The following economic data was released during the session:

• Net Change in Employment for Feb was released in Canada; the result was 20.9K declining 22.1 from the prior reading of 43.0K, – above the market’s pre-release guess of 17.0K.
• Unemployment Rate for Feb was released in Canada; the outcome was 8.2% sliding 0.1 from the prior reading of 8.3%, – less than the market’s pre-release guess of 8.3%.
• Retail Sales m/m for Feb was released in the US; the outcome was 0.3% a gain of 0.2 from the prior reading of 0.1%, – above the consensus estimate of -0.1%.
• Retail Sales ex Autos m/m for Feb was released in the US; the series posted a reading of 0.8% gaining 0.3 from the prior reading of 0.5%, – above the consensus estimate of 0.0%.
• Reuters/Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index for Mar was released in the US; the result was 72.6 a decline of 1 from the prior reading of 73.6, – less than expectations of 74.0.
• Business Inventories for Jan was released in the US; the series posted a reading of 0.0% advancing 0.3 from the prior reading of -0.3%, – less than the market’s pre-release guess of 0.1%.

Headline Indices

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced +12.85 points (0.12%) to 10624.69 points. The index high for the day was 10644.95, while the low was 10594.84.

• General Electric (GE) +0.56 (3.4%) to $17.04 on volume of 112.37m shares;
• Caterpillar (CAT) +1.46 (2.5%) to $60.36 on volume of 9.68m shares;
• American Express (AXP) +0.65 (1.6%) to $40.76 on volume of 9.36m shares;
• Home Depot (HD) +0.32 (1%) to $32.45 on volume of 14.84m shares; and
• Merck (MRK) +0.28 (0.8%) to $37.16 on volume of 16.35m shares.

The S&P500 Index fell 0.25 points (0.02%) to 1149.99 points..

• Citigroup Inc. (C) -0.21 (5%) to $3.97 on volume of 1274.19m shares;
• Pall Corp. (PLL) -1.97 (4.8%) to $38.87 on volume of 2.93m shares;
• MBIA Inc. (MBI) -0.27 (4.5%) to $5.69 on volume of 5.67m shares;
• KeyCorp (KEY) -0.33 (4.2%) to $7.55 on volume of 31.88m shares; and
• Charles Schwab (SCHW) -0.67 (3.5%) to $18.43 on volume of 19.86m shares.

The Nasdaq Composite declined 0.8 points (0.03%) to 2367.66 points. while the Nasdaq100 added +0.62 points (0.03%) to 1924.43 points..

• PACCAR (PCAR) +1.54 (3.9%) to $41.35 on volume of 6.69m shares;
• Liberty Media (LINTA) +0.46 (3.4%) to $14.06 on volume of 5.49m shares;
• UAL (UAUA) +0.51 (2.7%) to $19.68 on volume of 8.64m shares;
• Microchip Technology (MCHP) +0.72 (2.6%) to $28.23 on volume of 5.2m shares; and
• Lamar Advertising (LAMR) +0.81 (2.4%) to $34.32 on volume of 1.19m shares.

Volatility

The CBOE Volatility Index dropped 0.48 points (2.66%) to 17.58 points. and the CBOE Nasdaq100 Volatility Index added +0.05 points (0.26%) to 19.14 points..

Breadth and Internals

A total of 3957 issues traded today on the NYSE; today’s total volume was 5.48bn shares. A total of 2165 stocks posted gains for the day, and volume in advancing issues totalled 2.07bn shares. Exerting downwards pressure on the index were 1653 losers, which accounted for a total declining volume of 3.35bn shares. 592 stocks made new 1-year highs on the NYSE, while 56 shares plumbed new 52-week depths.

On the Nasdaq 2803 tickers traded today; total Nasdaq volume was 1.97bn shares. A total of 1213 stocks posted gains for the day, with aggregate volume of 0.85bn shares changing hands in the day’s winners. The red zone of the Nasdaq exchange comprised 1474 losers, and total declining volume was 1.08bn shares. 213 Nasdaq-listed stocks hit new 52-week highs, while 13 shares dipped to new 1-year lows.

Dow Darlings

• General Electric (GE) +0.56 (3.4%) to $17.04 on volume of 112.4m units
• Caterpillar (CAT) +1.46 (2.5%) to $60.36 on volume of 9.7m units
• American Express (AXP) +0.65 (1.6%) to $40.76 on volume of 9.4m units
• Home Depot (HD) +0.32 (1%) to $32.45 on volume of 14.8m units
• Merck (MRK) +0.28 (0.8%) to $37.16 on volume of 16.3m units

Dow Duds:

• Bank Of America (BAC) -0.27 (1.6%) to $16.85 on volume of 170.6m units
• Pfizer (PFE) -0.21 (1.2%) to $17.08 on volume of 85.2m units
• United Technologies (UTX) -0.51 (0.7%) to $71.53 on volume of 5.8m units
• Exxon-Mobil (XOM) -0.42 (0.6%) to $66.8 on volume of 23.3m units
• Coca-Cola (KO) -0.25 (0.5%) to $53.35 on volume of 11.2m units

Most Traded Dow stocks:

• Bank Of America (BAC)-0.27 (1.6%) to $16.85 on volume of 170.6m units
• General Electric (GE) +0.56 (3.4%) to $17.04 on volume of 112.4m units
• Pfizer (PFE)-0.21 (1.2%) to $17.08 on volume of 85.2m units
• Intel (INTC) +0.02 (0.1%) to $21.27 on volume of 38.5m units
• Microsoft (MSFT) +0.09 (0.3%) to $29.27 on volume of 31.5m units

Precious Metals

Precious metals futures performed as follows –

The Gold Bugs index (XAU) dipped 1.2 points (0.72%) to 166.04 points. Total volume traded in the 16 components of the index was 66.52m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 14 to one, with 14 decliners to 1 advancers. Declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 46.46m to 10.32m shares. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were –

• Coeur d’Alene (CDE) -0.43 (2.6%) to $16.42 on volume of 2.3m shares;
• GoldCorp (GG) -0.72 (1.8%) to $39.3 on volume of 8.44m shares;
• Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM) -0.95 (1.6%) to $58.34 on volume of 2.35m shares;
• RandGold Resources (GOLD) -1.01 (1.3%) to $74.64 on volume of 0.62m shares; and
• Gold Fields Ltd (GFI) -0.13 (1.1%) to $11.94 on volume of 4.68m shares.

Energy Complex

Energy futures performed as follows –

The Oil Services index (OSX) added 1.5 points (0.71%) to 212.65 points. Total volume traded in the 15 components of the index was 73.94m shares. Advancers outpaced decliners by 13 to one, with 13 advancers to 1 decliners. Advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 65.87m to 4.12m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Halliburton (HAL) +0.76 (2.5%) to $31.5 on volume of 15.64m shares;
• Oceaneering International (OII) +1.18 (1.9%) to $64.72 on volume of 0.57m shares;
• Smith International (SII) +0.46 (1.1%) to $43.59 on volume of 6m shares;
• Weatherford International (WFT) +0.18 (1%) to $17.42 on volume of 12.92m shares; and
• Cameron International (CAM) +0.46 (1%) to $44.65 on volume of 2.21m shares.

Currency Futures

Currency futures performed as follows –

Bellwethers

The nine-stock group that makes up the Rant bellwethers declined on average by 0.5%. The fallout occurred as follows:

• General Electric (GE) +0.56 (3.4%) to $17.04 on volume of 112.37m units.
• Citigroup (C) -0.21 (5.02%) to $3.97 on volume of 1274.19m units.
• Wal-Mart (WMT) -0.07 (0.13%) to $53.90 on volume of 10.47m units.
• IBM (IBM) +0.34 (0.27%) to $127.94 on volume of 5.17m units
• Intel (INTC) +0.02 (0.09%) to $21.27 on volume of 38.53m units.
• Cisco Systems (CSCO) -0.09 (0.35%) to $25.88 on volume of 31.08m units.
• Google (GOOG) -1.6 (0.28%) to $579.54 on volume of 2.68m units.
• Fannie Mae (FNM) -0.02 (1.82%) to $1.08 on volume of 18.1m units.
• Freddie Mac (FRE) -0.01 (0.77%) to $1.29 on volume of 11.28m units.

Other Indices of Interest…

The Banks index (BKX) fell 0.46 points (0.9%) to 50.46 points. Total volume traded in the 24 components of the index was 1.69bn shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 2.7 to one, with 16 decliners to 6 advancers. Declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 1.63bn to 65.3m shares. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were –

• Citigroup Inc (C) -0.21 (5%) to $3.97 on volume of 1274.19m shares;
• Keycorp (KEY) -0.33 (4.2%) to $7.55 on volume of 31.88m shares;
• Zions Bancorp (ZION) -0.44 (2.1%) to $20.99 on volume of 8.89m shares;
• Bank Of America (BAC) -0.27 (1.6%) to $16.85 on volume of 170.55m shares; and
• PNC Financial (PNC) -0.58 (1%) to $57.86 on volume of 3.81m shares.

The Semiconductor index (SOX) was unchanged at 0 points. Total volume traded in the 18 components of the index was 209.04m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 2.4 to one, with 12 decliners to 5 advancers. Declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 105.99m to 103.05m shares. The index’s rather boring situation arose as a result of a mixed bag of results, the most notable amongst these (in percentage terms) being –

• ST Microelectronic (STM) -0.2 (2.2%) to $9.07 on volume of 2.48m shares;
• KLA-Tencor Cp (KLAC) -0.54 (1.8%) to $29.45 on volume of 3.92m shares;
• Micron Technology (MU) +0.17 (1.7%) to $9.97 on volume of 33.56m shares;
• Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) -0.17 (1.6%) to $10.33 on volume of 12.63m shares; and
• Teradyne (TER) -0.17 (1.6%) to $10.49 on volume of 6.62m shares.

The ChildKiller (“Defence”) index (DFX) lost 0.73 points (0.21%) to 352.65 points. Total volume traded in the 17 components of the index was 136.13m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 2.8 to one, with 11 decliners to 4 advancers; however advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 116.87m shares to 18.99m. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were –

• Embraer Empresa (ERJ) -0.31 (1.3%) to $23.35 on volume of 0.26m shares;
• Northrop Grummanl (NOC) -0.75 (1.2%) to $64 on volume of 1.87m shares;
• United Technologies (UTX) -0.51 (0.7%) to $71.53 on volume of 5.8m shares;
• Gencorp (GY) -0.03 (0.6%) to $4.65 on volume of 0.59m shares; and
• Raytheon (RTN) -0.31 (0.5%) to $56.68 on volume of 2.08m shares.

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Post tags: Bonds, Gold, Oil, USRant

1. Strayan (or Strine); and/or
2. Anarchically-aware; and/or
3. familiar with cricket (see (1) above)…

the following will go through to the keeper (see (3) above… and (1) for that matter)

For the übermenschen amongst the readership, your Beloved GT is taking time out from his monastic sabbatical to present you with some Thoughts (capital T since these are thoughts from the smartest guy you get to read regularly)…

OK… are you seated? Are your buttocks clenched? Let's proceed.

ON:

On Johnny the Chimp becoming Head Dick at the ICC…

Your Beloved GT sees it as fitting – in these days where 20/20 is considered 'cricket' – that the post should be filled by a closet-bisexual War Criminal who can't bowl (or bat) and who has never taken an outfield screamer or scored 27 not out (or taken 3/5 from 4 overs at under 15s Country Week… go on Mavro, find that reference). Did you know that Prue Howard and John Goward's names rhyme? And that – rather than any fellatio-related contact between the two – is why Prue was Officer for Whatever under (fnar fnar) Howard…

On some Strayans (or dual-loyalty Strayan RSPs who live in "Israel") donating their IDs to the Mossad…

Your beloved GT is not surprised that when their plot was rumbled, the aforementioned dual-loyalty RSPs pretended to be surprised that the assassination corps of their racial-supremacist, tribal theocratic parasite State had used the identities that they had donated.

