Technicals Are Vital to Surviving This Market

One week ago today, I asked Helene Meisler to give me a chart of a stock that was dangerous-looking. She came back with Monsanto (MON - commentary - Trade Now). I was worried about it, because I knew it was going to report, and I knew it had set expectations low.

Boom.

It's down 7 points.

I point this out not only because I am proud to share this site with her but because this is a market that is still uniquely driven by technicals. I think that Monsanto was "bad" but not that bad, or else Deere (DE - commentary - Trade Now) would not be up and the fertilizer stocks would not be attempting to stabilize. It is simply a question that Monsanto took out levels that both hedge-fund and mutual-fund technicians decided would mean that exiting was the only choice. Her colleague Bert Dohmen, who also writes for the site, agreed with Helene, and that gave me the courage to go against my own convictions and bring it to people's attention.

I have to tell you that this is the single most technically driven market I have ever seen and that if you don't look at the levels or pay attention to the technicians, you can be totally blindsided for the smallest of data points. Witness the fact that Rick "TopGunTrader" Bensignor said that Research In Motion (RIMM - commentary - Trade Now) was dangerous at about $80. He didn't say it was not good; he said it was liable to take a real spill. Another guy worth listening to.

It's not easy being the only guy on earth who believes that house-price stabilization is upon us and that house-price depreciation is in the past. Not easy at all. In fact, the belligerent press I get on it is only exceeded by everything else I say!

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Jim Cramer is co-founder and chairman of TheStreet.com. He contributes daily market commentary for TheStreet.com's sites and serves as an adviser to the company's CEO. Outside contributing columnists for TheStreet.com and RealMoney.com, including Cramer, may, from time to time, write about stocks in which they have a position. In such cases, appropriate disclosure is made. To see his personal portfolio and find out what trades Cramer will make before he makes them, sign up for Action Alerts PLUS. Watch Cramer on "Mad Money" weeknights on CNBC. To order Cramer's newest book -- "Jim Cramer's Stay Mad for Life: Get Rich, Stay Rich (Make Your Kids Even Richer)," click here. Click here to order "Mad Money: Watch TV, Get Rich," click here to order "Real Money: Sane Investing in an Insane World," click here to get "You Got Screwed!" and click here for Cramer's autobiography, "Confessions of a Street Addict." While he cannot provide personalized investment advice or recommendations, he appreciates your feedback and invites you to send comments by clicking here.

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