Written by Gary

Midday Market Commentary For 02-13-2015

Just like previous attempts at securing a new high, the SP500 eases up a point or so, sets a new high, retreats, trades sideways for a while then melts up again after a period of a month. Looking at a longer view of the SP500 sure shows a rounding top and could be another sign of an aging bull run.

By noon we are fractionally melting upward on anemic to low volume and rapidly turning into a sideways session as no one is willing to jump on the train.

All the short term indicators are showing a bullish path for the averages, but at this point I believe it would be prudent to sit on the sidelines and wait for a small correction as that has been Mr. Markets mantra. Many analysts are getting concerned that just about anything could upset the markets apple cart and send the averages plunging or at least scare the hell out of you.

Our medium term indicators are leaning towards Hold portfolio of non-performersat the midday and the session market direction meter (for day traders) is 60 % bullish. We remain mostly conservatively bullish, but with a bearish slant. I am very concerned any downtrend could get very aggressive in the short-term and any volatility may also promote sudden reversals that will only please the day traders. The SP500 MACD has turned up, but remains above zero at 11.12.

Having some cash on hand now is not a bad strategy as negative market changes are happening everyday. As of now, I do see some leading indicators that are warning of a 'long-term' reversal within six months. I believe one is most likely to occur later in 2015, but any market fluctuations we see now are more of a internal market rectification than a bear market.

Investing.com members' sentiments are 52 % Bearish.

CNN's Fear & Greed Index is 71. Above 50 = greed, below 50 = fear. (At 'Greed') The number of stocks hitting 52-week highs exceeds the number hitting lows and is at the upper end of its range, indicating extreme greed.

Investors Intelligence sets the breath at 57.5 % bullish with the status at BearCorrection. I expect a market reversal at or before ~25.0 should the markets start to descend.

StockChart.com Overbought / Oversold Index ($NYMO) is at +25.57. But anything below -30 / -40 is a concern of going deeper. Oversold conditions on the NYSE McClellan Oscillator usually bounce back at anything over -50 and reverse after reaching +40 oversold.

This $NYA200R chart below is the percentage of stocks above the 200 DMA and is always a good statistic to follow. It can depict a trend of declining equities which is always troubling, especially when it drops below 60% - 55%. Dropping below 40%-35% signals serious continuing weakness and falling averages.

StockChart.com NYSE % of stocks above 200 DMA Index ($NYA200R) is at 56.83 %. The next support is ~37.00, ~25.00 and ~15.00 below that. December, 2011 was the last time we saw numbers in the 20's.

These are not 'leading' indicators as such, but depicting 'trends' in the making showing data accumulated over the past several months and needs to be watched.

StockChart.com NYSE Bullish Percent Index ($BPNYA) is at 62.17. Next stop down is ~57, then ~44, below that is where we will most likely see the markets crash.

StockChart.com S&P 500 Bullish Percent Index ($BPSPX) is at 70.80. In support zone and rising. ~62, ~57, ~45 at which the markets are in a full-blown correction.

StockChart.com 10 Year Treasury Note Yield Index ($TNX) is at 20.12. The all time low is 13.94 (11-2012).

StockChart.com Consumer Discretionary ETF (XLY) is at 74.76. 

Chris Ciovacco says, "As long as the consumer discretionary ETF (NYSEARCA:XLY) holds above [66.88], all things being equal, it is a good sign for stocks and the U.S. economy." This chart clearly shows that dropping below 65.00 / 62.75 (and staying there) should be of a great concern to bullish investors.

StockChart.com NYSE Composite (Liquidity) Index ($NYA) is at 11,036. Markets move inverse to institutional selling and this NYA Index is followed by Institutional Investors. It is a very important index for investors to watch. We are above the support (10,301) but is this a test of the next resistance (triple top) at ~11,000 to 11,108, watch to see if these numbers decline back down. Next support down is 10600, 9750, then 9250, and 8500.

The DOW at 12:00 is at 18010 up 38 or 0.21%. (Historical High 18,103.45)

The SP500 is at 2093 up 5 or 0.24%. (Historical High 2,094.74)

SPY is at 209.47 up 0.56 or 0.27%.

The $RUT is at 1221 up 4.40 or 0.36%.

NASDAQ is at 4879 up 23 or 0.46%. (Historical High 5132.52)

NASDAQ 100 is at 4369 up 21 or 0.49%.

$VIX 'Fear Index' is at 14.84 down 0.50 or -3.26%. Bullish Movement

The longer trend is up, the past months trend is positive, the past 5 sessions have been positive and the current bias is elevated and testing previous highs.

The recent surge in oil prices is just a "head-fake," and oil as cheap as $20 a barrel may soon be on the way, Citigroup said in a report . . . Despite global declines in spending that have driven up oil prices in recent weeks, oil production in the U.S. is still rising, wrote Edward Morse, Citigroup's global head of commodity research. Brazil and Russia are pumping oil at record levels, and Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Iran have been fighting to maintain their market share by cutting prices to Asia. The market is oversupplied, and storage tanks are topping out. Read More >>

WTI oil is trading between 53.41 (resistance) and 51.61 (support) today. The support currently is ~46.70 and the next resistance is ~54.00. The Iranians say they are comfortable with $25 and I'll bet the Saudi's will do everything possible to make it painful for them, meaning much lower prices to come. The session bias is elevated, sideways and is currently trading down at 52.89. 

Brent Crude is trading between 61.73 (resistance) and 59.61 (support) today. The support currently is ~50.40 and the next resistance is ~62.00. The session bias iselevated, sideways and is currently trading down at 61.23. 

Citi reduced its annual forecast for Brent crude for the second time in 2015. Prices in the $45-$55 range are unsustainable and will trigger "disinvestment from oil" and a fourth-quarter rebound to $75 a barrel, according to the report. "Prices this year will likely average $54 a barrel".

The general consensus is that gold prices will actually fall in the next twelve months (Sept to Aug. 2015). Goldman Sachs estimates that gold will fall to $1,050 an ounce, a drop of nearly 19%.

Gold rose from 1223.11 earlier to 1234.79 and is currently trading down at 1229.00. The current intra-session trend is trending down and volatile. 

Dr. Copper is at 2.605 falling from 2.638 earlier. 

The US dollar is trading between 94.41 (highest since 2003 and ~92 is a very substantial support at ~93.69) and 93.97. U.S. dollar is currently trading up at 94.15, the bias is currently neutral and trading sideways. 

Resistance made in Aug., 2013 (~85.00) has been broken and now is support. This support has gotten much stronger since August, 2014 and isn't likely to fall easily. The level of ~92 is the current support and is substantial. The ~94.25 area appears to be a minor resistance for those interested.