"Who's in Charge of Punchin' the Buttons Anyway?"
5D, 10m. - Apr. 22 - It is a good thing to have a plan in mind as to how to approach the market each day. The prior days highs and lows are important landmarks. The Major Trend is very important. Channel Analysis can be very helpful in avoiding trades that are "swimming upstream." The Major Trend today is up and the SPY is in the lower level of the Channel. It would make sense to look for a "bounce" off support. This is exactly what we got, and the move was supported by progressively improving internals, a rising MACD & CCI. The market ran into Resistance on two occasions and dramatically fell back to support near the end of the session. A nice profit, however, could have been made during the session assuming a disciplined exit.
20D, Hourly - Apr. 22 - Trading with the Trend can be the safer way to trade and is quite logical. Yes, there are counter trend trades that are often profitable, but the odds of success are lower. Use of Channel Check Analysis is a good basic strategy especially for swing trades over a two or three day period of time. Establish a Channel that makes sense and note the higher resistance and lower support lines. Consider appropriate trades and use stops to exit if the market goes the wrong way. The market has a mind of its own and we cannot tell it what to do. Not every trade is a winner. Albert Puhols does not get a hit on every "at bat" and we can't either.
3M, Daily - Apr. 22 - Longer term the Trend is Bullish. We have had a minor downward trend for the past week with high volatility. Use Channel Check Analysis and use Resistance and Support to help with trade decisions. Get supportive data from the Internals, the MACD, the CCI, and the appropriate use of Moving Average Crossovers. Technical Analysis is a blend of using Charts, Data, and Timing. Trading is an Art and not simply a mechanical activity.
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