SPY, QQQ, NVDA are splitting apart pre-market

All three tracked names opened this morning within pennies of their pivots — and by this morning's final pre-market pull, that tight, synchronized read has already started to separate. SPY is pulling higher above its pivot while QQQ and NVDA sink deeper below theirs, a real divergent-legs pattern building ahead of the cash open.

Session Bias: Neutral-to-Bearish, Pivot-Driven — 30% bull / 45% bear / 25% chop.

The macro backdrop still leans defensive but has eased marginally overnight. US10Y nominal has ticked down to 4.712%, DXY has softened to 99.538, and WTI has pulled back to $85.35. A new overnight escalation in Russia-Ukraine — the deadliest strike of the year on Ukrainian energy infrastructure — is compounding on the US-Iran situation and appears to be pulling a flight-to-safety bid into Treasuries, capping the yield move despite Chair Warsh's hawkish tone (September hike odds still near 57%).

VIX has ticked up modestly to 15.22 from Friday's 14.43 close, and month-end plus MSCI Index Review rebalancing adds flow-driven distortion risk into today's close. Fresh COT data (now current through August 25) shows a genuine split in institutional positioning: SPY leveraged funds deepened their net short, while QQQ leveraged funds covered a meaningful portion of theirs.

This is the headline read. Paid subscribers also get the full trade framework with R:R boxes for all three names, options-flow positioning, the complete Thesis Tree with probabilities, Sovereign Intersections and Market Internals breakdowns, and the full Session Bias by Region table — delivered every morning before the open.

— Nate

Flow Maps Pro is an educational platform providing institutional macro market research, order flow analysis, and mathematical data for educational and informational purposes only. We are not registered financial advisors, broker-dealers, or commodity trading advisors (CTAs). While every effort is made to ensure accuracy, pricing, strikes, dates, and trade levels may contain errors or become outdated without notice. No content, tools, or trade frameworks shared constitute a personalized recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security, option, or financial instrument. Options trading involves a high degree of risk and can result in the loss of your entire principal. Past performance or options flow anomalies do not guarantee future market results. All sales are final. By utilizing this platform, you agree that you are solely responsible for your own investment decisions and risk management.