-CALLS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
BAC        4/21/12          10.0000        1131            0.5900      up 0.1700 
AAPL       5/19/12         660.0000         354           15.7100      up 1.9100 
BAC        4/21/12          11.0000         298            0.2200      up 0.0800 
GE         4/21/12          21.0000         242            0.1900      dn 0.0200 
FCX        3/23/12          40.0000         228            0.4800      up 0.2500 
GE         4/21/12          20.0000         224            0.6100      dn 0.0100 
GM         6/16/12          26.0000         200            1.4300      dn 0.0500 
RIMM       4/21/12          15.0000         179            1.2700      up 0.1100 
AAPL       5/19/12         610.0000         177           31.4700      up 3.5700 
BAC        4/21/12           9.0000         165            1.2200      up 0.2300 

 -PUTS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
BAC        4/21/12           9.0000         251            0.1900      dn 0.0400 
BAC        4/21/12          10.0000         166            0.5800      dn 0.0600 
MRK        10/20/12         35.0000         102            1.3200      dn 0.0700 
MMR        4/21/12          10.0000          99            0.5000      up 0.0000 
X          3/23/12          30.0000          94            0.4500      dn 0.4300 
YHOO       3/23/12          15.0000          87            0.1700      up 0.0300 
BAC        4/21/12          12.0000          87            2.0200      dn 0.2600 
STX        6/16/12          23.0000          71            0.9700      up 0.0200 
FXE        4/21/12         131.0000          70            1.5200      dn 0.1800 
GNW        6/16/12           7.0000          66            0.2500      up 0.0000 

 -VOLUME- 
 CALLS      PUTS           TOTAL 
16232    13198        29430

 -CALLS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
BAC        4/21/12          10.0000        9052            0.6000      up 0.1900 
BAC        5/19/12          10.0000        7978            0.7200      up 0.1500 
BAC        3/23/12          10.0000        7761            0.2900      up 0.1300 
BAC        11/17/12         12.0000        7138            0.6300      up 0.1400 
BAC        3/23/12          11.0000        4981            0.0700      up 0.0300 
BAC        12/22/12         10.0000        4448            1.4300      up 0.1800 
BAC        4/21/12          11.0000        3798            0.2300      up 0.0800 
AAPL       3/23/12         600.0000        3348            9.0300      up 0.9300 
BAC        1/19/13          10.0000        2720            1.5300      up 0.2000 
MOS        4/21/12          62.5000        2625            0.6000      up 0.1400 

 -PUTS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
BAC        12/22/12          8.0000        4175            0.6000      dn 0.0400 
BAC        4/21/12          12.0000        4096            2.0600      dn 0.2200 
BKS        4/21/12          12.0000        3900            0.2500      dn 0.0500 
TLT        4/21/12         110.0000        2000            1.6700      dn 0.0100 
TLT        4/21/12         105.0000        2000            0.3900      dn 0.0300 
HD         4/21/12          47.0000        1972            0.4100      up 0.0100 
BAC        1/19/13          10.0000        1762            1.4900      dn 0.0600 
TBT        3/23/12          21.0000        1666            0.3500      dn 0.0800 
BAC        1/19/13           7.5000        1465            0.5500      dn 0.0300 
BAC        3/23/12           9.0000        1328            0.0400      dn 0.0200 

 -VOLUME- 
 CALLS      PUTS           TOTAL 
421456    234536        655992

Why build when foreclosures are going to pile up ?

Source

Aveo Pharmaceuticals Inc. (AVEO) : The maker of an experimental medicine for kidney cancer delayed its annual report filing and said it is evaluating its allocation agreement with Astellas Pharma Inc. (4503 JT).

BATS Global Markets Inc. (BATS): The company may be attractive as the third-biggest U.S. stock exchange operator prepares to sell 6.3 million shares to the public on March 22, Barron’s reported, without citing anyone.

