TheStrategyLab.com Price Action Trading Support Forum

Price Action Trade Results of M.A. Perry
Trader and Founder of WRB Analysis (wide range body/bar analysis)
TheStrategyLab Price Action Trading (no technical indicators)
wrbtrader (more info about me): http://www.thestrategylab.com/wrbtrader.htm & http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=127&t=850
Free Chat Room: http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewforum.php?f=164
Archive Real-Time Chat Logs (timestamp, entries/exits, position size): http://www.thestrategylab.com/ftchat/forum/viewforum.php?f=20
Users Reviews, Accolades (Testimonials): http://www.thestrategylab.com/Accolades.htm
Review of TheStrategyLab: http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=84&t=3167 & http://www.thestrategylab.com/thestrategylab-reviews.htm
Price Action Trading: http://www.thestrategylab.com/price-action-trading.htm
TheStrategyLab Business Hours: 8am - 5pm est (Mon - Fri)
Telephone: +1 708 572-4885
wrbanalysis@gmail.com (24/7)
Stocktwits @ http://stocktwits.com/wrbtrader (24/7)
Twitter @ http://twitter.com/wrbtrader (24/7)


click on the above image to view today's performance verification

Price Action Trade Performance for Today: Emini RTY ($RTY_F) futures @ $0.00 dollars or +0.00 points, Emini ES ($ES_F) futures @ $675.00 dollars or +13.50 points, Light Crude Oil CL ($CL_F) futures @ $0.00 dollars or +0.00 points, Gold GC ($GC_F) futures @ $0.00 dollars or +0.00 points and EuroFX 6E ($6E_F) futures @ $0.00 dollars or +0.0000 ticks. Total Profit @ $675.00 dollars

Russell 2000 Emini RTY Futures: 1 tick or 0.10 = $5.00 dollars and there's more contract information @ CMEGroup (formerly as TF @ The ICE)
S&P 500 Emini ES Futures: 1 tick or 0.25 = $12.50 dollars and there's more contract information @ CMEGroup
Light Crude Oil CL (WTI) Futures: 1 tick or 0.01 = $10.00 dollars and there's more contract information @ CMEGroup
Gold GC Futures: 1 tick or 0.10 = $10.00 dollars and there's more contract information @ CMEGroup
EuroFX 6E Futures: 1 tick or 0.0001 = $12.50 dollars and there's more contract information @ CMEGroup

Today's Trade Log & Price Action Analysis is archived @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/ftchat/forum/viewtopic.php?f=176&t=2735

All of my trades are posted real-time at the above link for today's archive chat log in the timestamp ##TheStrategyLab free chat room via the user name wrbtrader for anyone to do a real-time review (you must be a member of the chat room for a real-time review). Although the trades and price action analysis are posted by me and other users of WRB Analysis in real-time...review of TheStrategyLab is that this is not a signal calling chat room nor is this a live trading room that has a head trader telling you what to do. I'm the moderator (I keep the peace between members) and my own live trades are posted within 3.2 seconds on average after the trade confirmation in my broker trade execution platform via an auto script to minimize delays in posting of my trades. You can review today's price action trade journal about my trades (e.g. time, price entry, contract size, price exit, market analysis) as the trade traversed to its completion. In addition, sometimes I'll post real-time trading tips in the free ##TheStrategyLab chat room involving WRBs, WRB Hidden GAPs, Key Market Events (KME), WRB Zones, Reaction Highs/Lows, Contracting Volatility or Expanding Volatility...all key concepts from the WRB Analysis free study guide even though the free chat room is not design to be an education chat room because the education is only performed at the forums in the private threads.

##TheStrategyLab Chat Room is free. The free chat room is not a signal calling trading room nor is it a live trading room with a head trader even though members of the chat room are posting their trades & market analysis in real-time. I do not mentor (never have) although I get many requests to do mentoring. There is education but only in members private threads at the forum involving members asking questions (help) about their own trading. Thus, the primary purpose of TheStrategyLab free chat room is for you to use as your trade journal so that you can use as valuable feedback about your own trading and for members to help each other...as in more eyes on the market. In addition, we highly recommend that you use the free chat room with a professional trade journal software like tradebench.com, edgewonk.com, tradervue.com, tradingdiarypro.com, stocktickr.com, journalsqrd.com, tradingdiary.pro, mxprofit.com or trademetria.com because they can provide you with the quantitative statistical analysis of your trading. You can then download your results and post them in your private thread at the forum.

Also, you can use TheStrategyLab free chat room to ask real-time WRB Analysis questions. Yet, please do not post your quantitative statistical analysis, brokerage statements in the free chat room. Instead, its highly recommended that you only post that particular information in your private thread for security reasons. Yet, if you want to post that type of information at another website, blog or chat room...that's your choice.

TheStrategyLab free chat room is on IRC via users request because the IRC servers are located in many different countries, software in many different languages, many different mobile apps, many different types of social media software can be used to log in along with IRC being easier to moderate via script codes when trouble makers, spammers and trolls show up. I'm the moderator of the free chat room via the user name wrbtrader. Thus, I keep the peace between members without hesitation in removing problematic traders so that members can peacefully post their market observations, trades, WRB Analysis commentary about the markets without being trolled or harassed.

