One bad daytrade:

OVERALL: -0.20%

Pre-market movers

UP: GWPH
DOWN: AAPL, FB, SDRL, TSLA

S&P 500 Daily Momentum: Bullish (weakening)
S&P 500 Daily Overbought/oversold: Neutral (leaning overbought)
S&P 500 Weekly Momentum: Bearish (weakening)
S&P 500 Weekly Overbought/oversold: Neutral
S&P 500 Futures (June): Slightly negative
Overall: This morning is looking much different than most mornings lately. However, anything is possible today, pending both the GDP report and the Fed announcement. My guess is if we see a stronger-than-expected GDP report, we might see the markets tank early. On the other hand, a worse-than-expected GDP report could juice the markets early.

The S&P 500 levels to watch today:

UPSIDE: 1879-1880 (2 data points), 1882-1885 (5 data points and March’s high), 1893 (2 data points), 1897 (April 4th’s high and the all-time high), and 1903 (top of the Bollinger Bands).
LAST CLOSE: 1878.
DOWNSIDE: 1877 (2 data points), 1869-1873 (7 data points), 1867 (February’s high), 1862-1864 (4 data points and the 20 day moving average), 1859 (April 25th’s low and the 50 day moving average), 1856 (April 17th’s low), 1854 (April 8th’s high), 1852 (April 9th’s low), 1849-1850 (April 28th’s low, January’s high and December’s high), 1846 (April 16th’s low), 1844 (April 15th’s high), 1841 (April 7th’s low), 1837 (April 8th’s low), 1834-1835 (2 data points, March’s low, and the 100 day moving average), 1830 (April 10th’s low), 1823 (bottom of the Bollinger Bands), 1814-1816 (3 data points), 1805 (150 day moving average), 1775 (October’s high), and 1774 (200 day moving average).

Today may be one of the biggest news-driven days of the year for the markets.

First, at 8:30 am EST, we get the first guess/report of 1st quarter U.S. GDP. According to Bloomberg, the consensus is calling for an increase of 1.1%, within a range of 0.5% to 2.0%.

But the gala event comes at 2:00 pm EST, when we get the Federal Reserve’s rate announcement. While it is generally expected the Fed won’t do anything with rates, and they will continue to taper another $10 billion from QE, the markets will be watching closely to see when the Fed thinks they will be raising rates. The markets could be slam-dunked by an unpleasant surprise, or they could get a big lift from some good news. On the other hand, a mixed message could have either effect on the markets today, but keep the markets trading in a range over the next few weeks after everyone sees the other stuff they didn’t want to see.

Speaking of slam dunks…

Time: Welcome to the Finger-Wagging Olympics

I didn’t want to get into the whole Donald Sterling/L.A. Clippers/racism fiasco, because it just doesn’t have anything to do with the markets. However, for what it’s worth, the above editorial by former basketball great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar sums up my opinion on the topic perfectly.

Fox News: ‘Star Wars: Episode VII’ cast revealed

Good news for Star Wars fans, as well as Disney shareholders:

John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, and Max von Sydow will join original stars Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker in “Star Wars: Episode VII.”

Filming begins in May. I was hoping for a May 4th start:

(hat tip to The Star Wars Trilogy for the pic)

Another day, another daytrade:

OVERALL: +0.03%

Pre-market movers

UP: AAPL, BIDU, FB, MSFT
DOWN: AMZN

S&P 500 Daily Momentum: Bullish (weakening)
S&P 500 Daily Overbought/oversold: Neutral
S&P 500 Weekly Momentum: Bearish (weakening)
S&P 500 Weekly Overbought/oversold: Neutral
S&P 500 Futures (June): Positive
Overall: Don’t be surprised if we see a repeat of yesterday: Pop at the open, drop later.