Domino’s Pizza Inc. (DPZ) : The pizza-delivery chain completed its recapitalization and declared a special dividend of $3 a share.

LSB Industries Inc. (LXU) : The maker of chemical and climate-control products said its Pryor, Oklahoma, facility was shut down for unplanned maintenance because of excess heat. Operating income will be reduced by about $4 million.

Novartis AG (NOVN) : The Swiss drugmaker may rise if it improves earnings with a new pipeline of products and provides healthy dividend payments, Barron’s reported.

Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM) : The chipmaker is poised to rise 30 percent or more during the next year as its thousands of patents give it an advantage in mobile-market expansion, Barron’s reported.

Tenet Healthcare Corp. (THC) : The hospital owner may stall until management proves it’s capable of turning around business without being acquired, Barron’s reported in its “The Trader” column.

Total SA (FP) : The American depositary receipts of France’s biggest energy company may rise to the mid-$60s within a year if the oil producer boosts output, Barron’s reported.

YPF SA (YPFD) : The Argentine oil producer may be a risky investment as the government mulls control of the company, Barron’s reported in its “The Trader” column.

Gapping up

ABVT +16.9%, DPZ +5.9%, UNH +3.1%, ADGF +7.3% , AAPL +2.8%, UPS +2%, CRESY +9.6%,  DWRE +7%, DPZ +5.7% , BRCM +1.2%, DSCO +1.8% ,

STLD +2%, E +0.8%, PCX +0.3%

Gapping down

MHS -3.4% , ESRX -1.9%, S -4.8%, LXU -3.1%, DNKN -2.2%, DB -1.9%, CLNE -1.4%, WPCS -9.8% , PURE -8.6%, PBY -0.6%,

IRE -3.4%, CS -1.6%, BCS -1.5%, IBN -1.5%, DB -1.1%, ING -1%,  FRO -5%, CHMT -4.5% , ACI -2.8%, EBAY -2.2%,  AIXG-2.5%,

In Play

On the Wires 

Asia

Europe

Futures

Currencies

Commodities

LIBOR, EURIBOR, 10 year yields for Italy, Spain, France, and Germany

Bespoke has the breakdown of best starts to the year.

The downsizing of the banks 

Today’s Industry Highlights via Yahoo Finance

ISSUE GAINERS                 SYMBOL   EXCH   LAST PRICE   MONEY FLOW    RATIO
                                                          (in millions)
ExxonMobil                     XOM     NYSE       86.29      +555.4      34.55
IBM                            IBM     NYSE      206.92      +507.4      18.54
Chevron                        CVX     NYSE      110.53      +346.5      15.90
Oracle                         ORCL    NASD       29.97      +318.3      40.71
Johnson & Johnson              JNJ     NYSE       65.16      +269.3      36.87
Cisco Systems                  CSCO    NASD       20.04      +265.8      22.71
JPMorgan Chase                 JPM     NYSE       44.45      +254.6       8.11
Coca-Cola                      KO      NYSE       69.88      +253.2      32.94
AT&T                           T       NYSE       31.55      +248.7      37.62
Pfizer                         PFE     NYSE       22.07      +222.8      25.20
Caterpillar                    CAT     NYSE      113.73      +220.4      17.29
United Technologies            UTX     NYSE       86.01      +189.9      27.45
Bank Of America                BAC     NYSE        9.38      +187.2       2.49
3M                             MMM     NYSE       89.68      +177.2      29.13
Berkshire Hathaway B           BRK/B   NYSE       81.19      +176.3      19.35
Merck                          MRK     NYSE       38.22      +169.2      48.75
Citigroup                      C       NYSE       36.41      +158.9       4.74
Boeing                         BA      NYSE       75.32      +150.0      27.21
American Express               AXP     NYSE       57.09      +136.5      21.33
Home Depot                     HD      NYSE       49.00      +135.6      19.81 

