Citi to file bankrupcy? Saturday 5:35

From Bloomberg CIT Hires Bankruptcy Specialist Skadden as Bond Access Wanes By Pierre Paulden and Caroline Salas July 11 (Bloomberg) -- CIT Group Inc., the century-old lender to 950,000 businesses that has been unable to persuade the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to guarantee its debt sales, hired bankruptcy specialist Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP as an adviser amid a plunge in its stock and bonds. The FDIC is concerned that standing behind CIT debt would put taxpayer money at risk because the company’s credit quality is worsening, said people familiar with the regulator’s thinking who declined to be identified because the talks are private. The FDIC has backed $274 billion in bond sales under its Temporary Liquidity Guarantee Program since Nov. 25. “Skadden is one of the principal law firms representing CIT,” Curt Ritter, a spokesman for New York-based CIT, said in an e-mail. “They represent the firm on a wide variety of corporate matters. CIT will not comment on any specific aspect of their engagement.” The Wall Street Journal, citing people it didn’t identify, said the hiring comes as CIT prepares for a possible bankruptcy filing. New York-based Skadden is known for its work in mergers and acquisitions and bankruptcies. The firm represented BHP Biliton Ltd., the world’s largest mining company, in its $150 billion proposed acquisition of Rio Tinto, and advised Circuit City Stores Inc. in its bankruptcy. Raising Capital The federal agency, run by Chairman Sheila Bair, is in discussions with CIT about how the lender can strengthen its financial position to get approval, including raising capital, said one of the people. CIT’s measures to improve its credit quality, such as by transferring assets to its bank, have been insufficient, the person said. CIT’s $500 million of floating-rate notes due in November 2010 fell 3.5 cents on the dollar yesterday to 70 cents, according to Trace, the bond-price reporting system of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. Credit-default swaps on CIT rose 2.5 percentage points to 37 percent upfront, and earlier reached 38 percent, according to broker Phoenix Partners Group. That’s in addition to 5 percent a year, meaning it would cost $3.7 million initially and $500,000 annually to protect $10 million of CIT debt for five years. The upfront cost reached the highest since Oct. 17, when it climbed to a record 41.5 percent, according to CMA DataVision prices. Maturing Debt The stock fell 33 cents, or 17.7 percent, to $1.53 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading yesterday, after earlier falling to $1.13, the lowest in seven years. CIT’s stock plunged 59 percent this year through yesterday, underperforming the Russell 1000 Financial Services Index by 50 percentage points. CIT became a bank in December to qualify for a government bailout and received $2.33 billion in funds from the U.S. Treasury. The lender, which has reported more than $3 billion of losses in the past eight quarters, faces $10 billion of maturing debt through 2010 and hasn’t had access to the corporate bond market in more than a year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Without the TLGP, CIT may default as soon as April, when a $2.1 billion credit line matures, according to Fitch Ratings. “CIT continues to be in active dialogue with the government,” the company said yesterday in a statement distributed by Business Wire. “There can be no assurance that CIT’s application will be approved by the FDIC, nor as to the timing or terms of any such determination.” Credit Crisis Ritter, the CIT spokesman, has declined to comment on the FDIC’s reasons for the delay. Andrew Gray, spokesman for the FDIC in Washington, declined to comment on CIT’s pending application. The TLGP program opened a channel of funding for financial institutions unable to borrow in U.S. markets after the September collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. By paying the FDIC a fee to back their bonds, banks are able to sell debt with top credit ratings. The TLGP expires Oct. 31. Issuers must have applied by June 30. The FDIC has given competitors from Fairfield, Connecticut- based General Electric Co. to GMAC Inc. of Detroit access to the TLGP during the worst credit crisis since the Great Depression. GE is rated Aa2 by Moody’s Investors Service and AA+ by Standard & Poor’s, the third- and second-highest credit grades. Rating Lowered A failure of CIT would be the biggest bank collapse since regulators seized Washington Mutual Inc. in September. CIT reported $75.7 billion in assets and $68.2 billion in liabilities, including $3 billion in deposits, at the end of the first quarter. Fitch slashed CIT to speculative grade, or junk, in April, then lowered the lender’s rating again on June 1 to BB and cut it to B+ this week. Moody’s cut CIT three levels to Ba2 from Baa2 on April 24. S&P downgraded CIT three grades to BB- on June 12. The lender, which says it was the first to offer credit to help consumers nationwide buy Studebaker cars, funds businesses from Dunkin’ Brands Inc. in Canton, Massachusetts, to Eddie Bauer Holdings Inc., the bankrupt clothing chain in Bellevue, Washington. CIT says it’s the third-largest U.S. railcar-leasing firm and the world’s third-biggest aircraft financier.

