Last week was a solid week for U.S. equity markets as the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 rallied 2.3 percent, 3.9 percent, and 3.1 percent respectively. As we stated, Friday’s rally was fairly predictable in light of technical trends and the build up to the employment report. As the employment report came in better than anticipated, equities finished with a flurry on Friday.

 As we mentioned earlier in the week, we expected the markets to be quiet in anticipation of the full employment report that will be released at 8:30 am. While U.S. equities ended the day in positive territory, the action yesterday and all week has been marked by extremely low trading volumes. We talked on Wednesday about how equities are poised to move higher from a technical perspective as the S&P 500 has now closed above the key resistance level of 1110 for four consecutive days.

 After posting a significant rally on Monday, U.S. equity markets were uneventful yesterday as the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 indices were virtually unchanged. This could continue today and leading up to the full employment report coming on Friday morning. We will get a taste of the employment picture today with the release of the Challenger Job Cuts and the ADP Employment Change, along with Initial Jobless Claims on Thursday.

 Last week was a relatively uneventful and quiet one for the markets, with the major U.S. equity indices including the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 all declining modestly. Despite some daily volatility, the markets remain in a relatively tight trading range, consolidating around the 1100 level on the S&P 500. With lack of a breakout in either direction, the S&P 500 has traded at or close to the 1100 level for the past four months. 

 After a phenomenal trading week for U.S. equity markets last week, the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 have traded in negative territory each of the last two days with yesterday’s action being particularly sloppy.  As we have stated for a long time, markets don’t move in a straight line as investors lightened positions ahead of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s Congressional testimony later today.