Trader’s Notebook: S&P 500

3:30 p.m. New York time

Half an hour before the closing bell. The S&P 500 futures continued to fall during the session, reaching into the 5880s so far.

Elliott Wave Theory: The decline confirms that the final subwave, descending wave C, of the 4th-wave downward correction that began on May 19 is underway.

9:35 a.m. New York time

What’s happening now. The S&P 500 E-mini futures fell sharply overnight, from a high of 6008, and has so far reached into the 5940s.

What does it mean? Using Elliott Wave Theory analysis, I’ve concluded that rising wave B, the middle subwave within a 4th-wave downward correction that began on May 19, ended at the peak, and the final subwave, falling wave C, began.

The two most common types of B waves are the Zigzag and the Flat. If the A wave has three subwaves, then it’s a ZigZag, and under the rules of Elliott Wave theory, the B wave that follows can’t rise past the beginning of wave A. If wave A has five subwaves, the B wave must retrace at least 90% of the A wave and can retrace more than 100% without triggering any Elliott Wave Theory rules.

I count wave A as having five subwaves, and so the analysis is within the rules: Wave C has begun and will have five subwaves as it declines.

The end of wave C will also be the end of the 4th-wave correction and the beginning of an uptrendng 5th wave.

The C wave in a flat is usually 1 to 1.65 times the length of wave A, which is 265 points long. That length times 1.65 is 301.05. Wave C began from 6008 and so is likely to see the price drop to between 5743 and 5616.

[S&P 500 E-mini futures at 3:30 p.m., 85-minute bars, with volume] 

Elliott Wave Theory wave labels. Each wave listed on the charts has two components: A wave number, and a subscript in curly brackets that place the wave’s position in the fractal strucutre in relationship to Intermediate degree. The present Intermediate degree, wave 5{0}, began its rise on February 11, 2016 from 1810.10 and is still underway.

The waves referred to on the chart are as follows.

Principal analysis: Upward correction wave 5{-2} is underway and within it is working through a nested series of initial subwaves, wave 1{-3} down to wave 1{-5}. One degree lower, rising wave 3{-6} is underway and is in its final subwave, wave 5{-7},

Within wave 5{-7}, uptrending wave 5{-8} is in its next-to-the-last stage, a downward correction, wave 4{-9}.

Within wave 4{-9}, its initial subwave, wave C{-10}, has begun.

Waves Now Underway

These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.

  • S&P 500 Index:
  • 5{+3} Supercycle, 7/8/1932, 4.40 (up)
  • 5{+2} Cycle, 12/9/1974, 60.96 (up)
  • 5{+1} Primary, 3/6/2009, 666.79 (up)
  • 5{0} Intermediate, 2/11/2016, 1810.10 (up)
  • 3{-1} Minor, 3/23/2020, 2191.36 (up)
  • 5{-2} Minute, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • S&P 500 Futures
  • 1{-3} Minuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-4} Subminuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-5} Micro, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 3{-6} Submicro, 4/21/2025, 4832 (up)

Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart. R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.

Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity (1933), “The map is not the territory … The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.

See the menu page Analytical Methods for a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.

By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, May 29, 2025

Disclaimer

Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader for his own accounts. Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options or any other financial instrument. The only purpose of this blog is to provide education and entertainment.

No trader is ever 100 percent successful in his or her trades. Trading in the stock and option markets is risky and uncertain. Each trader must make trading decisions for his or her own account, and take responsibility for the consequences.

License

All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader by Timothy K. Bovee is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Based on a work at www.timbovee.com

Trader’s Notebook: S&P 500

3:30 p.m. p.m. New York time

Half an hour before the closing bell. The S&P 500 futures whipsawed for 20 points in the low 5900s when the Federal Open Market Committee releases minutes of its May 6-7 meeting, taking the price a bit higher than when the whipsaw began.

All in all, the day produced no change in my Elliott Wave Theory analysis from this morning: Rising wave B within a 4th-wave downward correction continues.

