The markets have started the week fairly strong. The S&P 500 (NYSE: SPY) spent Monday completely erasing all of last Thursday's declines. This brings back into questions whether the markets will make another attempt at new, all time highs yet again. For now investors seem content to take it day by day with a strong focus on the individual names due to report earnings. Long term the uptrend still remains intact and the bulls are in complete control.
The Nasdaq 100 (NASDAQ: QQQ) is showing the exact picture as the S&P with moves on Monday that recovered more than last Thursday's decline. Though the trend is slightly sloppier it is still trending higher and bulls remain in control and confident. Any volatility in the Nasdaq 100 would likely come from more volatility in the FANG names.
Energy (NYSE: XLE) moved to new lows on the year this week, continuing its yearlong downtrend. With weak oil prices continuing the energy sector remains is a controlled and steady downtrend. For the year the XLE is lower by over 15% now.
Retail (NYSE: XRT) stocks continue to get hit as well. With shares of big retail names like Home Depot (NYSE: HD) trading lower on earnings, the sector continues to struggle. There are still a handful of retail stocks due to report earnings this week so volatility is expected to continue. Since hitting a high last week, the XRT is lower by almost 8%.
Lastly, the Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) which hasn't seen much media attention is quietly getting weaker. The IWM has been trending lower since late July and is now off its highs by almost 5%. Though this market has been more active overall traders have noted the move down to the 200 day moving average as the next support.