5/11 Almanac

On Wednesday, May 11: International Trade.

There are 10 days before May options expire, 38 the June, 66 the July and 101 the August.

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


Stats

Blue chip stocks (SPY) closed the latest regular session up 0.9% from the prior close. During the day SPY traversed 0.8% in a net move up of 0.5%.

The day's extremes: Open $135.17, high $136.11, low $135.00, close $135.87.

SPY closed above the DeMark pivots after trading within their range. The next DeMark pivots are $134.44-$135.55.

In total, 2.8 billion shares were traded on the three major U.S. stock exchanges, 19% more than on the prior trading day.

Five-year bond yields imply inflation at 2.36%, two basis points higher than the prior trading day.


Econ reports:

The Commerce Department releases international trade figures at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. This is the dreaded trade deficit and can be a market-mover.

Also important: Petroleum inventories at 10:30 a.m., and the federal deficit at 2 p.m.

The Mortgage Bankers' do their weekly report on purchase applications at 7 a.m. It's a leading indicator for housing.

Treasury auctions 10-year notes at 1:00 p.m.

Two Fedsters at the podium: Minneapolis Fed Pres. Narayana Kocherlakota and Cleveland Fed Pres. Sandra Pianalto.

Kocherlakota has a vote in setting monetary policy. He took office under President Barack Obama after a career in academia.

Pianalto is an alternate member of monetary committee and lacks a vote on policy. She took office under President George W. Bush. Her resume shows institutional ties early on to the U.S. House Budget Committee. After that, she came up through the Fed system.

The Federal Reserve maintains an archive where it posts transcripts of speeches and testimony within a few days of the event.


Trading Calendar:

By my rules, at this point in the cycle I can trade June vertical, calendar, diagonal and butterfly spreads, covered calls and iron condors, as well as August or later straddles, strangles, calls and puts. And of course, shares are good at any time.


Good trading!