ISSUE DECLINERS               SYMBOL   EXCH   LAST PRICE   MONEY FLOW    RATIO
                                                          (in millions)
Apple                          AAPL    NASD      581.31     -1393.4       0.39
Microsoft                      MSFT    NASD       32.84      -635.8       0.03
Google                         GOOG    NASD      622.08      -388.4       0.13
Intel                          INTC    NASD       27.91      -351.5       0.04
Qualcomm                       QCOM    NASD       65.34      -258.2       0.04
McDonald's                     MCD     NYSE       97.73      -234.5       0.04
Wal-Mart Stores                WMT     NYSE       61.18      -185.2       0.03
Amazoncom                      AMZN    NASD      183.19      -183.9       0.10
Philip Morris Intl             PM      NYSE       85.62      -182.1       0.02
Comcast                        CMCSA   NASD       29.65      -167.3       0.02
Verizon Communications         VZ      NYSE       39.36      -163.6       0.04
Schlumberger                   SLB     NYSE       75.69      -135.4       0.13
Amgen                          AMGN    NASD       68.42      -131.7       0.02
ConocoPhillips                 COP     NYSE       76.88      -127.3       0.06
Kraft Foods                    KFT     NYSE       38.16      -123.5       0.03
Abbott Labs                    ABT     NYSE       59.44      -118.4       0.06
iBoxx InvesTp Inv Grde Bd      LQD     ARCA      114.15      -109.4       0.06
Costco Wholesale               COST    NASD       90.94       -94.9       0.04
United Parcel Service B        UPS     NYSE       78.80       -93.6       0.03
Starbucks                      SBUX    NASD       53.15       -93.1       0.06

