The consolidation pattern that permeated the market for the last two months (with slight advances) has developed a solid base for the summer. June reversed higher from support and ended the week strong (above the March/April highs, the continuation 20 – week SMA (for the first time since the January high and the historically important January low). The rally was extended toward resistance defined by the December low, 38.2% retracement of the decline from the January high to the March Q I low and the wide “expiration” gap left following February expiration. For three days June traded around that resistance, each day finding support at the upper boundary of the trading range that June defined between mid – March and the beginning of May. On Thursday the prompt reversed higher from that support and traded to the highest price since late January (with strong volume (the highest daily turnover since 02/21).
June settled back from a higher high on Friday, $2.344, to end the week at $2.252 (the highest weekly close since 01/26), still well short of closing the aforementioned “expiration” gap (a fraction of which remains open between $2.344 and $2.411) and 50% retracement of the Q I decline ($2.437). Given increasing volume and what appears to be relatively modest short covering there is a significant likelihood that June won’t turn back down until the resistance above is seriously challenged.
