Bear Radar

Style Underperformer:

• Small-Cap Growth -1.0%

Sector Underperformers:

• 1) Airlines -2.2% 2) Networking -2.2% 3) Restaurants -.7%

Stocks Falling on Unusual Volume: 

• INSM, RYAAY, CSBR, VICR, APPN, NKTR, CAMP, DOCU, DXCM, PGTI, CALM, TRUP and SERV

Stocks With Unusual Put Option Activity:

• 1) AVEO 2) URBN 3) GME 4) NKTR 5) PEP

Stocks With Most Negative News Mentions:

• 1) INFN 2) SHLO 3) CALM 4) REVG 5) MEI

Charts:

• ETFs Falling on Unusual Volume
• Stocks Falling on Unusual Volume

Bull Radar

Style Outperformer:

• Large-Cap Growth +.6%

Sector Outperformers:

• 1) Energy +2.0% 2) Road & Rail +1.4% 3) Steel +1.3%

Stocks Rising on Unusual Volume:

• SBLK, GE, NTGN, AMRN, WSC, BOJA, EEFT, SLDB, MGA, MDCO, PYX, CNQ, VIAV, AVD, TSLA, DVA, SFIX, CBMG, AVLR, BHC, VRA, MEOH, ARA, VRTV and CLAR

Stocks With Unusual Call Option Activity:

• 1) SHPG 2) XHB 3) DXJ 4) NKTR 5) GILD

Stocks With Most Positive News Mentions:

• 1) SGEN 2) ROKU 3) WSC 4) KSU 5) MDCO

Charts:

• ETFs Rising on Unusual Volume
• Stocks Rising on Unusual Volume

Morning Market Internals

NYSE Composite Index:

• Volume Running +12.3% Above 100-Day Average
• 9 Sectors Rising, 2 Sectors Declining
• 55.5% of Issues Advancing, 40.7% Declining
• 69 New 52-Week Highs, 58 New Lows
• 48.5% of Issues Above 200-day Moving Average
• Average 14-Day RSI 45.2%
• Vix 11.6 -4.1%
• Total Put/Call .95 -8.7%
• TRIN/Arms .65 -44.3%

Monday Watch

Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:          

• President Trump's Nafta Deal With Canada Is Close.

• Canadian Dollar Rises to Four-Month High Before Deadline.

• China’s Manufacturers Slow in September as Trade War Worsens.  

• Australia's Property Downturn Chalks Up One-Year Anniversary.

• Li Ka-shing’s Husky Goes Hostile in Chinese Battle for Canada’s Oil Sands.

• Asian Stocks See a Muted Start; Oil Ticks Higher. Stocks in Asia kicked off the final quarter in muted fashion, in a holiday-affected start to the week. Volumes are likely to be thin Monday, with Labor Day in Australia, Hong Kong’s market shut and China’s closed through Oct. 7. Japan’s two main equity benchmarks opened mixed, while holiday-hit Australian stocks started with small losses, and Korea’s benchmark was up. S&P 500 Index futures climbed after the benchmark saw the best quarter since 2013. Oil extended gains on concern of an impending supply crunch. U.S. 10-year Treasury yields ticked higher, to 3.07 percent. The Canadian dollar rose as the U.S. and Canada engaged in last-minute negotiations to update Nafta by Sunday’s deadline. Nikkei 225 rose 0.1 percent and Topix Index fell 0.3 percent. Kospi gained 0.3 percent. S&P 500 Index futures gained 0.3 percent with the benchmark closing flat on Friday.

• Oil Is One More Headache For Emerging Asia's Tightening Plans.

Wall Street Journal:   

• U.S., Canada Near a Deal on Nafta as Midnight Deadline Looms. 

• This Is No Mere ‘Job Interview’. 

• Theresa May, Facing Hard Deadline, Struggles to Navigate Treacherous Brexit Politics.

• U.S. Stocks Open Fourth Quarter Near Record Highs.

MarketWatch.com:

• Facebook(FB) may face $1.63 billion EU fine for breach.

Fox News:

• Liberal sen. doesn't answer when asked whether Dems leaked Ford's letter.

• GINGRICH: Liberal cash from California and New York flooding gov's race.

CNBC:

• California governor signs law mandating women on corporate boards of publicly-traded companies.

• The Fed could be hiking the US into a recession, investor Peter Boockvar warns.

• Trump uses Kavanaugh delay as rallying cry for midterm elections.

• China factory sector hurt in September as trade frictions bite.

Zero Hedge:        

• Canada PM Trudeau Calls 10PM Cabinet Meeting With Nafta Deal Announcement Imminent.

• Grassley Refers Potential False Kavanaugh Accuser To FBI/DOJ For Criminal Investigation.

• Still No Motive On Anniversary Of Las Vegas Massacre; Strip Goes Dark In Commemoration.

• Kanye West Booed During Pro-Trump Political Speech On SNL.

• Trump Blasts "Obstruct & Delay" Democrats As White House Denies "Micromanaging" Kavanaugh Probe.

• WSJ Can't Corroborate Kavanaugh Accuser's "Gang Bang" Account After "Dozens" Contacted.

• "Mass Burials", Looting Begins As Death Toll From Indonesia Quake And Tsunami Hits 832.

•  CNN Founder Ted Turner: Network "Sticking With Politics A Little Too Much".

Business Insider:

• Kellyanne Conway reveals that she is a victim of sexual assault in emotional CNN interview.

• Here's what legal experts are saying about the SEC's settlement with Elon Musk.