3 D heat map 

S&P A/D Line 

NASDAQ A/D Line 

NYSE

New Highs 90 

COMPANY                       SYMBOL      HIGH                VOLUME 
-------                       ------      ----                ------ 
Abbott Labs                   ABT         59.56            2,800,615 
Accenture PLC A               ACN         63.98            1,061,691 
Advance Auto Parts            AAP         89.50              126,809 
Airgas Inc                    ARG         85.22              121,531 
Allergan                      AGN         94.45              560,099 
Alliance Data Sys             ADS         126.56             106,998 
Allison Transmission          ALSN        24.09              354,139 
American Express              AXP         57.32            3,056,037 
Anheuser Busch                BUD         72.31              349,335 
Atlas Energy                  ATLS        30.26              444,256 
Atlas Resource Ptrs           ARP         28.45              157,998 
BB&T Corp                     BBT         31.40            1,421,129 
Ball Corp                     BLL         41.10              331,057 
BorgWarner                    BWA         87.45              208,670 
Cabelas                       CAB         38.42              217,730 
Calpine                       CPN         17.25              225,541 
Cantel Med                    CMN         23.70               35,983 
Chipotle Mexican Grill        CMG         409.77              85,606 
Cummins                       CMI         129.00             645,069 
Douglas Emmett                DEI         22.42               74,395 
Dycom Indus                   DY          23.79               68,864 
EPAM Systems                  EPAM        17.26               80,703 
Eaton Vance BuyWrite Opp      ETV         13.31               80,577 
F M C Corp                    FMC         100.86             137,315 
Fair Isaac                    FICO        43.25               91,418 
GP Strategies                 GPX         16.83               31,781 
Gallagher                     AJG         36.33              184,731 
WR Grace                      GRA         58.49               31,701 
Gruma ADS                     GMK         10.40                6,032 
Hels Advantage Inco Fd        HAV         8.99                 3,560 
Helios Multi-Sec Inco Fd      HMH         6.12                 3,254 
DR Horton                     DHI         16.45            1,407,701 
Hubbell B                     HUB/B       79.50               77,315 
IBM                           IBM         207.37           2,984,933 
InvenSense                    INVN        21.72              550,926 
Kansas City Southern          KSU         74.98              279,992 
Kennametal                    KMT         47.82              108,529 
Kilroy Realty                 KRC         45.74              130,174 
La-Z-Boy                      LZB         15.23              123,390 
6.125% CorTS Am Gen Cap A     XFP         21.50                7,062 
Lennar Corp A                 LEN         27.07              623,198 
Limited Brands                LTD         47.80              559,286 
MaquarieInfrastr              MIC         32.45               34,949 
Macy's Inc                    M           39.96              792,777 
Manning & Napier              MN          14.63               20,652 
MarriottVacations             VAC         27.75               34,049 
Marsh & McLennan              MMC         33.40              978,290 
McKesson Corp                 MCK         88.02              409,932 
Moody's Corp                  MCO         42.31              373,821 
Nike Inc                      NKE         111.78             925,249 
Nordstrom Inc                 JWN         55.36              311,456 
PVH Corp.                     PVH         90.64              255,965 
Philip Morris Intl            PM          86.12            2,338,819 
Pier 1 Imports                PIR         18.15              200,292 
Prestige Brands Hldgs         PBH         17.55              143,957 
Primerica                     PRI         25.87               60,921 
Progressive Corp              PGR         23.00            1,019,717 
Prosperity Bancshares         PB          46.95              120,912 
Protective Life               PL          29.91              163,846 
PulteGroup                    PHM         9.69             1,114,057 
Rackspce Host                 RAX         57.22              320,223 
Raymond James Notes 2042      RJD         25.64               18,397 
Rentech Nitrogen Ptrs LP.     RNF         26.68               80,378 
Roadrunner Trans Sys          RRTS        18.59               29,193 
Roper Indus                   ROP         99.79              221,374 
SAP AG                        SAP         71.89              260,541 
STRNS May Dpt Strs            DKQ         25.35                8,600 
Sherwin-Williams              SHW         108.24             214,526 
Simon Property Group          SPG         142.12             448,157 
SpectraEnergy                 SE          32.25              907,589 
Stanley Black & Decker        SWK         81.90              315,136 
SYNNEX                        SNX         42.66               41,690 
Target Corp                   TGT         58.95            1,183,451 
Taubman Ctrs                  TCO         72.18               90,946 
Teradata Cp                   TDC         68.93              377,066 
Thai Fund Inc                 TTF         15.33               12,606 
Toll Brothers                 TOL         25.00              509,502 
Torchmark                     TMK         51.00              226,443 
Total Sys Svcs                TSS         22.83              257,453 
Towers Watson                 TW          68.18               77,432 
Toyota Motor                  TM          85.85               87,696 
Tyco Intl                     TYC         53.73              688,036 
U.S. Silica Holdings          SLCA        20.23              105,441 
United Parcel Service B       UPS         79.13            1,412,648 
US Bancorp                    USB         31.89            4,185,560 
Valmont Indus                 VMI         117.44              37,350 
Wabtec                        WAB         77.97              157,948 
Wells Fargo                   WFC         34.13           10,527,492 
Western Alliance Bancorp      WAL         9.20               115,007 
Xylem Inc.                    XYL         28.87              270,683 

New Lows 6 

COMPANY                       SYMBOL      LOW                 VOLUME 
-------                       ------      ----                ------ 
Alexandria RE Eqs Pfd E       AREpE       24.64               17,897 
BlackRock Utility & Infr      BUI         18.60               25,281 
Harmony Gold Mining           HMY         10.99              319,117 
Regency Ctrs Pfd              REGpF       24.88                4,607 
Standard Register             SR          1.32                22,747 
Transalta Corp                TAC         19.32                9,350

