Dear Valued Subscriber: Following are today's significant developments in the U.S. futures markets.
*. LIVESTOCK: April live cattle closed down $0.85 at 124.00 today. Prices closed near mid-range today on more profit taking after hitting a three-month high last week. The cattle market bulls still have overall near-term technical advantage. Prices are in a five-week-old uptrend on the daily bar chart, but now just barely. Bulls' next upside price objective is to push and close prices above solid resistance at the November high of $130.10. The next downside technical breakout objective for the bears is pushing and closing prices below solid technical support at $120.00. First resistance is seen at today's high of $124.75 and then at $125.45. First support is seen at today's low of $123.55 and then at $123.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 6.0
May feeder cattle closed down $0.22 at $149.15 today. Prices closed nearer the session high today and saw mild profit taking after hitting a three-month high last week. The feeder cattle market bulls still have the overall near- term technical advantage. Prices are in a two-month-old uptrend on the daily bar chart, but now just barely. The next upside price objective for the feeder bulls is to push and close prices above technical resistance at the February high of $153.55. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is to push and close prices below solid technical support at $145.00. First resistance is seen at $150.00 and then at $151.00. First support is seen at today's low of $147.77 and then at $147.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 6.0
April lean hogs closed down $1.40 at $70.00 today. Prices closed nearer the session low and scored a bearish "outside day" down on the daily bar chart. The bears have the overall near-term technical advantage. The next upside price breakout objective for the hog bulls is to push and close prices above solid chart resistance at $73.00. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is pushing prices below solid technical support at the February low of $68.02. First resistance is seen at $71.00 and then at today's high of $71.95. First support is seen at $69.00 and then at $68.02. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 4.0
*. GRAINS: May corn futures closed up 2 3/4 cents at $3.77 1/4 today. Prices closed nearer the session high and hit a five-month high today. The corn bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage. Prices are in a five-week- old uptrend on the daily bar chart. The next upside price objective for the bulls is to push and close prices above solid technical resistance at $3.90. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is pushing and closing prices below solid support at the February low of $3.64 1/4. First resistance is seen at today's high of $3.78 3/4 and then at $3.80. First support is seen at today's low of $3.74 3/4 and then at last week's low of $3.72 1/4. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 6.0
May soybeans closed down 2 cents at $10.48 a bushel today. Prices closed near the session low after hitting a contract high early on today. While the bean bulls have the firm near-term technical advantage as a steep five-week-old uptrend is in place on the daily bar chart, today's low- range close hints the bulls may be exhausted. The next near-term upside technical breakout objective for the soybean bulls is pushing and closing prices above solid resistance at $10.75. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is pushing and closing prices below solid technical support at $10.20. First resistance is seen at today's contract high of $10.59 1/2 and then at $10.70. First support is seen at $10.40 and then at $10.30. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.5
May soybean meal closed up $2.60 at $380.90 today. Prices closed nearer the session low today. The meal bulls have the solid overall near-term technical advantage. The next upside price breakout objective for the bulls is to produce a close above solid technical resistance at $400.00. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is pushing and closing prices below solid technical support at $360.00. First resistance comes in at today's high of $385.70 and then at the contract high of $387.90. First support is seen at $377.60 and then at $375.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 8.0
May bean oil closed up 31 points at 32.80 cents today. Prices closed near mid-range and hit a two-week high on more short covering today. The bears still have the overall near-term technical advantage. The next upside price breakout objective for the bean oil bulls is pushing and closing prices above solid technical resistance at the February high of 33.50 cents. Bean oil bears' next downside technical price breakout objective is pushing and closing prices below solid technical support at the contract low of 31.61 cents. First resistance is seen at today's high of 32.96 cents and then at 33.00 cents. First support is seen at today's low of 32.56 cents and then at 32.25 cents. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 2.5
May Chicago SRW wheat closed up 9 3/4 cents at $4.73 3/4 today. Prices closed nearer the session high. The wheat bulls have regained the slight overall near-term technical advantage. Wheat bulls' next upside breakout objective is to push and close SRW prices above solid technical resistance at the February high of $4.79 1/2. The next downside price breakout objective for the wheat futures bears is pushing and closing prices below solid technical support at the February low of $4.51. First resistance is seen at today's high of $4.76 3/4 and then at $4.79 1/2. First support is seen at today's low of $4.67 3/4 and then at $4.60. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 5.5.
