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: +2.90 points or $290.00 dollars in the Russell 2000 Emini TF ($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=803.

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=137&t=1015

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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 Hesitate As Investors Sit Tight

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

By Ken Sweet, contributing writer
April 4, 2011: 4:55 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks closed effectively unchanged on Monday as investors took a wait-and-see approach about the economy.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) rose 23 points, or 0.2%, to 12,400; the S&P 500 (SPX) index rose less than a point to 1,333, and the Nasdaq Composite (COMP) fell less than a point to 2,789.

The Dow was led higher by shares of General Electric (GE, Fortune 500), which rose 1% after a Sunday article in Barron's -- citing a Citigroup analyst -- noted that GE may not be liable for financial damage in Japan's nuclear crisis. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ, Fortune 500) and Wal-Mart (WMT, Fortune 500) also rose more than 1%.

Technology shares were the biggest drag on all three major indexes, with Intel (INTC, Fortune 500) shares down 1%, Nvidia (NVDA) shares down 4%, and Hewlett-Packard (HPQ, Fortune 500) shares down more than 1%.

But overall, Monday's session was quiet. Trading volume was light at 3.2 billion shares compared with the 5.2 billion shares typically traded. Investors also had no major economic or company reports to work with.

"We could see the market trend slightly higher this week following last week's jobs report, but movement will be limited because of the lack of economic data," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist with Avalon Partners.

Cardillo said he expects stocks to trade closely with the price of oil, which rose above $108 a barrel.

First-quarter earnings reports start coming later this month, something analysts said should help the market move higher in the near term.

"It's going to be a lot of 'wait and see' until earnings season starts, but I think the general bias for the market is to the upside," said Kate Warne, investment strategist with Edward Jones. "This market has shown a lot of resilience this past few months."

Economy: Chairman Ben Bernanke was scheduled to speak on "Clearinghouses and Financial Stability" at a financial markets conference in Atlanta at 7:15 p.m. ET.

Investors will also listen for comments from Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart and Chicago Fed President Charles Evans, who were scheduled to speak during the day.

* Why the Fed won't raise rates this year

With food and energy prices surging over the last two months, investors have wondered if the Fed will consider raising interest rates to combat inflation sooner rather than later.

They will be looking for hints from Fed officials this week, especially as its overseas counterpart, the European Central Bank, meets Thursday to discuss a change in its monetary policy.

"The inflation issue is going to be a thought on people's minds," said Mike Wall, CEO of Wall Financial Group.
0:00 /1:01Southwest's struggle

Companies: Southwest Airlines (LUV, Fortune 500) shares fell 2%. The Texas-based airline canceled about 600 flights over the weekend after a hole opened on top of a Boeing 737-300 mid-flight Friday.

Pfizer (PFE, Fortune 500) shares rose 0.8% after the drugmaker announced it will sell its Capsugel capsule-making unit to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) for $2.38 billion in cash.

World markets: European stocks closed mixed. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.1%, the DAX in Germany was unchanged and France's CAC 40 fell 0.3%.

Asian markets ended higher. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong rose 2.7% and Japan's Nikkei ticked up 0.1%, while the Shanghai Stock Exchange was closed for a holiday.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar rose against the euro, and fell versus the Japanese yen and the British pound.

Crude oil for May delivery rose 36 cents to $108.30 a barrel.

Gold futures for June delivery rose $4.10 to $1,432.20 an ounce.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, pushing the yield down to 3.41% from 3.45% late Friday.



Yahoo! Finance - Market Update

4:30 pm : Stocks spent most of the session plodding along the neutral line amid an absence of catalysts.

Stocks concluded the prior on a strong note as participants responded positively to gains abroad and a better-than-expected jobs report. However, there was neither strong buying abroad nor any key piece of data to provide cues for participants this morning. That kept many traders on the sidelines and left stocks to spend the session stuck in a sideways slog along the flat line.

Materials stocks managed to attract buyers, but the sector's leadership was limited by its lack of market weight. Nonetheless, the materials sector scored a 0.7% gain for the session.

Tech stocks traded with relative weakness all session long. The sector settled with a 0.5% gain as several large-cap tech plays encountered selling pressure. Semiconductors were among the sector's hardest hit issues, but only minutes after the close it was announced that Texas Instruments (TXN 34.11, -0.12) has offered to acquire National Semiconductor (NSM 14.07, -0.16) for $6.5 billion.

