[youtube://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bwb_eI3QYeM&feature=g-vrec&context=G21ad2f5RVAAAAAAAAAA 450 300]

“Manhandling”

[youtube://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDnpqEuiieo 450 300]

Gapping up

DSCO +30.1%, AMTG +7.5%, SLTM +6.5%, GTIV +5.4%, MAKO +4%, MBLX +3.5%, RIO +1.7%, BBL +1.6%, CY +1.6%, MT +1.2%, BHP +1%,

LULU +2.2%, PCX +4.9%, JRCC +4.1%, ANR +1.6%, ACI +1.1%,  AUY +1.3%, GOLD +0.6%, SLV +0.3%, GLD +0.3%, GDX +0.3%,

IRE +3.5%, UBS +2.6%, DB +2%, BCS +1.9%, RY +1.6%, BAC +1.6%, CS +1.4%, IBN +1.3%, C +0.9%, HBC +0.8%, CIEN +6.8%, CTIC +5.6%, MBLX +3.5%

Gpping down

P -21.5%, ASTX -12%, AVAV -1.8%, UAN -1.4%,  MFB -12%,  CSIQ -10.7%, PLCE -4.6% ,  BWS -3.6%, AYR -4.7%, KFT -0.4%

Source

ConAgra Foods Inc. (CAG) : The food manufacturer said it completed its acquisition of Del Monte Canada from an affiliate of Sun Capital Partners Inc. Financial terms weren’t disclosed.

Cypress Semiconductor Corp. (CY) : The maker of computer chips for video-game consoles and mobile phones cut it’s first- quarter revenue forecast to no more than $190 million, falling short of the average analyst estimate of $205.9 million, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Discovery Laboratories Inc. (DSCO) : The biopharmaceutical company won approval from the Food and Drug Administration for its treatment to prevent respiratory distress in high-risk premature infants.

Mako Surgical Corp. (MAKO) : The medical device company reported fourth-quarter revenue of $32.9 million, beating the average analyst estimate by 7 percent, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Pandora Media Inc. (P) (P US): The Internet radio pioneer forecast first-quarter results that missed analysts’ projections because of a seasonal lull in advertising sales.

In Play

On the Wires

“Billionaire investor Ken Langone warns that the United States faces “hardcore unemployment” as high as 13 percent because President Barack Obama’s “punitive” view of business is dividing the country by punishing those who work hard and succeed with excess regulations.

The Home Depot co-founder told CNBC he is “bothered by the fact that we aren’t creating a massive number of jobs in America. I think we are going to have a hardcore unemployment in America, and what do you do about that?”

Langone says the unemployment rate is higher than the official figure of 8.3 percent because of the many people who have given up looking. If those people were included, the unemployment rate could be as high as 13 percent, he said….”

Read more:  

Source

“Pimco CEO Mohamed El-Erian says Bloomberg’s new index of billionaires illustrates competing social forces.

“The launch of the Billionaires Index could be yet another illustration that certain segments of society remain tone deaf when it comes to social realities,” El-Erian writes in the Huffington Post.

“Indeed, some could view it as a sign of how information disseminators and opinion leaders are overly interested in metrics that say little about the underlying health and well-being of society.”

“This is clearly a risk. Fortunately there are countervailing forces.”

El-Erian notes that a growing number of politically and financially influential people are recognizing that, in today’s highly interconnected world that is trying to overcome anemic growth and an unemployment crisis, the well-being of the rich cannot (and should not) be viewed in isolation.

“To use one of my favorite real estate analogies, it is hard to be a great house in a weakening neighborhood—which leads to the upside of the new data releases,” he says.

This is where the potential upside comes in, says El-Erian, because Bloomberg’s daily identification of the top billionaires could reinforce a trend where these individuals allocate a growing portion of their wealth in a manner that helps society as a whole.

