5/17/06

ATR - End of the Day

There are no ifs, ands or buts about it; the market action today was terrible. We had the biggest point loss in a long time, breadth was close to 4 losers for every gainer, volume was fairly heavy and we closed near the lows of the day.

It looked like we had a decent chance at a snap-back move this morning but we didn't get quite enough traction on the rebound to cause some short covering. After that failure we limped along the rest of the day. The NASDAQ is now down seven straight days in a row which hasn't occurred in at least a few years. I certainly wouldn't fight this downside momentum but we are down hard enough that the chances of some temporary upside are increasing by the moment. Of course its the timing that is key, so make sure you keep a tight reign on positions regardless of what your market thesis might be. Days like today take a mental toll even if you are only minimally invested. It is particularly important that you set aside the market for a while and make sure you are in the right mind frame for the action tomorrow. If you are having a tough time take some comfort in the fact that you aren't alone.

Even though you are likely to hear from those who have had success in this meltdown the vast majority have suffered quite a bit.

Have a good evening. I'll see you tomorrow.