Higher to close out the month of August as the Dow rallied 228 points on average volume. The advance/declines were positive. The summation index continues higher. The NASDAQ was back to leading the way up. The inflation data came in where expected. The S&P 500 is just shy of new all time highs. It remains short term overbought. My guess is that we'll probably hit new all time highs on the S&P after the long holiday weekend. One of the concerns here is the lagging of the NASDAQ, which isn't close to a new all time high. But we'll worry about that next week. Gold fell $25 on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates were up just a bit. The XAU dropped a point and GDX shed 1/4. Volume was light. The short term indicators for GDX are heading lower but it isn't a sharp drop. I'm still considering the September calls there if we make it down to oversold. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. The VIX was lower and is still short term oversold. We are expecting the VIX to move lower as the market moves higher in the beginning of next week. It is still above its 200 day moving average which will be a key area to watch. If the VIX heads below there any rally will have legs. All the players should be back on Tuesday so we will begin to have a more complete picture of things. Still remaining patient for now. Asia was up and Europe slightly lower to finish the week and month. I'll have an extra day to go over the charts this weekend. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

An interesting session as what was once a broad based rally turned into a mixed picture by the close. The Dow gained 243 points on light volume. It was up well over 400 at one point. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 positive. The summation index is moving higher. After being higher the NASDAQ finished with a loss on the day. The S&P 500 finished flat after being much higher earlier on. It still remains overbought on the short term indicators. Waiting on tomorrows inflation data. It is also the end of the month before a long holiday weekend. My guess is whatever is going to happen will be early in the day and then traders will be leaving early. Gold rose $17 on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates nudged up. The XAU was up 1 3/4 and GDX was up 1/2. Volume was light. The short term indicators on GDX are trying to turn back up. I'll keep an eye on golds reaction to the inflation numbers tomorrow. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and remains short term oversold. Not sure what to expect next here. Just waiting on the month of August to come to a close and we'll be looking for a trade in September. Europe was higher and Asia mixed in last nights trade. We'll close out the week and the month tomorrow.

Selling in the middle of the week as the Dow fell 159 points on light volume. The advance/declines were negative. The summation index is still trending higher. Once again the NASDAQ led the way lower and that is not a plus. Waiting on NVDA earnings after the close. The S&P 500 remains in the same technical condition. Short term overbought and staying that way. Seems like we are just waiting for this week to go by and then all the players should be back. No SPY trades for now. Gold dropped ten bucks on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates remained flat. The XAU fell 3 3/4, while GDX shed around 7/8. Volume was light. The short term indicators for GDX have now rolled over. We'll see if thay keep going. Waiting for GDX to return to short term oversold before trying the calls here again. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today which fits a down market. Back above the 50 day moving average. The short term indicators here have turned back up but remain oversold. Just a couple of trading days left in the month of August. Unless something out of the ordinary happens I'll be on the sidelines until after Labor day. Plenty of time left to trade in the September option cycle. Sometimes you have to be patient. Asia was mixed and Europe higher overnight. We'll keep an eye on tonights headlines.

Today we opened lower and closed higher but the Dow only managed a gain of 10 points on light volume. The advance/declines were negative. The summation index is moving up. It appears that we are in a wait and see mode for now. The volume is very low as we wait for a catalyst to get things moving up or down. It's the last week of August before Labor day weekend and trders have taken off. The S&P 500 remains short term overbought and staying that way. I'm still in the camp for new all time highs soon. Perhaps the inflation data or NVDA earnings can get us there later in the week. Gold rose $5 on the futures. The US dollar was lower and interest rates held steady. The XAU had a slight fractional loss, while GDX was unchanged. They both came up from the lows of the session. Volume was very light once again. It appears that the summer doldrums arrived late this year. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and remains short term oversold. Back below the 50 day moving average now. I'm still not sure what's next for the VIX. Remaining patient for now when it comes to the next trade. A new all time high close for the Dow today but the NASDAQ is lagging. I'm expecting the S&P 500 to move to new highs as well soon but this isn't a broad upside breakout for now. Plus we are in a negative seasonal period for stocks so I would not want to get too bullish at the moment. The anemic volume is another thing to keep an eye on. Europe and Asia were generally higher overnight. We'll see how things go tomorrow.

