The markets meandered most of Monday in anticipation of the start of the earnings season. The major indexes gained a tad as the chart (courtesy of marketwatch.com) shows:
Alcoa reported slightly better than expected earnings after the close, which may give the market a boost on Tuesday.
In the bigger scheme of things, all three major indexes remain below their 200-day moving averages, which means we’re still in neutral territory. I like to see the S&P; 500 break above it, which would indicate a resurgence of bullishness. That would make me remove the short side of our current small hedge so that we can become outright long with a portion of our portfolios.
In the meantime, it’s a waiting game to see if there is enough starch in this earnings season to keep last year’s bull alive.