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Monthly Archives: November 2011

BIG FREAKIN’ SURPRISE: 1 in 4 American Women Takes Meds for Mental Illness

One in four American women take medication for a mental disorder

  • Women more likely than men to take antipsychotic drugs, according to new report
  • Most often prescribed to females over 45
  • Prescriptions for psychiatric problems in all adults have risen 22% since 2001
  • Usage has quadrupled among men aged between 20 and 64 over the last decade

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Last updated at 1:59 PM on 17th November 2011

 

 

More than one in four American women took at least one drug for conditions like anxiety and depression last year, according to an analysis of prescription data.

The report, by pharmacy benefits manager Medco Health Solutions Inc, found the use of drugs for psychiatric and behavioral disorders in all adults rose 22per cent from 2001.

The medications are most often prescribed to women aged 45 and older, but their use among men and in younger adults climbed sharply.

On the rise: A bar graph showing the increase in the number of Americans using mental health medication between 2001 and 2010. There are considerably more women doing so than menOn the rise: A bar graph showing the increase in the number of Americans using mental health medication between 2001 and 2010. There are considerably more women doing so than men

 

In total, more than 20per cent of American adults were found to be on at least one drug for mental health disorders.

A number of celebrities have gone public in recent years with their battles with mental health disorders.

 

 

They include Catherin Zeta-Jones, who was treated for a form of bipolar disorder earlier this year due to the stress of coping with her husband Michael Douglas’s fight with cancer.

Model Brooke Shields admitted suffering postpartum depression after the birth of her baby in 2003, while fellow big screen icon Carrie Fisher, of Star Wars fame, told how she had turned to electroshock therapy to treat the worst symptoms of her chronic depression.

Needed help: Actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, 41, was treated for a form of bipolar disorder earlier this year due to the stress of coping with husband Michael Douglas¿s battle with cancer
Actress and model Brooke Shields revealed she battled postpartum depression after the birth of her daughter in 2003

Needed help: Actress Catherin Zeta-Jones (left) was treated for bipolar disorder earlier this year, while model and movie star Brooke Shields revealed she had suffered from postpartum depression after the birth of her daughter in 2003

Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher admitted she turned to electroshock to treat the worst symptoms of her chronic depression
Multiple Olympic gold medal swimmer Michael Phelps was diagnosed with ADHD when he was nine years old

Ends of the spectrum: Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher, 54, turned to electroshock therapy to help treat her chronic depression, while Olympic gold medal swimmer Michael Phelps was diagnosed with ADHD when he was nine years old

 

In adults 20 to 44, use of antipsychotic drugs and treatments for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) more than tripled, while use of anti-anxiety drugs like Xanax, Valium and Ativan rose 30per cent from a decade ago.

The statistics were taken from Medco’s database of prescriptions and is based on 2.5million patients with 24 months of continuous prescription drug insurance and eligibility.

The company said women are twice as likely as men to use anxiety treatments as 11per cent of women 45 to 65 are on an anxiety medication.

Women are also more likely than men to take antipsychotic drugs like Zyprexa, Risperdal, and Abilify, which treat disorders like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

However, among men 20 to 64, use of the drugs has quadrupled over the last decade.

Geographical differences: In the 'diabetes belt' states of Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi and Alabama, about 23per cent of people are on at least one mental health drug. The lowest rate is less than 15per centGeographical differences: In the ‘diabetes belt’ states of Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi and Alabama, about 23per cent of people are on at least one mental health drug. The lowest rate is less than 15per cent

 

The sex divide: This graph shows how far more women used anti-depressant drugs last year compared to menThe sex divide: This graph shows how far more women used anti-depressant drugs last year compared to men

Dr David Muzina, a psychiatrist and national practice leader of Medco’s Neuroscience Therapeutic Resource Center, said: ‘There has been a significant uptick in the use of medications to treat a variety of mental health problems.

‘What is not as clear is if more people — especially women – are actually developing psychological disorders that require treatment.

‘Or (it might be) if they are more willing to seek out help and clinicians are better at diagnosing these conditions than they once were.’

Pharmaceutical companies have also sought and received approvals to market their drugs to larger groups of people.

Drugs for ADHD, which Olympic gold medal swimmer Michael Phelps was diagnosed with when he was nine, are prescribed to boys more often than girls, but adult women now take the drugs more often than men.