9:35 a.m. New York time

What’s happening now. The S&P 500 E-mini futures fell from the 5940s to the 5910s in overnight trading and then rose back into the 5940s as the opening bell approached.

What does it mean? The 4th-wave downward correction that began on May 19 continues, Elliott Wave Theory analysis shows. Internally, the correction is in its second of three waves: Rising wave B. It will be followed by a falling C wave that will complete the 4th-wave correction and usher in an uptrending wave 5 that will complete its parent wave, also a 5th wave, and a still larger 5th wave, as well as an even larger 3rd wave that began on April 21.

The end wave the 3rd wave will also be the end of three degrees of increasingly larger 1st waves, all of which began at a significant low point on April 7, from 4832.

[S&P 500 E-mini futures at 3:30 p.m., 85-minute bars, with volume] 

Elliott Wave Theory wave labels. Each wave listed on the charts has two components: A wave number, and a subscript in curly brackets that place the wave’s position in the fractal strucutre in relationship to Intermediate degree. The present Intermediate degree, wave 5{0}, began its rise on February 11, 2016 from 1810.10 and is still underway.

The waves referred to on the chart are as follows.

Principal analysis: Upward correction wave 5{-2} is underway and within it is working through a nested series of initial subwaves, wave 1{-3} down to wave 1{-5}. One degree lower, rising wave 3{-6} is underway and is in its final subwave, wave 5{-7},

Within wave 5{-7}, uptrending wave 5{-8} is in its next-to-the-last stage, a downward correction, wave 4{-9}.

Within wave 4{-9}, its initial subwave, wave B{-10} is underway.

Waves Now Underway

These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.

  • S&P 500 Index:
  • 5{+3} Supercycle, 7/8/1932, 4.40 (up)
  • 5{+2} Cycle, 12/9/1974, 60.96 (up)
  • 5{+1} Primary, 3/6/2009, 666.79 (up)
  • 5{0} Intermediate, 2/11/2016, 1810.10 (up)
  • 3{-1} Minor, 3/23/2020, 2191.36 (up)
  • 5{-2} Minute, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • S&P 500 Futures
  • 1{-3} Minuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-4} Subminuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-5} Micro, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 3{-6} Submicro, 4/21/2025, 4832 (up)

Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart. R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.

Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity (1933), “The map is not the territory … The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.

See the menu page Analytical Methods for a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.

By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, May 28, 2025

Disclaimer

Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader for his own accounts. Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options or any other financial instrument. The only purpose of this blog is to provide education and entertainment.

No trader is ever 100 percent successful in his or her trades. Trading in the stock and option markets is risky and uncertain. Each trader must make trading decisions for his or her own account, and take responsibility for the consequences.

License

All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader by Timothy K. Bovee is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Based on a work at www.timbovee.com

Trader’s Notebook: Gold

12:45 p.m. New York time

What’s happening now. Prices of the gold-based exchange-traded fund GLD fell when trading resumed this morning.

What does it mean? Elliott Wave Theory analysis sees GLD’s present wave as declining C wave within a larger A wave that began on April 21. The May 23 peak, 310.25, was the end of the B wave preceding wave C.

[Gold futures, 12:45 p.m., 85-minute bars, with volume]

Long-term Waves

These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.

  • GLD exchange-traded fund:
  • 3{+1} Primary, 12/17/2015, 100.23 (up)
  • 4{0} Intermediate, 4/21/2025, 322.52 (down)
  • A{−1} Minor, 4/21/2025, 322.52 (down)

Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart. R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.

Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity (1933), “The map is not the territory … The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.

See the menu page Analytical Methods for a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.

By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, May 27, 2025

Disclaimer

Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader for his own accounts. Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options or any other financial instrument. The only purpose of this blog is to provide education and entertainment.