And lastly (and by all means, leastly)…

On Lara Bingle…

your Beloved GT is shocked (SHOCKED!!!) that a thin-lipped titless (and basically unattractive) media creation who makes Carla Bruni look like a non-courtesan… well, that such a woman would turn out to be a standard 'star-fucker'. Having seen the full suite of Fev-photos (including the facials), let's just say that her 'defamation' suit doesn't have a chance, never had a chance, and is a desperate attempt to revive a flagging career… by the aforementioned thin-lipped titless harridan. In short… I would rather do Sarah Palin

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The following economic data was released during the session:

• Industrial Production m/m for Jan was released in Japan; the outcome was 2.7% advancing 0.2 from the prior reading of 2.5% – above the consensus estimate of 2.5%.
• Industrial Production y/y for Jan was released in Japan; the series posted a reading of 18.5% advancing 0.3 from the prior reading of 18.2%
• Capacity Utilization for Jan was released in Japan; the outcome was 3.9 gaining 2.5 from the prior reading of 1.4

Major Market Indices

The broad market – the All Ordinaries (XAO) – advanced modestly, rising 6 points (0.12%), finishing at 4831.5 points. The index hit an intraday high of 4847 at 11:06 am, while the low for the day was 4825 – set at 10:02 am Sydney time.

Total volume traded on the ASX was 1.95bn units, 7.9% below its 10-day average of 2.12bn shares.The ASX’s daily listing of all stocks included 1308 different 3-letter FPO’s which traded (i.e., had non-zero trade volume). Of these, 510 issues rose, with volume in rising issues totalling 1.08bn units; there were 452 declining stocks, which traded aggregate declining volume of 501m shares.

Of the 497 All Ordinaries components, 215 rose while 192 fell. Volume was tilted in favour of the gainers by a margin of 1.5:1, with 474.36m shares traded in gainers while 311.86m shares traded in the day’s losers.

The Index that forms the cash basis for the SPI Futures – the S&P/ASX 200 (XJO) – posted a modest rise of 3.9 points (0.08%), closing out the session at 4818.1 points.

Name	Close	+/-(%)
All Ordinaries	4831.50	6.00 (0.1%)
ASX 20	2948.90	0.30 (0.0%)
ASX 50	4853.40	4.20 (0.1%)
ASX 100	3948.90	3.10 (0.1%)
ASX 200	4818.10	3.90 (0.1%)
ASX 300	4811.50	4.20 (0.1%)
ASX Mid-Cap 50	4269.90	0.60 (0.0%)
ASX Small Ordinaries	2539.80	5.20 (0.2%)

The “heavy hitters” of the Australian market – the ASX 20 Leaders (XTL) – advanced by under a percent, adding 0.3 points (0.01%), closing out the session at 2948.9 points.

Among the 20 big guns, the outcome favoured the upside, but only just – the 11 advancing sectors just triumphed the losing sectors. The stocks which make up the index traded a total of 126.58m units; 11 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 33.33m shares, while the 7 decliners had volume traded totalling 23.96m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Macquarie Group Ltd (MQG), +$0.38 (0.77%) to $49.78 on volume of 1.2 million shares;
• Newcrest Mining Ltd (NCM), +$0.26 (0.77%) to $34.16 on volume of 1.1 million shares;
• RIO Tinto Ltd (RIO), +$0.56 (0.74%) to $76.11 on volume of 1.8 million shares;
• Stockland (SGP), +$0.03 (0.74%) to $4.06 on volume of 5.5 million shares; and
• ANZ Banking Group (ANZ), +$0.17 (0.71%) to $24.23 on volume of 4 million shares.

On the less salubrious side of the big-cap fence, the following stocks were the worst-performed within the index:

• Brambles Industries Ltd (BXB), -$0.16 (2.14%) to $7.31 on volume of 4.7 million shares;
• Wesfarmers Ltd (WES), -$0.39 (1.21%) to $31.90 on volume of 2.4 million shares;
• Fosters Group Ltd (FGL), -$0.05 (0.92%) to $5.36 on volume of 4.9 million shares;
• Westpac Banking Corp (WBC), -$0.19 (0.7%) to $26.81 on volume of 3.7 million shares; and
• BHP Billiton Ltd (BHP), -$0.21 (0.49%) to $42.80 on volume of 5.5 million shares.

The ASX Small Ordinaries (XSO) The small end of the market absolutely wiped the floor with its large-cap counterpart. The Small Ords advanced by under a percent, adding 5.2 points (0.21%), closing out the session at 2539.8 points.

Among the stocks that make up the Small Caps index, 103 index components finished to the upside, and of the rest, 90 closed lower for the session.

• Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Group (BBI), +$3.95 (11271.4%) to $3.98 on volume of 454.6 thousand shares;
• Macquarie DDR Trust (MDT), +$0.01 (12.7%) to $0.07 on volume of 4.7 million shares;
• Energy World Corporation Ltd (EWC), +$0.04 (12.31%) to $0.37 on volume of 9.8 million shares;
• Cape Lambert Iron Ore Ltd (CFE), +$0.05 (10.11%) to $0.49 on volume of 11.2 million shares; and
• Conquest Mining Ltd (CQT), +$0.03 (8.47%) to $0.32 on volume of 1.4 million shares.

In the red-zone of the little-stock index, the following list represents the biggest downers (in terms of percentage decline):

• Apex Minerals NL (AXM), -$0 (7.41%) to $0.03 on volume of 9.7 million shares;
• Marion Energy Ltd (MAE), -$0 (6.12%) to $0.05 on volume of 3.4 million shares;
• UXC Ltd (UXC), -$0.03 (4.63%) to $0.52 on volume of 906.2 thousand shares;
• Panoramic Resources Ltd (PAN), -$0.1 (4.26%) to $2.25 on volume of 1.2 million shares; and
• Citigold Corp Ltd (CTO), -$0.01 (4.17%) to $0.12 on volume of 1.8 million shares.

Index Changes

Market Breadth

GICS Industry Indices

Among the 11 industry indices, 3 registered an advance for the session, the remaining 8 lost ground.

The best performing index was Energy (XEJ), which added 67.8 points (0.44%) to 15483.4 points. The 23 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 50.18m units; 14 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 33.25m shares, while the 7 decliners had volume traded totalling 12.77m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Eastern Star Gas Ltd (ESG), +$0.05 (5.63%) to $0.85 on volume of 6.5 million shares;
• Linc Energy (LNC), +$0.05 (3.3%) to $1.57 on volume of 1.4 million shares;
• Beach Petroleum Ltd (BPT), +$0.02 (2.8%) to $0.74 on volume of 3.1 million shares;
• Arrow Energy (AOE), +$0.13 (2.57%) to $5.19 on volume of 7.2 million shares; and
• Caltex Australia Ltd (CTX), +$0.24 (2.15%) to $11.38 on volume of 1.8 million shares.

Second in the index leadership stakes was Financials ex Property Trusts (XXJ), which gained 15.7 points (028%) to 5637.2 points. The 23 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 57.73m units; 13 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 46.4m shares, while the 7 decliners had volume traded totalling 7.78m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Henderson Group PLC (HGG), +$0.05 (2.25%) to $2.27 on volume of 5.7 million shares;
• AXA Asia Pacific Holdings Ltd (AXA), +$0.09 (1.45%) to $6.31 on volume of 9.2 million shares;
• FKP Property Group (FKP), +$0.01 (1.32%) to $0.77 on volume of 2.2 million shares;
• ASX Ltd (ASX), +$0.47 (1.32%) to $36.09 on volume of 720.6 thousand shares; and
• Bank Of Queensland Ltd (BOQ), +$0.13 (1.16%) to $11.33 on volume of 393.4 thousand shares.

The bronze medal for today goes to Materials (XMJ), which climbed 21.4 points (0.17%) to 12575.1 points. The 46 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 191.23m units; 23 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 111.17m shares, while the 18 decliners had volume traded totalling 32.09m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Cudeco Ltd (CDU), +$0.25 (5.58%) to $4.73 on volume of 734.1 thousand shares;
• Equinox Resources Ltd (EQN), +$0.15 (3.95%) to $3.95 on volume of 2.2 million shares;
• Lihir Gold Ltd (LGL), +$0.11 (3.79%) to $3.01 on volume of 38 million shares;
• Nufarm Ltd (NUF), +$0.27 (3.2%) to $8.70 on volume of 1.2 million shares; and
• Dominion Mining Ltd (DOM), +$0.08 (2.96%) to $2.78 on volume of 328.5 thousand shares.

The worst-performed index for the session was Industrials (XNJ), which dipped 16.3 points (0.41%) to 3945.4 points. The 32 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 143.48m units; The 15 decliners had volume traded totalling 41.76m units, and 13 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 93.19m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were

• Emeco Holdings (EHL), -$0.02 (2.38%) to $0.62 on volume of 2.8 million shares;
• Brambles Industries Ltd (BXB), -$0.16 (2.14%) to $7.31 on volume of 4.7 million shares;
• Hastie Group (HST), -$0.03 (1.86%) to $1.58 on volume of 2.2 million shares;
• MAP Airports International Ltd (MAP), -$0.06 (1.86%) to $3.16 on volume of 8.3 million shares; and
• Australian Infrastructure Grp (AIX), -$0.04 (1.82%) to $1.89 on volume of 688.2 thousand shares.

Just missing out on the wooden spoon was Telecommunications (XTJ), which slid 3.5 points (0.33%) to 1047.9 points. The 3 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 63.03m units; The sole declining stock traded 3.8m units, – none of the index components ended with a gain. The major percentage decliners within the index were

• Telecom Corporation Of New Zealand Ltd (TEL), -$0.01 (0.58%) to $1.72 on volume of 3.8 million shares.

Third-to-last amongst the sector indices was Consumer Staples (XSJ), which slid 25.9 points (0.33%) to 7836.4 points. The 11 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 27.9m units; The 7 decliners had volume traded totalling 15.83m units, and 3 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 10.53m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were

• AWB Ltd (AWB), -$0.04 (3.64%) to $1.06 on volume of 6.1 million shares;
• Viterra Inc (VTA), -$0.31 (2.97%) to $10.14 on volume of 13.4 thousand shares;
• Graincorp Ltd A (GNC), -$0.13 (2.07%) to $6.15 on volume of 629.1 thousand shares;
• Wesfarmers Ltd (WES), -$0.39 (1.21%) to $31.90 on volume of 2.4 million shares; and
• Fosters Group Ltd (FGL), -$0.05 (0.92%) to $5.36 on volume of 4.9 million shares.

Sector Indices

All Ordinaries Major Movers

All Ords Volume Leaders

All Ords Percentage Gainers

All Ords Percentage Losers

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The following economic data was released during the session:

• Capacity Utilization for 4Q was released in Canada; the outcome was 70.9% advancing 3.4 from the prior reading of 67.5%, – above the market’s pre-release guess of 70.1%.
• International Merchandise Trade for Jan was released in Canada; the outcome was $0.799B losing 0 from the prior reading of $0.075B, – less than the market’s pre-release guess of $0.300B.
• New Housing Price Index m/m for Jan was released in Canada; the series posted a reading of 0.4% dropping 0 from the prior reading of 0.4%, – less than the market’s pre-release guess of 0.5%.
• Continuing Jobless Claims for Feb 27 was released in the US; the result was 4558K a gain of 37 from the prior reading of 4521K, – above the market’s pre-release guess of 4500K.
• Initial Jobless Claims for Mar 6 was released in the US; the result was 462K a drop of 6 from the prior reading of 468K, – above expectations of 455K.
• Trade Balance for Jan was released in the US; the outcome was -$37.29B falling 0 from the prior reading of -$39.90B, – less than the consensus estimate of -$40.80B.