ADHD prescriptions to adult women grew 2.5 times from 2001. However, ADHD prescriptions for children have been declining since 2005.

That reflects a decline in prescriptions for psychiatric and behavioral drugs for children.

Worrying trend: There has been a sharp rise in the the percentage of Americans aged between 20 and 44 taking ADHD medication since 2001Worrying trend: There has been a sharp rise in the the percentage of Americans aged between 20 and 44 taking ADHD medication since 2001

Medco found that prescriptions of those drugs for children have dropped since 2004, when the FDA warned they were linked to suicidal thoughts when used in people under 19.

The company said less than 1per cent of children use antipsychotics drugs, although the figure has doubled since 2001.

In the ‘diabetes belt’ states of Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi and Alabama, about 23per cent of people are on at least one psychiatric or behavioral disorder drug.

Diabetes is particularly widespread in those states and the condition is associated with higher levels of depression and anxiety disorders.

The lowest rate of prescriptions was found in Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Michigan, where less than 15 per cent of people are using those medications.

Read more: http://trade.cc/hyh#ixzz1dzQViKfo

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Today’s Most Active Put/Call Option Trades

 -CALLS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
BAC        11/19/11           6.0000        2357            0.0500      dn 0.0400 
BAC        12/17/11           7.0000        1177            0.1000      dn 0.0200 
FCX        11/19/11          36.0000         966            1.0400      dn 1.3500 
AAPL       11/19/11         385.0000         911            0.6200      dn 2.8300 
BAC        12/17/11           6.0000         678            0.3800      dn 0.0300 
AAPL       11/19/11         390.0000         671            0.2300      dn 1.2200 
MU         11/19/11           6.0000         615            0.4500      dn 0.0200 
INTC       12/17/11          26.0000         493            0.2800      dn 0.1000 
TGT        11/19/11          52.5000         464            0.4500      dn 0.5900 
AAPL       11/19/11         380.0000         454            1.8000      dn 5.4900 

 -PUTS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
LNKD       11/19/11          75.0000         635            1.4000      dn 2.6000 
EMC        12/17/11          22.0000         556            0.5100      up 0.2800 
AAPL       11/19/11         380.0000         502            5.1000      up 3.1300 
AAPL       11/19/11         385.0000         500            8.9000      up 5.5500 
GLD        11/19/11         166.0000         406            0.8000      up 0.6500 
BAC        11/19/11           6.0000         392            0.1700      up 0.0100 
MS         11/19/11          14.0000         365            0.3100      up 0.1100 
GLD        11/19/11         164.0000         271            0.1200      up 0.0300 
FAS1       11/19/11          15.0000         263            3.1000      up 0.5500 
AAPL       11/19/11         365.0000         252            0.4700      up 0.3100 

 -VOLUME- 
 CALLS      PUTS           TOTAL 
102770    135578        238348

-CALLS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
ALL        1/21/12          29.0000       16295            0.2800      dn 0.0300 
ALL        12/17/11          28.0000        7919            0.2200      dn 0.0100 
INTC       1/19/13          30.0000        5030            1.0600      dn 0.0600 
AAPL       11/19/11         390.0000        4908            0.1800      dn 1.1700 
BAC        12/17/11           7.0000        4892            0.1000      dn 0.0200 
AAPL       11/19/11         385.0000        4287            0.5600      dn 2.7900 
ALL        4/21/12          30.0000        3645            0.7200      up 0.0200 
INTC       12/17/11          23.0000        3511            1.8600      dn 0.3500 
BAC        11/19/11           6.0000        3490            0.0500      dn 0.0500 
INTC       2/18/12          23.0000        3485            2.2100      dn 0.4900 

 -PUTS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
BAC        1/21/12          14.0000        4975            8.0700      up 0.1700 
JEF        11/19/11           9.0000        3638            0.2000      up 0.1500 
AAPL       11/19/11         380.0000        3469            5.1000      up 3.1500 
JEF        11/19/11          10.0000        3396            0.5000      up 0.2500 
BAC        11/19/11           6.0000        3284            0.1900      up 0.0200 
AXP        12/17/11          48.0000        2708            2.6900      up 0.7700 
GE         12/17/11          15.0000        2618            0.4200      up 0.1400 
AAPL       11/19/11         375.0000        2606            2.5300      up 1.5600 
PEP        12/17/11          60.0000        2461            0.6900      up 0.2900 
AAPL       11/19/11         370.0000        2142            1.1000      up 0.5200 

 -VOLUME- 
 CALLS      PUTS           TOTAL 
1500822    1686681        3187503

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An Idea or Two

Reading and posting news for iBC has gotten me to read a bit more than i usually would. That is a good thing and I had some ideas I wanted to share with the interwebs.