No trader is ever 100 percent successful in his or her trades. Trading in the stock and option markets is risky and uncertain. Each trader must make trading decisions for his or her own account, and take responsibility for the consequences.

License

All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader by Timothy K. Bovee is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Based on a work at www.timbovee.com

Trader’s Notebook: S&P 500

3:30 p.m. New York time

Half an hour before the closing bell. The S&P 500 futures rose during the session, reaching into the 5930s. Elliott Wave Theory: The rise lends additional credence to rising wave B now being underway, the middle wave of a 4th-wave downward correction that began on May 19.

9:35 a.m. New York time

What’s happening now. The S&P 500 E-mini futures resumed trading after the Memorial Day holiday with a rise, from 5862.70 to 5912.50 and then a slight pull back.

What does it mean? The post-holiday Elliott Wave Theory analysis is as filled with ambiguity as was the pre-holiday chart. Is the 4th-wave downward correction that began on May 19 still underway, or did it end at the May 23 low — 5756.50 — giving way to uptrending wave 5.

If it’s underway, then wave A, the first subwave within the 4th wave, ended on May 23, and wave B has begun its rise. Wave A, with a bit of imagination, can be counted as havng five subwaves, making wave 4 a Zigzag style of correction.

But, with a bit more imagination, wave A can be counted as having three subwaves, a Flat style of correction.

If the correction is a Zigzag, then wave B cannot move above the start of wave A, 5993.50. If its a Flat, then the start of wave A poses no barrier under the rules of Elliott Wave Theory and wave B will retrace at least 90% of wave A, up to 5969.80 or higher.

If its a Flat, then wave 5 may be underway, with no hard rule limiting its rise.

[S&P 500 E-mini futures at 3:30 p.m., 85-minute bars, with volume] 

Elliott Wave Theory wave labels. Each wave listed on the charts has two components: A wave number, and a subscript in curly brackets that place the wave’s position in the fractal strucutre in relationship to Intermediate degree. The present Intermediate degree, wave 5{0}, began its rise on February 11, 2016 from 1810.10 and is still underway.

The waves referred to on the chart are as follows.

Principal analysis: Upward correction wave 5{-2} is underway and within it is working through a nested series of initial subwaves, wave 1{-3} down to wave 1{-5}. One degree lower, rising wave 3{-6} is underway and is in its final subwave, wave 5{-7},

Within wave 5{-7}, uptrending wave 5{-8} is in its next-to-the-last stage, a downward correction, wave 4{-9}.

Within wave 4{-9}, its initial subwave, wave B{-10} has begun.

Waves Now Underway

These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.

  • S&P 500 Index:
  • 5{+3} Supercycle, 7/8/1932, 4.40 (up)
  • 5{+2} Cycle, 12/9/1974, 60.96 (up)
  • 5{+1} Primary, 3/6/2009, 666.79 (up)
  • 5{0} Intermediate, 2/11/2016, 1810.10 (up)
  • 3{-1} Minor, 3/23/2020, 2191.36 (up)
  • 5{-2} Minute, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • S&P 500 Futures
  • 1{-3} Minuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-4} Subminuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-5} Micro, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 3{-6} Submicro, 4/21/2025, 4832 (up)

Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart. R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.

Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity (1933), “The map is not the territory … The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.

See the menu page Analytical Methods for a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.

By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, May 27, 2025

Disclaimer

Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader for his own accounts. Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options or any other financial instrument. The only purpose of this blog is to provide education and entertainment.

No trader is ever 100 percent successful in his or her trades. Trading in the stock and option markets is risky and uncertain. Each trader must make trading decisions for his or her own account, and take responsibility for the consequences.

License

All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader by Timothy K. Bovee is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Based on a work at www.timbovee.com

Trader’s Notebook: S&P 500

1:30 p.m. New York time

Early closure for Memorial Day weekend. U.S. markets will close early today, at 2 p.m. New York time and will be closed all day on Monday, May 26,.

