The Shortened Black Friday Session Starts On A Cautious Note

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Commenting on the shortened Black Friday session and today’s trading, Gorilla Trades strategist Ken Berman said:

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The Shortened Black Friday Session

The major indices are all modestly higher following the first couple of hours of trading on Wall Street. The shortened Black Friday session - note that the market closes at 1:00 pm EST today - started out on a cautious note following due to the bearish pre-market trends, but buyers quick stepped in to get ahead of the expected breakout to new record highs in the large-cap benchmarks. The Nasdaq already blew past its respective all-time high this morning as tech stocks have been showing relative strength for the second session in a row and the S&P 500 also has every chance to hit a new closing high despite the continued virus-related worries.

While the U.S. stock market was closed yesterday and global equities also had a quiet day, there was plenty of action in other asset classes. After hitting yet another eight-month high above the $46 per barrel level, the price of oil turned lower amid the spike in the number of COVID cases, and the selloff spread to the markets of other commodities as well. Bitcoin, which has been nearing its all-time high this week also plummeted yesterday in the illiquid environment, and cryptocurrencies could continue to make headlines towards the end of the year as public interest is increasing towards the digital assets.

Market Wrap

Dow: 29,933 + 60 or 0.2%

S&P 500: 3,643 + 13 or 0.4%

Nasdaq: 12,229 + 134 or 1.1%

Russell 2000: 1,849, + 4 or 0.2%

Market breadth has been in line with the performance of the major indices this morning, with advancing issues outnumbering decliners by a 6-to-5 ratio on the NYSE at midday. 2 stocks hit new 52-week lows on the NYSE and the Nasdaq, while 145 stocks hit new 52-week highs. The major indices have been hovering around their daily VWAPs (Volume-Weighted Average Price) throughout the morning session, pointing to a mixed and choppy end to the session. The most lockdown-sensitive issues and cyclicals, in general have been lagging behind the broader market in early trading while defensive stocks and the tech sector shined meaning that the divergences of the past couple of weeks still persist. Stay tuned!