“In this way, the appeal of the index would prove to be less about what has happened and more about the responsibility that the rich share to help the least and less fortunate members of our global society,” El-Erian says.

Bloomberg reports that its Billionaires Index is a daily ranking of the world’s 20 richest people.

“In calculating net worth, we strive to provide the most transparent estimates available,” a Bloomberg article said. “Each Bloomberg Billionaire profile contains a detailed analysis of how that person’s fortune has been tallied.”

We should have some real concrete answers on the swap by tomorrow afternoon. Here is what could happen if the deal goes awry.

What if inflation does not produce the jobs ?

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The Dow dropped more than 200 points on Tuesday, handing Wall Street its worst day in three months on renewed fears of a disorderly default in Greece and concerns that China’s slowdown would hit global growth.

Analysts have expected a pullback for weeks, citing an overstretched market. Despite the day’s decline, the S&P 500 is still up almost 7 percent for the year. If fourth-quarter gains are included, the benchmark index is still up almost 20 percent since September 30.

Source

“FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) — Greece continues to rattle investor nerves ahead of a Thursday deadline for private investors to voluntarily offer up Greek government bonds in a debt swap that will cut the value of their holdings by more than half.

Strategists blamed jitters over the process combined with concerns over global growth prospects as spoiling investor appetite for risk on Tuesday, sending European and U.S. equities lower and undercutting the euro and other risk-oriented currencies. See Market Snapshot.

The euro EURUSD -0.77%  slipped 0.8% to trade at $1.3119 in recent action. Read more in Currencies.

“It will only become clear toward the end of the week how many investors have agreed to the ‘voluntary’ restructuring of Greek debt,” said Lutz Karpowitz, currency strategist at Commerzbank.

The Institute for International Finance, which helped negotiate the terms of the bond swap, reportedly warned in a recent memo that a so-called hard default by Greece could cause at least 1 trillion euros ($1.32 trillion) in damage to the euro-zone economy. That figure includes the need for aid for Italy and Spain to keep the crisis at bay as well as €160 billion in bank recapitalization costs, Reuters reported Tuesday. See full document as shown in the Athens News.….”

Read more

Dr. Doom expects war….

“Question for you: Which distinctly British asset class has offered the most attractive returns over the past decade? Central London property? Not even close, even if it has done rather well. UK farmland is the answer, having more than tripled in value over a decade which will otherwise not be remembered for its outsized returns (see story here). The rise in farmland values is not only a British phenomenon. All over Northern Europe and North America farmland values have responded well to higher commodity prices. Last year alone, farmland prices in the US Midwest appreciated by 22% on average (details here).

Now, if ‘rental income’ on farm land is going up as measured by higher crop prices, it is only logical that the value of the land appreciates, similar to the dynamics in the commercial property sector. However, I have long been puzzled by the fact that you find virtually no exposure to farm land in institutional portfolios despite the supremely attractive yields on offer when compared to commercial property. Pension funds happily buy office buildings, earning a return of 4-5%, maybe 6%, yet few have ventured into farmland where yields can be as high as 10% if the farm is big enough and run professionally enough.

In this month’s Absolute Return Letter we will take a closer look at agriculture. Should you be exposed to agriculture in the first place? Is it too late to buy farm land? Are there other and better ways to be exposed to agriculture? These and other questions I will address in the following.

Let’s begin with some numbers to set the stage. There are approximately 7 billion people in the world today. FAO (the food and agriculture organisation of the United Nations) expects that number to grow to approximately 8.3 billion by 2030. The average person consumes 2,780 kcal per day but the average masks a significant gap between the developed and the developing world. Whereas people in developed countries consume 3,420 kcal per day, people in developing countries consume no more than 2,630 kcal per day. By 2030 the average calorie intake is expected to have risen to 3,050 kcal per day, driven primarily by rising living standards in developing countries.

