Weakness Carries Over — Bulls Need to Step Upby Tony Rago New week, new opportunities to make money! Weakness from Friday carried over into the overnight session, and we’re looking to open below the prior day’s lows. Bulls need to hold the 29,333/29,412 area on NQ and work their way back above 29,500. On ES, I’m using 7,700 as the bull/bear line—above it, we can reach for 7,726/7,733, while below it opens the door toward 7,677/7,662. It’s the last day of August and Labor Day is approaching, so we could be looking at a slow day and potentially a slow week ahead. That doesn’t mean there won’t be opportunities, but it does mean we don’t need to force them. Let the market open, establish its ranges, and trade what we see. Keep it simple and go from there! 👉 Full breakdown is inside today’s Pre-Market Playbook. Check it out here

Bulls Have the Ball — Now Keep Itby Tony Rago Bulls were able to close near yesterday’s highs, so the ball is firmly in their court to continue the move today. We have the Fed Chair speaking at 10am Eastern, and that could bring some volatility into what has otherwise been a pretty quiet tape. Key for bulls is holding the weekly pivot on a retest for ES at 7,723 and getting and staying above the weekly pivot for NQ at 29,639. I’ll be watching how price trades around those levels once the Fed Chair’s speech is behind us. This is one of those mornings where patience matters. Let the speech happen, let the initial reaction settle, and then see which side actually wants to take control. If bulls can defend those pivots, the door remains open for another leg higher. If they lose them, we’ll adjust and trade what

NVDA Breaks the Range — Now What?by Tony Rago NVDA reports and lifts both NQ and ES out of the sideways zone we’ve been stuck in. Now the question is whether it’s enough to hold the whole tape up. ES bulls need to hold price above 7,700, and NQ bulls need to hold above 29,412. If those levels hold, we can start talking about a real breakout. Back under them and we could slip right back into the summer chop we’ve been living in. Volume is basically non-existent and the price action remains super quiet, so again, try not to overdo it. We don’t need to manufacture trades just because the market is open. Get your day made, protect what you’ve made, and move on to the next day. Let price prove the move is real and take it one setup at a time. Let’s get after it! 💪 👉

Quiet Tape — NVDA Waiting in the Wingsby Tony Rago Quiet overnight session and we’re still sitting in the same zone coming into the open. I’m expecting more of the same today—rangebound price action with low volume. NQ bulls are holding the prior week low, so I’ll be watching how we trade around 29,202. ES bulls need to get and stay above 7,700 if they want to show some strength. And of course, NVDA reports earnings after the close, so that could be the catalyst that finally shakes us out of this range. Until then, there’s no reason to force anything. Let the market open, establish the opening ranges, and see which side wants to take control. If we stay rangebound, we’ll trade the range. If we get expansion, we’ll be ready to go with it. Let’s see how we open and go from there! 👉 Full breakdown is inside

Slow Tape — Take It One Setup at a Timeby Tony Rago Expecting another slow tape today, and I’ll be pleasantly surprised if we finally break out of this range. I’m perfectly happy trading the range for the time being, but you cannot overstay your welcome in this environment. These are the days where you get your day made, recognize that the opportunity was there, and move on. Hanging around and trading out of boredom is where things can go sideways quickly. So keep it simple and take it one setup at a time. If the market gives us expansion, we’ll be ready for it. If it stays rangebound, we’ll work the range and call it a day. No need to force the issue—let price prove it’s ready to move. 💪 👉 Full breakdown is inside today’s Pre-Market Playbook. Check it out here and trade it smart. Until next time,Tony

Slow Summer Tape — Let It Openby Tony Rago New week, new opportunities to make money! No news on Monday, and with this being the last week of August, we could see more slow days on the calendar. ES is hanging around last week’s lows while NQ is looking to push through its lows and test 29,000. This is one of those tapes where there’s no need to manufacture action if it isn’t there. We’ll see how they want to trade this morning. It could be slow, so don’t overdo it. Let the market open, give the opening ranges some time to develop, and then we’ll see which side wants to take the ball. Keep it simple, stay patient, and trade what we see. 👉 Full breakdown is inside today’s Pre-Market Playbook. Check it out here and trade it smart. Until next time,Tony

Bulls Defend — Now Can They Take Control?by Tony Rago Bulls defended the key levels yesterday — 29,250 and 7,662 — and we’re off the lows heading into the open. I’ll be watching 7,700 on ES and 29,533 on NQ for clues as to who has the ball. Bears have dominated the tape this week, and they would love to close things out near the lows or print new weekly lows before the week is over. It’s Friday, and with very low volume and slow price action, the afternoon could really crawl if you’re trading. No need to force anything if the setups aren’t there. Let the opening ranges develop, see which side wants to take control, and trade what price gives us. Let’s see how we open and go from there! 👉 Full breakdown is inside today’s Pre-Market Playbook. Check it out here and trade it smart. Until next

Weakness Continues — Bulls Need to Step Upby Tony Rago Weakness continues, and price is trading below the prior day’s lows before the open. Bulls need to reclaim 7,700 on ES and 29,412 on NQ to get something going. If they can’t muster a bounce and reclaim those levels, the risk opens up for a deeper move toward 7,650 and 29,000. Crude over 87 could make that downside move even more difficult for the bulls, so I’ll be keeping an eye on crude as we see how the tape develops. This is another one where we need to let price tell us what it wants to do. If buyers step in and reclaim the key levels, we can look for some upside follow-through. If they fail, there’s no reason to fight the trend—let the market work its way toward the next levels. Let’s see how we open and go from