Headline Indices

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced +44.51 points (0.42%) to 10611.84 points. The index high for the day was 10611.84, while the low was 10507.17.

• Citigroup (C) +0.22 (5.6%) to $4.18 on volume of 1177.08m shares;
• Merck (MRK) +0.59 (1.6%) to $36.88 on volume of 15.19m shares;
• IBM (IBM) +1.98 (1.6%) to $127.6 on volume of 7.48m shares;
• Disney Corp (DIS) +0.48 (1.4%) to $33.81 on volume of 11.33m shares; and
• Home Depot (HD) +0.42 (1.3%) to $32.13 on volume of 14.63m shares.

The S&P500 Index gained +4.63 points (0.4%) to 1150.24 points..

• GameStop Corp. (GME) +1.07 (5.9%) to $19.35 on volume of 17.6m shares;
• Citigroup Inc. (C) +0.22 (5.6%) to $4.18 on volume of 1177.08m shares;
• Zions Bancorp (ZION) +0.94 (4.6%) to $21.43 on volume of 13.76m shares;
• KeyCorp (KEY) +0.32 (4.2%) to $7.88 on volume of 17.55m shares; and
• Discover Financial Services (DFS) +0.54 (3.8%) to $14.92 on volume of 7.11m shares.

The Nasdaq Composite rose +9.51 points (0.4%) to 2368.46 points. while the Nasdaq100 gained +6.46 points (0.34%) to 1923.81 points..

• Hologic (HOLX) +1.73 (9.9%) to $19.28 on volume of 23.62m shares;
• Level 3 Communications (LVLT) +0.05 (3.2%) to $1.63 on volume of 16.87m shares;
• Amazon.com (AMZN) +3.07 (2.4%) to $133.58 on volume of 7.21m shares;
• Lamar Advertising (LAMR) +0.68 (2.1%) to $33.51 on volume of 0.65m shares; and
• Leap Wireless International (LEAP) +0.27 (1.7%) to $16.06 on volume of 2.28m shares.

Volatility

The CBOE Volatility Index slid 0.51 points (2.75%) to 18.06 points. and the CBOE Nasdaq100 Volatility Index advanced +0.01 points (0.05%) to 19.09 points..

Breadth and Internals

A total of 3929 issues traded today on the NYSE; today’s total volume was 5.22bn shares. A total of 2262 stocks posted gains for the day, and volume in advancing issues totalled 3.69bn shares. Exerting downwards pressure on the index were 1489 losers, which accounted for a total declining volume of 1.41bn shares. 378 stocks made new 1-year highs on the NYSE, while 39 shares plumbed new 52-week depths.

On the Nasdaq 2788 tickers traded today; total Nasdaq volume was 2.1bn shares. A total of 1505 stocks posted gains for the day, with aggregate volume of 1.25bn shares changing hands in the day’s winners. The red zone of the Nasdaq exchange comprised 1131 losers, and total declining volume was 0.79bn shares. 191 Nasdaq-listed stocks hit new 52-week highs, while 12 shares dipped to new 1-year lows.

Dow Darlings

• Merck (MRK) +0.59 (1.6%) to $36.88 on volume of 15.2m units
• IBM (IBM) +1.98 (1.6%) to $127.6 on volume of 7.5m units
• Disney Corp (DIS) +0.48 (1.4%) to $33.81 on volume of 11.3m units
• Home Depot (HD) +0.42 (1.3%) to $32.13 on volume of 14.6m units
• American Express (AXP) +0.39 (1%) to $40.11 on volume of 7.6m units

Dow Duds:

• 3M Co (MMM) -0.3 (0.4%) to $81.26 on volume of 4m units
• Coca-Cola (KO) -0.16 (0.3%) to $53.6 on volume of 14.5m units
• General Electric (GE) -0.03 (0.2%) to $16.48 on volume of 59.6m units
• Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) -0.07 (0.1%) to $64.22 on volume of 9.2m units

Most Traded Dow stocks:

• Bank Of America (BAC) +0.01 (0.1%) to $17.12 on volume of 144m units
• General Electric (GE)-0.03 (0.2%) to $16.48 on volume of 59.6m units
• Intel (INTC) +0.06 (0.3%) to $21.25 on volume of 53.4m units
• Pfizer (PFE) +0.14 (0.8%) to $17.29 on volume of 47m units
• Microsoft (MSFT) +0.21 (0.7%) to $29.18 on volume of 35.2m units

Precious Metals

Precious metals futures performed as follows –

The Gold Bugs index (XAU) advanced 1.41 points (0.85%) to 167.24 points. Total volume traded in the 16 components of the index was 70.6m shares. Advancers outpaced decliners by 6.5 to one, with 13 advancers to 2 decliners. Advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 59.27m to 7.31m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Coeur d’Alene (CDE) +0.59 (3.6%) to $16.85 on volume of 3.09m shares;
• Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM) +1.17 (2%) to $59.29 on volume of 2.59m shares;
• RandGold Resources (GOLD) +1.33 (1.8%) to $75.65 on volume of 0.64m shares;
• Silver Wheaton (SLW) +0.26 (1.7%) to $15.55 on volume of 3.6m shares; and
• GoldCorp (GG) +0.57 (1.4%) to $40.02 on volume of 6.81m shares.

Energy Complex

Energy futures performed as follows –

The Oil Services index (OSX) fell 0.24 points (0.11%) to 211.15 points. Total volume traded in the 15 components of the index was 59.28m shares. Advancers and decliners were split evenly, 7 decliners to 7 advancers. Advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 32.02m shares to 24.29m. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were –

• Global Industries (GLBL) -0.22 (3%) to $7.08 on volume of 0.92m shares;
• Rowan Co (RDC) -0.26 (0.9%) to $27.9 on volume of 2.28m shares;
• Noble Corp (NE) -0.4 (0.9%) to $43.47 on volume of 2.97m shares;
• Smith International (SII) -0.26 (0.6%) to $43.13 on volume of 4.15m shares; and
• Transocean Inc (RIG) -0.41 (0.5%) to $85.54 on volume of 3.5m shares.

Currency Futures

Currency futures performed as follows –

Bellwethers

The nine-stock group that makes up the Rant bellwethers advanced on average by 0.9%. The fallout occurred as follows:

• General Electric (GE) -0.03 (0.18%) to $16.48 on volume of 59.57m units.
• Citigroup (C) +0.22 (5.56%) to $4.18 on volume of 1177.15m units.
• Wal-Mart (WMT) +0.34 (0.63%) to $53.97 on volume of 10.53m units.
• IBM (IBM) +1.98 (1.58%) to $127.60 on volume of 7.48m units
• Intel (INTC) +0.06 (0.28%) to $21.25 on volume of 53.45m units.
• Cisco Systems (CSCO) +0.098 (0.38%) to $25.97 on volume of 36.84m units.
• Google (GOOG) +4.69 (0.81%) to $581.14 on volume of 4.16m units.
• Fannie Mae (FNM) -0 (0%) to $1.10 on volume of 31.51m units.
• Freddie Mac (FRE) -0.01 (0.76%) to $1.30 on volume of 15.55m units.

Other Indices of Interest…

The Banks index (BKX) gained 0.86 points (1.72%) to 50.92 points. Total volume traded in the 24 components of the index was 1.58bn shares. Advancers outpaced decliners by 10 to one, with 20 advancers to 2 decliners. Advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 1.58bn to 5.99m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Citigroup Inc (C) +0.22 (5.6%) to $4.18 on volume of 1175.67m shares;
• Zions Bancorp (ZION) +0.94 (4.6%) to $21.43 on volume of 13.76m shares;
• Keycorp (KEY) +0.32 (4.2%) to $7.88 on volume of 17.55m shares;
• Huntington Bancshares (HBAN) +0.15 (2.9%) to $5.4 on volume of 54.21m shares; and
• BB&T Corp (BBT) +0.79 (2.7%) to $30.42 on volume of 10.18m shares.

The Semiconductor index (SOX) was unchanged at 0 points. Total volume traded in the 18 components of the index was 232.68m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 1.8 to one, with 11 decliners to 6 advancers. Declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 123.08m to 109.6m shares. The index’s rather boring situation arose as a result of a mixed bag of results, the most notable amongst these (in percentage terms) being –

• National Semiconductor (NSM) -0.49 (3.3%) to $14.34 on volume of 12.36m shares;
• Texas Instruments (TXN) -0.52 (2.1%) to $24.07 on volume of 23.05m shares;
• Teradyne (TER) -0.23 (2.1%) to $10.66 on volume of 6.25m shares;
• Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) +0.16 (1.5%) to $10.5 on volume of 18.52m shares; and
• Xilinx (XLNX) -0.4 (1.5%) to $26.5 on volume of 8.33m shares.

The ChildKiller (“Defence”) index (DFX) advanced 0.48 points (0.14%) to 353.38 points. Total volume traded in the 17 components of the index was 87.99m shares. Advancers outpaced decliners by 1.7 to one, with 10 advancers to 6 decliners; however declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 63.97m to 24.02m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Gencorp (GY) +0.05 (1.1%) to $4.68 on volume of 0.78m shares;
• Embraer Empresa (ERJ) +0.24 (1%) to $23.66 on volume of 0.68m shares;
• Lockheed Martin (LMT) +0.45 (0.5%) to $83.03 on volume of 3.11m shares;
• Rockwell Collins (COL) +0.31 (0.5%) to $61.21 on volume of 0.88m shares; and
• Teledyne Tech (TDY) +0.17 (0.4%) to $41.42 on volume of 0.28m shares.

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Post tags: Bonds, Gold, Oil, USRant

The following economic data was released during the session:

• Consumer Inflation Expectation for Mar was released in Australia; the series posted a reading of 3.2% declining 0 from the prior reading of 3.2%
• Employment Change for Feb was released in Australia; the result was 0.4K a decline of 52.3 from the prior reading of 52.7K – less than expectations of 15.5K.
• Unemployment Rate for Feb was released in Australia; the series posted a reading of 5.3% gaining 0.1 from the prior reading of 5.2% – less than the market’s pre-release guess of 5.3%.

Major Market Indices

The broad market – the All Ordinaries (XAO) – declined gently, dropping 4.3 points (0.09%), finishing at 4825.5 points. The index hit an intraday high of 4850.7 at 11:22 am, while the low for the day was 4819.3 – set at 3:27 pm Sydney time.

Total volume traded on the ASX was 2.2bn units, 3.7% above its 10-day average of 2.12bn shares.The ASX’s daily listing of all stocks included 1311 different 3-letter FPO’s which traded (i.e., had non-zero trade volume). Of these, 467 issues rose, with volume in rising issues totalling 871.9m units; there were 510 declining stocks, which traded aggregate declining volume of 826.1m shares.

Of the 497 All Ordinaries components, 186 rose while 239 fell. Volume was tilted in favour of the gainers by a margin of 1.1:1, with 459.47m shares traded in gainers while 425.88m shares traded in the day’s losers.

The Index that forms the cash basis for the SPI Futures – the S&P/ASX 200 (XJO) – fell mildly, losing 5.8 points (0.12%), closing out the session at 4814.2 points.