Another open higher and closing lower day for the S&P 500 but the Dow managed a gain of 65 points on pretty light volume. The advance/declines were positive. The summation index continues higher. Most of the indices were lower today, with the NASDAQ losing over 150. It is the final week in August before the unofficial end of summer after Labor day next Monday. It's possible that some traders will be away from their desks. Some economic data due this week with inflation news on Friday. The S&P 500 remains short term overbought while we wait and see if new all time highs are coming. Our guess is that yes, we'll see new highs for the S&P sooner rather than later. Gold was up $7 on the futures. The US dollar was a bit higher along with interest rates. The XAU and GDX were barely lower on extremely light volume. We had some geo-political tension over the weekend and the gold shares did not react. Still short term overbought on GDX and waiting on a pullback to try the calls there again. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. The VIX was up slightly and is hugging its 50 day moving average. Short term oversodl and remaining that way. Not sure what's next for the VIX. Might be on hold for the next trade until the jobs report in a week and a half but we'll see. Asia was higher except for Japan while Europe ended mixed. I'll keep an eye on the overnight developments.

The Fed chairman said that it is time to lower interest rates and that is all the market needed to hear as the Dow gained 462 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 8 to 1 positive. The summation index is moving up. The NASDAQ led the way and the small cap Russell 2000 was up over 3%. The S&P 500 was higher and remains short term overbought. At this rate new all time highs for the S&P are probably in the cards for next week. The NYSE Composite is already there. Gold was up $30 on the futures. The US dollar was lower along with interest rates. The XAU gained a couple of points and GDX added 1/2. Volume was light. Still waiting for a GDX pullback but it may not appear when we want it. Markets rarely cooperate. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. The VIX was lower today and is right at the 50 day moving average. Remaining short term oversold here and it looks like that could last a while. So it looks like all systems are go for higher prices going forward. When there is plenty of money to drive even the smaller issues higher, liquidity is not a problem. The promise of lower interest rates creates a positive backdrop. The best time to jump on board has passed and I will wait for the next signal or some kind of set up. I'll read the charts over the weekend as usual. Europe and Asia were higher to close out the week. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

Sellers finally showed up today as the Dow dropped 177 points on light volume. It was another one day downside reversal as we opened higher and closed lower. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 negative. The summation index is moving up. The NASDAQ led the way down and that's a negative. Despite the drop the S&P 500 remains short term overbought. We'll wait and see what the Fed chairman has to say tomorrow and how the market deals with that. Gold lost about thirty bucks on the futures. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU fell 3 2/3, while GDX lost a point. Volume was average. The short term indicators on GDX have rolled over but thay are still overbought. I'm still in a wait and see mode here. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was higher which fits the down move in stocks. Back above the 50 day moving average on the VIX. It is still very short term oversold though. Not sure what comes next here. Remaining patient for now when it comes to the next trade. I'll see how the week closes out and take it from there. Asia and Europe were generally higher overnight. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Some back and forth today but mainly just hanging around as the Dow was up 55 points on light volume. The advance/declines were around 3 to 1 higher. The summation index conitnues to the upside. The NASDAQ continues to lead and that's a plus. The techncial condition of the S&P 500 remains the same. Short term overbought and staying that way. There is a V bottom in place as we approach the previous all time highs. Either a huge double top is forming or we will simply plow on higher past the near term resistance. At this point it looks like moving higher will be the most likely. Gold finished flat on the day. The US dollar continues to fall and interest rates were slightly lower. The XAU was up almost a point and GDX rose 1/4. Volume was light. GDX remains short term overbought as well. Waiting on a pullback here. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today which doesn't fit with todays market direction. The last time this happened we had a drop the following day. Still short term oversold and staying that way on the VIX. Looking for a trade but we will not force the issue. Waiting on some type of set up for now. Plenty of time in the September option cycle. Might even wait until all the players are back after Labor day if necessary. Patience for now. Asia was mixed once again and Europe higher overnight. We'll keep an eye on tonights headlines.

