Stock Indices: Dow Jones with a retreat on Monday, lower oil prices, Caterpillar performance weigh

On Monday Dow Jones Industrial Average traded within the range of 17,668.62-17,782.92. The benchmark closed at 17,705.91, shedding 0.20% (34.22 points) on a daily basis. It has been the 29th drop in the past 69 trading days. The daily high has been the highest level since May 3rd, when a high of 17,870.75 was registered. The blue-chip gauge has retreated 0.38% so far during the current month, following three successive months of advance.

Crude oil futures marked their 46th drop out of the past 101 trading days on May 9th, as the wildfire in the Canadian oil sands area has affected the nations daily production capacity. Over a million barrels have been taken offline, according to reports in the media. This lost capacity equals roughly one third of Canada’s regular oil output per day. Oil futures for June delivery went down as low as $43.21 per barrel on May 9th, or the lowest price level since April 26th, and closed at $43.27, losing 3.01% compared to Friday’s close.

Among the companies included in the benchmark, 17 registered a decline and 13 recorded gains on Monday. The shares of Caterpillar Inc (CAT) recorded the worst performance within the Dow on May 9th, going down 3.52% to close at $70.78. It has been the 11th drop in the past 21 trading days and also the sharpest one since March 8th, when the stock fell 4.07%. May 9th low of $70.57 has been the lowest level since March 10th, when a low of $70.49 was registered. Caterpillar shares have lost 8.93% of their value so far in May, following three consecutive months of advance. In April the stock went up 1.54%. Caterpillars performance was heavily influenced by an over 2-percent slump in prices of gold on Monday.

At the same time, the shares of Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT) recorded the most notable daily increase within the DJIA for a second straight trading session on May 9th, going up 1.03%, to close at $68.95, while marking their 12th gain in the past 21 trading days and also a fourth consecutive one. May 9th high of $69.10 has been the highest price level since April 28th, when a high of $69.62 was registered. Wal-Mart has added 3.11% to its market value so far in May, following a 2.37% drop in April. Last week the worlds largest retailer revealed its plans to fill 10 000 front-of-the-store greeter positions across the United States in a larger campaign aimed to steadily raise employees wages.

Daily and Weekly Pivot Levels

By employing the Camarilla calculation method, the Tuesday pivot levels for DJIA are presented as follows:

R1 – 17,716.39
R2 – 17,726.87
R3 (range resistance) – 17,737.34
R4 (range breakout) – 17,768.78

S1 – 17,695.43
S2 – 17,684.96
S3 (range support) – 17,674.48
S4 (range breakout) – 17,643.05

By using the traditional method of calculation, the weekly pivot levels for DJIA are presented as follows:

Central Pivot Point – 17,744.45
R1 – 17,908.53
R2 – 18,076.42
R3 – 18,240.50

S1 – 17,576.56
S2 – 17,412.48
S3 – 17,244.59