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Price continues to fall towards the short-term target.

Two short-term Elliott wave counts are used today to indicate when a bounce may have arrived. Invalidation of the first count indicates the alternate may be correct.

Summary: It may be safest to assume the downwards trend remains intact while price remains below 2,553.93. The short-term target remains at 2,173.

However, today completes a Hammer reversal pattern that comes while RSI exhibits triple bullish divergence, On Balance Volume has not confirmed new lows, and ADX is almost very extreme. Conditions are now set for a strong bounce. Be aware this market is vulnerable to large whipsaws.

A new high above 2,553.93 would provide some confidence that a multi-day to multi-week bounce may have arrived for primary wave B.

The final target is now at 1,708.

The biggest picture, Grand Super Cycle analysis, is here.

Last monthly charts are here with video here.

ELLIOTT WAVE COUNTS

MAIN WAVE COUNT

WEEKLY CHART

S&P 500 Weekly 2020
Click chart to enlarge.

Now that the channel is breached by a full daily candlestick below and not touching the lower edge, further confidence in this wave count may be had.

Price is now below the 0.382 Fibonacci ratio of cycle wave I at 2,352. The structure of cycle wave II may need further to go to complete. The next Fibonacci ratio at 0.618 is now a preferred target for cycle wave II to end.

It is possible today that cycle wave II could be complete. This is outlined in a second alternate hourly chart below; the technical analysis section outlines what needs to be seen for confidence in the alternate wave count.

Cycle wave II may not move beyond the start of cycle wave I below 666.79.

DAILY CHART

S&P 500 Daily 2020
Click chart to enlarge.

Redraw the wide maroon trend channel carefully: draw the first trend line from the end of primary wave 1 at 2,093.55 (December 26, 2014), to the end of primary wave 3 at 2,940.91 (September 21, 2018), then place a parallel copy on the end of primary wave 2 at 1,810.10 (February 11, 2016). The channel is fully breached indicating a trend change from the multi-year bull trend to a new bear trend.

Cycle wave II may subdivide as any Elliott wave corrective structure except a triangle. It would most likely be a zigzag. Primary wave A may be an incomplete five wave impulse. Primary wave B may not move beyond the start of primary wave A above 3,393.52.

Within primary wave A, there is no Fibonacci ratio between intermediate waves (1) and (3). This makes it more likely that intermediate wave (5) may exhibit a Fibonacci ratio to either of intermediate waves (1) or (3). The most common Fibonacci ratio for a fifth wave is equality in length with its counterpart first wave.

HOURLY CHART

S&P 500 Hourly 2020
Click chart to enlarge.

This is the main wave count today only because it is always safest to assume the trend remains the same until proven otherwise. The trend now is down, so assume it may continue down until this wave count is invalidated.

Primary wave A may be an incomplete five wave impulse.

Draw a channel about primary wave A using Elliott’s first technique: draw the first trend line from the ends of intermediate waves (1) to (3), then place a parallel copy on the end of intermediate wave (2).

During bear moves, this market sometimes behaves like commodities. It may exhibit swift strong fifth waves. Look for the possibility for intermediate wave (5) to end with further strength.

Intermediate wave (5) must subdivide as a five wave motive structure, either an impulse or an ending diagonal. Because a diagonal requires all sub-waves to subdivide as zigzags, and because it is not possible to see both minor waves 1 and 2 as zigzags, a diagonal may be eliminated for this wave count.

Within intermediate wave (5), minor waves 1 and 2 may be complete. Minor wave 3 may have begun and may only subdivide as an impulse. Within minor wave 2, minute wave ii may not move beyond the start of minute wave i above 2,553.93.

ALTERNATE HOURLY CHART

S&P 500 Hourly 2020
Click chart to enlarge.

It is possible today that primary wave A may be over. There is some support today for this first alternate wave count from classic technical analysis.

Primary wave B may subdivide as any Elliott wave corrective structure. It may be a quick sharp bounce as a zigzag, or it may be a more time consuming sideways consolidation as a flat, combination or triangle.

A new wave at primary degree should begin with a five wave structure upwards on the hourly chart. Within that first five up, no second wave correction may move beyond its start below 2,280.52.

SECOND ALTERNATE HOURLY CHART

S&P 500 Hourly 2020
Click chart to enlarge.

It is possible that cycle wave II may be a complete quick relatively shallow zigzag at 0.41 of cycle wave I. Coming after zero divergence between price and market breadth at the all time high, statistically a shallow bear market would be most likely.

This wave count absolutely requires some confidence from classic technical analysis before it may be considered seriously. It is published today to consider all possibilities.

