NQ tends to outperform. Yesterday, ES reversed the entire prior day range making all time highs while NQ printed an Inside Day stuck inside yesterday's range.
Yes, I do understand that the expectation was for NQ to keep rising since ES already retraced the entire down move. But I honestly haven't seen enough evidence of which leads. Someone here said before that ES leads, but I just don't see that when I look at random examples. (in this case tough, ES was leading because after it hit a key level, both markets dropped)
When NQ finally took out current highs at 13:33 it happened 12 minutes after ES broke above current highs (13:11) and with ES already at ATHs - clearly struggling to participate.
I may be wrong, but that's how I interpret it.
That's an interesting way of looking at it, and I see what you mean. NQ was lagging in this case, no doubt about it. But then it always comes down to the question of who is right. Is the lagging market correct that buying is weak and hence everything will drop, or is the lagging market wrong and hence ready for an explosion so it will catch up?
So since I can't ever figure out who is right, because they tend to take turns on which leads and which lags, what I really focus on is where the turn happens. Half of the time, I have no idea why the ES turned where it did, until I look at the NQ, and this works the other way as well. Of course levels are broken all the time, but if one market hits a key level, that can certainly pull both markets down, and this doesn't even matter which one is stronger or weaker.
Randomly looking at the charts, I notice this area yesterday afternoon. In the bottom chart, ES hits 5650, a fairly significant level, and NQ also turns here, at just a random level. Then further along, when ES pokes the previous day low, the dark green line, NQ also bounces here at 13:05. NQ does make lower lows after 14:00, but since ES refuses to go any lower, NQ can't help but be dragged up. But of course, ES could have just as easily eventually broken below the PDL, so its not like there is any magic in what I'm looking, but just simply pointing out that either market hitting a key level can immediately turn both markets.