Current Market Snapshot

Current Market Snapshot: "
September 30, 2010
The S&P 500 closed the day down 0.31%. The year-to-date performance is 2.34%, but the correction since the interim high on April 23 is -6.59%. The index is 68.7% above the March 9 2009 closing low but 27.1% below the peak in October 2007.

Click for a larger image

Here is a StockCharts.com candlestick chart showing the relationship of the S&P 500 to its 50- and 200-day simple moving averages.
For a better sense of how these declines figure into a larger historical context, here's a long-term view of secular bull and bear markets in the S&P Composite since 1871.
For a bit of international flavor, here's a chart series that includes an overlay of the S&P 500, the Dow Crash of 1929 and Great Depression, and the so-called L-shaped "recovery" of the Nikkei 225. I update these weekly.
These charts are not intended as a forecast but rather as a way to study the current market in relation to historic market cycles.
"