The Machines Are Getting Warmed Up

A key metric for us to watch is intraday action. We noticed a pick up of machine driven trading on Thursday and Friday. The key characteristic of volatility on an intraday basis is more directional swing. Below is a simple each of Friday trading in the S&P 500 via SPY.
![[Image 2]](/wsr/images/articles/2019-12-29-21-59-23/spy%20intra.gif)
We also notice more directional trading on Thursday.
![[Image 3]](/wsr/images/articles/2019-12-29-21-59-23/spy%20intra1.gif)
There were also five moves. The more swings we get the more the machines will get active as they love the volatility. So the conclusion is more directional changes took place post Christmas. Tomorrow we will look at another characteristic of the machines getting more active.