Hanging around in the middle of option expiration week as the Dow gained 163 points on average volume. The advance/declines were positive. The summation index is moving up. Inflation data came in light. The Dow was the leader today and that isn't the most bullish scenario. The S&P 500 is still short term overbought and is due for a rest. Declines can be bought in my humble opinion. Most of the important economic data is already out for the week so it's anybodies guess where we go from here. We'll remain patient for now with regards to the SPY trading. Gold was off a couple bucks on the futures. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on light volume. My GDX December calls are now posting a small loss. GDX is stalling at its 50 day moving average and the short term indicators are starting to move sideways. I still have the open order out for the GDX January calls. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX finished flat on the session and remains short term oversold. Only a couple of days left in the November option cycle and we're approaching a short holiday week as well. My guess is that things will wind down here for the next week and half but we'll see. Ideas include getting the January GDX calls at some point and some SPY calls when we see some pullback in the overall market. Europe and Asia finished higher. We'll keep an eye on the overnight developments.

Inflation data came in lighter than expected and the market took off to the upside. The Dow gained 489 points on good volume. The advance/declines were 10 to 1 positive. The summation index is moving up and just crossed the zero line back into positive territory. The NASDAQ continues to lead the way. The S&P had a gap at the open and never looked back. Still short term overbought and staying that way. We never saw a decent pullback on the way up over the past two weeks to attempt the SPY November calls. In retrospect we should have just bought anything to go along for the ride. But if you would have told me at the end of October that we would be knocking on the door of 4500 in 2 1/2 weeks, I wouldn't have believed you. Markets go where they want. Gold was up $16 on the futures. The US dollar got creamed and interest rates sank. The XAU gained 5 3/8 and GDX climbed about 1 1/3. Volume was heavy to the upside. The inverse head and shoulders pattern on the GDX daily chart might still be valid after todays price action. It has gotten more complex. The short term indicators for GDX have now turned back up. If GDX continues higher and breaks the 30 level, the mearsuring objective is still the 34 level. My December GDX calls have made it back to break even. The order for the GDX January calls hasn't been filled and it looks like it won't. I will either have to adjust it or move to a higher strike price. One day doesn't make a trend though so we'll have to see where the gold shares go from here. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and remains short term oversold. Nothing new here as the VIX looked like that it projected higher stock prices and that is what has come to pass. Three days remain in the November option cycle and we're most likely not going to make any SPY trades until after the holiday week goes by. The long side is the only way to go for now. A repeat of yesterday overseas as Europe was higher and Asia mixed again. We'll see how tomorrows inflation data is received.

Waiting on inflation data as the Dow rose 54 points on light volume. The advance/declines were about even. The summation index continues higher. A mixed bag though as both the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 posted small losses. The S&P 500 remains short term overbought. We're inclined to try the SPY November calls if we see some selling this week. The market rarely cooperates. Otherwise we'll most likely remain on the sidelines regarding the S&P until after the holiday next week. Gold was up a dozen on the futures. The US dollar was lower and interest rates were flat. The XAU fell 1 1/8, while GDX lost almost 1/4. Volume was very light. Gold up and the gold shares down is a negative. GDX remains short term oversold. My GDX December calls are solid losers. I did place an open order for the GDX January calls but it will take some selling to get filled. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today and is still short term oversold. Still way below the 20 level and the VIX implies higher stock prices going forward. That doesn't mean we won't see any declines but they should be short lived. If we see some selling tomorrow and into Wednesday we'll probably try the SPY calls with just a couple of days left in the option cycle. If we go higher tomorrow we'll stay out most likely for the rest of the week. We won't try and press things either way. Asia was mixed and Europe higher to start the week. We'll see how the market reacts to the inflation data tomorrow.

Powering higher as the Dow gained 391 points on light volume. The advance/declines were around 3 to 1 positive. The summation index is moving up. The NASDAQ led the way up. Overbought, staying that way and the S&P 500 closed above the 4400 level. It wasn't a high volume break through but you cannot argue with price. Perhaps we'll stall in this area but the implications are clear. The market is going higher. We did not get the chance to purchase the SPY November calls that were on our radar. While we were wasting our time and effort on the gold shares the overall market powered higher. Missed opportunity. Gold fell thirty bucks on the futures. The US dollar was slightly lower and interest rates were flat. The XAU lost a point, while GDX shed 1/3. Volume was light. The potential inverse head and shoulders pattern on the GDX daily chart failed to materialize. That cost us. I sold the GDX November calls today for a 95% loss. We're still holding the GDX December calls but they are in the cut the loss mode at this point. GDX is short term oversold so we'll expect a bounce soon. That should give us a chance to dump the December calls, hopefully next week. We'll have a short holiday week after that and we pobably don't want to do any option buying before then. We are looking at the GDX January calls but the medium term indicators have rolled over and the prognosis is for lower prices. Mentally I'm feeling a bit frustrated. We saw that the overall market had turned yet we did not purchase the SPY calls. Instead I'm stuck with counting my GDX losses. Sometimes it is a humbling game. The VIX was lower today and is staying short term oversold. Perhaps it will simply stay that way in options expiration week as the market moves higher. We'll see. I'll be going over the charts this weekend to maybe find an idea for expiration week. Europe and Asia were down with the exception of India. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

We finally saw some selling today as the Dow fell 220 points on average volume. The advance/declines were around 3 to 1 negative. The summation index is still moving higher. The NASDAQ led the way lower but it wasn't any sort of rout by any means. The short term indicators for the S&P 500 are starting to roll over. Gold was up $9 on the futures. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU and GDX had slight fractional losses on average volume. The gold shares fell back from their best levels on the session. My GDX call postions remain in the red. Mentally I'm feeling tired and that is why the blog is a bit shorter than usual today. The VIX was up today which fits the downside day. The short term indicators here are still oversold. Asia was mixed and Europe higher overnight. We'll close out the trading week tomorrow.

Whatever selling that occurs continues to be met by buying but the Dow did lose 39 points on light volume. The advance/declines were negative. The summation index is moving up. We had selling in the morning which met with buying in the afternoon. The NASDAQ and the S&P 500 managed to eek out small gains. Both remain short term overbought. It looks like we won't get a chance at the SPY November calls. It seems like the market just wants to keep going up from here but we do have the 4400 level of resistance to contend with on the S&P. Almost there and what happens at that point will tell us a lot. My guess is that we'll get through there and keep on going. Gold lost $18 on the futures. The US dollar finished basically unchanged and interest rates had a slight drop. The gold shares got creamed with the XAU losing 3 1/8 and GDX down by 7/8. Volume was good moving lower again. My GDX November calls are dead. I did get filled on the open order for the GDX December calls and they are losing already. Unless the gold shares turn around tomorrow, the inverse head and shoulders pattern that I have talked about on the daily chart will be negated. It looks like that will be the case. Not sure what happened here with gold but we'll listen to what the price is telling us. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX it still heading lower and still short term oversold. This seems like a broken record. However it can last longer than you think and as long as it does we'll continue to look for higher stock prices. Asia was mostly lower and Europe generally higher. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Still waiting for the chance to try the SPY November calls but there is no pullback yet as the Dow gained 56 points on light volume. The advance/declines were negative. The sumation index is moving up. The NASDAQ was by far the best performer on the day and that's a plus. The S&P 500 opened lower and closed higher for a one day upside reversal. But it's now seven days in a row of gains there and some type of pause is due. Not to mention the down trend line at 4400 that has to be negotiated. Plus the continued short term overbought technical condition. So we will be patient and wait for some selling before we try and get the SPY calls ahead of option expiration week. Gold dropped $13 again on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates were a bit lower. The XAU fell 2 3/4, while GDX lost over 1/2. Volume was heavy to the downside but the gold shares did come up from the worst levels on the day. The potential inverse head and shoulders pattern for GDX is still intact for now. It is turning into a more complex pattern which would take longer to resolve. My GDX November calls are solid losers after todays price action. I did place an open order for some GDX December calls today. My thinking is that if that pattern on the GDX daily chart takes longer to resolve itself, I would like to go along for the eventual rise. However a continued drop in the gold shares would change things. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was a bit lower today and remains short term oversold. During rallies the VIX simply remains oversold. It seems to be pointing to higher stock prices going forward and I agree with that. Asia and Europe were lower with the exception of Germany. We'll keep an eye on tonights headlines.

Just hanging around today as the Dow gained 34 points on light volume. The advance/declines were better than 2 to 1 negative. The summation index is moving higher. Slight gains for most of the major averages today as the market has to digest last weeks run up. We would not be surprised to see some selling this week and that could set us up for the SPY November calls for option expiration week. Friday is a partial holiday for Veterans day. Some of the short term indicators for the S&P 500 are overbought. I do think that some kind of rolling over will take place. The next down trend line of resistance comes in around 4400 but I think that we'll head lower before attempting to cross that line. Perhaps we'll get a shot at the SPY November 430 calls but we'll see. Gold fell $13 on the futures. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU lost 1 1/4, while GDX shed 1/3. Volume was good to the downside. The short term indicators here are trying to roll over. My GDX November calls are now showing a small loss. Not sure what's next here but on the daily chart GDX is potentially forming an inverse head and shoulders pattern. Volume has picked up in the gold shares but I'm not sure what that means. If the inverse pattern is for real, the measuring objective for GDX would be 34. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX finished unchanged on the day. The short term indicators remain oversold. Not sure what to expect next here. A lot of Fed speak this week but it's light on economic data. Asia up and Europe down to begin the week. We'll see how things go tomorrow.