Half an hour before the closing bell. The S&P 500 futures rose throughout the session, from the overnight low of 5756.50 to the 5830s as the closing bell approached. Elliott Wave Theory: Wave 4 continues and may have ended Wave A at the overnight low. If that’s the case, then rising wave B is underway.

The rise allowed the chart to avoid, for the moment, breaking a rule of Elliott Wave Theory. See the disussion below

9:35 a.m. New York time

What’s happening now. The S&P 500 E-mini futures fell overnight, from 5672 so far down to 5756.50.

What does it mean? Last night’s Elliott Wave Theory analysis labels the decline as wave A within a declining 4th wave that began on May 19.

However, the overnight decline has brought the 4th wave perilously close to violating a rule of Elliott wave theory: A 4th wave can’t cross the end of the preceding 1st wave. Wave 1 ended on May 8 at 5741. Wave 4, as noted above, has reached a low ovrnight of 5756.50.

So the rule remains intact, but barely. Wave 4 is 15.5 points above the end of wave 1.

[S&P 500 E-mini futures at 1:30 p.m., 75-minute bars, with volume] 

Elliott Wave Theory wave labels. Each wave listed on the charts has two components: A wave number, and a subscript in curly brackets that place the wave’s position in the fractal strucutre in relationship to Intermediate degree. The present Intermediate degree, wave 5{0}, began its rise on February 11, 2016 from 1810.10 and is still underway.

The waves referred to on the chart are as follows.

Principal analysis: Upward correction wave 5{-2} is underway and within it is working through a nested series of initial subwaves, wave 1{-3} down to wave 1{-5}. One degree lower, rising wave 3{-6} is underway and is in its final subwave, wave 5{-7},

Within wave 5{-7}, uptrending wave 5{-8} is in its next-to-the-last stage, a downward correction, wave 4{-9}.

Within wave 4{-9}, its initial subwave, wave A{-10}, may be underway, or perhaps it has ended and wave B{-10} has begun.

Waves Now Underway

These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.

  • S&P 500 Index:
  • 5{+3} Supercycle, 7/8/1932, 4.40 (up)
  • 5{+2} Cycle, 12/9/1974, 60.96 (up)
  • 5{+1} Primary, 3/6/2009, 666.79 (up)
  • 5{0} Intermediate, 2/11/2016, 1810.10 (up)
  • 3{-1} Minor, 3/23/2020, 2191.36 (up)
  • 5{-2} Minute, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • S&P 500 Futures
  • 1{-3} Minuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-4} Subminuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-5} Micro, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 3{-6} Submicro, 4/21/2025, 4832 (up)

Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart. R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.

Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity (1933), “The map is not the territory … The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.

See the menu page Analytical Methods for a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.

By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, May 23, 2025

Disclaimer

Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader for his own accounts. Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options or any other financial instrument. The only purpose of this blog is to provide education and entertainment.

No trader is ever 100 percent successful in his or her trades. Trading in the stock and option markets is risky and uncertain. Each trader must make trading decisions for his or her own account, and take responsibility for the consequences.

License

All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader by Timothy K. Bovee is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Based on a work at www.timbovee.com

Trader’s Notebook: S&P 500

3:30 p.m. New York time

Half an hour before the closing bell. The S&P 500 futures has risen during the session, reaching into the 5890s.

Elliott Wave Theory: The 4th-wave downward correction that began on May 19 continues. It’s possible that the overnight low marked the end of the first subwave, downward wave A, and that the middle subwave, rising wave B, has began.

But that’s far from certain, and for this report I’m leaving the analysis where it was this morning, with wave A still underway. To put it i context, wave A so far has fallen by $164.75. The potential wave B has risen by $64.25. Quite a difference. Hence the uncertainty.

9:35 a.m. New York time

What’s happening now. The S&P 500 E-mini futures traded sideways overnight, staying between the 5850s and the 5870s, and then resumed the decline, reaching into the 5820s. When the Initial Jobless Claims report was released, at 8:30 a.m. New York time, the price rose sharply back into the 5860s.