Name	Close	+/-(%)
All Ordinaries	4825.50	-4.30 (0.1%)
ASX 20	2948.60	-3.50 (0.1%)
ASX 50	4849.20	-4.90 (0.1%)
ASX 100	3945.80	-4.60 (0.1%)
ASX 200	4814.20	-5.80 (0.1%)
ASX 300	4807.30	-5.70 (0.1%)
ASX Mid-Cap 50	4269.30	-9.50 (0.2%)
ASX Small Ordinaries	2534.60	-3.90 (0.2%)

The “heavy hitters” of the Australian market – the ASX 20 Leaders (XTL) – slid modestly, falling 3.5 points (0.12%), closing out the session at 2948.6 points.

Among the 20 big guns, 8 index components finished to the upside, and 13 lost ground. The stocks which make up the index traded a total of 162.69m units; 8 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 97.55m shares, while the 13 decliners had volume traded totalling 65.14m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Telstra Corp Ltd (TLS), +$0.09 (3.01%) to $3.08 on volume of 77 million shares;
• CSL Ltd (CSL), +$0.43 (1.2%) to $36.19 on volume of 1.8 million shares;
• Macquarie Group Ltd (MQG), +$0.40 (0.82%) to $49.45 on volume of 1.3 million shares;
• Woolworths Ltd (WOW), +$0.19 (0.67%) to $28.39 on volume of 2.6 million shares; and
• ANZ Banking Group (ANZ), +$0.07 (0.29%) to $24.01 on volume of 5.8 million shares.

On the less salubrious side of the big-cap fence, the following stocks were the worst-performed within the index:

• QBE Insurance Group Ltd (QBE), -$0.4 (1.87%) to $21.01 on volume of 6.3 million shares;
• Westpac Banking Corp (WBC), -$0.36 (1.32%) to $26.97 on volume of 5.5 million shares;
• Newcrest Mining Ltd (NCM), -$0.36 (1.05%) to $33.82 on volume of 1 million shares;
• Stockland (SGP), -$0.03 (0.74%) to $4.04 on volume of 10 million shares; and
• Fosters Group Ltd (FGL), -$0.04 (0.73%) to $5.41 on volume of 3 million shares.

The ASX Small Ordinaries (XSO) The small end of the market had significantly worse day than its large-cap counterpart. The Small Ords slid modestly, falling 3.9 points (0.15%), closing out the session at 2534.6 points.

Among the stocks that make up the Small Caps index, 88 index components finished to the upside, and of the rest, 115 closed lower for the session.

• Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Group (BBI), +$3.95 (11271.4%) to $3.98 on volume of 454.6 thousand shares;
• Apex Minerals NL (AXM), +$0.00 (12%) to $0.03 on volume of 20.9 million shares;
• Babcock & Brown Power (BBP), +$0.01 (7.95%) to $0.10 on volume of 3.6 million shares;
• Sundance Resources Ltd (SDL), +$0.01 (7.14%) to $0.15 on volume of 5.2 million shares; and
• Giralia Resources NL (GIR), +$0.14 (6.91%) to $2.09 on volume of 1.3 million shares.

In the red-zone of the little-stock index, the following list represents the biggest downers (in terms of percentage decline):

• Panoramic Resources Ltd (PAN), -$0.2 (7.87%) to $2.34 on volume of 1.9 million shares;
• Bannerman Resources Ltd (BMN), -$0.04 (7.77%) to $0.48 on volume of 2.5 million shares;
• Ceramic Fuel Cells Ltd (CFU), -$0.01 (5.88%) to $0.16 on volume of 1.4 million shares;
• Cudeco Ltd (CDU), -$0.23 (4.89%) to $4.47 on volume of 705.9 thousand shares; and
• Icon Energy Ltd/Australia (ICN), -$0.01 (4.17%) to $0.23 on volume of 867.7 thousand shares.

Index Changes

Market Breadth

GICS Industry Indices

Among the 11 industry indices, it was pretty much even stevens, with a very slight lead to the duds… the 5 that had an “up” day were just shaded by the remaining 6 which didn’t.

The best performing index was Telecommunications (XTJ), which added 24.4 points (2.38%) to 1051.4 points. This index only contains 3 stocks; they traded a total of 81.64m units today. The lone rising index component had volume amounting to 77.02m shares, while the sole declining stock traded 2.51m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Telstra Corp Ltd (TLS), +$0.09 (3.01%) to $3.08 on volume of 77 million shares.

Second in the index leadership stakes was Healthcare (XHJ), which gained 57 points (0.65%) to 8879.1 points. The 10 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 15.26m units; 4 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 6.32m shares, while the 5 decliners had volume traded totalling 8.37m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• CSL Ltd (CSL), +$0.43 (1.2%) to $36.19 on volume of 1.8 million shares;
• ResMed Inc (RMD), +$0.07 (1.07%) to $6.61 on volume of 2.9 million shares;
• Sonic Healthcare Ltd (SHL), +$0.07 (0.51%) to $13.69 on volume of 952.1 thousand shares; and
• Ramsay Health Care Ltd (RHC), +$0.04 (0.3%) to $13.58 on volume of 673.4 thousand shares.

The bronze medal for today goes to Utilities (XUJ), which climbed 17.6 points (0.4%) to 4383 points. The 10 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 21.95m units; 5 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 10.47m shares, while the 4 decliners had volume traded totalling 7.49m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Group (BBI), +$3.95 (11271.4%) to $3.98 on volume of 454.6 thousand shares;
• Energy World Corporation Ltd (EWC), +$0.02 (6.67%) to $0.32 on volume of 1.5 million shares;
• Infigen Energy (IFN), +$0.08 (6.15%) to $1.38 on volume of 6.4 million shares;
• Envestra Ltd (ENV), +$0.02 (2.86%) to $0.54 on volume of 1.5 million shares; and
• APA Group (APA), +$0.04 (1.15%) to $3.52 on volume of 598.4 thousand shares.

The worst-performed index for the session was Information Technology (XIJ), which dipped 14.1 points (1.95%) to 708.8 points. The 3 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 1.78m units; The 3 decliners had volume traded totalling 1.78m units, – none of the index components ended with a gain. The major percentage decliners within the index were

• Computershare Ltd (CPU), -$0.27 (2.17%) to $12.17 on volume of 1.2 million shares;
• SMS Management & Technology Ltd (SMX), -$0.15 (2.1%) to $6.99 on volume of 207.3 thousand shares; and
• Iress Market Technology Ltd (IRE), -$0.16 (1.92%) to $8.17 on volume of 337.9 thousand shares.

Just missing out on the wooden spoon was Industrials (XNJ), which slid 23.6 points (0.59%) to 3961.7 points. The 32 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 144.23m units; The 19 decliners had volume traded totalling 79.56m units, and 11 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 51.45m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were

• Transpacific Industries Group (TPI), -$0.05 (3.26%) to $1.34 on volume of 735 thousand shares;
• Seek Ltd (SEK), -$0.19 (2.5%) to $7.42 on volume of 1.1 million shares;
• Downer EDI Ltd (DOW), -$0.19 (2.41%) to $7.69 on volume of 10.7 million shares;
• Emeco Holdings (EHL), -$0.02 (2.33%) to $0.63 on volume of 2.5 million shares; and
• Connecteast Group (CEU), -$0.01 (2.27%) to $0.43 on volume of 8 million shares.

Third-to-last amongst the sector indices was Property Trusts (XPJ), which slid 3.7 points (0.42%) to 867.8 points. The 16 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 178.88m units; The 7 decliners had volume traded totalling 65.9m units, and 5 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 47.69m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were

• ING Industrial Fund (IIF), -$0.01 (2.17%) to $0.45 on volume of 7.5 million shares;
• Macquarie Office Trust (MOF), -$0.01 (1.75%) to $0.28 on volume of 19.7 million shares;
• Abacus Property Group (ABP), -$0.01 (1.16%) to $0.43 on volume of 2.6 million shares;
• Macquarie Countrywide Trust (MCW), -$0.01 (0.85%) to $0.59 on volume of 5 million shares; and
• Stockland (SGP), -$0.03 (0.74%) to $4.04 on volume of 10 million shares.

Sector Indices

All Ordinaries Major Movers

All Ords Volume Leaders

All Ords Percentage Gainers

All Ords Percentage Losers

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Post tags: OzRant

The following economic data was released during the session:

• MBA Mortgage Applications for Mar 5 was released in the US; the outcome was 0.5% falling 14.1 from the prior reading of 14.6%,
• EIA Crude Oil Stocks change for Mar 5 was released in the US; the outcome was 1.4M dropping 2.7 from the prior reading of 4.1M, – less than the market’s pre-release guess of 2.1M.
• Wholesale Inventories for Jan was released in the US; the result was -0.2% rising 0.8 from the prior reading of -1.0%, – less than the market’s pre-release guess of 0.2%.

Headline Indices

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained +2.95 points (0.03%) to 10567.33 points. The index high for the day was 10601.79, while the low was 10526.52.

• AIG (AIG) +3.47 (10.6%) to $36.24 on volume of 70.23m shares;
• Citigroup (C) +0.14 (3.7%) to $3.96 on volume of 1203.48m shares;
• Boeing (BA) +2.22 (3.3%) to $70.01 on volume of 10.61m shares;
• Bank Of America (BAC) +0.31 (1.8%) to $17.11 on volume of 221.81m shares; and
• JPMorganChase (JPM) +0.51 (1.2%) to $42.93 on volume of 40.73m shares.

The S&P500 Index added +5.17 points (0.45%) to 1145.61 points..

• American Int’l. Group (AIG) +3.47 (10.6%) to $36.24 on volume of 70.23m shares;
• MBIA Inc. (MBI) +0.38 (6.9%) to $5.88 on volume of 10.56m shares;
• Zions Bancorp (ZION) +1.23 (6.4%) to $20.49 on volume of 13.62m shares;
• MEMC Electronic Materials (WFR) +0.8 (6.2%) to $13.63 on volume of 8.09m shares; and
• RadioShack Corp (RSH) +1.2 (5.6%) to $22.7 on volume of 13.29m shares.

The Nasdaq Composite rose +18.27 points (0.78%) to 2358.95 points. while the Nasdaq100 advanced +15.97 points (0.84%) to 1917.35 points..

• Amylin Pharmaceuticals (AMLN) +1.27 (6.5%) to $20.9 on volume of 8.15m shares;
• UAL (UAUA) +0.82 (4.5%) to $18.98 on volume of 11.62m shares;
• Broadcom (BRCM) +1.2 (3.8%) to $32.83 on volume of 15.69m shares;
• Flextronics International (FLEX) +0.24 (3.3%) to $7.46 on volume of 10.23m shares; and
• NII Holdings (NIHD) +1.26 (3.2%) to $40.15 on volume of 2.05m shares.

Volatility

The CBOE Volatility Index rose +0.65 points (3.63%) to 18.57 points. and the CBOE Nasdaq100 Volatility Index added +0.32 points (1.71%) to 19.08 points..

Breadth and Internals

A total of 3957 issues traded today on the NYSE; today’s total volume was 1.79bn shares. A total of 2576 stocks posted gains for the day, and volume in advancing issues totalled 0.33bn shares. Exerting downwards pressure on the index were 1228 losers, which accounted for a total declining volume of 1.42bn shares. 540 stocks made new 1-year highs on the NYSE, while 43 shares plumbed new 52-week depths.