May HRW wheat closed up 8 3/4 cents at $4.93 1/2 today.
Prices closed near mid-range today. The bulls have the slight overall near-term technical advantage. Bulls' next upside price breakout objective is pushing and closing prices above solid technical resistance at $5.20. The bears' next downside breakout objective is pushing and closing prices below solid technical support at $4.60. First resistance is seen at the February high of $5.00 1/4 and then at $5.10. First support is seen at today's low of $4.87 3/4 and then at $4.80. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 5.5
*. SOFTS: May sugar closed down 3 points at 13.43 cents today. Prices closed near mid-range. The sugar bears have the solid overall near-term technical advantage. Bulls' next upside price breakout objective is to push and close prices above solid technical resistance at the February high of 14.02 cents. Bears' next downside price breakout objective is to push and close prices below solid technical support at the January low of 13.17 cents. First resistance is seen at last week's high of 13.63 cents and then at 13.75 cents. First support is seen at today's low of 13.31 cents and then at the January low of 13.17 cents. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 2.0.
May coffee closed up 110 points at 122.10 cents today. Prices closed near mid-range and saw short covering after hitting a contract low last week. There was not good follow-through buying last Friday, and a potentially bullish "key reversal" up was not confirmed. The coffee bears still have the firm overall near-term technical advantage. The next upside breakout objective for the bulls is to close prices above solid technical resistance at the February high of 126.50 cents. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid technical support at 115.00 cents a pound. First resistance is seen at 122.80 cents and then at 125.00 cents. First support is seen at 120.60 cents and then at the contract low of 118.55 cents. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 2.0
May cocoa closed up $24 at $2,218 a ton today. Prices closed nearer the session high today and hit another three- month high. The cocoa bulls have the solid overall near- term technical advantage. Prices are in an accelerating seven-week-old uptrend on the daily bar chart. The next upside price breakout objective for the cocoa bulls is to push and close prices above solid technical resistance at the November high of $2,235. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is pushing and closing prices below solid technical support at $2,100. First resistance is seen at today's high of $2,220 and then at $2,235. First support is seen at $2,200 and then at today's low of $2,160. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.5
May cotton closed up 75 points at 82.10 cents today. Prices closed nearer the session high and hit a four-week high today. The cotton bulls have the firm overall near-term technical advantage and have momentum on their side. The next upside price breakout objective for the cotton bulls is to produce a close above solid technical resistance at the January high of 84.45 cents. The next downside price breakout objective for the cotton bears is to push and close prices below solid technical support at the February low of 76.44 cents. First resistance is seen at today's high of 82.52 cents and then at 83.00 cents. First support is seen at today's low of 81.00 cents and then at 79.50 cents. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.5.
May orange juice closed up 80 points at $1.4450 today. Prices closed nearer the session low. Bears have the slight overall near-term technical advantage. The next upside price breakout objective for the FCOJ bulls is pushing and closing prices above technical resistance at this week's high of $1.5020. The next downside technical breakout objective for the FCOJ bears is to produce a close below solid technical support at $1.3750. First resistance is seen at $1.4630 and then at $1.4800. First support is seen at today's low of $1.4330 and then at last week's low of $1.4050. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 4.5.
May lumber futures closed down $0.80 at $514.60 today. Prices closed nearer the session low. Prices last week hit a contract high. The bulls have the solid overall near-term technical advantage. The next downside technical breakout objective for the lumber bears is pushing and closing prices below solid technical support at $500.00. The next upside price breakout objective for the bulls is pushing and closing prices above solid technical resistance at $530.00. First resistance is seen at the contract high of $520.00 and then at $525.00. First support is seen at $510.00 and then at $505.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 8.0
*. METALS: April gold futures closed up $3.70 at $1,334.00 today. Prices closed near mid-range today. The gold bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage and have stabilized the market after recent selling pressure. Gold bulls' next upside near-term price breakout objective is to produce a close above solid technical resistance at the January high of $1,370.50. Bears' next near-term downside price breakout objective is pushing prices below solid technical support at the February low of $1,309.00. First resistance is seen at today's high of $1,342.90 and then at $1,350.00. First support is seen at today's low of $1,328.00 and then at last week's low of $1,322.90. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 6.0
May silver futures closed up $0.106 at $16.655 today. Prices closed near mid-range. The silver bears have the slight overall near-term technical advantage. Silver bulls' next upside price breakout objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at the February high of $17.04 an ounce. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at $16.00. First resistance is seen at today's high of $16.785 and then at $17.00. Next support is seen at today's low of $16.50 and then at last week's low of $16.415. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 4.5.
