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Category: Day Trading

Here is a subject that a lot of people don’t understand at all. Day Trading can be risky. So, it is something that you should stay away from unless and until you are absolutely sure about what you are doing.

There are a number of items about Day Trading such as the minimum mantaince requirementand more that need to be taken into consideration. With the blogs and write-ups listed in this section, you can learn a great deal about day trading.

We at Cannon Trading can help you understand the different concepts of trading and present you with the latest information on the same. Our team of professional and smart people can help you in your day trading transactions and more. In order to understand day trading more clearly, we advise that you go through all the write-ups listed in this category archive on Day Trading.

Rising VIX Amid Market Highs: Understanding Elevated Volatility in Record-Breaking Times

Posted on November 4, 2024November 4, 2024 by Ilan

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Why is the VIX so high when the markets are making new highs.

4 November 2024

By GalTrades.com

Why is the VIX so high when the markets are making new all-time high?

When the S&P made all-time high in the last 35 years the average level of the VIX was around 15, now we’re at 19-20. The week ended with a VIX @ 21.88

Earnings overall were ok, Mag 5 earnings this past week were good but profit taking led some of them to the downside. The AI narrative is continuing, The Mag 6 announced further spending in AI going into 2025, the winner should be NVDA. In 2025 the hyperscalers will need to show us results; are they growing earnings from spending on AI, investors will want to see higher ROI.

Friday the markets closed up on the day but down for the week. Yields closed on their highs. I don’t see yields closing on an all-time high for the past few months as a positive sign for the stock market in the short term.

This week we had one of the largest one-day drops for the SPX in nearly two months, driven by; a negative reaction to increased AI-related CapEx forecasts from mega-cap tech giants though the earnings reports were strong, rising bond yields, and possibly a reduction in exposure to risk ahead of the upcoming elections. British 10-year Gilts hit a 52-week high this week after the U.K. Finance Minister Rachel Reeves first budget included higher spending, inflation expectations and therefore slower rate cut expectations from the Bank of England (BOE).

Aside from Election Day on Tuesday, we’ve got a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on Wednesday-Thursday. Higher volatility is expected. Bloomberg probabilities are currently suggesting a 98% chance that the Federal Reserve cuts 25 basis points next Thursday, the forward guidance/tone will likely be the focus for markets. The economic data has been relatively strong and Fed officials have since communicated that easing in monetary policy may be more gradual as a result. If the Fed doesn’t provide a hawkish tone next Thursday, then the bulls may win this battle for now, the bond traders may get the last laugh because of the debt continuously growing.

The rise in bond yields is likely a reflection of the fact the Fed will cut interest rates fewer times than investors had thought, a result of inflation being above its target and a job market that has grown faster than expected. more cuts will cause inflation to reaccelerate, and that’s why the 10-year Treasury yield surged Friday after the initial dip.

When does the bond market impinge on the stock market? 60 basis points were about there.

Mid-Caps are trading at a P/E of 15 vs small cap Russell at 30, and 4 out of 10 companies are unprofitable. If we go back since 1985 mid cap has outperformed small caps.

Economic Reports:

September’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey(JOLTS) showed openings of 7.443 million, the lowest in more than three years and well below the 8 million analysts had expected. The levels are not that weak to suggest a real breakdown in the job market. The overall trends in openings and quits point to a job market that is returning to normal rather than one that is deteriorating quickly.

jobs report was a big miss, the data is likely impacted by the hurricanes/Boeing union strike and will likely be subject to future revisions.

Monday (11/4): Factory Orders
Tuesday (11/5): ISM Services PMI, Trade Balance
Wednesday (11/6): EIA Crude Oil Inventories, MBA Mortgage Applications Index
Thursday (11/7): Consumer Credit, Continuing Claims, EIA Natural Gas Inventories, FOMC Rate Decision, Initial Claims, Productivity-Preliminary, Unit Labor Costs-Preliminary, Wholesale Inventories
Friday (11/8): University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment-Preliminary

Futures:

Crude oil fell below $67 per barrel at one point for WTI Crude Oil futures (/CL) as Middle East tension eased. A price to watch is the September 10 closing low of $66.31, as no front-month crude contract has closed below that level since late 2021, just before the war in Ukraine began.

Gold: The 5% increase in net demand in the third quarter of this year included 1,313 tons of the precious metal according to the World Gold Council (WGC). The precious metal has rallied 33% YTD, 13% of which happened last quarter.

Surging investor demand has been resilient central bank buying in the face of higher prices, the Federal Reserve starting a rate-cut cycle along with other central banks and buying in the over-the-counter market. Only three central banks reported lowering their gold reserves by more than a ton.

Looking at the continuous gold futures (/GC) we can see an unrelenting uptrend over the last year, although the trend has rarely seen interruptions since the 2022 low. Although the RSI is sitting at oversold levels, the metal has proven it can sustain oversold levels for long periods this year. It has closed above its 9-day moving average for the last 14 sessions. Sitting at all-time highs means there are no resistance levels to search for.

Gold is creating a large gap from its middle- and far-term moving averages that might off some support on a retracement or the previous high at 2700. It is currently trading nearly 6% and 15% above its middle- and far-term moving averages.

China: Reutersreported that China is considering the issuance of $1.4 trillion in extra debt to bolster the economy.

Technical Analysis:

By Wednesday, Technically speaking, the broader market appeared range bound, caught between technical support at the 20-day moving average for the SPX just above 5,800 and recent highs near 5,870. The last few trading sessions saw narrow moves. Investors could be waiting for this week’s data and mega-cap earnings, followed by next week’s election and Fed meeting, to take major new positions. Towards the end of the week SPX broke 20-day SMA; the 50-day SMA is now considered near-term support and the 20-day SMA is now considered near-term resistance (i.e. prior support becomes resistance, once broken).

Russell broke the short-term upward trend line but holding support at the 50-day SMA.

Holiday shopping: the season is upon us, and retail stocks may be in focus, shoppers will be looking for value; WMT, COST, AMZN, BBY, TJX.

