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Trading Plan for May 17, 2011

May 17, 2011 – Comments (0) | RELATED TICKERS: SPY

Current Long Positions (stop-losses in parentheses): PEP (69.75), STZ (22.20), SSO (53.35)

Current Short Positions (stop-losses in parentheses): None

BIAS: 60% Long

Economic Reports Due Out (Times are EST): ICSC-Goldman Store Sales (7:45am), Housing Starts (8:30am), Redbook (8:55am), Industrial Production (9:15am)

My Observations and What to Expect:

Futures are flat heading into the open.

Asia was mixed in their trading, while Europe is averaging about 0.5% lower.

Commodities are weaker yet again today. It would seem logical at this point, that we are nearing, at the very least, a short-term bottom that should lead to a sizable bounce.

S&P managed to finish right on the all-important 1329 support level. Watch to see whether we close below this level, or whether we manage a bounce of some kind.

3 additional support levels to watch on the S&P: 1323 - 50-day moving average, 1319 - long-term trend-line, 1294 - another major long-term support level.

For starters, the bulls need to break the previous day's highs - something that hasn't been done in over a week, and also maintain any gains into the afternoon, which has been where we've seen the most weakness of late.

My conclusion: 1329 will be where I draw the line in the sand. I will then become more day-trading oriented in my trades at that point.

Here Are The Actions I Will Be Taking: