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Barry Ritholtz

The Reasons for a Meandering Market

U.S. stock markets might go nowhere for a while.

Neither seems very interested. — Neither seems very interested.
Photographer: Ulrich Baumgarten /Getty Images

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April 23, 2015, 1:00 PM UTC

During the past few years, I have referred to market breadth as one of the more important metrics of the stock market's health. As we close in on new highs in the cumulative advance-decline line, it is time to revisit this internal indicator.

As the chart below shows, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index has rallied from its October lows. But for the past few months it has been unable to break out.