3:30 p,m. New York time
Half an hour before the closing bell. The S&P 500 futures fell to 7473 early in the session, rebounded into the 7530s and then turned lower again.
Elliott Wave Theory. The session’s volatility remains insufficient to alter this morning’s analysis: The terminally nested rising waves C{-7}, C{-6} and D{-5} remain underway.
Decision Points. A sustained rise above the 7530s would support the present labeling. A decline below 7468.50 would invalidate the current C{-8} labeling and raise the possibility that the matched set has ended and falling wave E{-5} has begun. A further decline below 7357.25 would strengthen that interpretation.
9:35 a.m. New York time
What’s happening now? The S&P 500 E-mini futures declined in a stair-step pattern overnight, interrupted by partial recoveries, and reached a low of 7482.50 at the opening bell. The low remains above the July 8 low at 7468.50 and well above the June 26 low at 7357.25.
What does it mean? The overnight decline is insufficient to overturn the working Elliott Wave interpretation that the terminally nested rising waves C{-8}, C{-7}, C{-6} and D{-5} remain underway. They form a matched set: When C{-8} ends, all four waves end at the same peak, and falling wave E{-5} begins.
Wave D{-5} is a subwave of wave 4{-4}, a downward correction that began on October 29, 2025 and has taken the form of an expanding triangle. The price also remains far above the triangle’s upper boundary, presently in the vicinity of 7210. Falling wave E{-5} therefore has not been confirmed.
Decision Points. A renewed rise above the recent highs would support the conclusion that C{-8} remains underway. A break below 7468.50 would invalidate the present C{-8} labeling and raise the possibility that a higher-degree peak has been set. A further decline below 7357.25 would strengthen the case that D{-5} has ended, while a sustained break below the triangle boundary near 7210 would provide operational confirmation that falling wave E{-5} is underway.
The Chart. Today’s chart focuses on wave D{-5}, a rising wave that began on March 30 within a downward correction, wave 4{-4}, that began on October 29, 2025. The blue line traces the upper boundary of the wave 4{-4} expanding triangle.

[S&P 500 E-mini futures 3:30 p.m., 1-day bars with volume]
Waves Now Underway
These are the waves currently in progress under my principal analysis. Each line on the list shows the wave number, with the subscript in curly brackets, the traditional degree name, the starting date, the starting price of the S&P 500 E-mini futures, and the direction of the wave.
- S&P 500 Index:
- 5{+3} Supercycle, 7/8/1932, 4.40 (up)
- 5{+2} Cycle, 12/9/1974, 60.96 (up)
- 5{+1} Primary, 3/6/2009, 666.79 (up)
- 5{0} Intermediate, 2/11/2016, 1810.10 (up)
- 3{-1} Minor, 3/23/2020, 2191.36 (up)
- 1{-2} Minute, 7/31/2025, 6468.50 (down)
- S&P 500 E-mini futures
- 5{-3} Minuette 8/1/2025, 6239.50 (up}
- 4{-4} Subminutte 10/29/2025, 6953.75 (down}
- D{-5} Micro, 3/30/2026, 6353.25 (up}
- C{-6} Submicro, 6/11/2026, 7232.25 (up)
Reading the chart. Price movements — waves – – in Elliott Wave Theory analysis are labeled with numbers within trending waves and letters with corrective waves. The subscripts — numbers in curly brackets — designate the wave’s degree, which, in Elliott Wave analysis, means the relative position of a wave within the larger and smaller structures that make up the chart.R.N. Elliott, who in the 1930s developed the form of analysis that bears his name, viewed the chart as a complex structure of smaller waves nested within larger waves, which in turn are nested within still larger waves. In mathematics it’s called a fractal structure, where at every scale the pattern is similar to the others.
Learning and other resources. Elliott Wave analysis provides context, not prophecy. As the 20th century semanticist Alfred Korzybski put it in his book Science and Sanity(1933), “The map is not the territory… The only usefulness of a map depends on similarity of structure between the empirical world and the map.” And I would add, in the ever-changing markets, we can judge that similarity of structure only after the fact.
See the menu pageAnalytical Methodsfor a rundown on where to go for information on Elliott Wave analysis.
By Tim Bovee, Portland, Oregon, July 17, 2026
Disclaimer
Tim Bovee, Private Trader tracks the analysis and trades of a private trader managing his own accounts. The content reflects my interpretation of market structure, including Elliott Wave Theory and related tools.
Nothing in this blog constitutes a recommendation to buy or sell stocks, options, or any other financial instrument, or to pursue any particular strategy. The purpose of this blog is education and entertainment.
No trader is ever 100 percent successful. Trading in stock and options markets involves risk and uncertainty. Each trader must make decisions for his or her own account and accept full responsibility for the outcomes.
Charts and tools are used to support my personal analysis. Any data displayed is illustrative of that analytical process and is not presented as a source of market data for redistribution.
All content on Tim Bovee, Private Trader byTimothy K. Boveeis licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Based on work atwww.timbovee.com









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