It was another sloppy session for the market yesterday, as decliners more than doubled advancers on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and NASDAQ.

Down volume significantly outpaced up volume, and new lows exceeded new highs.

New 52-week lows continue to march higher, with 257 on NASDAQ, and 122 on the NYSE.

Defensive Session

Five sectors traded higher in the S&P 500 (SPX), but all were defensive in nature. Health Care (XLV) led the pack, although there are concerns about near-term earnings growth.

Utilities (XLU) traded higher, as did Real Estate (XLRE), despite higher yields. Consumer Discretionary (XLY) was lower on growing concerns about consumers' ability to keep defending against higher gasoline prices.

Micron Technology (MU) posted a remarkable intraday reversal, as the buy-on-dips crew made their move, but for the most part, buyers held back.

Factors

You know it was a rough session when only large-caps low volatility eked out a diminished gain. Large-cap stocks suffered the smallest declines.

Small-Caps Lose a Step

I’m watching small-caps closely as they continue to squander the mojo that sent them skyrocketing. The IWM (Russell 2000) is close to a pivotal support level, and to both the 50-and 200-day moving averages. If it holds here, that would be a buy signal – we are watching.

NVDA At the Plate

The Street is looking for big moves in Nvidia (NVDA) after the close, when it posts its quarterly financial results.

Lastly, the stock has slipped after posting results, even though it has always beaten the Street. Long-term investors have endured it for massive rewards over the years, but the stakes are higher after the monumental artificial intelligence (AI) rally.

Chip Stocks Await Jensen & Co.

Today’s Session

Futures have been moving higher all morning, while yields and oil are modestly lower. During the day we will hear from Fed speakers, before the main event after the close, when Nvidia (NVDA) reports results.

In other news, EU has reached a trade agreement with the US to sidestep additional tariffs.

Comments

Now that SpaceX has finally announced the June 12th IPO, are you considering an entry recommendation? No price was announced yet so much will depend on the offer but I expect actual launch date will open at least 3X the announced price. Elon says he’s going to be CEO, CTO and Chairman of SpaceX. Terry Lavis on 5/20/2026 6:35:30 PM

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