Quite a week on Wall street as the Dow capped things off with a gain of 222 points on good volume. The advance/declines were 5 to 1 positive. The summation index is moving up. We did see a little selling near the close but that was most likely just the short term traders taking their weekly profit. The employment report was viewed as market friendly. The NASDAQ led the way again. The S&P 500 has made it through the first down trend line of resistance. The next line that began the decline back in August comes in at 4400. My guess is that will be taken out by option expiration but we'll see. Waiting on some pullback to get the SPY November calls but we've already missed the lions share of this move. Not yet short term overbought on the indicators for the S&P. Things have changed in a hurry. Gold was up five bucks on the futures. The US dollar was lower along with interest rates. The gold shares came to life. The XAU gained 4 3/4, while GDX added 1 1/4. Volume was very heavy. The gold shares followed the overall market lower in the final hour. My GDX November calls are now showing a small profit. What a difference a day makes. The gold shares outperformed gold itself by a wide margin. That's usually a sign of more gains to come but we'll see what happens this time. The short term indicators for GDX have turned up with room to run. Resistance for GDX comes in at the 30 level. If we can make it through there on good volume our GDX trade will work. Hasn't happened yet. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX is still heading lower and is still short term oversold. It can stay that way during rallies which is what we're in at the moment. We've seen a dramatic turnaround for stocks in just one week and that can't be ignored. Expect the gains to continue but not at the rapid pace that we saw this week. All signs point to higher prices going forward barring a negative external event. We'll be going over all the charts this weekend as usual to try and find an entry point for the November SPY call idea. Asia was higher and Europe mixed to finish out the week. It's Friday afternonn and time for a break.

The rally exploded to the upside today as the Dow roared ahead by 564 points on good volume. The advance/declines were 7 to 1 positive. The summation index is moving higher. The S&P 500 led the way today but all the major stock averages had stellar gains. The S&P has moved up in a straight line this week and the volume has been decent. We are now up against the first short term down trend line on the daily chart here, so some stalling may take place. However the short term indicators for the S&P 500 are moving up with room to go, so this line will eventually get broken to the upside. Perhaps even tomorrow. We've missed the ideal time to enter a trade with the SPY November calls but we might still get a chance if we see some kind of pullback before option expiration. Well we can hope at least. Stating the obvious, the trend is now up. Gold rose $4 on the futures. The US dollar was lower along with interest rates. The XAU and GDX had fractional gains on light volume. Money is finding other places to go instead of gold now. That could change with the next problem in the Middle East but we don't know if or when that would happen. My GDX November call trade is a solid loser with a little over two weeks to go. We'll hold on for now but it could already be in the cut the loss mode for this one. Some of the short term indicators for GDX are oversold so perhaps there's still a chance this will work. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX continued lower. It is now below both its 50 and 200 day moving averages. Short term oversold on the VIX but it stays that way during rallies. It has been quite a positive week for stocks and we'll see how the market reacts to the jobs report tomorrow. Make no mistake that the bottom is in. Europe and Asia were higher as money is moving into stocks around the globe. We'll close out the trading week tomorrow.

The Fed spoke and the market liked what it heard as the Dow gained 221 points on average volume. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 positive. The summation index is now moving up. Rates were left unchanged as expected. The NASDAQ led the way and that's a plus. The short term indicators for the S&P 500 are moving higher with plenty of room to go. The S&P closed just below its 200 day moving average. We are hoping for some kind of near term pullback for the opportunity to purchase the SPY November calls but it may already be too late. The bottom is in as far as we're concerned. Declines can be purchased in my view. Still plenty of time left in the November option cycle. Gold was off $7 on the futures. The US dollar finished flat and interest rates dropped. The XAU and GDX finished mixed with fractional moves one way or the other on heavy volume. The volume for the gold shares has picked up but is still deciding exactly which way it wants to go. My GDX November call position remains solidly in the red for now. Getting to short term oversold on the indicators for GDX but not completely there yet. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX continued lower and is approaching short term oversold. Comfortably below the 20 level on this technical indicator now. All in all the evidence suggests that higher stock prices are in our future from here. We'll hope for some kind of pullback near term but that just may not happen. Next up is the employment report on Friday. We'll see how the markets react to that. Europe and Asia were higher with the exception of India. We'll keep an eye on the overnight developments.

Moving higher as the Dow was up 123 points today on average volume. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 positive. The summation index is trying to turn around. My guess is that the decline is finished for now but we'll see what happens with the Fed tomorrow. The short term indicators for the S&P 500 have turned back up. We've had five wave downside patterns complete on more than one of the major stock indices. We are in a seasonally bullish period for stocks. The S&P is both short and medium term oversold. I think that the weight of evidence says that we'll be moving higher from here. We'll see. I still like the SPY November calls, especially if we go back and test the recent low. Gold was off $11 on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates rose. The XAU fell 2 1/2, while GDX lost 3/4. Volume was heavy to the downside. My GDX November calls are now losers. The short term indicators are heading lower with room to go. Unless things turn around for the gold shares this week, this trade will be another money burner. GDX closed below its 50 day moving average. I'm not giving up on this idea yet considering the geo-political backdrop. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX fell and broke through the short term up trend line. This is another reason to believe that the decline is over. The short term indicators are heading down with room to go. I would not be surprised if the current two day gains for stocks continued. But we'll have to see what happens with the Fed tomorrow. In general Asia was down and Europe up overnight. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

We certainly got a bounce today as the Dow climbed 511 points on average volume. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 positive. The summation index is still moving lower. The Dow led the way higher. A big move up out of nowhere usually occurs in bear markets but we haven't moved the required 20% lower yet. So it's possible that the decline has ended but we won't know right away. Todays advance has turned the short term indicators for the S&P 500 up but we're still oversold there. As the week goes on we'll see if this is a one day wonder or the start of something sustainable. We've got the Fed and the jobs report due this week so there will be plenty of excuses for price movement. End of the month tomorrow as well. We still like the SPY November calls if we can get the timing right. Gold was up $6 on the futures. The US dollar was lower and interest rates ticked up. The XAU shed 1 1/3, while GDX lost almost 1/2. Volume was average. Gold up and the gold shares down is a negative. The Middle East situation over the weekend didn't turn out as bad as predicted so far and that was an excuse to get out of the gold shares which have had a nice run. However geo-political concerns remain a wildcard and we'll hang on to our GDX November calls for now. They are still showing a small profit despite todays loss. The short term technical indicators for GDX are mid-range. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and that fits an up market. The short term indicators are trying to roll over and it closed below the 20 level. If the VIX can make it down through the up trend line that lies at the 19 level we'll become more convinced that the worst is over for stocks. Hasn't happened yet but we get the feeling that it will. But we won't get ahead of ourselves because the market will eventually let us know. Europe and Asia were up with the exception of Japan. We'll keep an eye on tonights headlines.

Generally to the downside today as the Dow lost 366 points on average volume. The advance/declines were 3 to 1 negative. The summation index continues lower. The NASDAQ posted a small gain but the overall market was down. The S&P 500 continues to drop and remains short term oversold. We can't even seem to have a much needed bounce. The inflation data today came in where expected. The technical condition of the market is weak and I'm not sure what's going to turn things around. Perhaps the Fed can change the mood next week. The weekly picture for the S&P 500 is oversold as well. The longer term up trend line there that started a year ago has been broken. What more can we say? Oversold, staying that way and we'll see where we go next week. I'm still considering the SPY November calls but I'm not sure where the entry point would be. Gold came to life halfway through the session and rose $20 on the futures. The US dollar and interest rates both finished flat. The XAU added 2 1/8, while GDX was up 2/3. Volume was heavy to the upside. It appears gold found buyers ahead of the weekend just in case the geo-politcal picture gets muddy. My GDX November calls are showing a small profit. GDX has bounced off of its 50 day moving average and the short term indicators are trying to turn back up. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today and is still above the 20 level. Not sure what's next here but if the indicators keep going higher the market will keep going lower. We've got the Fed next week with no changes in policy expected. Earnings continue to be reported. The Middle East tension hasn't gone away. Plenty to ponder over the weekend. We'll keep our eye on the charts as usual. Asia was higher and Europe lower to close out the week. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

Another day another sell off as the Dow fell 251 points on better than average volume. The advance/declines were slightly positive. The summation index continues down. Earnings reports were the excuse for todays decline. The NASDAQ is still leading the way lower and that's a negative. The S&P 500 is short term oversold and staying that way. I thought that the 4200 would provide support and be the downside target for this decline. I was wrong as we have passed that level and continue to go down. Not sure what's next but perhaps 4100 will contain things. Or maybe not. The large cap tech stocks are falling apart and they have been what has been keeping things together. The potential positive divergences that we saw earlier for the overall market have been negated. I am still lookng at the SPY November calls but cannot figure out where the entry point would be right now. We'll have to remain on the sidelines for now but that could change. Gold finished flat on the session. The US dollar was slightly higher and interest rates dropped. The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on heavy volume. They did finish up from the worst levels on the day. I had thought that maybe GDP would come in strong this morning and perhaps the gold shares would drop. That is what occurred. Last night I adjusted my open order for the GDX November calls and it was filled this morning. The entry was OK but maybe could have been just a little better. The position is showing a very slight gain. The short term indicators for GDX are around mid-range. So there is room to move both ways. I'm still expecting the Middle East conflict to provide a boost for gold sometime in the November option cycle but I could be wrong. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today but not as much as expected given todays decline. Not sure what that means. Still above the 20 level here. Inflation data due out tomorrow will probably be a market mover one way or the other early on. The S&P is oversold with the summation index moving down in negative territory and we haven't even seen a decent bounce yet. Interesting times. Europe and Asia were down overnight. We'll close out the trading week tomorrow.

