I have an article posted on the Motley Fool covering Atlas Pipeline Partners (APL), Potash Saskatche (POT) and Freeport McMoran (FCX).  I have tried to gear it more on the fundamental than technical side given the picks were drawn from a Zignals stock screen I use. You can read the article here . ----- Follow Me on Twitter Dr. Declan Fallon is the Senior Market Technician and Community Director for Zignals.com . I offer a range of stock trading strategies for global markets which can be Previewed for Free with delayed trade signals. You can also view the top-10 best trading strategies for the US, UK, Europe and Rest-of-the-World in the Trading Strategy Marketplace Leaderboard. The Leaderboard also supports advanced search capability so you can tailor your strategies to suit your individual requirements. Zignals offers a full suite of FREE financial services including price and fundamental stock alerts , stock charts for Indian, Australian, Frankfurt, Euronext, UK,

The extent of today's losses increased over yesterday's, but it wasn't accompanied with any great volume. Support at 20-day MAs is still available for most indices and while available it offers the first of many points of attack for bulls. The Russell 2000 was the most vulnerable index heading into today and the groundwork for a potential 'Bull Trap' is now in place.  The gap down puts a bit of space against the ex-breakout which will likely be filled in early Friday trading; the question is whether it can make it above 833? The semiconductor index is sticking close enough to 440 resistance to still offer a good opportunity for bulls.  It may take another pass of the fast rising 50-day MA to stimulate demand to drive the breakout. Of the lead indices, the Dow is the one come under a bit more selling pressure than the others.  It's hanging close to 13,000 support but with 'sell' triggers in the MACD, Directional Index and On-Balance-Volume.

In an extension of yesterday, markets saw small losses (or gains) on light volume. The overall picture remained unchanged. The Russell 2000 didn't pull away from resistance and remains positioned to regain its early week breakout. The Nasdaq is hogging former channel support turned resistance, but was able to tick higher.  Volume climbed a little on yesterday's selling. The semiconductor index, like the Russell 2000, is finely poised.  Technicals favor an upside breakout. And strength in the Nasdaq and Nasdaq 100 may filter down to the semiconductors rather than the more normal reciprocal relationship.  Tight trading action supports swing trade opportunities; trade the high/low break with a stop on the flip-side.  Will Thursday offer more substantial movement in the market? Perhaps continue the work bulls started on Monday. ---- Follow Me on Twitter Dr. Declan Fallon is the Senior Market Technician and Community Director for Zignals.com . I offer a r

It was a decent show by bulls after a weak open threatened to do more damage.  Indices clawed enough of their losses to finish near Monday's highs. For the weaker of the indices it leaves things a little on tenterhooks.  The Russell 2000 finished just below the 833 area which helped define Monday's breakout.  If this is not to 'bull trap' it will need 833 regained over the next couple of days, or at least not pull away from it (The 20-day MA is looking the natural buffer zone for 'bull trap' confirmation). The semiconductor index is still well positioned to challenge 440.  Yesterday's tight trading suggests there isn't much overhead supply or profit takers left to sell, it just needs to break the psychological 440 barrier to encourage buyer participation from the sidelines.  Technicals are in good shape. One index was able to take something positive from the day. The Nasdaq 100 continued its advance, even managing to score a modest accumul

It was a generally quiet day for the markets with indices adding less than a 1% on light volume.  The only index to make an impression was the Russell 2000.  It finally broke to new highs, clearing February's congestion zone at 833. Technicals remain in good shape. Next on the to-do list is the semiconductor index; can it clear 440? And lend its weight to the Nasdaq rally? The rally gathers momentum. Can the Russell 2000 build on today's breakout? Can strength in the Nasdaq generate a breakout in the semiconductor index? If there is a bearish turn then shorts will be most active in these indices as these have underperformed to date. ---- Follow Me on Twitter Dr. Declan Fallon is the Senior Market Technician and Community Director for Zignals.com . I offer a range of stock trading strategies for global markets which can be Previewed for Free with delayed trade signals. You can also view the top-10 best trading strategies for the US, UK, Europe and Rest

Markets posted new highs within rising price channels, led by a breakouts in the Dow and S&P, as breadth indicators continued to map swing lows. Volume rose in accumulation as money flowed in from the sidelines. The S&P cleared the 2011 swing high, but has larger resistance at 1,426 from 2008 to contend with. But given the breaks in other indices this should be cleared over the coming weeks. The Percentage of S&P Stocks above the 50-day MA rose sharply after spiking at a low in the 50s, but is off past swing highs in the 90s. The one concern is the 'sell' trigger in the MACD which may suggest the top in the S&P is closer than expected. The S&P Bullish Percents slow burn a swing high, but this is not necessarily bearish for the S&P; in 2009 the S&P added another 10% after the breadth indicator topped at 88%. The Dow was able to take the Large Cap rally a stage further. It cleared the 2008 high by Friday's close. The Nasdaq po

Markets managed to post a gain without negating resistance, but indices which had suffered most Wednesday were today's winners; namely the Russell 2000 and Semiconductor index. The Russell 2000 finished bang on resistance.  A nice 2-day price handle is in place, helped by an upticking 20-day MA which can be used for trailing stops.  The MACD completed the bullish picture with a new 'buy' trigger. The Semiconductor index also got the benefit of a buyer's surge, so much so it has turned net bullish. Technically, it looks as if 438/440 will be breached - but one can't take anything for granted! The resurgence in the Semiconductor index should help the Nasdaq post new highs. Today's 0.5% gain on modest volume did enough to keep the headlines rolling, but it wasn't a particularly noteworthy day. The S&P keep chugging along, doing slightly better against the Nasdaq, but losing gradual ground against the Russell 2000 (which is overall bullish f