MARKET COMMENTARY (4-1-09)

There has been a lot of rising/falling wedges and funnels as they can be seen most clearly on the 5-day chart. They are typically followed by a spike. Today's action suggests the market has an equal chance of going in either direction, diminishing any edge that once was present. As a result, I removed more than half my positions and hold onto a majority cash position until this resolved. The market has flagged the past 3 days, within a larger flag.

(Note: Futures indicate a large spike to the upside).



World indices are not breaking down as expected, with the FTSE leading the european markets with the DAX, and CAC following. The NIKKEI is leading the Asian markets. Not only that, almost all sectors negated their reversal patterns. Patterns do fail, so be aware of that.

My thinking is not "bullish", but rather neutral for the time being, just as the market is neutral. The market rebounded from the 50-day MA, but remains in a larger multi-day consolidation. The 5-month charts are drawn with a bullish bias, and I can clearly see the multi-day flag forming. I will have to see another 50-day MA failure to re-initiate committed short positions. It was definitely fun and very interesting while it lasted.

The M2M FASB meeting is scheduled for 8:00AM EST with approx. 5 hours of discussion. In addition, jobless claims will be reported at the usual 8:30AM EST. The consensus is 655K with a range of 630K to 672K, the previous reading being 652K. The employment situation report will be released tomorrow at 8:30AM EST. The consensus is -650K with a range of -711K to -525K, the previous reading being -651K. Shortly after, the ISM non-mfg report comes out at 10:00AM EST. The consensus is 42 with a range of 40 to 44, the previous reading being 41.6. Lots of news ahead folks, strap on those seat belts.

With the present allocation, I can take about a 40% loss on the current FAZ position before my March gains are entirely wiped out. As much as I would hate to see that happen, I am willing to hold if the market runs and tops out in the short-term. If you are short, daytrade long to recover as much of your losses as you can.