Heading back to the downside as the Dow fell 105 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 3 to 1 negative. The summation index is moving down. The overall market was much lower than the Dow with the NASDAQ once again leading the way. The S&P 500 closed below the 4200 level and back below its 200 day moving average. Short term oversold here and staying that way. Looks like I could be wrong about it holding up at around the 4200 level if we get some follow through selling tomorrow. I didn't buy any SPY November calls today but was looking at them. Like I said yesterday, I still believe that we're closer to a bottom than to any kind of top. But who knows? Gold was up five bucks on the futures. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU dropped 1 7/8, while GDX lost 1/2. Volume was average. Gold up and the gold shares down is a negative. However I think that the gold shares just followed the overall market lower. I did adjust my open order for the GDX November calls. Still not filled yet. The short term indicators for GDX have now rolled over with plenty of room to go lower. So maybe the idea of trying the calls here again is wrong. I'm sticking with it for now though as the geo-political backdrop remains very uncertain. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX moved back up today which fits a down market. The short term indicators here are mid-range so it could go either way. I can't say that I have a good handle on where the VIX will go next. We'll probably stay on the sidelines with regards to the SPY for now. There is plenty of time remaining in the November option cycle. Asia and Europe were up with the exception of India. We'll keep an eye on the overnight headlines.

The bounce arrived on schedule as the Dow gained 204 points on light volume. The advance/declines were over 2 to 1 positive. The summation index is still moving down. The NASDAQ led the way and that's a plus. The short term indicators for the S&P 500 are trying to turn back up. THere are some potential positive divergences for the S&P. It is also so far holding on to its 200 day moving average. Do we dare attempt the SPY November calls here with so much time left in the November option cycle? After all we do still feel that the S&P will hold the 4200 level going forward from here. I'll think about it tonight. Gold was off $5 on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates finished flat. The XAU and GDX ended about unchanged but up from the worst levels of the session. Volume was light. My open order for the GDX November calls remains out there. GDX remains short term overbought but not extremely so. Remaining patient here for now. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX continued down and the short term indicators are heading lower with room to go. 18 is the level to watch here as that is where the short term up trend line lies. If the VIX can break that line we will be more convinced that long is the way to go from here. We are already pretty sure given the level of the S&P and the seasonality factor. But the market goes where it wants. We are still at the mercy of the next headline of geo-political consequence and the coming earnings announcements. However we are obviously closer to a bottom in the S&P than a top. That said we'll continue to keep a close watch on things. Europe was higher and Asia mixed last night. We'll see how it goes tomorrow.

A mixed bag to begin the trading week as the Dow fell 190 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 negative. The summation index is moving down. The NASDAQ posted a slight gain but that was about it for the bulls. The S&P 500 opened with a gap lower, fought its way back to positive territory and then rolled over again. It is short term oversold so some kind of bounce is expected. The S&P did finally make it to the 4200 level and that has held for now. I still believe that the market will hold up here but I could be wrong. If we continue to drop here while being oversold it could get ugly. However I'm not keen on that scenario right now. We'll look for some kind of bounce and go from there. Gold fell ten bucks on the futures. The US dollar was lower along with interest rates. Those are usually positives for the price of gold. The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on light volume. They both finished up from the worst levels on the day. I already have an open order in for the GDX November calls. It will take a decline in GDX to get filled so it may have to be adjusted at some point. I still think that the geo-political tension in the Middle East has legs and that the flight to safety trade is not dead yet. That said, GDX is still short term overbought but can stay that way during rallies. What we don't want to do here is think that just because there was a successful trade in GDX last option cycle that things will simply repeat in this option cycle. Not to mention it took a war breaking out to bring the gold shares to life. However the longer term down trend line for GDX was broken and higher prices should be expected after perhaps a pause to digest the gains. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and that doesn't exactly fit with an overall negative market. However the VIX is short term overbought and the indicators turned lower today. Still above the 20 level. There is a short term up trend line at the 18 level that we'll be keeping an eye on. If the VIX can break below 18 there's a better chance that the decline has run its course. Some economic data due this week including GDP and inflation numbers. But it remains a headline risk environment. Asia was lower and Europe generally higher to start the week. We'll keep an eye on tonights developments.

The selling continues heading into the weekend as the Dow fell 286 points on average volume. The advance/declines were close to 3 to 1 negative. The summation index is heading down. The NASDAQ continues to lead the way lower. At this rate it doesn't look like the 4200 level will hold for the S&P 500 but I'm still a believer that it will. The S&P has made it down to and closed below its 200 day moving average. However there's still more room for the short term indicators to go lower. Perhaps the market knows things that we don't and that is usually the case. The NASDAQ closed at a new low for its decline. It is a nervous market with geo-political tensions taking over instead of the usual economic data. This too will eventually pass and the sidelines isn't the worst place to be for now. Gold was up ten bucks on the futures but off of the best levels on the day. The US dollar was slightly lower and interest rates fell. The XAU and GDX had very slight fractional losses and also finished far from the highs on the session. I did sell all my positions in the GDX October calls after the market opened. The timing was dreadful as the gold shares rallied after I sold the calls. Two of the positions managed to show a profit and one had a loss. The entry on this trading idea was premature and the exit followed suit on the last day to trade. Having three separate positions for the same trade is not the normal way that I do things. However the technical signal was there and I believed in it despite the trade not working in the beginning. Having an extra week to work with certainly was a factor. But the overall timing was horrible. It took a war in the Middle East for this trade to not be a huge loss. The overall trade somehow produced a profit of a little over 100%. Could and should have been better. Doesn't matter now and we're moving on. Already looking at the GDX November calls. A snap back to the longer term trend line that was broken is the next technical expectation. If and when that occurs I'll take a closer look at those GDX calls. Mentally I'm feeling a bit miffed at the way that I got out of todays trade. Had no patience but I don't usually hold on to option positions to the very last trading day. The VIX was higher again today and is above the 20 level. That spells trouble for stocks if we stay above there. The short term indicators are overbought now though. Not sure what's next here. We're still at the mercy of headline risk. We will be checking the charts over the weekend. Asia and Europe are still moving down as the selling around the globe continues. It's Friday afternoon and time for a rest.

More selling today as the Dow fell 250 points on average volume. The advance/declines were 4 to 1 negative. The summation index is now moving lower. We went back and forth for a while before heading lower in the second half of the day. The NASDAQ continues to lead the way down. The Russell 2000 just broke to new lows for this move lower along with the TRAN. It appears that the S&P 500 is going to retest its recent lows. The short term indicators here are moving lower and are not yet even close to being oversold. If we do go lower from here, I think that the S&P will hold around the 4200 level. But I could be wrong. Still at the mercy of whatever headline pops up next and 3rd quarter earnings. Option expiration Friday tomorrow. Gold rallied $18 on the futures. The US dollar was lower and interest rates were mixed. The XAU and GDX finished little changed after being lower early on. Volume was a bit above average. Once again the gold shares did not follow the price of gold higher and that's a negative. But the gold shares could just be following the overall market lower. One day to go for my GDX October calls and I'm still holding on to them. They lost some more ground today. But I'll be out of this trade tomorrow as time has run its course. I still like the gold share calls going forward as the longer term down trend line there has been broken. We'll try and wait for GDX to get back to short term oversold before attempting this idea again. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today and has closed above the 20 level. The short term indicators here are not yet overbought so we could see some more selling in stocks. Should be an interesting expiration Friday. Asia and Europe were down as it's a worldwide dumping of stocks. We'll close out the trading week tomorrow.