Adding these numbers up, global daily calorie consumption is approximately 19.5 trillion kcal, growing to an estimated 25.3 trillion kcal by 2030 – an increase of about 30%. An increase of that magnitude should, on its own, be quite manageable; however, things are not quite so straightforward. Here is the problem. Whereas diets in developing countries consist primarily of grains (rice, corn, wheat, etc.), diets in the wealthier parts of the world are dominated by protein, fat and sugar.

As the poor get wealthier, they will want more protein – mainly chicken, pork and beef. Converting a grain rich diet to a more protein rich diet will increaseoverall demand for grain significantly as livestock is inefficient in terms of converting grain to energy. It takes 2-3 kilograms of grain to produce 1 kilogram of chicken, about 4 kilograms of grain to produce 1 kilogram of pork and as much as 7-8 kilograms of grain to produce 1 kilogram of beef. Hence, if the average daily calorie consumption grows by 30% between now and 2030 as projected, demand for grain will grow by a multiple of that….”

Full article

“Morgan Stanley Smith Barney is out with its latest Asset Allocation and Strategy Weekly report to its clients.

Despite improving economic conditions, the wealth management firm is sticking to its rather cautious stance on the markets.

As new challenges and opportunities appear, we continue to evaluate our risk exposure and tactical positioning. Our work suggests that many safe havens should experience less vulnerability in the likely challenging economic period ahead. As a consequence, our asset allocation models overweight global cash, market weight global bonds and alternative/absolute return investments and underweight global equities.

Here’s their latest roundup of their bearish factors that stock investors should consider:

Equities Bearish Factors

• The ongoing deleveraging in the big developed-market (DM) economies will take several years to run its course, the byproduct of which is sluggish growth for a long time.
• Europe is at risk of slipping into a “lost decade” triggered by lack of leadership and institutional flexibility at the European Central Bank and elsewhere.
• Global growth is overwhelmingly dependent on EM policymakers. Many are not as seasoned as DM policymakers.
• Sovereign debt burdens are too high in several developed countries. Hard political choices need to be made or currency values are at risk.
• US home prices, as per the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, have not improved much from their cyclical low.
• The benchmark 10-year US Treasury yield remains near a multi-decade low. If it rises in the years ahead, it would be a headwind for expansion of P/E multiples.
• “Event risk,” such as a terrorist attack, is ever-present.

However, the firm does recognize that there are bullish forces in the market as well.  Here’s their list:

Equities Bullish Factors…”

Read more: 

“BAC – Merrill Lynch senior economist Michelle Meyer appeared on Bloomberg TV with a cautious outlook on both housing and fiscal tightening.

In particular, she said that fiscal tightening is one of the biggest threats to U.S. economic growth, and that fiscal drag could amount to as much as 4 percent if lawmakers don’t change their current policies.

“Yes, we understand that there’s momentum right now. We’re encouraged by some of the labor market indicators, but we’re not yet convinced. And given the amount of fiscal tightening, we think there will be another uncertainty shock.”

She qualified that a 4 percent shock isn’t her team’s baseline policy—it is really something like 2 percent—but added, “There’s the possibility of even larger tightening if you don’t see policy.”

Watch her full interview below:

Gapping up 

MWW +6.4%, SHFL +4.7%, MTGE +2%, PAY +0.5%,  MNST +0.4%,  KRO +5.6%, SWY +4.1%, GA +2.6%, NQ +1.8%, FTEK +1.8% ,

PAY+0.5%,  HNR +11.8%, CYTK +6.7%, QCOM +0.5%, 

Gapping down

ONTY -33.4%, NTRI -9.9%, RAS -5.8%, XOMA -4.8%, EQY -4.3%, SKUL -4.1%, QLTY -3.2%, PAA -3.1%, CASY -2.6%, JAZZ -2.4%, NLY -0.7% ,