On the Nasdaq 2819 tickers traded today; total Nasdaq volume was 2.41bn shares. A total of 1749 stocks posted gains for the day, with aggregate volume of 1.71bn shares changing hands in the day’s winners. The red zone of the Nasdaq exchange comprised 964 losers, and total declining volume was 0.67bn shares. 233 Nasdaq-listed stocks hit new 52-week highs, while 8 shares dipped to new 1-year lows.

Dow Darlings

• Boeing (BA) +2.22 (3.3%) to $70.01 on volume of 10.6m units
• Bank Of America (BAC) +0.31 (1.8%) to $17.11 on volume of 221.8m units
• JPMorganChase (JPM) +0.51 (1.2%) to $42.93 on volume of 40.7m units
• Intel (INTC) +0.25 (1.2%) to $21.19 on volume of 55.3m units
• Exxon-Mobil (XOM) +0.44 (0.7%) to $67.22 on volume of 24.7m units

Dow Duds:

• Merck (MRK) -0.37 (1%) to $36.67 on volume of 19.4m units
• Alcoa (AA) -0.1 (0.7%) to $13.57 on volume of 32m units
• Caterpillar (CAT) -0.4 (0.7%) to $58.78 on volume of 6.5m units
• Verizon (VZ) -0.16 (0.5%) to $29.75 on volume of 18.1m units
• 3M Co (MMM) -0.43 (0.5%) to $81.56 on volume of 3.6m units

Most Traded Dow stocks:

• Bank Of America (BAC) +0.31 (1.8%) to $17.11 on volume of 221.8m units
• General Electric (GE) +0.02 (0.1%) to $16.51 on volume of 67.8m units
• Pfizer (PFE)-0.08 (0.5%) to $17.15 on volume of 56.2m units
• Intel (INTC) +0.25 (1.2%) to $21.19 on volume of 55.3m units
• Microsoft (MSFT) +0.17 (0.6%) to $28.97 on volume of 42.1m units

Precious Metals

Precious metals futures performed as follows –

The Gold Bugs index (XAU) dropped 2.39 points (1.42%) to 165.83 points. Total volume traded in the 16 components of the index was 92m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 7 to one, with 14 decliners to 2 advancers. Declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 72.45m to 19.55m shares. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were –

• Kinroos Gold (KGC) -0.5 (2.7%) to $18.07 on volume of 6.67m shares;
• GoldCorp (GG) -0.99 (2.4%) to $39.45 on volume of 9.85m shares;
• Royal Gold (RGLD) -1.01 (2.2%) to $45.03 on volume of 0.47m shares;
• Barrick Gold (ABX) -0.79 (2%) to $38.75 on volume of 10.63m shares; and
• RandGold Resources (GOLD) -1.35 (1.8%) to $74.32 on volume of 1.01m shares.

Energy Complex

Energy futures performed as follows –

The Oil Services index (OSX) rose 1.39 points (0.66%) to 211.39 points. Total volume traded in the 15 components of the index was 89.25m shares. Advancers outpaced decliners by 4 to one, with 12 advancers to 3 decliners. Advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 56.08m to 33.17m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Nabors Industries (NBR) +0.43 (1.9%) to $22.52 on volume of 4.94m shares;
• Rowan Co (RDC) +0.48 (1.7%) to $28.16 on volume of 3.37m shares;
• Tidewater (TDW) +0.73 (1.5%) to $48.03 on volume of 0.63m shares;
• Cameron International (CAM) +0.65 (1.5%) to $44.09 on volume of 2.83m shares; and
• Transocean Inc (RIG) +1.06 (1.2%) to $85.95 on volume of 5.95m shares.

Currency Futures

Currency futures performed as follows –

Bellwethers

The nine-stock group that makes up the Rant bellwethers advanced on average by 1.3%. The fallout occurred as follows:

• General Electric (GE) +0.02 (0.12%) to $16.51 on volume of 67.8m units.
• Citigroup (C) +0.14 (3.66%) to $3.96 on volume of 1203.48m units.
• Wal-Mart (WMT) -0.12 (0.22%) to $53.63 on volume of 12.68m units.
• IBM (IBM) +0.07 (0.06%) to $125.62 on volume of 6.9m units.
• Intel (INTC) +0.25 (1.19%) to $21.19 on volume of 55.34m units.
• Cisco Systems (CSCO) -0.258 (0.99%) to $25.872 on volume of 66.69m units.
• Google (GOOG) +16.26 (2.9%) to $576.45 on volume of 5.65m units.
• Fannie Mae (FNM) +0.03 (2.8%) to $1.10 on volume of 58.43m units.
• Freddie Mac (FRE) +0.03 (2.34%) to $1.31 on volume of 36.29m units.

Other Indices of Interest…

The Banks index (BKX) gained 1.06 points (2.16%) to 50.06 points. Total volume traded in the 24 components of the index was 1.72bn shares. Advancers outpaced decliners by 3.4 to one, with 17 advancers to 5 decliners. Advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 1.7bn to 20.45m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Zions Bancorp (ZION) +1.23 (6.4%) to $20.49 on volume of 13.62m shares;
• Regions Financial (RF) +0.38 (5.5%) to $7.29 on volume of 40.7m shares;
• Huntington Bancshares (HBAN) +0.22 (4.4%) to $525 on volume of 39.43m shares;
• Keycorp (KEY) +0.3 (4.1%) to $7.56 on volume of 20.23m shares; and
• Citigroup Inc (C) +0.14 (3.7%) to $3.96 on volume of 1203.48m shares.

The Semiconductor index (SOX) was unchanged at 0 points. Total volume traded in the 18 components of the index was 249.33m shares. Not a single stock declined withinin the index: 17 of the 18 index components rose, with total upside volume of 249.33mshares. The index’s rather boring situation arose as a result of a mixed bag of results, the most notable amongst these (in percentage terms) being –

• Micron Technology (MU) +0.46 (4.9%) to $9.87 on volume of 39.15m shares;
• Broadcom (BRCM) +1.2 (3.8%) to $32.83 on volume of 15.69m shares;
• Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) +0.29 (3.4%) to $8.92 on volume of 23.41m shares;
• Linear Technology (LLTC) +0.76 (2.8%) to $28.03 on volume of 5.81m shares; and
• Applied Materials (AMAT) +0.24 (2%) to $12.53 on volume of 34.98m shares.

The ChildKiller (“Defence”) index (DFX) advanced 1.9 points (0.54%) to 352.9 points. Total volume traded in the 17 components of the index was 99.56m shares. Advancers outpaced decliners by 4 to one, with 12 advancers to 3 decliners. Advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 93.89m to 4.11m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Boeing (BA) +2.22 (3.3%) to $70.01 on volume of 10.61m shares;
• Teledyne Tech (TDY) +0.43 (1.1%) to $41.25 on volume of 011m shares;
• Embraer Empresa (ERJ) +0.21 (0.9%) to $23.42 on volume of 0.47m shares;
• Northrop Grummanl (NOC) +0.55 (0.9%) to $64.55 on volume of 1.42m shares; and
• Rockwell Collins (COL) +0.3 (0.5%) to $60.9 on volume of 0.94m shares.

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The following economic data was released during the session:

• Home Loans for Jan was released in Australia; the series posted a reading of -7.9% falling 2.8 from the prior reading of -5.1% – less than expectations of 2.0%.
• Investment Lending for Jan was released in Australia; the result was 0.9% dropping 1.2 from the prior reading of 2.1%

Major Market Indices

The broad market – the All Ordinaries (XAO) – advanced modestly, rising 0.5 points (0.01%), finishing at 4829.8 points. The index hit an intraday high of 4845.1 at 10:22 am, while the low for the day was 4815.8 – set at 12:01 pm Sydney time.

Total volume traded on the ASX was 2.47bn units, 16.3% above its 10-day average of 2.12bn shares.The ASX’s daily listing of all stocks included 1305 different 3-letter FPO’s which traded (i.e., had non-zero trade volume). Of these, 508 issues rose, with volume in rising issues totalling 1.22bn units; there were 485 declining stocks, which traded aggregate declining volume of 857.1m shares.

Of the 497 All Ordinaries components, 215 rose while 197 fell. Volume was tilted in favour of the gainers by a margin of 1.2:1, with 638.7m shares traded in gainers while 541.73m shares traded in the day’s losers.

The Index that forms the cash basis for the SPI Futures – the S&P/ASX 200 (XJO) –

Name	Close	+/-(%)
All Ordinaries	4829.80	0.50 (0.0%)
ASX 20	2952.10	4.60 (0.2%)
ASX 50	4854.10	4.80 (0.1%)
ASX 100	3950.40	0.00 (0.0%)
ASX 200	4820.00	-0.10 (0.0%)
ASX 300	4813.00	0.20 (0.0%)
ASX Mid-Cap 50	4278.80	-32.50 (0.8%)
ASX Small Ordinaries	2538.50	1.40 (0.1%)

The “heavy hitters” of the Australian market – the ASX 20 Leaders (XTL) – advanced by under a percent, adding 4.6 points (0.16%), closing out the session at 2952.1 points.

Among the 20 big guns, the outcome favoured the upside, but only just – the 11 advancing sectors just triumphed the losing sectors. The stocks which make up the index traded a total of 166.93m units; 11 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 115.76m shares, while the 10 decliners had volume traded totalling 51.17m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Telstra Corp Ltd (TLS), +$0.08 (2.75%) to $2.99 on volume of 61.8 million shares;
• QBE Insurance Group Ltd (QBE), +$0.31 (1.47%) to $21.41 on volume of 10.4 million shares;
• Westpac Banking Corp (WBC), +$0.36 (1.33%) to $27.33 on volume of 6.3 million shares;
• Fosters Group Ltd (FGL), +$0.07 (1.3%) to $5.45 on volume of 8.6 million shares; and
• AMP Ltd (AMP), +$0.06 (0.98%) to $6.16 on volume of 5.4 million shares.

On the less salubrious side of the big-cap fence, the following stocks were the worst-performed within the index:

• Stockland (SGP), -$0.11 (2.63%) to $4.07 on volume of 10.5 million shares;
• Westfield Group (WDC), -$0.23 (1.87%) to $12.07 on volume of 8.8 million shares;
• Origin Energy Ltd (ORG), -$0.28 (1.65%) to $16.66 on volume of 2.8 million shares;
• Wesfarmers Ltd (WES), -$0.48 (1.47%) to $32.23 on volume of 4.2 million shares; and
• CSL Ltd (CSL), -$0.45 (1.24%) to $35.76 on volume of 1.7 million shares.

The ASX Small Ordinaries (XSO) The small end of the market significantly underperformed its large-cap counterpart. The Small Ords advanced by under a percent, adding 1.4 points (0.06%), closing out the session at 2538.5 points.

Among the stocks that make up the Small Caps index, 109 index components finished to the upside, and of the rest, 81 closed lower for the session.

• Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Group (BBI), +$3.95 (11271.4%) to $3.98 on volume of 454.6 thousand shares;
• Citigold Corp Ltd (CTO), +$0.02 (20%) to $0.12 on volume of 8.5 million shares;
• Cudeco Ltd (CDU), +$0.54 (12.98%) to $4.70 on volume of 1.4 million shares;
• Otto Energy (OEL), +$0.01 (9.09%) to $0.12 on volume of 6.9 million shares; and
• Apex Minerals NL (AXM), +$0.00 (8.7%) to $0.03 on volume of 10.9 million shares.

In the red-zone of the little-stock index, the following list represents the biggest downers (in terms of percentage decline):

• Alesco Corp (ALS), -$1.44 (31.58%) to $3.12 on volume of 3.3 million shares;
• Hills Industries Ltd (HIL), -$0.26 (9.22%) to $2.56 on volume of 1.3 million shares;
• Brockman Resources Ltd (BRM), -$0.29 (7.49%) to $3.58 on volume of 1.2 million shares;
• Sundance Resources Ltd (SDL), -$0.01 (6.67%) to $0.14 on volume of 3.7 million shares; and
• Nexbis Ltd (NBS), -$0.01 (6.67%) to $0.14 on volume of 1.5 million shares.