Earnings:

Monday (11/4): Constellation Energy Corp. (CEG), Zoetis Inc. (ZTS), Marriott International Inc. (MAR), Fidelity National Information Services (FIS), BioNTech SE (BNTX), Yum China Holdings Inc. (YUMC), Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX), Palantir Technologies Inc. (PLTR), NXP Semiconductors NV (NXPI), Realty Income Corp. (O)
Tuesday (11/5): Apollo Global Management Inc. (APO), Thomson Reuters Corp. (TRI), Marathon Petroleum Corp. (MPC), Cummins Inc. (CMI), Coupang Inc. (CPNG), Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP), Devon Energy Corp. (DVN)
Wednesday (11/6): CVS Health Corp. (CVS), Sempra (SRE), American Electric Power Company (AEP), Johnson Controls International PLC (JCI), Iron Mountain Inc. (IRM), Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM), ARM Holdings PLC (ARM), Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD), McKesson Corp. (MCK)
Thursday (11/7): Duke Energy Corp. (DUK), TransDigm Group Inc. (TDG), Air Products and Chemicals Inc. (APD), Becton Dickenson and Co. (BDX), Datadog Inc. (DDOG), Arista Networks Inc. (ANET), Airbnb Inc. (ABNB), Motorola Solutions Inc. (MSI), EOG Resources Inc. (EOG), Fortinet Inc. (FTNT), Trade Desk Inc. (TTD)
Friday (11/8): Baxter International Inc. (BAX), NRG Energy Inc. (NRG), RB Global Inc. (RBA), CNH Industries NV (CNH)

Trading stocks, commodity futures and options involves a substantial risk of loss. The information here is of opinion only and do not guarantee any profits. Past performances are not necessarily indicative of future results.

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Daily Levels for November 5th 2024

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Economic Reports

provided by:ForexFactory.com

All times are Eastern Time ( New York)

Good Trading!

About: Cannon Trading is an independent futures brokerage firm established in 1988 in Los Angeles. Our mission is to provide reliable service along with the latest technological advances and choices while keeping our clients informed and educated in the field of futures and commodities trading.

Trading Futures, Options on Futures, and retail off-exchange foreign currency transactions involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for all investors. You should carefully consider whether trading is suitable for you in light of your circumstances, knowledge, and financial resources. You may lose all or more of your initial investment. Opinions, market data, and recommendations are subject to change at any time.

Cannon Trading Company

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Suite 1640

Los Angeles, CA 90025

(800) 454-9572

Visit Our Website

Futures Quotes

Posted on November 4, 2024April 20, 2025 by Ilan

Futures quotes are fundamental to the world of futures trading, serving as the essential indicators of market sentiment, pricing, and future expectations across a broad array of asset classes. These quotes play a vital role for various market participants, from commodities brokers and future brokers to retail and institutional traders, as well as hedgers. By offering detailed insights into contract prices, trade volumes, and open interest, futures quotes help in making informed trading and hedging decisions, enhancing the efficiency of the entire marketplace.

What are Futures Quotes?

Futures quotes represent the current prices and associated data for futures contracts in the market. They typically include key information such as the bid (the highest price a buyer is willing to pay), ask (the lowest price a seller is willing to accept), last traded price (the most recent transaction price), open interest (total number of open contracts), and volume (the number of contracts traded over a given period). The price of a futures quote fluctuates in real time based on supply and demand and reflects the market’s expectations of where an asset’s price is headed in the future.

These quotes are crucial for market participants because they provide insights into the current sentiment and expected direction of prices for various commodities, currencies, stock indices, and other underlying assets. By interpreting futures quotes, traders and brokers can gauge market conditions, strategize on entry and exit points, and anticipate potential price movements to maximize profitability or mitigate risks.

How Futures Quotes Inform Traders and Brokers

Traders, brokers, and investors alike use futures quotes as a real-time source of information for decision-making. These quotes allow them to monitor market trends and price fluctuations and analyze supply and demand dynamics in the futures market. For example, commodities brokers closely follow futures quotes to assess the prices of agricultural products, metals, or energy resources. Future brokers, on the other hand, may focus on quotes across different asset classes, offering insights and trading options to their clients.

Futures quotes also help market participants recognize patterns and trends. If a quote shows a consistent upward trend, traders might interpret this as a signal of increasing demand or decreasing supply. In contrast, if a futures quote exhibits frequent fluctuations or erratic movements, this could suggest market uncertainty or volatility, potentially influencing brokers’ and traders’ strategies. By understanding these patterns, traders and brokers can make more informed decisions, placing themselves in a stronger position to capitalize on price movements.

Sources of Futures Quotes

Access to real-time futures quotes is essential for traders who want to act on the most current information. Futures quotes can be found through several sources, including online trading platforms, financial news websites, brokerage platforms, and dedicated market data providers. Many commodities brokers and future brokers provide real-time or delayed futures quotes on their trading platforms, making it convenient for clients to monitor market changes and adjust their strategies accordingly.

Popular sources of futures quotes include:

Brokerage Platforms: Most brokers, whether focused on commodities or futures trading, provide real-time futures quotes on their trading platforms. These platforms allow traders to monitor their desired contracts, conduct analysis, and place trades.
Financial News Websites: Websites such as CNBC, Bloomberg, and Reuters offer futures quotes, often accompanied by news, analysis, and expert opinions. This comprehensive view helps traders interpret data within the larger economic context.
Market Data Providers: Specialized market data providers, like CME Group, ICE (Intercontinental Exchange), and Nasdaq, offer extensive futures data across multiple asset classes. These platforms provide up-to-date data that’s especially valuable to institutional traders and hedgers.
Trading Terminals: Professional trading terminals like Bloomberg Terminal and Thomson Reuters Eikon provide in-depth access to futures quotes, alongside various analysis tools and market insights.
Mobile Apps and Online Platforms: Retail traders frequently use mobile apps and online platforms like TD Ameritrade, E*TRADE, and Interactive Brokers to obtain futures quotes on the go. These platforms are often geared toward retail investors and provide a user-friendly interface with real-time quotes.

How Retail Traders Use Futures Quotes to Their Advantage

Retail traders, or individual investors, can leverage futures quotes to develop strategies for short-term trading, day trading, or long-term positions. By analyzing futures quotes, they can spot opportunities for profit in trending markets or capitalize on price swings. Here are a few strategies through which retail traders use futures quotes to their advantage:

Timing Entry and Exit Points: Futures quotes help retail traders determine the optimal times to enter or exit trades. By studying fluctuations in bid and ask prices, retail traders can decide when to place orders based on their price targets.
Analyzing Open Interest and Volume: Open interest and volume data included in futures quotes indicate market activity and liquidity. High volume and increasing open interest generally suggest a strong trend, which can be a signal for traders to join a market move, while declining volume may indicate a trend reversal.
Anticipating Market Movements with Technical Analysis: Futures quotes allow retail traders to use technical analysis indicators, such as moving averages or Bollinger Bands, to predict price movements. Technical analysis based on real-time futures quotes helps retail traders make more precise and informed decisions.
Hedging: Some retail traders use futures to hedge against other investments in their portfolio. For instance, if a trader has a substantial investment in stocks, they might hedge by taking a position in stock index futures as a way to mitigate downside risk.