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Can AIG be far behind?

Missed by .19 - quite impressive actually - The battle of Bulls & Bears - Update Saturday 1:00PM

In the charts below you will see a classic Head & Shoulders pattern on the S&P500 chart. The pattern has been developing since the beginning of May. You can see this on the following chart: The important thing to notice is the neckline, at the 878.94 level, established by the candle (low wick)on 5/15/09. This level is just a tad below the other neckline candle on 7/7/09. This low is a little higher at 879.93. This pattern is known as a reversal pattern. Since the March 6th low, or the March 9th closing low, the market has been on an uptrend, so a reversal would be signifying the market is turning and heading lower. Much to the chagrin of the Government, who would like us to think everything is getting better, and the All Star cheerleaders on CNBC, who's on a mission to pump it higher for their parent company GE (and their buddies on Wall Street, especially the banks) this line represents the confirmation of the reversal. In other words, once this line is breached, and closes below this level, the Bears will come out of hibernation and short the market. You can see the battle of the Bulls & Bears and how this line has been successfully defended (so far) by the Bulls with this chart. The numbers above the candles designate the closing: In the last three days, notice how small the trading range has been? Also, the intraday range has broken this line, but the Bulls have successfully pushed it back above. This pattern was the hot topic on CNBC this week, or at least the last three days. It has been talked about on many blogs and trading sights as well. As usual, CNBC is a day late. But they did their homework, and went back far enough on a chart to call this "a possible" inverse head and shoulders, which means a reversal to the upside. Good grief! Friday, they were talking to Steve "this market is going higher" Grasso about where the market is going. This was some time in the early afternoon. His answer was "if it closes above 880, this market is going higher next week." Really? Of course it might, and I assume he was talking about the neckline at 878.94, but I won't get too technical on him. As you can see by the chart above, this line has been quite the battle for the last three days. But as Bob Pisoni would say "the important thing is" the line was defended and the market is set to the upside. Earnings season is upon us, with Alcoa the first DOW component to report this last week. Some of the large banks are due to report next week, including Goldman Sachs on Tuesday, followed by JP Morgan on Thursday. Friday is littered with Citigroup, Bank of America and GE, who trades like a bank. None of these companies are in very good shape, if you go by their recent stock performance (the ones that report on Friday). In the grand plan of bullshitting the people, this market needs to be pumped up. With earnings expectations lowered to a level easy enough for a cave man to make them, I expect some companies (especially a bank or two, most likely GS) to report the "better than expected" earnings next week. As long as this neckline is defended by the Bulls, the better than expected earnings by the banks will drive this market higher, along with the slobbering CNBC cheerleaders. We will hear "Green Shoots" galore and "the big money is getting off the sidelines, it's time to "buy, buy, buy" will be heard all day. Utopia has arrived in the stock market world. Dennis Kneale who declared the recession over last week (and got into it with the blogesphere for being the idiot that he is)will likely have wet pants while telling us "I told you so." For this to happen, they needed to defend the neckline. Friday morning Goldman upgraded about every stock in the tech world, after someone upgraded the home builders on Thursday. Home builders? Give me a break. But if you look at the stocks on Thursday, the home builders, casinos and hotels all did very will, helping to drive the market higher. Along with a bunch of other obscure bullshit stocks that nobody has ever heard of. On Friday, along with the Goldman upgrades and a mid to late day surge, with a nice ramp at the end of the day they made their bogey, closing .19 above the neck. Well done! But really, who thinks home builders, casinos and hotels are a good buy? But I digress. Here is the intraday from Friday's action on the S&P500. We all know the housing mess is far from over, and the 800 pound gorilla in the room is Commercial Real Estate, both which can be bought with the ETF known as IYR. Take a look at the intraday chart of IYR on Friday: Quite the battle at the end of the day is it not? Let me ask, who in their right mind would buy that much IYR after 3:30 on Friday going into a weekend? Actually, who would buy that crap to begin with? Seems either fishy or just plain dumb to me. There is plenty of pain to come in the world of real estate. I will be watching this neckline very close (as I have been) and depending on what happens next week, will determine if I go long or short. The neckline is key. Happy Trading

