Bears dominate US stock trading

Bloomberg reports that bears are winning out when it comes to daily US stock trading.

Volume on days when the S&P 500 fell has been 27 percent heavier than when the index rose this month. That is about eight times the average gap in the past decade, according to data from Bloomberg and Bespoke Investment Group.

The bearish trend continued on Thursday with the S&P 500 falling 0.3 percent. That, though, still represented a rebound from a decline of 1.5 percent earlier in the day.

Some think the declines are likely to resume.

“We’re seeing down volume overwhelming up volume,” said Katie Stockton, chief market strategist at BTIG. “It’s one more check in favor of a retest of August’s lows.”

Others think the declines are nearing an end.

“You’re getting people piling on and selling on the downtrend,” said Aaron Clark, a portfolio manager at GW&K Investment Management. “That could get reversed pretty quickly. Given where valuations and fundamentals are, you’re more likely to be close to the bottom than another big leg down.”