Wednesday 19 October 2016

The Devil Is In The 50 Day Moving Average

For the 29th-straight session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +0.22% has closed below its 50-day moving average, but has yet to fall enough to even touch its 200-day moving average on an intraday basis.

That marks the longest stretch the Dow has wavered below its 50-day MA but above its 200-day MA since the 29-day stretch ending in November 1989.

During the current streak, the Dow has closed below its 50-day MA, which currently extends to about 18,330, since Sept. 9, 2016.

During that time, the closest the intraday low came to the 200-day MA was Oct. 13, when the low of 17,959.95 was more than 300 points above the 200-day MA at 17,640 at the time.

Since the 50-day MA has been falling by about 7 points a day, and the 200-day MA has been rising by about 5 points, the Dow will need to close Thursday up over 120 points, or fall at least 541 points intraday, to break the streak.