By using futures quotes as the foundation of their trading strategies, retail traders can enhance their potential for success and build more resilient portfolios.

Institutional Traders and Futures Quotes

Institutional traders, such as hedge funds, mutual funds, and large investment firms, often rely on futures quotes as part of their sophisticated trading strategies. Institutional traders tend to have access to high-quality, real-time data and advanced trading platforms, enabling them to process vast amounts of information and respond quickly to market changes. Futures quotes offer institutional traders various advantages:

Leveraging Large Market Movements: Institutional traders often use futures quotes to identify large-scale price movements across commodities, indices, and interest rates. By analyzing futures quotes, they can make highly leveraged trades and achieve substantial profits from even minor price changes.
Market Analysis and Predictions: Institutional traders typically have access to proprietary models and algorithms that analyze futures quotes in conjunction with other market data to make predictions about future market behavior. This allows them to trade with a data-backed understanding of market expectations.
Arbitrage Opportunities: Futures quotes also reveal price discrepancies between different markets, and institutional traders capitalize on these discrepancies through arbitrage. For example, if the price of a futures contract differs between two exchanges, institutional traders can buy on one exchange and sell on the other to profit from the difference.
Hedging and Risk Management: Institutional traders often use futures to hedge against various risks. For instance, a pension fund might use bond futures to hedge against interest rate changes, while an international firm might use currency futures to hedge against forex risks.

Institutional traders’ use of futures quotes highlights the flexibility and potential for profit that these quotes offer, particularly for those with the resources and expertise to interpret and act on complex market information.

Hedgers and Futures Quotes

Hedgers, including agricultural producers, manufacturers, and corporations, use futures quotes to reduce price uncertainty and protect against adverse price movements in the underlying assets they rely on. Here are a few ways hedgers utilize futures quotes:

Locking in Prices for Commodities: Futures quotes allow hedgers to lock in prices for future purchases or sales of commodities. For example, a farmer might sell futures contracts on wheat based on futures quotes to lock in a selling price before the harvest, thereby reducing the risk of price declines.
Protecting Against Market Volatility: Futures quotes provide a real-time picture of market volatility, which can guide hedgers in implementing risk management strategies. By following the quotes, hedgers can make timely adjustments to their positions, reducing the impact of sudden price swings.
Budgeting and Cost Management: Corporations can use futures quotes to predict future expenses more accurately, especially for key materials. For instance, an airline might rely on fuel futures quotes to project fuel costs, enabling better budget planning and cost management.
Currency and Interest Rate Hedging: Companies involved in international trade might use futures to hedge against currency risk, while those dependent on debt financing may use interest rate futures to manage interest rate exposure. Futures quotes provide these companies with up-to-date information on currency and interest rate trends, allowing them to anticipate and mitigate risk.

Hedgers’ primary objective is not profit but risk mitigation, and futures quotes serve as a vital tool to achieve this goal. By using futures quotes, hedgers can achieve greater financial stability, protecting themselves against market fluctuations that might otherwise impact their business operations.

Companies Known for Producing Futures Quotes

Certain companies stand out in the industry for producing reliable and comprehensive futures quotes. These organizations provide real-time data feeds, analysis tools, and market insights that serve brokers, traders, and investors alike.

CME Group: One of the most prominent companies for futures quotes, the CME Group offers a vast range of futures data across various asset classes, including commodities, currencies, interest rates, and indices. With its robust data services and platforms, CME Group is a go-to source for both retail and institutional traders.
Intercontinental Exchange (ICE): ICE provides futures quotes for commodities, financials, and currencies, along with real-time and historical data. It is well-known for its role in energy futures, particularly crude oil, natural gas, and power markets.
Bloomberg: Bloomberg is highly regarded for its real-time data and trading analytics. The Bloomberg Terminal is a powerful tool for futures quotes, providing in-depth market data and advanced analytical tools that benefit institutional traders.
Thomson Reuters: Now part of Refinitiv, Thomson Reuters is a major player in financial data and offers futures quotes across multiple asset classes. Its Eikon platform is popular among professional traders for its comprehensive data and advanced features.
Nasdaq: Known for equities and options data, Nasdaq also provides futures quotes, particularly in the index futures space. Nasdaq’s market data is accessible to both retail and institutional traders.

Each of these companies offers a range of tools to facilitate trading, hedging, and market analysis, making them indispensable for accessing reliable futures quotes.

Futures quotes are an indispensable tool for understanding market sentiment, predicting price movements, and making informed trading and hedging decisions. For commodities brokers and future brokers, these quotes are essential for providing clients with actionable information and market access. Retail traders rely on futures quotes to time trades, analyze trends, and execute hedging strategies, while institutional traders use them for advanced analysis, arbitrage, and risk management. Hedgers, on the other hand, utilize futures quotes to stabilize costs and secure prices for future transactions.

By interpreting and leveraging futures quotes, all market participants can gain an edge, allowing them to navigate complex and often volatile markets more effectively. Companies like CME Group, ICE, Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters, and Nasdaq play a critical role in providing access to high-quality futures quotes, enhancing the accessibility and transparency of the futures market for everyone involved.

For more information, click here.

Ready to start trading futures? Call us at 1(800)454-9572 – Int’l (310)859-9572 (International), or email info@cannontrading.com to speak with one of our experienced, Series-3 licensed futures brokers and begin your futures trading journey with Cannon Trading Company today.

Disclaimer: Trading Futures, Options on Futures, and retail off-exchange foreign currency transactions involve substantial risk of loss and are not suitable for all investors. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Carefully consider if trading is suitable for you in light of your circumstances, knowledge, and financial resources. You may lose all or more of your initial investment. Opinions, market data, and recommendations are subject to change at any time.

Important: Trading commodity futures and options involves a substantial risk of loss. The recommendations contained in this article are opinions only and do not guarantee any profits. This article is for educational purposes. Past performances are not necessarily indicative of future results.

This article has been generated with the help of AI Technology and modified for accuracy and compliance.