POM -0.6%, AAPL -0.8%, CNX -2.2%, PAA -3.4%,  SKUL -4.1%,  KERX -7.9% , AEZS -9.8%, IRE -5.8%, IBN -3.6%, CS -3.1%,

STD -3%, DB -2.8%, UBS -2.7%, LYG -2.7%, HBC -2.4%, C -1.6%, BAC -1.1%, MT -2.9%, SLW -2.3%, SSRI -2.3%, SLV -2.2%, HL -2.1%,

BHP -2%, GOLD -1.9%, BBL -1.6%, RIO -1.2%, NEM -1.1%, GLD -1%, STO -2.5%, HAL -1.7%, BP -1.6%, TOT -1.5%, RDS.A -1.4%, WFT -1%, XOM -0.8%.

Source

Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) : The largest video-game maker hired Dennis Durkin, who had been an executive in Microsoft Corp.’s Interactive Entertainment Business, to fill its open chief financial officer position.

Casey’s General Stores Inc. (CASY) : The operator of convenience stores in the U.S. midwest reported third-quarter revenue of $1.58 billion, missing the average analyst estimate by 2.8 percent, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

ConocoPhillips (COP) fell 0.7 percent to $77. The U.S. oil company that plans to spin off its refining business this year expects to sell $10 billion of assets in 2012 and to repurchase $10 billion of shares, Chief Executive Officer James Mulva said during an investor’s conference.

Kronos Worldwide Inc. (KRO) gained 5.6 percent to $25. The maker of titanium dioxide pigments reported fourth-quarter earnings of 74 cents a share, beating the average analyst estimate by 57 percent.

Monster Worldwide Inc. (MWW) rose 7.7 percent to $8.10. The online recruiting service hired Stone Key Partners LLC and Bank of America Corp.’s Merrill Lynch to help it review strategic alternatives.

Nutrisystem Inc. (NTRI) tumbled 11 percent to $10.52. The provider of prepared meals to help clients lose weight forecast annual earnings per share of no more than 55 cents, falling short of the average analyst projection of 92 cents a share, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Safeway Inc. (SWY) gained 4.1 percent to $23. The grocer forecast 2012 earnings excluding some items of as much as $2.10 a share, above the average analyst estimate of $1.89 a share, according to a Bloomberg survey.

Shuffle Master Inc. (SHFL) : The maker of casino roulette-chip sorters and card shufflers reported first-quarter revenue of $56.1 million, beating the average analyst estimate of $50.5 million.

Skullcandy Inc. (SKUL) (SKUL US): The maker of headphones said Chief Financial Officer Mitch Edwards is resigning, effective April 1.

Steinway Musical Instruments Inc. (LVB) : The piano maker posted fourth-quarter earnings excluding some items of 24 cents a share, missing CJS Securities’ projection of 37 cents, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

VeriFone Systems Inc. (PAY) : The largest maker of credit-card terminals forecast 2012 earnings may be as much as $2.66 a share excluding some items, compared with the average analyst projection of $2.60 a share.

In Play

On the Wires 

“The gap between rich and poor in the United States created the need for the housing credit bubble, which led in turn to the subsequent credit crisis and economic collapse, says Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz.

Worse, it would take a new bubble to get back to full U.S. employment, he says.

Income “inequality is bad for growth, stability and efficiency,” Stiglitz told NorthJersey.com after speaking to students nearby. “Inequality peaked both before the Great Depression and before the Great Recession, and it’s not an accident. So basically, when we have a lot of inequality, demand goes down.”

The lack of economic balance created the need for increased consumption on credit, which appeared as home equity lending during the housing boom.

“The bubble allowed people to consume more. Now we have the inequality but we don’t have a bubble, and that means that we will have persistent, weak demand, and therefore unless we create another bubble it’s going to be very difficult for us to get back to full employment,” says Stiglitz, a former chief economist for the World Bank and adviser to President Bill Clinton.

He suggested that higher taxes on the rich to invest in education, technology, and infrastructure was a solution but rejected the idea that reducing the budget deficit matters to the economy….”

Read more