The rally of the last few weeks slowed as the week finished with a narrow doji for many of the lead indices. The bear flag highs remain resistance and the bulls challenge to break the intermediate-term bear trend. Volume dropped, reflecting a consolidation - not a sell off, to the slightly lower close on the week. With the slowing in the up trend it might be a quiet couple of weeks. The watch areas remain Fibonacci retracements with the first test of 61.8% so far a success but two more remain to challenge on future weakness. ($SPX) via StockCharts.com The Nasdaq still has a bearish head-and-shoulder pattern to consider, although the July decline put this to the test. Nasdaq via StockCharts.com Likewise for the Nasdaq 100, it has an alternative neckline which extends back to 2006 at 1,702. ($NDX) via StockCharts.com The Russell 2000 has a large trading void to fill. The void is made all the more enticing with stochastics well off oversold conditions; 614 support down to 59

It was a roller coaster of a day but in the end markets finished slightly lower. Early action saw challenges on resistance as marked by Monday's highs, but markets were unable to push their advantage. The S&P finished with a 'spinning top' on heavier volume; volume was enough to generate a sell trigger in on-balance-volume. There is an upcoming 'golden cross' between 20-d and 50-d MAs which means the 20-day is going to be the support area on the pullback. ($SPX) via StockCharts.com The Nasdaq touched bases of the 200-day and 50-day MAs. With the declining trendline (former channel resistance) to work with there is a chance we will see buyers make a stronger stand at the convergence of trendline, 20-day and 50-day MAs. ($COMPQ) via StockCharts.com The Russell 2000 played to form and tested the converged 20-day and 200-day MAs. If the market closes lower tomorrow it would suggest converged MAs will not hold. ($RUT) via StockCharts.com The Dow violate

The S&P pulled away from its 200-day MA on light volume. No great surprise given yesterday's higher volume indecision. Both 50-day and 20-day MAs are a couple of percent away which suggests 2-3 down days to come. ($SPX) via StockCharts.com The Nasdaq eased back onto its 200-day MA which may attract some buyers although it's a little early for other indices. ($COMPQ) via StockCharts.com Small Caps took a larger step back at the same time of a 'Death Cross' between 50-day and 200-day MAs. Another day like today would see these moving averages tested. ($RUT) via StockCharts.com But the Dow bucked todays' other market activity with some continued tight trading. Trading range support held which is bullish as is the proximity of the 200-day MA. ($INDU) via StockCharts.com All-in-all, today's action will not have come as a surprise. Tomorrow could see more of the same before moving averages start kicking in as support. Follow Me on Twitter Build

The past few days have been very good to bulls and today's action was a pause in the advance. Some indices fared better than others and tomorrow will likely see a little more downside, but as long as the past few days gains' hold (perhaps with the help of lead moving averages) it will be a good buying opportunity for bulls. The S&P finished with a narrow doji on the 200-day MA. Volume climbed to register a churn day, but not necessarily bearish. ($SPX) via StockCharts.com The Nasdaq was a little more bearish with a bearish 'cloud cover' candlestick, but volume was not in line with distribution. ($COMPQ) via StockCharts.com Small Caps also closed with a bearish cloud cover at two levels of resistance. ($RUT) via StockCharts.com We have a tentative higher low for the indices; if the mid-July reaction low for all indices can hold there is a good chance the early-July 'bear trap' is going to mark a bottom perhaps lasting the rest of the year. It wo

The third day of big gains swung the market sharply in favour of small caps over tech and large caps. Index relative strength has moved from the bearishness of early summer to the bullishness of today - now it's up to buyers to press their advantage. For the Russell 2000, Friday's trading saw the 50-day and 200-day MAs breached while Monday saw the index finish just below a thinly defined (and therefore not potentially very strong) resistance area. Technicals are net bullish which turns future retracements to key moving averages - 20-day MA in particular - into buying opportunities. ($RUT) via StockCharts.com The S&P finished just above its 200-day MA while volume was a little light, although not unusual for this time of year. The shift in relative strength from Large to Small Caps is clear to see. ($SPX) via StockCharts.com Tech went a little further than the S&P having inched above its 200-day MA on Friday and added another percentage point today. June react

When it comes to trading you can never have enough visual workspace. Specialist graphic cards make adding multiple monitors easier but these are costly and if you are not interested in tinkering with your system then it's not a particularly attractive option. For many, desktops are going the way of the Dodo so finding a laptop which can support more than one additional monitor can be near impossible and likely uber expensive (is there a laptop which can do this - do dual graphic card laptops have additional DVI slots?). In either case, if you are looking for an easy solution on getting an extra monitor with VGA/DVI support all from a USB port then the Sewell Minideck fits the bill. Out of the box, you get the Minideck, installation CD, DVI/VGA adapter, a cloth carry case, and USB connector cord (no external power source required). As a test system I used an 'old' (2 1/2 year) entry model Vostro 1400 with integrated graphics card using Vista hooked to a Dell E228WFP, wit

The S&P closed the week up 3.55% higher but hasn't yet cleared the highs of the bear flag which lurk at 1,131 but so far the initial decline from 2010 highs has honored Fibonacci retracements ($SPX) via StockCharts.com In support, the NYSE Summation Index looks to have flinched and jumped early. A stochastic 'buy' is undermined by the lack of the oversold condition in the index itself. ($NYSI) via StockCharts.com The only S&P breadth indicator to confirm a bottom (so far) is the S&P Percent of Stocks Above the 50-d MA. It has jumped from a low of 5.4% to 66.0% in a number of weeks. ($SPXA50R) via StockCharts.com The Nasdaq has pulled further away from its head-and-shoulder reversal neckline but it hasn't yet reached an oversold condition. Nasdaq via StockCharts.com The Percentage of Nasdaq stocks above the 50-day MA matched its S&P cousin with a confirmed 'buy' signal. ($NAA50R) via StockCharts.com So while the S&P and Nas