Market Update Into January 13th: Bulls Under Pressure

3 mins read

The second week of 2025 proved challenging for bulls. Weekly highs were reached on Monday, and while indexes appeared to be attempting to stabilize on Thursday, a hotter-than-expected Non-Farm Payroll (NFP) report on Friday derailed any upside progress, driving indexes to close the week near their lows. Despite this rout, the large-cap charts remain relatively constructive. In other news;

Next Tuesday and Wednesday will feature critical PPI and CPI reports, along with remarks from Federal Reserve representatives from Richmond, New York, and Chicago. With only 10 days remaining until the Trump inauguration, elevated volatility is likely to persist. Let’s take a closer look at the index charts to assess how the markets are shaping up.

Weekly Analysis

SPY (SPDR S&P 500)

The SPY ETF emerged as the strongest among the major indexes this week, closing at $580.49 (-1.92%) and settling at the lower boundary of its falling wedge. Should the price move lower in the coming week, the anchored VWAP from the August 5th low, along with the largest volume node within this range, sits just below as a critical support level to watch.

QQQ (Invesco QQQ Trust)

While the QQQ ETF experienced a larger decline than the SPY this week, it maintains the most constructive technical setup, closing just above the lower boundary of its descending channel at $507.19 (-2.20%). Should the price break below the channel in the coming sessions, the anchored VWAP from August 5th, currently positioned at $489.57, will serve as a critical support level.

IWM (iShares Russell 2000)

The IWM ETF stood out as the weakest among the major indexes, decisively breaking down from its ascending channel to close at $216.83 (-3.41%). After attempting to hold the August 5th anchored VWAP, this critical level was definitively breached on Thursday. With a significant volume shelf positioned just above the current price, any future strength is likely to face considerable resistance at that level, around $221.

Earnings

Notable Results

STZ (Constellation Brands)

EPS: $3.25 vs $3.31 est
SALES: $2.46B vs $2.53B est

DAL (Delta Air Lines)

EPS: $1.85 vs $1.76 est
SALES: $14.44B vs $14.21B est

WBA (Walgreens Boots Alliance)

EPS: $0.51 vs $0.37 est
SALES: $39.46B vs $37.28B est

JEF (Jefferies Financial Group)

EPS: $0.93 vs $0.91 est
SALES: $1.96B vs $1.78B est

RPM (RPM International)

EPS: $1.39 vs $1.34 est
SALES: $1.85B vs 1.79B est

ACI (Albertsons Companies)

EPS: $0.71 vs $0.66 est
SALES: $18.77B vs $18.82B est

SNX (TD SYNNEX)

EPS: $3.09 vs $3.05 est
SALES: $15.85B vs $15.22B est

AYI (Acuity Brands)

EPS: $3.97 vs $3.89 est
SALES: $951.60M vs $956.18M est

What’s Happening Now

XLV (SPDR Health Care)

This week, tech and semiconductors faded while the broader market sold off. In contrast, two of 2024’s worst performers—energy and healthcare—show resilience, standing out as the only sectors holding their ground. This shift signals a rotation into defensive plays as investors pull back from risk, with energy and healthcare emerging as the lone bright spots in a sea of red.

This is a heatmap of all the major sector and index etfs.

UBER (Uber)

Uber announced a $1.5 billion accelerated buyback after CFO Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah called the stock undervalued relative to its business strength. This follows a 16% YoY jump in gross bookings and a record $2.1B free cash flow. Shares rose 4% this week, and with a 100% win rate next week since its 2019 IPO, seasonality points to a high likelihood of continuation.

This is a weekly seasonality chart for UBER.

BB (BlackBerry)

BlackBerry has surged over 60% since early December, fueled by the Cylance unit sale, strong Q3 earnings, and a swath of analyst upgrades. BlackBerry now sits in the middle of its strongest seasonal stretch, with the next two weeks averaging returns of 3.29% and 3.59% over the past decade. With momentum building, the stock could push higher before seasonality fades in early February.

This is a weekly seasonality chart for BlackBerry.

Believe it or not, this is just a fraction of what happened in the markets this week. For a full run down delivered straight to your inbox every weekend, sign up for The Official Trendspider Newsletter!