TheStrategyLab.com Price Action Trading Support Forum

Trade Results of M.A. Perry
Trader and Founder of WRB Analysis (wide range body/bar analysis)
Price Action Trading (no technical indicators)

click on the above image to view today's trading summary


Trade Performance for Today: +9.00 points or $900.00 dollars in the Russell 2000 Emini TF ($TF_F) Futures.
Russell 2000 Emini TF Futures - 1 tick or 0.10 = $10.00 dollars and there's more contract information @ The ICE.
S&P 500 Emini ES Futures - 1 tick or 0.25 = $12.50 dollars and there's more contract information @ CMEGroup.

In addition, today's #FuturesTrades trading chat room logs provides details about each trade from entry to exit along with commentary as the trade traversed...all archived @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/ftchat/forum/viewtopic.php?f=88&t=779.

Also, posted below are direct links to information about my trade methodology and trading plan (there's a difference between the two) that enables me to identify key trading areas in the price action that represent changes in supply/demand and volatility along with being able to exploit these changes via WRB Analysis (wide range body/bar analysis).

WRB Analysis Tutorials @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/WRBAnalysisTutorials.htm and there's a free study guide of the WRB Analysis Tutorial Chapters 1, 2 and 3 @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=180.

Volatility Trading Report (VTR) @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/VolatilityTrading.htm and there's a free trade signal strategy @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewforum.php?f=89 so that you can freely test drive one of our trade strategies with support prior to purchasing the Volatility Trading Report (VTR).

Trading Plan Daily Routine @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=135&t=965

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Market Summaries

The below summaries by Bloomberg, CNNMoney and Yahoo! Finance helps me to do a quick review of the fundamentals, FED actions, global economics that had an impact on today's price action. Simply, I'm a strong believer that many variables causes key changes in supply/demand and volatility that's arguably just as important as my technical analysis.

CNNMoney.com - Stocks End Higher For The Day, Lower For The Week

click on the above image to view today's price action of key markets

By Hibah Yousuf, staff reporter
March 11, 2011: 5:17 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Despite posting decent gains during Friday's session, stocks finished a choppy week of trading lower, as investors remained on edge in the wake of a massive earthquake and tsunami in Japan that have added to concerns over conflict in North Africa and the Middle East.

The Dow and S&P 500 fell more than 1%, while the Nasdaq sank almost 2.5% during the week.

The disaster in Japan came against a backdrop of worry about volatile political events, such as the ongoing civil war in Libya and planned anti-government protests in Saudi Arabia.

Despite the concerns, stocks rebounded Friday from the previous day's sharp sell-off.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) rose 60 points, or 0.5%, with 3M (MMM, Fortune 500), Caterpillar (CAT, Fortune 500) and Alcoa (AA, Fortune 500) up more than 1%. Shares of energy giants Exxon Mobil (XOM, Fortune 500) and Chevron (CVX, Fortune 500) were also big gainers.

The S&P 500 (SPX) rose 9 points, or 0.7%, with energy companies Tesoro Corp. (TSO, Fortune 500) and Valero Energy Corp. (VLO, Fortune 500) leading the advance. Shares of Tesoro jumped almost 9%, while Valero's stock rose 6.3%.

The Nasdaq Composite (COMP) added 15 points, or 0.5%, led by gains in Vartex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) and Chinese Internet company Baidu (BIDU).

"There are a lot of stories hovering over the marketplace, but investors have to think about how much these factors will affect U.S. GDP growth, and it's not much in reality," said Steve Goldman, market strategist at Weeden & Co.

He added that trading will be choppy as investors continue to digest headline risks, but stocks will likely approach their recent highs again soon.

"There's a lot of uncertainty we have to deal with, but markets have already given back about half the gains made this year," Goldman noted.

Plus, the rebuilding effort in Japan effort could have a positive impact on the global economy, said Phil Orlando, chief equity market strategist at Federated Investors.

* Japan's fiscal fix deepens

"The catastrophe and the loss of so many lives is tragic, but from an economic standpoint, this means that the Japanese government needs to spend a lot of money immediately to rebuild the country," Orlando said. "That forced spending on infrastructure will not just help stimulate the Japanese economy, but others as well."

