From the Trading Desk

Stocks Fall Hard On Heavier Trade

Poor economic data coupled with overbought conditions were catalysts to bring down the market today. Volume rose on the day as it was clear institutions were active in the market selling down their holdings. Crude oil dropped below the $80 mark as the commodity reacts to the global economy and the lack of a third round of quantitative easing. Heavy volume piled into the close as stocks dropped to their lows of the session. Today certainly reversed the uptrend we had and it is quite clear sellers are back in control of this market.

Recent breakouts we saw in leading type stocks were hit hard today. We do not like to see when stocks breakout and quickly give up their gains in heavy volume. The selling is a clear sign breakouts are being sold rather than bought. Normal bull market moves breakouts are bought and pullbacks are not big and on light volume. It is clear the trend is heading back down

Today’s market session did a nice job of clearing the overbought conditions we had experienced just a week ago. The selling was fierce and it isn’t a surprise the market worked off the overbought conditions, but sellers have the upper hand here. Bernanke made it quite clear a third round of quantitative easing would not come into play unless unemployment rises above 8.2%. What may fuel a bit of fear might be the fact we won’t get the next reading until two weeks from this Friday. While we wait until two weeks we’ll get the EU Summit next week. I am sure politicians will develop another debt plan to add to the current debt problem in hopes of solving all their problems. It will be interesting to watch everything unfold.

A positive on the day for the US consumer was the large drop in crude oil prices. Poor economic data from across the globe has not painted a picture of growth. Marry that with the fact Ben Bernanke did not introduce a third round of easing and you get selling. The further crude goes lower the better it will be for the middle and lower class citizens in the US. Rising oil prices are a tax on those who cannot afford it and any relief is a big positive.

We’ll need some big help from the market to reverse today’s action. This is why we have a plan to cut our losses before they become too large to recover from. Cut your losses and have a great weekend!

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