What does it mean? I’ve modified the Elliott Wave Theory analysis from what I posted yesterday, May 21. The overall decline is the same, but the details differ to better match the reality of the chart. In describing the analysis, I’ll refer to the waves as they appear on the chart: A wave number followed by the wave’s relative position within the fractal hierarchy as a numerical subscript within curly brackets. See the Elliott Wave Theory wave labels below for a description of the system.

The decline that began on May 19 from 5993.50 marks the end of uptrendng wave 3{-9} and the beginning of a downward correction, wave 4{-9}. The corretion is presently in its initial subwave, wave A{-10}.

[S&P 500 E-mini futures at 3:30.m, 75-minute bars, with volume] 

Elliott Wave Theory wave labels. Each wave listed on the charts has two components: A wave number, and a subscript in curly brackets that place the wave’s position in the fractal strucutre in relationship to Intermediate degree. The present Intermediate degree, wave 5{0}, began its rise on February 11, 2016 from 1810.10 and is still underway.

The waves referred to on the chart are as follows.

Principal analysis: Upward correction wave 5{-2} is underway and within it is working through a nested series of initial subwaves, wave 1{-3} down to wave 1{-5}. One degree lower, rising wave 3{-6} is underway and is in its final subwave, wave 5{-7},

Within wave 5{-7}, uptrending wave 5{-8} is in its next-to-the-last stage, a downward correction, wave 4{-9}.

Within wave 4{-9}, its initial subwave, wave A{-10}, is underway.

Waves Now Underway

These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.

  • S&P 500 Index:
  • 5{+3} Supercycle, 7/8/1932, 4.40 (up)
  • 5{+2} Cycle, 12/9/1974, 60.96 (up)
  • 5{+1} Primary, 3/6/2009, 666.79 (up)
  • 5{0} Intermediate, 2/11/2016, 1810.10 (up)
  • 3{-1} Minor, 3/23/2020, 2191.36 (up)
  • 5{-2} Minute, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • S&P 500 Futures
  • 1{-3} Minuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-4} Subminuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-5} Micro, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 3{-6} Submicro, 4/21/2025, 4832 (up)

Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart. R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.

Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity (1933), “The map is not the territory … The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.

See the menu page Analytical Methods for a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.

By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, May 22, 2025

Disclaimer

Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader for his own accounts. Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options or any other financial instrument. The only purpose of this blog is to provide education and entertainment.

No trader is ever 100 percent successful in his or her trades. Trading in the stock and option markets is risky and uncertain. Each trader must make trading decisions for his or her own account, and take responsibility for the consequences.

License

All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader by Timothy K. Bovee is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Based on a work at www.timbovee.com

Trader’s Notebook: S&P 500

3:30 p.m. New York time

Half an hour before the closing bell. The S&P 500 futures began a swift decline at 12:55 p.m. New York time and as the closing bell approached continued to fall.

The decline carried the price below 5892.75, erasing this morning’s principal analysis — a low degree wave 5 is underway — and replaced it with the alternative — wave 4 continues and is in its final subwave, wave C.

9:35 a.m. New York time

What’s happening now. The S&P 500 E-mini futures resumed falling overnight, from 5958.25 down to 5905 so far. The price has remained above 5892.75, the low set on May 19 and reversed to the upside as the opening bell sounded.

What does it mean? If the price moves below the May 19 low, then the rules of Elliiott Wave Theory will come into play.

The current decline is a declining 2nd wave withn a larger rising 5th wave, according to the current analysis. If the price moves below 5892.75, then it has broken a rule: A 2nd wave can’t move below the start of the preceding 1st wave of the same degree.

If that should occur, then wave 4 is stil underway and wave 5 has not yet begun. On the chart, the present wave 4{-10} label will be changed to A{-11}, the 1{-11} label to B{-11}, and the present declining wave from ongoing wave 2{-11} to C{-11}, all subwaves of decling wave 4{-10}.

