In my post on September 7th, 2011, I mentioned a weakness in the middle of the trading range that has formed since the August 8th low in the Major Indices because of the intraday gapping that has taken place since the U.S. credit rating was downgraded by Standard & Poor's on August 5th: http://strawberryblondesmarketsummary.blogspot.com/2011/09/weakness-in-middle.html
The 60 minute charts below of the Dow 30, S&P 500, Nasdaq 100, Nasdaq Composite, Russell 2000, Dow Transports, and S&P 100 show the levels in between which price would need to "firm up" before any meaningful reversal to the upside can occur with conviction...the markets may be awaiting the results of the next Fed meeting on September 21st and may "fill in the blanks" by then before making a convincing move up or down.
Price stopped at the bottom of this level on the Dow 30 and the S&P 500 today, while price ventured into this range today on the Russell 2000, Dow Transports, and S&P 100. Price has remained within this level on the Nasdaq 100 since September 6th, and it moved back into this level on the Nasdaq Composite on September 12th.