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Weekly Newsletter: Elections, FOMC, Volatile Week Ahead+ Trading Levels for Nov. 4th

Posted on November 1, 2024 by Ilan

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Cannon Futures Weekly Letter Issue # 1215

In this issue:

Important Notices – Elections, FOMC – Volatile Week ahead.
Futures 102 – Crude Oil Outlook + Premium Daily Research
Hot Market of the Week – March sugar
Broker’s Trading System of the Week – Nikkei 225 Swing System
Trading Levels for Next Week
Trading Reports for Next Week

Important Notices – Next Week Highlights:

The Week Ahead

By John Thorpe, Senior Broker

Time change, Clocks “Fall Back” 1 hour in U.S. Nov. 2nd, US Presidential Election Nov 5th, Fed Rate announcement (expectations are .25 cut), 3756 corporate earnings reports and a few Economic data releases. To wit, Market volatility could be very high next week.

Many clearing firms will be raising margins to protect from and for the undercapitalized in what could be extreme moves related to the US Election outcomes which may not be known for hours or days following poll closings Tuesday evening.

Tuesday is the 60th U.S. Quadrennial Presidential Election, Polls close @ 7:00 P.M. in each of the 4 time zones. (a recent Nevada Supreme Court Ruling allows un-postmarked mail-in ballots received within 3 days past the official poll closing may be counted)

Prominent Earnings this Week:

The following are the largest cap stocks reporting and for those that are little known, however their market cap is in the billions of dollars, I have provided lists of their core services, you will agree they fulfill critical roles in our internet of things infrastructure.
Wed. Qualcomm, ARM Holdings (operates as a holding company, which engages in the licensing, marketing, research, and development of microprocessors, systems IP, graphics processing units, physical IP and associated systems IP, software, and tools.) Gilead Sciences report post close.
Thu. Arista Networks (engages in the development, marketing, and sale of cloud networking solutions. Its solutions include EOS, a set of network applications, and Gigabit Ethernet switching and routing platforms. Its product categories include Core, Cognitive Adjacencies, and Network Software and Services) AirBNB

FED SPEECHES:

Mon. quiet
Tue. quiet
Wed. Day 1 FOMC
Thu. Day 2 FOMC Rate Decision 1pm CST, Powell Presser @ 1:30 pm CST
Fri. quiet

Big Economic Data week:

Mon. Factory Orders
Tues. U.S. Trade Balance, ISM Services PMI, Redbook
Wed. Quiet
Thur. Retail Inventories, Jobless Claims, FED RATE Decision
Fri. Michigan Consumer Sentiment, agricultural numbers>WASDE 11:00 a.m. CST

Futures 101: Ask a Broker!!

Ask a Broker: Bollinger Bands?

Futures 102: Crude Oil In Depth Analysis

Please click here to instantly view a PDF with Crude Oil outlook for the short, medium and long term.

With tensions in Middle East yoyoing…you may want o read and view the outlook provided by Artac Advisory!

Crude Oil PDF Outlook HERE.

- Hot Market of the Week – March Sugar
Hot market of the week is provided by QT Market Center, A Swiss army knife charting package that’s not just for Hedgers, Cooperatives and Farmers alike but also for Spread traders, Swing traders and shorter time frame application for intraday traders with a unique proprietary indicator that can be applied to your specific trading needs.

FREE TRIAL AVAILABLE

March Sugar

March sugar is attempting to break out of a bull flag formation. If successful, it would support a challenge of the September high and potentially the contract high from late 2023. At this point, new sustained highs would project a possible run to the third upside PriceCount objective to the 25.84 area.

PriceCounts – Not about where we’ve been , but where we might be going next!

The PriceCount study is a tool that can help to project the distance of a move in price. The counts are not intended to be an ‘exact’ science but rather offer a target area for the four objectives which are based off the first leg of a move with each subsequent count having a smaller percentage of being achieved. It is normal for the chart to react by correcting or consolidating at an objective and then either resuming its move or reversing trend. Best utilized in conjunction with other technical tools, PriceCounts offer one more way to analyze charts and help to manage your positions and risk. Learn more at www.qtchartoftheday.com

Trading in futures, options, securities, derivatives or OTC products entails significant risks which must be understood prior to trading and may not be appropriate for all investors. Past performance of actual trades or strategies is not necessarily indicative of future results.

Broker’s Trading System of the Week

With algorithmic trading systems becoming more prevalent in portfolio diversification, the following system has been selected as the broker’s choice for this month.

QuantumFusion ProMax

PRODUCT

NK – Nikkei 225

SYSTEM TYPE

Swing Trading

Recommended Cannon Trading Starting Capital

$50,000

COST

USD 165 / monthly

Get Started

Learn More

The performance shown above is hypothetical in that the chart represents returns in a model account. The model account rises or falls by the average single contract profit and loss achieved by clients trading actual money pursuant to the listed system’s trading signals on the appropriate dates (client fills), or if no actual client profit or loss available – by the hypothetical single contract profit and loss of trades generated by the system’s trading signals on that day in real time (real‐time) less slippage, or if no real time profit or loss available – by the hypothetical single contract profit and loss of trades generated by running the system logic backwards on back adjusted data. Please read full disclaimer HERE.

Would you like to receive daily support & resistance levels?

Yes

Select

Daily Levels for November 4th, 2024

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Weekly Levels for the week of November 4th, 2024

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Trading Reports for Next Week

First Notice (FN), Last trading (LT) Days for the Week:

www.mrci.com

Improve Your Trading Skills

Get access to proprietary indicators and trading methods, consult with an experienced broker at 1-800-454-9572.

Explore trading methods. Register Here

* This is not a solicitation of any order to buy or sell, but a current market view provided by Cannon Trading Inc. Any statement of facts here in contained are derived from sources believed to be reliable, but are not guaranteed as to accuracy, nor they purport to be complete. No responsibility is assumed with respect to any such statement or with respect to any expression of opinion herein contained. Readers are urged to exercise their own judgement in trading.

Countdown to NFP: High Volatility Brings New Opportunities for Traders

Posted on October 31, 2024 by Ilan

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All Roads lead to NFP

Heads up: Highly anticipated NFP (non farm payrolls) report tomorrow.

It’s that time of the month again: Tomorrow the Labor Dept. releases its monthly Non-farm payrolls report. It’s widely considered to be one of the most important and influential measures of the U.S. economy and the report is released at 7:30 A.M., Central Time on the first Friday of the month.

To review, the Labor Dept.’s Bureau of Labor Statistics surveys about 141,000 businesses and government agencies, representing approximately 486,000 individual work sites. The report excludes farm workers, private household employees, domestic household workers and non-profit organization employees. The report also includes other detailed industry data including the overall unemployment rate as a percentage of the total labor force that is unemployed but actively seeking work, wages, wage growth and average workday hours.

