• SPY/QQQ - danced around until noon - then just roared after that.  Almost in a straight line.  I was thinking short covering ahead of AAPL and it might have been partially that, but this was best explanation I ran into: https://twitter.com/MacroAlf/status/1519753565635596289
• Trade: I played $QQQ  puts out of the gate since it popped and GDP numbers were bad.  This worked.
• Trade: I played (poorly) $SPY  calls, but still came out OK.  What I was expecting at the open happened at 12pm instead.  I watched in awe as it just. kept. going.  Bravo, SPY!
• This also started bringing my CTRA and LAC plays to life.  Still down on them right now, but they popped up a bit.  The market was dragging these two by their teeth, which I appreciated it, but not very bullish.
• This might not be so bad - more on that in the Looking Ahead.
• The most important earnings of any season - AAPL - were this evening - and while they beat, there were little nuggets in there that concerned the market. https://www.cnbc.com/2022/04/28/apple-aapl-earnings-q2-2022.html
• All around AAPL, earnings reports were missing - AMZN, ROKU, etc.  It’s just getting going, in my opinion.
• Apple was strong and optimistic even, but they probably aren’t the best predictor of “everybody else” due to their sheer size, pricing power, and supply chain swing
• There were a few hits - QCOM, FB - but I don’t consider FB’s positive - it was just “not as bad as they thought”

• QQQ puts - that’s my move on Friday.  AAPL for once let the market down so I think we’re in for some drilling.  There may be some end of month mechanical stuff, but it should be limited - it looked like most of that happened today. (See Twitter link)
• We’ve got PCE data on Friday at 0830 am - obviously going to be higher
• We’ve got the scariest man in the market talking FOMC meeting next week on May 4 - JPow.  It’s a bit tricky because they’ve set expectations pretty high that it’ll be at least 0.50 and maybe 0.75.  However, you did have the bad GDP number today and they can’t ignore these missed earnings and keep with the rhetoric “economy is strong” - nonsense.  It’s peaked and coming down.
• So, I lean towards JPow holding no punches on interest rate hike and starting balance sheet during summer - but the market may react to the 0.50 (vs 0.75) as positive?  Again, tricky.  I’ll do more homework over weekend.
• Money always chases something.  If the DXY (Dollar Index) will ease the hell up a bit + tech pullback, I’d expect to see a run on commodities - all of them.
• Natural gas and Lithium (CTRA, LAC) are my current plays, but there might be better ones (OVV seems to move better than CTRA).  I’ve got positions in these, so just going to sit tight.  I may average down if my view is confirmed.