My first controversial suggestion if to flat out cut all interest on money by 50%. It has been estimated that the cost of everything we buy has about 40% of the total price in interest. 

Usury is a very disgusting concept when you think about money as an instrument of trade. When you trade something for something there is no interest. It is simply an exact exchange. Money should also carry this philosophy as it is an element that we use to trade for something else.

As an example if your neighbor came for a cup of sugar; would you insist on getting a cup of sugar plus say another 1/4 cup for your neighborly generosity ? Granted sugar is not as important as money when considering a time element, but you get the point.

I do not want to kill the banks of their usury ways, but if they are going to use the tax payers money to write down toxic assets and to pay themselves bonuses while main street suffers a fucked up economy; well then they should thank us for saving their skin, not putting them in jail, and make life a bit easier for all the citizens that are essentially helping to save this economy.

This 50% cut in interest would make it easier for existing business to breathe during the economic malaise and allow for new business to start up.

If we could take 20%, half of that 40%, off the top of everything we buy..well then we would all have a bit more money to stimulate the economy. It would result in more consumption.

The second thing I want to suggest is how to fix the housing market. Prices will remain depressed until most of the foreclosure inventory is largely expelled from the market place.

There is much trouble over trying to rewrite existing mortgages that are under water. Since the banks, who have the tax payers money keeping them afloat, do not want to suffer losses on a underwater property; they should devote some of this free money they are getting to bridge the loss gap.

If the banks do not want to do this then uncle Sam should create its own bank to borrow money at 0.25% and perform their own version of QE. They would make the spread off a 30 year bond and like the banks would generate free cash flow.

This free cash flow, which is the taxpayers money to begin with, could be used to to right size all the under water properties and help to speed up the process of helping America to refinance their home. This would freeze or at least dramatically slowdown the foreclosure process and ultimately heal the housing market quicker than what is currently being projected.

The last idea I wanted to share is how to create jobs. First and foremost education is the key to this answer over the long term. Please watch the documentary Waiting for Superman on your NFLX account.

In the short term we should take some of the free cash flow and retool America. Corporations have increased the amount of jobs available, but we have not enough educated and qualified people to fill those jobs.

We have many citizens that have been out of work so long that they are no longer current and are passed over for consideration. Why not help some of these citizens develope new skills, and or provide education so they could  fill those jobs going to H1 Visas.

Sure we won’t fill those jobs right away, but at least we will get more people back into society as a producing citizen. I mean seriously how many citizens can work as a janitor or pizza maker ? There are only so many survival jobs out there. 

Lastly, we must find a way to improve how institutions graduate students.  Without limiting choice and the freedom of choice, we need to steer students towards those degrees that will be readily used in the real world.

My only suggestion to this would be to document the hardships of many lives that could have had better results if the right education was chosen. In a similar way of sending teens to a jail to show them why they do not want to end up there; perhaps we could make students better understand the consequences of their choices.

 

[youtube://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SybgWaQy7_c 450 300] [youtube://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUTXb-ga1fo 450 300] [youtube://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOaXTg3nAuY&feature=related 450 300]

 

 

 

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Allen Stanford Ponzi Victims Looking for Their Pound of Flesh

Victims of Allen Stanford’s alleged $7.2 billion Ponzi scheme may soon have a chance to submit claims, though it remains unclear how much of their losses they might ultimately recover.

Ralph Janvey, the court-appointed receiver for Stanford’s firm, asked a federal judge in Houston for permission to set up a claims process, more than 2-1/2 years after the financier’s arrest, a Wednesday court filing shows.

Approval of the request could pave the way for investors to recover at least some of their losses from Stanford’s alleged fraud, a sum believed to be $2 billion or more.

Stanford, 61, faces 14 criminal charges and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission civil charges over allegations he deceived investors who bought fake certificates of deposit from his Antiguan bank, Stanford International Bank Ltd.

His February 2009 arrest came two months after Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme was uncovered.

Wednesday’s filing is “a major step” toward returning money to victims, Kevin Sadler, a partner at Baker Botts representing Janvey, said in an email.