NASDAQ

New Highs 74 

COMPANY                       SYMBOL      HIGH                VOLUME 
-------                       ------      ----                ------ 
ASML Hldg NV                  ASML        48.23               86,349 
Acadia Healthcare             ACHC        16.50                6,590 
Allot Comm                    ALLT        21.25               55,814 
Ameris Bancorp                ABCB        12.81               50,279 
Anika Therapeutics            ANIK        12.65               30,532 
BE Aerospace                  BEAV        48.09              155,976 
Banner                        BANR        22.84               55,345 
Bed Bath & Beyond             BBBY        66.30              834,789 
Brightcove                    BCOV        20.65               54,715 
Builders FirstSource          BLDR        3.97               116,255 
Cadence Design Systems        CDNS        12.44              542,026 
Cerner                        CERN        78.14              512,898 
Chart Industries              GTLS        74.40               93,025 
Cintas                        CTAS        40.29              230,703 
Cirrus Logic                  CRUS        24.72              246,029 
Credit Acceptance             CACC        100.95              12,202 
Diamond Hill Fincl Trends     DHFT        10.84                3,437 
Dynavax Techs                 DVAX        4.58             1,116,859 
East West Bancorp             EWBC        24.39              230,079 
Exar                          EXAR        7.73                59,453 
EZchip                        EZCH        43.45               24,814 
First Tr ISE Cloud Comp       SKYY        20.99                6,625 
First Tr NASDAQ 100Tch Sc     QTEC        28.51                2,270 
Fresh Market                  TFM         49.25               48,232 
Halozyme Therapeutics         HALO        12.29              217,665 
Henry Schein                  HSIC        76.47              240,672 
IRIS Intl                     IRIS        12.20               31,048 
InfoSpace                     INSP        13.79              141,287 
Intel                         INTC        27.96           16,854,882 
Intl Bancshares               IBOC        20.70              138,335 
Interval Leisure Gp           IILG        16.99               72,688 
J Alexanders                  JAX         9.00                22,100 
Jive Software                 JIVE        25.79               35,432 
Liberty Interactive A         LINTA       19.43              907,982 
lululemon athletica           LULU        74.50              308,309 
M/A-COM Tech Solutions        MTSI        21.96               79,062 
Microsoft                     MSFT        32.95           26,300,424 
Middleby                      MIDD        103.75              35,285 
NASDAQ Prem Inc & Growth      QQQX        15.50               20,839 
Orexigen Therapeutics         OREX        4.78               285,582 
Pacific Mercantile Bncp       PMBC        4.74                 4,200 
Pacific Premier Bancorp       PPBI        8.35                   749 
PacWest Bancorp               PACW        24.79               60,830 
Patrick Industries            PATK        9.68                24,784 
Pinnacle Fincl Partners       PNFP        18.10               55,043 
pricelinecom                  PCLN        662.25             211,105 
Renewable Energy Group        REGI        10.65               46,321 
Ruths Hsptlty Gr              RUTH        7.12                68,197 
S&W Seed Co                   SANW        6.21                 2,500 
SBA Comm                      SBAC        50.44              165,909 
SI Fincl Group                SIFI        11.00                1,750 
SS&C Techs Hldgs              SSNC        22.34              100,109 
Salix Pharmaceuticals         SLXP        52.39              162,815 
Signature Bank                SBNY        64.62              125,956 
Snyders-Lance                 LNCE        24.44               76,530 
Southern Comm Cap Tr II       SCMFO       7.70                 8,759 
Spectranetics                 SPNC        9.60                79,639 
Starbucks                     SBUX        53.37            2,271,896 
Susquehanna Bancshares        SUSQ        10.01              601,832 
Synopsys                      SNPS        30.88              208,349 
TPC Group                     TPCG        46.59               35,872 
Telular                       WRLS        9.05                11,996 
Top Image Sys                 TISA        4.40                84,347 
TriCo Bancshares              TCBK        17.02               28,284 
Trimble Navigation            TRMB        54.75              199,450 
UMB Fincl                     UMBF        46.00               55,704 
Utd Bankshares                UBSI        30.75               89,769 
Unvl Busnss Pymnt Sol Acq     UBPSU       9.44                 1,675 
Vanguard Russell 1000         VONE        64.51                  100 
Vanguard Russ 1000 Growth     VONG        67.55                  784 
WPP Group PLC (ADS)           WPPGY       67.00               12,211 
West Coast Bncrp (Oregon)     WCBO        19.18               85,758 
Westport Innovations          WPRT        48.20              480,064 
Whole Foods Market            WFM         86.35              538,510 