Sellers took over today as the Dow dropped 332 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 5 to 1 negative. The summation index is back to tracking sideways. The NASDAQ led the way lower. The S&P 500 couldn't make it above its 50 day moving average. The short term indicators here have rolled over with room to go lower. Waiting on earnings and the next shoe to drop in the Middle East. I'm not sure what is next near term for the stock market. We'll remain on the sidelines regarding the SPY for now. Gold rallied as the futures were up $28. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The gold shares did not go along for the ride with gold and that is not a plus. GDX opened with a gap to the upside and sold off for the rest of the session. The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on better than average volume. My GDX call positions lost some ground today. Just two days left here in this trade. Not sure why I'm still holding on to them considering todays negative price action. However the geo-politcal backdrop is about as good as it gets for flight to safety havens and gold is proving to be one this time around. Probably should exit the position tomorrow. We'll see. It appears the gold shares followed the overall market lower today. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today which fits a down market. Getting close to the 20 level and if it gets above there we'll really see some fireworks. Hasn't happened yet and I'm not saying that it will. The short term indicators here have room to go either way. Europe and Asia were lower overnight. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Back and forth today as the Dow rose 13 points on light volume. The advance/declines were positive. The summation index is still trying to move higher. We opened with a big gap to the downside. The market then rallied back to positive territory, only to move lower once again. Sideways was the trend for the final couple of hours. The S&P 500 remains short term overbought on some of the indicators and stuck below its 50 day moving average. I'm not sure what the next catalyst will be or which way we're going. So far it looks like the positive option expiration week bias is showing up. The NASDAQ was lower on the session though. We are still at the mercy of the next headline coming from the Middle East. Gold finished the day flat. The US dollar was slightly lower and interest rates rose. The XAU was up 2 1/2, while GDX added 1/2. Volume was light. The gold shares outperformed the metal itself and that's a plus. The light volume is a concern though as is the time remaining in the October option cycle. Not to mention that the gold shares are short term overbought. My GDX October call positions are back to showing decent gains with one exception. I'm not sure how much longer I'll hold on to this position. GDX did make it through the longer term down trend line today but the volume was lackluster. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was higher today which fits with the volatility. Mid-range on the short term techncials makes predicting where it goes from here difficult. I'm on the sidelines with regards to the SPY for now. Three days left in the October option cycle with more uncertanties than usual and a Middle East conflict. Tough trading to be sure. Earnings seem to be in the back seat for now. Europe and Asia were higher overnight. We'll keep an eye on tonights developments.

Moving higher to begin option expiration week as the Dow gained 314 points on light volume. The advance/declines were around 3 to 1 positive. The summation index is trying to move back up. The NASDAQ led the way and that's a plus. The market seems to be shrugging off the geo-political tensions but that could change in a flash. Short term overbought now for the S&P 500. Perhaps the positive option expiration week bias will win out but it's only Monday. Earnings will be front and center for a few weeks but the market is still in a news headline risk mode. Tough trading to be sure and only four days left in the October option cycle. WE will most likely remain on the sidelines with regards to the SPY. Gold was off almost ten bucks on the futures. The US dollar was lower and interest rates were higher. The XAU had a slight fractional gain and GDX finished the day flat. Volume was light. GDX is stalling at the longer term down trend line at 29 and that is to be expected. My GDX October call position is still shwoing a profit but not as much as when the day started. Plenty of risk remains in this trade with only four days left. If GDX can make it though the trend line the profit on this trade will be pretty good. If GDX pulls back from here there probably won't be any profit at all or perhaps a loss. My thinking is that the next negative headline out of the Middle East will drive gold higher but I could be wrong. Or this week remains status quo there and gold drifts lower. I could also just get out with whatever gain this trade is showing now and be done with it. As usual the trading is never easy. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and closed below its 200 day moving average. The short term indicators here are around mid-range. So the VIX could go either way from here. We'll watch and see what develops overnight and take it from there. Asia was lower and Europe higher to start the week. We'll see how things go tomorrow.

It is a nervous market as Middle East geo-political tensions have come to a head. The Dow managed a gain of 39 points on light volume. The advance/declines were negative. The summation index is now tracking sideways. The overall market was much weaker than the Dow with the NASDAQ leading the way by a large margin. That is not a plus. The short term indicators for the S&P 500 have rolled over with plenty of room to go lower. I'm not sure what's next but the smaller stocks are leading the way down and that's another negative. Options expiration week coming up with plenty of uncertainty. Things seem like they want to go lower here but we'll have to see what happens over the weekend. It's a tricky time to try and navigate what will happen next. Perhaps we'll get a shot at the SPY October calls next week after all. But you've got to be nimble and pay complete attention. The risk might just be too high vs. the reward. We'll consider what to do over the weekend. Gold took over as the flight to safety choice as the futures soared $58. The US dollar finished little changed and interest rates dipped. The XAU climbed 4 3/4, while GDX gained almost 1 1/4. Volume was heavy to the upside. GDX has reached the target of the down trend line that began in May at the 29 level. It makes sense that it is stalling here but there's a chance that it could get through and move even higher next week. It could also be turned around here as well but with the problems in the world at the moment that doesn't seem to be in the cards. But anything can happen in this game. My GDX October call positions went from solid losers to a showing a profit overnight. Two of the positions are now in the black, with the other showing a small loss. I'll have to check and see where the next upside target lies on the daily chart. I would have liked to see a better gain in the gold shares today considering that gold went up over fifty bucks. But we'll take what we can get. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today and made it over the 20 level at one point. The short term indicators are now moving back up. This implies more volatility to come which will most likely make next week very interesting in the markets. We are at the mercy of headline risk with geo-political uncertainties front and center. We'll do the best we can given the circumstances. Europe and Asia were lower to close out the week overseas. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

Volatility returned today as the Dow fell 173 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 5 to 1 negative. The summation index is now tracking sideways. It seemed like a quiet session as the inflation report came in where expected. However halfway through the day the market sold off 60 S&P points in a little over an hour. It attempted to come back the rest of the day. The S&P is more overbought than oversold here but not at extremes. The smaller stocks got hit hard today and that is not a plus. The very negative breadth is a warning as well. One day does not make a trend but it appears that the recent rise has run its course. Gold dropped $6 on the futures. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU fell 2 1/2, while GDX lost over 1/2. Volume was average. My GDX October calls went from break even back to solid losers with todays loss for GDX. GDX has been turned back by its 50 day moving average. In retrospect it appears yesterday was the time to exit this trade. There's still six days left in the October option cycle. If GDX doesn't turn back up tomorrow this trade will probably be left for dead. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX moved back up today and remains above its 50 day moving average. Not sure where it is heading next. There is plenty of room for the short term indicators to move higher. That would not bode well for stocks in the near term. We made it through the inflation data but I'm not sure what the next catalyst for market movement will be. Option expiration week is coming next week. Still plenty of geo-political turmoil to get through and earnings season is about to begin again. We'll keep an eye on things as usual. Asia was higher and Europe mixed again overnight. We'll close out the trading week tomorrow.

Another day of gains despite higher than expected inflation data as the Dow rose 65 points on light volume. The advance/declines were positive. The summation index has turned back up. We did see some selling during todays session but the market climbed back in the final two hours. Once again we had news that you would think would lead to a negative market but it didn't. The NASDAQ continues to lead and that's a plus. Getting to short term overbought on the S&P 500 but not there yet. Maybe we'll make it to the 50 day moving average at 4410. After that we have a down trend line on the daily chart that comes in just above 4450. But perhaps we're getting ahead of ourselves as we still have the consumer inflation report to digest tomorrow. Gold added another dozen on the futures. The US dollar finished little changed and interest rates slipped. The XAU gained 2 1/4 and GDX added 1/2. Volume was average. GDX had made it back to its 50 day moving average and is not yet short term overbought. The down trend line on the daily chart that began in May lies at the 29 level. We are alomst there and that should prove to be a stopping point for this short term uptrend. But we'll see. The geo-political background has had a near term influence on the price of gold to be sure. Not sure how long that lasts. My GDX October call positions have made it back to one winner, one break even and one loser. The combined total is now back to break even. This is more than I could have hoped for a week ago but the world has changed. There's still almost a week and half left in the October option cycle but I probably shouldn't get greedy. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today which fits an up market. Still above the 50 day moving average here and just about short term oversold. The VIX is now comfortably below the 20 level. Asia was up and Europe mixed overnight. We'll see how the market reacts to tomorrows inflation report and go from there.

Continuing higher today as the Dow rose 134 points on light volume. The advance/declines were around 3 to 1 positive. The summation index has turned around and is trying to move higher. We did finish well off the highs for the session heading into the inflation data. With all that is going on in the world it has been an impressive week so far for stocks. I do think that we've put in the bottom at 4220 for the S&P 500 however that doesn't mean we won't head lower again in the coming sessions. That level should contain any more selling though in my view. If we do get back there it would be the spot to try the SPY October calls. But I don't think that we will get back that low. I could be wrong. The short term indicators for the S&P 500 are heading up and are not yet completely overbought. Gold was up another $9 on the futures. The US dollar was a bit lower and interest rates were steady after dropping in the futures market yesterday. The XAU and GDX had fractional gains on light volume. The short term indicators for GDX are the same as for the S&P. Pointing up and not yet short term overbought. My GDX October calls remain the same with one position showing a profit and the other two showing losses. I'm still trying to cut the loss here. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today which fits the market price action for Tuesday. The short term indicators are heading lower with room to run. However the VIX, like the overall market, could turn at any time. Which makes the reaction to the inflation data important as we try and figure out where we go from here. One of our indicators for the S&P is short term overbought so a drop from here would not be a surprise. But an extended decline from these levels would be. We'll watch and wwait to see what happens. Europe and Asia were up overnight with the exception of China. We'll keep an eye on tonights headlines.