May N.Y. copper closed down 95 points at 322.35 cents today. Prices closed nearer the session low. The copper bulls have the firm overall near-term technical advantage. Copper bulls' next upside price objective is pushing and closing prices above solid technical resistance at the December high of 333.35 cents. The next downside price objective for the bears is closing prices below solid technical support at the February low of 304.65 cents. First resistance is seen at today's high of 325.65 cents and then at last week's high of 329.05 cents. First support is seen 320.00 cents and then at last week's low of 317.50 cents. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0.
*. ENERGIES: April Nymex crude oil closed up $0.44 at $63.99 today. Prices closed nearer the session high today and hit a three-week high. The bulls have the overall near- term technical advantage and gained some more power today. The next near-term upside price breakout objective for the crude oil bulls is pushing prices above resistance at the January high of $66.39. The next near-term downside price breakout objective for the crude oil bears is to produce a close below solid technical support at $60.00. First resistance is seen at today's high of $64.24 and then at $65.00. First support is seen at $63.00 and then at $62.50. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0
April heating oil closed up 185 points at $1.9911 today. Prices closed nearer the session high. The bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage. The bulls' next upside price breakout objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at the January high of $2.1098. Bears' next downside price breakout objective is producing a close below solid technical support at the February low of $1.8097. First resistance lies at $2.0000 and then at $2.0500. First support is seen at today's low of $1.9621 and then at $1.9500. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0.
April (RBOB) unleaded gasoline closed up 132 points at $2.0028 today. Prices closed nearer the session high. The bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage. The next upside price breakout objective for the bulls is closing prices above solid technical resistance at the January high of $2.0986. Bears' next downside price breakout objective is closing prices below solid support at the February low of $1.8284. First resistance is seen at today's high of $2.0122 and then at 2.0500. First support is seen at today's low of $1.9801 and then at $1.9500. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 6.5.
April natural gas closed up 3.1 cents at $2.688 today. Prices closed near mid-range and hit a two-week high today. Bears have the overall near-term technical advantage. The next upside price breakout objective for the bulls is closing prices above solid technical resistance at $2.82. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid technical support at the December low of $2.487. First resistance is seen at today's high of $2.723 and then at $2.75. First support is seen at today's low of $2.642 and then at last week's low of $2.593. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 3.5.
*.STOCKS, FINANCIALS, CURRENCIES: The June Euro currency closed up 10 points at 1.2407 today. Prices closed near mid-range today. The bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage. Euro bulls' next upside price breakout objective is pushing and closing prices above solid technical resistance at the February high of 1.2658. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid chart support at the February low of 1.2317. First resistance for the Euro lies at 1.2459 and then at 1.2500. Next support is seen at last week's low of 1.2363 and then at 1.2300. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 6.5
The June Japanese yen closed up 235 points at .94165 today. Prices closed nearer the session low. Bulls have the firm overall near-term technical advantage. Prices are in a seven-week-old uptrend on the daily bar chart. Bulls' next upside price breakout objective is closing prices above solid resistance at the contract high of .95485. Bears' next downside breakout objective is closing prices below solid technical support at .92000. First resistance is seen at today's high of .94700 and then at .95000. First support is seen at .94000 and then at last week's low of .93430. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0
The June Swiss franc closed down 12 points at 1.0769 today. Prices closed near the session low. The Swissy bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage. Prices are in an 11-week-old uptrend on the daily bar chart. The next upside price breakout objective for the bulls is closing prices above solid resistance at the February high of 1.0986. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid technical support at the February low of 1.0669. First resistance is seen at 1.0825 and then at 1.0850. First support is seen at last week's low of 1.0732 and then at 1.0700. Wyckoff's Market Rating:
7.0.
