plenty of unanswered questions in this game.  RUT and NYA are about to have their 50 day moving averages cross below their 200 day moving averages.  That's generally known as the kiss of death, with lower prices for the future.  Will these indices lead us down?  RUT is generally the trendsetter, as I have noticed before.  I certainly can't say for sure which way to go here.  However I am a believer of higher prices for the stock market going forward.  The turnaround in the summation index clearly suggests that.  Going out to the December option cycle with the extra week makes sense for me if we can see a short term oversold condition appear in the coming sessions.  The usual positive Thanksgiving time frame will be upon us next week as well.  So I'll keep an eye on things and see how it plays out this week.  Asia was higher and Europe lower last night.  All of the players will return on Tuesday as the bond market reopens after todays holiday.  We'll see how it goes.

To the downside today as the Dow fell 201 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were 2 to 1 negative.  The summation index is still moving up.  We did finish well off of the worst levels for the day.  Higher producer prices were listed as the cause.  But we were short term overbought and that's what we'll pay attention to.  I never got filled on any of my SPY November put orders and it is another opportunity missed.  I believe that it's too late for this idea and now will focus on the calls.  I'm not sure that I'll be trying them next week for November but going out to December may be the way to go.  There is an extra week on the December options though and premiums are high.  GE dropped another 1/2 on extremely heavy volume.  This issue just can't seem to find a bottom.  How the mighty have fallen.  A former bellwether of the market is now just an afterthought.  Gold fell $15 on the futures as the US dollar rallied.  The XAU was off 1 1/4, while GDX shed 1/3.  Volume was a bit above average.  I'm still considering the GDX January calls.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  Frustrating is what it is here for me as I've missed another chance for gains to the downside.  It wasn't as good a set up as the former decline but it was there for the taking at least.  Now I'll have to focus on when to get long.  My take on things has been pretty good lately but the trading execution hasn't worked.  This year it seems that it's been one thing or another that has inhibited my success.  You just have to keep going in the game because the market doesn't wait for anyone.  And it certainly doesn't care.  I think that the longer term trend has moved back to being positive, with the summation index now moving up.  The seasonality factor is now in the bulls favor as well.  I'll consider what to do over the weekend but I'm favoring a longer term call trade at the moment.  We'll have the Thanksgiving holiday week coming up after expiration and that is usually positive.  Europe and Asia were lower.  It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

A pause in the rally today but the Dow did go up 10 points on average volume.  The advance/declines were slightly negative.  The summation index continues higher.  The overall market was weaker than the Dow, with the S&P 500 along with the NASDAQ lower.  We got the Fed statement today but it didn't seem to have much impact on the market.  I canceled my open SPY November put order and replaced it with a higher strike price.  This trade is really running out of time and todays price action didn't help matters.  The VIX has not yet penetrated its 200 day moving average.  When it does, I think we can forget about looking at the puts.  The option premiums have lost value as volatility has decreased.  It may be that we'll have to wait for the December option cycle to initiate the next trade.  The short term technical indicators remain overbought though for the S&P.  GE lost a dime on average volume.  Gold dropped a few bucks as the US dollar was higher.  The XAU and GDX barely moved on light volume.  I am still looking at the GDX January calls.  We are not completely oversold here yet.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  I'm trying to work out some kind of trade here before expiration.  If we continue lower from here into early next week, I'll switch to the SPY November calls for a short term attempt.  If we get some rally tomorrow, I might try the puts.  The timing will have to be spot on because there isn't really time to have things work out.  Perhaps staying out altogether is the best idea yet.  I'll see how tomorrow goes and take it from there.  Monday the stock market are open but it's a partial holiday elsewhere.  That will affect the volume and amount of players.  Asia was higher and Europe mixed overnight.  We'll close out the trading week tomorrow.

It appears that the stock market liked the election results and that might be an understatement.  The Dow soared 545 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were 3 to 1 positive.  The summation index is climbing higher.  I keep putting in open orders for the SPY November puts and adjusting them.  None have been filled yet but this seems like it isn't the right strategy here.  We are short term overbought now on some of the technical indicators.  But the market seems to be taking on a life of its own here as sellers have somehow disappeared.  The VIX is back at its 200 day moving average and we'll see what happens here.  RUT is overbought now as well but that doesn't mean it won't stay that way.  I'm going to have to reconsider what I'm doing here with the attempt at the puts overnight.  GE was off almost 1/4 and the volume is still high.  Oversold and staying that way here.  Gold and the US dollar finished little changed.  The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on very light volume again.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  So what do we do from here?  It looks like there will be no snap back to the broken declining tops line like there usually is.  It appears that a V bottom has taken place.  We are in a seasonally bullish period for stocks.  The summation index is moving higher.  The smart plays from here would have to be on the long side.  Waiting for some kind of pullback would be the prudent suggestion.  But it doesn't look like there will be one anytime soon.  I was extremely lucky that I did not get filled on my put orders yesterday because I would have gotten crushed.  At least I made the right adjustments there.  I'm sure others weren't so lucky.  I'll reconsider my overall strategy here tonight.  Seven days to go in the November option cycle, so the risk of a trade here is high.  At least the premiums have come down some.  Asia was up with the exception of Japan.  Europe rallied as well.  We'll look for some more upside follow through tomorrow.  

