Proper context to start the day with a solid win, and make all the difference.

DAILY SCHEDULE Watch the pre-open Tour recording* HERE <<== *Manually open Adobe Connect (install on Windows or Mac), then paste the recording's link there. chaRTroom** is now open... Pre-open update is at 9:15 ET **This is NOT the direct chaRTroom link

Through the prior close... (summary of last Market Wrap) Globex declined from Wednesday's 3257.00 high down to 3208.00 and opened Thursday at  3218.00. Trending down through the open, and exiting the open under a relevant low, triggered bearish relentless overnight trending, session-long decline, opening thrust setups. Which were trumped by the first hour's test and retest of last Friday afternoon's 3196.00 prior low. Trending back up through the noon hour held the afternoon's 3244.50 bias-up target as resistance. The afternoon only ranged narrowly sideways, perhaps inhibited by high-profile post-close earnings. Futures rallied up to 3257.00 in reaction to AMZN and FB positive earnings surprises, The surge extended even higher to test 3267.00 despite GOOGL's initially favorable earnings reaction turning negative, overshadowed by AAPL's beat and stock-split. Overnight action's new info... (nearby chart is last intraday session and Globex) The surge's last leg peaked at the Globex open. Its blip-up to 3273.75 neutralized unfinished business just 1 tick higher. Immediately reversing down extended to eventually attack yesterday afternoon's lower prior highs, at least to within 2 points, retracing 61.8{faed0d6dca04cec8b6b7985efddb9b0651107a3aebb05f69f0166038b8c951f6} of yesterday's late earnings headline reactions. Bouncing into Europe's opens up to 3263.50 is now consolidating. If, then... (notes to accompany the Tour recording) Live by earnings, die by earnings. Years before I was even with them, Smith Barney's slogan was they "earned money the old-fashioned way, they earned it." Yesterday's post-close earnings quartet has gotten the market back up to last week's highs. This area that previously launched a confirmed breakout's reversal down. Only one higher piece of unfinished business remains at 3284.50, and some higher resistance that doesn't require being met at 3288.00 and 3303.00. New trend high closes on Fridays are not associated with trend extremes. Next week could still reverse down from today's new high close to fulfill lower unfinished business, but meanwhile that unfinished business keeps today vulnerable to already reversing down. Two consecutive sessions have rallied from a position of weakness, and also failed to close above their late tests of relevant resistance (3245.50 and 3250.50). Not trending up through the open would be even more vulnerable to reversing down intraday, which trending down through the open would be likely. Friday Factors could leverage any early sentiment, so be careful not to underestimate the room for even a false break to extend. First Trade... (9:45 preliminary indications for the 10:15 Bias parameters)

Exiting the open under 3243.00 would be unlikely to trigger the 3247.00 bias-up signal. Exiting the open above 3253.50 would be likely to trigger bias-up. Exiting the open above 3270.50 would be likely also to exceed the 3265.00 bias-up target and renew the bias-up signal.

About those earnings... As I noted this morning, yay for AAPL-AMZN-FB-GOOGL. But their 25{faed0d6dca04cec8b6b7985efddb9b0651107a3aebb05f69f0166038b8c951f6} representation of NDX or even of the entire economy is only that. Blowout Tech earnings don't benefit bottom lines of AA, BA, CAT, DE, etc. Anyway, those blowout earnings are now history, and so is their market impact. The 3258.00 open was essentially the middle of a multi-hour range. My pre-open chaRTroom update noted that a credible break of the pre-open range would be attempted during the open. And an opening attempt to break the range would be reliable. First Trade and the Market Tour had already noted that trending through the open would be likely to extend.

The first minute's 3260.50 to 3254.50 range kicked off the open's downtrend to 3242.50. Bearish. Narrower overlapping downtrending formed a Running Correction that resolved down. Bearish. Filling the gap back down to yesterday's 3239.00 cash session close barely slowed. Bearish. And the probe above this morning's 3247.00 bias-up signal was rejected at 10:15. Bearish.

The objective's offsetting test of the 3225.25 bias-down signal was met. Potentially bullish. Its test held through 10:30, despite plenty of time to break lower and invalidate the no-bias. Potentially bullish. The bias-down signal must define the bias window's lower-end. Potentially bullish.

Potentially bullish. But not necessarily, not without exploiting that time to exit the bias window back above some relevant resistance. Yesterday afternoon's 3243.50 highs would be a credible candidate. Otherwise, hovering at the bias-down signal's support would be conveniently postured to resume the decline.