Market wrap - a day late - sorry - Updated Saturday - 12:15PM

The market today (yesterday)didn't seem to know which way it wanted to go. It shot up after the open, only to be reeled back in with the poor Consumer Sentiment report. After dropping until 11:30, it rallied throughout the day until a nice spike up right at the close. More on this later. Here's how we finished: Dow 8,146.52 -36.65 (-0.45%) S&P 500 879.13 -3.55 (-0.40%) Nasdaq 1,756.03 +3.48 (0.20%) Gold 913 -4 -0.40% Oil 59.66 -0.52 -0.86% Today by sector: Today's heatmap:

Consumer Sentiment - 10:00AM

Not good, much worse than expected. Sentiment Index = Prior = 71.5 Consensus Range 68.0 to 72.0 Actual = 64.6

Import/Export prices report - 8:30AM

Full report here U.S. IMPORT AND EXPORT PRICE INDEXES - JUNE 2009 - The U.S. Import Price Index rose 3.2 percent in June, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today, led by higher petroleum prices. The June increase followed a 1.4 percent advance in May. Export prices also increased in June, rising 1.1 percent after advancing 0.5 percent in the previous month. Import Goods U.S import prices increased 3.2 percent in June, the largest monthly advance since a 3.2 percent rise in November 2007. Import prices have risen for each of the past four months but decreased overall for the year ended in June, declining 17.4 percent. The June increase in import prices was driven by a 20.3 percent jump in petroleum prices, the largest monthly advance for that index since a 20.5 percent increase in April 1999. Petroleum prices have risen 69.5 percent since January but, despite the recent advances, fell 45.9 percent over the past 12 months. Nonpetroleum import prices ticked up 0.2 percent in June, and decreased 6.5 percent over the past year. The advance in nonpetroleum prices was led by a 0.7 percent increase in the price index for nonpetroleum industrial supplies and materials. Higher prices for unfinished metals were the primary contributor to the June increase in nonpetroleum industrial supplies and materials prices, which followed a 0.8 percent rise in May. Prices for foods, feeds, and beverages, for consumer goods, and for automotive vehicles also rose in June. Foods, feeds, and beverages prices increased 0.5 percent as higher prices for meat and coffee more than offset lower vegetable prices. The price indexes for consumer goods and automotive vehicles each ticked up 0.1 percent. In contrast, capital goods prices edged down 0.1 percent in June, led by a 0.5 percent decrease in computer prices. Excluding computer prices, capital goods prices advanced 0.1 percent. Export Goods Export prices rose for the third consecutive month in June, advancing 1.1 percent following 0.5 percent increases in each of the two previous months. Higher prices for both agricultural and nonagricultural exports contributed to the overall increase in June which was the largest monthly rise in export prices since a 1.5 percent increase in July 2008. Despite the advance, export prices declined 6.4 percent over the past year. Prices for agricultural exports increased 4.8 percent in June and 12.7 percent for the second quarter of 2009, the largest three-month gain since the first quarter of 2008. Both advances were led by rising prices for soybeans, corn, and wheat. Even with the increase over the past three months, agricultural prices fell 12.5 percent for the June 2008-2009 period. Nonagricultural prices rose 0.8 percent in June, but decreased 5.7 percent over the past 12 months. A 2.2 percent increase in the price index for nonagricultural industrial supplies and materials led the overall advance in nonagricultural prices in June. Higher prices for fuels, chemicals, and metals all contributed to the advance. Capital goods prices and consumer goods prices also rose in June, advancing 0.2 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively. The increase in capital goods prices was driven by a 0.4 percent rise in the price index for transportation equipment while higher consumer goods prices were led by a 0.9 percent advance in medicinal, dental, and pharmaceutical prices. In contrast, the price index for automotive vehicles edged down 0.1 percent in June after remaining unchanged in May. Imports by Locality of Origin Led by higher fuel prices in June, the price indexes for imports from Canada and from Mexico rose 2.8 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively. Despite rising in June, each index remained down over the past year; import prices from Canada fell 24.8 percent for the year ended in June while prices for imports from Mexico decreased 13.5 percent for the same period. Import prices from the European Union and from Japan both advanced 0.7 percent in June after falling 0.2 percent and remaining unchanged, respectively, the previous month. The price index for imports from the European Union fell 7.2 percent for the year ended in June, while prices for imports from Japan rose 1.9 percent. In contrast, prices for imports from China decreased 0.1 percent in June after recording no change in May. Overall import prices from China decreased 2.4 percent for the June 2008-2009 period, the largest 12-month drop since the index was first published in December 2003. Import and Export Services Import air passenger fares increased for the first time since October 2008, rising 13.0 percent in June. The advance was led by a 28.6 percent seasonal increase in European fares. Export air passenger fares rose in June, advancing 2.1 percent, which was the first increase for the index since January and was also driven by higher European fares. Despite the increases, both import air passenger fares and export air passenger fares fell over the past 12 months, declining 14.2 percent and 20.7 percent, respectively. The price index for import air freight advanced 1.4 percent in June after a 0.9 percent increase the previous month. The index fell 15.6 percent for the year ended in June. In contrast, export air freight prices fell 1.2 percent in June, led by a 2.2 percent drop in European air freight prices. Overall,export air freight prices declined 16.6 percent over the past year.

