4/4 Almanac

On Monday, April 4: No econ reports are scheduled for release.

There are 12 days before April options expire, 47 the May and 75 the June.

On the jump, market stats, econ reports, and the trading calendar . . .


Stats

Blue chip stocks (SPY) closed the latest regular session up 0.4% from the prior close. During the day SPY traversed 0.7% in a net move down of 0.2%.

The day's extremes: Open $133.41, high $133.77, low $132.83, close $133.15.

SPY traded entirely above the DeMark pivots. The next DeMark pivots are $132.27-$132.78

In total, 3 billion shares were traded on the three major U.S. stock exchanges, barely changed from on the prior trading day.

Five-year bond yields imply inflation at 2.75%, three basis points higher than the prior trading day.


Econ reports:

An empty day for reports on the economy, which often means an unmotivated market that drifts like cherry blossom petals on a gentle breeze.

Treasury auctions 3- and 6-month bills at 11:30 a.m. Eastern.

Fedsters: Speeches by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and Atlanta Fed Pres. Dennis Lockhart.

Bernanke was first appointed by President George W. Bush and reappointed by President Barack Obama. His institutional ties are academic. He is speaking to a conference held by the Atlanta Fed at Stone Mountain, Ga.

Lockhart is an alternate member of monetary committee and lacks a vote on policy. He also took office under President Bush. His resume shows institutional ties to Citigroup (then called Citicorp/Citibank), Heller Financial and the private equity firm Zephyr Management L.P.

The Federal Reserve often posts transcripts of speeches and testimony within a few days of the event.

All in all, the entire week is pretty slow. The Federal Open Market Committee releases minutes on Tuesday, weekly jobless claims are out on Thursday, and that pretty much covers the potential major market movers.

But, black swans lurk in the traderverse. Be careful out there.


Trading Calendar:

By my rules, at this point in the cycle I can trade May vertical and calendar spreads, and June or later straddles, calls and puts. And of course, shares are good at any time.


Enjoy the weekend!