We got a clear and decisive answer yesterday to the question that has been on every tiny, fevered brain up and down Wall Street:  How long do we have to feign concern over the situation in Ukraine?  The Dow finished up 228 points after being up as much as 250 points intraday, proving yet again that the stock market, fed by a limitless stream of easy money, has absolutely no connection to the world of events.  Unfortunately, traders had little opportunity to grab the rally by the tail, since it was effectively over on the opening bar (see inset).  And by day’s end, it had left bears pinned to the ropes yet again, ready if unwilling to energize the next freakish, short-squeeze to who-knows-how-high.

Actually, we do know how high, since there’s a clear-as-day Hidden Pivot target at 16437 on the intraday charts, and another at 16607 if the first fails to contain the opening-bell stampede. A move exceeding the lower number by as little as 4 points should be regarded as the go-ahead for achieving the next.  Traders looking to get long using the ‘camouflage’ technique should focus on the 10-minute chart, since it was bullishly impulsive at Tuesday’s close. You should also view a retracement to 16339 as a possible buying opportunity, since that is the midpoint Hidden Pivot of the rally pattern yielding the target at 16607. Either of the two targets is shortable using the Diamonds, and the second can be shorted with a micro-tight stop-loss instead of camouflage.  If you’re lucky enough to have been long on the way up, I’d suggest using a portion of your gains to short 16607 more aggressively. For a simple strategy using put options, check out today’s tout for the Diamonds.