The Standard and Poors index (SPX) recovered the losses of last week, closing today at 4698, down 7 points. SPX opened Monday at 4689 so the index was slightly higher for the week, up 0.2%. The S&P 500 set intraday 
all-time highs early in November, but then took a minor tumble on November 9th and 10th. This week’s trading took the index back to those highs, but SPX pulled back both times that it touched that resistance level this week.

Trading volume climbed steadily this week and moved above the 50 dma for the past two days. That was solid reinforcement of the S&P 500’s steady climb higher this week.

VIX, the volatility index for the S&P 500 options, closed today’s trading at 18%, up a full percentage point from Monday’s open. VIX moved higher the last three days of this week, as the market moved higher on Thursday and opened higher this morning. The VIX divergences we saw last week have continued but have not been followed by the expected downturn.

I track the Russell 2000 index with the IWM ETF. The owners of Russell have priced everyone out of the Russell 2000 index and option data. That is why I plot the IWM prices. IWM closed today at 232.72, down 2.14. Unlike the other broad market indices, IWM has declined steadily this week, declining 3.3%. In fact, IWM has been steadily declining since 11/8. Is this the canary in the coal mine?

The NASDAQ Composite index gapped open higher this morning, setting a new all-time high with a close today at 16057, up 64 points and up slightly over one percent for the week. High tech is hot. Can it carry the market? NASDAQ’s trading volume ran above the 50 dma all week but fell well below average today.

VIX divergences occur when the S&P 500 index trades higher, but the VIX also moves higher. This suggests that the large institutional traders are concerned about the market and are bidding up the cost of the SPX puts. In my experience, VIX divergences are rare and are nearly always followed by a reasonably significant downturn. Even though that has not happened here, I still am concerned. The solid down trend in IWM is a serious warning sign. In addition, the S&P 500 index has now recovered its losses, but it appears to be hesitating as it approaches those highs from early in November. It could go either way from here. My cash level increased to 58% this week as I closed positions and chose to open fewer new positions. A severe correction is historically very unusual for a holiday shortened week like we will have next week, but I remain cautious.