The Nikkei 225 continues to present itself as the most bearish looking chart among the major global indices.

It should become evident soon whether the 9600 level will provide support, but if it doesn’t I would surmise that this index is headed back to the 9000 level, and the numerous technically weak signals will have been validated.




Part of the Nikkei story will hinge on the USD/JPY exchange rate, and as can be seen from the 4-hour chart captured during European trading on Thursday morning, this is also at a pivotal point.



The action in IWM yesterday, perhaps inevitably given the hoopla surrounding the FOMC statement, did not throw much new light on the question of whether the small-cap stocks have turned the corner.



Lexmark (LXK) has a positive-looking pullback channel.

The stock also has one of the most positive alpha readings from recent trading with a relatively subdued beta value of 0.7. One of the many screening filters which are available at the Tradewithform site shows stocks with alpha values above a minimum threshold. The associated beta value can be seen in the adjacent column.



The hourly chart for Citigroup (C) reveals an elongated descending wedge pattern and the action in the last few hours of trading yesterday suggests that the pattern is preparing for a breakout - which on the surface would appear to be to the downside - but somehow the pattern looks too obvious.



IYR, the exchange traded fund for US real estate has notably failed to reach back above a key moving average.



Clive Corcoran is the publisher of TradeWithForm.com, which provides daily analysis and commentary on the US stock market.