Leaders Index 1-17-24

The market had a mixed session today. The major averages opened lower but quickly found a bottom and worked their way higher the rest of the session. All the major averages finished high in their intraday trading ranges, so all the losses were from the opening gap. The COMPQ and the NDX declined .59% and .56% on the day. The SPX fell .56%. Volume was lower across the board, showing that large institutional players were not heavily selling today. Leading stocks held up better than the overall market with the leaders index pretty much flat with a decline of .03%. Volume was lower and below average. The market struggled again today as it lost more ground. The fact that the major averages closed near the highs of the day and that quality growth stocks are outperforming is positive. On the other hand market internals continue to weaken. The major averages held important support today and closed strong. This is good. The overall trend remains up, but we are seeing some hesitation here as the major averages try to overcome resistance. The Fed threw some cold water on early rate cuts and that is a headwind. I think the market will work its way higher, but we may need a catalyst to get it going. Jerry