Nov 28th 2014 – Ho Ho Ho Time

And there goes November…Monday is the first day of December and a typically strong month for stocks.  Except it seems that the ‘Santa’ rally, termed against the historical bias of up-trending markets at this seasonal time of the year has already been. (The ‘Santa Rally is officially termed for the few days between Christmas and the New Year)

It seems to me given the absolute lack of any kind of real volatility that we will see even higher prices next week. Although we are certainly nearing a short term top.  If I was to set a number in the S&P 500 I think 2083-85 is my prediction for the next major resistance point.  It closed today at 2067, with 2075 being the new All Time High.

My biggest winner, TQQQ wasn’t quite able to show a 50% cash return for me in the 6 weeks I have been in it. Seems it is stuck on closing at a mere 49.62% today…boohoo!  In terms of testing and trading the system, I don’t think it has ever returned a 50% cash return for one trade (45% is the record), but then the system has improved significantly over the years, so perhaps it will happen again more frequently in the coming months and years.

So bring on December, this market hasn’t finished climbing just yet.

Market News:

U.S. stocks closed mixed on Black Friday amid a slide in oil prices following OPEC’s announcement that it would not cut its output.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average eked out a record close by 0.49 points, ending the month without having lost ground in back-to-back sessions since Oct. 15-16.

Friday was the final trading day of November, and the Dow and S&P 500 posted a second straight month of gains and the 8th in 11 months this year. Both indexes barely held onto their 6th straight week of gains, their longest winning streak in a year.

The S&P 500 Energy Sector entered bear market territory with a plunge of more than 6 percent, the biggest since August 8, 2011 following the S&P downgrade of the U.S. credit rating. The sector also had its worst week in more than 3 years with a decline of more than 9 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average came off its highs after rising more than 50 points on Wal-Mart’s 3 percent gains, shaking off Chevron’s 5 percent decline and Exxon Mobil’s 3 percent loss.

Earlier, the Dow Jones Transportation Average rose more than 1 percent to an intraday record, with airlines JetBlue and Southwest leading the rally, but lost all those gains as railroads declined and oil barge operator Kirby lost more than 6 percent.

Major oilfield service provider Schlumberger lost about 7 percent, while competitor Halliburton closed down nearly 11 percent.

On Thursday, the 12-member oil cartel OPEC announced it would hold its output target at 30 million barrels per day, triggering a sharp decline in oil prices. The decision surprised some market professionals, who had forecast that Saudi Arabia would push through a cut.

Crude touched four-and-a-half-year lows on the news and traded below $70 a barrel on Friday.

Next week, U.S. markets will consider a slew of economic data, including the all-important jobs report.

News Sources:  CNN Money & CNBC