HSBC Holdings Plc technical analyst Murray Gunn in a new note, says he is now on alert for a big dip in U.S. equities. "With the U.S. stock market selling off aggressively on October 11, we now issue a RED ALERT," he writes. "The possibility of a severe fall in the stock market is now very high," he adds, noting that volatility has continued to rise since the end of the summer and the recent sell-off was seen across many areas of the market, and not just select groups.
Also causing some concern for Gunn is the intensity of the selling pressure, measured by what's called the Traders Index, an indicator that combines both market breadth and the trading volume of advancing stocks versus declining stocks. The higher the index, the more bearish that day's trading.