TheStrategyLab free chat room is not for traders looking for someone to hold their hands and tell them when to buy or sell nor do we allow the free chat room to be used for mentoring because we do not offer a mentoring service. The purpose of TheStrategyLab is for you to post your real-time analysis or trades so that you can review as feedback for any trading day to provide valuable information about the results in your broker statements. If you join the free chat room and then you decide to not post any WRB Analysis about the price action or you decide to not post your trades or you decide to be silent (lurk without saying a word about today's markets)...you're not using the free chat room properly to help improve your trading.

In fact, we do not want silent (lurkers) traders to join the free chat room unless they are actively posting at the forum about their trading after the markets close. Access instructions for the free chat room @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewforum.php?f=164


Also, posted below for you to review are direct links to information about my price action trade methodology and trading plan (there's a difference between the two) that enables me to identify key trading areas in the price action that represent changes in supply/demand and volatility along with being able to exploit these changes via WRB Analysis (wide range body/bar analysis). I'm primarily a day trader because it suits my personal lifestyle but I do occasionally swing trade and position trade. Simply, my trade method is applicable for position trading, swing trading and day trading.

Price Action Analysis via Advance WRB Analysis Tutorial Chapters @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/WRBAnalysisTutorials.htm and there's a free study guide of the WRB Analysis Tutorial Chapters 1, 2 and 3 @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=119&t=718

Analysis -----> Trade Signals

Trade Signal Strategies via Volatility Trading Report (VTR) @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/VolatilityTrading.htm and there's a free trade signal strategy @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewforum.php?f=89 so that you can freely test drive one of our price action trade strategies with support (answering your questions) prior to purchasing the Volatility Trading Report (VTR). All WRB Analysis Tutorial Chapters 1 - 12 are included in the purchase of the Volatility Trading Report (VTR).

Daily Trading Plan Routine @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=343&t=3632 contains brief information about trading plan, market context, brokers, trading time frames, position size management and other discussions.

-----------------------------

Market Context Summaries

The below summaries by Bloomberg, Briefing, Reuters and Yahoo! Finance helps me to do a quick review of the fundamentals, FED/ECB/BOE/IMF actions or any important global economic events (e.g. Eurozone, MarketWatch.com) that had an impact on today's price action in many trading instruments I monitor during the trading day. Simply, I'm a strong believer that key market events causes key changes in supply/demand and volatility resulting in trade opportunities (swing points and strong continuation price actions) that reach profit targets. Thus, I pay attention to these key market events, intermarket analysis (e.g. Forex EurUsd, EuroFX 6E futures, Gold GC futures, Light Crude Oil (WTI) CL & Brent Oil futures, Eurex DAX futures, Euronext FTSE100 futures, Emini ES futures, Emini RTY futures, Treasury ZB futures and U.S. Dollar Index futures) while using WRB Analysis from one trade to the next trade to give me the market context for price action trading before the appearance of my technical analysis trade signals. Therefore, I maintain these archives for easy review to allow me to understand what was happening on any given trading day in the past involving key market events to help better understand my trade decisions (day trading, swing trading, position trading)...something I can not get from my broker PnL statements alone. Further, most financial websites remove (delete) their archives after a few years to make room for new content. Therefore, I maintain my own archives of the news content so that I have it available for me when financial websites no longer archives their content.


click on the above image to view today's price action of key markets

The Market at 04:25PM ET
Dow: +152.45… | Nasdaq: +12.38… | S&P: +10.93…
NASDAQ Vol: 2.08 bln… Adv: 1561… Dec: 1155…
NYSE Vol: 895.3 mln… Adv: 1723… Dec: 1197…

Moving the Market

Investors continue buying following two days of gains and ahead of Friday's release of the Employment Situation Report for December

ADP Employment Change for December comes in much higher than expected (250,000 actual vs 190,000 Briefing.com consensus)

Heavily-weighted financial sector outperforms

Sector Watch
Strong: Financials, Industrials, Energy, Materials, Telecom Services
Weak: Health Care, Utilities, Real Estate
04:25PM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks advanced to new records for the third session in a row on Thursday, keeping their perfect 2018 record intact.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.6% to 25075.13, the S&P 500 jumped 0.4% to 2723.99, and the Nasdaq Composite ticked up 0.2% to 7077.91. All three stock indices finished at new all-time highs with the Dow crossing the 25000 mark for the first time. The Russell 2000 also notched a new record, rising 0.2% to 1555.72.

After opening modestly above Wednesday's closing levels, the equity market kept pretty steady through the closing bell.

Nine of eleven sectors advanced on Thursday with gains ranging between 0.1% and 0.9%. The heavily-weighted financial sector (+0.9%) was the top-performing group after trailing the broader market through the first two sessions of the new year. Lenders like JPMorgan Chase (JPM 109.04, +1.54), Bank of America (BAC 30.19, +0.39), Wells Fargo (WFC 62.33, +0.77), and Citigroup (C 75.51, +0.92) added more than 1.0% apiece.

Meanwhile, the energy sector managed to tack on another 0.6%, bringing its 2018 gain to 4.0%, as crude oil extended its three-week rally. West Texas Intermediate crude futures advanced to a fresh three-year high, jumping 0.6% to $61.97 per barrel. Crude futures benefited from the Department of Energy's weekly inventory report, which showed that U.S. crude stockpiles declined by 7.4 million barrels last week--nearly 3 million barrels more than estimates had predicted.

