Weekly Wrap + Market Forecast + Sector Watch: SPX, Nasdaq, USO, UUP, XLF, INX2, JPM, PCLN, GOOG, AMZN, SOHU, CTRP, SINA, AAPL, VZ
Long/Short Equity
Seeking Alpha Analyst Since 2007
Last weekend, in my Market Forecast, we discussed:
"For the new week, the market still looks strong. Oil seems to be going higher which could translate to strength in the energy sectors. Mining stocks also look good. On the down side, SPX now has support around 1250 and Nasdaq around 2640. If the market pushes higher, catching the daily upper BB could bring a new breakout. After the burst on December 1, the financials have tapered off. If financials strengthen again, the market should push higher. Even if we get a pullback, the pullback may not be steep, as earnings season is about to begin. On Thursday, MON will report in the morning. So, we'll keep our attention on the agriculture sector as well."
Oil went higher on Monday, but, dropped lower for the rest of the week. The market also jumped on Monday and did catch the daily upper BB, which did result in a new breakout. On Tuesday, the market stalled a little, but, bullish ADP jobs report on Wednesday gave the market more fuel to continue the rally. Thursday saw some profit-taking again. MON reported strong earnings and broke out. However, POT was the only other big agriculture stock that pushed higher. Financials were strong for most of the week, until Friday when a court ruled against the banks in a foreclosure cast.
We did not trade much last week as the market jumped on Monday and basically stayed in a tight range. Here are the closed trades:
January 06, 2011
11:52 | HappyTrading FSLR ($134.40) Sold to Close 01C135 Jan 135 calls, at $3.20 -9%
January 05, 2011
11:34 | HappyTrading SNDK ($52.15) Sold to Close 01C50 Jan 50 calls, at $3.00 +20%
January 03, 2011
06:34 | HappyTrading NFLX ($174.40) Sold to Close 0107P175 Jan 175 put, at $4.10 +17%
For the week, the Dow was up +97.25 points; SPX added +13.86 points; Nasdaq gained +50.3 points. Both oil and gold ended lower. Oil closed below $90/barrel; gold traded down to around $1370/ounce. At the time of this writing, Asian markets were mixed, hovering around the flatline. Here's how the US market looks after Friday's close:
SPX
On Friday, SPX fell 2.35 points to close at 1271.5. It tested 10-day MA and bounced back to close above. The MACD slid.
Nasdaq
Nasdaq dropped 6.72 points to close at 2703.17. Its daily MAs glided up and the MACD stayed flat.
Techs were really strong last week, especially with merger activities heating up in the chips sector. Nasdaq closed above 2700. SPX got near 1280 and closed above 1270. For the new week...
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