Global equities were in rally mode before the US market opened. The Nikkei had posted a 2.84% gain, 1.44% for the Shanghai and 3.19% for the Hang Seng. European indexes would follow suit, with the DAX subsequently surging 2.71%, the FTSE 1.93% and the CAC 40 3.32%. But before the US market opened, March Retail Sales were a huge disappointment. No worries. The S&P 500 opened in the green and rallied to a mid-morning high. After about 90 minutes of minor selling, the index resumed its upward trend to close with an even 1% gain, just a tad off its 1.04% intraday high just before the final bell.

The yield on the 10-year note closed at 1.77%, down two basis points from the previous close.

Here is a snapshot of past five sessions in the S&P 500.

Here is a daily chart of the 500 with the 2015 closing price highlighted. The index has been see-sawing around that level since for the past seventeen sessions, but it has now risen to its year-to-date high and is only 2.27% below its record high set last May. Although earnings season is still in its infancy, so far it hasn't been a millstone around the market's neck.

A Perspective on Drawdowns

Here's a snapshot of selloffs since the 2009 trough.

Here is a more conventional log-scale chart with drawdowns highlighted.

Here is a linear scale version of the same chart with the 50- and 200-day moving averages.

A Perspective on Volatility

For a sense of the correlation between the closing price and intraday volatility, the chart below overlays the S&P 500 since 2007 with the intraday price range. We've also included a 20-day moving average to help identify trends in volatility.