What should of been at least a 5-10% correction last week, the major averages barely flinched. This despite North Korea incessant threats of a nuclear attack against the U.S. and President Trump’s response that “fire and fury” will be unleashed by the U.S. in such an event. I am truly in disbelief that the markets did not take this geopolitical risk to correct in a more meaningful manner. In fact stocks yesterday had their best single day of the summer. Now we find ourselves yet again near all time highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (chart) closed just shy of 22,000, the S&P 500 (chart) is just under its all-time high of 2490, the Nasdaq (chart) closed at 6430 and the small-cap Russell 2000 (chart) closed Monday’s session at the 1395 level.

Talk about passive, machine driving algorithmic trading. One thing that really stands out to me is how the S&P 500 (chart), Nasdaq (chart) and the Russell 2000 (chart) all held their major moving average support lines. In particular the S&P and Nasdaq’s 50-day MA and take a look how powerful the Russell 2000’s 200-day moving average held and bounced (chart). It is clear that program trading models worked to perfection on this recent market pullback at least pertaining to key technical support levels.

So are we out of the woods pertaining to the risk trade? I am not so sure. But my goodness how can anyone have any kind of short thesis on these markets. Not even the heightened and continuing threat of a nuclear attack can rattle these markets more than 2 percent. Now that the rhetoric coming out of North Korea has abated for now, it could be business as usual as traders and investors get back to focusing on corporate earnings and fed policy. Whatever the case is I continue to be baffled by the strength of the U.S. stock market and without a doubt the old adage “don’t fight the tape” couldn’t be more true this year.

Good luck to all 🙂

~George