Stocks Higher into Final Hour on Central Bank Hopes, Short-Covering, Homebuilding/Tech Sector Strength

Today's Market Take:

Broad Market Tone:

• Advance/Decline Line: Substantially Higher
  

• Sector Performance: Almost Every Sector Rising
  

• Volume: Below Average

• Market Leading Stocks: Outperforming

Equity Investor Angst:

• VIX 13.54 -5.91%

• ISE Sentiment Index 100.0 +11.1%

• Total Put/Call .89 -12.75%

• NYSE Arms .97 +12.84%

Credit Investor Angst:

• North American Investment Grade CDS Index 80.76 -1.57%

• European Financial Sector CDS Index 157.40 -5.86%

• Western Europe Sovereign Debt CDS Index 97.67 -2.02%

• Emerging Market CDS Index 233.58 -1.32%

• 2-Year Swap Spread 13.5 unch.

• TED Spread 23.0 unch.

• 3-Month EUR/USD Cross-Currency Basis Swap -17.75 -.5 bp

Economic Gauges:

• 3-Month T-Bill Yield .05% unch.

• Yield Curve 147.0 unch.

• China Import Iron Ore Spot $136.40/Metric Tonne-1.16%

• Citi US Economic Surprise Index -4.90 +.1 point

• 10-Year TIPS Spread 2.37 +2 basis points

Overseas Futures:

• Nikkei Futures: Indicating +281 open in Japan

• DAX Futures: Indicating +20 open in Germany

Portfolio: 

• Higher: On gains in my retail, biotech, medical and tech sector longs

• Disclosed Trades: Covered some of my (IWM)/(QQQ) hedges, then added them back

• Market Exposure: 50% Net Long