US options market The impact on the market of options expiration

If you are wondering why contracts on options are becoming more expensive, you need to examine three factors: Expected rate of return, volatility of the underlying security and time until expiration.
In this volatile market, contracts on options have become increasingly more expensive. This is because the main pricing components of options are: expected rate of return, volatility of the underlying security and time until expiration.
As we saw the key volatility indexes soar in 2008, we saw premiums on options -- which give you the right to buy a stock at a certain price -- increase. Volatility in the market presumes there is higher probability that an option will be exercised before the option itself expires.
Generally speaking, most funds are sellers of premium, which basically means they are selling a call or put to make money from an option. During an options expiration day, if the underlying security is approaching a level where there is quite a bit of open interest for a large fund, then that fund may protect its options by keeping it below the strike price.

In short, funds would rather have the option expire with no value so they can keep their full premium amount, and they are willing to protect that by selling or buying into the underlying security to keep it from moving above the strike price.

On many recent expiration days, we have noticed a general run-up in the price of securities, either during the day or several days after. This may have occurred because funds were selling calls and collecting the income, and -- in order to protect their options -- they sold massive amounts of the underlying security before their options expired. Once the options expired and they collected their full premium, funds released all of their shorts, causing the markets to rally higher.
On options based on the S&P 500 Index ($INX), we are seeing quite a bit of open interest at the 850 level and then more open interest at the 900 level. During expiration tomorrow, we should see funds protecting these levels to make sure options do not get exercised. If funds happen to keep the S&P below 850, then the following days we could see an increase in the S&P 500, as those shares that were sold short will now be released into the market.

[SigmaForex Partnership Services]

Overall View:

Sigma helps a various groups of partners around the world to enlarge their business and expand the full
potential of the Forex market.
Sigma’s services include:

Introducing Brokers: Join our IB network and receive compensation for directing new clients to Sigma.
Money Managers: Full service trading capabilities, plus dedicated account management, client fund
administration and reporting.
White Labels: White Label Program helps fitted firms set up an online presence in the Forex industry
quickly and cost effectively.

A dedicated Partner Services team supports Sigma partners with a full range of account management services.
- Daily P&L, credits, commission allocation, etc.
- Account funding, transfers, allocations, etc.
- Customer on-boarding.
Introducing Broker.

Money Manager.

White Label.

CBOE Volatility Index

A Value Stock to Avoid in This Market

Make no mistake about it -- this is a very scary market. While the CBOE Volatility Index (a.k.a. the "investor fear gauge") has fallen slightly from its record highs in October, it still remains above 40, indicating significant anxiety among investors.
Six months back, I advocated the importance of keeping a long-term focus and strategically avoiding the media blitz of bad news. But keeping your cool in this mess doesn't apply only to panic selling, but also to panic buying.
Just because a number of stocks like Las Vegas Sands have fallen considerably in recent months, don't assume they've reached the point of maximum pessimism and are worth buying whole-hog right now. In fact, I would argue that Las Vegas Sands is one "value" to avoid in this market.

You don't own me

For one, Las Vegas Sands is heavily reliant on debt to fuel its respective operations. As of the end of 2007, it was capitalized with 77% debt. Simply put, debtholders, not common stockholders, all but run the show at the company. Those debtholders care most about getting their money back, plus interest; they don't necessarily have any interest in long-term earnings growth.
Additionally, with all that's happened in the credit markets this year, companies like Las Vegas Sands will find their continuous need for debt increasingly costly and difficult to fulfill. When a company has a "junk" rating on its debt, as Las Vegas Sands does, it has to offer higher interest rates on its debt to attract investors, so its interest expenses remain high, leaving less left over for shareholder earnings.
This brief analysis doesn't even consider Las Vegas Sands' intense competitive landscape, as it competes with the more efficiently run Wynn Resorts, making margin growth, market-share expansion, and overall recovery even more difficult.
While there's always a remote chance that Las Vegas Sands will miraculously turn itself around, I wouldn't bet hard-earned money on it. There's simply easier money to be made in the market.
Like how?
When the market is scared and the debt markets are unpredictable, it pays to start your search by looking for superior companies whose stocks may have been unfairly punished. In short, this means seeking out stocks:

• Trading more than 50% off their 52-week high,
• With little or no long-term debt reliance,
• Return on equity above 15%,
• Positive free cash flow, and
• Cash in the bank.


