5/4 Almanac

On Wednesday, May 4: Employment prequels.

There are 17 days before May options expire, 45 the June, 73 the July and 108 the August.

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


Stats

Blue chip stocks (SPY) closed the latest regular session down 0.4% from the prior close. During the day SPY traversed 0.8% in a net move down of 0.2%.

The day's extremes: Open $135.96, high $136.19, low $135.04, close $135.73.

SPY closed within the DeMark pivots after trading below their range. The next DeMark pivots are $134.81-$135.96.

In total, 3.2 billion shares were traded on the three major U.S. stock exchanges, 10% more than on the prior trading day.

Five-year bond yields imply inflation at 2.46%, three basis points lower than the prior trading day.


Econ reports:

The government releases the unemployment rates and comprehensive employment stats on Friday, and as usual private-sector number-crunchers are getting a jump on parts of report.

The outplacement company Challenger, Gray & Christmas reports on corporate layoffs at 7:30 a.m. Eastern, and the payroll services company ADP produces an employment report at 8:15 a.m.

Later in the day, the Institute of Supply Management issues its index of non-manufacturing activity at 10 a.m., and the Energy Department reports on oil inventories at 10:30 a.m.

Treasury announces its funding needs -- how much the government needs to borrow -- for the next two quarters at 9 a.m. Eastern.

And the Mortgage Bankers release numbers on home purchase applications at 7 a.m.

Fedsters are in bloom, with speeches by two alternate members of the Federal Open Market Committee, and also by a Federal Reserve bank president who lacks a seat on the FOMC.

Atlanta Fed Pres. Dennis Lockhart and San Francisco Fed Pres John Williams are the alternates. They lack votes but have voices on money policy matters.

Lockhart took office under President George W. Bush. His resume shows institutional ties to Citigroup (then called Citicorp/Citibank), Heller Financial and the private equity firm Zephyr Management L.P.

Williams took office under President Barack Obama. He came up through the Fed system.

Boston Fed Pres. Eric Rosengren, who doesn't sit in on money policy discussions, took office under President George W. Bush and came up through the Fed system as a research economist. He has served as an advisor on Japanese banking.

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 May vertical and calendar spreads, as well as August or later straddles, strangles, calls and puts. And of course, shares are good at any time.


Good trading!