A one day reversal to the downside today as the market opened higher and closed lower. The Dow fell 61 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 negative. The summation index is moving up. Not much damage done today as the major indices were just off fractionally. Not a lot of data due this week as we wait for the Fed chairman to speak at the Jackson Hole conference on Friday. That speech could get things moving. The S&P 500 remains short term overbought. We are in a wait and see mode when it comes to the next SPY option trade. Leaning towards the puts but on the sidelines for now. Gold was up a dozen on the futures. The US dollar was lower along with interest rates. The XAU was higher by 1 1/4 and GDX added 1/4. Volume remains average here. Short term overbought on the gold shares as well. Waiting for a pullback before attempting the September calls here. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today as we saw some selling in the market. Still short term oversold here. Not sure what to expect next on the VIX. It closed at its 50 day moving average. Remaining patient here in the short term as perhaps this will be a quiet week for a change. At least until Friday. Asia was mixed again with Europe lower overnight. We'll see how it goes tomorrow.

Nothing but buyers as the market just keeps going up in a straight line. The Dow gained 236 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 3 to 1 positive. The summation index is moving up. The NASDAQ led the way again to the upside and that's a plus. The S&P 500 is short term overbought. The sell signal that we got last week did not work. However the longer things go straight up, the more likely that they will not have a happy ending. It was quick V bottom in stocks and we'll have to see if we bust out to new all time highs soon. Gold was up a few bucks on the futures. The US dollar was lower and interest rates were slightly lower. The gold shares followed the overall market today. The XAU rose 3 1/8, while GDX gained 3/4. Volume was average. GDX is now short term overbought as well. We'll wait for some kind of pullback before trying the calls there. Plenty of time in the September option cycle but there is also the fact that I might have missed this move for GDX as well. Mentally I'm feeling tired. The VIX is still heading lower and remains short term oversold. It can stay oversold for an extended time during rallies and that is what we are seeing now. I'll be patient for now. Asia was mixed and Europe higher to begin the week. We'll keep an eye on the overnight developments.

It was pretty much a sideways expiration Friday as the Dow was up 96 points on light volume. The advance/declines were positive. The summation index is moving higher. The S&P 500 is getting to short term overbought. Obviously we are extended to the upside here for the S&P and some kind of retreat is overdue. I would be surprised if we didn't see some selling on Monday. It has been a straight line up for stocks for a couple of weeks. These kind of moves usually don't end well. However the volatility and declines that we saw seem to have been a bit overdone. Moving into the September option cycle which has an extra week on it. Premiums are high and there is no rush right now for a trade in the SPY. Gold took off to the upside for a new record as the futures climbed $54. The US dollar was lower and interest rates had a small dip. The XAU gained 3 3/4, while GDX was up 1 1/8. Volume was good to the upside. The short term indicators for GDX are moving back up and are not yet overbought. It appears that I'm late on the September GDX calls but we'll see what happens as we move forward. This could be a move worth chasing. Mentally I'm feeling tired. The VIX is still moving lower and remains short term oversold. It was a great week for stocks and at this rate new all time highs are not out of the question. But we are in a seasonally weak period for stocks so nothing can be ruled out for now either way. I'll be checking the charts as usual over the weekend. Europe and Asia were higher to finish the trading week with the exception of the FTSE. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

