Leaders Index 11-20-17

The market had a fairly quiet session today with a slightly positive bias. The intraday moves were generally small and the closing changes tight. The COMPQ finished the day with a gain of .12% while the SPX gained .13%. Both closed in the upper half of their intraday trading ranges, usually a good sign. Volume was lower across the board and below average. We may see low volume during the entire holiday week. Leading stocks were higher as well with the leaders index gaining .73% on the day. The index closed in about the middle of its trading range and volume was lower than Friday but still above average. This is a new high on both a closing and an intraday basis. The relative strength line of the index also made a new high. The market looks like it want to work its way higher. The gains in the major averages were modest, but they continue an overall upside bias to the market. The greatest strength was again in the Semiconductor stocks as the SOX was higher by 1.22% and made a new high. The small caps also outperformed with the RUT up by .71%. The fact that quality growth stocks are doing better than the overall market is encouraging. We are in a seasonally positive period and barring any unexpected bad news the trend of the market looks like it will be higher into year end. Jerry