New Lows 8 

COMPANY                       SYMBOL      LOW                 VOLUME 
-------                       ------      ----                ------ 
Anthera Pharmaceuticals       ANTH        2.95               158,332 
Deer Consumr Prdcts           DEER        3.25                88,710 
GenMark Diagnostics           GNMK        3.63                11,687 
MDC Partners  (Cl A)          MDCA        11.85               72,846 
Mission NewEnergy             MNEL        0.66                38,246 
Nanophase Techs               NANX        0.34                26,310 
Primo Water                   PRMW        2.26               820,034 
ProShs UlShrt Nsdq Biot       BIS         23.70                3,300

-CALLS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
BAC        5/19/12          12.0000        1162            0.0800      up 0.0300 
KO         3/17/12          70.0000         622            0.1400      dn 0.2300 
BAC        4/21/12          10.0000         524            0.2300      up 0.0400 
BAC        3/17/12           9.0000         425            0.3700      up 0.1400 
AAPL       3/17/12         590.0000         398            0.9400      dn 2.2600 
AAPL       3/17/12         585.0000         263            1.9500      dn 3.5500 
RF         8/18/12           7.0000         212            0.5000      up 0.0700 
BAC        4/21/12           9.0000         211            0.6800      up 0.1000 
TLT        5/19/12         115.0000         200            1.0200      dn 2.1800 
QCOM       4/21/12          65.0000         192            2.0200      up 0.0500 

 -PUTS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
TBT        4/21/12          20.0000         300            0.3200      dn 0.0800 
GLD        3/17/12         159.0000         281            0.0800      dn 0.1000 
GLD        3/17/12         160.0000         231            0.2100      dn 0.1100 
AAPL       3/17/12         575.0000         220            1.3900      dn 0.0600 
AAPL       3/17/12         580.0000         207            3.1000      up 0.4000 
DIA        4/21/12         130.0000         200            1.2400      dn 0.1600 
AAPL       3/17/12         570.0000         188            0.7000      up 0.0100 
GLD        3/23/12         159.0000         131            0.9300      up 0.0200 
GLD        3/23/12         158.0000         130            0.6600      dn 0.3000 
ANR        3/17/12          19.0000         106            1.8500      dn 0.5100 

 -VOLUME- 
 CALLS    PUTS        TOTAL 
23034    13927        36961

-CALLS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
BBY        4/21/12          27.0000        8597            0.4900      up 0.0700 
BAC        4/21/12           9.0000        7330            0.6700      up 0.0900 
ABT        4/21/12          60.0000        6899            0.6600      up 0.1800 
BAC        3/23/12          10.0000        6178            0.0600      up 0.0200 
BAC        4/21/12          10.0000        4842            0.2400      up 0.0500 
BAC        3/17/12           9.0000        4780            0.3500      up 0.1000 
AAPL       3/17/12         580.0000        3415            4.2700      dn 3.9300 
AAPL       3/17/12         590.0000        3304            0.9300      dn 2.1700 
BAC        1/19/13          10.0000        3133            1.1300      up 0.0900 
AAPL       3/17/12         585.0000        2996            1.9200      dn 3.3400 

