Market Week in Review

S&P 500 1,552.50 -1.18%*

Click here for What a Week by TheStreet.com.

Weekly Scoreboard*

Indices
S&P 500 1,534.10 -1.18%
DJIA 13,851.08 -.40%
NASDAQ 2,687.60 -.72%
Russell 2000 836.44 -2.26%
Wilshire 5000 15,459.50 -1.24%
Russell 1000 Growth 614.51 -.60%
Russell 1000 Value 867.45 -1.76%
Morgan Stanley Consumer 730.74 -1.87%
Morgan Stanley Cyclical 1,109.91 -1.34%
Morgan Stanley Technology 653.23 +.58%
Transports 5,359.82 -.18%
Utilities 511.85 -.71%
MSCI Emerging Markets 141.34 -.63%

Sentiment/Internals
NYSE Cumulative A/D Line 76,081 -2.1%
Bloomberg New Highs-Lows Index +440 -37.0%
Bloomberg Crude Oil % Bulls 36.0 -19.0%
CFTC Oil Large Speculative Longs 246,844 -.88%
Total Put/Call 1.23 +32.26%
NYSE Arms 2.14 +201.41%
Volatility(VIX) 16.95 +11.88%
ISE Sentiment 132.0 -27.1%
AAII % Bulls 41.77 -4.3%
AAII % Bears 36.71 +22.4%

Futures Spot Prices
Crude Oil 75.82 +2.36%
Reformulated Gasoline 216.58 -2.67%
Natural Gas 6.39 -4.11%
Heating Oil 209.22 -.73%
Gold 683.50 +2.59%
Base Metals 267.19 +4.1%
Copper 369.50 +2.86%

Economy
10-year US Treasury Yield 4.95% -15 basis points
4-Wk MA of Jobless Claims 312,000 -2.0%
Average 30-year Mortgage Rate 6.73% unch.
Weekly Mortgage Applications 631.60 +.86%
Weekly Retail Sales +2.70%
Nationwide Gas $3.00/gallon -.05/gallon
US Cooling Demand Next 7 Days 6.0% below normal
ECRI Weekly Leading Economic Index 143.90 unch.
US Dollar Index 80.28 -.36%
CRB Index 324.44 -.20%

Best Performing Style
Large-Cap Growth -.59%

Worst Performing Style
Small-Cap Value -2.71%

Leading Sectors
Disk Drives +4.05%
Computer Services +3.6%
Computer Hardware +2.76%
Oil Service +2.39%
Semis +2.22%

Lagging Sectors
Banks -3.11%
Oil Tankers -3.44%
Homebuilders -4.86%
I-Banks -4.99%
Coal -7.67%

One-Week High-Volume Gainers
One-Week High-Volume Losers

*5-Day Change

Stocks Lower into Final Hour on Profit-taking, Earnings Jitters, Lingering Subprime Concerns

BOTTOM LINE: The Portfolio is slightly higher into the final hour on gains in my Semi longs, Computer longs, Medical longs and Commodity shorts. I have not traded today, thus leaving the Portfolio 100% net long. The tone of the market is negative today as the advance/decline line is substantially lower, most sectors are declining and volume is heavy. My intraday gauge of investor angst is elevated, which is a positive. Cyclicals and small-caps are especially weak today. However, several sectors are hanging tough, including computer hardware, disk drives, oil service, defense and medical stocks. As well, an unusual number of stocks on my monitor pages are higher given headline losses. The 10-year yield is plunging another 6 basis points to, 4.95%. As I said when the 10-year yield was soaring in June, I still think the yield will fall to at least 4.75% later this quarter as inflation expectations diminish further. This will eventually be perceived as a large positive, especially for growth stocks. Google (GOOG) reported a slight disappointment after the close yesterday. I still think that the company is doing all the right things to become a monopoly in its fast-growing market and laying the groundwork to dominate many other Internet markets. I added a bit to my long yesterday in after-hours at around $511 and still expect it to easily surpass $600 before year-end. Intuitive Surgical (ISRG), on the other hand, is soaring 32% on a stellar report. I also think this is another example of a short squeeze. Short interest in the shares and the put/call open interest ratio are near records. As I said when ISRG was correcting last year down around $90, I still think the company has the potential to be one of the best growth stocks over the next decade. I remain long the shares. The NYSE reported yesterday after the close that short interest on the exchange surged another 3.9%, building on its recent parabolic rise and making another record high. I continue to believe this is unsustainable, and I will post more details on it next week. I expect US stocks to trade modestly higher into the close from current levels on short-covering, lower long-term rates, falling energy prices and bargain-hunting.

Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:
- The Fed’s Poole said that the sub-prime mortgage problem should remain isolated and that inflation expectations seem well contained.
- Corn futures in Chicago headed for the biggest weekly drop in 10 years and soybeans fell on speculation rains and cooler weather will promote development of the two biggest US crops.
- Sugar is falling in NY on speculation that India, the second-largest producer, may offer to sell unrefined supplies of the sweetener, adding to a global surplus.
- Natural gas futures in NY fell again, dropping 4%, on signs that US supplies are poised to break record levels this year.

Wall Street Journal:
- T.Boone Pickens, chairman of Dallas-based BP Capital LLC, wants to set up retail natural-gas transportation fueling stations in China to help cut pollution.
- Google Inc.(GOOG) started offering Internet tools, including free online advertisements, to politicians as a way to help them get elected.
- John Edwards, the third-ranking Democratic candidate for president, continues to hold sway over much of the party’s debate on Iraq, health care and other issues.
- The SEC may amend the rule which allows fund companies to charge marketing fees, known as 12b-1 fees, citing SEC Chairman Christopher Cox.

NY Times:
- US congressional Democrats are delaying an overhaul of the country’s voting system after receiving pressure from state and local officials and advocates for the disabled.

USA Today:
- US cities need to spend $1.6 trillion during the next five years to replace or rebuild aging roads, water systems, dams and airport runways, citing an engineering trade group.

AP:
- A plan to commemorate the sixth anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks in a small park is opposed by victims’ families. In a letter this week, family groups called the Trade Center “sacred ground” and questioned whether the crowds of mourners would be accommodated at Zuccotti Park, southeast of the site and about three-quarters of an acre in size.
- A military device found on a NJ women’s lawn today was inoperable and didn’t pose a hazard, citing police.
- Major General Richard Lynch, commander of US forces south of Baghdad, said it will take until late this year to defeat militants and until next summer to secure gains made by US soldiers. Reversing the US troop buildup in Iraq would risk giving up the progress American soldiers have made, he said. Yesterday, Lieutenant General Ray Odierno, the day-to-day commander of US forces in Iraq, said that al-Qaeda been placed on the defensive by a monthlong US offensive.

Economic Releases

- None of note

Links of Interest

Market Snapshot Commentary
Market Performance Summary
Style Performance
Sector Performance
WSJ Data Center
Top 20 Biz Stories
IBD Breaking News
Movers & Shakers
Upgrades/Downgrades
In Play
NYSE Unusual Volume
NASDAQ Unusual Volume
Hot Spots
Option Dragon
NASDAQ 100 Heatmap
DJIA Quick Charts
Chart Toppers
Intraday Chart/Quote
Dow Jones Hedge Fund Indexes