Stock Market Counterpunches Against Gaps, Rallies

The stock market acted like a boxer punching at a mirror on Tuesday – every punch drew an equal counterpunch.

At the end of the day the stock market was bruised with a wry smile indicating some positive results.

Not an easy day for retail traders trying to make heads or tails of the ongoing volatility in the ring.

Stock market faces counterpunches of gaps, rallies

The market jumped out of the gate early Tuesday, spiking to a 300-point gain in the Dow with the Nasdaq and S&P 500 coming along for the ride.

By midday the market was dazed and traders confused as the momentum abruptly shifted to the downside. Early gains were gone and the Dow suffered a blow from a 500-point swing from the high of the day down to the low of the day.

Back-and-forth volatility continued through the afternoon before the market found a burst of energy into the last hour of trading. It was enough for the Dow and the S&P 500 to regain some respect on the day while the Nasdaq provided a slight rally to above flat to end the day.

In the stock market today, the Dow closed at 29,134.99 points to fall .43% (dropping 125.82 points on the day). The Nasdaq was the lone positive, rising to 10,829.50 points for a .25% gain while the S&P 500 was below flat by .21% to 3,647.29 points.

The mixed trading day was anything but easy for retail traders with the charts of all three major indexes looking like “hell day” on the treadmill monitor – sharp spikes higher and lower with no room to breathe between bursts.

More outside stock market influences on the way

The stock market faces a continued array of outside influences this week that traders must consider as the opening bell sounds each day.

Economic and news events to watch include:

• Wednesday – European Central Bank President Christine ECB Lagarde speaks; Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) St. Louis President James Bullard speaks; FOMC Chairman Jerome Powell speaks, U.S. pending home sales numbers release
• Thursday – Canadian gross domestic product (GDP) numbers release; New Zealand central bank speech; Bullard and FOMC Cleveland President Loretta J. Mester speak
• Friday – U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index numbers release; European consumer products index numbers release, FOMC Vice Chair Lael Brainard speaks; University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index release.

This is a busy week for traders to stay alert.