Some upside follow through today as the Dow gained 197 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 positive. The summation index is trying to turn around. My guess is that it will eventually be successful here. The index is in negative territory and that usually doesn't last too long. Geo-political tensions arrived over the weekend in the Middle East. The US stock market seems to have shrugged it off. That's two recent negative market news events that haven't been met with selling. We think the S&P 500 has put in a bottom here. The short term indicators here are now mid-range. Perhaps we'll go back and test the lows but they should hold if that happens. Probably too late for the October SPY calls. Gold found safe haven buying as the futures were up thirty bucks. The US dollar finished flat and the cash bond market was closed today. The XAU rose 2 1/4, while GDX climbed almost 2/3. Volume was average. Considering the move up in gold the performance of the gold shares was lackluster. I'm still holding on to my GDX October call positions although that may be a mistake. One of them is showing a small profit still but the others are solid losers. Most likely should be out of this trade sometime this week. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was higher today which doesn't fit an up market. Almost mid-range with the short term indicators here as well. I do expect some selling in the stock market at some point this week. Perhaps on Wednesdays or Thursday inflation reports. That could possibly give us a shot at the SPY October calls. We'll see. My attention remains with the GDX call trade for now. Would have liked to see more buying of the gold shares today though. Europe and Asia were lower to begin the week. The world is on edge right now as it tries to figure out the implications of a Middle East conflict. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

There was a dramatic one day reversal to the upside today as the Dow opened lower only to turn around and soar higher. The most watched index gained 288 points on light volume. The advance/declines were almost 2 to 1 positive. The summation index is still moving lower but not as much as recently. Perhaps this is the beginning of an attempt at a turnaround there. The jobs report came in better than expected and the market gapped down at the open. But then buyers showed up and we marched higher until the last half hour. A market that moves up in the face of news that was considered negative is a plus for the bulls. The NASDAQ once again led the way up. The S&P 500 held around the 4220 level once again and I'm calling that as the bottom for this two month old decline. The short term indicators for the S&P 500 have turned up although we are still oversold. Yes we could have some backing and filling going forward but the indicators got so blown out to the downside that I believe it's time to turn around. We will be looking at the SPY October calls if it isn't too late already. And it very well could be. Gold was up $11 on the futures. The US dollar was a bit lower and interest rates rose. The XAU was up 2 1/4, while GDX added over 1/2. Volume was good. I was hoping for more of a gain for the gold shares but at least we're moving in the right direction. One of my GDX October call positions is slightly positive now but the other two are still solid losers. This trade is still in the cut the loss mode and I should probably be out on Monday even with two weeks to go in the October option cycle. The short term indicators for GDX have turned back up and have plenty of room to go higher. The weekly candlestick chart here has a potential bullish hammer pattern on it. But I'm not sure holding on to this trade any longer is the right thing to do. I'll decide what to do over the weekend. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and barely closed below its 200 day moving average. The short term technical indicators continue to fall. The VIX appears as though it wants to go lower but I've had a tough time trying to figure this one out. We thought today would be important for the markets and it was. It appears that the bulls are making a stand here. My guess is that it will be successful. We'll be checking the charts over the next couple of days to try and figure what to do next. Monday will be a partial holiday for some in the US but the stock market will be open. Europe and Asia finished the week on a positive note with the exception of Japan. It's Friday afternoon and time for a rest.

Waiting on the employment data as the Dow lost 10 points on light volume. The advance/declines were slightly negative. The summation index is moving down. Most of the major stock indices had small losses today. The S&P 500 remains short term oversold. Tomorrow will be an important session in my opinion. If the market continues to drop, 4200 will be in play for the S&P 500. But if the market can find a way to move higher, there would be a short term bottom in place on the daily charts. I'm not sure which way things will go. We have yet to see the big volume blow out sell off that usually accompanies these moves lower. All we can do now is wait. Gold was off another buck on the futures. The US dollar was lower along with interest rates. The XAU was actually up a point, while GDX rose 3/8. Volume was light. Normally I'd say that the gold shares being higher when gold itself isn't doing anything is a positive. But the precious metals complex is so blown out that I'm not sure that it really means anything. All my GDX October call positions remain in the red. Still waiting for a bounce there to try and cut the losses. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was slightly lower today. Still short term overbought here but not extremely so. Below the 20 level but above the 200 day moving average. So we'll see what the reaction to the jobs report is and go from there. Still two weeks left in the October option cycle. Would like to try the SPY October calls at some point but if we go up tomorrow it's probably too late. We'll see. Asia and Europe finished higher with the exception of Germany. We'll close out the trading week tomorrow.

An oversold bounce showed up today as the Dow rose 127 points on light volume. The advance/declines were positive which hasn't been the case lately. The summation index is still moving down. The NASDAQ once again was the outperformer and that's encouraging for the bulls. However we all know one day doesn't make a trend. The major stock indices remain oversold. The S&P 500 still hasn't reached our target of 4200 but maybe 4220 was close enough. We'll see as the decline has been relentless. We'll have to wait and see the reaction to Fridays employment report. Gold continued lower by a few bucks on the futures. The US dollar was a bit lower along with interest rates. The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on light volume. My GDX October call positions remain solid losers. I'm still waiting for some kind of bounce for the gold shares but none is forthcoming. GDX remains short term oversold and staying that way. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today as it rose above the 20 level again only to fall back. It remains short term overbought. The daily candlestick chart now looks like it implies lower values for the VIX which would certainly help stock prices if it would occur. We are still considering the SPY October calls at some point. Oil took a big drop today. Asia was down and Europe mixed in last nights trade. We'll see what Thursday has in store for us.

Sellers continue to dominate as the Dow got clobbered today and fell 430 points on average volume. The advance/declines were 5 to 1 negative. The summation index is heading down. We are through the zero line on the summation index and the market is responding by continuing to fall apart. The big move predicted by the movement in the McClellan oscillator after Fridays close came to fruition today. Oversold, staying that way and that song seems to never end. The NASDAQ led the way lower. We are just thirty S&P points away from the 4200 level which in my view will end the decline. 4200 is where the 200 day moving average resides along with the up trend line that began a year ago. So it is important that the market finds a way to hang on there and I believe that it will. Now it could bounce around there for a few days above and below but it should be the area that puts an end to this downturn. If not, we're in for a whole lot more of trouble. Gold was off $7 on the futures. The US dollar was slightly higher and interest rates continue to rise. Both the XAU and GDX had slight fractional gains on good volume. The fact that the gold shares didn't follow the overall market lower was a plus. But my positions in the GDX October calls are still all losers. Still short term oversold for GDX so maybe we can see some sort of bounce to cut the loss on this trading idea. However that would be the most we can hope for here. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX climbed today and was over the 20 level at one point. The short term indicators here have turned back up and are not completely overbought yet. So we could see some more selling in the near term which would fit with getting down to 4200 on the S&P 500. We'll be looking at the SPY October calls once we get there. Keep in mind that we could pass through 4200 and then move back up as buyers enter the picture. Or the market will just keep selling off but I don't believe that will be the case. Asia and Europe were lower as it's a worldwide plunge for now. We'll keep an eye on the overnight developments.

Another day another loser as the Dow fell 74 points on what passes these days for average volume. The advance/declines were 4 to 1 negative. The summation index continues down. October began just like September ended with no buyers in sight. Oversold, staying that way and we are beginning to wonder if this will ever end. Well of course it will at some point we just don't know where that point will be. The NASDAQ did manage to post a gain again so all is not lost for the bulls. It still looks like the S&P will travel down to the 4200 level even though it remains short term oversold. We did get a signal on Friday from the McClellan oscillator for a big move within two days so we'll see if that pans out tomorrow. Some economic data due out this week with the employment report on Friday being the key. We remain on the sidelines with regards to the SPY. Gold continues to fall as the futures lost twenty bucks. The US dollar had a strong session and interest rates continue to climb. The XAU fell 4 points and GDX lost 7/8. Volume was good to the downside. I purchased some more of the GDX October calls this morning at a closer to the money strike price again. So now I have 3 positions in this trade and all are losers. Sometimes you get what you deserve. Gold and the gold shares are in free fall. Despite the extended short term oversold condition here, they continue to collapse. This is one of those times when the technical analysis just isn't working. Yet I continue to believe that it will. The sidelines or short is the place to be regarding the gold complex right now. I'm here waiting for a bounce that is not coming. There is still plenty on time in the October option cycle but even that won't save these trades. At some point this week I should take the losses and move on. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up slightly today. The short term indicators look like they want to turn back up which would imply lower stock prices going forward. The VIX did manage to close below its 200 day moving average. If todays price action in the TRAN and Russell 2000 are any indication of what's to come, we'll be heading down tomorrow. Asia was mixed and Europe down to begin the week. We'll see how things go tomorrow.

