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

DAILY SCHEDULE First, watch the pre-open Tour recording HERE <<== Then, meet in the chaRTroom here by 9:15 ET for updates and Q&A

Through the prior close... Sunday night's Globex open had been preceded 20 minutes earlier by a favorable Trump tweet about China trade. Gapping up to 2799.50 extended only momentarily to 2803.50 and ranged narrowly sideways, before retracing the gap to 2794.50. That found actual buyers, and Monday's open was greeted at 2808.00. Extending higher to 2813.50 at the bias environment high was isolated by noon, reversing the intraday trend. A lot. The balance of the session slid to within 2 ticks of the 2794.50 Globex low. Monday's opening gap up above all prior highs was left outstanding for retest from below. Also, last Thursday's bearish Isolation setup was invalidated unless reinstated by proxy at Tuesday's open. Overnight action's new info... Monday's close had made a hold-short compelling. Globex didn't delay extending down to within 3 ticks of what is this morning's bias-down signal at 2791.50. A bounce soon failed and the decline extended down to 2783.50 well before midnight. Recovering back up into and out of Europe's opens touched 2791.50. Its reaction down to 2785.00 was fully retraced to retest 2791.50, where another reaction down is developing. If, then... (notes to accompany the Tour recording) Sunday's Trump tweet was only the first taste of the week's catalysts for price action. Trump is in Vietnam meeting with South Korea's Un, just as India-Pakistan conflicts escalate. Meanwhile, the Fed Chair's 2-day semi-annual Congressional testimony begins today, with the embargo on his opening remarks is to be lifted at 9:45 -- just as the opening 15 minutes of volatility would normally lapse. Enhanced volatility could both gap down to reinstate last Thursday's bearish Isolation setup, and also bounce to neutralize the attraction above at yesterday's open. Regardless of the bigger picture agenda, volatility through tomorrow morning should offer plenty of trade setups... Here's yesterday's video example of a live Risk:Reward analysis, which will be added to the Knowledge Base. First Trade... [Click here to view the Bias parameters] Exiting the open at 9:45 above 2795.50 would be unlikely to trigger the 2791.50 bias-down signal at 10:15. Exiting the open under 2788.00 would be likely to trigger bias-down.

Gap down holds relevant support. Rallying from the 2783.25 overnight low had reached 2792.50 before opening at this morning's 2791.50 bias-down signal. It held. Trending up more steeply through the first half-hour reached 2800.00. Meanwhile, the bias-down signal held its test through 10:15 to trigger no-bias. An offsetting test of the bias-up signal is in-play. An offsetting test of the 2802.00 bias-up target is in-play. 2800.00 has been pierced since 10:15 by only 1 tick, which still qualifies as confirmation. A pullback has room down to 2795.25 before even suggesting another dip is underway, probably targeting 2784.25.

TUE afternoon signal (triggered at 1:20 ET) SPX ES Bias-up: above 2801.00 2801.25 ...would target 2807.50 2807.75 Bias-down: under 2793.50 2794.00 ...would target 2788.25 2788.75 Signal status: NO-BIAS, TESTED BIAS-DOWN SIGNAL . 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.

Morning's volatility meets afternoon's no-bias signal. Holding a test of this morning's 2791.50 bias-down signal through 10:15 had put into play an offsetting test of the 2802.00 bias-up signal. Volatility and false starts wasn't surprising -- already suggested by the pre-open patterns we discussed during the Market Tour. Opening at 2701.50 and rallied to 2800.00, including an extra tick after 10:15 which usually confirms the bigger picture. The bigger picture got bigger with a quick dip to 2789.50. It was recovered and reversed as quickly up to 2802.00 during the bias environment. Its retest held and the noon hour was entered back under the morning's high. This afternoon's 2794.00 bias-down signal held as support through 1:20 to trigger no-bias. An offsetting test of the bias-up signal is not required. Probing under the bias-down signal is unlikely, but probing under it would target 2780.00 and require being retraced. Probing the bias window either way any later could extend in that direction.

Perhaps it was just defensive posturing ahead of Tuesday morning's Fed Chair Senate testimony. Monday's slide from its 2814.00 morning high had extended overnight down to 2783.25. The relatively deep decline didn't prevent recovering to greet the open back up at 2791.50 support. It was also the morning's bias-down signal, and holding its support put into play at test of 2802.00. The first attack stopped 2 points short before Powell comments seemed to trigger a retest of 2791.50 by 2 points. But there was just enough time and plenty of volatility to test the objective up to 2803.25 by noon. A mid-day dip ranged narrowly throughout the afternoon's no-bias environment. The window's exit rallied back to morning highs, but only back to morning highs. Tuesday's last half-hour retraced the mid-day lows, and lower as futures settled back at 2791.50 support. Just as the afternoon recovery's steepness left it vulnerable to any hesitation, the rejection's steepness now leaves it vulnerable to another recovery. A retest of Monday night's 2783.25 low can't be dismissed, since its recovery's ultimate productivity only fluctuated around unchanged. Otherwise, not already probing lower at Wednesday's open probably will have begun recovering Tuesday's late drop. Details and other markets coverage are discussed in the post-market Wrap recording here. Monitor overnight Globex trading in the chaRTroom here.

WED morning signal (triggered at 10:15 ET) SPX ES Bias-up: above 2800.75 2801.00 ...would target 2807.75 2808.00 Bias-down: under 2790.25 2790.75 ...would target 2783.75 2784.25 Signal status: BIAS-DOWN, BIAS-DOWN TARGET MET . 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.