does anybody still believe the old stuff - Dow "Theory"?
July 11, 2011, 2:14 PM ET
Dow theory spurns bull market at the altar?
Last Thursday, the Dow Theory was all set to kiss the bull at the altar of a confirmed bullish signal. But, at the last minute, the Dow Theory got cold feet â with
potentially ominous implications for the overall market.
The wedding would have been consummated if both the Dow Jones Industrial Average INDU and the Dow Jones Transportation Average DJT had closed above their previous bull-market highs. The Transports succeeded in doing this on Jul. 1, and as of last Thursdayâs close, the Industrials were within 1% of doing so.
But then came Fridayâs shocking jobs report, along with stocksâ continued weakness today. As a result, itâs looking increasingly as though the Industrials will not be able to repeat the Transportsâ achievement any time soon. This therefore constitutes a classic non-confirmation, in Dow Theory parlance.
Of the three hurdles that the market must jump over to satisfy the requirements for a Dow Theory sell signal, therefore, it would appear that two have now been cleared.
The last hurdle would be cleared if both Dow averages close below their May-June closing lows, which are 11,897.27 for the Industrials and 5,060.59 for the Transports.
The bull still has some hope, however. If both averages close above their previous highs, then the Dow Theory will issue a confirmation that the major trend remains up.
- Mark Hulbert
http://blogs.marketwatch.com/thetell/2011/07/11/dow-theory-spurns-bull-market-at-the-altar/