WizzWatch Market Newsletter 02.17.09 – 02.20.09

After the close of the market on Friday many investors continued to see declines as the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 continue to move lower. With all the bad economic data coming into the market week after week there will be more price pressure to come bringing the market down even more in the short term. The major market indices have been declining for the past seven consecutive weeks.

The Dow has been pulling back for the past year after reaching multi year highs at 14,198.10 in October of 2007. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has been on a 71 week decline since then. The index is currently trading below its 5, 10, 50, and 200 week moving averages. As for now I predict that the index will pull below the lows that were made after September 11, 2001 at 7,416. The Dow ended the week trading at 7,850.41 down -430 points on -5.20 percent on heavier than average downside trading volume at 6.85 billion.

At the tech heavy Nasdaq Composite Index there were more declines after a slight increase in the price a week earlier. The Nasdaq has been moving in a sideways consolidation for 18 weeks but needs to break above 1750 to move much higher. As for now the index would is below its 50 and 200 week moving averages but above its 5 and 10 week moving averages. The Nasdaq ended the week trading at 1,543.36 down -57.35 points or -3.60 percent on heavier than average volume of 11.01 billion volume.

Over at the Standard & Poors there were similar declines in the index as it ended the week trading lower. The S&P 500 index pulled back as the market continues to receive weak economic news. As for now the index is down -4.81 percent or 41.76 points on 22.75 billion trading volume.

In the commodities markets many investors have been making money in the gold markets as the Gold Continuous Contract Index continues to move higher as the market declines. With the President Obama stimulus package as one of the major catalyst in order for the market to move higher in the weeks to come, we may see a decline in the price of gold in the short term. The gold index has been on a tear for the past 15 weeks making higher highs and higher lows. The index has been fluctuating after coming from a low in price at $681 per ounce in mid October 2008. The index hit an all time high in March of 2008 at $1,030 per ounce and is currently gearing to head higher depending on the price of the U.S. Dollar and the Obama stimulus pakage.

On the crude oil front OPEC ministers stated back in November that they were going to start cutting production because they figured that a fair price for oil was $75 per barrel. Since November the price of oil has declined from $51.03 to a low of $35.13. The index has been moving in a sideways consolidation for the past 11 weeks but is currently on a 32 week decline. The oil index hit all time price highs in July of 2008 at 147.90 and since that high in price we have seen the price of oil continue its move to the downside. Ever since George Bush and Dick Chaney came into office the price of crude oil fluctuated from between $21 to $147.90. At vthe close of trading to end the week on Friday oil ended the week trading at $41.97 up $1.80 or 4.48 percent below its 5, 10, 50 and 200 week moving averages.


*** Please have a look at the charts below ***

By: Marlin Rolle