An 8.9-magnitude earthquake hit northern Japan on Friday, triggering massive tsunamis that swept across towns apparently killing hundreds, according to the Kyodo News Agency. The tsunami was followed by powerful aftershocks that were felt in Tokyo.

* Japan's auto industry hit, but recovering

The quake prompted the United States to issue tsunami warnings for Hawaii and the West Coast. Nineteen other countries in the Pacific also issued warnings.

Asian stocks, which had been falling before the quake struck, finished sharply lower with Japan's Nikkei down 1.7%. European markets were under pressure in active trading.

* Video - Japan quake rattles global markets

World markets: European stocks stumbled Friday. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.3%, the DAX in Germany lost about 1.1% and France's CAC 40 dropped 0.9%.

Asian markets ended lower. The Shanghai Composite sank 0.8%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong declined 1.5% and Japan's Nikkei tumbled 1.7%.

Companies: The Japanese disaster had an impact on stateside insurance companies including Aflac (AFL, Fortune 500), which slipped 0.3%. About 75% of Aflac's revenue comes from Japan.

Other insurance companies, including Aspen Insurance Holdings (AHL), Everest Reinsurance Group (RE), XL Group (XL) and Hartford Financial Services (HIG, Fortune 500), were also down in Friday's session.

Economy: Orlando added that investors are also keeping an eye on the latest readings on the U.S. economy, which suggest that the recovery remains on solid ground.

Retail sales rose 1% in February, matching expectations from a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com. Excluding automobile sales, retail sales rose 0.7% -- only slightly higher than the projected increase of 0.6%.

The government revised its retail sales figures for January to an increase of 0.7%, compared to the previously reported increase of 0.3%. Ex-auto sales rose 0.6% in January, compared to the previously reported increase of 0.3%.

"Retails sales in February were excellent, even on the back of strong back-to-school and holiday shopping seasons, which means consumers are back," Orlando said. "The manufacturing portion of the economy also remains strong."

The Commerce Department said business inventories rose 0.9% in January, which was slightly better than economists expected.

The University of Michigan's March reading on consumer sentiment fell to 68.2, from 77.5 the previous month.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar fell slightly against the euro and the British pound. The greenback tumbled 1.3% against the Japanese yen.

Marc Chandler, chief foreign exchange strategist for Brown Brothers Harriman, said that Japanese investors were unwinding their surplus positions overseas -- including selling off their dollars and buying up the yen.

* Video - Japan quake shakes up oil prices

"Japanese companies have to bring their money back home to rebuild," he said. "Insurance companies have to buy yen to make payments."

Oil for April delivery fell $1.54 to settle at $101.16 a barrel

Gold futures for April delivery rose $9.30 to $1,421.80 an ounce, recovering from an earlier slump.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury dropped, pushing the yield up to nearly 3.40% from 3.37% late Thursday.



Yahoo! Finance - Market Update

4:30 pm : Stocks overcame a sluggish start that stemmed from a negative response to news of a massive earthquake in Japan to book solid gains in the final session of the week, but the advance wasn't nearly enough to offset the prior session's precipitous drop.

Overseas markets sold off overnight and this morning following news of a massive earthquake in Japan. The earthquake prompted numerous tsunami warnings across the globe.

Although they maintained a defensive posture, early participants weren't willing to further penalize stocks after the near 2% drop that they booked yesterday amid a barrage of negative macro-related news items. That left stocks to spend the first couple of hours chopping along near the neutral line.

Energy stocks eventually emerged as a source of leadership. The sector slumped 3.6% in the prior session, but rebounded to a 1.6% gain today. The move came in the face of continued declines in oil prices. Oil actually fell as low as $99 per barrel in early electronic trade amid a knee-jerk response to news of the earthquake, but the energy component pared some of its loss to end pit trade at $101.13 per barrel, down 1.5% for the day.

Broader market support helped bring about a strong bid for semiconductor stocks. The group had entered the day with a week-to-date loss of almost 8%, but they ended the day with a 1.0% gain. National Semiconductor (NSM 14.70, +0.54) was a leader in the group after it reported its latest quarterly results, which featured only in-line earnings.