In other transaction-related news, Pfizer (PFE 20.54, +0.16) sold its Capsugel business to investment firm KKR (KKR 17.14, +0.23), prompting the pharmaceutical giant to pare its forecast.

Vivendi announced that it will acquire from Vodafone (VOD 29.07, -0.01) a 44% stake in French telecom play SFR for about $11.3 billion.

Outside of equities, oil prices extended their climb to a new two-year high of $108.78 per barrel in overnight trade. The commodity pulled back during pit trade, but made a late push so that it secured its best settling price, $108.47 per barrel, in more than two years.

Advancing Sectors: Materials (+0.7%), Health Care (+0.6%), Consumer Staples (+0.2%), Telecom (+0.2%), Industrials (+0.1%), Consumer Discretionary (+0.1%)
Unchanged: Energy
Declining Sectors: Tech (-0.5%), Financials (-0.1%), Utilities (-0.1%)DJ30 +23.31 NASDAQ -0.41 NQ100 -0.4% R2K +0.3% SP400 +0.1% SP500 +0.46 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1387/1.71 bln/1230 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1602/770 mln/1344

3:30 pm : Commodities, save for industrials (-0.7%), finished higher today, led once again by a rally in grains (+2.2%). July wheat gained 4% to finish at $7.99 per bushel.

Precious metals added 1.2%, led by a rally in May silver, which finished higher by 2.1% to $38.49 per ounce. Earlier in the session silver traded to a fresh ~31 yr high at $38.62 er ounce. June gold finished a modest 0.3% higher to $1433.00 per ounce. Unlike silver, gold pulled back from its highs through the afternoon to give back some of its gains.

It was an uneventful session for May crude oil, which settled higher by 0.6% to $108.47 per barrel, its highest settling price since Sept of 2008. It spent most of the session chopping around the flat line, before spiking ~40 cents with minutes left in pit trade. May natural gas shed 1.6% to finish at $4.29 per MMBtu. DJ30 +20.21 NASDAQ -3.80 SP500 -0.49 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1249/1.3 bln/1365 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1468/502.8 mln/1484

3:00 pm : The final hour of trade has arrived, but stocks continue to drift sideways. The lackluster action comes as participants use today's lack of catalysts as an excuse for taking a breather following last week's strong performance.

There hasn't been any domestic data posted today, but Fed Chairman Bernanke is scheduled to speak at 7:15 PM ET tonight. His comments precede the minutes from the most recent FOMC meeting -- due tomorrow afternoon. DJ30 +10.37 NASDAQ -6.85 SP500 -1.62 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1274/1.23 bln/1329 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1553/458 mln/1387

2:30 pm : Stocks have recovered from their recent slip, but action remains listless.

Oil prices have also pushed higher with the arrival of pit trade's close. The commodity had been near the unchanged mark for most of the afternoon, but a spike has oil futures priced at $108.45 per barrel, which is near the two-year high that it set earlier today.

Despite oil's price spike, energy stocks are stuck at the flat line, which is where they have spent the past few hours. DJ30 +9.46 NASDAQ -6.56 SP500 -1.62 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1273/1.15 bln/1333 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1513/425 mln/1411

2:00 pm : Stocks have dropped another leg lower so that the S&P 500 and Nasdaq are at new session lows and the Dow is barely below the neutral line. Bank of America (BAC 13.44, +0.07) and General Electric (GE 20.48, +0.14) have been a couple of key sources of support for the Dow.DJ30 -4.23 NASDAQ -9.45 SP500 -2.88 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1292/1.05 bln/1319 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1508/385 mln/1397

1:30 pm : Both the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 are flirting with fresh session lows. Their slip comes as the tech sector drifts deeper into the red -- tech stocks are now down with a collective loss of 0.8%.

Although stocks have come under increased pressure in recent trade, Treasuries haven't been able to break out of their recent trading range. In turn, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Note is still just above 3.40%. DJ30 +10.98 NASDAQ -4.47 SP500 -1.13 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1362/962 mln/1224 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1611/650 mln/1296

1:00 pm : An absence of catalysts has left stocks to trade listlessly for the entire session. That has kept the major equity averages mired near the neutral line.

Stocks started the session with slight gains, but overseas markets failed to provide any kind of additional spark as participants in Europe showed restraint after producer prices climbed ahead of a couple of the continent's key central bank meetings. In turn, the broad market failed to find any follow through buying interest.

