Wow. Has the market become so volatile that we have reached the point that we have exhausted all the new ways for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) to get whipsawed and have reverted to "reruns"? To see what I mean, consider this excerpt from yesterday morning right around this same time...
"We are less than two hours into the session and find the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) has already put in a low-to-high range of more than 400 points. At its best levels it was up 181 point and down 233 at its lows. Anyone know what company makes Dramamine? Maybe that is a stock to check out."
Fast forward 24 hours and we find the Dow showing a low-to-high range of 402 points. At its lows it was off 212 and up 190 points at its highs. I hate reruns...especially on "shows" that I didn't like the first time!
As discussed this morning, pre-open futures were pointing to a gain. The intraday chart below shows we did see an opening rally. Unfortunately, the day then began to play out just like yesterday with selling pressure kicking in.
A look to the sector action shows a choppy and sporadic day. We have the PowerShares Clean Energy ETF (PBW) bouncing back from yesterday's selling while the Amex Gold Bugs Index (HUI) pulls back (slightly) after a surge. The Regional Bank HOLDRS (RKH) is the weakest area.
The rest of the pack sits between the extremes of the PBW and RKH with a number of groups mulling around breakeven. All in all, a whippy and noisy day.
Chart Courtesy of Thomson Financial
Copyright Schaeffer's Investment Research http://www.schaeffersresearch.com