Though a court-appointed examiner and a committee of Stanford investors expressed disagreements over parts of the process at an Oct. 13 court conference, “the court made clear at the status conference that the process should begin, and the receiver has acted accordingly,” he added.

Peter Morgenstern, a lawyer for the investors’ committee, on Thursday declined immediate comment. John Little, the examiner, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

It is unclear how much money will be distributed, when payouts will begin, and how such amounts will be calculated.

“For investor claimants, the amount of the investor’s net investment in the Ponzi scheme will be one of the most significant factors” in determining payouts, Janvey said.

The $7.2 billion figure reflects CDs on Stanford’s books when the receivership was set up, not actual investor losses.

At the Oct. 13 conference, Sadler said at least $2 billion of investor funds had been lost through a series of backdated fictitious loans. “If one wanted to consider a floor of money that’s gone, that certainly would be a candidate,” he said.

HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS SOUGHT

According to a court filing, Janvey had $80.1 million of unrestricted cash on hand as of Oct. 31, after accounting for professional fees and costs.

The trustee is seeking another $955.3 million in litigation. This includes $610 million from other Stanford investors and vendors, and $335 million in British, Canadian, Swiss and other accounts.

Liquidators in Antigua have sought control of some of these accounts, court papers show.

Stanford recently moved to a Houston federal detention center from the Butner Federal Correctional Complex in North Carolina, where he was treated for an addiction to an anti-anxiety medication.

His criminal trial is expected to begin in January in the federal court in Houston. Stanford is scheduled to be arraigned under his most recent indictment on Nov. 28. That proceeding had been delayed because of his treatment at Butner.

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge David Hittner, who oversees the criminal case, barred Stephen Cochell, a lawyer for Stanford in the SEC case, from meeting his client at the Houston detention center until the criminal case is finished.

The judge said public comments by Cochell about Stanford’s current mental status could impact the criminal trial. Cochell did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Madoff is serving a 150-year prison term at Butner.

The civil case is SEC v. Stanford International Bank Ltd, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas, No. 09-00298. The criminal case is U.S. v. Stanford, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas, No. 09-00342
Read more: http://trade.cc/hwl

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Today’s Money Flows, Heat Map, and A/D Line

Heat map

A/D/ Line

Money Flows

ISSUE GAINERS                 SYMBOL   EXCH   LAST PRICE   MONEY FLOW    RATIO 
                                                          (in millions) 
SPDR S&P 500                   SPY     ARCA      123.31       +46.0       1.14 
Cigna                          CI      NYSE       42.90       +22.8       1.74 
Micron Tech                    MU      NASD        6.60       +16.0       2.10 
ExxonMobil                     XOM     NYSE       78.44       +14.9       1.65 
Bank Of America                BAC     NYSE        5.96       +13.2       1.52 
Intel                          INTC    NASD       24.78       +12.0       1.82 
LinkedIn Cl A                  LNKD    NYSE       75.11       +11.8       1.55 
Pfizer                         PFE     NYSE       19.40       +10.4       2.16 
NetApp                         NTAP    NASD       36.38       +10.0       1.20 
IBM                            IBM     NYSE      187.49        +9.3       1.31 
Qualcomm                       QCOM    NASD       56.76        +8.6       1.60 
Philip Morris Intl             PM      NYSE       72.14        +8.5       1.73 
Boeing                         BA      NYSE       66.94        +7.5       1.66 
SPDR Gold Tr                   GLD     ARCA      169.25        +7.3       1.07 
Green Mountain Coffee          GMCR    NASD       54.58        +6.6       1.11 
Wells Fargo                    WFC     NYSE       24.88        +6.6       1.81 
Salesforcecom                  CRM     NYSE      130.24        +6.5       1.44 
PwrShrs QQQ Tr Series 1        QQQ     NASD       56.73        +5.6       1.18 
McDonald's                     MCD     NYSE       93.09        +5.3       1.57 
Caterpillar                    CAT     NYSE       95.33        +5.3       1.22 

