S&P 500 (ES)
Prior Session was Cycle Day 1: Hotdog Day
“Buy ’em cheap… if you’ve got the courage.”
Today’s tape was the definition of Hotdog Day — mustard-ready but no real meat — as traders collectively held their breath waiting for tomorrow’s FOMC fireworks. But even in the lull, Cycle Day 1 played its rhythms with textbook precision.
Cycle day 1 Low…6844.00
For greater detail of how this day unfolded, click on the Trading Room RECAP 12.9.25 link.
…Transition from Cycle Day 1 to Cycle Day 2
Transition into Cycle Day 2: The Fed’s Grand Finale – Wild-Card Edition
The curtain has officially lifted on the Federal Reserve’s last performance of 2025, and the crowd is already pricing in an 88.6% chance of a 25 bps rate cut—a consensus so lopsided it practically screams, “Don’t screw this up, Jerome… or whoever’s about to take your chair.”
But make no mistake, this is no ordinary FOMC.
Not when:
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The dot plot is about to tell on everyone,
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Forward guidance could tilt the entire 2026 playbook, and
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The list of candidates to replace JPOW has been trimmed down to a handful of brave souls willing to inherit this monetary circus.
That’s right—call it what it is:
⭐ A full-blown Wild-Card Meeting. ⭐
Markets will hang on every syllable.
Every eyebrow twitch in the presser.
Every hint the dots shift from “steady glide path” to “we’re winging it like the rest of you.”
For traders, this means a familiar battle plan:
Expect volatility. Respect the levels. Stay nimble.
The real move is often post-presser, when the algo mêlée cools and the humans regain custody of the charts.
Strap in.
Fed Day isn’t just a macro event—it’s a liquidity-powered storyline with plot twists they definitely didn’t teach in Economics 101.
Key Links:
PTG FED Day Quick-Reference Cheat sheet
Of course, nothing changes for PTG…Simply follow your plan. Take only Triple A setups and manage the $risk. ALWAYS HAVE HARD STOP-LOSSES in-place on the exchange.
PTG’s Primary Directive (PD) is to ALWAYS STAY IN ALIGNMENT with the DOMINANT FORCE.
As such, scenarios to consider for today’s trading.
Bull Scenario: Price sustains a bid above 6845+-, initially targets 6860 – 6865 zone.
Bear Scenario: Price sustains an offer below 6845+-, initially targets 6835 – 6830 zone.
PVA High Edge = 6865 PVA Low Edge = 6850 Prior POC = 6860
ESZ
Nasdaq (NQ)
Prior Session was Cycle Day 1: The Pre-FOMC Standoff
The market did exactly what you’d expect when everyone’s holding their breath ahead of the Fed: it probed both sides of the DTS Briefing 12.9.25 scenarios, but committed to absolutely nothing.
Bulls tested the waters.
Bears tested the waters.
And price… just kind of sat there like,
“Nice levels you’ve got—shame if I respected none of them.”
With traders awaiting the Fed’s verdict, directional conviction stayed on ice. No breakout. No breakdown. Just pure pre-FOMC shadowboxing.
A balanced, tactical stalemate — the classic “don’t-do-anything-stupid-before-Powell” session.
…Transition from Cycle Day 1 to Cycle Day 2
Transition into Cycle Day 2: “The El Dorado Gambit”
The battlefield has been remarkably disciplined for nearly a week, with both Bulls and Bears locked in a trench-war stalemate between 25560 and 25735 — the value edges that have become their de facto demilitarized zone. Neither side has dared to overextend, each waiting for the other to blink first.
But today… today might finally be the spark.
With the Fed’s final rate decision of 2025 dropping like a golden idol onto the trading floor, one side is about to break formation. Whether it’s the Bulls charging toward glory or the Bears springing a perfectly timed ambush, the catalyst is now on deck.
Until then, discipline remains the name of the game.
We wait. We watch.
And when the dust clears, perhaps the path to El Dorado reveals itself.
Let the market lead — we follow with precision.
Of course, nothing changes for PTG…Simply follow your plan. Take only Triple A setups and manage the $risk. ALWAYS HAVE HARD STOP-LOSSES in-place on the exchange.
PTG’s Primary Directive (PD) is to ALWAYS STAY IN ALIGNMENT with the DOMINANT FORCE.
As such, scenarios to consider for today’s trading.
Bull Scenario: Price sustains a bid above 25645+-, initially targets 25735 – 25803 zone.
Bear Scenario: Price sustains an offer below 25645+-, initially targets 25560 – 25490 zone.
PVA High Edge = 25732 PVA Low Edge = 25651 Prior POC = 25702
NQZ
Economic Calendar
Trade Strategy: Our tactical trade strategy will simply remain unaltered…We’ll be flexible to trade both long and short side from Decision Pivot Levels. Continue to focus on Bull/Bear Stackers and Premium/Discounts. As always, remaining in alignment with dominant intra-day force increases probabilities of producing winning trades.
Stay Focused…Non-Biased…Disciplined ALWAYS USE STOPS!
Good Trading…David
“Knowing is not enough, We must APPLY. Willing is not enough, We must DO.” –BR
*****This trade strategy report is disseminated for “education only” and should not be viewed in any way as a recommendation to buy or sell futures products.”
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