Apart from last Tuesday’s “Everything Rally,” during which advancing volume and advancing issues traded on the NYSE were 90% of total volume and total issues traded on the NYSE (bullish), the ensuing tape action displayed by the S&P 500 (SPX) resembled a sideways drift after encountering resistance and sentiment reached “excessive optimism” levels.

Interest rates, energy prices, and the U.S. Dollar moved lower last week following softer macro data, dovish remarks from Chairman Powell, and a less hawkish Bank of Japan policy tweak. When combined with outsized CTA short positioning, a squeeze occurred. This produced an impressive topside move by all domestic equity market proxies. This now begs the question, “What’s next?”

What you see is largely a function of where you sit. And when it comes to 2023, you are either espousing “peace on earth, good will to all” or you are thinking about how 2023 has offered up many “tricks” with only a few, very select “treats.”

Considering the plethora of forces moving markets (CTA positioning, bristling geopolitics, mutual fund year-end and individuals’ tax-loss selling, dysfunctional domestic politics, QT, sentiment extremes, EPS expectations, slowing/accelerating economy or both, etc.), it’s concerning that Wall Street continues to espouse specific levels of importance for equities and interest rates. Rarely are things on Wall Street as simple as they seem.

The stocks holding up the major domestic equity market indexes (Magnificent 7, Elite 8, Big 9) have yet to break down below their late September-early October lows. But away from this complex, plenty of selling has been occurring underneath the surface. I recommend following the NYSE Fang Plus Index as a guidepost.

My wife calls me the “Question Man” because I am usually peppering her with questions about “things and stuff” which are probably insignificant to her. To me, not so much.

“October is one of the peculiarly dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, June, December, August, and February."

Given the S&P 500’s bearish reversal in late July, early August downside follow-through, & poor seasonal factors, the challenges faced by equity markets have consistently built up. This includes deteriorating price-related guideposts (breadth, new lows, selling volume over buying volume, trend, risk-off sectors outperforming, etc.), plus a more hawkish Fed.

“A growing expectation that the Fed will keep interest rates higher for longer threatens to stifle the tech-stock rally, potentially dimming the outlook for indexes heavily influenced by the sector.” ~Wall Street Journal, emphasis mine.

Labor Day is a celebration of the social and economic achievements of American workers. In my opinion, Wall Street is a similar celebration and reflection of the ingenuity and entrepreneurial desire of the human spirit. And last week, Wall Street celebrated.

Following recent near-term positive/supportive oversold stochastic levels accompanied by large intraday price swings, the S&P 500 just posted its first positive week in August, breaking a 3-week downtrend. If stocks have settled down, this begs the question…What’s the Next Card in the Deck?

Higher interest rates are weighing on equities, and focus will be on the Fed’s conference this week.

Considering the S&P 500’s (SPX) bearish short-term Outside Reversal and move below support, the SPX’s target being met, excessively optimistic sentiment, and a seasonally sloppy period for equities (August/September), Wall Street’s narrative has been about both bullish and bearish non-price-related macroeconomic themes.

This week's Tech Talk highlights the S&P 500's proximity to resistance levels, indicating a potential short-term pause/pullback. The achieved 4600 target came with a potential bearish "Outside Reversal Day" pattern. Gasoline's positive momentum remains bullish. Market trends may develop over months, not days.

S&P 500's uptrend faces potential selling pressure and resistance. Earnings season adds uncertainty. Monitor NYSE Advance-Decline Line, seasonality, SP500 support, US Dollar Index, banks, and treasury yield index. Headwinds building.

Domestic equity market proxies ended lower last week. Within the context of the SPX’s uptrend, large cap growth/technology/SPX’s short-term momentum has indeed started to churn.

Last week, amid the S&P 500's uptrend, showed renewed upside participation after a stall. "Listen to the market, don't force your opinion on it," advises David Lundgren. Mid-Caps and Small Caps outperformed Large Cap Growth/Technology in June, a trend needing continuation. Smart Sector strategies offer discipline and support.

NDR Catastrophic Stop Loss model advises staying invested, but short-term resistance is shifting lower. Overbought sentiment and lack of broad upside participation may hinder SPX trend. Market tools show declines, US equities to rebalance. Cycle composite turns into headwind.

Since the beginning of June, people are playing “catch up” in the domestic equity market by buying relative strength laggards (economically sensitive, non-growth, regional banks, small/mid-caps, energy) and taking profits and/or reducing buying the former relative strength leaders (large and mega-cap growth).

It was helpful getting on the right side of our benchmark, the S&P 500 (SPX), in mid-October/November 2022, noticing the relative strength shift to Growth in late January, the start of price stability and basing by the Bank complex and the recent uptick by Small Caps.