E-Mini S&P

A well-publicized Hidden Pivot at 1336.50 is equivalent to the one that I've drum-rolled in the Mini-Dow, but it is not nearly as enticing a place to try getting short because it sits just below mid-February’s 1337.75 peak.  Exploiting the opportunity will most surely require a camouflage trading strategy if we are to pare entry risk down to the usual penny-ante threshold.  Even so, I am still recommending a short at a lesser pivot, 1335.25, stop 1336.25.  More immediately, there are no compelling bottom-fishing plays to suggest to night owls, since the futures spent all of yesterday having carnal relations with the pooch.  The result was a useless, still-meandering c-d leg that was stretching boredom mightily as we went to press.

The futures appear too aware of mid-February's 1337.75 peak to yield a by-the-numbers short at either of two Hidden Pivots lying slightly below it.  I wouldn't mind attempting the short with camouflage if buyers pop this vehicle above that peak, but it'll be a game of cat-and-mouse otherwise, particularly if we are intent, as we should be, on holding theoretical risk to an absolute minimum.  One way we could attempt to wade into the trade would be to try and get long for the last-gasp rally that is possible here.  Most immediately, that would imply bidding down near the 1321.50 'd' correction target shown in the chart.  This is a so-so opportunity because of the too-obvious structural lows etched into the pattern on Friday, but if you're game, use a 1321.75 bid with a 1.00-point stop-loss.

I hate to queer a potentially great pivot at 1336.50 by drumrolling it, but it remains the hidden resistance that I most like among myriad possibilities.  You can still short the lesser pivot at 1335.25 with a 1.00-point stop-loss, but it will take a bit of luck for the potentially important top that I expect, to occur precisely at that number, given its close proximity to mid-February's watershed high at 1337.75.  My gut feeling is that the big winner that we permabears have been looking for will occur following a head-fake above the February top.  However, the only way we can be prepared for all possibilities will be to exploit every camouflage 'D' from this point forward.  This is a 24/7 job, and so I'm counting on the support of all you ace Pivoteers who frequent the chat room.

I'm still looking for a potentially important top just above these levels -- and suggesting, for starters, that you short 1334.25 with a one-point stop-loss. There's another compelling Hidden Pivot slightly above it, at 1336.50, but that one -- or any rally that surpasses it slightly -- would need to be shorted via camouflage due to the close proximity of previous highs (aka "structural resistance") recorded in mid-February. _______ UPDATE (2:43 a.m.):  My knack for making dumbfounding mistakes in the worst places produced a recommendation to short this vehicle at 1324.25.  It was 1334.25 that I'd intended, and I have change the number above accordingly.  The position can be scratched at the moment, since the futures are flatlining at 1324.50.  I apologize for the error.

This session was open to all Rick’s Picks subscribers, since the focus was on leveraging a cluster of Hidden Pivots that, taken together, strongly hint of an important top. We traced the provenance of two such targets in the E-Mini S&P and also found a new one in the Mini-Dow at 12409. Not wanting to waste the opportunity presented by a possible last-gasp rally, we looked for camouflage entry spots for bullish trades in the mini-index futures. Even if the stock market doesn’t collapse after hitting our targets, we expect to make money on short trades by managing risk scrupulously.

I am opening this morning's tutorial session to all paying subscribers in order to take advantage -- in real time -- of a possible top in the broad averages.  As today's E-Mini S&P touts notes, there's a cluster of Hidden Pivots not far above that could show tradable stopping power.  The session will begin at 11 a.m. EDT and can be accessed by clicking here a few minutes before the start time.

The hubris and bold mindlessness attending this rally is a theme I've already beaten to death, so let's focus for now solely on the "technicals" (which is what we always do anyway).  With yesterday's short-squeeze in the final moments of the session, the futures exceeded a 1313.25 pivot where "key resistance" had been precisely anticipated.  Now, we should shift our gaze to the next, 1324.50 -- or to 1334.25 if the lower number is breached by more than three ticks.  That last Hidden Pivot, the end of the line for targets derived from the lesser charts, can be shorted with a stop-loss at 1335.25.   Please note, however, that there is an equally compelling pivot (see inset) at 1336.50, but it is too close to mid-February's important highs to yield a trading edge.  Whatever occurs, the cluster of hidden resistance points begs to be shorted, preferably using camouflage.

We should know soon whether the selloff in the final hour was prelude to a bear trap, since the weakness has tapered off to nothing Monday evening.  If the so-far moderate decline merely provides running room for DaBoyz to apply the ol' short squeeze, you should infer they are capable of moving this sludge-bag to as high as 1324.60 within the space of 90 or so minutes. In the process, key resistance would occur at 1313.25, a Hidden Pivot midpoint, as long as 1301.75 (aka point 'C') has not been exceeded to the downside.

As we have seen, hitting each and every minor-rally target within a tick or two is no great trick -- nor is taking a partial profit on short positions initiated at these highs before the futures reverse course and resume their upwardly drift.  Two such targets remain for the near term: at 1317.75, a Hidden Pivot broached here earlier; and at 1334.25, the end of the line for the hourly chart. The first is short-able with a two-tick stop-loss, but the second is to be shorted only with camouflage cover, since it would represent a breakout above some key highs made in early March. Alternatively, it would take a print below 1270.75 by Wednesday to threaten bulls.