Pre-market - July 10, 2009

Futures down this morning on recovery woes; DJIA INDEX 8,069.00 -65.00 S&P 500 872.10 -6.80 878.20 NASDAQ 100 1,404.75 -8.75 Gold 916 7 0.76% Oil 59.65 -0.76 -1.26% Today's economic calendar: International Trade 8:30 AM ET Import and Export Prices 8:30 AM ET Consumer Sentiment 9:55 AM ET Tim Geithner Speaks 10:00 AM ET Today's earnings reports: Before market opens in BOLD

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On the interesting news front, more on the trading code caper - From Bloomberg

California IOUs - To be traded? 10:10PM

From Yahoo SEC: Treat California IOUs as securities SEC calls for California IOUs to be regulated as securities * By Marcy Gordon, AP Business Writer * On Thursday July 9, 2009, 9:05 pm EDT WASHINGTON (AP) -- The recipients of billions of dollars in promissory notes being issued by California soon may be able to sell them on a regulated market, following action taken Thursday by federal regulators. Some of the nation's largest banks say that, starting Friday, they will no longer accept the promissory notes. The banks want to pressure the state to end its budget impasse, but their action could leave many businesses and families with fewer options for getting their money. Therefore, the Securities and Exchange Commission recommended Thursday that the promissory notes, which carry an annual interest rate of 3.75 percent, be regulated by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board as a form of municipal debt. A regulated market for the promissory notes would make it easier for individuals holding them to sell them at a fair price, analysts said. The SEC oversees rules set by the nongovernment MSRB, which polices the municipal securities markets for fair pricing, disclosure and adherence to the requirement that the securities sold be suitable for the buyer. The SEC said in an announcement that its staff "has expressed its belief that California's recently issued IOUs are 'securities' under federal securities law." "As such, holders of these IOUs and those who may purchase them are protected by the provisions of the federal securities laws that prohibit fraud in the purchase or sale of securities," the SEC said. In addition, it said, those acting as intermediaries between buyers and sellers of the promissory notes, called IOUs for the phrase "I owe you" -- may need to register with regulators as brokers, dealers or municipal securities dealers. With Bank of America Corp., Wells Fargo & Co., Citigroup Inc. and some regional banks in the state having said they won't accept the promissory notes for payment after Friday, attention has turned to the possibility of a secondary market to buy up the notes. A spokesman for JPMorgan Chase & Co. left open the possibility Thursday of a change in that bank's policy, but spokesmen for Bank of America and Wells Fargo said those banks still planned to cease honoring the notes. Citigroup had no immediate comment. According to the California Credit Union League, more than 60 credit unions in the state will continue to accept the promissory notes after Friday. The Federal Reserve, meanwhile, advised bank customers with a promissory note that they should first check with their bank to make sure it will be accepted for deposit and whether any fees could be incurred. A regulated market for the promissory notes "makes it even more advantageous" for individuals holding them, who could sell them at a fair price, said Paul Maco, an attorney at Vinson & Elkins in Washington who was a director of the SEC's Office of Municipal Securities. The price they receive may be discounted in accordance with the market's perception of the risk of the state