With a few exceptions, 4,200 on the S&P 500 has proven to be a nearly impenetrable barrier for U.S. stocks over the past year.
Seemingly like clockwork, the large-cap U.S. equity benchmark on Tuesday was retreating from that level once again as stocks suffered a steep daily fall. The S&P 500 SPX was down around 48 points, or 1.2%, near 4,120 in late afternoon trade, after hitting an intraday high around 4,186 on Monday. So, what is it, exactly, that makes 4,200 so intimidating for stock-market bulls? Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group, dispelled the notion that some magical force might be at play during a phone interview with MarketWatch.
Wald and his team maintain that the 2022 bear-market ended back in October when the S&P 500 briefly broke below 3,500 to trade at its lowest level since November 2020.“We’re stuck between a bull and a bear market in this environment where everybody gets to be proven wrong,” Wald said.