 -PUTS- 
OPTION    EXP.DATE       STRIKE PRC.     VOLUME        LAST S/PRC.    NET CHANGE 
BAC        3/23/12           9.0000        3354            0.0800      dn 0.0400 
AAPL       3/17/12         575.0000        2710            1.3500      dn 0.1100 
AAPL       3/17/12         580.0000        2291            2.9900      up 0.3900 
AAPL       3/17/12         570.0000        2097            0.6000      dn 0.0100 
BAC        4/21/12           9.0000        1520            0.3000      dn 0.0600 
MO         4/21/12          31.0000        1480            1.0900      dn 0.0100 
JPM        3/23/12          44.0000        1426            0.5600      up 0.0700 
AAPL       3/17/12         585.0000        1195            5.9000      up 1.2500 
C          4/21/12          34.0000        1014            0.6700      dn 0.0300 
C          3/17/12          36.0000         965            0.0700      dn 0.1100 

 -VOLUME- 
 CALLS     PUTS          TOTAL 
486295    271980        758275

Source

“Rail traffic data remained mixed this week with the AAR reporting another decline in carloads and an increase in intermodal traffic.  Intermodal was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis, but the 10 week moving average continued to slip at 2.5%.  The year to date data for carloads is actually DOWN 1.4% this year.  AARhas the details:

“The Association of American Railroads (AAR) today reported mixed weekly rail traffic for the week ending March 10, 2012, with U.S. railroads originating 278,728 carloads, down 4.8 percent compared with the same week last year. Intermodal volume for the week totaled 226,039 trailers and containers, up 4.2 percent compared with the same week last year.

Eleven of the 20 carload commodity groups posted increases compared with the same week in 2011, with petroleum products, up 39.9 percent; motor vehicles and equipment, up 14.8 percent, and metallic ores, up 11.5 percent. The groups showing a significant decrease in weekly traffic included coal, down 13.1 percent, and coke, down 10.3 percent.

Weekly carload volume on Eastern railroads was down 3.8 percent compared with the same week last year. In the West, weekly carload volume was down 5.4 percent compared with the same week in 2011.

For the first ten weeks of 2012, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 2,834,520 carloads, down 1.4 percent from last year, and 2,226,134 trailers and containers, up 2.3 percent from last year.”

“

Dive into the froth….

Source

U.S. industrial production was unchanged in February as a sharp drop in mining output offset a third straight monthly gain in factory production, the Federal Reserve said on Friday.

CNBC.com

Manufacturing output overall climbed 0.3 percent despite a decline in auto production after a January spike. Automakers have been trying to meet demand that had been pent up by a lack of popular models after natural disasters in Japan early last year disrupted supply chains.

The sharp drop in mining output partly reflected a drop off in natural gas extraction. An unusually warm winter has cut into natural gas demand and pushed prices sharply lower.

Capacity utilization, a measure of how close to full-out factories and mines are running, edged down to 78.7 percent, 1.2 percentage points above its year-ago level but 1.6 percentage points below its long-run average.

Gapping up 

COGO +61.9%, PWRD +27.6%, FRO +2.8%, BTU +2.2%,  COMV +10.4%, DOLE +2.3%, CS +1.8%, RF +1.8%, LYG +1.3%, BAC +1.3%, HBC +1.1%,

ING +1.1%, FRO +5.2%, DRYS +3.8%, NAT +2.3%, EXM +1.5%, CYTX +13.1%,  THLD +10%,  JVA +5.3% ,  EBAY +2.1%, NOV +1% , RBS +4.5%,

SHPGY +1.7%,  AAPL +0.6% ,

Gapping down

DSCO -10%, PRMW -9.6%, OGXI -8.8%, QTWW -7%, AIXG -4.4%, TICC -4.1%, SCLN -3.5%, CIM -1.3%, PKT -1.3%, IMOS -8.8%, ATPG -7.3%,

GLD -1%, EGO -0.9%, IAG -0.9%, SLV -0.5%, MT -0.5%,  CCO -31.2%, TICC -4.8%, AXAS -1.7%,  BWLD -1.3%

In Play 

On the Wires 

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LIBOR, EURIBOR, 10 year yields for Italy, Spain, France, and Germany