We had a one day reversal to the dowside to finish the month as the market opened higher and closed lower. The Dow fell 158 points on light volume. The advance/declines were slightly negative. The summation index is still moving down. The inflation data came in where expected which led to a higher market open. But the sellers then took over and most of the major indices finished in the red. Perhaps it was the final dumping of shares for the 3rd quarter. The NASDAQ did manage to post a very small gain. It looks like whatever small bounce that we saw in the market is over. The S&P remains short term oversold. Perhaps next week we'll make it down to the 4200 level but I think that will be about it for this decline. The short term technical indicators for most of the major averages have been blown out to the downside for an extended period. This can last longer than you think but it cannot last forever. I could be wrong but around the 4200 level should be the bottom for the S&P 500 for this move. Gold dropped another $13 on the futures. The US dollar finished about unchanged while interest rates fell. The gold shares had a negative one day reversal as well. The XAU and GDX finished will slight fractional losses on average volume. My GDX October calls remain entrenched in the red. Do I think there is nay chance for this trade to come back? Perhaps, as the gold shares are overdue for some kind of bounce. However if the overall market continues to fall, the gold shares will most likely follow as they have been. Still short term oversold on GDX and that condition cannot last forever as well. It is probably a cut the loss situation for this trade though as the entry timing was early. We'll see. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today and the daily candlestick chart here looks like it wants to go higher. That would not bode well for stocks. We have the weekend upon us and a potential US government shut down to consider. Probably not a positive for the markets if it occurs but as always the market goes where it wants. We'll begin the month of Octobers trading on Monday. Going over the charts as usual the next couple of days. Europe and Asia were generally higher. China is on holiday for a week. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

Today we got the bounce that we've been looking for as the Dow gained 116 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 positive. The summation index is still moving down. The NASDAQ led the way higher today and that is a plus for the bulls. However we are not sure if this is a dead cat bounce or the beginning of actually trying to find a bottom. We still haven't gotten to the 4200 level on the S&P 500 but perhaps yesterdays low of 4240 was enough. There is a bullish bottoming pattern on the S&P daily candlestick chart after todays price action. But that could all change tomorrow if we get a high inflation reading with a big market sell off. End of the month tomorrow as well. So the jury is still out on where we go from here. Still short term oversold on the major stock indices despite todays rise. No doubt some short covering today ahead of the inflation news. Gold dropped another $7 on the futures. The US dollar was lower along with interest rates. The XAU and GDX had slight fractional gains on good volume. Both my October GDX call positions at different strike prices are solid losers. The only thing that this trade still has going for it is that there is a lot of time left in the October option cycle. The gold shares remain short term oversold. The VIX was lower today and that fits an up market. The short term indicators are trying to move lower but are not doing so convincingly. More overbought than oversold here. Not sure what's next for the VIX. My guess is that tomorrows market action will be dictated by the reaction to the inflation data. I have no idea what to expect. One thing for sure is that it will be interesting to see how the month of September ends. Europe higher and Asia lower in last nights trade. We'll close out the week, month and quarter tomorrow.

Trying to stabalize as the Dow fell 68 points on light volume. The advance/declines were slightly positive. The summation index continues lower. Volatile today as we bounced around trying to find direction. Both the NASDAQ and S&P 500 had very slight gains to end the day. But we haven't seen the blow out heavy volume wash out that probably needs to occur to end the decline. I'm still looking for 4200 on the S&P as the most probable resting stop. What happens there will determine if the decline is over. Both short and medium term oversold for the S&P so I'm inclined to think that we're coming to the end of the selling very soon. But the market goes where it wants as we have seen when we've crossed the zero line in the summation index. No SPY trades just yet after we missed this recent bout of selling. Gold got pounded again as the futures fell $25 and closed below the $1900 level. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU lost over 2 3/4, while GDX shed over 3/4. Volume was heavy to the downside as the near term support for the gold shares did not hold. I did purchase some more closer to the money GDX October calls this morning and that was a mistake. The GDX October calls that I am holding are all showing losses. Gold and the gold shares are in free fall. I should have taken my losses on yesterdays gold shares call options and been done with that idea. However the techncial picture here is so blown out to the oversold and downside that I cannot imagine some kind of snap back not take place soon. But I could be wrong. Sometimes markets go farther and faster than you think and we may just be in one of those times. We'll see. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was a bit lower today but remains short term overbought. Not sure what to expect next here with regards to the VIX. Coming up to the end of the month and inflation data on Friday. Not sure what to expect but we'll still look for 4200 on the S&P as the spot to see some serious buying. Asia was up and Europe slightly lower overnight. We'll keep an eye on tonights developments.

Down we go as the market got clobbered today. The Dow fell 388 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 5 to 1 negative. The summation index is heading lower and throught the zero line. Hence we get days like today when things fall apart for no apparent reason. Oversold, staying that way and that's a recipe for disaster. The NASDAQ continues to lead the way down. Another day like today will get us to 4200 on the S&P 500 and I would expect to see some buyers show up at that level. But who knows? Things are very over-extended to the downside at the moment on a technical basis. I suppose yesterdays price action was an attempt at a bounce that failed. End of the month coming up on Friday and I don't see any reason for players to step up to the plate ahead of that. It's a bloodbath but it could get worse if we don't hold things up at the S&P 500 200 day moving average at around 4200. That's also where the longer term up trend line from last October lies. It appears that's where we're headed. Gold dropped $18 on the futures. The US dollar continued higher and interest rates were steady. The XAU fell 3 1/3, while GDX was off 3/4. Volume was light. I did cancel my open order for the GDX October calls before the market opened. I then placed it again during the session and it was filled. I'm early here as the gold shares are oversold now and staying that way like the overall market. The trade is already showing a loss. I'm considering taking the loss tomorrow and trying to get the calls at a closer to the money strike price. I'm also considering getting out and heading to the sidelines. I'll ponder my choices overnight. Gold is not being sought as a safe haven and the fundamental picture here remains negative. That said, the technical picture is a buy here. Plenty of time left in the October option cycle. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. The VIX was up and closed above its 200 day moving average. It is short term oversold. Still below the important level of 20 but if it gets above there we'll only see increased selling. September is living up to its reputation as a poor time for the bulls. Tomorrow could get interesting as buyers are nowhere to be found. Europe and Asia were down. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Another day of marking time to begin the trading week as the Dow was up 43 points on light volume. The advance/declines were slightly negative. The summation index continues lower. The market is waiting on something here but what that is, I have no clue. Overdue for some kind of decent bounce for the averages as the short term oversold conditions persist. Getting closer to the zero line on the summation index but we haven't see things fall apart yet. Uncertain times to be sure. Some economic data due out this last week of September. Inflation news on Friday will probably be the most watched. The NASDAQ did lead the way today but the gains were minor. We'll stick with the forecast of lower stock prices going forward for now. Gold was off ten bucks on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates rose. The XAU dropped 1 1/8 and GDX lost 1/3. Volume was light. I adjusted my open order for the GDX calls over the weekend and it almost got filled today. Another down day tomorrow for GDX would most likely put me in this trade. GDX is not yet short term oversold so I might be early on this but I may cancel the order at the open depending on where gold is headed in the morning. I also might consider getting closer to the money calls as well. But it does appear that the time to make this trade is upon us. I could be wrong. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and that fits with an up market. The 200 day moving average has held the recent rise in the VIX for now. The short term indicators here are trying to roll over and that would be a plus for stocks. The VIX is also short term overbought so perhaps we'll see that bounce in equities that we're looking for sooner rather than later. We're still dealing with a light volume environment. Asia was mixed and Europe down to begin the week. We'll keep an eye on tonights market activity.

An attempt at stabalization would best describe todays market action as the Dow fell 106 points on light volume. The advance/declines were slightly negative. The summation index is moving lower and heading to the zero line. The Dow was the underperformer today. Not a lot of volatilty today as things basically progressed sideways. The S&P 500 remains short term oversold and I still think that it's headed towards 4200. We are due for some kind of bounce though as the market is stretched to the downside short term. But there isn't much positive out there right now and we are in a weak seasonal time frame. It appears that a collapse has started and we'll have to see how low things go. Gold was up $5 on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates dipped. The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on light volume. The short term indicators for GDX are now mid-range. My open order is still out there but I will most likely be adjusting it over the weekend. The gold shares will probably follow the overall market south in the near term and I need to take that into consideration. I do still like the idea of the GDX October calls but the entry timing will have to be pretty good in order for this idea to work. Plenty of time left in the October option cycle as it had an extra week in the time frame. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. The VIX was a bit lower today and is short term overbought. Still below the 200 day moving average here and not close to the 20 level. That doesn't mean that stocks can't go lower though. There is no denying that we had a sudden change in market perceptions this week. So we need to change our way of thinking about the current market as well. Sellers are in charge until further notice. With the zero line in plain view on the summation index, things could fall apart even quicker than we think. So keep that in mind going forward. We'll go over the charts as usual this weekend keeping those things in mind. Asia was mixed and Europe generally lower to close out the trading week. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

Sellers have taken over as the Dow lost 370 points on light volume. The advance/declines were 5 to 1 negative. The summation index is moving down. It is approaching the zero line and it looks like it will pass through it. That doesn't happen often. The market is in the falling apart mode at the moment. Once again the NASDAQ led the way down and that's a negative. The S&P 500 is short term oversold and staying that way which is never a good sign. How far down will we go? We've got a longer term up trend line and the 200 day moving average coming in at 4200 give or take for the S&P. So it looks like we're at least headed to that level. We've got some head and shoulders patterns on some of the other major indices just getting started so this decline has room to run. Can't see any reason for things to turn around but we may get some bounces to relieve the oversold conditions. We'll remain on the sidelines with regards to the SPY for now as we obviously missed this move lower. Plenty of time remaining in the October option cycle. Gold dropped over $25 on the futures. The US dollar was up along with interest rates. The XAU fell 3 points, while GDX slid over 3/4. Volume was average. The short term indicators for GDX have rolled over and have room to go lower. I'm not sure why I'm still a believer in this GDX October call trade but I'm keeping my open order out there. Another day like today will get it filled. I'll have to think about this trade idea over tonight. The gold shares could actually be headed much lower. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX jumped today and is getting to short term overbought. It is now above the upper Bollinger band but still below the important 20 level. Below the 200 day moving average as well but we'll see what happens tomorrow. Volatilty is making a comeback. Look out below is how we can sum up what's going on in the stock market right now. I doubt we'll see a lot of buyers ahead of the weekend but who knows? Realistically the trend is down until further notice. Asia and Europe were down as it's a worldwide head for the exits. We'll see how the week closes out tomorrow.

