Markets fell Friday, and both the Nasdaq and S&P 500 fell for their first time in 6 weeks. The Nasdaq fared “better” this week falling .3% compared to the S&P 500’s 1.1% decline. For the YTD figures the Nasdaq is now 2 full percentage points above the S&P 500 with a 9.4% gain. The Nasdaq weekly chart, completing its third very tight weekly close, still looks bullish to me, but volume trends remain concerning. The 4600 handle remains a brick wall. The S&P failed to close above its round 2000 figure on a weekly basis for the first time in 3 weeks, and energy has to be weighing down this benchmark. You have to look no further than some in the group hitting fresh 52 week lows recently like SDRL RIG RRC. Action Friday showed very poor overall strength as every major group finished in the red. Energy and utilities lagged heavily. XOM had a lot to do with that, as it lost 3.5% this week, and on its weekly chart looks like a continuation of the ugly week ending 8/1’s 4.25% fall. The stock heavily skews many ETFs including the XLE where it is the largest component, making up 15% of the fund. Groups somewhat ignoring this weeks ills were the top performing transports and semiconductor sectors. Look to these leading groups for possible longs on pullbacks.
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