Friday: Stocks Sell Off Again, Bonds Up, Gold Down
Price chart analysis and commentary
Here are my annotated price charts for the S&P 500, the Nasdaq 100, the iShares 20+ Year U. S. Treasury Bond ETF, the United States Oil Fund, the SPDR Gold Shares, and one NYSE food retail stock of interest…
The S&P 500:
Today’s 5.97% slide takes the index below the early August 2024 low. With a gap down on Thursday and a gap down on Friday, investors clearly want out and quickly. Look for the 50-day moving average to cross below the 200-day moving average soon.
The Nasdaq 100:
The 6.07% drop takes the index below the August 2024 lows, not considered likely just a few weeks ago. The two gaps down in a row demonstrate the emotional quality of the trading late this week. I would say that the 50-day moving average looks on track to cross below the 200-day moving average — maybe next week.
The iShares 20+ Year U. S. Treasury Bond ETF:
Bonds seem to be benefiting from the sell-off in stocks as investors seek what seems like greater safety. Today’s gain of 1.14% moves the price above the early December high and just below the early October gap down. The expansion of volume tends to confirm the solidity of the price move.
The SPDR Gold Shares:
The price drops to the level of the mid-March lows. Down 2.26% for the day as the 50-day and the 200-day moving averages continue their move higher.
The United States Oil Fund:
The 5.95% drop is the closing price — earlier in the session, the fund slid below the September 2024 low. The two big gaps down this week are extraordinary. The 50-day moving average is about to cross below the 200-day moving average. Note how the 50-day has been trending downward since the beginning of March, a warning.
Kroger:
Today’s loss of 5.20% for the big grocery store chain leaves a bearish engulfing candlestick: a higher high (and a new high) than the previous day and a lower low than the previous day. Sometimes this is an indication of trend reversal. Note that the 50-day and 200-day moving averages continue to trend upward.
When I was in my local grocery store at about 11 am yesterday, I noticed that it seemed packed with people, much more crowded than usual. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that food buyers are stocking up in advance of expected price increases — something mentioned by Mark Cuban this week on social media.
Stats courtesy of FinViz.com. Charts courtesy of Stockcharts.com.
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