Index Changes

Market Breadth

GICS Industry Indices

Among the 11 industry indices, 4 registered an advance for the session, the remaining 7 lost ground.

The best performing index was Information Technology (XIJ), which added 20.1 points (2.86%) to 722.9 points. This index only contains 3 stocks; they traded a total of 3.34m units today. 2 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 2.77m shares, while the sole declining stock traded 0.57m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Computershare Ltd (CPU), +$0.42 (3.49%) to $12.44 on volume of 2.3 million shares; and
• Iress Market Technology Ltd (IRE), +$0.16 (1.96%) to $8.33 on volume of 517.2 thousand shares.

Second in the index leadership stakes was Telecommunications (XTJ), which gained 25.6 points (2.56%) to 1027 points This index only contains 3 stocks; they traded a total of 67.69m units today. 3 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 67.69m shares, none of the stocks in the index lost ground. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Telstra Corp Ltd (TLS), +$0.08 (2.75%) to $2.99 on volume of 61.8 million shares;
• Telecom Corporation Of New Zealand Ltd (TEL), +$0.02 (1.18%) to $1.72 on volume of 3.9 million shares; and
• Singapore Telecommunications Ltd (SGT), +$0.02 (0.81%) to $2.48 on volume of 2 million shares.

The bronze medal for today goes to Utilities (XUJ), which climbed 54.1 points (1.25%) to 4365.4 points. The 10 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 35.7m units; 7 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 18.31m shares, while the sole declining stock traded 4.19m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Group (BBI), +$3.95 (11271.4%) to $3.98 on volume of 454.6 thousand shares;
• AGL Energy Ltd (AGK), +$0.31 (2.11%) to $14.99 on volume of 3.5 million shares;
• Energy World Corporation Ltd (EWC), +$0.01 (1.69%) to $0.30 on volume of 856.1 thousand shares;
• SP AUSNET (stapled) (SPN), +$0.02 (1.68%) to $0.91 on volume of 5.2 million shares; and
• Duet Group (DUE), +$0.02 (0.82%) to $1.84 on volume of 1.9 million shares.

The worst-performed index for the session was Property Trusts (XPJ), which dipped 20 points (2.24%) to 871.5 points. The 16 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 273.13m units; The 14 decliners had volume traded totalling 253.26m units, – none of the index components ended with a gain. The major percentage decliners within the index were

• Commonwealth Property Office (CPA), -$0.04 (3.59%) to $0.94 on volume of 13.7 million shares;
• Mirvac Group (MGR), -$0.06 (3.53%) to $151 on volume of 18.3 million shares;
• GPT Group (GPT), -$0.02 (3.36%) to $0.58 on volume of 50.1 million shares;
• Stockland (SGP), -$0.11 (2.63%) to $4.07 on volume of 10.5 million shares; and
• Bunnings Warehouse Prop Trust (BWP), -$0.04 (2.12%) to $1.85 on volume of 347.1 thousand shares.

Just missing out on the wooden spoon was Consumer Staples (XSJ), which slid 45.9 points (0.58%) to 7843.1 points. The 11 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 41.83m units; The 7 decliners had volume traded totalling 23.61m units, and 3 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 13.01m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were

• Viterra Inc (VTA), -$0.28 (2.7%) to $10.09 on volume of 144.2 thousand shares;
• AWB Ltd (AWB), -$0.03 (2.68%) to $1.09 on volume of 5.3 million shares;
• Coca-Cola Amatil Ltd (CCL), -$0.29 (2.53%) to $11.17 on volume of 2.6 million shares;
• Goodman Fielder (GFF), -$0.03 (1.97%) to $1.49 on volume of 10.1 million shares; and
• Wesfarmers Ltd (WES), -$0.48 (1.47%) to $32.23 on volume of 4.2 million shares.

Third-to-last amongst the sector indices was Industrials (XNJ), which slid 16.1 points (0.4%) to 3985.3 points. The 32 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 215.07m units; The 16 decliners had volume traded totalling 62.64m units, and 13 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 119.32m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were

• Alesco Corp (ALS), -$1.44 (31.58%) to $3.12 on volume of 3.3 million shares;
• Hills Industries Ltd (HIL), -$0.26 (9.22%) to $2.56 on volume of 1.3 million shares;
• Downer EDI Ltd (DOW), -$0.2 (2.48%) to $7.88 on volume of 1.3 million shares;
• MAP Airports International Ltd (MAP), -$0.06 (1.81%) to $3.26 on volume of 9.4 million shares; and
• Transfield Services Ltd (TSE), -$0.07 (1.64%) to $4.19 on volume of 1.6 million shares.

Sector Indices

All Ordinaries Major Movers

All Ords Volume Leaders

All Ords Percentage Gainers

All Ords Percentage Losers

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There was no economic data of note released in the region today.

Headline Indices

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added +11.86 points (0.11%) to 10564.38 points. The index high for the day was 10612.60, while the low was 10533.93.

• AIG (AIG) +3.67 (12.6%) to $32.77 on volume of 57.46m shares;
• Citigroup (C) +0.26 (7.3%) to $3.82 on volume of 1089.22m shares;
• United Technologies (UTX) +1.02 (1.4%) to $71.78 on volume of 5.53m shares;
• General Electric (GE) +0.22 (1.4%) to $16.49 on volume of 82.72m shares; and
• AT&T (T) +0.28 (1.1%) to $25.56 on volume of 42.94m shares.

The S&P500 Index added +1.94 points (0.17%) to 1140.44 points..

• American Int’l. Group (AIG) +3.67 (12.6%) to $32.77 on volume of 57.46m shares;
• Federal Home Loan Mtg. (FRE) +0.09 (7.6%) to $1.28 on volume of 47.73m shares;
• Citigroup Inc. (C) +0.26 (7.3%) to $3.82 on volume of 1089.22m shares;
• Sprint Nextel Corp. (S) +0.22 (6.5%) to $3.62 on volume of 96.26m shares; and
• Fannie Mae (FNM) +0.06 (5.9%) to $1.07 on volume of 100.8m shares.

The Nasdaq Composite rose +8.47 points (0.36%) to 2340.68 points. while the Nasdaq100 added +10.49 points (0.55%) to 1901.38 points..

• Leap Wireless International (LEAP) +0.83 (5.7%) to $15.4 on volume of 4.64m shares;
• NVIDIA (NVDA) +0.63 (3.7%) to $17.55 on volume of 20.5m shares;
• UAL (UAUA) +0.642 (3.7%) to $18.16 on volume of 21.49m shares;
• Akamai Technologies (AKAM) +0.96 (3.3%) to $30.41 on volume of 7.89m shares; and
• eBay (EBAY) +0.67 (2.7%) to $25.51 on volume of 21.58m shares.

Volatility

The CBOE Volatility Index advanced +0.13 points (0.73%) to 17.92 points. and the CBOE Nasdaq100 Volatility Index gained +0.09 points (0.48%) to 18.76 points..

Breadth and Internals

A total of 3956 issues traded today on the NYSE; today’s total volume was 5.8bn shares. A total of 2140 stocks posted gains for the day, and volume in advancing issues totalled 3.74bn shares. Exerting downwards pressure on the index were 1678 losers, which accounted for a total declining volume of 2.02bn shares. 536 stocks made new 1-year highs on the NYSE, while 47 shares plumbed new 52-week depths.

On the Nasdaq 2807 tickers traded today; total Nasdaq volume was 2.51bn shares. A total of 1490 stocks posted gains for the day, with aggregate volume of 1.59bn shares changing hands in the day’s winners. The red zone of the Nasdaq exchange comprised 1192 losers, and total declining volume was 0.73bn shares. 204 Nasdaq-listed stocks hit new 52-week highs, while 12 shares dipped to new 1-year lows.

Dow Darlings

• United Technologies (UTX) +1.02 (1.4%) to $71.78 on volume of 5.5m units
• General Electric (GE) +0.22 (1.4%) to $16.49 on volume of 82.7m units
• AT&T (T) +0.28 (1.1%) to $25.56 on volume of 42.9m units
• Verizon (VZ) +0.28 (0.9%) to $29.91 on volume of 19.8m units
• 3M Co (MMM) +0.68 (0.8%) to $81.99 on volume of 4.2m units

Dow Duds:

• Merck (MRK) -0.31 (0.8%) to $37.04 on volume of 14.6m units
• Alcoa (AA) -0.11 (0.8%) to $13.67 on volume of 31.2m units
• Pfizer (PFE) -0.12 (0.7%) to $17.23 on volume of 52.8m units
• IBM (IBM) -0.86 (0.7%) to $125.55 on volume of 7.5m units
• Coca-Cola (KO) -0.28 (0.5%) to $54.18 on volume of 11.2m units

Most Traded Dow stocks:

• Bank Of America (BAC) +0.06 (0.4%) to $16.8 on volume of 166.5m units
• Intel (INTC) +0.17 (0.8%) to $20.94 on volume of 82.9m units
• General Electric (GE) +0.22 (1.4%) to $16.49 on volume of 82.7m units
• Pfizer (PFE)-0.12 (0.7%) to $17.23 on volume of 52.8m units
• Microsoft (MSFT) +0.17 (0.6%) to $28.8 on volume of 49.3m units

Precious Metals

Precious metals futures performed as follows –

The Gold Bugs index (XAU) slid 0.99 points (0.59%) to 168.22 points. Total volume traded in the 16 components of the index was 72.28m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 4.3 to one, with 13 decliners to 3 advancers. Declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 57.16m to 15.12m shares. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were –

• Harmony Gold (HMY) -0.21 (2.1%) to $9.6 on volume of 1.82m shares;
• Silver Stand Resources (SSRI) -0.34 (1.9%) to $17.66 on volume of 0.69m shares;
• Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM) -0.95 (1.6%) to $59.12 on volume of 2.68m shares;
• Kinroos Gold (KGC) -0.28 (1.5%) to $18.57 on volume of 4.04m shares; and
• AngloGold Ashanti (AU) -0.44 (1.2%) to $37.42 on volume of 1.92m shares.

Energy Complex

Energy futures performed as follows –

The Oil Services index (OSX) dropped 1.26 points (0.6%) to 210 points. Total volume traded in the 15 components of the index was 75.26m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 6.5 to one, with 13 decliners to 2 advancers. Declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 73.73m to 1.53m shares. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were –

• Halliburton (HAL) -0.5 (1.6%) to $30.91 on volume of 14.79m shares;
• Nabors Industries (NBR) -0.33 (1.5%) to $22.09 on volume of 4.81m shares;
• Oceaneering International (OII) -0.69 (1.1%) to $62.49 on volume of 0.42m shares;
• BJ Services (BJS) -0.24 (1.1%) to $22.55 on volume of 6.04m shares; and
• Cameron International (CAM) -0.36 (0.8%) to $43.44 on volume of 2.26m shares.