In other corporate news, Aeropostale (ARO 23.05, -1.58) posted a better-than-expected bottom line for its latest quarter, but issued downside guidance. That left the stock to suffer its worst single-session loss in three months. The rest of the retailer space advanced to a 0.8% gain.

As for data, the preliminary Consumer Sentiment Survey for March from the University of Michigan. The Survey came in at 68.2, which marked its worst reading in five months and was well short of the Briefing.com consensus call for 76.5. Some selling followed the number, but it had little lasting effect on trade.

Advance retail sales for February showed a 1.00% increase, which is spot on with the Briefing.com consensus call. Retail sales for January were revised upward to reflect a 0.7% increase. Excluding autos, retail sales increased by 0.7%, which is narrowly better than the 0.6% increase that had been expected, on average, among economists polled by Briefing.com.

January business inventories were just posted. They showed a 0.9% increase, which is slightly stronger than the 0.8% increase that had been broadly expected.

Advancing Sectors: Energy (+1.6%), Materials (+1.4%), Industrials (+1.2%), Financial (+0.8%), Tech (+0.6%), Consumer Discretionary (+0.5%), Utilities (+0.3%), Health Care (+0.3%)
Declining Sectors: Telecom (-0.6%), Consumer Staples (-0.1%)DJ30 +59.79 NASDAQ +14.59 NQ100 +0.7% R2K +0.4% SP400 +0.7% SP500 +9.17 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1374/1.86 bln/1234 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1925/921 mln/1023

3:30 pm : Precious metals overcame early weakness to finish the week in strong fashion. Specifically, gold prices were as low as $1404.80 per ounce in early morning electronic trade, but they settled pit trade with a 0.7% gain at $1421 per ounce. Meanwhile, silver prices were down as low as $34.07 per ounce before swinging settling pit trade with a 2.8% gain at $36.01 per ounce.

Natural gas prices also staged strong gains. The energy component closed the session with a 1.3% gain at $3.89 per MMBtu.

Oil prices spent the entire session in the red as they extended their downturn from the two-year high of nearly $107 per barrel that was set earlier this week. Oil prices finished today's pit trade with a 1.5% loss at $101.13 per barrel. DJ30 +67.39 NASDAQ +17.00 SP500 +9.95 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1479/1.47 bln/1104 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2021/630 mln/906

3:00 pm : Stocks continue to slowly add to their gains. The gradual advance has the stock market sitting at session highs and a few points back above its 50-day moving average as it enters the final hour of the day. Although the action is making for a strong finish to the week, stocks are still on track for a weekly loss in ecess of 1%.DJ30 +68.94 NASDAQ +17.25 SP500 +10.27 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1368/1.36 bln/1203 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1877/580 mln/1031

2:30 pm : Stocks have extended their advance so that the major equity averages now sit at fresh session highs. Although the move has stocks up nicely for the day, they still have a long way to go before they can fully offset the steep loss suffered in the prior session.

Despite data this morning, the scare of a massive earthquake in Japan, and the threat of tsunamis, participation hasn't been very strong today. In turn only a little more than a half-billion shares have exchanged hands on they NYSE today. Only once in three weeks has share volume on the Big Board failed to exceed 1 billion shares for a full day of trade. DJ30 +49.23 NASDAQ +12.62 SP500 +8.32 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1237/1.22 bln/1286 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1734/531 mln/1162

2:00 pm : Stocks have recovered from a recent slip, but they aren't quite back at session highs, which were set shortly after noon ET.

Shares of retailers have jumped out to a 0.8% gain, even though apparel and accessories retailer Aeropostale (ARO 23.08, -1.55) issued downside guidance for the current quarter and for fiscal 2012. Disappointment over ARO's announcement has the stock on pace for its worst single-session performance in three months. The stock is now down close to 6% this year, while the rest of the retailer space is flat for the year. DJ30 +18.84 NASDAQ +7.03 SP500 +5.31 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1193/1.15 bln/1326 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1710/497 mln/1185

1:30 pm : A recent fit of selling has dragged each of the major equity averages down to afternoon lows. The general tone among market participants remains positive, though; as such, eight of the 10 major sectors are still in higher ground -- telecom stocks are down 0.6% and consumer staples issues are down 0.3%.

