The major averages closed XXXXXX as investors digested the latest round of economic data. Volume, an important indicator of institutional sponsorship, was XXXXXX than Tuesday’s levels, revealing a lack of appetite for accumulating shares from very large and influential institutional investors. Advancers led decliners by nearly a X-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a X-to-2 ratio on the Nasdaq exchange. There were XX high-ranked companies from the CANSLIM.net Leaders List that made a new 52-week high and appeared on the CANSLIM.net BreakOuts Page, XXXXXX from the total of 52 issues that appeared on the prior session. New 52-week highs solidly outnumbered new 52-week lows on the NYSE and on the Nasdaq exchange.

Investors digested a flurry of economic data on Wednesday. The Mortgage Bankers’ Association (MBA) said its purchase application index fell -11.6% while the refinance index fell -10.1% which were way below consensus. The report showed that long term mortgage rates remain extremely low with 30-year loans averaging +4.92%. At 10:00 AM EST, the Commerce Department said new home sales plunged -11% in November to a 355,000 annual rate which fell short of estimates. Furthermore, the report included downward revisions of 42,000 in the prior two months. New home sales measure the number of newly constructed homes with a committed sale during the prior month.

Elsewhere, personal income in November rose by +0.4%, following a rise of +0.3% in October. This was just below the Street’s estimate of a +0.5% gain. The wages and salaries component of the report rose +0.3% after a +0.1% increase in October. The report showed that inflation eased last month which since the headline PCE price inflation fell to +0.2% from +0.3% in October. Core PCE inflation was unchanged in November from up +0.2% in October.

Looking at the market, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and benchmark S&P 500 index both closed near their respective resistance levels as they quietly consolidate their recent gains in lighter pre-holiday levels. Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite continues to lead its peers as it managed to hit another 2009 high today. Remember that the S&P 500 plunged -57% from its all time high in October 2007 to its March 2009 low. Since then, the market has rebounded over +65% but still remains -29% below its all-time high of 1,576. In addition, the index has retraced nearly -50% of its decline which is a popular Fibonacci level used by many technical analysts. Normally, markets rebound approximately 50% before resuming their prior trend (which would be another leg down in this case). Longstanding readers of this column know that we do not predict what will happen, instead we remain open to any possible scenario that may unfold and interpret what we see happening.

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