Renewed weakness among tech stocks, which collectively represent the largest sector by market weight, has hampered action. The tech sector is down 0.6% as semiconductor issues slide to a loss of about 1%.

Meanwhile, materials stocks have managed to put together an enviable 0.7% gain, but the sector's lack of weight has undermined its leadership.

Although not quite as strong, health care stocks have also caught a bid. The sector's 0.6% gain comes amid news that Pfizer (PFE 20.50, +0.12) cut its forecast after it sold its Capsugel buisness to investment outfit KKR (KKR 17.10, +0.19). Elsewhere in the health care sector, Sanofi-Aventis (SNY 35.61, -0.07) successfully completed its exchange offer for Genzyme (GENZ 76.33, +0.32). DJ30 +15.93 NASDAQ -1.37 SP500 -0.07 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1397/880 mln/1161 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1599/325 mln/1306

12:30 pm : The Nasdaq is holding steady just above the neutral line. Underlying action has shares of Baidu.com (BIDU 142.35, +3.50), Amgen (AMGN 54.19, +1.11), Sandisk (SNDK 46.69, +1.18), and Express Scripts (ESRX 57.20, +1.03) trading as the four top performers. Meanwhile, NetApp (NTAP 46.22, -1.98), NVIDIA (NVDA 17.57, -0.63), Apollo (APOL 40.46, -0.95), and Qualcomm (QCOM 53.32, -1.15) represent four of the worst performers.DJ30 +21.7 NASDAQ +2.81 SP500 +0.85 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1423/799 mln/1112 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1621/295 mln/1265

12:00 pm : The dollar is gaining ground against competing currencies so that the Dollar Index is now at its session high with a 0.2% gain. Most of the greenback's gain today has come against the euro, which was recently quoted at $1.422.

The dollar's advance has cut into precious metals prices in recent trade. Gold is now up just $3.60 to $1432.50 per ounce while silver was last quoted with a $0.61 gain at $38.34 per ounce.

As for stocks, trade remains largely listless, but the Nasdaq has managed to move back into positive territory so that it trades with a slight gain. DJ30 +19.83 NASDAQ +2.63 SP500 +0.91 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1396/715 mln/1142 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1605/263 mln/1248

11:30 am : Although stocks are stuck in a lackluster fit of trade, shares of Ford Motor (F 15.66, +0.50) have made an impressive push higher, which has made it this session's top performer. Strength in shares of F is partly owed to an upgrade by analysts at Credit Suisse.

Southwest Airlines (LUV12.29, -0.39) shares are down about 3% after paring some of their losses. Still, the stock is among this session's worst performing issues. Its weakness comes after a tear in the roof of a plane prompted the company to cancel hundreds of flights over the weekend. DJ30 +18.88 NASDAQ +2.23 SP500 +1.08 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1405/610 mln/1100 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1559/225 mln/1287

11:00 am : The stock market is mired near the neutral line after it made a narrow advance in the first few minutes of trade. The dip comes as tech stocks, which collectively represent the largest sector by market weight, come under pressure. Tech stocks are currently near session lows with a 0.6% loss.

In contrast, materials stocks continue to push higher, but their lack of weight has undermined their leadership. Nonetheless, the sector is up 0.6% as metals and steel plays push higher. Newmont Mining (NEM 55.32, +0.95) and AK Steel (AKS 16.15, +0.27) are currently the top two performers by percent gained. Both stocks are up 1.8%. DJ30 +9.92 NASDAQ -0.62 SP500 +0.16 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1399/490 mln/1061 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1562/185 mln/1247

10:30 am : The dollar index moved into positive territory in recent trade, adding selling pressure on most commodities.

May crude oil sold off from overnight highs of $108.78, falling into negative territory and to new session lows of $107.58 per barrel. It's erased almost half of its losses and is currently at $108.06/barrel, up 0.1%.

May natural gas has been in negative territory all session. It traded just modestly lower overnight, but sold-off earlier this morning to new session lows of $4.23/MMBtu. It's recovered approx. half of its losses and is now at $4.30/MMBtu, down 1.5%.

Precious metals have been higher all morning, while silver futures is the best performing commodity in the CRB Index. May silver is currently 2.2% higher at $38.56/ounce, while June gold is up 0.7% at $1439.10/ounce.