repaying the notes, but it would be an orderly market price, he said. As California legislators haggle over how to close a $26.3 billion budget deficit, the state is expected to send out $3.3 billion in IOUs this month to an array of individuals, small businesses and local governments. It marks the first time since 1992, and only the second time since the Great Depression, that California has sent out notes promising repayment at a later date instead of paying its bills on time. California Attorney General Jerry Brown has said the IOUs are valid and binding obligations of the state, a characterization that experts say qualifies them as municipal securities. Federal bank regulators, including the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., told banks in guidance issued Wednesday that they should exercise "the same prudent judgment and sound risk management practices" regarding the IOUs as they would with any other state debt securities. Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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This was breaking news on CNBC at 2:50PM. I have looked for details since. If finally found it's way to the media again. 6 hours later.

AIG to pay bonuses - Have you looked at your stock price? 9:00PM

From MarketWatch AIG set to pay 'millions' in more bonuses: report LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- American International Group Inc. (AIG 9.30, -0.18, -1.90%) is preparing to pay millions of dollars more in bonuses to several dozen top corporate executives even though an earlier round of payments four months ago set off a national furor, the Washington Post reported late Thursday. The insurer is unnecessarily seeking federal government approval for the move, putting the administration's new compensation czar Kenneth Feinberg on the spot by seeking his opinion on bonuses that were promised long before he took his post, the report said. "Anytime we write a check to anybody" it is highly scrutinized, the report quoted an unnamed AIG official as saying. "We would want to feel comfortable that the government is comfortable with what we are doing."

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Wow! Considering this; What happens when they pay these bonuses (If they are allowed to)and the stock goes to it's proper place - zero - and needs another bailout? That should be some quality TV.

Market wrap - 4:15PM

Quite the battle we had today. Index's mixed, little movement when the day was over. Dow 8,183.17 +4.76 (0.06%) S&P 500 882.67 +3.11 (0.35%) Nasdaq 1,752.55 +5.38 (0.31%) Gold 916 +7 +0.76% Oil 60.45 0.27 0.45% 30 year bond auction Yield 4.303% vs. Exp. 4.292% Bid to cover 2.36 vs. Avg. 2.54 (Prev. 2.68) Today's action by sector: Today's heatmap:

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The banks were strong today, except for AIG, who is running through that 20 to 1 reverse stock split like water through a funnel. Closed at 9.48, down 27.63 percent. Not good. Merrill Lynch upgraded Goldman Sachs which gave a boost to the other banks. The Home builders, along with Hotels also got upgraded which pushed those stocks higher. The builders and hotels, were joined by the Casino's to the upside. When un-employment is still rising, with really no good news, why would anyone want, or believe these stocks will be any good. The S&P finished the second day very close to the 200 day moving average. It also sits just above the technical support known as the neckline of the head & shoulders that has formed over the last 2 months. The key support levels are 881.49 for the 200 moving average, and 878.94 on the neckline. If those supports are breached, look out below.

