U.S. Indices Flag Ahead Of Weekend

The U.S. indices are on their back foot today, just ahead of the weekend break. Going into the halfway point of the Wall Street session, the DJIA DOW (-175), S&P 500 SPX (-14), and NASDAQ (-80) are trending south. Given today’s wide-open economic calendar, the bearish pressure is intriguing as the closing bell nears.

While there were no formal U.S. economic metrics out this morning, FED members have given us an abundance of food for thought. With officials George, Kaplan, Kashkari, and Clarida all issuing public comments, the markets were watching intently. There were three common points made by each of the FED honchos:

• The U.S. economy is “generally performing well.”
• Broad uncertainty and recent data have heightened downside risks.
• Rate Cuts are not a foregone conclusion and policy will remain “data-dependent.”

Ultimately, it appears that the economy is softening a bit. Subsequently, FED officials appear prepared to cut rates once more before 1 January 2020. However, today’s tone hasn’t done much to help out the U.S. indices, which are firmly in the red.

S&P 500 Leads U.S. Indices

While all three primary U.S. indices are down, the S&P 500 is taking the least damage. Barring a catastrophic weekly close, December S&P 500 futures will settle the week in the green.

For the time being, the S&P 500 is in bullish territory. If prices fall toward the bell, these support levels may come into play:

• Support(1): Bollinger MP, 2961.25
• Support(2): Daily SMA, 2956.00

Bottom Line: Should the indices and the December E-mini S&P 500 take a late-week hit, a long scalp isn’t a bad way to play the action. For the rest of the day, I will have buy orders in queue from 2962.75. With an initial stop at 2959.75, this trade produces a fast 8 ticks on a sub-1:1 risk vs reward management plan.