This is probably the biggest complaint I have with StockCharts.com data, and I’m currently unaware of how to turn the selection off. I really love the look and feel of their charts but they include data after the market officially closes, which throws off indicators. I’d prefer they not do this.

The TradeStation chart represents the true market open and close (9:30am – 4:00pm EST) which is a more accurate reflection. As such, that is where I make my trading decisions. I do analysis and publications off of StockCharts, but real time decisions are made off TS. There’s additional slight differences (such as how both vendors treat price spikes), but I just feel more confident using TS data but don’t like the way their charts display in my posts.

If anyone knows how to better improve StockCharts data, or how to view only actual market data (not pre or post market), please let me know.

Those dots are called “Pivot Highs and Pivot Lows” and come default with TradeStation as a “show me” study. They don’t show up in real time (I wish they did) but require a function of price movement a certain distance before plotting a dot. I use them because it allows for ease in comparing swing highs and swing lows in terms of price structure or trend analysis. They aren’t useful as trading signals unfortunately.

I think you could make that argument, yes, about the 850 Index level. If this indeed is the dominant short-term pattern, the height would be from 1,000 to 850 or 150 points, which subtracted from 850 would give a downside target of 700 which would take us beneath the 2002 bear market low. We need to watch for this possibility, which would likely become the dominant pattern if 850 was taken out. I truly thought we’d get a support bounce off these levels but that’s why we take it day by day.

That price level – roughly 8,900 – was key resistance via the falling 20 day EMA (daily chart) but I saw a decent chance of us perhaps clearing that. I’d closed the trade prior to the intraday peak just about when price started its retracement as seen in this chart (and I had to blog to keep myself from getting greedy and overtrading/chasing the market).

I missed seeing the negative divergence you mentioned which also would have been a good sign things weren’t as positive as they seemed.

You played this well. We take our stops because they are protection against large moves like today that can happen – I guess literally – at any moment. Thank you for your comment.