But that hasn’t happened yet, so wave 2{-11} is working through its pattern and rising wave 3{-11} will follow, all subwaves of wave 5{-10}.

(See “Reading the Chart”, below, for an explanation of the labeling system.)

[S&P 500 E-mini futures at 3:30 p.m, 75-minute bars, with volume] 

Elliott Wave Theory wave labels. Each wave listed on the charts has two components: A wave number, and a subscript in curly brackets that place the wave’s position in the fractal strucutre in relationship to Intermediate degree. The present Intermediate degree, wave 5{0}, began its rise on February 11, 2016 from 1810.10 and is still underway.

The waves referred to on the chart are as follows.

Principal analysis: Upward correction wave 5{-2} is underway and within it is working through a nested series of initial subwaves, wave 1{-3} down to wave 1{-5}. One degree lower, rising wave 3{-6} is underway and is in its final subwave, wave 5{-7},

Within wave 5{-7}, uptrending wave 5{-8} is in its final stage, uptrending wave 5{-9}.

Within wave 5{-9}, wave 4{-10} is underway and is in its final subwave, wave C, is underway. [Updated with this afternoon’s changed analysis.]

Waves Now Underway

These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.

  • S&P 500 Index:
  • 5{+3} Supercycle, 7/8/1932, 4.40 (up)
  • 5{+2} Cycle, 12/9/1974, 60.96 (up)
  • 5{+1} Primary, 3/6/2009, 666.79 (up)
  • 5{0} Intermediate, 2/11/2016, 1810.10 (up)
  • 3{-1} Minor, 3/23/2020, 2191.36 (up)
  • 5{-2} Minute, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • S&P 500 Futures
  • 1{-3} Minuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-4} Subminuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-5} Micro, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 3{-6} Submicro, 4/21/2025, 4832 (up)

Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart. R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.

Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity (1933), “The map is not the territory … The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.

See the menu page Analytical Methods for a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.

By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, May 21, 2025

Disclaimer

Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader for his own accounts. Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options or any other financial instrument. The only purpose of this blog is to provide education and entertainment.

No trader is ever 100 percent successful in his or her trades. Trading in the stock and option markets is risky and uncertain. Each trader must make trading decisions for his or her own account, and take responsibility for the consequences.

License

All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader by Timothy K. Bovee is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Based on a work at www.timbovee.com

Trader’s Notebook: S&P 500

3:30 p.m. New York time

Half an hour before the closing bell. The S&P 500 future continued to decline during the session, from 5962 at the opening bell to the 5920s as the closing bell approached.

Elliott Wave Theory: The low degree 2nd-wave downward correction during an uptrending 5th wave that began on May 19 continues.

9:35 a.m. New York time

What’s happening now. The S&P 500 E-mini futures hit the high of the overnight session, 5994.60, about an hour after Monday’s session closed. The price then retreated into the 5950s.

What does it mean? The rise, which began on May 15, is interpreted as an uptrending 5th wave under Elliott Wave Theory analysis. This discussion will be about several degrees within the fractal structure of the chart, and each wave number will be followed by a number showing its position relative to the Intermediate degree.

The rising 5th wave that began on May 15 is wave 5{-9}, and its final subwave, wave 5{-10}, began on May 19. Within wave 5{-10}, the overnight decline appears to be wave 2{-11}, a downward correction. When that 2nd wave is complete, it will be followed by uptrending wave 3{-11}, typically the most powerful wave in a trend..

[S&P 500 E-mini futures at 3:30 p.m, 70-minute bars, with volume] 

Elliott Wave Theory wave labels. Each wave listed on the charts has two components: A wave number, and a subscript in curly brackets that place the wave’s position in the fractal strucutre in relationship to Intermediate degree. The present Intermediate degree, wave 5{0}, began its rise on February 11, 2016 from 1810.10 and is still underway.

