Objective Observations

A sizable opening push lower in the broad market is driving home the message that this tape is still correcting part of the two-month rally since Christmas. In front of a widely-anticipated jobs number tomorrow morning, bears are wrestling for the initiative with plenty of technical reference points on the line, having prevented bulls from initially recapturing 2800 on the S&P 500 Index with any sort of comfort. 

Unlike yesterday, though, when the small caps in the IWM led lower, today we have the small caps down less than their larger cap brethren in the senior indices. Beyond that, I am seeing some healthcare and tech growth plays flash green, including GBT GH TWLO. 

Naturally, seeing a handful of names marginally flash green is insufficient evidence that the selling has run its course. In fact, if they succumb back to red it could mean that the overall market pressures are so heavy as to render bounces in vain, which could reinforce the short-term bear case lower. 

Also note that gold miners are ignoring a gap higher in the U.S. Dollar this morning, which is exactly what gold bugs needed to do to make a better case for a secondary gold miner rally.  We still have quite a few gold miner longs on watch with Members and will strongly consider going long one or more of them by day's end if they continue to defy the greenback's strength. 

As for equities, a small cap rally back to flattish on the session in the IWM may very well put the heat on new shorts here. But headed into this particular big jobs report and its Fed ramifications I think anyone leaning too heavily ought to understand the greater risk for being caught offsides.