No end in sight...;-)

European Industrial New Orders falls most in 7 years

European industrial new orders fell to -6.4%...the lowest reading since January 2005, as shown on the graph below (graph provided by www.forexfactory.com). This is not a healthy sign, which confirms what I said in my last post.

Additionally, the data released today for European flash manufacturing PMI shows a further decline to 46.4, as shown on the graph below...back down at levels last seen in mid-2009. This data ties in with my post of November 10th: http://strawberryblondesmarketsummary.blogspot.com/2011/11/weak-french-italian-industrial.html

Armageddon coming up for Europe?

None of the European stock market indices look very  healthy. The Daily chart below of the European Financials Sector ETF, EUFN, is a reflection of that health. A break below the high-wave spinning-top's low of 13.64 with conviction could be Armageddon...I've set my alert...

Bulls & Bears squeezing Dr. Copper

Copper is being squeezed by both bulls and bears in today's intraday trading, as shown on the 1-hour chart below (note today's 10:00 a.m. volume spike).

It's currently sitting on short-term price support of 3.30 as it approaches yesterday's lows, as shown on the Daily chart below...a break and hold below could send price back down to 3.00...one I'll be watching closely over the next days/weeks:

Politicians not so "Super"

With the failure of two political parties in the U.S. to come to an agreement on reducing the debt, how can we ever expect 17 European nations to reach a political accord on fiscal, budget and economic policies? Perhaps the "faith bar" is set far too high in our expectations of politicians...but, if they can't solve issues such as this, who can?...and what, exactly, have they been elected to do?

Portuguese Stock Index sliding into the abyss

The Portuguese Stock Index has been slowly and steadily sliding down below 3-year support into the abyss, as shown on the Daily chart below...with no reversal or divergence yet on the indicators, one can only assume a continuation downward.

Major Indices back in negative territory for 2011

The Dow 30, S&P 500, Nasdaq 100, & Russell 2000 are all in negative territory for 2011...the Dow 30 and Nasdaq 100 fell back into negative territory after today's close, while the S&P 500 crossed below several days ago, and the Russell 2000 never made it above. The percentage comparison chart below (which begins at the open on January 3rd, 2011) shows that the Russell 2000 is still the weakest of the four major indices.

Below is a Daily chartgrid of their corresponding e-mini futures indices...the YM, ES, NQ & TF. Price closed today on the YM, NQ & TF at/near a level of support (either the 50 sma (red) or the 2011 opening price, or both), while the ES has fallen below any of these levels. They all fell on increased volumes today.

The 1-day 1-minute percentage comparison chart below of the Dow 30, S&P 500, Nasdaq 100, & Russell 2000 shows that the Dow 30 was the weakest on today's price action (an unusual event)...whether or not this is forecasting a larger exit to come from the blue chip stocks is something I'll be keeping a close eye on over the next days/weeks ahead.

Japan's Nikkei Stock Futures Index Hovers...

As I write this today, Japan's Nikkei Stock Futures Index, NKD, is hovering just above the lows that were made after the earthquake in March this year, as shown on the Daily chart below...the critical level of support is 8200, which is in danger of being broken today after last night's drop and continuing push downward since the market open. It's an index I've been tracking since the earthquake, since the U.S. Major Indices have tended to trend similarly to it, although the NKD has been exhibiting greater weakness in October and November. It appears to be forming a bearish cup & handle...we'll see whether this forecasts further weakness in the U.S. equities markets in the days/weeks ahead...I'm watching 8200 closely...

"Gnus at 11"...

How the YM, ES, NQ & TF closed out the Oct-Nov OPEX Period

Since the one-month October-November Options Expiry period just finished today, I thought I'd put up the chart below of the YM, ES, NQ & TF...each candle represents a one-month OPEX period. The YM, ES & NQ finished above the middle of the Bollinger Band, while the TF stayed below. If you combined the last two candles, you'd end up with a high wave spinning top, which represents indecision...as such, near-term resistance lies at the top of the current candle and support lies at the bottom of the prior candle for this time period. Whether or not these markets are at a similar point as indicated by the arrows and are set to drop, is currently up in the air. The current candle's volume was considerably less than the last OPEX period, which confirms a lack of conviction in either direction.

Below is a Weekly chartgrid of these four markets. Only the YM closed above the middle of the Bollinger Band...however, they all closed below their 50 sma (red) on a decidedly bearish note.

Below is a Daily chart of these four markets. Each one closed below the middle Bolling Band...the NQ closed below the 50 sma (red)...they basically low-based on low volume today after their large drop yesterday.

None of these charts is signalling a rise next week...however, we may see a bounce into the Thanksgiving holiday, if for no other reason than some short-covering during this shortened week. Any long-lasting bounce really must occur on increased volumes to signal bullish conviction...otherwise, I'd look for more volatile range trading within either of the last two OPEX candle's ranges.

Also, please see yesterday's post regarding an unresolved issue...which confirms what I've just said.

Major Indices re-visit August 4th/5th levels...

Below is a 1-day 1-minute percentage comparison chart of the Dow 30, S&P 500, Nasdaq 100, and Russell 2000...the Russell index was "less weak" than its counterparts (on today's action).

Below are a series of Daily charts of these 4 indices with relevant support and resistance levels marked on them...the S&P broke and closed below a major support level of 1220 today, with an impressive move and close below near-term support of 2300 on the Nasdaq...two to watch.

Price has wandered back down to levels seen around August 4th (the day before the U.S. credit rating downgrade by Standard & Poor's) on all these indices...and, in fact, down to the August 5th levels on the Russell 2000.

This tells me that these markets have not yet resolved this downgrade issue, and they are subject to further weakness until they do, and until the bulls commit to buying on convincing volumes.

Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index

The monthly Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index data released at 10:00 a.m. today showed a drop from 8.7 to 3.6 as shown on the graph below...levels seen in 2007.

Here's how the YM, ES, NQ & TF responded:

Go figure...

New closing low on Portuguese Stock Index today...

Note the new closing low on the Portuguese Stock Index today...with indicators still dropping...as shown on the Daily chart below...signs of things to come in Europe?

Consumer Confidence at new six-year low in UK

The monthly Consumer Confidence Index data for the UK was posted tonight...it's now at its lowest reading since August 2005, as shown on the graph below (courtesy of www.forexfactory.com):

I'll see what tomorrow (or the next few days) brings for the FTSE...what kind of reaction, if any, to that news...5400 and 5600 are important levels, as shown on the Daily chart below.