The waves referred to on the chart are as follows.

Principal analysis: Upward correction wave 5{-2} is underway and within it is working through a nested series of initial subwaves, wave 1{-3} down to wave 1{-5}. One degree lower, rising wave 3{-6} is underway and is in its final subwave, wave 5{-7},

Within wave 5{-7}, uptrending wave 5{-8} is in its final stage, uptrending wave 5{-9}.

Within wave 5{-9}, wave 5{-10} is underway and has begun its downward correction, wave 2{-11}.

Waves Now Underway

These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.

  • S&P 500 Index:
  • 5{+3} Supercycle, 7/8/1932, 4.40 (up)
  • 5{+2} Cycle, 12/9/1974, 60.96 (up)
  • 5{+1} Primary, 3/6/2009, 666.79 (up)
  • 5{0} Intermediate, 2/11/2016, 1810.10 (up)
  • 3{-1} Minor, 3/23/2020, 2191.36 (up)
  • 5{-2} Minute, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • S&P 500 Futures
  • 1{-3} Minuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-4} Subminuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-5} Micro, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 3{-6} Submicro, 4/21/2025, 4832 (up)

Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart. R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.

Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity (1933), “The map is not the territory … The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.

See the menu page Analytical Methods for a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.

By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, May 20, 2025

Disclaimer

Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader for his own accounts. Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options or any other financial instrument. The only purpose of this blog is to provide education and entertainment.

No trader is ever 100 percent successful in his or her trades. Trading in the stock and option markets is risky and uncertain. Each trader must make trading decisions for his or her own account, and take responsibility for the consequences.

License

All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader by Timothy K. Bovee is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Based on a work at www.timbovee.com

Trader’s Notebook: S&P 500

3:30 p.m. New York time

Half an hour before the closing bell. The S&P 500 futures rose during the session, reaching the 5980s as the closing bell approached. Elliott Wave Theory: The uptrending 5th wave that began on May 15 continues and is in its early subwaves.

9:35 a.m. New York time

What’s happening now. The S&P 500 E-mini futures resumed trading in the 5930s, rose into the 5940s, and then fell into the 5890s in the first U.S. trading since after Moody’s reduced the U.S. credit rating from Aaa to Aa1.

The price reversed and began to rise, and as the opening bell sounded the price rose sharply, so far reaching into the 5930s.

What does it mean? Elliott Wave Theory analysis sees the fall as a correction within the initial subwave of an uptrending 5th wave that began on May 15. The sharp rise may in fact be a sign that the 2nd wave correctionn has ended and an uptrending 3rd wave has begun. I’ll need to see a bit more of a rise — maybe 20 points or so — before I’m convinced that we’ve seen the last of this correction.

[S&P 500 E-mini futures at 3:30 p.m, 70-minute bars, with volume] 

Elliott Wave Theory wave labels. Each wave listed on the charts has two components: A wave number, and a subscript in curly brackets that place the wave’s position in the fractal strucutre in relationship to Intermediate degree. The present Intermediate degree, wave 5{0}, began its rise on February 11, 2016 from 1810.10 and is still underway.

The waves referred to on the chart are as follows.

Principal analysis: Upward correction wave 5{-2} is underway and within it is working through a nested series of initial subwaves, wave 1{-3} down to wave 1{-5}. One degree lower, rising wave 3{-6} is underway and is in its final subwave, wave 5{-7},

Within wave 5{-7}, uptrending wave 5{-8} is in its final stage, uptrending wave 5{-9}.

Within wave 5{-9}, it’s possible that declining corrective wave 2{-10} is still underway,, but it may have ended and wave 3{-10} may be underway.

Waves Now Underway

These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.

