Leaders Index 10-14-13

The market sold off at the open on news that there was no deal on the budget and the debt limit. The market started recovering and news came out of a possible compromise. The major averages rallied into the close to finish at their highs of the day. The COMPQ lead the way with a .62% gain while the NYA brought up the rear, climbing .36%. Volume was lower across the board, as would be expected on the Columbus Day holiday. The Nasd averages are back to their recent highs while the RUT set a new high. Leading stocks performed about in line with the overall market as the leaders index climbed .51% on higher but still below average volume. The index closed in the upper half of it’s trading range and remained above the important 17dma. The market remains news driven as it continues to react to the talks in Washington. Both the major averages and the leaders index need to move higher on increasing volume to avoid a wedging rally that could be failure prone. We have to watch for a sell the news reaction to the possible announcement of a deal, but the market seems to think some sort of a deal will be reached, even if it is only kicking the can down the road. Jerry