05/28/2010

(This is an excerpt from Friday's blog for Decision Point subscribers.)

FROM A SUBSCRIBER: Hi Carl. I've never written but have followed you for many years (since AOL) and have learned more about reading the market from you than any other source. You have such a clear and common sense view that it is really refreshing. I love the new daily blogs and am so glad Erin is learning the ropes. I would write her directly, but don't see her email address anywhere. I rarely disagree with what is said, but in this case I am very suspicious of a bullish interpretation of today's (May 27) rally, mostly due to the low volume. It seems more like a bear market, short covering rally to me. Was wondering what you think of the volume issue. Thanks for any comments.

Thanks for the compliment! 

I try not to engage in discussions in order to reconcile differences of opinion about the market, because, even if I manage to convince my "opponent", it doesn't mean I'll be right about the outcome. We try to be methodical in our analysis and clear in presenting our conclusions.

After several days of sloppy, downward-sliding price action, on Thursday the market finally had the first day of what could be a full rebound from very oversold conditions. Sloppy action in oversold conditions signals a very dangerous situation, one from which a crash can result, and on Thursday we breathed our first conditional sigh of relief.

While we have emphasized the danger involved "buying into weakness" with oversold markets, we have believed that the odds favor an end to the correction because we are technically in a long-term bull market, and corrections rarely morph into bear markets in those conditions.

It is true that volume was pathetic, but volume has been unimpressive throughout this bull market, and for Thursday there is also the issue of the upcoming Memorial Day weekend. People are leaving town early.

We can also see a clear descending wedge pattern, a bullish pattern which has a high reliability for resolving to the upside.

 

Most important is our philosophy that price is primary, breadth and volume are secondary. Not that we don't look at breadth and volume, but they need to be subjectively interpreted based upon the bull or bear bias of the market. As a result, none of our mechanical timing models have any reference to breadth or volume indicators.

We are currently in a neutral market posture, but we are expecting a new buy signal to be generated as prices rebound out of a double bottom, but don't act prematurely unless you have a short-term strategy that works for you. Wait for it. (We will be covering the criteria for the new buy signal later in this blog.)

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Technical analysis is a windsock, not a crystal ball. 

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BIO: Carl Swenlin is a self-taught technical analyst, who has been involved in market analysis since 1981. A pioneer in the creation of online technical resources, he is president and founder of DecisionPoint.com, a premier technical analysis website specializing in stock market indicators, charting, and focused research reports. Mr. Swenlin is a Member of the Market Technicians Association. 

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