Morning Breath May 2

Good morning. Happy Wednesday.

The Asian/Pacific markets closed up across the board. Taiwan rallied 2.3%; China, Hong Kong and New Zealand moved up more than 1%. Europe is currently mixed. Austria (up 2.2%) and Greece (down 1.7%) were the only 1% movers. Futures here in the States point towards a moderate gap down for the cash market.
The dollar is up. Oil and copper are down. Gold and silver are down.
May got off to a good start (aided by news 30 min after the opening bell), but then things fizzled in afternoon trading and left the daily charts with some ugly candles.
Here are the dailies. The Dow hit a new high. The Nas has been a mess – first it gapped below its pattern, then it gapped back up; yesterday it hit a 3-week high but then closed near its low. The S&P doesn’t look too bad. At its high yesterday, it was less than 10 points from a multiyear high. The Russell sold off the most yesterday afternoon; it was the only index to close down.

Trading has not been easy lately because moves haven’t lasted. Dips get bought, rallies get sold…no move has legs, so we have to be much less aggressive with our entries and ahead of the curve taking profits when they’re available. Until the market can break out of its funk, there’s no sense letting a profit turn into a loss or letting a loss grown. Contributed by Jason Leavitt. www.leavittbrothers.com