The Standard and Poors 500 index (SPX) closed today at 5,730, down 11 points or -0.2%. SPX opened the week at 5,615, gaining 2.0% for the week. Trading volume spiked today for triple witching expiration.

VIX, the volatility index for the S&P 500 options, opened today at 16.3% and closed at 16.2%.

I track the Russell 2000 index with the IWM ETF, which closed today at 222, down two points on the day, but up +1.8% for the week.

The NASDAQ Composite index closed today at 17,948, down 66 points or 
-0.4%. NASDAQ opened the week at 17,574, setting up a strong weekly gain of 2.1%. NASDAQ’s trading volume spiked today due to triple witching expiration.

This week’s trading was all about the FOMC. Monday through Wednesday at 2:00 pm ET was roughly a sideways market, waiting on the Fed. The announcement of a 50-basis point rate reduction appeared to be just what the market wanted, but the market traded down after the announcement.

Yesterday was an altogether new story. It was as though sleeping on the rate reduction convinced the market that all was well. SPX gapped open by over 85 points and then tacked on another eleven points.

However, the market woke up with a hangover this morning and decided Thursday’s party was a bit excessive. The market opened lower and traded down significantly. SPX tried to get back to its opening late in the day but couldn’t make it happen. SPX closed for an eleven-point loss.

The positive summary is that the S&P 500 set a new all-time high on Thursday and didn’t trade down too badly today, closing roughly at Thursday’s open.