Wednesday (01/11/12) Mid-Day Market Report: Stocks Fall Due To European Jitters

Mid-Day Market Action

US: Dow: 12426.26 (-0.29%), S&P 500: 1291.01 (-0.08%), NASDAQ: 2708.59 (0.22%)
Europe: CAC: 3197.25 (-0.42%), DAX: 6142.35 (-0.34%), FTSE: 5657.80 (-0.69%).
Asia:Australia: 4187.50 (0.85%),China: 2276.05 (-0.43%),Hong Kong: 19151.94 (0.77%),India: 4860.95 (0.24%),Japan: 8447.88 (0.30%),Korea: 1845.55 (-0.42%),Singapore: 2747.13 (0.99%),
Metals: Gold: 1642.00 (0.64%), Silver: 29.95 (0.45%), Copper: 3.54 (0.80%)
Energy: Crude Oil: 101.90 (-0.33%), Natural Gas: 2.77 (-5.88%)
Agriculture: Corn: 6.52 (0.04%), Soya Bean: 11.99 (-2.00%), Wheat: 6.38 (-0.23%).
Currency: EUR/USD: 1.2704 (-0.5801%), GBP/USD: 1.5323 (-1.0408%), USD/JPY: 76.8655 (0.0228%)
10 year US Treasury: 1.911% (-0.058)

Market News Update

Stocks fall due to European jitters: Ongoing anxiety over the situation inEurope weighed on the blue chips, while commodities struggled following a bearish weekly inventory report. As of12:20 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 36.8 points, or 0.29%, to 12427, the S&P 500 slipped 2.1 points, or 0.15%, to 1290 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 4 points, or 0.15%, to 2707.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-11/u-s-stock-futures-are-little-changed-before-release-of-fed-s-beige-book.html

Treasury sells 10-year notes at record yield: The Treasury sold $21 billion of 10- year notes at a record low yield amid speculation France may lose its top credit rating as Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis worsens bolstered the refuge appeal of U.S. government debt. The securities drew a yield of 1.90 percent.

Oil retreats as risk aversion returns: Oil fell on Wednesday as worries about Europe’s debt problems reasserted themselves, reversing earlier gains prompted by a blast in Tehran that highlighted the possibility of oil supply disruption from Iran. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/11/markets-oil-idUSL3E8CB4B620120111

November consumer credit surges: Consumer credit in November expanded by the most since 2001, rising $20.37 billion after increasing a revised $6.02 billion in October, a Federal Reserve report showed.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/10/us-usa-economy-consumercredit-idUSTRE80823O20120110

Company News Update

Energy shares had the biggest decline in the S&P 500 among 10 industries as Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) dropped 1.3 percent.
Hostess Brands, the maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after previously emerging from bankruptcy just three years ago.
Supervalu (SVU) unveiled a deeper fiscal third-quarter loss and slashed its guidance amid weaker-than-expected sales for the grocery store chain.
Lennar (LEN) suffered a 5.5% slip in fourth-quarter profits, but the largeU.S. homebuilder revealed encouraging improvements in sales and new orders.
Urban Outfitters (URBN) plunged 17 percent to $24.48. The clothing retailer said Glen Senk resigned as chief executive officer and will be succeeded by co-founder Richard Hayne as the retailer seeks to turn around falling profit.
Brocade Communications Systems Inc. (BRCD) rallied 3.1 percent to $5.95. The maker of switches for data-storage networks, which had been trying to find a buyer with the help of Frank Quattrone for two years, was valued yesterday at 7.7 times its free cash flow, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That was the cheapest among its closest competitors and less than half the median of 17 times for comparable companies.
Eastman Kodak Co. (EK) rallied 37 percent to 82 cents, surging 121 percent in three days. The unprofitable imaging company, seeking to sell or license a portfolio of more than 1,100 patents, sued Apple Inc. (AAPL) and HTC Corp. in an expansion of a legal strategy that may help boost the value of its inventions to fund a turnaround.

Hedge Fund News Update

Pluris Valuation Advisors LLC today announced that Kyle B. Vataha, a nationally recognized expert in valuing alternative asset management firms, has joined the firm as Vice President.
Minnesota-based investment adviser Whitebox Advisors has launched two alternative mutual funds which will offer retail investors access to hedge fund infrastructure. The first fund namely Whitebox Tactical Opportunities Fund (WBMAX) is currently offered for investment and the second fund namely Whitebox Enhanced Convertible Fund (WBNAX) is scheduled to offer during the first quarter of 2012.
High-profile banker Mehmet Dalman has left hedge fund firm Toscafund to focus on his other roles, including a directorship at ENRC, the Kazakh miner involved in a messy corporate governance fight last year.
Hong Kong-based Double Haven Capital Management has launched a new long/short hedge fund with $20m of principal capital. The offering, called the Double Haven Asia Absolute Bond fund, invests in bonds in the Asia–Pacific region, according to an investor letter.
The Conifer Group, LLC, a leading provider of fund administration, middle office, trading and prime brokerage services, today announced industry veteran Howard Eisen will join the Conifer Securities sales team as it expands its client base across the entire spectrum of alternative asset managers.
Evergreen Capital Partners Ltd.’s Australian hedge fund, which gained 58 percent in its first 18 months by buying resource stocks and short-selling retailers, will close to outside investors in six to 12 months to remain focused on its investments, co-founder Tim Hannon said.
$5.7 billion hedge fund firm, SkyBridge Capital, has announced that Vice President Al Gore, former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin and Secretary of Defense Dr. Robert M. Gates will serve as keynote speakers at the SkyBridge Alternatives (SALT 2012) Conference.