This wave count may require one or more of the following conditions to be met for confidence in it:

– A 90% up day or two back to back 80% up days within three sessions from today.

– A 6 point rise in Lowry’s short-term index.

– A new high by the AD line.

– A new high above 3,393.52.

– A bullish candlestick reversal pattern with support from volume at the daily, weekly or monthly chart level.

TECHNICAL ANALYSIS

WEEKLY CHART

S&P 500 Weekly 2020
Click chart to enlarge. Chart courtesy of StockCharts.com.

A 32.8% drop in price (high to low) no longer has precedent within the larger bull market.

At the weekly chart level, conditions are not yet oversold; there is room for downwards movement to continue.

DAILY CHART

Daily 2020
Click chart to enlarge. Chart courtesy of StockCharts.com.

There are now eight 90% downwards days in this strong downwards movement.

The following indicators still suggest a low may be in place soon:

– RSI reached deeply oversold and now exhibits short-term triple bullish divergence with price.

– Stochastics reached oversold and now exhibits short-term bullish divergence with price.

– On Balance Volume continues to exhibit double bullish divergence with price. On Balance Volume has failed to confirm the last three days’ lows.

If price bounces here, then it would most likely be a correction within an ongoing bear market and not necessarily the end of the bear market.

BREADTH – AD LINE

WEEKLY CHART

AD Line Weekly 2020
Click chart to enlarge. Chart courtesy of StockCharts.com. So that colour blind members are included, bearish signals
will be noted with blue and bullish signals with yellow.

Bear markets from the Great Depression and onwards have been preceded by an average minimum of 4 months divergence between price and the AD line with only two exceptions in 1946 and 1976. With no divergence between the AD line and price at the last all time high, this current bear market now makes a third exception.

In all bear markets in the last 90 years there is some positive correlation (0.6022) between the length of bearish divergence and the depth of the following bear market. No to little divergence is correlated with more shallow bear markets. Longer divergence is correlated with deeper bear markets.

This bear market comes after no bearish divergence. It would more likely be shallow, but this is a statement of probability and not certainty. So far it is slightly more than the 0.382 Fibonacci ratio of the bull market it is correcting (beginning March 2009).

Last week price made new lows below prior lows of August 2019, but the AD line has not. This fall in price does not have support from a corresponding decline in market breadth. This divergence is bullish and supports the view that this bear market may more likely be shallow.

Large caps all time high: 3,393.52 on 19th February 2020.

Mid caps all time high: 2,109.43 on 20th February 2020.

Small caps all time high: 1,100.58 on 27th August 2018.

DAILY CHART

AD Line daily 2020
Click chart to enlarge. Chart courtesy of StockCharts.com. So that colour blind members are included, bearish signals
will be noted with blue and bullish signals with yellow.

Breadth should be read as a leading indicator.

Today both price and breadth have moved lower. There is no new short-term divergence, but mid-term bullish divergence remains (seen at the weekly chart level).

VOLATILITY – INVERTED VIX CHART

WEEKLY CHART

VIX Weekly 2020
Click chart to enlarge. Chart courtesy of StockCharts.com. So that colour blind members are included, bearish signals
will be noted with blue and bullish signals with yellow.

The all time high for inverted VIX was on 30th October 2017. There is now over two years of bearish divergence between price and inverted VIX.

The rise in price is not coming with a normal corresponding decline in VIX; VIX remains elevated. This long-term divergence is bearish. It may now be resolved by this last fall in price, which meets the technical definition of a bear market.

Last week inverted VIX has made new lows below the prior major swing low of December 2018, but price has not. This divergence is bearish and suggests this bear market may not be complete.

DAILY CHART

VIX daily 2020
Click chart to enlarge. Chart courtesy of StockCharts.com. So that colour blind members are included, bearish signals
will be noted with blue and bullish signals with yellow.

Today price has moved lower to make a new low, but inverted VIX has not made a new low. This divergence is bullish for the short term.

DOW THEORY

Dow Theory has confirmed a bear market with the following lows made on a closing basis:

DJIA: 21,712.53 – a close below this point has been made on the March 12, 2020.

DJT: 8,636.79 – a close below this point has been made on March 9, 2020.

Adding in the S&P and Nasdaq for an extended Dow Theory, a bear market has not been confirmed:

S&P500: 2,346.58 – while this point has been breached intra day, price has not yet closed below it.

Nasdaq: 7,292.22 – a close below this point was made on the March 12, 2020.

Published @ 06:56 p.m. EST.


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Follow my two Golden Rules:

1. Always trade with stops.

2. Risk only 1-5% of equity on any one trade.


New updates to this analysis are in bold.