7/21 Almanac

On Thursday, July 21: Jobless claims, Bernanke testimony.

There are 30 trading days before the August options expire, 58 the September, 93 the October and 121 the November.

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



Stats

Blue chip stocks (SPY) closed the latest regular session down 0.06% from the prior close. During the day SPY traversed 0.55% in a net move down of 0.32%.

The day's extremes: Open $133.07, high $133.15, low $132.42, close $132.65.

SPY traded entirely within the DeMark pivots. The next DeMark pivots are $132.17-$132.90.

In total, 2.7 billion shares were traded on the three major U.S. stock exchanges, 1% less than on the prior trading day.

Five-year bond yields imply inflation at 2.10%, one basis point lower than on the prior trading day.


Econ reports:

Weekly jobless claims will be out at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. With everyone nervous about the lack of a significant jobs recovery, this report gets watched like a hawk by a really jumpy rabbit.

The Philadelphia Fed survey looks at business conditions in the mid-Atlantic region, but has national implications. Out at 10 a.m.

Also scheduled, the Bloomberg consumer comfort index (yet another attempt to divine the popular mood) at 9:45 a.m., the FHFA house price index at 10 a.m., and the natural gas report at 10:30 a.m.

The Federal Reserve does its weekly data dump at 4:30 pm.: The Fed balance sheet and the money supply.

Treasury auctions 3- and 6-month bills at 11 a.m., and 10-year inflation-indexed TIPS at 1 p.m., and also announces funding requirements for 52-week bills, and 2-, 5-year and 7-year notes at 11 a.m.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke testifies on financial reform before a Senate hearing, at 10 a.m. Another Fedster, Chicago Fed Pres. Charles Evans, gives a speech. Evans has a vote in setting monetary policy. He is an old-timer, having taken office under President George W. Bush after rising through the Fed system. Or, as Karl Marx would have called him, he is a Bundesbankenkinderübermensch.

The Federal Reserve maintains an archive of speeches and testimony.


Trading Calendar:

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


Good trading!