The data came out and the market liked what it saw as the Dow climbed 554 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 3 to 1 positive. The summation index is now moving higher. The NASDAQ led the way and was up over 400 points. The S&P 500 is now solidly above the short term down trend line and it is no longer in effect. The short term indicators here are moving up with still some room to go. I suppose I got lucky yesterday when my order for the SPY August puts wasn't filled. The sell signal from one of our indicators is still in effect but it obviously did not work today. It is a reminder that we deal in probabilities and not certainties in this game. The technical evidence weighed in the direction of some kind of pause or sell off but the market just kept going up. I can't say that I have a good handle on things as I ceratinly did not expect the market to move in a straight line up from nine trading days ago. But as always markets move where they want. Gold was up $13 on the futures. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU rose 1 1/3, while GDX added over 1/8. Volume was light. The gold shares didn't really follow the overall market much higher today. The short term indicators continue to stall here on GDX. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX continues lower and is now below its 50 day moving average. The short term indicators are very oversold for the VIX but that stay that way during rallies. The markets practically straight line up since August 5th certainly qualifies as a rally. However I would be very surprised if we didn't see some kind of selling either tomorrow or Monday. If we don't the overbought condition for the S&P 500 would be extreme. I'm going to let expiration Friday pass and take things from there. Europe and Asia were up overnight. We'll close out the trading week tomorrow.

The Dow led the way today as it gained 242 points on light volume. The advance/declines were positive. The summation index is tracking sideways. The inflation data came in where expected. The NASDAQ was the laggard today as it was only up 5 points. The S&P 500 continued higher closing just above the 5450 level. The short term indicators here are trending higher with room to go. I did place an order for the S&P August puts but it wasn't filled. We are getting a sell signal on one of our indicators for the S&P but there are only two days left in the August option cycle. I'm not sure if I will try the puts here again tomorrow but this is the spot to give them a try. Gold was off $20 on the futures. The US dollar finished flat and interest rates were mixed. The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on light volume. They both came up from their lows of the session. The short term indicators for GDX are beginning to stall but are not yet overbought. I'll begin to look at the GDX September calls here. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. The VIX contiues to drop and is just about at its 50 day moving average. Comfortably below the 20 level now. The short term indicators are oversold for the most part. Not sure what is going to happen next here on the VIX. Plenty of economic data out tomorrow with retail sales probably being the key. If we open higher I might take the chance on the August SPY puts. If we open lower it most likely will already be too late. I maybe should have adjusted my order at the end of the day to get filled but I did not. We'll see how it goes tomorrow. Europe and Asia were generally higher overnight. We'll keep an eye on tonights developments.

Produces prices came in about where expected and that was enough for the market as the Dow climbed 408 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 4 to 1 positive. The summation index is back to moving sideways. The overall market did much better thant the Dow with the NASDAQ leading the way. It was up almost 2 1/2%. The S&P 500 gained ninety points and is now almost at the 5450 level. The short term indicators on the S&P are now at mid-range or better and moving up with plenty of room to go. I may have to rethink the SPY August put idea at this rate. A decent CPI report tomorrow morning could blow us threw the short term resistance. Or the opposite could happen on a negative report in which case it would be too late for the SPY puts. 454 is the level on the SPY where the short term down trend lies and it is also close to the 50 day moving average. I'll have to decide what to do tomorrow morning. Gold was up a couple bucks on the futures. The US dollar was lower along with interest rates. The XAU was up 2 1/4, while GDX gained 1/2. Volume was light as the gold shares followed the market higher. GDX closed above the short term down trend line today but the volume was pretty light. We have to respect price though for now. I sold my GDX August calls in the morning and should have held them longer. This was a trade with a lousy entry price and the exit could and should have been a lot better as well. I did however want to sell them today as we are running out of time in the August option cycle. A strong CPI report tomorrow would probably send the gold shares lower. The gain on this trade was 75%. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and that fits with the good day for stocks. Short term oversold here on the indicators with just a little room to go before being completely oversold. This indicator is another reason that I am hesitating on buying the SPY puts with only 3 days to go in the August option cycle. It too could simply become more oversold as the market heads higher. I will have to look all the things over again tonight and decide what to do. Not to mention that the short term trades are not usually my best efforts. Europe and Asia were higher with the exception of India. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Waiting on inflation data as the Dow fell 140 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 negative. The summation index is beginning to roll back over. We got a signal from the McClellan oscillator on Friday for a big move within the next two sessions. We'll see if that happens tomorrow. The NASDAQ had a minor gain today and the S&P 500 finished flat. The short term indicators on the S&P are beginning to stall. Producer prices out tomorrow should provide excuses to buy or sell. Still looking at the 5450 level as the spot to try the SPY August puts but we may not get there this week. Also running out of time for the August option cycle. Gold rallied today as the futures were up $37 on geo-political fears. The US dollar finished flat and interest rates were a bit lower. The XAU climbed 4 2/3, while GDX was up around a point. Volume was average. GDX is getting closer to the short term down trend line at 37.25. A break of that line on good volume would be bullish for the gold shares. My GDX August calls have somehow made it back into the black. The short term indicators for GDX are moving up and have room to go. Perhaps this trade will work out after all. However with only 4 days left in the August option cycle the risk of staying in the trade inceases as the week goes on. I'm thinking the the PPI data tomorrow won't be an upside surprise and perhaps there will some positive follow through for the gold shares. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. The VIX was up slightly today as it hangs around the 20 level. Some of the short term indicators here are oversold. Not sure what's next here for the VIX. I suppose we'll just have to wait and see what the market reaction is to the inflation data tomorrow morning and go from there. Asia and Europe were mixed to begin the week. I'll keep an eye on the overnight developments.

