'All or Nothing' Days on the Rise

Whenever the market has a day where the net advance/decline (A/D) reading of the S&P 500 is greater than 400 or less then negative 400, we call it an 'all or nothing' day.  During the credit crisis, all or nothing days were incredibly common.  In 2008, we saw a peak of 52 all or nothing days, which works out to an average of about one per week.  Since then, we have seen a decrease in the number of all or nothing days, but they still remain elevated.

So far this year there have been 27 all or nothing days, which works out to a still elevated annualized rate of 43.  At this time just last month, there had only been 17 all or nothing days this year, which at an annualized rate of 31 would have been the lowest level since 2007.  Back then, many investors were hoping that the market was finally returning to pre-crisis levels of normalcy.  Oh well, maybe next year.