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Prices continued to sink during the first half of the session, trying to
recover in the afternoon--just barely making it back to the line--but
SELLING in the last half-hour (not buying as some said) as the Street
was squaring its positions led to modest losses.  Volume continued
active, +20% above average.

Since there weren't enough buyers willing to pay yesterday's prices at
the close I'd say the slippage isn't over.  We're still just above the
200-day, at least by the close, so technicians are going to have to
decide if this is a point to bargain hunt, or risk scaring everybody by
falling into obviously Bearish territory.

It seemed to catch up with all the international markets.  It wouldn't
be a good thing to have the whole world's markets take a dive because we
need a correction.  That's one of the major risks of this globalization
scheme--everybody's joined at the hip.

Tactically speaking this wouldn't be an unreasonable place to pause,
just as it did last March.  Prices struggled up for a few weeks, then
dropped again to finally penetrate the 200-day a little for a couple
weeks.  After that prices rose more or less steadily for a few months--
allowing the Street to make some money.

Never forget one simple fact: Wall Street's purpose is to make markets
and provide liquidity & capital to business.  It must itself make money
and have a reserve of capital to do it.  If it takes a little marketing
and investor manipulation to do that, regulators aren't going to sqwak
too loud as long as it isn't egregious.  I've sometimes compared the
Street action to a football game--that's another way to look at it.

 Price    Vola-    Momen-   Volume   Oscil-   Summ.
 Change   tility   tum               lator    Index
 -__+     -__+     -__+     -__+     -__+     -__+

 __     _<__     __|_     05/16
 _     _|__     ___>     <___     __<_     05/17
 __     _|__     __>_     <___     __<_     05/18
 __     _|__     ___>     <___     __<_     05/19
 _     _|__     __>_     |___     __<_     05/22

Timing Signals:  I don't use or recommend timing signals, but they're
fun to watch.  If I did though, well, I might use something like this.
(Be warned!!  It tends to whipsaw around signal points!)

Last Signal: SELL       Date:  05/12/06 S&P:    1291
Winner or Loser:  Loser                 By:     -16

See my market tracking charts for '04-'05 and my investment strategy
study at my website(s):
http://www.xprt.net/~pgrogers/Pers.html
http://www.geocities.com/paulgrogers/Pers.html



Paul Rogers, paulgrogers{at}yahoo.com                       -o)
http://www.angelfire.com/or/paulrogers                   /\\
Rogers' Second Law: Everything you do communicates.     _\_V

... Life is too short to teach logic to slugs.
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