Currency Futures

Currency futures performed as follows –

Bellwethers

The nine-stock group that makes up the Rant bellwethers advanced on average by 2.4%. The fallout occurred as follows:

• General Electric (GE) +0.22 (1.35%) to $16.49 on volume of 82.72m units.
• Citigroup (C) +0.26 (7.3%) to $3.82 on volume of 1089.22m units.
• Wal-Mart (WMT) -0.09 (0.17%) to $54.06 on volume of 12.32m units.
• IBM (IBM) -0.86 (0.68%) to $125.55 on volume of 7.5m units.
• Intel (INTC) +0.17 (0.82%) to $20.94 on volume of 82.93m units.
• Cisco Systems (CSCO) -0 (0%) to $26.13 on volume of 160.19m units.
• Google (GOOG) -2.29 (0.41%) to $560.19 on volume of 3.17m units.
• Fannie Mae (FNM) +0.06 (5.94%) to $1.07 on volume of 100.8m units.
• Freddie Mac (FRE) +0.09 (7.56%) to $1.28 on volume of 47.73m units.

Other Indices of Interest…

The Banks index (BKX) added 0.31 points (0.64%) to 49 points. Total volume traded in the 24 components of the index was 1.49bn shares. Advancers outpaced decliners by 1.8 to one, with 14 advancers to 8 decliners. Advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 1.37bn to 126.01m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Citigroup Inc (C) +0.26 (7.3%) to $3.82 on volume of 1089.22m shares;
• Capital One Financial (COF) +0.81 (2.1%) to $38.66 on volume of 6.79m shares;
• Zions Bancorp (ZION) +0.33 (1.7%) to $19.26 on volume of 5.61m shares;
• Huntington Bancshares (HBAN) +0.07 (1.4%) to $5.03 on volume of 20.82m shares; and
• PNC Financial (PNC) +0.66 (1.2%) to $56.19 on volume of 5.34m shares.

The Semiconductor index (SOX) was unchanged at 0 points. Total volume traded in the 18 components of the index was 258.9m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 1.4 to one, with 10 decliners to 7 advancers; however advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 135.24m shares to 123.65m. The index’s rather boring situation arose as a result of a mixed bag of results, the most notable amongst these (in percentage terms) being –

• Texas Instruments (TXN) -0.5 (2%) to $24.19 on volume of 27.91m shares;
• Micron Technology (MU) -0.18 (1.9%) to $9.41 on volume of 33.72m shares;
• Teradyne (TER) +0.18 (1.7%) to $10.81 on volume of 6.57m shares;
• KLA-Tencor Cp (KLAC) -0.38 (1.3%) to $29.75 on volume of 3.12m shares; and
• Intel (INTC) +0.17 (0.8%) to $20.94 on volume of 82.93m shares.

The ChildKiller (“Defence”) index (DFX) gained 3.51 points (1.01%) to 351 points. Total volume traded in the 17 components of the index was 113.54m shares. Advancers outpaced decliners by 7 to one, with 14 advancers to 2 decliners. Advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 110.6m to 2.94m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Gencorp (GY) +0.14 (3.1%) to $4.65 on volume of 2.3m shares;
• Embraer Empresa (ERJ) +0.5 (2.2%) to $23.21 on volume of 0.59m shares;
• Rockwell Collins (COL) +1.11 (1.9%) to $60.6 on volume of 1.62m shares;
• Esterline Tech (ESL) +0.79 (1.7%) to $47.84 on volume of 0.26m shares; and
• United Technologies (UTX) +1.02 (1.4%) to $71.78 on volume of 5.53m shares.

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The following economic data was released during the session:

• National AU for was released in Australia; the result was Banks Busi . – less than the market’s pre-release guess of 8.
• ANZ Job Advertisements for Feb was released in Australia; the series posted a reading of 19.1% adding 27.2 from the prior reading of -8.1%
• Coincident Index for Jan was released in Japan; the series posted a reading of 99.9 rising 2.5 from the prior reading of 97.4 – above the market’s pre-release guess of 99.6.
• Leading Economic Index for Jan was released in Japan; the series posted a reading of 97.1 adding 2.8 from the prior reading of 94.3 – above the consensus estimate of 96.8.

Major Market Indices

The broad market – the All Ordinaries (XAO) – advanced modestly, rising 9.7 points (0.20%), finishing at 4829.3 points. The index hit an intraday high of 4836.1 at 3:13 pm, while the low for the day was 4801.9 – set at 11:06 am Sydney time.

Total volume traded on the ASX was 2.29bn units, 7.8% above its 10-day average of 2.12bn shares.The ASX’s daily listing of all stocks included 1314 different 3-letter FPO’s which traded (i.e., had non-zero trade volume). Of these, 473 issues rose, with volume in rising issues totalling 1.09bn units; there were 493 declining stocks, which traded aggregate declining volume of 736.3m shares.

Of the 497 All Ordinaries components, 220 rose while 198 fell. Volume was tilted in favour of the gainers by a margin of 1.2:1, with 563.45m shares traded in gainers while 488.75m shares traded in the day’s losers.

The Index that forms the cash basis for the SPI Futures – the S&P/ASX 200 (XJO) – posted a modest rise of 12.2 points (0.25%), closing out the session at 4820.1 points.

Name	Close	+/-(%)
All Ordinaries	4829.30	9.70 (0.2%)
ASX 20	2947.50	11.00 (0.4%)
ASX 50	4849.30	14.10 (0.3%)
ASX 100	3950.40	10.20 (0.3%)
ASX 200	4820.10	12.20 (0.3%)
ASX 300	4812.80	12.20 (0.3%)
ASX Mid-Cap 50	4311.30	0.70 (0.0%)
ASX Small Ordinaries	2537.10	5.00 (0.2%)

The “heavy hitters” of the Australian market – the ASX 20 Leaders (XTL) – advanced by under a percent, adding 11 points (0.37%), closing out the session at 2947.5 points.

Among the 20 big guns, 14 index components finished to the upside, and 7 lost ground. The stocks which make up the index traded a total of 152.79m units; 14 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 112.11m shares, while the 7 decliners had volume traded totalling 40.68m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Brambles Industries Ltd (BXB), +$0.29 (4.02%) to $7.50 on volume of 9.6 million shares;
• National Australia Bank Ltd (NAB), +$0.54 (2.05%) to $26.87 on volume of 5.8 million shares;
• QBE Insurance Group Ltd (QBE), +$0.42 (2.03%) to $21.08 on volume of 8.3 million shares;
• Suncorp-Metway Ltd (SUN), +$0.11 (1.29%) to $8.65 on volume of 6.9 million shares; and
• Woolworths Ltd (WOW), +$0.22 (0.79%) to $28.15 on volume of 4 million shares.

On the less salubrious side of the big-cap fence, the following stocks were the worst-performed within the index:

• Macquarie Group Ltd (MQG), -$0.72 (1.45%) to $48.83 on volume of 1.8 million shares;
• RIO Tinto Ltd (RIO), -$0.79 (1.03%) to $76.15 on volume of 2.1 million shares;
• Stockland (SGP), -$0.04 (0.95%) to $4.17 on volume of 8.1 million shares;
• Fosters Group Ltd (FGL), -$0.05 (0.92%) to $5.38 on volume of 8.3 million shares; and
• AMP Ltd (AMP), -$0.03 (0.49%) to $6.10 on volume of 7.5 million shares.

The ASX Small Ordinaries (XSO) The small end of the market significantly underperformed its large-cap counterpart. The Small Ords advanced by under a percent, adding 5 points (0.20%), closing out the session at 2537.1 points.

Among the stocks that make up the Small Caps index, 100 index components finished to the upside, and of the rest, 100 closed lower for the session.

• Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Group (BBI), +$3.95 (11271.4%) to $3.98 on volume of 454.6 thousand shares;
• Carbon Energy Ltd (CNX), +$0.07 (14.29%) to $0.52 on volume of 6.7 million shares;
• Carbon Energy Ltd (CNX), +$0.07 (14.29%) to $0.52 on volume of 6.7 million shares;
• Babcock & Brown Power (BBP), +$0.01 (7.95%) to $0.10 on volume of 3.6 million shares; and
• Sundance Resources Ltd (SDL), +$0.01 (7.14%) to $0.15 on volume of 12 million shares.

In the red-zone of the little-stock index, the following list represents the biggest downers (in terms of percentage decline):

• Marion Energy Ltd (MAE), -$0.01 (12.5%) to $0.05 on volume of 4.1 million shares;
• Resolute Mining Ltd (RSG), -$0.07 (6.28%) to $0.97 on volume of 772.8 thousand shares;
• ISOFT Group Ltd (ISF), -$0.03 (5.66%) to $0.50 on volume of 6.1 million shares;
• Redflex Holdings Ltd (RDF), -$0.09 (5.03%) to $1.70 on volume of 48.8 thousand shares; and
• Energy World Corporation Ltd (EWC), -$0.02 (4.84%) to $0.30 on volume of 2 million shares.

Index Changes

Market Breadth

GICS Industry Indices

Among the 11 industry indices, 7 registered an advance for the session, the remaining 4 lost ground.

The best performing index was Industrials (XNJ), which added 35.7 points (0.9%) to 4001.4 points. The 32 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 226.13m units; 18 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 108.03m shares, while the 10 decliners had volume traded totalling 27.38m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Virgin Blue Hldgs Ltd (VBA), +$0.04 (5.67%) to $0.75 on volume of 19.6 million shares;
• Brambles Industries Ltd (BXB), +$0.29 (4.02%) to $7.50 on volume of 9.6 million shares;
• Connecteast Group (CEU), +$0.02 (3.53%) to $0.44 on volume of 5.1 million shares;
• GWA Intl Ltd (GWT), +$0.09 (2.79%) to $3.32 on volume of 367.6 thousand shares; and
• Macmahon Holdings Ltd (MAH), +$0.02 (2.74%) to $0.75 on volume of 6 million shares.

Second in the index leadership stakes was Consumer Discretionary (XDJ), which gained 11.2 points (0.68%) to 1649.1 points. The 23 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 67.55m units; 13 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 48.79m shares, while the 5 decliners had volume traded totalling 7.79m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• Pacific Brands Ltd (PBG), +$0.06 (5.13%) to $1.23 on volume of 8.8 million shares;
• Wotif.com Holdings (WTF), +$0.20 (2.64%) to $7.77 on volume of 547.3 thousand shares;
• Billabong Intl Ltd (BBG), +$0.24 (2.25%) to $10.90 on volume of 870.7 thousand shares;
• Macquarie Media Group (stapled) (MMG), +$0.04 (2.08%) to $1.96 on volume of 131.1 thousand shares; and
• Aristocrat Leisure Ltd (ALL), +$0.07 (1.61%) to $4.42 on volume of 1.2 million shares.

The bronze medal for today goes to Financials ex Property Trusts (XXJ), which climbed 37.4 points (0.67%) to 5608.7 points. The 23 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 91.76m units; 15 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 67.36m shares, while the 7 decliners had volume traded totalling 22.71m units. The major percentage gainers within the index were

• National Australia Bank Ltd (NAB), +$0.54 (2.05%) to $26.87 on volume of 5.8 million shares;
• Bendigo And Adelaide Bank Ltd (BEN), +$0.20 (2.05%) to $9.94 on volume of 1.4 million shares;
• QBE Insurance Group Ltd (QBE), +$0.42 (2.03%) to $21.08 on volume of 8.3 million shares;
• Ioof Hldgs Ltd (IFL), +$0.11 (1.71%) to $6.54 on volume of 449 thousand shares; and
• Henderson Group PLC (HGG), +$0.03 (1.4%) to $2.17 on volume of 13.1 million shares.