The Fed came and went and it led to one day downside reversals for most of the major averages. My higher stock prices thesis was wrong and the positive daily candlestick patterns from yesterday were negated. The Dow fell 76 points on light volume. It had been up around 250 early on. The advance/declines were negative. The summation index is on the cusp of breaking lower from the recent congestion zone. The NASDAQ led they way lower and that's a negative. The short term indicators for the S&P 500 are now oversold and it is about to touch the lower Bollinger band. Will that be able to hold prices here? Stay tuned. I'm not sure what to expect next but the market goes where it wants. We'll wait and see what happens overseas tonight but still on the sidelines with regards to trading the SPY options. Gold finished flat after being up early on the futures. The US dollar was higher and interest rates slightly rose. The XAU added 1 1/8, while GDX gained 1/3 on average volume. Both finished off of the best levels for the day. GDX remains short term overbought and we have seen recent interest here that had been lacking. I still have the order out there for the GDX October calls but if GDX starts to head lower now it may be time to cancel it. GDX was pushed back from the 30 level which is where a down trend line in effect since May occurs on the daily chart. My thinking is if we can make it through that line more buying will come in and the GDX October calls will benefit. That may just be wishful thinking on my part though. Mentally I'm still not 100%. The VIX was higher today and closed above its 50 day moving average. Not yet short term overbought here. I'm not sure what's next for this indicator. Interesting day today but where are we going from here? I don't have a good handle on things at the moment so we will have to watch and wait with regards to the SPY. The lack of volume is a concern as liquidty and participation could become a problem. But we'll see how things go tomorrow. Europe higher and Asia lower overnight. We'll keep an eye on tonights developments.

Some volatility returned on Tuesday as the Dow fell 106 points on light volume. The advance/declines remain negative. The summation index continues sideways for now. We had a sell off in the morning and spent the rest of the day clawing back. The Dow was the leader lower and that's not the most bearish scenario. The market has a feel of wanting to go higher here but we'll have to wait for tomorrows reaction to the Fed. The technical picture for the S&P 500 has some of the indicators getting oversold but not all. The daily candlestick chart has a potential hammer put in today, which would be bullish. This hammer configuration is also on some of the other major index daily charts. But we'll have to get through whatever the Fed has in store for us tomorrow. We are remaining on the sidelines with regards to the SPY for now. Gold was off a buck on the futures today. The US dollar was flat and interest rates rose. The XAU dropped 2 points and GDX shed 1/3. Volume remains light. The short term indicators for GDX are beginning to roll over. I still have an open order out there for the GDX October calls. If the indicators here continue to fall I will probably have to give up on this trade attempt. We'll see. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. The VIX was slightly higher today and fell back from its best levels. It does remains below the 50 day moving average. The short term indicators on the VIX are now mid-range so it could go either way. It is a seasonally weak period for the stock market but I do think that there's a good chance to see a rally from here. I could be wrong. We'll know more as we go along. Asia was lower and Europe mixed in last nights trade. All eyes and ears on the Fed Wednesday.

Hanging around today as the Dow crept up 6 points today on pretty light volume. The advance /declines were negative. The summation index remains in a sideways channel. Running in place ahead of the Fed on Wednesday is about how to describe todays lack of action on Wall street. The short term technical picture for the S&P 500 remains the same. We do not have a good signal one way or the other for the SPY so we'll remains on the sidelines for now. Gold was up $8 on the futures. The US dollar was a bit lower and interest rates finished flat. The gold shares didn't tag along with gold this time as they were flat on the session. That is not a plus. Volume was light. GDX is getting short term overbought and perhaps the time for the October calls has passed. My order for them is still out there but I am considering abandoning this idea. Mentally I'm feeling tired as I was ill over the weekend. The VIX was up slightly today but remains below its 50 day moving average. The blog is short today as I recover from being sick over the weekend. Europe and Asia were lower to begin the week. We'll see how it goes tomorrow.

Back to the downside on option expiration Friday as the Dow lost 288 points on expiration heavy volume. The advance/declines were 2 to 1 negative. The summation index remains stuck in a sideways channel. The overall market was weaker than the Dow with the NASDAQ leading the way lower. That is not a plus. But just as we didn't know if yesterdays price action was option expiration related, we can say the same thing about today. There wasn't any really negative news to be used as an excuse for the decline. Yesterday the short term indicators for the S&P were turning up and today they have turned back down. The S&P is back below its 50 day moving average. The techncial picture here now argues for more downside going forward. Perhaps we will have better clarity after the Fed on Wednesday. Gold was up $11 on the futures. The US dollar finished flat and interest rates rose. The XAU gained 2 1/4, while GDX was up 5/8. Volume was average here. GDX is not yet short term overbought but both GOLD and NEM are. We will look to purchase the GDX October calls on any decline in GDX from here. That's the best we can hope for at this point since we have already missed the ideal entry point for this trade. We are still believers in a rally for the gold shares here but will not chase it unless there is some kind of short term pullback. We have seen the signs that interest is picking up for the gold shares. There is an extra week in the October option cycle and that could work in this trade ideas favor as well. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was higher today and the short term indicators here have turned back up. The daily candlestick chart for the VIX looks like it wants to go higher. But there's always the chance that today was a one day wonder and we'll only know that as time moves on. For now the market will be waiting on the Fed next week. We'll go over the charts as usual this weekend but our minds are made up as far as trying the GDX October call trade if we get the chance. The option premiums for SPY will be high as we move into the October cycle. Europe and Asia were higher once again to finish the week. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

The big move showed up as projected by the McClellan oscillator as the Dow soared 331 points on light volume. The advance/declines were better than 3 to 1 positive. The summation index remains in a sideways channel. The Dow outperformed today and that isn't the most bullish scenario. The inflation data came in hot and the market didn't care. The S&P 500 made it back above its 50 day moving average. The short term indicators there are turning back up. Perhaps September won't be such a cruel month this year. But we've still got a couple of weeks to go. Not yet short term overbought for the S&P so perhaps we'll continue higher. Or todays positive price action could just be option expiration related. We'll continue to monitor the price action. Gold was off a couple bucks on the futures. The US dollar was higher, while interest rates were up a bit. The XAU gained 1 3/4, GDX was up 3/8. Volume remains light. Once again the gold shares are doing better than gold itself and that is bullish going forward. The short term indicators for GDX are at mid-range. My open order for the GDX October calls is still out there but this idea has been hanging around for a while now. It appears that we could simply have already missed this opportunity. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower and closed at a new low for the year. That is bullish. The short term indicators are oversold and staying that way which is the indication of a rally. I'm not sure how long this conditon can persist but it's usually longer than you think. Not to mention that a market that rallies on what is perceived as bad news is bullish. So perhaps we're on our way to new recovery highs for the year. Europe and Asia were higher overnight. We'll see how expiration Friday goes to close out the week.

Another mixed bag today as the Dow fell 70 points on light volume. The advance/declines were negative. The summation index is still in a sideways channel. The overall market was positive, with both the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 posting small gains. The market is still undecided on which way to go. We did get a signal last night from the McClellan oscillator for a big move within the next two days. We'll see if that works tomorrow. The inflation data came in about where expected and the market bounced around a bit at the beginning. It spent the rest of the day moving sideways until bouncing around again in the final couple of hours. The S&P is looking for direction as it has been trading sideways for a week. The short term indicators are going sideways as well and are stuck at mid-range. Not sure what will get us going one way or the other but perhaps tomorrows economic data will give us a clue. Gold was off $4 on the futures. The US dollar was slightly higher and interest rates slightly lower on the day. Rates did manage to drop from from earlier gains in the session. The XAU and GDX had slight fractional losses on very light volume. The gold shares are hanging in there despite the drop in the precious metal. I think this bodes well going forward. My open order for the GDX October calls remains in place but at this rate it won't get filled. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX fell today and remains short term oversold. I'm still not sure what to expect here. Once again the market appears to be in a holding pattern. Maybe it's waiting for next weeks Fed meeting to really get going. Only 2 days left in the September option cycle so SPY trades will be on hold. We'll let the rest of the week play itself out and go from there. Europe and Asia finished lower with the exception of India. We'll see if we get that big move telegraphed by the McClellan oscillator tomorrow.