Silver prices are making an impressive push into the close of pit trade. The precious metal had been down more than 1% in the early going, but it is now up 2.3% to $35.86 per ounce. Gold prices currently sport a 0.5% gain at $1420 per ounce. DJ30 +14.57 NASDAQ +7.50 SP500 +4.61 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1217/1.06 bln/1300 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1647/460 mln/1226

1:00 pm : Stocks struggled to find their direction this morning as participants reacted to sell-offs in Asia and Europe after a massive earthquake hit Japan and prompted numerous tsunami alerts. Amid the morning action the S&P 500 actually slipped below a key technical line to a new monthly low, but it has since rebounded to a solid gain.

News of the tsunami in Japan overshadowed February advance retail sales, which increased by an in-line 1.00%. Excluding autos, retail sales increased by a slightly stronger-than-expected 0.7%. A 0.9% increase in January business inventories was also largely ignored, but a six-month low in the Consumer Sentiment Survey from the University of Michigan drew some negative attention.

Natural resource plays have emerged as leaders. Energy stocks were among the few to jump out to strong gains in the early going, but materials have followed it higher so that both sectors are up 1.4%. Energy's advance comes after the sector tumbled 3.6% in the prior session and flies in the face of another pullback in oil prices, which are currently down 1.7% to $101 per barrel.

Oil's slip has been particularly beneficial to shares of airlines, which are collectively up 1.1% at the moment. Airline shares are actually up almost 5% this week.

In contrast, semiconductor stocks entered this session with a weekly loss of almost 8%, but the group has been bid up to a 0.6% gain today. National Semiconductor (NSM 14.54, +0.38) is a top performer in its space following the firm's latest quarterly report. DJ30 +25.46 NASDAQ +12.12 SP500 +6.21 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1262/980 mln/1238 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1701/425 mln/1165

12:30 pm : Shares of airlines have ascended to a 1.1% gain, which makes for the group's fourth advance in five sessions. During that time the Amex Airline Index has climbed 4.7%. In contrast, the S&P 500 is actually down 1.5% this week.

Strength among airline stocks is largely underpinned by the pullback in oil prices, which had started the week near $107 per barrel, but are now a bit below $101 per barrel as the flow of headlines related to social unrest and political instability in the Middle East and North Africa slow. DJ30 +41.45 NASDAQ +12.12 SP500 +7.66 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1196/875 mln/1285 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1587/388 mln/1248

12:00 pm : Stocks have broken free from their recent trading range so that they now sit at fresh session highs. There hasn't been any headline to account for the move, but energy stocks and materials stocks continue to provide the most leadership -- both sectors are now up 1.7%.

Volatility has fallen amid the stock market's latest leg higher. In turn, the Volatility Index is now down more than 7%.

Outside of equities, silver prices have made a strong push over the past hour or so. The precious metal is now up 1.0% to $35.43 per ounce after it had been down more than 1% this morning.

A pullback by the greenback has helped provide support for precious metals prices. The dollar had up with a narrow gain in the early going, but it is now down to a session low with a 0.5% loss. DJ30 +17.21 NASDAQ +7.65 SP500 +5.44 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1054/775 mln/1409 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1428/340 mln/1392

11:30 am : The stock market remains stuck in a sideways chop that has made for a rather lackluster session. However, natural resource plays like energy stocks and materials stocks have attracted strong support. Those two sectors are up 1.2% and 0.9%, respectively.

Semiconductor stocks have also garnered support after a few precipitous drops during the course of the past several sessions. Semiconductor stocks headed into this session with a weekly loss of almost 8%, but are currently up 0.6% today.

Among semiconductor issues, National Semiconductor (NSM 14.54, +0.38) is a strong performer. The company posted in-line earnings last evening, but was actually a bit light on its revenue. DJ30 -23.99 NASDAQ -1.15 SP500 +1.37 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 809/656 mln/1625 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1139/297 mln/1669

11:00 am : Although the broader market is mired near the neutral line and oil prices remain near $100 per barrel, energy stocks are staging a strong rebound from their sharp loss in the prior session. Yesterday the energy sector plummeted to a 3.6% loss, but today it is up 1.2%, which is more than double the next best performing sector (materials, +0.5%).