Night Trading

• Asian indices are -.25% to +.5% on average.

• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 80.25 -.5 basis point.

• Asia Pacific Sovereign CDS Index 9.0 -.25 basis point.

• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 66.89 unch.

• FTSE 100 futures -.25%

• S&P 500 futures +.37%.

• NASDAQ 100 futures +.47%.

Morning Preview Links

Earnings of Note

Company/Estimate
Before the Open:

• (CALM)/.45

After the Close:

• (SFIX)/.04

Economic Releases

10:00 am EST

• Construction Spending MoM for August is estimated to rise +.5% versus a +.1% gain in July. 

• ISM Manufacturing for September is estimated to fall to 60.0 versus 61.3 in August.

• ISM Prices Paid for September is estimated to fall to 71.4 versus 72.1 in August.

Afternoon

• Wards Total Vehicle Sales for Sept. are estimated to rise to 16.9M versus 16.6M in August.

Upcoming Splits

• None of note
  

Other Potential Market Movers

• The Fed's Rosengren speaking, Fed's Bostic speaking, Eurozone PMI report, Eurozone Unemployment Rate report, Cantor Fitzgerald Healthcare Conference and the (BABA) analyst day could also impact trading today.

BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are mostly higher, boosted by industrial and technology shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open modestly higher and to maintain gains into the afternoon.  The Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the week.

Weekly Outlook

• Wall St. Week Ahead by Reuters. 

• Weekly Market Outlook by Yahoo. (video)

• Stocks to Watch Next Week by Seeking Alpha.

• Weekly Economic Calendar by Briefing.com.

BOTTOM LINE: I expect US stocks to finish the week modestly higher on technical buying, diminishing trade war fears, less emerging markets currency/debt angst, stable long-term rates, yen weakness and oil gains. My intermediate-term trading indicators are giving neutral signals and the Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the week.

Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:     

• U.S. and Canada Are Close to Reaching Nafta Deal This Weekend.

• Record Quarter for Stocks Saw FAANGs Take Back Seat to Health.  

• China to Keep Prudent, Neutral Monetary Policy, PBOC Says.

• 'No Way' North Korea Disarms Without U.S. Trust, Diplomat Says.

• ECB Rate-Hike Momentum Could Be Hampered by Fear of Euro Gains.

• Einhorn's Worst Year Ever: Greenlight Losses Swell to 26%.

• After Another Quarter of Losses, Is Worst Over for Commodities?   

• Emerging-Market Currencies Ride Out Fed Hike, Trade-Row Escalation.  

Wall Street Journal:   

• Canadian Officials Locked in Nafta Talks With U.S.

• Criminals With Dirty Money Find Ally in Crypto Startups.

• Lower-Income Americans Drive Up Consumer Sentiment in September.

• Real Estate Developers Rush to Capitalize on Tax Incentive.

• Europe Is Left in the Dust as U.S. Stocks Roar.

• Investors Say They Were Harmed by Manipulation in Volatility Products.

• Another Kavanaugh Flakeout.

Barron's:

• Had bullish commentary on (HAS), (ILMN), (CERN), (XRAY), (BDX), (DHR), (TMO), (URI), (VMC), (JEC) and (COWN).

• Had bearish commentary on (TRUP).

MarketWatch.com:  

• The key to record highs in U.S. stocks: earnings.

Fox News:

• Graham says McCain's anger at Kavanaugh hearing 'would have made me look like a choir boy'.

• Jeff Flake defends controversial move to call for Kavanaugh delay, FBI probe.

CNBC:  

• 72-year-old Fidelity bets on the future with blockchain, virtual reality and AI.

• S&P 500 posts best quarter since 2013.

• Death toll jumps to 384 after tsunami, quake in Indonesia.

• SEC fraud charges aren't the only legal woes Tesla CEO Elon Musk is facing.

• Tesla(TSLA) shares are in freefall — Here's what experts are saying about the stock.

• Cramer: People in Silicon Valley tell me Facebook is a hated company that broke their trust.

Zero Hedge:

• Did Maxine Waters' Office Doxx GOP Senators During Kavanaugh Testimony?

• Kavanaugh Vote Delayed One Week As Trump Orders New FBI Investigation.

• Bill Maher Makes Homophobic Joke About Lindsey Graham And "Dead Boyfriend" John McCain.

• Hedge Funds Suffer First Quarterly Outflows Since 2016.

• US Evacuating Consulate In Iraq, Citing Threats From Iran.

• Kavanaugh, The Disgust Circuit, And The Limits Of "Nuts & Sluts".

• 1 In 4 Baltimore Hospital Admissions Are Babies Addicted To Opioids.

• Upside Down World: Junk Bonds Set For Record Winning Streak As High Grade Suffers Worst Year Since 2008.

• Former Employer Sued Third Kavanaugh Accuser For Sexual Harassment Allegations.

• EU, UK, Russia, & China Join Together To Dodge US Sanctions On Iran.

• NJ Pension Fund Could Dump $44 Million Nike(NKE) Stake Over Kaepernick Ads.

• You Gave Facebook(FB) Your Number For Security. They Used It For Ads.

• Weekend Reading: Fiscal Irresponsibility.

• Trade Tantrums & Trump Turmoil Spark Best Quarter For US Stocks In 5 Years.

Business Insider:

• The FDA just approved a new treatment for a common form of skin cancer.

• Canadian troops can now grow beards and smoke weed.

• The Facebook hack affecting 50 million people also let the attackers access users' Tinder, Spotify, and Instagram accounts.