It seemed much like a day of hanging around as the Dow rose 51 points on light volume. The advance/declines were slightly positive. The summation index is now tracking sideways. Considering the recent price action, todays lack of volatility was somewhat of a surprise to me. None of the major averages finished with big moves. The S&P 500 continues to climb up from the lows on Monday. The short term indicators here are approaching mid-range. What they do there will tell the story. If they keep moving up is looks like a V bottom will be in place. If they roll back over a retest of the lows may be in order. Plenty of economic data due out next week including inflation numbers. Not to mention that it's option expiration week. So things will get interesting. Gold was up $4 on the futures. The US dollar finished little changed as did most interest rates. The XAU was up 1 1/4 and GDX added a little over 1/4. Volume was extremely light as there is no interest one way or the other for the gold shares at the moment. My GDX August calls are somehow almost back to break even. I though long and hard about just selling them today and taking the loss. But I decided to let the weekend play out and we'll see how thngs open up on Monday. No signal one way or the other with the short term indicators for GDX right now. Unless we see gold rally next week this trade isn't going anywhere. Plus with it still being out of the money the odds for a profit are lower. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX continued to fall and is now back to the 20 level. What happens here will say a lot about the market as well. If the VIX bounces off of 20 we'll see more selling and move volatility. If the VIX continues to fall through the 20 level, the V bottom scenario has more credibility. Some of the short term indicators on the VIX are oversold but not completely so. Quite a week it was but the market didn't fall apart as it looked like it was going to on Monday. There is a down trend line that coincides with the 50 day moving average for the S&P at the 5450 level. If we somehow make it back to there next week, that would be the time to try the SPY August puts for a short term trade. But we'll go over the charts this weekend just to be sure. Asia and Europe were higher to close out the week. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

Another bounce today as the Dow gained 683 points on average volume. The advance/declines were 4 to 1 positive. The summation index is still heading lower. The NASDAQ led the way today and that's a positive but the volume was less than it has been recently. The S&P 500 was up 120 points and the short term indicators here have turned back up. I'm not thinking that the market is just going to continue to rally here but who knows? Yesterdays price action was pretty negative and todays is very positive. Probably some short covering in there today. I'm not sure where it goes from here. On the sidelines with regards to the SPY options for now. Gold soared out of nowhere as the futures gained thirty bucks. It did come off of the highs for the session. The US dollar finished about unchanged and interest rates ticked up. The XAU rose 3 points, while GDX was up almost 7/8. Volume was light here as there still isn't much interest in the gold shares at the moment. My GDX August calls are still in the red but did make up some ground. Perhaps should have just taken the loss today but hope springs eternal. Another day like today would bring tham back but that's asking an awful lot of this market. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today which fits the good day for stocks. The short term indicators are moving back down and are not yet completely oversold. So perhaps we can squeeze another positive day out of the market. I do not expect the volatility to just disappear though. Asia and Europe were generally lower to mixed in last nights trade. We'll close out the week tomorrow.