We saw some selling in the overall market ahead of tomorrows inflation data as the Dow fell 17 points on light volume. The advance/declines were slightly negative. The summation index is moving in a sideways channel. The overall market was much weaker than the Dow with the NASDAQ once again leading the way lower. That is not a good sign for the bulls. The S&P 500 remains below its 50 day moving average. The short term technicals here are mid-range. Although I do think that tomorrows inflation data may come in hot, it's a guessing game based on the current technical factors what will happen in the market tomorrow. Hence we remain on the sidelines with regards to the SPY. We'll wait to roll into the October option cycle for the next potential trade there. Gold fell $11 on the futures. The US dollar was slightly higher and interest rates held steady. The XAU and GDX finished the day flat on very light volume. The fact that the gold shares didn't decline with gold itself is a positive. However with no volume there is no interest in this sector for now it seems. I still like trying the GDX October calls and my open order for them remains out there. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today and that fits a down market. Still short term oversold here but not at an extreme. Not sure what to expect next here but volatility did pick up today. So it seems the market is holding its breath as it awaits tomorrows consumer inflation report. Thursday will bring producer prices and retail sales data. Plenty for stocks to chew on in the next couple of sessions. It was not a positive development for the market that Apple released its new phone today and it was met with a yawn. We'll just have to see where things go from here. Europe and Asia were mixed in last nights trade. On to Wednesday.

Options expiration week starts off with some buying as the Dow rose 87 points on light volume. The advance/declines were slightly positive. The summation index is still in a sideways configuration. The NASDAQ was the leader today and that's a plus for the bulls. The short term indicators for the major averages are starting to turn back up. Perhaps the positive options expiration week bias will be in effect. There's still plenty of economic data to sift through in the coming days. I'm considering the SPY September puts ahead of the inflation data due out on Wednesday. But this is more of a gut feel idea based on my belief that the data will come in hot. Technically the SPY is neither short term overbought or oversold. So perhaps the sidelines is a more prudent path to take when it comes to this idea for a trade. We'll see. Gold was up a couple bucks on the futures. The US dollar was lower and interest rates were steady for the most part. The XAU rose 1 3/4, while GDX gained 3/8. Volume was pretty light. The short term indicators are turning back up for GDX as well. My open order for the GDX October calls remains out there. Again, I might have to adjust the order depending on what happens the rest of this week. I still like this idea but we may be too late if the gold shares simply continue higher from here. Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired. The VIX was a touch lower today. it remains short term oversold and below its 50 day moving average. Not sure what to expect next for the VIX. Some of our work points to higher stock prices coming this week and today confirms that prognosis. But there's still plenty of time left in the week with plenty of economic data to digest on the one hand. On the other there's only 4 days to go in the September option cycle so the risk in a potential trade for this week is very high. Never easy in this game. Europe up and Asia mixed overnight. We'll keep watch on tonights developments.

We tried to bounce today but it wasn't all that successful as the Dow rose 75 points on light volume. The advance/declines were slightly positive. The summation index continues sideways. We opened higher but then trended down for the rest of the session to basically tread water on the day. There certainly doesn't seem like there is any interest from buyers lately. Both the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 remain below their 50 day moving averages. The short term technical indicators for these two are now mid-range. So you could make a case that we could go either way from here. I'm still looking for a better bounce than what we saw today. The TRAN was lower again though. Only a week remains in the September option cycle. Still on the sidelines with regards to trading the SPY for now. Might try something ahead of the inflation data but we'll see. Gold, the US dollar and interest rates all ended the day flat. I guess they are trying to figure out where to go next. The XAU and GDX finished flat today as well on light volume. This is the kind of trendless trading day that we witnessed. The daily candlestick chart for GDX looks like it wants to head lower. The short term indicators here are beginning to move sideways. GDX is neither overbought or oversold on a daily bais at the moment. My open order for the GDX October calls remains out there. Might have to adjust it next week. The inflation data will probably get gold moving but which way is the question. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower today and remains short term oversold. It still looks like it wants to move down but I'd be guessing if I said that I knew what to expect here next. It does remain below its 50 day moving average. It was a quiet and negative short week for the major stock averages. Not sure what to expect next but I'm pretty sure that things will get moving after the inflation news. We'll be checking the charts over the weekend as usual. Europe was up and Asia lower with the exception of India to finish out the week overseas. It's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

A mixed bag today as the Dow managed a gain of 57 points on light volume. The advance/declines were shy of 2 to 1 negative. The summation index is still tracking sideways. Both the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 were lower today, with the NASDAQ leading the way by far. This is not a good sign for the bulls. The short term indicators for both of these indexes have turned lower. On a very short term basis we are oversold so a bounce within the next couple of sessions isn't out of the question. But the lack of volume is a concern as players remain on the sidelines ahead of next weeks inflation data. It's as if the summer doldrums arrived late this year. Gold finished flat on the session. The US dollar was slightly higher and interest rates slightly lower today. Both the XAU and GDX had fractional losses on light volume. The short term indicators for GDX are still moving lower but are not yet oversold. MY open order for the GDX October calls remains out there. Might have to adjust it again or perhaps move to a different strike price. I'm still a fan of this idea for now. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was flat on the session and remains short term oversold. The daily candlestick chart here appears poised to head lower, which would be a plus for those long stocks. The VIX remains below its 50 day moving average and can remain oversold for some time. However we'll have to wait and see what it has in store for us this time around. Asia was generally lower and Europe mixed overnight. We'll close out the short and slow trading week tomorrow.

Sellers had the upper hand again today as the Dow lost 198 points on light volume. The advance/declines were negative. The summation index is now heading sideways. Lower from the start today although the market did cut its losses in the final three hours. The NASDAQ led the way lower and that is not a plus for the bulls. It wasn't a complete rout though so we'll see how it goes tomorrow. The short term indicators on the S&P 500 have now turned lower with plenty of room to continue. But I'm not exactly sure what's next for the market going forward. The Feds beige book was a non-event. We are going to stay on the sidelines with regards to the SPY for now. Gold was off ten bucks on the futures. The US dollar was flat and interest rates continued to rise. The XAU had a slight fractional loss, while GDX finished flat. Volume was light. My open order for the GDX October calls remains out there. The fact that the gold shares didn't drop with the loss in gold today should be a positive sign going forward. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was up today but did come off of the worst levels on the session. Still short term oversold here but the indicators are pointing up which would imply more volatility going forward. Not sure where the VIX is headed next though. The market seems to be waiting around for something to get it going. What exactly that is, I don't know. So far this week seems more like summer rather than everyone back at their desks. But we'll see where we go from here. Europe was lower and Asia mixed in last nights trade. We'll see how things go tomorrow.

Back to work Tuesday as the Dow fell 195 points on light volume. The advance/declines were better than 3 to 1 negative. The summation index is beginning to track sideways. The Dow led the way lower and that isn't the most bearish scenario. Both the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 remain short term overbought here. They are both holding up for now but if things roll over here we might retest the recent lows. The Russell 2000 had a lousy session and it is sometimes the leader of things to come. The TRAN had a decent drop today as well. So we'll be keeping a close eye on what happens next. It is a light week for economic data. Gold slid $15 on the futures. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU fell 3 points, while GDX lost 5/8. Volume was almost average. The short term indicators for GDX have rolled over. I adjusted down my order for the GDX October calls. May adjust it again tomorrow if the gold shares continue to fall. We still like this idea but have to be careful as the overall market is in a negative seasonal time period. If the summation index were to roll over it will take stocks with it and the gold shares would most likely go along for the ride. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was higher today and that fits a down market. Still short term oversold here. I'm not sure where the VIX is headed next. The Fed beige book is out tomorrow and might be a reason for the market to move. No SPY trades in mind at the moment. Asia was mixed and Europe lower last night. We'll keep an eye on the overnight developments.

Employment data came in just about where expected and the Dow rose 115 points on light volume. The advance/declines were positive. The summation index is moving up. Early strength was sold off and a couple of hours into the day we were negative. But the market spent the rest of the day trying to move higher. Our idea of buying the SPY puts on early strength would have had to be a pretty quick trade in order for it to work and that is not what we are looking for. Might try the SPY September puts at some point next week. The Dow leading the way today isn't the most bullish scenario as the NASDAQ posted a very slight loss. The S&P 500 had a small gain and remains short term overbought. It was a good week for equities but the volume was light and we do not trust light volume rallies. The summation index turning back up is a huge plus for the bulls though. Gold finished flat on the day and off of its best levels. The US dollar was higher along with interest rates. The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on average volume. The short term indicators for GDX are trying to turn lower. My open order for the GDX October calls remains out there as I still believe in this idea going forward for now. Mentally I'm feeling OK. The VIX was lower yet again today and is close to breaking below the 13 level. It remains short term oversold and looks like it wants to stay that way. This is another supporting factor for stocks at the moment. Less than two weeks to go in the September option cycle as we begin a long holiday weekend in the US. Summer will unofficially be over and everyone should be back at their desks on Tuesday. I don't have a good feel for where things are going to go but we are short term overbought for the major indices. However in rallies they simply stay that way. I'll be looking over the charts this weekend to try and come up with a game plan for the remaining September option cycle. Asia was generally higher and Europe generally lower to close out the week. It's Friday afternoon and time for a rest.