so far, so... so not convincing?

the markets were strong today - it wasn't surprising - they were overdue for a bounce, and the previous day's failed attempt along with the asian markets rallying overnight triggered some buying or covering, or both. the absolute and % gains for the day on the indexes were impressive. but what about the volume? i compiled a graphic below showing the last 23 days or so on the three major indexes. today's gains (retracing) were accomplished on the lowest volume since last tuesday's plunge. is this buying with conviction or shorts protecting profits? or something else? who knows? who cares? i am believer in paying attention to price and volume. big gains with big volume tend to stick as so big losses with big volume. big gains or losses on little volume tend not to stick, or rather to be be less indicative of what lies ahead. the same goes for breakouts, breakdowns and any other big moves.

the real question then becomes: what does today's action say about the short term? well, anything can happen tomorrow - but for the moment i the prospects of more significant downside remain. and as for getting through tomorrow, i'll be looking at the stocks that were relatively weak today despite the observed market strength [see this post].