I want to be excited that stocks opened Monday's session near the day's lows and closed on highs, but I can't. I didn't see anything, in particular, to be bearish about, but with trading volume running well beneath the 30-day average, a couple of critical inflation-related economic reports slotted for Wednesday and Thursday, and bank earnings on Friday, it feels like the market is spinning its wheels and waiting for a directional catalyst.
Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) traders can be happy about dip buyers stepping in at the open for two days. And the fact that the QQQ continues to close above its short-term 5-day and 10-day exponential moving averages (EMA) can only be characterized as bullish. A couple more days of sideways consolidation, while the 21-day EMA catches up, would be great to see, but aside from the unimpressive trading volume run-rate, I don't have much to complain about with the QQQ.
Oh, and seeing the Nasdaq close near highs while Apple (AAPL) , Microsoft (MSFT) , and Alphabet (GOOGL) struggle gives me hope that maybe stocks can gain ground without the assistance of the mega-cap tech generals.
The SPDR S&P 500 Trust (SPY) story is similar to the QQQ. The index opened weak two days in a row, but dip buyers stepped in and took advantage of the overnight weakness. And again, as long as the SPY is closing above its short-term moving averages, I don't have much to complain about (aside from the unimpressive volume and lack of a directional catalyst).
Gold and the gold miners have been on my screen for the past few weeks, and while they've pulled back over the past few days, I still like the space and believe traders should be looking for opportunities in either the metal or the stocks. From a managing risk standpoint, I've got $182 on the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) marked on my chart. As long as we're above that level, the current dip looks healthy and buyable once a setup presents itself.
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