Another day to the plus side as the Dow added 173 points on light volume.  The advance/declines were positive.  The summation index is moving higher.  The Dow is acting like it wants to move up regardless of the election results.  I did place an open order for some SPY November calls but it wasn't filled.  There is not a good signal for the puts here yet but I do think that the market will move lower off of the election results.  But it is better to stick with the technicals.  The VIX still has room to move down and RUT was up today.  This implies further upside in the short term.  I'm still waiting for some kind of snap back to the down trend line that we broke last week.  Hasn't happened yet and perhaps we are in the midst of a V bottom.  If we do continues higher from here it will set up a short term put trade before expiration.  GE was up 1/8 and the volume was heavy.  Gold was off a few bucks on the futures.  The US dollar finished little changed.  The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on light volume.  It seems as though markets were in somewhat of a holding pattern ahead of the US elections.  Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired, did not sleep well.  I think that it's safe to say the bottom is in for the S&P 500.  Of course we said that last week but the price action since then confirms it in my mind.  Declines can be purchased in my humble opinion.  Whether or not we get one worth buying is the question.  We'll have to see what the reaction is to the election results is and take it from there.  There is still some room to move higher for the short term technical indicators for most of the major indices.  Patience may be a virtue at the moment.  Asia was higher and Europe a touch lower overnight.  We'll keep an eye on the ballot box and the markets reaction tonight. 

A mixed bag today but the Dow managed a nice gain of 190 points on average volume.  The advance/declines were almost 2 to 1 positive.  The summation index is moving up.  The NASDAQ had a loss for the day led by a decline in AAPL.  RUT barely moved as well.  I think we'll get some market movement after the election results tomorrow night but I could be wrong.  There isn't exactly a clear signal right now but I did place an open order today for the SPY November puts.  It wasn't filled.  I will probably try again before the close tomorrow.  The VIX is making its way into oversold territory and still has an elevated reading.  This implies that we will remain seeing triple digit gains or losses in the coming sessions.  GE was flat on the day and the volume remains pretty heavy.  Gold didn't have much of a change and the US dollar was slightly lower.  The XAU and GDX barely moved again on light volume.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  The short term technical indicators are moving higher but are not completely overbought yet.  Some of the smaller stock indicators are more mid-range than anything else.  Taking a short position here is not without risk.  Not much on the economic front this week.  I am intermediate term bullish here because the summation index was blown out to below the zero line and we have now moved back up.  Declines can be bought and there may be an opportunity to try the SPY November calls here as well before option expiration.  The put trade that I'm contemplating now is more of an election based theory than anything else.  I'll think about it some more tonight but there is a chance that I'll put it on.  Europe and Asia were generally lower overnight.  We'll see how it goes tomorrow.   

A pause in the bounce today as the Dow fell 109 points on heavy volume.  The advance/declines were negative.  The summation index is moving higher.  The overall market was weaker than the Dow.  The jobs report was stronger than expected.  After an initial pop to the upside the market sold off.  It wasn't as bad as it has been lately and I will again have to say that the decline has ended.  The short term technical indicators for the S&P 500 are trying to roll over but it hasn't happened yet.  I'm not exactly sure what the next trade will be.  I may simply wait for the move lower to fill the recent gap.  If that were to occur, then I could try the SPY calls.  If we continue higher form here into the Tuesday session, then I may try the SPY puts for after the election results.  I'm not exactly sure and will have to consider the possibilities over the weekend.  GE lost almost thirty cents and the volume remains extremely heavy.  Gold was off a few bucks as the US dollar was slightly higher.  The XAU and GDX basically finished unchanged on average volume.  Mentally I'm feeling tired.  That being the case, I do not want to attempt any trading ideas at the moment.  I'll try and get a good nights sleep and take it from there.  It was a good week for the bulls as the market stopped going down.  Today may have been the beginning of a retest of the recent lows.  If so that will set us up for the SPY November calls at some point next week.  There's still a couple of weeks left in the November option cycle.  Asia and Europe were generally higher to close out the week.  It's Friday afternoon and time for a rest.

The Dow added another 264 points today on heavy volume.  The advance/declines were 3 to 1 positive.  The summation index has turned around and is moving up.  I think that we can say now that the decline is over.  We may get a retest of the recent lows but that's not a given.  The action off the recent lows is all positive so far and the short term technical indicators have plenty of room to move up.  The VIX is now below 20 but I'd probably like to see it drop a bit lower before thinking about trying the SPY November puts for a short term trade.  We've got the employment report tomorrow and that could be a market mover one way or the other.  I do not expect us to simply go straight up from here.  GE was off another half and the volume remains very heavy.  Very oversold here but no end in sight to its decline.  Gold rallied over $20 as the US dollar got crushed.  The XAU gained almost three points, while GDX rose 2/3.  Volume was good.  The GDX daily chart pattern had a classic head and shoulders bottom breakout and then a snap back return to the neckline.  Even though I was looking for the retracement to get some GDX calls, when it happened I stayed out.  The decline back was steep and I was afraid to take the trade even though that was what I was looking for.  That was regrettable and certainly cannot be tolerated if you want to be successful.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  So where do we go from here?  The short term down trend line from the start of the recent decline has been broken.  We are getting back close to the 200 day moving averages in the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ.  That would be a place where the bounce might stall.  Again, that's not a guarantee but a logical place to pause.  We should also look for an eventual drop back towards the line that we just broke through.  That will be the logical place to attempt the SPY calls.  Hopefully if all goes as planned, I'll be able to pull the trigger this time around.  I may put in an order for the SPY November puts tonight, in case we see a jump put of the box tomorrow on the jobs report.  However I may be early here as we still have room to run on the short term indicators.  If that is the case waiting until early next week ahead of the election will be the alternate plan.  We'll see if the market cooperates.  Asia was up with the exception of Japan and Europe was generally higher.  We'll see how the employment report affects things tomorrow.