Grains extended gains from last week as wheat rose 1.7% overnight, corn rose 1.6% and soybeans gained 0.3%DJ30 +11.62 NASDAQ -1.6 SP500 +0.55 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1286/336.5 mln/1105 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1484/138.7 mln/1277

10:00 am : Tech stocks have come under increased pressure in recent trade. The sector had traded with only a fractional loss in the first few minutes of trade, but it has since fallen to a 0.5% loss.

Weakness among tech stocks is relatively broad, but heavyweight Apple (AAPL 342.00, -2.51) is having one of the most adverse impacts on the space. Semiconductor stocks are also contributing to the sector's slide; they are collectively down 0.7%.

Advancing Sectors: Materials (+0.5%), Health Care (+0.3%), Energy (+0.3%), Telecom (+0.1%), Financials (+0.1%)
Unchanged: Consumer Staples
Declining Sectors: Tech (-0.5%), Industrials (-0.2%), Utilities (-0.1%), Consumer Discretionary (-0.1%)DJ30 +10.37 NASDAQ +0.08 SP500 +1.08 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1414/158 mln/847 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1688/85 mln/933

09:45 am : The broad market is up with a slight gain in the first few minutes of trade. Early support is broad, but materials stocks currently boast the best gains. The sector is up an enviable 0.6%. Tech stocks have actually fallen to a slight loss, though. The weakness comes after tech stocks had already lagged this past Friday.DJ30 +20.36 NASDAQ +3.82 SP500 +2.58

09:15 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +2.20. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +5.90. Stock futures point to a slightly higher start to the week. The modest bid comes as participants continue to display a preference for risk, even in the absence of any catalysts like data or corporate news. Oil prices also attracted renewed buying interest earlier this morning, such that the energy component climbed to a new two-year high of $108.48 per barrel, but it has since pulled back to trade flat near $108 per barrel. Although they are mostly modestly higher, major overseas markets have also given little direction to early morning traders. The generally tepid tone there precedes some key central bank meetings in Europe later this week.

09:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +2.20. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +6.40. Oil prices had pushed up to a new two-year high of about $108.48 per barrel earlier this morning, but the energy component recently pulled back with the approach of pit trade. It was most recently quoted with a fractional gain at $108.10 per barrel. Gold prices are up with a more impressive gain of about 0.7% at $1438 per ounce. Silver is even stronger as it sports a 1.8% gain at $38.42 per ounce.

08:35 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +2.60. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +7.20. Germany's DAX is up 0.2% at the moment, but France's CAC is currently flat. Vivendi shares are among the top performing stocks in France following news that the firm has acquired from Vodafone (VOD) a 44% stake in French telecom play SFR in a transaction valued at about $11.3 billion. The deal has also helped support shares of VOD on Britain's FTSE, which is up 0.4%. The generally muted tone of trade across the continent's major bourses comes ahead of the Thursday meetings of the European Central Bank and the Bank of England. This morning it was learned that eurozone producer prices climbed 0.8% in February after they had climbed 1.3% in the prior month. Meanwhile, Britain's PMI Construction reading for March came in at 56.4, which is only slightly lower than the 56.5 that had been recorded for February.

Overnight action in Asia left Japan's Nikkei to eke out a 0.1% gain. Tokio Marine was a primary leader, as was Fast Retailing, but their strength was largely offset by losses in Mizuho Financial (MFG) and Sumitomo Realty. Broad-based buying took Hong Kong's Hang Seng to a 1.5% gain. The move took the Hang Seng to a new two-month high. China's Shanghai Composite was closed for holiday observance, but data out of the country featured a PMI Services reading of 60.2, which is up sharply from the 44.1 that was posted for February.

08:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +2.00. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +6.40. An empty economic calendar and few corporate announcements have made for a relatively quiet morning, but stock futures are still up a bit relative to fair value. The bid comes amid modest gains by Europe's major bourses, yet follows a heady move by Hong Kong's Hang Seng, which climbed 1.5% overnight. Oil prices continue to push higher. In fact, the energy component set a new two-year high well above $108 per barrel earlier this morning.

06:42 am : [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +1.90. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +6.20.

06:42 am : Nikkei...9718.89...+10.50...+0.10%. Hang Seng...24150.58...+348.70...+1.50%.

06:42 am : FTSE...6027.58...+17.70...+0.30%. DAX...7168.77...+7.00...+0.10%.

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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