On the downside, the health care sector underperformed, adding just 0.1%, as biotechnology shares gave back a portion of gains registered earlier in the week; the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB 109.97, -0.91) lost 0.8%, trimming its week-to-date gain to 3.0%. The lightly-weighted utilities and real estate sectors also struggled, finishing at the bottom of the sector standings with losses of 0.9% and 1.7%, respectively.

In corporate news, Walgreens Boot Alliance (WBA 71.60, -3.91) dropped 5.2% despite reporting better-than-expected earnings and revenues for its fiscal first quarter. L Brands (LB 51.00, -7.16) also had a disappointing outing, as did many retailers, after lowering its profit projections for the holiday season. LB shares ended the session lower by 12.3% while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT 45.71, -0.27) shed 0.6%.

Elsewhere, equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region finished Thursday on a higher note with Japan's Nikkei (+3.3%) climbing to its best level since 1991. European equities also had a solid day, especially financial names like Deutsche Bank (+2.7%) and Credit Agricole (+4.5%), pushing the Euro Stoxx 50 higher by 1.7%.

Outside the equity markets, U.S. Treasuries sold off modestly, extending losses for the week. The yield on the benchmark 10-yr Treasury note advanced one basis point to 2.45% while the 2-yr yield settled at 1.95% after closing the prior session at 1.93%. Meanwhile, the U.S. Dollar Index slipped 0.3% to 91.60, notching its sixth loss in seven sessions. The greenback lost 0.4% against the euro (1.2068) and 0.3% against the British pound (1.3554).

Reviewing Thursday's economic data, which included the ADP National Employment Report for December and the weekly Initial Claims Report:

The ADP National Employment Report showed an increase of 250,000 in December (Briefing.com consensus 190,000). The November reading was revised to 185,000 from 190,000.
The ADP reading precedes Friday's more influential Employment Situation Report for December (Briefing.com consensus +188K).
The latest weekly initial jobless claims count totaled 250,000, while the Briefing.com consensus expected a reading of 239,000. Today's tally was above the revised prior week count of 247,000 (from 245,000). As for continuing claims, they declined to 1.914 million from a revised count of 1.951 million (from 1.943 million).
Initial claims have held below 300,000 for 148 straight weeks

On Friday, the Employment Situation Report for the month of December will be released at 8:30 AM ET. The Briefing.com consensus expects the report will show the addition of 188,000 nonfarm payrolls, a 0.3% increase in average hourly earnings, and an unemployment rate of 4.0%.

In addition, investors will receive the November Trade Balance (Briefing.com consensus -$47.9 billion) at 8:30 AM ET and both November Factory Orders (Briefing.com consensus +1.4%) and the ISM Services Index (Briefing.com consensus 57.6) at 10:00 AM ET.

Nasdaq Composite: +2.5% YTD
S&P 500: +1.9% YTD
Russell 2000: +1.4% YTD
Dow Jones Industrial Average: +1.3% YTD

Dow: +152.45… | Nasdaq: +12.38… | S&P: +10.93…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1561/1155. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1723/1197.

03:30PM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Commodities end the day higher :

Overall, commodities, as measured by the Bloomberg Commodity Index, are currently up 3.72% at 88.61
Dollar index is currently down 0.31% at 91.87
Feb WTI Crude is up 0.55% on the day.
EIA Crude oil inventories had a draw of 7.4 mln barrels for the week ending December 29th
Futures settle $0.34 higher to $61.97/barrel.
In other energy:
Natural gas EIA inventory showed a draw of 206 bcf vs a draw of 112 bcf in the prior week.
Feb Natural Gas settled down $0.14 at $2.87/MMBtu
On the metals:
Feb Gold gained $2.50 to settle at $1321.00/oz, while Mar silver gained $0.01 to $17.28/oz
Mar copper settled flat at $3.26/lb
Finally, agriculture:
Mar Corn settled unchanged at $3.51/bu.
Jan Soy settled down $0.0075 at $9.6725/bu.
Mar wheat settled flat at $4.34/bu.

Dow: +163.28… | Nasdaq: +18.95… | S&P: +12.84…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1711/1127. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1832/1088.

02:55PM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Equities are cruising towards another record finish moving into the final hour of trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is leading today's rally, up 0.7%, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite sport respective gains of 0.5% and 0.2%.

The Employment Situation Report for the month of December will be released tomorrow at 8:30 AM ET. The Briefing.com consensus expects the report will show the addition of 188,000 nonfarm payrolls, a 0.3% increase in average hourly earnings, and an unemployment rate of 4.0%. The average hourly earnings figure will be of particular interest to the market as the Fed has cited slow wage growth as a hindrance to reaching its year-over-year inflation target of 2.0%.

On the earnings front, fast-food chain Sonic (SONC 27.52, -0.15) will report its quarterly results following today's closing bell, while Constellation Brands (STZ 224.87, -2.63)--the maker of Corona beer--will report tomorrow morning.

Dow: +163.88… | Nasdaq: +14.66… | S&P: +13.15…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1702/1140. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1879/1044.

02:25PM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Equity indices haven't changed since the last update. The S&P 500 is higher by 0.5%.

Nine sectors are trading higher this afternoon--financials (+1.3%), materials (+0.9%), telecom services (+0.8%), industrials (+0.7%), consumer staples (+0.5%), technology (+0.5%), energy (+0.3%), health care (+0.2%), and consumer discretionary (+0.2%)--while two are trading in the red--utilities (-0.3%) and real estate (-1.0%).

