The indices started off the week with a thud, as they opened slightly mixed, but then began falling sharply for the rest of the morning until around 11 am, when the market stabilized for a couple hours and then slowly moved back upward.  But the move looked more corrective than bearish in nature, and despite the fact that they managed to recover off the lows, at the very end of the day they pulled back again

Net on the day the Dow was down 88 1/3, the S&P 500 down 7 Ã,½, Nasdaq 100 down 17 Ã,¾, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOXX) down 4.60.

Advance-declines told the tale, 2 to 1 negative on New York and a like amount on Nasdaq.  Up/down volume was 2 Ã,½ to 1 negative on New York, on lighter volume of 1.4 billion.  Nasdaq volume was a bit lighter as well, at 1.86 billion, with a negative ratio of better than 4 to 1.

TheTechTrader.com board was mostly narrowly mixed except for a few issues.  The big gainer of the day was Pacific Ethanol (PEIX), up 1.19 on 3.6 million, and portfolio holding Home Inns & Hotels (HMIN) was up 1.

Other gains of note, China GrenTech (GRRF) was up 61 cents, Gmarket (GMKT) 53 cents, and Fuel Tech (FTEK) 58 cents.  Low-priced Sigmatel was up 39 cents due to a contract with Samsung.

On the downside, Sigma Designs (SIGM) got crushed for 3 Ã,¾ on 3.9 million shares, very heavy volume for that stock.  Other losses of note, ISIS Pharmaceuticals (ISIS) was down 37 cents, NeoMagic (NMGC) 39 cents, Nuance Communications (NUAN) 32 cents, and Fuwei Films (FFHL) 31 cents.  The Qs (QQQQ) lost 48 cents, and the US Oil Fund (USO), despite being more than a point higher in the morning, reversed sharply and closed down 52 cents on the day, as oil gave back its early gains.

Stepping back and reviewing the hourly chart patterns, the 4-day slide continued today in earnest in the morning, and consolidated in the afternoon, and it appears the trend is lower and not finished yet to the downside.  The keys to watch for tomorrow will be today’s lows, with support at around 1771 NDX and 1421 S&P.

Harry Boxer is a technical consultant to many Wall Street hedge funds and large institutional traders, and author of TheTechTrader.com, a real-time diary of his day, swing and intermediate-term trades. For more of Harry Boxer, sign up for a free 15-day trial to his Real-Time Technical Trading Diary, or sign up for a free 30-day trial to his Top Charts of the Week service.