Since the recent March 7th top in the S&P, we’ve only seen two days where the futures opened lower than than the previous day’s close. And those to lower openings have been mild.
Granted, the up openings have been unspectacular at +2 to +3 points but that’s not the point. Until you get a panic opening like -10 to -15 on the S&P futures, I don’t think the market can put in a sustainable bottom.
The strong up opening on Monday didn’t help matters either. We need to see a weekend of fear where investors wonder how bad the market will be on Monday – not whether it will be slightly up or slightly down.
All the up openings do is allow the professionals to sell into strength generated from individual investors and mutual funds. Until this pattern ends, I’m not going to hold my breath for a good bottom.