Wholesale Trade report - 10:00AM

Full report here MONTHLY WHOLESALE TRADE: SALES AND INVENTORIES APRIL 2009 Sales. The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that April 2009 sales of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations and trading-day differences but not for price changes, were $309.4 billion, down 0.4 percent (+/-0.7%)* from the revised March level and were down 19.5 percent (+/-1.6%) from the April 2008 level. The March preliminary estimate was revised downward $0.2 billion or 0.1 percent. April sales of durable goods were down 1.9 percent (+/-0.9%) from last month and were down 23.4 percent (+/-1.9%) from a year ago. Sales of motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and supplies, were down 7.8 percent from last month and sales of metals and minerals, except petroleum were down 6.5 percent. Sales of nondurable goods were up 0.8 percent (+/-0.9%)* from last month, but were down 16.1 percent (+/-1.9%) from last year. Sales of farm product raw materials were up 10.5 percent from last month and sales of beer, wine, and distilled alcoholic beverages were up 2.6 percent. Inventories. Total inventories of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations but not for price changes, were $405.4 billion at the end of April, down 1.4 percent (+/-0.4%) from the revised March level and were down 6.2 percent (+/-1.1%) from a year ago. The March preliminary estimate was revised downward $0.6 billion or 0.1 percent. End-of-month inventories of durable goods were down 2.2 percent (+/-0.4%) from last month and were down 5.9 percent (+/-1.2%) from last April. Inventories of metals and minerals, except petroleum, were down 6.8 percent from last month and inventories of motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and supplies were down 4.5 percent. End-of-month inventories of nondurable goods were virtually unchanged (+/-0.7%)* from March, but were down 6.6 percent (+/-1.9%) compared to last April. Inventories of apparel, piece goods, and notions were down 2.6 percent from last month, while inventories of paper and paper products were up 2.8 percent. Inventories/Sales Ratio. The April inventories/sales ratio for merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, based on seasonally adjusted data, was 1.31. The April 2008 ratio was 1.12.

Jobless claims - July 9, 2009

Full report here UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE WEEKLY CLAIMS REPORT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA In the week ending July 4, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 565,000, a decrease of 52,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 617,000. The 4-week moving average was 606,000, a decrease of 10,000 from the previous week's revised average of 616,000. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 5.1 percent for the week ending June 27, an increase of 0.1 percentage point from the prior week's unrevised rate of 5.0 percent. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending June 27 was 6,883,000, an increase of 159,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 6,724,000. The 4-week moving average was 6,769,000, an increase of 12,000 from the preceding week's revised average of 6,757,000. The fiscal year-to-date average for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment for all programs is 5.421 million. UNADJUSTED DATA The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 577,506 in the week ending July 4, an increase of 17,612 from the previous week. There were 401,672 initial claims in the comparable week in 2008. The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 4.5 percent during the week ending June 27, unchanged from the prior week. The advance unadjusted number for persons claiming UI benefits in state programs totaled 6,043,561, a decrease of 34,892 from the preceding week. A year earlier, the rate was 2.1 percent and the volume was 2,857,438. Extended benefits were available in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin during the week ending June 20. Initial claims for UI benefits by former Federal civilian employees totaled 1,628 in the week ending June 27, an increase of 54 from the prior week. There were 2,062 initial claims by newly discharged veterans, a decrease of 33 from the preceding week. There were 17,456 former Federal civilian employees claiming UI benefits for the week ending June 20, an increase of 434 from the previous week. Newly discharged veterans claiming benefits totaled 28,528, an increase of 164 from the prior week. States reported 2,519,101 persons claiming EUC (Emergency Unemployment Compensation) benefits for the week ending June 20, an increase of 81,276 from the prior week. EUC weekly claims include both first and second tier activity. The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending June 20 were in Michigan (6.8 percent), Puerto Rico (6.8), Oregon (6.7), Pennsylvania (6.4), Nevada (6.2), Wisconsin (5.7), California (5.3), Illinois (5.3), North Carolina (5.3), and South Carolina (5.3). The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending June 27 were in New Jersey (+7,876), Massachusetts (+4,730), Kansas (+4,469), Kentucky (+3,614), and New York (+3,019), while the largest decreases were in Florida (-12,493), Illinois (-5,321), Pennsylvania (-3,949), California (-2,919), and Tennessee (-2,743).