ISSUE DECLINERS               SYMBOL   EXCH   LAST PRICE   MONEY FLOW    RATIO 
                                                          (in millions) 
Goodrich Corp                  GR      NYSE      123.17       -45.0       0.05 
Delphi Automotive              DLPH    NYSE       21.73       -44.2       0.34 
Apple                          AAPL    NASD      383.59       -41.7       0.82 
Google                         GOOG    NASD      609.09       -22.0       0.76 
Microsoft                      MSFT    NASD       25.91       -14.7       0.50 
Semiconductor HOLDRs Tr        SMH     ARCA       31.42       -11.3       0.18 
iShrs MSCI Australia           EWA     ARCA       22.63       -10.9       0.12 
Chevron                        CVX     NYSE      100.50       -10.4       0.67 
CF Ind Hldgs                   CF      NYSE      158.50       -10.3       0.75 
Citigroup                      C       NYSE       26.46       -10.0       0.77 
pricelinecom                   PCLN    NASD      531.45        -7.9       0.80 
Carnival                       CCL     NYSE       31.20        -7.7       0.42 
Johnson & Johnson              JNJ     NYSE       63.73        -7.6       0.50 
Las Vegas Sands                LVS     NYSE       47.31        -7.5       0.70 
Cisco Systems                  CSCO    NASD       18.70        -7.0       0.57 
Procter & Gamble               PG      NYSE       62.97        -6.6       0.48 
Prologis                       PLD     NYSE       27.62        -6.4       0.23 
EMC Corp                       EMC     NYSE       23.54        -6.2       0.62 
PepsiCo                        PEP     NYSE       63.76        -6.0       0.90 
iShrs MSCI Brazil (Free)       EWZ     ARCA       60.68        -6.0       0.60

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Today’s 52 Week highs and Lows

NYSE

New Highs 7 

COMPANY                       SYMBOL      HIGH                VOLUME 
-------                       ------      ----                ------ 
Alliance CA Municipal         AKP         14.06                5,586 
BlkRk MuniYld Inv             MYF         14.46                4,577 
Healthspring                  HS          54.69            3,139,014 
Invesco Qty Inv               IQT         13.50                6,970 
Invesco Van Kampen Mun Tr     VKQ         13.90               32,034 
Kansas City So 4% pfd.        KSUp        26.34                  770 
Nuveen Ins CA                 NXC         13.65                  827 

New Lows 25 

COMPANY                       SYMBOL      LOW                 VOLUME 
-------                       ------      ----                ------ 
Artio Global Invs Inc         ART         6.30                 6,914 
Avon Products                 AVP         17.34              318,224 
Bank Of Ireland               IRE         4.45               191,211 
Camelot Info Sys ADS          CIS         2.14               102,329 
China Mng Yng Wnd Pwr ADS     MY          2.03                38,089 
Daqo New Energy ADS           DQ          2.14                60,093 
DigitalGlobe                  DGI         16.50               19,806 
First BanCorp Rts             FBPr        0.00                12,743 
FITrGSNotes6.75%ClA           TFG         22.67                1,700 
Furniture Brands              FBN         1.06                97,330 
ICICI Bank                    IBN         30.43              368,207 
IFM Investments ADS           CTC         0.39                 4,086 
Imation                       IMN         6.08                22,397 
Invacare Corp                 IVC         20.24                7,780 
Jefferies Grp                 JEF         9.72             2,514,269 
Lloyds Banking Grp            LYG         1.58             1,208,507 
Maidenform Brnds              MFB         17.02              105,072 
Old Republic Intl             ORI         7.86               121,256 
Portugal Telecom              PT          6.55                13,002 
Reddy Ice Holdings            FRZ         0.64                20,710 
Renren A ADS                  RENN        4.31               675,624 
SimcerePharm ADS              SCR         7.23                12,876 
Sun Life Fincl                SLF         19.93              132,296 
Thermo Fisher Sci             TMO         47.38              599,264 
US Airways Grp                LCC         4.44               907,593

NASDAQ

 

New Highs 10 

COMPANY                       SYMBOL      HIGH                VOLUME 
-------                       ------      ----                ------ 
Analysts Intl                 ANLY        5.20                20,110 
Cobra Electronics             COBR        5.33                10,043 
Golar LNG                     GLNG        44.06              249,945 
HealthStream                  HSTM        16.85               40,913 
IntriCon                      IIN         7.01                 2,440 
Lumos Networks                LMOS        17.99                7,569 
MicroNetics                   NOIZ        8.38                 8,290 
Netlist                       NLST        3.75             1,365,935 
SPS Commerce                  SPSC        23.00               18,005 
Trans World Entertainment     TWMC        2.26                 6,661 