Energy stocks are currently led by refiners, which are collectively up 3.9%. Even though they sport an enviable gain of 0.8%, integrated oil and gas plays like Exxon Mobil (XOM 82.02, +0.64) are actually lagging the rest of the energy sector. DJ30 -14.08 NASDAQ -4.71 SP500 +1.34 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 775/544 mln/1625 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1030/247 mln/1653

10:30 am : The prior session saw a concerted, broad-based sell-off as traders turned their attention to macro-related headlines. They remain on the defensive following news of a massive earthquake in Japan.

Soured sentiment has taken oil prices down to a 2.0% loss at $100.65 per barrel. Oil prices are now down about 7% from the two-year high that they set earlier this week. Prices had actually been as low as $99 per barrel in early electronic trade as a knee-jerk selling effort followed news of the earthquake and numerous tsunami warnings.

Natural gas prices have pushed higher, however. The energy component was last quoted with a 2.4% gain at $3.92 per MMBtu.

Despite the defensive posture of many market participants, gold has only gained fractionally. It was last quoted with a 0.1% gain at $1413.90 per ounce. As for silver, prices are down 1.5% to $34.54 per ounce.

General weakness among commodities has the CRB Commodity Index down another 1.1% today. That comes after it had slumped 1.6% in the prior session. The CRB is now on pace for its worst back-to-back performance since November. DJ30 -31.22 NASDAQ -6.03 SP500 -0.59 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 787/365 mln/1547 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 887/180 mln/1814

10:00 am : Stocks had started to make a nice upward push at the open, but the major equity averages reversed course with the release of the preliminary Consumer Sentiment Survey for March from the University of Michigan. The Survey, which came in at 68.2, marked the worst reading in five months and was well short of the Briefing.com consensus call for 76.5.

January business inventories were just posted. They showed a 0.9% increase, which is slightly stronger than the 0.8% increase that had been broadly expected. Inventories for the prior month were revised upward to reflect a 1.1% increase. DJ30 -15.44 NASDAQ -2.50 SP500 +0.60 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1156/183 mln/1080 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1379/107 mln/1217

09:45 am : Stocks made a nice upward push at the open, but the major equity averages are still stuck near the neutral line.

After they led losses in the prior session, energy stocks are showing early leadership today. The sector's 0.5% gain comes in the face of a drop in oil prices back toward $100 per barrel. Oil prices had actually moved back below to $99 per barrel in early morning electronic trade, but they are now at $100.40 per barrel with a 2.2% loss.

Defensive-oritented telecom and consumer staples stocks are at the other end of things. The two sectors are both down 0.5%. DJ30 +0.90 NASDAQ +4.83 SP500 +2.56

09:15 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -4.60. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -10.50. Stock futures suggest that a lower start is in order, but even though the suggested move lower would be modest, it is expected to be enough to position the stock market at a new monthly low. The downward bias comes in response to widespread weakness overseas, where markets have sold off in response to a massive earthquake in Japan and, subsequently, numerous tsunami warnings. Selling pressure has extended to crude oil prices, which are down 2.8% to $99.80 per barrel in early pit trade -- it has been more than a week since oil prices were last below $100 per barrel. However, the downturn in oil prices has been shrugged off by most morning participants, just as it was in the prior session. In-line increases in retail sales figures for February have also been widely disregarded. Still on the calendar, though, are the preliminary consumer sentiment survey for March from the University of Michigan (9:55 AM ET) and business inventory data for January (10:00 AM ET).

09:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -3.50. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -8.70. Futures for the S&P 500 continue to chop along in negative territory. Overseas markets remain mired in the red following a sell-off in Asia that was spurred by a massive earthquake in Japan that has led to numerous tsunami warnings. Germany's DAX is down 0.9% amid widespread weakness. Among its 30 members, only E.On, RWE AG, and Merck KGAA have managed to muster any kind of a gain. Muenchener Rue and Allianz (AZ) have been the heaviest drags. France's CAC has fallen to a 0.6% loss. Pressure there has also been broad based, but energy giant Total (TOT) has been one of the heaviest drags on trade as the price of oil continues to pull back. Oil prices are now down about 7% from the two-year high of almost $107 per barrel that was set earlier this week. Meanwhile, shares of TOT have fallen in all five of this week's sessions for a cumulative loss of more than 4%; they now trade at their lowest level in more than one month. Financial outfits Societe Generale, BNP Paribas, and Credit Agricole have provided some broad market support in the latest round of trade. Britain's FTSE is currently off by only 0.3%. Rio Tinto (RIO) and Anglo American have been primary sources of support. Tullow Oil has complemented their efforts, but BP Plc (BP) and Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) have been imbued by the pullback in oil prices.

