Word of the day: whipsaw

whipsaw:
3. To cause to move or alternate rapidly in contrasting directions: “The bond market... continues to be whipsawed by fears of rekindled inflation”

They could have also put up a picture of today's WYNN chart. Home builder stocks also see this whippy price action. These kind of wild rallies are one reason I prefer to purchase puts rather than short the stock. Sometimes the short covering rallies are extremely powerful. Sometimes a stock gets a takeover bid and gaps to the moon.

There is no right or wrong with shorting vs. buying puts. Over the years, I have found puts to fit my style and personality better.

Gold has a terrible day. The linkage to oil may be back in play, after a one day respite. NEM Newmont gets downgraded. The HUI goldbugs index (chart) is back to its breakout point of 349/350. Looks like the rally day was a phony push to get more excited bulls into the pen, so they could be slaughtered on the next leg down.

This isn't the time to be the hero, not in this treacherous market. I will stay cautious, trade small, and almost always hedge. Small, even tiny profits like today's RAI Reynolds are welcome in these stormy seas.