Mid-day Update… Another shoe to drop, or to kick.

Rally effort still failed, not rejected.

This morning’s bias environment was well-defined by resistance at its 2604.50 bias-up signal. An offsetting test of its 2596.50 bias-down signal was put into play. A late-morning slide down to 2597.75 stopped short of the objective, and its reaction is testing 2602.00.

The slide did not stop short enough to be considered “ineffectual optimism.” That would be bearish from a contrarian perspective. Eventually fulfilling the objective could still hold. But the objective should still be attacked, and much more delay would start to resemble ineffectual optimism anyway.

Meanwhile, the noon hour’s bounce might extend higher this afternoon. But any reliable extension would need to exceed 2603.75 first.