A one day reversal to the downside as stocks gapped open higher and closed lower near the lows for the day. The Dow fell 234 points on good volume. The advance/declines were negative. The summation index is moving down. The NASDAQ led the way lower. The S&P 500 remains short term oversold and it looks like we are heading down for a retest of the recent lows after todays price action. I'm not sure what exactly is going on right now but volatility is in charge. I have no SPY trades in mind right now because the technicals are blown out as we are not in the normal market atmosphere. I could change my mind going forward but the risks here might outweigh the rewards. You've got to be quick and you've got to be nimble and those are not my strong suits. Gold dropped $4 on the futures. The US dollar was a little higher along with interest rates. The XAU fell 4 1/4, while GDX shed 7/8. Volume was light. The gold shares are following the overall market. My GDX August calls are now solid losers as I had my chances to get out with a small profit but did not take them. The gold shares had a one day downside reversal as well. The daily candlestick chart for GDX looks very bearish after todays price action. This trade is now in the cut the loss mode unless GDX has some kind of rally in the next two days. Not likely but who knows in the current volatile marketplace. Mentally I'm feeling a bit down after mismanaging yet another trade. But the market certainly doesn't care and you've just got to keep moving in this game. The VIX moved back up after being lower early on. The short term indicators have stalled and if they turn back up here we'll see more downside in a hurry. Hasn't happened yet though. Seven days to go in the August option cycle. Europe and Asia were both up overnight. We'll keep an eye on tonights developments.

We had a nice bounce going today but the market stumbled in the final hour as the Dow gained 294 points on good volume. The advance/declines were 3 to 1 positive. The summation index is still moving down. Stocks finished well off of their highs for the session and that is not a plus. Still short term oversold on the S&P. I can't say that I know what's next here. A retest of the lows? A continued move higher? Not much economic data out this week and most of the major earnings have already been reported. Technical damage has been done though so a period of sideways price action or indecision would not be out of the question. Gold dropped $16 on the futures. The US dollar was slightly higher and interest rates were up as well. The XAU was up 1 3/4, while GDX added around 1/4. Volume was light. The gold shares followed the overall market today. More oversold than overbought for GDX but not completely so. My GDX August calls are still showing a very small profit. This is probably a trade that needs to be sold sooner rather than later. But we'll see. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today but came up from the lows with the last hour sell off in stocks. The short term indicators here are now pointing down with plenty of room to go. That implies more near term gains for stocks but in this current environment anything goes. Certainly no summer doldrums is about all that can be promised at this point. Asia was mostly higher and Europe finished flat in last nights trade. Japan came back 10% after losing a bit more than that on Monday. We'll see what tomorrow has in store for us.

Sellers took center stage as we had a huge gap down on the open, saw an anemic bounce and went sideways for the rest of the day. The Dow got crushed as did all the major stock indices as it fell over a thousand points on heavy volume. The advance/declines were 13 to 1 negative. The summation index is moving lower. The NASDAQ continues to lead the way lower as big tech stocks have fallen out of favor. The S&P 500 lost almost 3%. Still short term oversold on the indicators here. Gapping lower on the daily chart and it looks like it's headed to the 200 day moving average at 5000. I'm not sure what is going on here but the markets always know more than we do. Sell the rallies will probably be the case for a while now. Hard to say when we'll see the bounce I was looking for and todays slight rise might have been it. Maybe today was a short term wash out for stocks. But if we do get a bounce I would not expect it to last. Gold was off twenty bucks on the futures. The US dollar continued lower and interst rates finished flat after being lower early on. The gold shares followed the market lower but did finished up from the lows on the day. The XAU fell 5 1/8, while GDX lost 1 1/8. Volume was good to the downside. I adjusted my open order for the GDX August calls overnight and it did get filled first thing in the morning. It was a lousy entry as the gold shares dropped much more than I expected. GDX also broke the up trend line that began back in March on the daily chart. Then why try the calls here? On days like this I like to think that things get out of hand in some markets. It presents opportunity if you are able to keep your wits about you. The gold shares dropped much more than gold today and that doesn't add up in my book. Unless gold is simply headed straight down from here. Even with the poor entry the trade is showing a small profit. I'll see if I can manage it properly from here. GDX did finish below its 50 day moving average though. Mentally I'm feeling tired. The VIX soared to 65 this morning. Moves that high are very rare and point to one thing. Panic. It closed at 38 and now is comfortably above the 20 level so volatility will rule here for a while. Some of the short term indicators are overbought now on the VIX and some aren't. Not sure what that means or where the VIX is headed next. The only certain thing here is the uncertainty. But there is money to be made in this August option cycle, that's for sure. It was worldwide carnage for stock markets as buyers have fled the scene. Japan crashed and was down over 10% in a day. Interesting times and I'll be keeping an eye on things overnight.