Chipmakers have had another solid showing today, evidenced by the 0.6% increase in the PHLX Semiconductor Index, which is now up 5.1% for the year.

Dow: +154.89… | Nasdaq: +15.28… | S&P: +13.79…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1726/1119. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1884/1029.

01:55PM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] The major stock indices continue to sport gains between 0.2% and 0.6%.

In Washington, reports indicate that the White House has proposed expanding offshore oil and natural gas drilling. The proposed plan calls for opening 90% of offshore areas for drilling starting in 2019, up from 6% in the current plan. West Texas Intermediate crude futures have had a muted response to the reports and currently trade higher by 0.4% at $61.91 per barrel.

Meanwhile, the S&P 500's energy sector is up 0.2%, hovering in the middle of its trading range. Exxon Mobil (XOM 86.73, +0.03) trades near its unchanged mark while Chevron (CVX 127.82, -0.69) shows a loss of 0.6%.

Dow: +149.99… | Nasdaq: +13.06… | S&P: +12.72…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1733/1125. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1851/1049.

01:30PM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] The Dow has powered through the 25,000 level for the first time ever as markets continue a record setting start to 2018. After leading markets the first two sessions, the Nasdaq has slipped back into third place as it is up +0.2% on the day. The Dow has moved into a leadership roll as it is up +0.6% and closes the gap on the early year to date gains. The S&P is holding steady, running +0.5% today.

International Business Machines (IBM, +2.1%) and General Electric (GE, +1.9%) continue to pace the Dow. The two biggest laggards of 2017 have seen early buying in the new year. Financials have also been off to a hot start with J.P. Morgan Chase (JPM, +1.9%), American Express (AXP, +1.8%), and Goldman Sachs (GS, +1.6%) all among today's leaders.

Intel (INTC), -2.5%) remains under pressure after holding a call to discuss reports on problems around its security. INTC was vague on some of the key issues which will keep investors and analysts skeptical. But the company did stress that it did not expect a financial or business impact in response to the problems. INTC states it has identified a solution and believes that implementation of the solution will have minimal impact on processor performances. Another interesting laggard is Chevron (CVX, -0.6%) which is trailing the other 28 Dow components despite another strong day for crude.

Dow: 140.50… | Nasdaq: 8.89… | S&P: 12.09…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1746/1194. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1869/1095.


01:00PM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks are in record territory once again today, looking to post their third straight day of gains.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 0.6%, crossing 25000 for the first time ever, while the S&P 500 Index and the Nasdaq Composite hold gains of 0.4% and 0.2%, respectively. The small-cap Russell 2000 (+0.2%) is struggling to keep pace, but it's still on track for a record close.

A better-than-expected ADP Employment Report, which is seen as an introduction to tomorrow's Employment Situation Report, has helped fuel today's rally. The ADP report indicated that nonfarm payrolls increased by 250,000 last month, which is 60,000 more than the Briefing.com consensus was anticipating.

It's worth noting that the ADP figure often deviates sharply from the official government number--which has likely helped keep a lid on today's gains.

The heavily-weighted financial sector (+1.2%) is the top-performing group today after trailing the broader market through the first two sessions of 2018. Wells Fargo (WFC 62.53, +0.97) is among the strongest components within the group, adding 1.6%, after Goldman added the lender to its 'Conviction Buy List.'

In total, 10 of 11 sectors are trading in the green with the lightly-weighted real estate sector (-0.9%) being the lone decliner. The materials sector (+0.9%) is the next-best performing group after financials while most other advancers hold gains between 0.3% and 0.7%.

The consumer discretionary sector (unch) has underperformed, weighed down by retailers. L Brands (LB 51.25, -6.91), which owns brands like Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works, is among the weakest performers, dropping 11.9%, after lowering its profit forecast for the holiday season.

In other corporate news, Walgreens Boot Alliance (WBA 71.91, -3.60) has shed 4.5% despite reporting better-than-expected earnings and revenues for its fiscal first quarter, and Sprint (S 5.61, -0.28) is lower by 4.8% after naming longtime telecom and cable executive Michel Combes as its new president and chief financial officer.

Elsewhere, equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region ended Thursday on a higher note, with Japan's Nikkei (+3.3%) climbing to its best level since 1991, while financials led the Euro Stoxx 50 (+1.7%) to its second straight victory.

In the bond market, U.S. Treasuries have sold off again today, extending their losses for the week. The yield on the benchmark 10-yr Treasury note is hovering at 2.46% after finishing yesterday at 2.45%, while the 2-yr yield is up three basis points at 1.96%.

Reviewing Thursday's economic data, which included the ADP National Employment Report for December and the weekly Initial Claims Report:

The ADP National Employment Report showed an increase of 250,000 in December (Briefing.com consensus 190,000). The November reading was revised to 185,000 from 190,000.
The latest weekly initial jobless claims count totaled 250,000, while the Briefing.com consensus expected a reading of 239,000. Today's tally was above the revised prior week count of 247,000 (from 245,000). As for continuing claims, they declined to 1.914 million from a revised count of 1.951 million (from 1.943 million).
Initial claims have held below 300,000 for 148 straight weeks

Dow: +150.68… | Nasdaq: +11.98… | S&P: +12.99…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1635/1216. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1791/1065.

12:30PM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks have bounced back from a minor dip in recent action, returning to the top of their trading ranges. The S&P 500 sports a gain of 0.5%.