  • S&P 500 Index:
  • 5{+3} Supercycle, 7/8/1932, 4.40 (up)
  • 5{+2} Cycle, 12/9/1974, 60.96 (up)
  • 5{+1} Primary, 3/6/2009, 666.79 (up)
  • 5{0} Intermediate, 2/11/2016, 1810.10 (up)
  • 3{-1} Minor, 3/23/2020, 2191.36 (up)
  • 5{-2} Minute, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • S&P 500 Futures
  • 1{-3} Minuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-4} Subminuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-5} Micro, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 3{-6} Submicro, 4/21/2025, 4832 (up)

Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart. R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.

Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity (1933), “The map is not the territory … The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.

See the menu page Analytical Methods for a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.

By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, May 19, 2025

Disclaimer

Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader for his own accounts. Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options or any other financial instrument. The only purpose of this blog is to provide education and entertainment.

No trader is ever 100 percent successful in his or her trades. Trading in the stock and option markets is risky and uncertain. Each trader must make trading decisions for his or her own account, and take responsibility for the consequences.

License

All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader by Timothy K. Bovee is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Based on a work at www.timbovee.com

Trader’s Notebook: S&P 500

3:30 p.m. New York time

Half an hour before the closing bell. The S&P 500 futures rose some more during the session, reaching the 5970s as the closing bell approached.

Elliott Wave Theory: The rise is continuation of the 5th wave that began on May 15.

9:35 a.m. New York time

What’s happening now. The S&P 500 E-mini futures continued to rise overnight, reaching a higher high, 5958.

What does it mean?  The new high provided clarity to the Elliott Wave Theory analysis, resolving yesterday’s ambiguity. The low-degree 4th-wave downward correction that began on May 13 ended on May 15 at 5857, and the uptrending 5th wave began.

The small 5th wave is a subwave of another 5th wave degree larger, which in turn is a subwave of a larger 5th wave. It’s all encompassed by a still larger 3rd wave.

On the chart, smaller to larger, the wave numbers are 5{-9), 5{-8}, 5{-7} and 3{-6}.

[S&P 500 E-mini futures at 3:30 p.m, 70-minute bars, with volume] 

Elliott Wave Theory wave labels. Each wave listed on the charts has two components: A wave number, and a subscript in curly brackets that place the wave’s position in the fractal strucutre in relationship to Intermediate degree. The present Intermediate degree, wave 5{0}, began its rise on February 11, 2016 from 1810.10 and is still underway.

The waves referred to on the chart are as follows.

Principal analysis: Upward correction wave 5{-2} is underway and within it is working through a nested series of initial subwaves, wave 1{-3} down to wave 1{-5}. One degree lower, rising wave 3{-6} is underway and is in its final subwave, wave 5{-7},

Within wave 5{-7}, uptrending wave 5{-8} is in its final stage, uptrending wave 5{-9}.

Waves Now Underway

These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.

  • S&P 500 Index:
  • 5{+3} Supercycle, 7/8/1932, 4.40 (up)
  • 5{+2} Cycle, 12/9/1974, 60.96 (up)
  • 5{+1} Primary, 3/6/2009, 666.79 (up)
  • 5{0} Intermediate, 2/11/2016, 1810.10 (up)
  • 3{-1} Minor, 3/23/2020, 2191.36 (up)
  • 5{-2} Minute, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • S&P 500 Futures
  • 1{-3} Minuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-4} Subminuette, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 1{-5} Micro, 4/7/2025, 4832 (up)
  • 3{-6} Submicro, 4/21/2025, 4832 (up)

Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart. R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.

Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity (1933), “The map is not the territory … The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.

See the menu page Analytical Methods for a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.

By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, May 16, 2025

Disclaimer

Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader for his own accounts. Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options or any other financial instrument. The only purpose of this blog is to provide education and entertainment.

No trader is ever 100 percent successful in his or her trades. Trading in the stock and option markets is risky and uncertain. Each trader must make trading decisions for his or her own account, and take responsibility for the consequences.

License

All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader by Timothy K. Bovee is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Based on a work at www.timbovee.com