Categories
Commentary

Daily Brief For May 6, 2021

Daily commentary for U.S. broad market indices.

Market Commentary

Index futures in balance.

  • Recovery evolves, growth picked up.
  • Ahead: Claims, Nonfarm Productivity.
  • Divergences appear, flow is turning.
  • S&P 500 $4,178 a major pivot point.

What Happened: U.S. stock index futures auctioned sideways-to-higher overnight ahead of impactful fundamental releases, like data on Initial Jobless Claims, and a preliminary report on Nonfarm Productivity.

Graphic updated 7:40 AM AM EST.

What To Expect: Thursday’s regular session (9:30 AM – 4:00 PM EST) in the S&P 500 will likely open inside of prior-range and -value, suggesting a limited potential for immediate directional opportunity.

Adding, during the prior day’s regular trade, the best case outcome occurred, evidenced by responsive (sideways) trade just below the $4,178.00 high volume area (HVNode), which is significant because that level denotes a pivot point on the composite profile (i.e., above = bullish, below = caution, the potential for lower).

Responsive Buying (Selling): Buying (selling) in response to prices below (above) an area of recent price acceptance.

Volume Areas: A structurally sound market will build on past areas of high-volume. Should the market trend for long periods of time, it will lack sound structure (identified as a low-volume area which denotes directional conviction and ought to offer support on any test). 

If participants were to auction and find acceptance into areas of prior low-volume, then future discovery ought to be volatile and quick as participants look to areas of high-volume for favorable entry or exit.

For today, participants can trade from the following frameworks. 

In the best case, the S&P 500 trades sideways or higher; activity above $4,177.25 targets the $4,189.00 POC. Initiative trade beyond the POC could reach as high as the $4,200.00 HVNode and $4,210.75 minimal excess rally high.

POCs: POCs (like HVNodes described above) are valuable as they denote areas where two-sided trade was most prevalent. Participants will respond to future tests of value as they offer favorable entry and exit.

Excess: A proper end to price discovery; the market travels too far while advertising prices. Responsive, other-timeframe (OTF) participants aggressively enter the market, leaving tails or gaps which denote unfair prices.

In the worst case, the S&P 500 trades lower; activity below the $4,151.75 low volume area (LVNode) puts in play the $4,141.00 POC. Below the $4,141.00 POC, participants ought to become cautious. A break of $4,110.50 puts the S&P 500 within a composite low-volume area; trade ought to be violent as participants look to the next high-volume area for favorable opportunities to enter (new longs) and exit (close shorts).

Graphic: 65-minute profile chart of the Micro E-mini S&P 500 Futures. Noting the $4,178.00 pivot.
Graphic: Daily candlestick charts of the S&P 500 (top left), Nasdaq 100 (top right), Russell 2000 (bottom left), and Dow Jones Industrial Average (bottom right). The Dow is the strongest of the four. The Nasdaq is the weakest.
Graphic: SHIFT search suggests participants are still not as inclined to add call-side exposure, through the month of May, in the cash-settled S&P 500 Index (INDEX: SPX).
Graphic: Noting a continuation lower in the % of S&P 500 companies trading above their 100-day simple moving average.

News And Analysis

Markets | Gensler raises concern about the market influence of Citadel. (FT)

Markets | Uber leans on delivery business with ridesharing demand flat. (FT)

Housing | Mortgage servicer complaints soar as Americans can’t pay. (MW)

Markets | CMBS loan defaults marked a peak in 2020; retail vulnerable. (Fitch)

Economy | BoE sees U.K. growth surging over 7% this year on vaccine. (CNBC)

Economy | Norwegian Cruise: Bookings move past pre-pandemic levels. (REU)

Markets | Jeff Bezos sold nearly $2B worth of Amazon shares this week. (CNBC)

Markets | JPMorgan looks to move another $200B in assets post-Brexit. (BBG)

Markets | SocGen cites equity trading activity as it smashes expectations. (CNBC)

COVID | Moderna says early data shows vaccine 96% effective in teens. (CNBC)

Markets | Credit Suisse to keep limits on risk-weighted assets and leverage. (REU)

What People Are Saying

Innovation And Emerging Trends

Crypto | Crypto trading volumes boom as activity cools on stock markets. (FT)

Crypto | Metromile is looking to accept premiums and pay claims in bitcoin. (BZ)

Space | SpaceX Starship prototype SN15 successfully lands after testing. (CNBC)

About

Renato founded Physik Invest after going through years of self-education, strategy development, and trial-and-error. His work reporting in the finance and technology space, interviewing leaders such as John Chambers, founder, and CEO, JC2 Ventures, Kevin O’Leary, Canadian businessman and Shark Tank host, Catherine Wood, CEO and CIO, ARK Invest, among others, afforded him the perspective and know-how very few come by.

Having worked in engineering and majored in economics, Renato is very detailed and analytical. His approach to the markets isn’t built on hope or guessing. Instead, he leverages the unique dynamics of time and volatility to efficiently act on opportunity.

Disclaimer

At this time, Physik Invest does not manage outside capital and is not licensed. In no way should the materials herein be construed as advice. Derivatives carry a substantial risk of loss. All content is for informational purposes only.

Leave a Reply