9/21 Almanac

On Wednesday, Sept. 21: FOMC announcement, existing home sales.

There are 31 trading days before the October options expire, 59 the November, 87 the December and 122 the January.

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

Stats

Blue chip stocks (SPY) closed the latest regular session down 0.1% from the prior close. During the day SPY traversed 1.6% in a net move down of 0.5%.

The day's extremes: Open $120.82, high $121.99, low $120.01, close $120.17.

SPY closed within the DeMark pivots after trading above their range. The next DeMark pivots are $119.10-$121.08.

In total, 2.8 billion shares were traded on the three major U.S. stock exchanges, barely changed from the prior trading day.

Five-year bond yields imply inflation at 1.70%, three basis points higher than the prior trading day.

Econ reports:

The Federal Open Market Committee, which sets interest rates, prints money, and inspires political talking points by presidential candidates Ron Paul and Rick Perry, ends a two-day meeting with an announcement at 2:15 p.m. Eastern. No press conference is scheduled.

This meeting was initially scheduled for one day only, but Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke extended it after three members of the FOMC balked at the idea of further easing of credit. So this meeting, one surmises, is far from pro forma. It's about as anti forma as it can be, as the Fedsters try to work out a via media for monetary policy, tout de suite, or else it's je ne sais pas quoi for the markets.

The other potential big market mover of the day is the Realtors' existing home sales, covering the greater part of the housing market, out at 10 a.m.

Two other reports: Petroleum inventories at 10:30 a.m. can move the energy sector, for sure, and the Mortgage Bankers' purchase applications report, at 7 a.m., is considered to be a leading indicator of housing, but I don't recall ever seeing any significant market reax to it.

No Fedsters at the podium. When the FOMC meets, Fedsters lay low.

The Federal Reserve maintains an archive of speeches and testimony.

Trading Calendar:

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

Good trading!