In Europe, the major stock indices finished Thursday on a higher note. France's CAC and Germany's DAX advanced 1.6% and 1.5%, respectively, while the UK's FTSE had a weaker showing, adding just 0.3%. Financials led the way with Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, Credit Agricole, and Societe Generale climbing between 2.1% and 4.5%.

The U.S. Dollar Index is struggling once again today, down 0.2% at 91.67, and on track for its sixth loss in seven sessions. The greenback is down 0.4% against the euro (1.2063), 0.2% against the pound (1.3540), and 0.3% against the yen (112.84).

Dow: +136.61… | Nasdaq: +10.59… | S&P: +11.53…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1572/1288. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1749/1100.

12:00PM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages have held steady over the last 30 minutes of trading.

West Texas Intermediate crude futures are near their best marks of the day, up 0.6% at $61.99 per barrel, following a bigger-than-expected draw in U.S. crude inventories. The Energy Information Administration reported earlier this morning that crude stockpiles decreased by 7.4 million barrels last week, beating estimates by nearly 3 million barrels. Today's advance places WTI crude futures at a fresh three-year high.

Energy shares have benefited from the increase in the price of crude oil, putting the S&P 500's energy sector (+0.3%) on track for a third straight day of gains. The group is the top performer of the new year, adding 3.8% since the end of 2017.

Dow: +124.76… | Nasdaq: +11.36… | S&P: +10.19…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1504/1342. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1696/1136.

11:30AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks started trending downward in recent action, cutting the S&P 500's gain to 0.4%.

In corporate news, Sprint (S 5.60, -0.30) has tumbled 5.3% today after naming longtime telecom and cable executive Michel Combes as its new president and chief financial officer. Walgreens Boot Alliance (WBA 71.16, -4.35) is also trading lower, down 5.8%, despite reporting better-than-expected earnings and revenues for its fiscal first quarter.

It's been a pretty quiet day on Wall Street overall. The Employment Situation Report (Briefing.com consensus +188K) could stir things up a bit when it crosses the wires tomorrow, especially following today's ADP Employment reading, which showed an increase of 250,000 nonfarm payrolls in December (Briefing.com consensus +190K).

Dow: +144.10… | Nasdaq: +9.49… | S&P: +10.73…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1490/1344. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1691/1116.

10:55AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] It's records all around for the major U.S. stock indices again today as financial shares lead a third straight day of gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 0.6% at 25072, the S&P 500 Index is higher by 0.5% at 2726, and the Nasdaq Composite sports a gain of 0.3%, hovering at 7089.

Eight sectors are trading in the green--financials (+1.4%), materials (+0.8%), technology (+0.7%), industrials (+0.7%), consumer staples (+0.4%), health care (+0.3%), utilities (+0.2%), and energy (+0.1%)--while three trade in the red--consumer discretionary (unch), telecom services (-0.1%), and real estate (-0.7%).

Within the consumer discretionary space, retailers are struggling after several provided revised estimates for the holiday season. L Brands (LB 49.24, -8.94), which owns brands like Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works, is among the weakest performers, dropping 15.2%, after lowering its profit guidance.

Dow: +151.60… | Nasdaq: +25.57… | S&P: +13.69…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1599/1237. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1696/1090.

10:30AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Commodities begin the day flat :

Overall, commodities, as measured by the Bloomberg Commodity Index, are currently unchanged 0% at 88.61
Dollar index is currently down 0.38% at 91.81
Jan WTI crude is up 0.08% on the day.
EIA petrol data is due out at 11 ET
Futures are $0.05 higher to $61.68/barrel.
In other energy
Natural gas inventory showed a draw of 206 bcf vs a draw of 112 bcf in the prior week.
Jan natural gas is down $0.01 at $3/MMBtu
Metals:
Feb gold lost $0.90 and trades at $1317.60/oz, while Mar silver lost $0.04 to $17.23/oz
Mar copper remains unchanged at $3.26/lb
Finally, agriculture:
Mar corn is down $0.02 at $3.51/bu.
Jan soy is down $0.09 at $9.5975/bu.
Mar wheat is down $0.04 at $4.32/bu.

Dow: +171.72… | Nasdaq: +23.58… | S&P: +15.12…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1602/1194. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1712/1063.

10:00AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Equity indices have ticked up from their opening levels with the S&P 500 increasing its gain to 0.4%.

The influential financial sector, which represents nearly 15.0% of the broader market, is pacing today's advance with a gain of 1.3%. Wells Fargo (WFC 62.94, +1.38) shows particular strength, adding 2.2%, after Goldman added the lender to its 'Conviction Buy List.'

Meanwhile, shares of Intel (INTC 43.26, -1.99) are down for the second day in a row, losing 4.4%, following a Wednesday report that claimed Intel chips are susceptible to hacking. INTC shares have lost 7.7% since Tuesday's close.

Dow: +136.44… | Nasdaq: +20.54… | S&P: +11.77…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1725/1016. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1742/943.

09:45AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] The major U.S. indices are trading modestly higher in the opening minutes of today's session, sporting gains between 0.2% and 0.4%.

Seven of eleven sectors currently trade in the green with gains ranging between 0.1% and 0.8%. The heavily-weighted financials (+0.8%) and industrials (+0.6%) sectors are outperforming, while the energy sector (-0.1%) lags following a solid start to the year. The utilities (-0.3%), telecom services (-0.9%), and real estate (-0.3%) sectors are the weakest groups.