The S&P 500 levels to watch today:

UPSIDE: 1871-1873 (5 data points), 1877 (2 data points), 1879 (April 23rd’s high), 1882-1885 (5 data points and March’s high), 1893 (2 data points), 1897 (April 4th’s high and the all-time high), and 1902 (top of the Bollinger Bands).
LAST CLOSE: 1869 (April 17th’s high).
DOWNSIDE: 1867 (February’s high), 1862-1864 (4 data points and the 20 day moving average), 1859 (April 25th’s low and the 50 day moving average), 1856 (April 17th’s low), 1854 (April 8th’s high), 1852 (April 9th’s low), 1849-1850 (April 28th’s low, January’s high and December’s high), 1846 (April 16th’s low), 1844 (April 15th’s high), 1841 (April 7th’s low), 1837 (April 8th’s low), 1834-1835 (2 data points, March’s low, and the 100 day moving average), 1830 (April 10th’s low), 1823 (bottom of the Bollinger Bands), 1814-1816 (3 data points), 1804 (150 day moving average), 1775 (October’s high), and 1773 (200 day moving average).

Bloomberg: Yellen’s Dots Dash Effort for Greater Fed Clarity on Rate Rises

Janet Yellen’s effort to provide clarity on the outlook for the Federal Reserve’s main interest rate by publishing policy makers’ forecasts is instead creating confusion.

Fed officials released projections last month showing their benchmark interest rate rising faster than they previously estimated, pushing bond yields higher. Within an hour, Chair Yellen played down the projections and told investors to instead focus on the central bank’s policy statement, which emphasized keeping the rate low.

Explaining the Fed’s intentions will be crucial as an improving economy brings it closer to raising the rate for the first time since 2006. Further mixed signals risk a surge in bond-market volatility as policy makers begin what will be “an extraordinarily complicated tightening cycle,” said Drew Matus, a former markets analyst at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

“The Fed’s communications challenges have gotten worse over time as they’ve tried to become more transparent,” said Matus, New York-based deputy chief U.S. economist at UBS AG. “There’s a problem with being transparent but not being clear, and the Fed has been remarkably unclear.”

…The quarterly projections were first released in 2012 on the recommendation of a Fed subcommittee headed by Yellen, who was vice chairman at the time. They are displayed as a series of dots on a chart, with each dot representing an unnamed official.

The median projection in March showed officials expecting the rate to rise to 1 percent at the end of 2015 and 2.25 percent a year later. In December, the projection was 0.75 percent at the end of next year and 1.75 percent year-end 2016.

Yellen, at her first press conference as chair on March 19, warned against paying too much attention to these forecasts.

“One should not look to the dot-plot, so to speak, as the primary way in which the committee wants to or is speaking about policies to the public at large,” Yellen said.

One drawback: the dots are individual forecasts, while the statement represents the consensus of the committee.

The problem for the Fed is their own data is undermining what they want people to see. The Fed wants people to think rates will be low for a long time, even as the Fed gets closer and closer to raising rates. Is it possible the Fed might be making the next black swan by itself?

I was talking to my dad last night, and he thinks the Fed will raise rates this summer. That makes sense if you consider we have the mid-term elections in November, and the Fed has traditionally (at least under Greenspan, and to a limited extent under Bernanke) avoided making policy moves near elections. If they are going to make a move this year, it either has to be this summer, or after the election.

Watch tomorrow’s FOMC announcement closely: If it looks like the Fed is moving closer to raising rates this year, this summer could be when it happens.

Bloomberg: Samsung Mobile Sales Fall as Chinese Rivals Win Customers

I was surprised by this:

Samsung Electronics Co. (005930), the largest smartphone maker, posted the lowest sales at its mobile-phone business in five quarters as Chinese producers gain in emerging markets with cheaper, feature-packed devices.

Revenue at the mobile division, the company’s biggest business, fell to 32.4 trillion won ($31 billion) in the three months ended March, the lowest since the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2012, Samsung said today. The Suwon, South Korea-based company’s share of the global smartphone market fell for the first time in four years, according to Strategy Analytics. The shares fell.

The sales decline comes as Samsung becomes more dependent on its mobile-phone business for earnings, which now accounts for 76 percent of operating income. Apple Inc. is boosting iPhone sales through China Mobile Ltd. (941) to better compete with Samsung’s high-end Galaxy S series, while Huawei Technologies Co. and Xiaomi Corp. are packing features into smartphones costing about $100 to target budget customers.

