Trading What I See

Last Tuesday’s commentary left price just under a downtrend line (shown today in yellow) on the 45 minute chart. Since that level had also completed a potential A-B-C with “C” pausing at 62% of “A”, it was looking much like a top.

After pointing that out, my next sentence was “Of course a breakout tomorrow morning would change this pattern …” The magic of Fibonacci and trendlines is how often they work, not that they can predict the market. Part of successful trading is the ability to quickly adapt to new information. On the shortened trading day Wednesday price pushed through both the trendline and the Fib level. But look what happened next.

As soon as price exceeds a pivot point, you want to draw an external retracement measurement to show the 127% and 162% Fib levels. That’s where to start looking for the next potential reversal. And that’s where we closed on the three bars that eSignal shows occurring on the 4th. That doesn’t predict the downturn this morning — it just means it shouldn’t have come as a surprise.

As I have said many times, where there are two pullbacks in a move, the first one will usually be large (most often 62%) and the second one small (38%.) Today the second pullback turned right at the 38% Fibonacci level AND bounced off the support of the broken trendline. An obvious place for a turn.

On my three minute trading chart you can see the market made a nice A-B-C=100% Measured Move that hit the bottom of a parallel channel (in yellow). That gives today’s low two measurements from a 45 minute chart combined with two more from the trading chart. When multiple time frames agree on direction, you have a high probability trade.

Of course there are often more potential Fib and channel trades than I point out (or sometimes even see) that are available during the trading day. In Tuesday’s comments John explains how he used the $Tick reading combined with the magenta channel this morning to execute a nice short sale starting at “X” on the chart. Nice trade, John.

Today was an up day with minimal pullbacks, but it certainly looks like more consolidation on a longer term chart. Starting with a 45 minute time frame (today is only the last nine bars) we stalled at a downtrend line just as we reached a possible “C” top at 62% of the “A” move.

That’s the normal turning point for a weak move, and notice the declining volume. Of course a breakout tomorrow morning would change this pattern, but it will be a shortened trading day followed by the holiday on Wednesday.

I have a tendency to distrust the setups around a holiday, but usually when I look back at them later they will often work just as well as during normal trading periods.

On the trading chart (3 minutes) there was a pullback after the gap opening, followed by an up to sideways day — profitable if you could figure out a safe entry. I don’t really see one unless you took the break above the first bar’s high. The external retracement of the lunchtime pullback turned at 162%, just as we hit the downtrend line on the longer chart.

Unless something surprising happens tomorrow I probably won’t post a commentary.

After a well structured five wave move like we had yesterday, a reversal of some sort is common. Not required, but certainly not a surprise. So when the market created a Spring setup at the open, the first red bar could be an entry for a short sale.

The Russell tried again to break above yesterday’s high, but didn’t exceed the first pivot — the most logical place for a stop. From there the market kept getting weaker all day long.

Since Spring setups can catch a lot of breakout players on the wrong side of the market, you will usually get at least an A-B-C move against the previous trend. After the 8:00 pullback price moved right to the parallel trendline just beyond where “C” would equal 100% of “A.” But then price couldn’t get back to the top of the channel.

Of course you couldn’t predict that in advance, but by the time we had reached the blue “X” on the chart, just by drawing trendlines and their parallels after each new pivot gave you a potential short entry at the top of the new channel. How much of the next move you could capture depends entirely upon your money management technique.

Over the past few weeks I’ve been pointing out Fibonacci external retracement measurements based on the first major pullback in a larger move (marked in white.) I look for reversal points at 127% and 162%. However if we get beyond the 162% level the most common turning point is 262%. As you can see, price didn’t even hesitate at that level.

What comes after 262%? In a runaway move there will often be at least a good bounce at 423%, and many times that will end the move. No — that is not a prediction. And no, I’m not carrying a position overnight. But I’ve already marked the 837.50 level on my trading chart for tomorrow — just in case.

Evidently the 127% external retracement was the correct turning point from yesterday’s close. But remember, there were too many other potential reversal levels. If that had happened intraday it was only a trade to consider with extreme caution.

After a gap and a 50% retracement, the market completed a small A-B-C (red) for a Measured Move. The next three hours created a sideways pattern that eventually turned into a rectangle. Although it takes four touches (two on each side) to confirm a rectangle, each touch of the top was on less volume. That’s a strong hint that a consolidation pattern is forming, and a rectangle was a likely possibility starting just after 9:30 (Pacific time.)