In the bond market, U.S. Treasuries are lower across the curve. The yield on the benchmark 10-yr Treasury note is up three basis points at 2.48%.

Dow: +114.38… | Nasdaq: +16.32… | S&P: +9.63…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1790/888. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1781/852.

09:10AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +5.50. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +26.50.

Stocks are on track to begin today's session in positive territory as the S&P 500 futures trade six points, or 0.2%, above fair value.

A better-than-expected ADP National Employment Report for December, which showed the addition of 250,000 nonfarm payrolls (Briefing.com consensus +190,000), has helped strengthen this morning's upbeat tone. The ADP figure is seen as a prelude to tomorrow's much more influential Employment Situation Report for December (Briefing.com consensus +188,000), although it's worth noting that the ADP number often deviates sharply from the official government figure.

Separately, the latest weekly initial jobless claims count totaled 250,000, while the Briefing.com consensus expected a reading of 239,000. Today's tally was above the revised prior week count of 247,000 (from 245,000). As for continuing claims, they declined to 1.914 million from a revised count of 1.951 million (from 1.943 million).

Treasury yields were higher ahead of this morning's batch of economic data and have extended their gains in the aftermath. The yield on the benchmark 10-yr Treasury note is hovering at 2.48% after finishing Wednesday at 2.45%, while the 2-yr yield is up five basis points at 1.98%.

In corporate news, L Brands (LB 52.50, -5.66) is down 9.7% in pre-market trading after issuing below-consensus profit guidance for the fourth quarter. Walgreens Boot Alliance (WBA 74.10, -1.41) is also down, losing 1.9%, despite reporting better-than-expected earnings and revenues for its fiscal first quarter.

08:59AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +5.30. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +25.80.

The S&P 500 futures are trading five points, or 0.2%, above fair value.

Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region ended Thursday on a higher note with Japan's Nikkei (+3.3%) showing relative strength in its first session of 2018. The rally lifted the index to its highest level since 1991. In South Korea, Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon and Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju-yeol said they will keep a close watch over risk factors and are ready to take swift measures if needed. Real estate watchers in Australia believe the country's property cycle is reaching its peak after a prolonged expansion.

In economic data:
China's December Caixin Services PMI 53.9 (expected 51.8; last 51.9)
Hong Kong's December Manufacturing PMI 51.5 (last 50.7)
Japan's December Manufacturing PMI 54.0 (expected 54.2; last 54.2)
Australia's December AIG Services Index 52.0 (last 51.7)
India's Nikkei Services PMI 50.9 (last 48.5)

---Equity Markets---

Japan's Nikkei jumped 3.3% amid broad strength. Tokai Carbon, Fanuc, Tokyo Electron, Dainippon Screen Manufacturing, Shin-Etsu Chemical, Kyocera, Komatsu, Softbank, Sony, Yamaha, and Nikon posted gains between 3.8% and 7.8%.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.6%. Property names displayed relative strength with Wharf Holdings, China Construction Bank, Hang Lung Properties, China Overseas, Wharf Real Estate, SHK Properties, and New World Development advanced between 0.7% and 8.7%.
China's Shanghai Composite added 0.5%. Sinopec, Hangzhou Silan Microelectronics, Shanghai Jin Jiang International Investment, and Hubei Sanxia New Building Materials rose between 6.8% and 9.9%.
India's Sensex ended higher by 0.5%. Drugmakers like Dr. Reddy's Labs, Sun Pharma, and Cipla posted gains between 1.0% and 3.1% while Tata Steel, Asian Paints, Coal India, Tata Consultancy, and Wipro added between 0.4% and 3.7%.

Major European indices trade mostly higher with Italy's MIB (+2.2%) in the lead after a few days of relative weakness. Participants received a set of mostly better than expected Services PMI readings from the region, which are being viewed as an encouraging signal about the region's economic growth. German Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU/CSU will begin exploratory coalition talks with SPD over the weekend. Handelsblatt reported that support for right-wing AfD and the Greens has increased since the election while FDP has suffered a setback.

In economic data:
Eurozone December Services PMI 56.6 (expected 56.5; last 56.5)
UK's December Services PMI 54.2 (expected 54.1; last 53.8). November Mortgage Approvals 65,140 (expected 64,000; last 64,890) and November Mortgage Lending GBP3.50 billion (expected GBP3.40 billion; last GBP3.35 billion). November BoE Consumer Credit GBP1.40 billion (expected GBP1.50 billion; last GBP1.36 billion). December Nationwide HPI +0.6% month-over-month (expected 0.1%; last 0.1%); +2.6% year-over-year (consensus 2.0%; last 2.5%)
Germany's December Services PMI 55.8, as expected (last 55.8)
France's December Services PMI 59.1 (expected 59.4; last 59.4)
Italy's December Services PMI 55.4 (expected 54.7; last 54.7)
Spain's December Services PMI 54.6 (expected 54.7; last 54.4)

