Slope of Hope Blog Posts

Slope initially began as a blog, so this is where most of the website’s content resides. Here we have tens of thousands of posts dating back over a decade. These are listed in reverse chronological order. Click on any category icon below to see posts tagged with that particular subject, or click on a word in the category cloud on the right side of the screen for more specific choices.

Belt and Braces

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SPX closed ten handles or so over the 5dma yesterday, so SPX is back on the Three Day Rule. If SPX should close back below the 5dma today or Monday then we should expect a retest of the last low at 2583.23 in the near future. At the moment the 5dma is at 2638 and SPX looks likely to close the day below it.

As it happens that would just confirm the bear flag rising wedge that has already broken down on ES with the same minimum target, so one way or the other that retest looks likely. At that point we could see the second low of a double bottom or continuation down towards the major support area below at 2530-40, the 2018 low and possible H&S neckline at 2532, and the annual pivot at 2538.

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First Break Under 2600

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I had food poisoning for half of last week so I didn’t manage to get a post out or remind everyone that Stan and I were doing our monthly public Chart Chat on Sunday. If you missed that the recording is posted here.

In the webinar yesterday we were looking at the likely triangle on ES/SPX and what would be likely to happen when that broke down, which it has with the move under 2600 this morning. What generally happens now is an initial break down, then a backtest back into the body of the triangle, likely in progress, and then a thrust down from the triangle, first working target mid to high 2400s though with very significant support at the annual pivot and 2018 low in the 2530-40 area where there is a possible large H&S neckline.

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Phase Changes

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At the open Thursday morning there was a key common thread on SPX, NDX and RUT, in that all three were either close (SPX & NDX), or at (RUT) their key resistance trendlines from the all time highs. As I’ve been writing the falling channel resistance on SPX and falling wedge resistance on NDX have both broken, with RUT having already broken up earlier today.

What this means is that this move is entering a new phase, either setting retests of the all time highs or signalling retracement and consolidation before the next move down. The more obvious move is retracement and consolidation but we could see the high retests, and I’d note that the seasonality favors the bulls into late December, and that while all the hourly RSI 14 buy signals made target yesterday, the daily RSI 14 buy signals on SPX, NDX and RUT are still nowhere near target. (more…)

The Road Less Travelled

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The bull scenario initially looked good after my post last week, with clear breaks back over the daily middle band and 5dma on Friday. That triggered the 5dma Three Day Rule, which on a daily close back below the 5dma on Mon day or Tuesday would look for a retest of the most recent low. SPX then broke back below the daily middle band and 5dma at the close on Monday, and retested the 2670 low on Tuesday.

Now I was saying last week that the alternate bear scenario would look for a retest of the main retracement low at 2603.54 SPX. We have not yet seen that full test, but after the current rally, it’s likely that we will see that test. At that test SPX either finds support there on a marginal lower low, or extends lower to the 2018 low & annual pivot area 2530-40. (more…)

Santa’s Inflection Point

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On my last post I was talking about the expected significant backtest on SPX, and we have now seen that retracement which has reached the 61.8% fib retrace area. At this point I’m expecting the main rally into Xmas to start in the next couple of days and that may well be starting here. However ……..

I did mention in my last post that this retracement might extend lower into a full retest of the October low, and there is a possible setup to deliver that in this inflection point. That bear case rests on a decent quality H&S that has formed and broken down on ES with a target at that retest of the late October low, with a perfect backtest of the broken neckline in the 2717/8 area overnight. The original IHS on SPX looking for the 2910 has failed and this delivers a possible Janus Flag target at a retest of the prior low in the 2600 area. A sustained break below 2660 likely seals the deal for bears.

The bull case is that this is also what I would call a Janus Flag, in that it looks like a topping pattern that breaks down and rejects hard into the preceding high (2815 area). That case is backed up by the decent quality falling megaphone that has formed from the high and would obviously need some confirmation from breaks of upside resistance. The important upside levels on ES area possible double bottom support at 2718, and a sustained break above looks for the 2760 area. Falling megaphone resistance is in the 2730 area and a break above likely seals the deal for bulls. (more…)