It was a roller-coaster week on Wall Street, with the major market indexes experiencing their fair share of slumps, losing streaks, rebounds, and record highs. Encouragement over the Republican tax plan lifted most stocks early in the week, but another tech stock sell-off caught Wall Street off-guard. However, the tech sector ultimately rebounded, and aided by some upbeat economic and political news later in the week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), S&P 500 Index (SPX), and Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) are all aiming for weekly wins.
The Dow is attempting to eke out a slight gain in the first week of December, which would secure a three-week winning streak. The index notched anotherall-time record to start the week -- and made a rare technical signal -- as did the S&P. However, the latter index ultimately suffered its longest daily losing streak in nine months, before snapping higher on Thursday.
The Nasdaq, meanwhile, started the week with a hefty tech selloff, just after the Nasdaq-100 (NDX) saw a notable number ofbuying climaxes. It was more of the same for the IXIC, as last week's underperformance sparked a rare divergence signal. However, tech stocks turned it around mid-week, and the Nasdaq is attempting to finish the week in the black
The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) is headed for a weekly loss, after last week flashing a rare divergence signal of its own.
Among the tech names that made noise this week, the semiconductor sector saw increased put buying activity -- including Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) -- while lesser-known OSI Systems (OSIS) was blasted by options bears after comments from short seller Muddy Waters. Meanwhile, this semiconductor stock is poised for a big December, if history is any indicator.
FAANG stocks also struggled early in the week, but managed to bounce back. Once again, Amazon proved to be a formidable foe for many industries, and analysts are particularly concerned for these 2 healthcare stocks.
On the earnings front, a handful of well-received reports helped the Nasdaq turn it around mid-week. Lululemon (LULU) sent shorts scrambling with its earnings beat, and Apple supplier Broadcom (AVGO) also rallied.
Elsewhere, American Outdoor Brands (AOBC) delivered a lackluster report that dragged down gun stocks, while JinkoSolar's (JKS) well-received report disappointed options bears. Rounding out the stragglers, Dollar General (DG) and Toll Brothers (TOL) made notable moves after their reports.
Elsewhere, Bitcoin continues raise eyebrows ahead of its futures launch on the CBOE Sunday. The headline-grabbing cryptocurrency continued to demonstrate its volatility, soaring to another record high this week, before pulling back. Square (SQ) continues to be a primary benefactor of the bitcoin rise, whileshares of Overstock (OSTK) are burning shorts with its digital coin exchange.
Along with bitcoin futures, next week will feature the highly anticipated Fed meeting, where traders expect a December rate hike. The big event, along with the Basel III agreement today and hopes for U.S. tax reform, had the banking sector and bank stocks Bank of America (BAC), Citigroup (C) and Goldman Sachs (GS) buzzing all week.