Volatility is quite high. This requires one to evaluate their stops? targets? Trading size?

With the micros Trading such good volume across the board a trader now has the option of trading one 3, 6 micros for example rather than trading one Single mini SP or mini Nasdaq This is especially true on volatility as as high as we have seen the last few days And may help certain traders adapt to the volatility.

If you like feedback, discuss ideas – let us know and we will do our best to assist.

Mini SP 240 min chart (4 hours) for your review below with possible support levels. Click image below for larger image.

Daily Levels for November 1, 2024

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Economic Reports

provided by:ForexFactory.com

All times are Eastern Time ( New York)

Good Trading!

Cannon Trading Company

12100 Wilshire Boulevard

Suite 1640

Los Angeles, CA 90025

(800) 454-9572

Visit Our Website

All Eyes on NFP: U.S. Growth and Gold Rally Amid Key Jobs Data Release This Friday

Posted on October 30, 2024October 30, 2024 by Ilan

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All Roads lead to NFP This Friday

By Mark O’Brien, Senior Broker

General: 

The U.S. economy continued its recent strong stretch of growth this summer, bolstered by strong consumer and government spending. The Commerce Department reported this morning that the nation’s Gross domestic product increased at a 2.8% annual rate in the third quarter, adjusted for seasonality and inflation.

Despite the report showing a slight slowdown from the second quarter’s 3% rate, and coming in below economists’ expectations for a 3.1% pace, and even in the face of the historically high borrowing costs that carried into the period, the July-to-September quarter marked a continuation of a roughly two-year streak of strong growth for the U.S. economy.

Indeed, the economy has outperformed expectations over the past couple of years. A much-anticipated recession has yet to materialize, even though the Federal Reserve raised interest rates aggressively to curb inflation in recent years. Wednesday’s report points to an economy that is still humming, with strong consumer spending supported by a robust labor market, and business investment that remains solid.

Metals: 

We’re blogging like a broken record when it comes to covering gold futures. The price of the front month December contract touched another all-time record high last night, trading briefly over $2,800 per ounce and it’s looking like it’ll post a close above there based on its old 10:30 A.M., Central Time pit session close today.

Much of the credit for the increased demand can be tied to simmering tensions in the Middle East and the uncertainty over the upcoming presidential election in the U.S., now just six days away.

Kudos to analysts at Citi who raised their three-month forecast for gold prices to $2,800 per ounce earlier this month.  They’re still looking for a move to $3,000 over the next 6–12 months.

Soy Complex:

January soybeans, which is now the most actively traded contract, closed at $9.79 per bushel on Monday. That put prices within striking distance of that futures contract’s intraday life-of-contract low at 973½ posted on August 14th.

Heads up:

It’s that time of the month again: we’re a couple of days from when the Labor Dept. releases its monthly Non-farm payrolls report.  It’s widely considered to be one of the most important and influential measures of the U.S. economy and the report is released at 7:30 A.M., Central Time on the first Friday of the month.

To review, the Labor Dept.’s Bureau of Labor Statistics surveys about 141,000 businesses and government agencies, representing approximately 486,000 individual work sites.  The report excludes farm workers, private household employees, domestic household workers and non-profit organization employees.  The report also includes other detailed industry data including the overall unemployment rate as a percentage of the total labor force that is unemployed but actively seeking work, wages, wage growth and average workday hours.

Daily Levels for Oct. 31st 2024

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Economic Reports

provided by:ForexFactory.com

All times are Eastern Time ( New York)

Good Trading!

Cannon Trading Company

12100 Wilshire Boulevard

Suite 1640

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Stay Ahead of Market Movers: Key Reports and Real-Time Audio Alerts with TradeTheNews

Posted on October 29, 2024 by Ilan

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We have a few reports tomorrow to be ware of:

Crude oil numbers

GDP

Home sales

ADP ….

We have a service called TradeTheNews here in the office.

We can hear breaking news by audio through out the day.

That also includes the market imbalance before the close ( in case you were wondering what caused the sharp sell off 10 minutes before the close?), like you can see in the screen shot below:

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Daily Levels for Oct. 30th 2024

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AI Dominates Market Focus as Earnings & Economic Data Await – NVDA Chips in the Spotlight

Posted on October 28, 2024October 28, 2024 by Ilan

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All roads lead to AI and AI leads to NVDA

28 October 2024

By GalTrades.com

This week we will hear earnings from 5 of the Mag 7 stocks. As they will talk about how much they are spending on NVDA chips. The potential for intra-week volatility is there. If yields continue to move higher next week this could generate selling pressure, regardless of mega-cap tech earnings. Pre-election selling late next week is a possibility as well.

SPX fell 1.74 points (–0.03%) to 5,808.12 to end the week down 0.96%;
$DJI lost 259.96 points (–0.61%) to 42,114.40 to end the week down 2.68%;
$COMP rose 103.12 points (0.56%) to 18,518.61 to end the week up 0.16%.
10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) added three basis points to 4.23%.
Cboe Volatility Index® (VIX) climbed sharply to 19.95, nearing recent highs. The 20 level is an area to watch next week, as it traditionally signals more volatile markets.

The rise in yields puts the small caps trade on hold; high yields are not a positive for small caps. Which puts the rotation trade in question. When the FED started cutting rates the sentiment position for portfolio managers went in the direction of small and mid-cap and away from mega caps. Then we had TSLA report a good quarter, and the stock went up 20%.

S&P 500 posted weekly loss for the first time in seven weeks as rising bond yields trigger some profit taking. Yields have been on the rise recently, mostly driven by strong economic data and higher treasury issuance expectations. The last time we came out of a soft landing in 1995 software and financials were leading the market.

We didn’t see the standard seasonal market weakness in September or October to this point, so we have some jitters in the market which are becoming evident such as the VIX above 20 when the S&P is at record highs.

Futures:

Oil prices plunge 6% after Israel’s attack spares Iran’s energy facilities

During the week Crude oil volatility from the previous week has subsided as traders re-evaluate geopolitical events and conflict escalations threatening oil supplies in the Middle East. Over the weekend Israel attacked Iran’s defense systems and other facilities but did not target any oil infrastructure. As of this writing light sweet crude is trading at $67.31 the last lows for the past 3 months were $66.33 and $65.27. Oil is currently trading below both the 50- and 200-day simple moving averages, which is bearish.

