This morning’s cash open on Wall Street has been a bullish one. Through the first half-hour of trade, the DJIA DOW (+125), S&P 500 SPX (+15), and NASDAQ (+45) are trending to the green. Positive U.S./China trade developments are being deemed the culprit for the opening rally in the U.S. indices.

During the U.S. premarket hours, several metrics hit the newswires facing the real estate sector. Two separate home price indices showed a very different picture of the American housing market:

Event                                                                                 Actual        Projected     Previous

Housing Price Index (MoM, July)                                     0.4%               0.3%               0.2%

S&P/Case-Shiller Home Prices Index (YoY, July)         2.0%                2.2%               2.2%

In total, this group of real estate numbers are about on par with national averages, but are certainly not robust. Going into the fall season, one has to wonder if the U.S. housing sector is due for a greater pullback in coming months.

S&P 500 In The Green, All-Time Highs In View

The S&P 500 and U.S. indices have opened the session with strength, driving toward all-time highs. For the S&P 500, rates are back above 3000.00 and bidders are apparently looking for more.

Here are the levels to watch for the remainder of the session:

• Support(1): Bollinger MP, 2970.25
• Support(2): Daily SMA, 2940.00

Bottom Line: Since the release of U.S. Consumer Confidence at 10:00 AM EST, sentiment toward the U.S. indices has shifted 180 degrees. At this point, we may see the S&P 500 reverse and bring downside support into play.

For the remainder of the session, I will have buy orders queued up from 2971.75 in the December E-mini S&P 500. With an initial stop loss at 2965.75, this trade produces 24 ticks using a standard 1:1 risk vs reward ratio.