"This is a logical place for the MAGs to catch their breath"

1. US services. ISM Services PMI jumped to 56.1 in February (vs. 53.5 est), marking strongest reading since Aug’22 as business activity, new orders, and employment accelerated while inflation pressures cooled.

2. ADP. Private US businesses added 63k jobs in February (vs. 50k est), most since July. Gains were driven almost entirely by small businesses.

3. Gas prices. “The national average for gasoline prices is now up 20 cents in the last two days. As the bottom panel of the chart below shows, this is the biggest such jump in over two decades.”

4. Retail activity. “Retail’s appetite to buy the dip has remained a dominant force in early-2026 flows. Year-to-date, average net notional traded on our platform has been 2.5x larger on S&P down days than on up days. While overall average daily net notional moderated in February, the intensity of dip-buying actually increased: net notional on February S&P down days was 4.3x that of up days (vs. 2.1x in January).”

5. Mag 7 vs. equal-weight. “On a relative basis vs the Equal Weight S&P 500, they’ve fallen below the 200-day SMA. [The Mag 7] currently sit at the same % distance from this long-term mean as they did at the April tariff lows. This is a logical place for the MAGs to catch their breath and for the broader leadership across value sectors to consolidate.”

ICYMI