“The recent Israel military action is unlikely to be seen by the market as leading to an escalation that impacts oil supply,” Citi analysts wrote in a note on Monday, cutting the bank’s Brent oil forecast by $4 to $70 per barrel over the next three months.

whether Iran will counter the attack in the coming weeks, which should lead to risk premiums rising again.

China: expectations for improved Chinese physical commodities demand have moderated despite an aggressive stimulus package and a reduction in interest rates.

Gold: chasing $3,000. other precious metals started playing catch up and might be an alternative. Silver, platinum, palladium.

Month to date leaders and laggers.

Bonds & Rates:

As of late today, traders see a 95% chance rates will fall 25 basis points at the Federal Open Market Committee(FOMC) meeting on November 6–7, based on the CME FedWatch Tool. There’s a 5% chance of no change from current rates.

10-year yield keeps going up, Analysts are saying if we get past 4.5% it may be a problem for stocks.

Paul Tudor Jones said this week “I am clearly not going to own any fixed income and am going to be short the back end of fixed income”.

What’s shorting the back end of fixed income?

“Shorting” the backend of fixed income refers to taking a short position in longer-term bonds or other fixed-income securities. In bond markets, “backend” refers to the longer maturity end of the yield curve—typically bonds with maturities of 10 years or more.

When investors short the backend of fixed income, they are betting that the prices of these longer-term bonds will decrease, which usually happens when interest rates rise. Bond prices and interest rates have an inverse relationship, so if rates increase, the value of existing bonds with lower yields drops.

This strategy might be used when investors expect long-term interest rates to rise, possibly due to inflation concerns or a tightening of monetary policy by central banks.

David Einhorn said “it is by many measures the most expensive stock market we have seen since the founding of Green Light” he also noticed what Warren Buffet has been doing, that he sold a bunch of stock and has been sitting on a mountain of cash, which express a long term view that right now is not the a great time to have a lot of equity exposure, and the opportunity set is expected to be better at some point in the not so distant future”.

Technical Analysis:

Technical perspective, uptrends largely remain intact, the COMP made new all-time highs but did not register a fresh all-time closing high.

SPX technical support remains near its 20-day moving average, now 5,787. That served as support earlier this month and again this week, with the index bouncing off it both times. However, market breadth, which had been rising, contracted a bit this week. About 73% of SPX stocks now trade above their respective 200-day moving averages, down from 80% a week ago. Typically, broader participation suggests healthy investor sentiment and supportive technicals.

The Russell 2000 was the relative underperformer this week, and higher yields are the culprit. Last Wednesday (October 16th) the index finally notched a fresh two-year closing high, but subsequently turned lower as 10-year yields moved up 20 basis points since that day. The good news for the bulls is that the uptrend which began in early August remains intact, but the index could be challenged if bond yields continue to push higher.

Hot sectors: Cyber: Cybersecurity stocks are holding their own. The group is reacting to Morgan Stanley’s upbeat note on the industry. The analyst is bullish on network security stocks on the thesis of strong firewall refresh activity in the second half of 2025 and 2026 based on a four-to-five year replacement cycle, rising network traffic, and record levels of threat activity. Supporting this view is a recent Value-Added Reseller (VAR) and Chief Investment Officer survey by the analyst that showed network security as the top spending priority over the next twelve months.

Economic Reports:

The stronger than expected economic data over the past month will likely translate into a more patient Federal Reserve stance, but investors seem to be ok with tempered rate cut expectations assuming it is due to a strong economy versus re-inflationary trends.

This Friday’s reading on nonfarm payrolls, the unemployment rate, and wage inflation, among other key metrics, could influence the direction of yields.

Monday (10/28): -no reports-
Tuesday (10/29): Consumer Confidence, FHFA Housing Price Index, S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index
Wednesday (10/30): ADP Employment Change, Advanced International Trade in Goods, Advanced Retail Inventories, Advanced Wholesale Inventories, EIA Crude Oil Inventories, Q3 GDP – Advanced, MBA Mortgage Applications Index, Pending Home Sales
Thursday (10/31): Continuing Claims, EIA Natural Gas Inventories, Employment Cost Index, Initial Claims, PCE Prices, Personal Income, Personal Spending
Friday (11/1): Nonfarm Payrolls, Average Workweek, Average Hourly Earnings, Unemployment Rate, ISM Manufacturing Index

Earnings:

For the full S&P 500, FactSet’s third-quarter EPS growth consensus is now 3.6%, down from 4.3% at the start of earnings season. As of Friday, 37% of S&P 500 companies have reported third-quarter earnings and 75% topped analyst’s EPS estimates, FactSet said. That’s below the five-year average of 77%. Info tech and communication services enjoy the strongest growth so far.

Monday (10/28): ON Semiconductor (ON), CenterPoint Energy (CNP), Waste Management (WM), Welltower (WELL), Cadence Design Systems (CDNS), Ford Motor Co. (F), SBA Communications (SBAC), F5 Inc. (FFIV), Crane Co. (CR)
Tuesday (10/29): Novartis (NVS), McDonald’s Corp. (MCD), Pfizer (PFE), American Tower Corp. (AMT), BP PLC (BP), PayPal Holdings (PYPL), D.R. Horton (DHI), Alphabet (GOOGL), Visa (V), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Stryker Corp. (SYK), Chubb Ltd. (CB), Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG)
Wednesday (10/30): Eli Lilly & Co. (LLY), AbbVie (ABBV), Caterpillar (CAT), Automatic Data Processing (ADP), Trade Technologies (TT), Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), Meta Platforms (META), Amgen (AMGN), Booking Holdings (BKNG), Starbucks (SBUX), KLA Corp. (KLAC), Aflac (AFL)
Thursday (10/31): Matercard Inc. (MA), Merck & Co. (MRK), Line PLC (LIN), Uber Technologies (UBER), Eaton Corp. (ETN), ConocoPhillips (COP), Apple Inc. (AAPL), Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN), Intel corp. (INTC), Atlassian Corp. (TEAM)
Friday (11/1): Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM), Chevron Corp. (CVX), Enbridge (ENB), Dominion Energy (D), Charter Communications (CHTR), Cardinal Health (CAH)

Memoirs of a trader: Whether trading futures or stocks I always try to trade with the trend therefore look to trade the futures and sectors that had the best week and look for continuation or pull backs. Remember not to chase, buying support usually works out better than buying resistance. TIP- fundamental news can change the trend on a dime.

