The dollar rebounded today, pressuring the stock markets. SPX lost $15 to close at $1342. RUT again was more volatile than SPX, closing at $841, down $15 (greater percentage drop than SPX). Trading volume bumped up a bit at 3.0 billion shares of the S&P 500, but this remains below the 50 dma. Trading on the NYSE was up 16% and was up 12% on NASDAQ. The markets appear to be trapped in a trading range. The key levels to watch on SPX are $1330 on the downside and $1370 on the top side. If SPX breaks $1330 going down, we may see some real damage. However, if SPX can break-out above the previous high at $1370, the bulls may be off to the races again.

My May condor is coasting to the finish line with the remaining spreads at 920/930 and 720/730 likely to expire worthless. Both spreads are far OTM (greater than two to three standard deviations). The June iron condor on RUT stands at a P/L of +$136 with delta = -$56 and theta = +$107. The markets' indecision has been good to my condors. Tomorrow will feature the unemployment claims report and the PPI. A sizable increase in PPI could spook the markets. Many analysts are concerned about rising inflation and a big increase in PPI could cause some selling. Fortunately, my June put spreads are down at 690/700 on RUT - that should be safe (he said as the ice berg looms ahead).