Charting the Markets: This Chart of the S&P Is Still Bullish. But for How Long?

• Earnings season opened weak; banks sold off and hot PPI data (15% annualized) spooked markets. • Market volatility returned with two 1%+ down days; semiconductors and other leading groups lost momentum. • S&P 500 weekly chart stays bullish but barely, with MACD on a sell signal and bearish volume trends ahead of tech/industrial earnings. Earnings season's first week brought little good news. Banks led off and sold off post-earnings, as usual. Markets then got spooked by hot inflation data—especially a producer price index with a 15% annualized headline number. That's extreme, though not surprising given higher energy, gas, and food costs. Consumers are clearly feeling the pinch. Stocks fell more than 1% on two of the week's last three days, bringing back volatility. Former leaders like semiconductors went missing, and volume trends turned bearish as several sectors went AWOL. The S&P 500's weekly chart remains bullish, if barely—bulls get the benefit of the doubt for now. MACD is on a sell signal, Stochastics turned lower again, and money flow has dipped but stays positive. Another down week or two would shift the outlook to cautious. Bearish volume trends arriving just as heavy tech and industrial earnings loom is a concerning setup.