FRI afternoon signal (triggered at 1:20 ET) SPX ES Bias-up: above 3251.25 3243.00 ...would target 3265.25 3257.00 Bias-down: under 3235.25 3227.25 ...would target 3219.00 3211.00 Signal status: BIAS-DOWN . BIAS VIDEOS... INTRO // EXAMPLE 1. At 1:20, trading above the bias-up signal or under the bias-down signal would put into play a test of its bias-up or bias-down target. 2. Not triggering either bias signal at 1:20 would be "no-bias," and the bias signals should define the bias environment's range. -- A test of the opposite bias signal would be targeted if one bias signal was tested before triggering no-bias. 3. Touching the bias signal within 3 minutes either way of 1:20 would invoke a grace period through 1:30 to trigger a late signal. -- "Late" signals don't require testing the opposite bias signal, but it's still likely. 4. Still testing the bias signal at 1:30 after invoking the grace period would trigger "noN-bias," with no bias influence.

This could run. A test of this morning's 3225.25 bias-down signal was put into play for having held a test of the 3247.00 bias-up signal. Being a no-bias environment, a test of 3225.25 was likely to define the window's lower-end. Fulfilling the objective probed it multiple times down to 3223.50, but it held as required.

Until holding it was no longer required.

Bouncing up to 3243.00 began reversing down as the bias environment began lapsing. The noon hour extended to fresh lows at 3212.50. This afternoon's 3227.25 bias-down signal triggered cleanly, and now its 3211.00 bias-down target is in-play. Currently, the 3227.25 bias-down signal is being retested as resistance. The pre-1:20 low has yet to be probed. So, exiting the bias environment back above its 3247.00 bias-up signal would invalidate the bias-down target.

Anything is possible on Friday afternoons.

Meanwhile, back under 3219.50 would signal the decline's momentum has resumed. Almost any fresh low would all but ensure probing under yesterday morning's 3195.00 low, which we knew yesterday would be retraced. But already being a position of weakness, fresh lows would have room down to 3160.00-3170.00. Today.

Again, anything is possible on Friday afternoons.

Surging after Thursday's close and into the Globex open had neutralized unfinished business at 3274.00. But overnight was only flat-to-lower, and the 3258.00 open collapsed through the first hour down to 3223.00. The noon hour's lower low at 3212.50 attacked its bias-down target to within 6 ticks, so it didn't become unfinished business. Combined with Friday Factors and month-end window dressing, the afternoon rallied through the close up to 3267.00. The afternoon upleg's measurement was similar to the objective of any break lower, targeting 3160.00-3170.00. Although still self-confined within a 2-week old range down to 3192.00, there is no lack of volatility. Regardless of detouring from completely retracing Thursday's rally, any higher high would all but ensure retesting the last outstanding unfinished business at 3284.50, presumably including 3288.00. That 2-week range's resolution could be the beginning of a much bigger trend, whether up or down. This past week had great potential for already resolving the 1-week old range. Now its persistence adds a wrinkle to the next resolution attempt. We'll discuss possible paths and consequences at Saturday Review. See details and other markets coverage in the post-market Wrap recording* here. *Manually open Adobe Connect (install on Windows or Mac), then paste the recording's link there. JOIN US AT 9:30 FOR THIS WEEKEND'S SATURDAY REVIEW.

MON morning signal (triggered at 10:15 ET) SPX ES Bias-up: above 3278.50 3270.50 ...would target 3291.25 3283.25 Bias-down: under 3263.00 3255.00 ...would target 3245.00 3237.00 Signal status: BIAS-UP, BIAS-UP TARGET EXCEEDED . BIAS VIDEOS... INTRO // EXAMPLE 1. At 10:15, trading above the bias-up signal or under the bias-down signal would put into play a test of its bias-up or bias-down target. 2. Not triggering either bias signal at 10:15 would be "no-bias," and the bias signals should define the bias environment's range. -- A test of the opposite bias signal would be targeted if one bias signal was tested before triggering no-bias. 3. Touching the bias signal within 3 minutes either way of 10:15 would invoke a grace period through 10:30 to trigger a late signal. -- "Late" signals don't require testing the opposite bias signal, but it's still likely. 4. Still testing the bias signal at 10:30 after invoking the grace period would trigger "noN-bias," with no bias influence.