Daily Levels for Oct. 29th 2024

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Cannon Trading Company

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Metals Retreat, Stocks Drop 1.6%: Market Slump Amid Rate Speculation – Gold Hits Record High Before Pullback

Posted on October 23, 2024 by Ilan

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Metals Off Highs, Stocks Fall 1.6%

By Mark O’Brien, Senior Broker

General / Indexes:

Stock index futures slumped today with the Dec. E-mini Dow Jones futures contract losing over 650 points (a ±$3,250 per contract move) at its intraday low around 1:00 Central Time. The E-mini S&P 500 shed over 90 points (a ±$4,500 per contract move) at its lows and the E-mini Nasdaq lost over 450 points (a $9,000 move) intraday. The latter erased two weeks of higher closing prices.

The rally in stocks has stalled as investors debate how quickly the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates over the next year and sowed worry of rates staying higher for longer.

Metals:

Gold futures are getting shinier by the day. The price of the front month December contract touched another all-time record high overnight, trading briefly at $2,772.60 per ounce before heading on a ±$50 pull-back into its old 10:30 A.M., Central Time pit session close this morning.

Since the start of this year, gold prices have risen by a third, hovering over the $2,700 per ounce mark in the last few trading sessions. Much of the credit for the increased demand can be tied to simmering tensions in the Middle East and the uncertainty over the upcoming presidential elections in the U.S.

The 2024 gains have unfolded after uninspiring price movement over the last ten years. The price of gold reached the vicinity of $1,900 per ounce in 2011, swooned for nearly eight years trading not far from $1,000 per ounce much of the time, then started advancing back to ±$1,900 around mid-2020 where it vacillated little into 2022. After being subdued for so long, gold prices shot up, delivering a 70% jump in the past two years.  Looking at the institutional interest in gold several large commercial banks have forecast the current upward price move continuing into next year.

Analysts at Citi raised their three-month forecast for gold prices to $2,800 per ounce. They look for a move to $3,000 over the next 6–12 months. J.P. Morgan has also proposed that gold’s fundamentals point to further upside.

Daily Levels for Oct. 24th 2024

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Good Trading!

Cannon Trading Company

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Tomorrow’s Market Lineup: Existing Home Sales, Beige Book, and Crude Oil Reports

Posted on October 22, 2024October 22, 2024 by Ilan

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Existing Home Sales, Beige Book, Crude Oil numbers heading tomorrow’s line up!

Ask a Broker: Futures Spreads Trading

December 30 Year Treasury Bonds

December treasury bonds broke down into a new low where the chart satisfied its third PriceCount objective to the 118^14 area. It would be normal to get a near term reaction from this level in the form of a consolidation or corrective trade, at least. From here, IF you can susustain furuther weakness, we are left with a low percentage fourth count to aim for to the 114 area.

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Daily Levels for Oct. 23rd 2024

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Economic Reports

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Good Trading!

Cannon Trading Company

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AI: The Next Gold Mine or Money Pit? Insights on Markets, Earnings, and Economic Trends

Posted on October 21, 2024 by Ilan

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Will AI be a gold mine or a money pit?

21 October 2024

By GalTrades.com

Oil went below $70 concern of commodity inflation receded somewhat

Markets are a little stretched on the upside SPX up for 6 weeks, investor sentiment is in favor of the bulls. Small caps appear to be playing catch-up Russell closed at a two-year high Wednesday, which may help sustain the recent uptrend. Next week the economic calendar is light so the focus will be on Q3 earnings, which have been strong so far. The path of least resistance still seems to be trending higher. If the benign earnings momentum doesn’t continue throughout next week perhaps this could provide enough of an excuse for investors to take profits, resulting in a modest pullback in stocks.

What happens with the FED what’s the next move? As long as data continues to validate the soft/no-landing thesis it seems that the bias will continue to remain higher.

Deutsche bank posted that 5-year inflation swaps spiked to the highest level since March 2023. Can we see another spike in inflation that can affect the fed’s next move?

At some point the huge debt levels that we’re running suppress growth and increase interest rates and that leads to higher inflation. The market is pricing in 6 rate cuts of 150 basis points and full-on expectations of $275 of earnings. What if any of the Mag 7 miss earnings? Last quarter they all delivered good earnings and were sold off, we saw profit taking. ASML missed and semies went down this past week. Then we saw positive earnings from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM), the largest chipmaker in the world. TSM reported a 54% climb in annual profit, better than analysts had expected, driven by accelerating AI demand. I understood it as AI semies demand is there.

Piper Sandler said, “the S&P is overvalued by 8% but so what”.

Stifel said this week “we’re goanna go up another 8 to 10% and then we’re goanna crash 25% sometime next year”.

Bottom line anything is plausible but what’s actionable is now.

Nuclear energy: Mega companies are investing in energy to power their AI infrastructure. AMZN announced it has signed an agreement with Dominion Energy, Virginia’s utility company, to invest more than $500 million to develop small modular reactors. Stocks in nuclear energy space – CEG, VST, D, TLN, LEU, BWXT, OKLO, SMR.

We received solid earnings from Goldman Sachs (GS), Bank of America (BAC), and Citigroup (C). Another newsmaker was UnitedHealth (UNH), which saw shares drop sharply after the company shaved the top end of its guidance amid rising costs. It was the first outlook miss in years for the giant health company.

Treasury yields fell as inflation concerns eased amid sliding crude oil prices on media reports that Israel doesn’t plan to target Iran’s oil sector. Odds of a 25-basis-point Federal Reserve rate cut next month climbed in futures trading Tuesday.

The Russell 2000® Index (RUT) pushed above technical resistance intraday at the July peak near 2,260, though it settled below that. Strength there likely reflects the slight dip in Treasury yields that also lent support to “defensive” and yield-sensitive sectors including real estate, utilities, and consumer staples. The financial sector strength related to strong bank earnings also helps the RUT, which is heavily weighted toward that sector.

Walgreens Boots Alliance jumped more than 15% after the company said it will shut 1,200 stores over the next three years. The company’s earnings beat Wall Street’s estimates. Shares were down about 70% year to date.

Data-wise, October New York Fed Empire State Manufacturing, which provides insight into New York’s manufacturing climate, was much worse than expected at –11.9, with anything under zero indicating contraction. Analysts had expected a reading of 3.6, down from 11.5 a month ago. On a positive note, the report’s six-month outlook rose to its highest in three years, and employment numbers looked strong.

On Thursday we had retail sales. They climbed 0.4%, compared with the 0.2% consensus and 0.1% in August. Excluding autos, one very strong category in retail sales was restaurants and bars, which saw a 1.05% monthly increase.

Retail sales figures indicate consumers are still doing well and spending, which means gross domestic product growth is likely to be in the 3% plus region again.

