Charts suggest the S&P 500 is poised for a short-term bounce

Technical analyst Carolyn Boroden thinks the S&P 500 may soon see a short-term rally, CNBC’s Jim Cramer said Tuesday.

“The charts, as interpreted by Carolyn Boroden, suggest that the S&P 500 is poised to give us a couple of days bounce over the next week-and-a-half, with a real possibility that that bounce started today,” the “Mad Money” host said.

“However, she also believes this is relatively short-term in nature — not a reason to buy stocks, but maybe a really good reason to reposition and get into areas that are more defensive and less dangerous,” Cramer added. “So, lighten up into this rally.”

Boroden predicted this swing after finding a significant number of Fibonacci timing cycles coming due between Monday and Thursday, according to Cramer. She and other market technicians use the Fibonacci strategy to spot patterns that can signal when a stock or other security could shift directions. 

Below is a daily chart of the S&P 500 featuring the Fibonacci timing cycles that Boroden has identified.

The chart shows the eight Fibonacci timing cycles within a four-day stretch. “To put it in perspective, when she’s normally trying to spot potential lows or highs, she starts taking these timing cycles seriously once there are three or more in close proximity to each other,” Cramer said.

Cramer said that while Boroden believes this means the market could find a temporary bottom, other parts of her technical analysis suggest there could be more downside down the road.

“Basically, the S&P still hasn’t fallen low enough for the chart to be screaming ‘bottom,’ and overall she thinks the technical picture is still pretty bleak,” Cramer said.

He added: “Boroden says there’s good reason to expect an intermediate-term low this week, and that’s what may have happened starting today.”

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