---Equity Markets---

UK's FTSE is up 0.1%. Consumer names are among the laggards with Marks & Spencer, Burberry, Merlin Entertainments, Dixons Carphone, Imperial Brands, and Associated British Foods down between 0.4% and 3.4%. Conversely, financials like Lloyds Banking, Standard Chartered, Standard Life, RBS, Aviva, and Provident Financial show gains between 0.7% and 1.9%.
Germany's DAX has climbed 1.3% amid broad strength. Heavyweights like Siemens, BASF, Deutsche Bank, Adidas, Daimler, BMW, and Volkswagen sport gains between 1.2% and 2.3%. On the downside, Vonovia is the weakest performer, falling 0.3%.
France's CAC trades up 1.4% with bank stocks contributing to the advance. Credit Agricole, Societe Generale, AXA, and BNP Paribas are up between 2.0% and 4.8% while growth-sensitive names like LafargeHolcim, Solvay, Air Liquide, and Saint Gobain have gained between 1.9% and 2.5%.
Italy's MIB is higher by 2.2%. Fiat has jumped 7.0% while UBI Banca, Ferrari, FinecoBank, UniCredit, Bper Banca, Intesa Sanpaolo, and Banco Bpm show gains between 2.0% and 4.5%.


08:33AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +5.30. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +25.50.

The S&P 500 futures are trading five points, or 0.2%, above fair value.

Just in, the latest weekly initial jobless claims count totaled 250,000, while the Briefing.com consensus expected a reading of 239,000. Today's tally was above the revised prior week count of 247,000 (from 245,000). As for continuing claims, they declined to 1.914 million from a revised count of 1.951 million (from 1.943 million).

Separately, the ADP National Employment Report showed an increase of 250,000 in December (Briefing.com consensus 190,000). The November reading was revised to 185,000 from 190,000.

08:00AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +2.50. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +12.30.

Investors have been bullish thus far in 2018, pushing the U.S. equity market to new record highs in each of the first two trading sessions of the new year. Stocks are on track to begin today's session a tick above yesterday's closing levels with the S&P 500 futures trading three points, or 0.1%, above fair value.

Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region ended Thursday on a higher note with Japan's Nikkei (+3.3%) climbing to its best level since 1991. Meanwhile, in Europe, the major bourses are trading in the green, although the UK's FTSE (+0.1%) is struggling to keep pace. The Euro Stoxx 50 is higher by 1.3%.

It's pretty quiet on Wall Street once again this morning. Market participants have their eyes set on tomorrow's release of the Employment Situation Report for December, which the Briefing.com consensus expects will show the addition of 188,000 nonfarm payrolls. A prelude to said report--ADP Employment Change (Briefing.com consensus +190,000)--will be released this morning at 8:15 AM ET, but it's proven to be unreliable in forecasting the official nonfarm payrolls figure.

The only other report on today's economic calendar is the weekly Initial Claims reading (Briefing.com consensus 239,000), which will be released at 8:30 AM ET.

In the bond market, U.S. Treasuries are selling off in early action, extending their losses for the week. The yield on the benchmark 10-yr Treasury note is trading at 2.47% after settling Wednesday at 2.45%, while the 2-yr yield is up three basis points at 1.96%. Yields move inversely to prices.

Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate crude futures are up 0.2% at $61.77 per barrel after the American Petroleum Institute reported a draw of 5.0 million barrels for the week ended December 29 on Wednesday evening. The official government figures will be released later this morning at 11:00 AM ET.

In U.S. corporate news:

L Brands (LB 51.85, -6.31): -10.9% after issuing below-consensus earnings guidance for the fourth quarter.
Walgreens Boot Alliance (WBA 75.00, -0.51): -0.7% despite reporting better-than-expected earnings and revenues.
Energizer (ENR 49.90, +1.50): +3.1% after Deutsche Bank upgraded ENR shares to 'Buy' from 'Hold.'

Reviewing overnight developments:

Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region ended Thursday on a higher note with Japan's Nikkei (+3.3%) showing relative strength in its first session of 2018. The rally lifted the index to its highest level since 1991. Hong Kong's Hang Seng +0.6%, China's Shanghai Composite +0.5%, India's Sensex +0.5%.
In economic data:
China's December Caixin Services PMI 53.9 (expected 51.8; last 51.9)
Hong Kong's December Manufacturing PMI 51.5 (last 50.7)
Japan's December Manufacturing PMI 54.0 (expected 54.2; last 54.2)
Australia's December AIG Services Index 52.0 (last 51.7)
India's Nikkei Services PMI 50.9 (last 48.5)
In news:
In South Korea, Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon and Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju-yeol said they will keep a close watch over risk factors and are ready to take swift measures if needed.
Real estate watchers in Australia believe the country's property cycle is reaching its peak after a prolonged expansion.

Major European indices trade mostly higher with Italy's MIB (+2.0%) in the lead after a few days of relative weakness. UK's FTSE +0.1%, Germany's DAX +1.0%, France's CAC +1.2%.
In economic data:
Eurozone December Services PMI 56.6 (expected 56.5; last 56.5)
UK's December Services PMI 54.2 (expected 54.1; last 53.8). November Mortgage Approvals 65,140 (expected 64,000; last 64,890) and November Mortgage Lending GBP3.50 billion (expected GBP3.40 billion; last GBP3.35 billion). November BoE Consumer Credit GBP1.40 billion (expected GBP1.50 billion; last GBP1.36 billion). December Nationwide HPI +0.6% month-over-month (expected 0.1%; last 0.1%); +2.6% year-over-year (consensus 2.0%; last 2.5%)
Germany's December Services PMI 55.8, as expected (last 55.8)
France's December Services PMI 59.1 (expected 59.4; last 59.4)
Italy's December Services PMI 55.4 (expected 54.7; last 54.7)
Spain's December Services PMI 54.6 (expected 54.7; last 54.4)
In news:
Participants received a set of mostly better than expected Services PMI readings from the region, which are being viewed as an encouraging signal about the region's economic growth.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU/CSU will begin exploratory coalition talks with SPD over the weekend. Handelsblatt reported that support for right-wing AfD and the Greens has increased since the election while FDP has suffered a setback.