Ongoing softness in manufacturing and falling commodity prices—reducing inflation expectations, Lower crude prices can help company margins across many industries and keep a lid on inflation.

Before retail sales, the thinking was that the Fed would cut rates 25 basis points in November but consider pausing in December if data remained strong. It’s unclear if a massive jobs report, a warm Consumer Price Index(CPI) and now a very hot retail sales report, would be enough for the Fed to think about a pause at either of its remaining meetings this year. Markets have lowered expectations about the number and size of rate cuts in 2024 due to the strength in the economic data.

It will be a pretty light week of economic data. However, there are two major updates on the state of the housing market, with September’s existing home sales out on Wednesday and September’s new home sales out on Thursday. Housing is a key watch item for investors and the Federal Reserve because it represents a large, unavoidable cost for most Americans, and it’s proven to be a sticky source of inflation. Last week, September housing starts were slightly better than expected, though they were down month over month. We’re unlikely to see a sustained material improvement in the housing market until bond yields come down, which will help pull mortgage rates lower and, in turn, make monthly payments more affordable.

Bonds:

Expect the sideways churning in the bond market to continue until there is a catalyst for the next move. Credit spreads will likely remain tight. The U.S. dollar, having rebounded again from the low end of its two-year trading range, looks like it has some room to move higher as weakness in global growth relative to the United States keeps it firm.

Currently, Bloomberg probabilities suggest a 92% chance of a 25-basis point cut at the November FOMC versus 89% last Friday. Through 2025, the probabilities are suggesting 150 basis points of cuts, which is consistent with the September dot plots from the Fed.

Before the next Federal Reserve meeting November 6–7, key data include September’s Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index on October 31 and October nonfarm payrolls on November 1.

The European Central Bank (ECB) cut rates 25 basis points for the third time this year.

Futures:

#SLV highest since November 2012. #GLD continues its record run.

As of Tuesday, looking at the daily chart for the Gold Futures December 2024 (/GCZ24) contract we can see significant buying pressure as the contract climbed to new all-time highs. The contract has consistently traded off the 20-Day Simple Moving Average which was tested yesterday on below average volume. /GCZ24 is currently trading well above the 50-Day and 200-Day SMA price points.

According to the CFTC Commitment of Traders report released October 8th managed money traders have decreased their long position by -20,271 contracts and increased their short position by +132 contracts. Managed money traders are net long 194,059 contracts. The 14-Day Relative Strength Index at 59.17% indicates more buyers than sellers.

Chinese stocks are under pressure lately, with declines this month eroding gains from the massive rally sparked by China’s stimulus announcement in September.

Investors appear to have lost faith that the government’s stimulus will be the answer to that economy’s problems,” Yardeni Research said in its Wednesday briefing note. “The quick knee-jerk rally in Chinese equities already looks like it’s getting a leg cramp.”

China’s third-quarter GDP rose 4.6% on an annual basis between July and September, inching just above the Reuters consensus view of 4.5%. Retail sales also climbed more than analyst had expected. Chinese stocks popped more than 3.5% Friday on stimulus hopes despite GDP falling sequentially from 4.7% in the second quarter.

European and Asian stocks mostly climbed this week, and Japan saw inflation dip, which could ease concerns about another rate hike there.

Conclusion from this week:

The decline in oil and solid retail sales this past week point to an economy with moderating inflation and resilient growth.

discipline mandates that we consider lightening up our stock exposure in an overbought market. We’re not there yet but still close.

You need a catalyst for the sector and stock that you’re trading to move higher. The markets were missing a catalyst this week for further upside. Some of the economic reports this week suggest that the FED may slow down further cuts. SPX price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of nearly 22 remains historically elevated.

Earnings:

Monday (10/21): Sandy Springs Bancorp Inc. (SASR), SAP SE (SAP), Nucor Corp. (NUE), WR Berkley Corp. (WRB), Alexandria Real Estate Equities Inc. (ARE), AGNC Investment Corp. (AGNC), Zions Bancorp (ZION). Logitech (LOGI).
Tuesday (10/22): GE Aerospace (GE), Danaher Corp. (DHR), Verizon Communications (VZ), Philip Morris International Inc. (PM), RTX Corp. (RTX), Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT), Texas Instruments (TXN), Baker Hughes Co. (BKR), Seagate Technology Holdings (STX), Enphase Energy (ENPH), Norfolk Southern Corp. (NSC), General Motors (GM), Freeport-McMoRan (FCX), 3M (MMM),
Wednesday (10/23): Coca-Cola Co. (KO), Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO), Nextera Energy Inc. (NEE), AT&T Inc. (T), Boeing Co. (BA), General Dynamics Corp. (GD), Tesla (TSLA), T-Mobile US (TMUS), International Business Machines Corp. (IBM), ServiceNow Inc. (NOW), Lam Research Corp. (LRCX)
Thursday (10/24): S&P Global Inc. (SPGI), Union Pacific Corp. (UNP), Honeywell International Inc. (HON), United Parcel Services Inc. (UPS), Northrop Grumman Corp. (NOC), Carrier Global Corp. (CARR), Capital One Financial Corp. (COF), Digital Realty Trust Inc. (DLR)
Friday (10/25): Sanofi SA (SNY), HCA Healthcare Inc. (HCA), Colgate-Palmolive Co. (CL), AON PLC (AON), Centene Corp. (CNC)

Technical Analysis:

NDX is less than 2% away from it’s all time high 20,675. NDX remains in an uptrend and price has been converging over the past two months in triangle trend. mega-cap tech earnings, which we’ll get the week after next, will likely determine whether we can make new all-time highs or not.

Russell appears to be forming a bull flag formation on the charts. This bullish pattern would be confirmed if the index closes above the upper trendline of the flag, or some technicians look for a close above the top of the flagpole which is at Wednesday’s 2,286 close.

KWEB ETF China, retraced 50% according to Fibonacci numbers.

Memoirs of a trader:

For the past two years I added trading options as opposed to just trading stocks. Trading options is very risky we’re paying for time value (every day that passes on your option without the option moving in the direction of your trade, the option loses time value). And if the stocks you’re trading aren’t moving, trading the options is a losing bet. Another thing that caught my attention, 20 years ago options premiums were much cheaper than they are today, The only options trade that worked for me this week was selling a put, taking the other side of the trade (which can be very risky) but works when the underlying stock doesn’t move or moves in your direction. Conclusion stick to trading stocks when the stock isn’t moving you aren’t losing and add options only once the volatility gets going.