Pre-market - July 9, 2009

Futures up after "not as bad as expected" earning from Alcoa last night: DJIA INDEX 8,163.00 47.00 S&P 500 880.30 6.60 873.70 NASDAQ 100 1,414.00 7.00 Gold 909 -20 -2.13% Oil 61.09 +0.95 +1.58% Today's economic calendar: Chain Store Sales BOE Announcement 7:00 AM ET Elizabeth Duke Speaks 8:00 AM ET Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET Wholesale Trade 10:00 AM ET EIA Natural Gas Report 10:30 AM ET 3-Month Bill Announcement 11:00 AM ET 6-Month Bill Announcement 11:00 AM ET 30-Yr Bond Auction 1:00 PM ET Gary Stern Speaks 2:30 PM ET Money Supply 4:30 PM ET Today's earnings reports - Before market opens: Today after close:

Pre-market - July 8, 2009

Futures about flat this morning, waiting on Alcoa: DJIA INDEX 8,136.00 5.00 S&P 500 880.30 1.00 879.20 NASDAQ 100 1,409.75 1.75 Gold 929 5 0.52% Oil 62.49 -0.45 -0.72% Today's economic calendar: MBA Purchase Applications 7:00 AM ET EIA Petroleum Status Report 10:30 AM ET Charles Evans Speaks 12:55 PM ET 10-Yr Note Auction 1:00 PM ET Consumer Credit 3:00 PM ET Today's earnings reports: Before market opens in BOLD

Pre-market - July 7, 2009

Futures up slightly this morning: DJIA INDEX 8,291.00 14.00 S&P 500 897.30 1.80 NASDAQ 100 1,445.00 4.00 Gold 924 -7 -0.77% Oil 64.79 0.70 1.09% Today's economic calendar: ICSC-Goldman Store Sales 7:45 AM ET Redbook 8:55 AM ET 4-Week Bill Auction 11:30 AM ET 3-Yr Note Auction 1:00 PM ET Treasury STRIPS 3:00 PM ET Today's earnings reports: Before market opens in BOLD

Market wrap - 4:15PM

Another boring day in the market. Nothing much except the all to familiar ram job at 3:30. Dow 8,324.87 +44.13 (0.53%) S&P 500 898.72 +2.30 (0.26%) Nasdaq 1,787.40 -9.12 (-0.51%) Gold 924 -7 -0.72% Oil 64.16 -1.58 -2.40% Today by sector: Today's heatmap:

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That heatmap doesn't tell the whole story. The REITs were good all day. Why I have no idea. Who would buy this crap is beyond me.

Pre-market - Monday - July 6, 2009

Futures are down this morning: DJIA INDEX 8,165.00 -76.00 S&P 500 884.80 -8.50 NASDAQ 100 1,434.75 -10.50 Gold 931 -10 -1.09% Oil 63.56 -2.06 -3.14% Today's economic calendar: ISM Non-Mfg Index 10:00 AM ET 4-Week Bill Announcement 11:00 AM ET 3-Month Bill Auction 11:30 AM ET 6-Month Bill Auction 11:30 AM ET 10-Yr TIPS Auction 1:00 PM ET Today's earnings calendar: CMED China Medical Technologies Inc. Healthcare VIMC Vimicro International Corp. Technology CMED is before the market opens