Equity Market Comment - 5/1/2008

Today was a very lucrative day for both the day traders and option traders who took the late night alert towards the typical May 1st trading pattern. Although you may have missed the first 6 points of the rally in the S&P 500, the pattern held true with the 11:00 to 11:30 am acceleration in prices and while the market moved 16 points higher from this point, I was content with 12 and made the exit.

I still believe that this was a one day wonder and the market should see the corrective pattern return Friday. Friday is the worst day of the week both for return and also odds of being an up day. Being as the seasonal day of the week pattern has been so hot recently I thought I would run by the pattern for Friday for those who wish to once again capitalize on selling futures short or buying puts.

Friday, if it follows the typical pattern should see the market trade sideways to higher for most of the day with the days high coming in near the 1pm est mark. From there we should see the market fall apart and decline quite sharply. Therefore look to this time of the day to establish SPY put option positions or sell the futures short. Remember to always use a protective stop on all short term trades to protect yourself from unexpected events.