New Lows 38 

COMPANY                       SYMBOL      LOW                 VOLUME 
-------                       ------      ----                ------ 
Adept Technology              ADEP        2.39                 3,300 
Ambassadors Grp               EPAX        4.34                 5,960 
ApplEntrgtcs                  AERG        0.09                48,950 
Bon-Ton Stores                BONT        3.07                37,637 
Broadvision Inc               BVSN        7.84                 3,521 
Canadian Solar                CSIQ        2.23               222,472 
China Ceramics Un             CCCLU       2.82                   339 
China Sunergy Co              CSUN        0.88                74,818 
Digital Generation            DGIT        13.32              306,551 
FNB United                    FNBND       12.75                1,009 
FiberTower                    FTWR        0.22               461,810 
Grupo Galicia                 GGAL        7.17                81,838 
Hoku                          HOKU        1.21                 7,160 
Human Genome Sciences         HGSI        8.45               447,654 
Interactive Intelligence      ININ        24.00               19,839 
Kratos Defense & Sec Sols     KTOS        5.31                14,322 
Ku6 Media ADS                 KUTV        1.40                 7,950 
Marchex   (Cl B)              MCHX        5.81                73,609 
Microvision                   MVIS        0.45                60,130 
Myrexis                       MYRX        2.46                15,922 
Orckit Comm                   ORCT        1.00                14,918 
Perry Ellis Intl              PERY        13.82              633,468 
Pinnacle Airlines             PNCL        2.31                 5,055 
Princeton National Bncp       PNBC        1.40                 2,900 
Radisys                       RSYS        4.68                14,592 
SRS Labs                      SRSL        5.59                 3,001 
Silver Standard Resources     SSRI        13.69              646,018 
Torm A/S                      TRMD        0.80                14,000 
Thermogenesis                 KOOL        0.90                 4,694 
TransAct Techs                TACT        6.31                 5,629 
USA Techs wt                  USATW       0.03                10,980 
Utd Security Bancshares       UBFO        2.18                 2,271 
Vertex Pharm                  VRTX        28.78              235,225 
VisionChina Media Inc         VISN        1.28                39,617 
Wayne Savings Bncshrs         WAYN        7.76                   506 
World Heart                   WHRT        0.19                93,600 
Wowjoint Holdings             BWOW        0.61                 3,600 
XenoPort                      XNPT        4.76                 7,251

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Spanish Yields Reverse Course on ECB Buying and Rumors of IMF Deal

Spanish Yields Ease Off Highs On ECB Buying, IMF Talk
Last update: 11/17/2011 10:35:00 AM
LONDON (Dow Jones)–Spanish bond yields eased off euro era highs hit earlier Thursday as the European Central Bank bought the country’s bonds and markets hoped that the ECB could use the International Monetary Fund to lend money to euro-zone governments threatened with insolvency.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Spanish bond was at 6.50% as of 1512 GMT, according to Tradeweb data, having climbed to a euro era high of 6.75% earlier.
Spanish bonds had tanked after yields soared at a sale of 11-year bonds, raising concerns that the country could be shut out of financial markets if borrowing costs continued to rise.
A rise above 6.50% on the 10-year government bond hastened a rise in Italian yields above 7%, a level that in the past toppled Greece, Ireland, and Portugal and forced them into seeking external assistance.
However, Spanish bonds did recover off their worst levels on support from the ECB, which also bought Italian bonds, helping pull the 10-year Italian bond yield below the psychological 7% mark.
Yields on bonds issued by the so-called peripheral euro-zone countries also came off their highs after two sources familiar with the matter said a proposal that would call on the ECB to lend money to the IMF to finance bailouts for countries in need could resurface despite opposition from the ECB and Germany.
The moves in Italy and Spain also aided a recovery in other euro-zone bond markets, notably France, which had earlier seen its borrowing costs relative to Germany hit euro era highs.
At 1512 GMT, the 10-year French bond was yielding 3.60%, off the session high of 3.81%.
The 10-year French/German yield spread was 15 basis points tighter at 174 basis points, having widened to a euro era record above 200 basis points earlier Thursday.
Meanwhile, German bunds pared gains, with the futures contract due in December falling by 61 ticks to 137.54.
-By Neelabh Chaturvedi, Dow Jones Newswires; + 44 (0)207 842 9495, [email protected]

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