The jobs report came in weaker than expected and stocks got whacked as the Dow fell 610 points on heavy volume. At one point it was down almost 1000. The advance/declines were 3 to 1 negative. This will have the summation index heading back down. The damage could have been worse but the S&P 500 bounced up from the 5300 level. The S&P 500 remains short term oversold and I would not be surprised if we see a bounce early next week. However important up trend lines have been broken and the trend is now down. The indicators on the S&P weekly chart still have room to go lower. Plus the summation index has yet to really start to drop. Support comes in where we bounced today at 5300 and also at 5200 for the S&P. The 200 day moving average is at 5000. Worst case scenario is the longer term up trend line at 4600 but that level is pretty far off. We still think that rallies can be sold for now. It is also a seasonally weak time period for stocks the next couple of months. So there is no hurry to invest longer term money at the moment. I did miss out on the SPY puts this time around but that idea should work again here in the not too distant future. Gold ended up little changed on the session after being both higher and lower. The US dollar got clobbered on the employment news and interest rates continue to fall. The XAU lost almost 4 points and GDX shed 3/4. Volume was good to the downside. GDX is now at the up trend line that began in March. I did place an order for the GDX August calls and I'm leaving it out there over the weekend. I may decide to cancel it by Monday. The short term indicators for GDX are not yet completely oversold. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX soared today but came off of its highest levels. It did close above the important level of 20 and at one point was at almost 30. Now that is some volatility. The VIX remains short term overbought and it is rare for it to stay that way for long. I expect the VIX to drop next week and that would fit with a bounce for stocks. But I could be wrong as the markets go where they want. Quite a week it was as there are no summer doldrums in 2024. Plenty to ponder over the weekend and I'll be checking the charts as usual. Foreign stocks got pounded to close out the week. It's Friday afternoon and time for a rest.

Back down again today as volatility remains in control. The Dow fell 494 points on good volume. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 negative. The summation index is beginning to stall. It could have been worse but there was a late comeback in the final hour. The NASDAQ led the way lower and that is not a plus. I did place an order overnight for the SPY August puts but it wasn't filled. I have since canceled it as we are already heading lower. The S&P 500 is still managing to close at its 50 day moving average. It remains short term oversold but not extremely so. A break of 5400 would imply that we are heading much lower. Tomorrows employment report should provide the key to which way Friday will go. It appears for now that rallies are being sold and the summation index hasn't even turned down yet. Markets always know more than we do. Gold was up $13 on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates were lower. The XAU fell 2 7/8, while GDX lost 2/3. Volume was light. The gold shares did finish up from their lows on the session. I may place an order overnight for the GDX August calls again. The short term indicators for GDX are hanging around the mid-range area. So it could go either way. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was higher today and that fits the downside day for stocks. The short term indicators here remain overbought. The VIX doesn't usually stay overbought and it is a warning sign that caution here is the best course of action or inaction. Asia was mixed and Europe down overnight. We'll close out the trading week tomorrow.