Summary for Week Ending 20th December 2002

Please Note - There will be no report next weekend. I, like you should be, will be enjoying the holiday season.

The Year is closing with its usual infectious boredom. As I mentioned last week, we were looking for a decent confirmation of the lower swing gap down. In all reality this is a pathological bearish pattern, which usually signals a considerable acceleration and very swift confirmation. Looking at the week that has passed, we have received everything but. I also warned that any evidence of further congestion was a signal to go fishing. Well I didn't go fishing, but I should have.

Looking closer at the week that was, The previous Fridays low needed to be confirmed. Monday gave us the opposite, so the downside possibilities were starting to look fragile. As the market has come back into the congestion range, it has done just that. This sort of market is a hoot for option writers, however for players such as myself who a looking at the opposite side, this listless market is deadly for Option premiums.

Looking forward, there is still the Christmas date this week, however this is looking poorly at present. Best possibility for this date is a minor low leading up to a rally taking us into Jan, where there are plenty of dates to play with, the most notable being 16/17th. As the year is dragging to a close, attentions are more on Holiday Destinations than market directions, and as such we can expect volume to start to dissipate. The are a couple of news items that may focus attention, however the wish would be that the holiday period is event free from radical expressions.

As this is the last message for 2002, I would like to thank all who have made their presence known. and those who return regularly with anonymity. Since starting this corner of the world a little over a year ago, this weekly outpouring has attracted over 1000 regulars a week, and thankfully, the software sales have been sufficient to keep this section free. For those who think otherwise, let me inform you, this is not a $$ million venture. My purposes for writing this market outlook are twofold. First it helps maintain my focus on the markets and what is important... and to hopefully pass on some of what I know about market analysis and a bit about some of the techniques of the Gann approach. I have always stated at the outset, I am no guru in this, but my knowledge of the subject is very strong. Looking back I have had some good calls, Oct 10 springs most notable to mind. I've also had some dogs, but thats the nature of the game. The object is always to capitalise on the goodies and cut the crappy ones early.

In closing.. I wish everyone a profitable and safe 2003.

Best Regards

Bill Voeten