Rectangles can go on for a long time, but remember the importance of forgotten trendlines or trendlines drawn from the first small pullback. At the second bottom marked “B” price bounces from that trendline and then makes a volume breakout from the rectangle. The market didn’t even slow down at the rectangle target (width of the pattern), but went to the 100% Measured Move of the larger formation to make the high of the day.

There were three close targets for the high — the yellow parallel (not quite hit), yesterday’s high (green line) and the C=100% blue target. Unlike yesterday’s close, two of the three were exact hits, and the third was close. Certainly a point for partial profits if not a complete exit.

Take a look at the earliest pivot marked “B.” That was certainly a potential entry, and although it’s hard to call it a successful trade, it shouldn’t have been a loser. I’m often an impatient trader, and my exit would have been during the sideways action in the center of the rectangle.

If you had more patience, the false break to a new high should have been an exit. Compare that action to the Spring pattern that often appears on my charts. A break to a new high for any move must have a volume increase to be trustworthy. Any reversal after a low volume breakout should be considered as a potential exit signal.

I’ll be on the road all day tomorrow, so there is the possibility I won’t manage a post in the evening. If not, I should be back on Friday. Good Trading.
Lowell

First Pullback measurements are always external retracements (see yesterday), but they are Fibonacci ratios that few seem to follow. You can mark the Fib levels for the next potential turn as soon a reversal pivot forms following the first significant pullback.

Today each of the major reversals turned at one of these levels (all shown with white lines and arrows.) The 7:30 bottom turned at 127% just as it reached the continuation of a trendline from one of yesterday’s pivots. It also had a Stochastic divergence, and lead to the best move of the day.

That mid-day rally also ended in the same manner, but this time at the 262% external retracement of the first major pullback. This is what I consider a “normal” move. Once again the turn also had confirmation from a trendline at the top of a channel.

After making the high of the day we had another move down. For the third time, the actual reversal near the close was a 262% external retracement of the first good pullback.

This doesn’t work every time, but that’s the case with all support and resistance or Fibonacci levels. They give you an area where turns are more likely to take place. It’s up to your trading plan to give you entries to take advantage of them.

Most of you should know by now that I try to not make predictions. I draw my trendlines, put in Fibonacci measurements, and ask myself “What if” the market decided to turn here. And then I take action if I find a setup.

If you don’t know why I take a close look at 423% retracements of the first pullback in a large move, read this recent post. And no, I’m not calling a bottom here with this 15 minute chart. But I’ll certainly watch very closely in the morning. (Don’t try to compare prices on the 3 and 15 minute charts - contract rollover today and I didn’t change my chart.)

The market acted well on the 3 minute trading chart. The first pullback from “X” was 62% (normally a large pullback) and the pullback to “B” was the normal 38% smaller retracement. All of the internal measurements in the downtrend were Measured Moves (in yellow) allowing you to fine tune any possible entries.

The mid-day bottom had numerous signals — a Fibonacci cluster as well as bouncing off a parallel trendline. Even the afternoon reversal in magenta had lots of reasons to consider a trade.

It was the largest pullback of the day, and as is often the case, retraced 50% of the entire down move. It was also a 78% Fib retracement of the decline from “B”, and if you check the small internal Fibs, you’ll find it was a 262% external retracement of the first pullback in the rally. Another nice Fibonacci cluster with a Gravestone Doji candlestick at the top. Very good signals all day long.

If you exclude the gap, there was not much range again today. I’ve seen some studies that tried to say almost all of the gain or loss in the indexes over a long period of time actually occurred overnight, and that for this reason you couldn’t make any money day trading. I guess the bounces that happen intraday don’t count.

Actually today would have been pretty hard to trade, but at least there were some turning points that made sense. As I’ve mentioned often, leave your major trendlines on the charts as long as you can. After today’s large gap, the first move went right to the bottom trendline from yesterday.

We didn’t actually turn there, but the trendline was respected. The sideways movement eventually got to (and slightly through) a parallel, and also tried to form some small channels.

There’s really not much else to point out on this chart, and I’m going to have limited computer access until the end of next week, so some of the commentaries (like tonight) may be a little short. Good trading.