The June Australian dollar closed up 8 points at .7845 today. Prices closed nearer the session low today. Bulls and bears are on a level overall near-term technical playing field. Bulls' next upside price breakout objective is producing a close above chart resistance at the January high of .8130. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid technical support at .7700. First resistance is seen at .7900 and then at .7950. First support is seen at .7800 and then at the February low of .7761. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 5.0
The June Canadian dollar closed down 16 points at .7895 today. Prices closed nearer the session low today. The bears have the firm overall near-term technical advantage. Prices are in a four-week-old downtrend on the daily bar chart. Bulls' next upside price breakout objective is closing prices above solid chart resistance at the January high of .8175. The next downside breakout objective for the bears is to produce a close below solid technical support at the October low of .7763. First resistance is seen at today's high of .7940 and then at .7975. Next support is seen at last week's low of .7855 and then at .7825. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 2.5
The June British pound closed up 5 points at 1.4032 today. Prices closed nearer the session low. The bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage. The next upside price breakout objective for the bulls is closing prices above solid technical resistance at the January high of 1.4404. Bears' next downside technical breakout objective is closing prices below solid support at the February low of 1.3837. First resistance is seen at today's high of 1.4133 and then at the February high of 1.4207. First support is seen at last week's low of 1.3930 and then at 1.3900. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 6.5.
The June U.S. dollar index closed up 0.027 at 89.460 today. Prices closed nearer the session high today. The bears have the overall near-term technical advantage. However, a bullish double-bottom reversal pattern could be forming on the daily bar chart. The bulls' next upside price breakout objective is to close prices above solid technical resistance at 91.000. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is to produce a close below solid technical support at the February low of 87.830. Next resistance lies at last week's high of 89.780 and then at 90.000. First support is seen at 89.000 and then at 89.500. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 3.0.
June U.S. T-Bonds closed up 8/32 at 143 10/32 today. Prices closed near mid-range on more short covering after hitting a contract low last week. The bond market bears have the solid overall near-term technical advantage. The next downside price breakout objective for the T-Bond bears is closing prices below solid technical support at 140 even. The next upside technical objective for the bulls is to produce a close above solid technical resistance at 146 even. First resistance is seen at today's high of 143 26/32 and then at 144 even. First support is seen at the overnight low of 143 31/32 and then at 142 16/32. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 2.0
June U.S. T Notes closed up 2.5 (32nds) at 120.08.0 today. Prices closed near mid-range today. The bears have the solid overall near-term technical advantage. The next upside price breakout objective for the bulls is closing prices above solid resistance at the February high of 122.02.0. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is producing a close below solid technical support at 119.00.0. First resistance is seen at today's high of 120.14.5 and then at 120.20.0. First support is seen at 120.00.0 and then at 119.21.5. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 1.5.
GENERAL STOCK MARKET COMMENT: U.S. stock indexes closed solidly higher today. World stock markets were mostly higher overnight. U.S. stock indexes are pointed to higher openings when the New York day session begins. The U.S. stock index bulls have some momentum on their side and have re-established near-term price uptrends on the daily charts. That's an underlying bearish element for the precious metals. Traders are anxiously awaiting new Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's first speech to the U.S. House of Representatives on Capitol Hill on Tuesday. He speaks to the U.S. Senate on Thursday.
The March Nasdaq 100 stock index futures closed up 85.75 at 6,995.50 today. Prices closed nearer the session high and hit a three-week high today. Prices have now gained back all of the February losses and then some. Bulls have the solid overall near-term technical advantage. Bulls' next upside price breakout objective is closing prices above solid resistance at the January high of 7,047.25. The bears' next downside price breakout objective is closing prices below solid technical support at 6,700.00. First resistance is seen at 7,000.00 and then at 7,047.25. First support is seen at 6,950.00 and then at today's low of 6,890.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.5
The March e-mini S&P 500 futures stock index futures closed up 33.75 at 2,782.50 today. Prices closed near the session high and hit a three-week high today. Bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage. Bulls' next upside price objective is closing prices above solid resistance at 2,825.00. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at 2,682.00. First resistance is seen at today's high of2,783.00 and then at 2,800.00. First support is seen at 2,763.00 and then at today's low of 2,742.50. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0.