The worst-performed index for the session was Materials (XMJ), which dipped 69.8 points (0.55%) to 12612.3 points. The 46 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 230.32m units; The 30 decliners had volume traded totalling 170.45m units, and 12 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 46.07m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were

• OneSteel Ltd (OST), -$0.11 (2.97%) to $3.59 on volume of 7.2 million shares;
• Mount Gibson Iron (MGX), -$0.05 (2.5%) to $1.76 on volume of 5.3 million shares;
• Cudeco Ltd (CDU), -$0.1 (2.35%) to $4.16 on volume of 263.7 thousand shares;
• OZ Minerals Ltd (OZL), -$0.03 (2.14%) to $1.15 on volume of 22.5 million shares; and
• Kingsgate Consolidated Ltd (KCN), -$0.18 (1.91%) to $9.25 on volume of 332.8 thousand shares.

Just missing out on the wooden spoon was Utilities (XUJ), which slid 6.5 points (0.15%) to 4311.3 points. The 10 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 33.34m units; The 4 decliners had volume traded totalling 15.38m units, and 4 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 12.39m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were

• Energy World Corporation Ltd (EWC), -$0.02 (4.84%) to $0.30 on volume of 2 million shares;
• SP AUSNET (stapled) (SPN), -$0.03 (2.7%) to $0.90 on volume of 9.2 million shares;
• Infigen Energy (IFN), -$0.03 (2.27%) to $1.29 on volume of 2.8 million shares; and
• Duet Group (DUE), -$0.02 (0.82%) to $1.82 on volume of 1.4 million shares.

Third-to-last amongst the sector indices was Telecommunications (XTJ), which slid 0.9 points (0.09%) to 1001.4 points. The 3 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 45.31m units; The sole declining stock traded 4m units, and 2 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 41.31m shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were

• Telecom Corporation Of New Zealand Ltd (TEL), -$0.02 (1.16%) to $1.71 on volume of 4 million shares.

Sector Indices

All Ordinaries Major Movers

All Ords Volume Leaders

All Ords Percentage Gainers

All Ords Percentage Losers

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Post tags: OzRant

The following economic data was released during the session:

• Housing Starts s.a y/y for Feb was released in Canada; the series posted a reading of 196.7K advancing 11.7 from the prior reading of 185.0K, – above the market’s pre-release guess of 189.0K.

Headline Indices

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 13.68 points (0.13%) to 10552.52 points. The index high for the day was 10587.74, while the low was 10542.39.

• 3M Co (MMM) -1.13 (1.4%) to $81.31 on volume of 3.63m shares;
• American Express (AXP) -0.49 (1.2%) to $39.71 on volume of 7.8m shares;
• Boeing (BA) -0.69 (1%) to $67.24 on volume of 5.07m shares;
• Procter & Gamble (PG) -0.5 (0.8%) to $63.19 on volume of 10.74m shares; and
• Pfizer (PFE) -0.13 (0.7%) to $17.35 on volume of 46.3m shares.

The S&P500 Index lost 0.19 points (0.02%) to 1138.50 points..

• Ciena Corp. (CIEN) -0.91 (5.7%) to $15.1 on volume of 17.21m shares;
• AK Steel Holding Corp. (AKS) -0.75 (3%) to $24.13 on volume of 11.9m shares;
• Chesapeake Energy (CHK) -0.72 (2.7%) to $25.59 on volume of 16.16m shares;
• Applied Biosystems Inc. (ABI) -0.3 (2.6%) to $11.45 on volume of 0m shares; and
• Federal Home Loan Mtg. (FRE) -0.03 (2.5%) to $1.19 on volume of 7.29m shares.

The Nasdaq Composite gained +5.86 points (0.25%) to 2332.21 points. while the Nasdaq100 rose +2.33 points (0.12%) to 1890.89 points..

• Research in Motion (RIMM) +3.89 (5.6%) to $73.39 on volume of 27.57m shares;
• Focus Media Holding (FMCN) +0.6 (3.8%) to $16.6 on volume of 1.9m shares;
• Cisco Systems (CSCO) +0.92 (3.6%) to $26.13 on volume of 115.24m shares;
• Yahoo! (YHOO) +0.46 (2.9%) to $16.52 on volume of 29.68m shares; and
• Baidu.com (BIDU) +13.58 (2.6%) to $534.33 on volume of 1.44m shares.

Volatility

The CBOE Volatility Index rose +0.37 points (2.12%) to 17.79 points. and the CBOE Nasdaq100 Volatility Index advanced +0.75 points (4.19%) to 18.67 points..

Breadth and Internals

A total of 3968 issues traded today on the NYSE; today’s total volume was 4.25bn shares. A total of 2223 stocks posted gains for the day, and volume in advancing issues totalled 2.4bn shares. Exerting downwards pressure on the index were 1606 losers, which accounted for a total declining volume of 1.81bn shares. 565 stocks made new 1-year highs on the NYSE, while 55 shares plumbed new 52-week depths.

On the Nasdaq 2818 tickers traded today; total Nasdaq volume was 2.13bn shares. A total of 1453 stocks posted gains for the day, with aggregate volume of 1.33bn shares changing hands in the day’s winners. The red zone of the Nasdaq exchange comprised 1251 losers, and total declining volume was 0.76bn shares. 241 Nasdaq-listed stocks hit new 52-week highs, while 15 shares dipped to new 1-year lows.

Dow Darlings

• McDonalds (MCD) +1.45 (2.3%) to $65.12 on volume of 11.8m units
• Verizon (VZ) +0.4 (1.4%) to $29.63 on volume of 16m units
• AT&T (T) +0.29 (1.2%) to $25.28 on volume of 24.6m units
• Du Pont (DD) +0.4 (1.1%) to $35.37 on volume of 7.2m units
• Home Depot (HD) +0.16 (0.5%) to $31.96 on volume of 11m units

Dow Duds:

• 3M Co (MMM) -1.13 (1.4%) to $81.31 on volume of 3.6m units
• American Express (AXP) -0.49 (1.2%) to $39.71 on volume of 7.8m units
• Boeing (BA) -0.69 (1%) to $67.24 on volume of 5.1m units
• Procter & Gamble (PG) -0.5 (0.8%) to $63.19 on volume of 10.7m units
• Pfizer (PFE) -0.13 (0.7%) to $17.35 on volume of 46.3m units

Most Traded Dow stocks:

• Bank Of America (BAC) +0.04 (0.2%) to $16.74 on volume of 126.9m units
• General Electric (GE)-0.08 (0.5%) to $16.27 on volume of 53.5m units
• Pfizer (PFE)-0.13 (0.7%) to $17.35 on volume of 46.3m units
• Microsoft (MSFT) +0.0425 (0.1%) to $28.63 on volume of 39m units
• Intel (INTC)-0.02 (0.1%) to $20.77 on volume of 34m units

Precious Metals

Precious metals futures performed as follows –

The Gold Bugs index (XAU) dropped 1.6 points (0.94%) to 169.21 points. Total volume traded in the 16 components of the index was 70.89m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 15 to one, with 15 decliners to 1 advancers. Declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 68.85m to 2.04m shares. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were –

• Yamana Gold (AUY) -0.38 (3.6%) to $10.17 on volume of 13m shares;
• Silver Stand Resources (SSRI) -0.41 (2.2%) to $18 on volume of 0.73m shares;
• RandGold Resources (GOLD) -1.61 (2.1%) to $75.93 on volume of 0.81m shares;
• Barrick Gold (ABX) -0.58 (1.4%) to $39.68 on volume of 7.68m shares; and
• Kinroos Gold (KGC) -0.25 (1.3%) to $18.85 on volume of 5.46m shares.

Energy Complex

Energy futures performed as follows –

The Oil Services index (OSX) gained 0.29 points (0.14%) to 211.26 points. Total volume traded in the 15 components of the index was 74.03m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 1.5 to one, with 9 decliners to 6 advancers. Declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 48.24m to 25.79m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Global Industries (GLBL) +0.1 (1.4%) to $7.43 on volume of 1.03m shares;
• Smith International (SII) +0.52 (1.2%) to $43.49 on volume of 8.1m shares;
• Tidewater (TDW) +0.52 (1.1%) to $47.19 on volume of 0.52m shares;
• Schlumberger (SLB) +0.67 (1%) to $64.48 on volume of 12.23m shares; and
• Oceaneering International (OII) +0.54 (0.9%) to $63.18 on volume of 0.39m shares.

Currency Futures

Currency futures performed as follows –

Bellwethers

The nine-stock group that makes up the Rant bellwethers advanced on average by 0.2%. The fallout occurred as follows:

• General Electric (GE) -0.08 (0.49%) to $16.27 on volume of 53.53m units.
• Citigroup (C) +0.06 (1.71%) to $3.56 on volume of 450.4m units.
• Wal-Mart (WMT) +0.01 (0.02%) to $54.15 on volume of 7.55m units.
• IBM (IBM) -0.84 (0.66%) to $126.41 on volume of 6.19m units.
• Intel (INTC) -0.02 (0.1%) to $20.77 on volume of 33.95m units.
• Cisco Systems (CSCO) +0.92 (3.65%) to $26.13 on volume of 115.24m units.
• Google (GOOG) -1.73 (0.31%) to $562.48 on volume of 2.29m units.
• Fannie Mae (FNM) -0 (0%) to $1.01 on volume of 10.72m units.
• Freddie Mac (FRE) -0.03 (2.46%) to $1.19 on volume of 7.29m units.

Other Indices of Interest…

The Banks index (BKX) rose 0.08 points (0.16%) to 48.69 points. Total volume traded in the 24 components of the index was 747.28m shares. Advancers outpaced decliners by 1.1 to one, with 11 advancers to 10 decliners. Advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 632.32m to 102.25m shares. The biggest gainers (percentage-wise) were –

• Suntrust Banks (STI) +0.58 (2.3%) to $25.64 on volume of 7.25m shares;
• Regions Financial (RF) +0.14 (2%) to $6.98 on volume of 18.97m shares;
• Citigroup Inc (C) +0.06 (1.7%) to $3.56 on volume of 450.4m shares;
• New M&I Corporation (MI) +0.08 (1.1%) to $7.48 on volume of 8.06m shares; and
• Zions Bancorp (ZION) +0.19 (1%) to $18.93 on volume of 2.99m shares.

The Semiconductor index (SOX) was unchanged at 0 points. Total volume traded in the 18 components of the index was 187.6m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 1.1 to one, with 9 decliners to 8 advancers; however advancing volume exceeded declining volume by 104.96m shares to 82.64m. The index’s rather boring situation arose as a result of a mixed bag of results, the most notable amongst these (in percentage terms) being –

• Micron Technology (MU) +0.13 (1.4%) to $9.59 on volume of 26.6m shares;
• Altera (ALTR) -0.28 (1.1%) to $24.68 on volume of 4.75m shares;
• Texas Instruments (TXN) -0.28 (1.1%) to $24.69 on volume of 22.02m shares;
• Broadcom (BRCM) +0.31 (1%) to $31.46 on volume of 6.22m shares; and
• Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) +0.1 (1%) to $10.23 on volume of 16.11m shares.

The ChildKiller (“Defence”) index (DFX) slid 1.98 points (0.57%) to 347.49 points. Total volume traded in the 17 components of the index was 76.14m shares. Decliners outpaced gainers by 7 to one, with 14 decliners to 2 advancers. Declining volume was greater than advancing volume by 75.55m to 0.59m shares. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were –

• Gencorp (GY) -0.07 (1.5%) to $4.51 on volume of 0.67m shares;
• Boeing (BA) -0.69 (1%) to $67.24 on volume of 5.07m shares;
• ITT Corporation (ITT) -0.49 (0.9%) to $53 on volume of 1.25m shares;
• Rockwell Collins (COL) -0.55 (0.9%) to $59.49 on volume of 0.89m shares; and
• United Technologies (UTX) -0.49 (0.7%) to $70.76 on volume of 4.02m shares.

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