LIVE MARKETS-With tech on a tear, Nasdaq targets its highs

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WITH TECH ON A TEAR, NASDAQ TARGETS ITS HIGHS

The Nasdaq composite .IXIC ended Wednesday up for a third-straight day at 19,460.49. The prevailing trend has the tech-laden index aiming for key chart hurdles, including its record highs.

Indeed, thanks to a resurgence in tech .SPLRCT, the composite has now advanced 27.5% from its April 8 close, and as much as 32% from its April 7 intraday low. This puts the IXIC in positive territory for the year, up about 0.8%, and up 12.5% quarter-to-date.

With this, it's now down just 3.54% from its December 16 record closing high, and 3.68% from its December 16 record intraday high.

Of note, tech is the best performing S&P 500 index .SPX sector so far this quarter, up about 15.5%. Chips .SOX are doing even better with a 17.9% QTD rise. The NYSE FANG+ index, which provides exposure to 10 of today's highly traded tech giants, (including six of the Mag 7 stocks), has surged 22.3% QTD.

In fact, this week, NYFANG has completely erased its February-April collapse, and is hitting fresh record highs.

Meanwhile, the composite is now nearing the resistance line from its record intraday high, which now resides around 19,820, and presents a tough hurdle in itself:

The early 2025 highs were at 20,110.12 and 20,118.61. The December 16 record close was at 20,173.89 and the record intraday high was at 20,204.58.

Significant support resides in the 18,599.69-18,068.90 area. This zone includes the May 23 low at 18,599.69, the 200-day moving average (DMA) and the Fibonacci-based 233-DMA, which now reside in the 18,495-18,365 area. The March 25 high was at 18,281.13, and the May 12 weekly gap requires a fall to 18,096 for a fill (and 18,068.90 daily basis).

On weakness, bulls would look for this zone to provide fertile ground for a resumption of the advance. The rising 50-DMA ended Wednesday around 17,768.

(Terence Gabriel)

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