S&P 500 Overview: Upward momentum appears intact
- Index bounces at 200-day MA after pulling back from 2800.
- Fear indexes like VIX, gold and yen refusing to rally.
- Watch for breakout from tight range, possibly on Brexit clarity.
Economy Refuses to Quit
- January retail sales beat, with housing-related strong.
- Non-farm payrolls missed, but non-cyclical areas like healthcare/education/government led the weakness.
- January housing starts & building permits better than expected.
- ADP private-sector payrolls about inline, with big upward revision for January.
- Jobless claims fall back below estimates.
Is Bad News Good?
- ECB slashes economic growth forecast.
- China stumbles but doesn’t appear to be falling.
- The result could be rates lower for longer, which is seldom bearish.
- Watch Chinese data on Wednesday night.
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Backdrop May Favor Growth Stocks, Small Caps
- Low rates often support higher-multiple stocks.
- M&A may increase, which favors small companies as potential targets.
Post Earnings Pullbacks
- Software growth thesis still intact: CRM, SPLK, VMW, ANET, FTNT, WDAY
- Huya (HUYA): Esports play.
- Global techs on the move: MELI, YNDX, KWEB
Russell’s Watch List:
- Biotechs (IBB, XBI) bouncing after Gottlieb selloff.
- Facebook (FB), Apple (AAPL) escaping recent range.
- Yandex (YNDX): Ever heard of Uber copycat Taxi?
- Lululemon (LULU), Cliffs (CLF) holding 50-day MAs.
- India (EPI) running into April-May general elections.
- Watch for homebuilder ETF (ITB) to potentially break range, especially with new-home sales on Thursday.
- Big pharmacy names (CVS, WBA, TEVA) potentially in distribution.