“Samsung’s heavy reliance on mobile is rising, posing persistent concern to the market,” said Oh Sang Woo, an analyst at Leading Investment & Securities in Seoul. “The bigger-screen smartphone market is what Samsung pioneered and it enjoyed leadership in that segment, but the company now has to share that pie.”

Apple is said to be readying bigger-screen iPhones, a watch-like wearable device and a new Apple TV set-top box.

So Apple isn’t Samsung’s problem?

I think what we are beginning to see is the Chinese domestic manufacturers beginning to dominate their home market. This is bad news for international companies looking for their growth in China, as well as other emerging markets, where Chinese manufacturers will be better able to compete with their lower priced products.

Still in daytrading mode:

OVERALL: +0.33%

Pre-market movers

UP: AAPL, AMZN, BIDU, FB, GWPH, TSLA, VZ, YNDX
DOWN: none

S&P 500 Daily Momentum: Bullish (weakening)
S&P 500 Daily Overbought/oversold: Neutral
S&P 500 Weekly Momentum: Bearish (weakening)
S&P 500 Weekly Overbought/oversold: Neutral
S&P 500 Futures (June): Positive
Overall: We should get a positive opening today, but I wouldn’t bet on it lasting.

The S&P 500 levels to watch today:

UPSIDE: 1867 (February’s high), 1869 (April 17th’s high), 1871-1873 (5 data points), 1877 (April 25th’s high), 1879 (April 23rd’s high), 1882-1885 (5 data points and March’s high), 1893 (2 data points), 1897 (April 4th’s high and the all-time high), and 1902 (top of the Bollinger Bands).
LAST CLOSE: 1863, inside the 1862-1864 (4 data points and the 20 day moving average) range.
DOWNSIDE: 1859 (April 25th’s low), 1858 (50 day moving average), 1856 (April 17th’s low), 1854 (April 8th’s high), 1852 (April 9th’s low), 1849-1850 (January’s high and December’s high), 1846 (April 16th’s low), 1844 (April 15th’s high), 1841 (April 7th’s low), 1837 (April 8th’s low), 1834-1835 (2 data points, March’s low, and the 100 day moving average), 1830 (April 10th’s low), 1822 (bottom of the Bollinger Bands), 1814-1816 (3 data points), 1803 (150 day moving average), 1775 (October’s high), and 1772 (200 day moving average).

It is a quiet day in the news today, which is good, because we have a lot to look forward to this week:

MONDAY: Go back to sleep and wake up tomorrow. Nothing to see here folks…
TUESDAY: The Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee meeting begins! On top of this, we also get earnings reports from Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) and eBay (EBAY).
WEDNESDAY: HUGE DAY! We get the FOMC announcement at 2 pm EST, but we get the first guess at 1st quarter U.S. GDP at 8:30 am EST. For earnings reports, we get Time Warner (TWX) and MetLife (MET). Finally, Wednesday is month-end. How much can you fit into one day?
THURSDAY: Thought we were done with the Fed? Think again: Fed Chair Janet Yellen is giving a speech on Thursday morning at 8:30 am EST. Also sliding into the new month, we get earnings reports from oil companies Exxon Mobil (XOM) and ConocoPhillips (COP), as well as earnings from Mastercard (MA).
FRIDAY: After all that, can there be more? How about April’s U.S. Employment Report at 8:30 am EST? Chevron (CVX) also reports earnings.

How can I possibly top all this?

(hat tip to The Chive for the pic)

I did no trading today (too busy), so there was no portfolio change. So it is time to run with the weekend open thread, where you folks can discuss whatever topic you like.

For your consideration, I offer…Exposé. Remember them? During the late 1980’s, they were one of the top musical groups in the country, before they faded into obscurity. Still, their 1987 album Exposure should be considered one of the top albums of the 1980’s. Here are my 3 favorite Exposé songs (all from that album):

1. Point of No Return: This is just a fun bouncy song, full of energy.

2. Let Me Be the One: Although this song has a different sound from Point of No Return, it still carries Exposé’s energy.

3. Seasons Change: This song was Exposé’s biggest hit, but I would only rate it third here.

Enjoy your weekend folks!