Action in Asia was highlighted by late selling that came in response to a massive earthquake in Japan. The Nikkei dove more than 100 points in the final 15 minutes of trade to close at a session low with a 1.7% loss. More than 90% of the names in the Nikkei fell to losses, but Sumco Corp, IHI Corp, CSK Corp, OKI Electric, and Fujitsu LTD all fell 4% or more to finish as the session's worst performers. KDDI Corp, Daikin, Shimizu, and Kajima were among the few that successfully finished trade with a gain. Mainland China's Shanghai Composite surrendered a gain to close with a 0.8% loss. Heavyweights Industrial & Commercial Bank and PetroChina (PTR) led the downward push. Hong Kong's Hang Seng slid to a 1.6% loss amid widespread weakness. Financials HSBC (HBC), Industrial & Commercial Bank, and China Construction Bank weighed most heavily on trade. Energy giant CNOOC (CEO) also dragged down broader trade. Cathay Pacific and Cosco Pacific were the only two names in the 45-member index to stage any kind of a gain.

08:35 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -0.80. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -4.20. Stock futures continue to trail fair value by a modest margin as premarket participants shrug off the latest retail sales data. Advance retail sales for February showed a 1.00% increase, which is spot on with the Briefing.com consensus call. Retail sales for January were revised upward to reflect a 0.7% increase. Excluding autos, retail sales increased by 0.7%, which is narrowly better than the 0.6% increase that had been expected, on average, among economists polled by Briefing.com. Prior month sales less autos were revised higher to reflect a 0.6% increase. Still on the calendar are the preliminary consumer sentiment survey for March from the University of Michigan (9:55 AM ET) and January business inventory data (10:00 AM ET).

08:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -2.20. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -6.70. Stiff selling in the prior session caused the S&P 500 to close below its 50-day moving average for the first time in six months, but the one-month intraday low of 1294 that was set two weeks ago remained intact. Stock futures have actually fallen below that key point of interest as premarket participants react to sell-offs in Asia and Europe after a massive earthquake hit Japan and prompted numerous tsunami alerts. Stock futures have since trimmed their losses, but continue to point to a weak start. Oil prices have also been pushed lower so that the energy component trades with a 2.5% loss at $100.15 per barrel ahead of pit trade. As was the case in the prior session, oil's retreat has been of secondary concern. With participants on the defensive and stock futures pointing toward an opening slip, the stock market is headed for a weekly loss on the order of 2%. Semiconductor stocks have been especially weak over the last few sessions; they are down 7.8% week to date. National Semiconductor (NSM), which reported last evening in-line earnings and a light revenue figure, has only seen mild selling ahead of the open, though. In other corporate news, apparel retailer Aeropostale (ARO) exceeded the consensus earnings estimate for the latest quarter, but issued downside guidance; its shares have been quoted more than 7% lower in premarket trade. Advance retail sales figures for February take the first slot on today's agenda of economic releases. The report is due at 8:30 AM ET. The preliminary consumer confidence survey from the University of Michigan for March follows at 9:55 AM ET. Business inventory data for January will be posted at 10:00 AM ET.

07:05 am : [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: -6.40. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -16.50.

06:57 am : Nikkei...10254.43...-180.00...-1.70%. Hang Seng...23249.78...-365.10...-1.60%.

06:57 am : FTSE...5811.61...-33.70...-0.60%. DAX...6991.35...-71.70...-1.00%.

Special thanks to Bloomberg, CNNMoney and Yahoo! Finance for their market summaries.

Best Regards,
M.A. Perry
Trader and Founder of WRB Analysis (wide range body/bar analysis)
Price Action Trading (no technical indicators)
@ http://twitter.com/wrbtrader and http://stocktwits.com/wrbtrader

Phone: +1.708.572.4885
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