05:52AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +1.00. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +11.00.
05:52AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Nikkei

...23506...+741.40

...+3.30%

. Hang Seng

...30736.5...+175.50

...+0.60%

.
05:52AM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] FTSE

...7677.08...+6.00

...+0.10%

. DAX

...13095.70...+117.50

...+0.90%

.
04:30PM ET

[BRIEFING.COM] Wall Street advanced to new record highs for the second day in a row on Wednesday, solidifying a solid start to the new year.

The Nasdaq climbed 0.8% to 7065.53, the S&P 500 jumped 0.6% to 2713.06, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.4% to 24922.68, and the Russell 2000 hopped 0.2% to 1552.55. All four indices finished at new all-time highs, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq extending its 2018 gain to 2.4%. The S&P 500 is up 1.5% after the first two sessions of the new year.

Equities opened Wednesday's session just a tick above Tuesday's closing levels, but buyers soon took control, pushing the major stock indices higher through the late morning. The bulls hit pause ahead of the afternoon release of the minutes from the December FOMC meeting, which showed that most members backed a continued path of gradual rate hikes.

Some FOMC members even saw the possibility for more aggressive monetary policy depending on economic growth resulting from the GOP's tax overhaul--which President Trump signed into law two weeks ago. Many Fed officials believe that the tax cuts will boost consumer and capital spending, but there's uncertainty surrounding the magnitude of the growth.

The equity market resumed its upward trend following the minutes, finishing the day at its session high, while the Treasury market gave back some of its opening gains. The yield on the benchmark 10-yr Treasury note finished lower by two basis points at 2.45%, while the 2-yr yield climbed one basis point to 1.93%. Yields move inversely to prices.

Energy shares led the rally on Wall Street as West Texas Intermediate crude futures climbed 2.1% to $61.63 per barrel--which marks their best close since December 2014. Anti-government protests in oil-rich Iran helped fuel the commodity's advance, even though the demonstrations aren't expected to affect production. The S&P 500's energy sector added 1.5%.

The heavily-weighted technology and health care sectors were the next-best performing groups, adding 1.1% and 1.0%, respectively, while the other advancing sectors added between 0.1% and 0.7%. Within the tech space, chipmakers had another solid day overall, extending the PHLX Semiconductor Index's week-to-date gain to 4.5%, but Intel (INTC 45.26, -1.59) did not.

INTC shares lost 3.4% in reaction to reports that a design flaw in Intel's processor chips has forced a significant redesign of kernels for the Windows and Linux operating systems. Intel issued a statement refuting the claims in the late afternoon, which helped INTC shares pare some of their losses before the closing bell.

Only three of eleven sectors finished the midweek session in the red--consumer staples (-0.1%), utilities (-0.8%), and telecom services (-2.2%)--but their impact was modest as they comprise just a little more than 10.0% of the broader market combined.

Elsewhere, the Euro Stoxx 50 (+0.6%) ended a six-session losing streak and the major indices in the Asia-Pacific region also finished in the green. China's Shanghai Composite (+0.6%) paced the advance in Asia while Japan's Nikkei remained closed for a holiday.

Reviewing Wednesday's economic data, which included the ISM Manufacturing Index for December, Construction Spending for November, and the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index:

The ISM Index for December rose to 59.7 from an unrevised reading of 58.2 in November, while the Briefing.com consensus expected a reading of 58.0.
The key takeaway from the report is that growth in December was fueled by increases in eight out of ten index categories with New Order growth (+5.4 to 69.4) leading the way. The December increase leaves the index not far from its 2017 high of 60.8 that was recorded in the September reading.
The Construction Spending report for November increased 0.8%, while the Briefing.com consensus expected an increase of 0.7%. The prior month's increase was lowered to 0.9% from 1.4%.
The key takeaway from the report--and the downward revision to the October figure--is that construction spending is not sending signals pointing to notable acceleration in overall GDP growth.
The weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index decreased 2.8% to follow last week's 4.9% decline.

On Thursday, investors will receive two economic reports--ADP Employment Change for December (Briefing.com consensus +190K) and weekly Initial Claims (Briefing.com consensus 239K). The two reports will be released at 8:15 AM ET and 8:30 AM ET, respectively.

Nasdaq Composite: +2.4% YTD
S&P 500: +1.5% YTD
Russell 2000: +1.1% YTD
Dow Jones Industrial Average: +0.8% YTD

Dow: +98.67… | Nasdaq: +58.63… | S&P: +17.25…

NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1433/1208. …NYSE Adv/Dec 1755/1198.

Special thanks to Bloomberg, Briefing, Reuters and Yahoo! Finance for their market summaries. Also, thank you for the review of TheStrategyLab performance record...hopefully the links and data will be useful for you.

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Online user name wrbtrader (more info about me) @ http://www.thestrategylab.com/tsl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=127&t=850 & http://www.thestrategylab.com/wrbtrader.htm
TheStrategyLab Price Action Trading (no indicators)
Trader and Founder of WRB Analysis (wide range body/bar analysis)
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