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For those who are familliar with trading in forex market, a practice account can help them to get use to the particular characteristics of the Forex market or our trading platform.

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A practice account can even help experienced and professional traders as they can test and practice their trading strategies without risking capital.
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How far will the credit crunch spread?

The financial markets are right to be worried about the potential for a credit crunch.

In a credit crunch, lenders stop lending and credit becomes tough to obtain. A credit crunch can bring down everything from weak, deeply indebted companies to overextended lenders to over-leveraged borrowers to an economy as a whole.
So the question is: Are we in the midst of a credit crunch?
In the market for mortgage-backed bonds, leveraged-buyout loans and high-yield, or junk, bonds, yes, the crunch is upon us. The absolute paucity of buyers for those classes of assets -- what I described as a buyers strike in my July 31 column, "Stocks feel the pain of a buyers strike" -- has led lenders to cut way back on putting their capital at risk in leveraged loans or junk bonds. In these markets, not only have prices collapsed, but deals are being scrapped because of a lack of new credit.

But in the general economy where consumers live and spend, the credit crunch hasn't yet materialized. Banks are still lending, credit card issuers are still issuing, and mortgage lenders are still refinancing. Until a credit crunch hits the consumer, the damage will remain confined to the most leveraged sectors of the financial markets, and there the damage could be severe. But the economy as a whole will keep perking along at a growth rate of 2.5% to 3% -- and perhaps better -- for the rest of 2007.
A crisis that feeds on fear and uncertainty
We've certainly got some of the raw ingredients for a credit crunch right now. To create a credit crunch you need fear. Because they're taking a beating on existing loans, lenders fear that they will book big losses on future loans -- which makes them reluctant to lend.
But fear isn't enough. To create a credit crunch you also need uncertainty. A lender can compensate for fear by raising interest rates, tightening credit standards or writing more protective covenants into the terms of a loan. But if the size of the losses is uncertain enough, lenders can't compensate for the additional risk because lenders don't know how large that risk might be. Lenders become afraid to make any loan because they fear that any additional return that they ask for will turn out to be inadequate to cover the actual risk, whatever it may turn out to be.


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Sigma provides appropriate services satisfying the needs of all business partners’ specified requirements. A client's profit is our success and a client's loss is a significant call of action for us, we consider every client as a special case and a partner.
Sigma's Customer Support is our business core, as we provide 24/7 customer support. We keep in touch with all our clients to make sure that we are on the right pass.

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Echo Chamber Rush's Voice Leads Conservative Echo Chamber

In taking on one of the latest examples of misinformation about the economic recovery package, Media Matters for America has documented Rush Limbaugh leading several conservative media outlets in parroting former New York Lt. Gov. Betsy McCaughey's falsehood that a provision in the House-passed version of the bill grants the government authority to "monitor treatments" and "make sure your doctor is doing what the federal government deems appropriate."
In fact, the provision Limbaugh and others referenced merely establishes an electronic records system that would provide doctors with complete, accurate information about their patients "to guide medical decisions at the time and place of care." MSNBC's David Shuster debunked Limbaugh's myth on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, noting that the government "will not be empowered to monitor doctors or require them to do anything."
CNN additionally reported that when asked about where her claim actually appeared in the bill, McCaughey pointed to language that "didn't actually say that." Even Fox News contributor Mort Kondracke debunked the claim that the bill contains anything that requires health-care "rationing."

"Once again, conservatives in the media are showing an utter disregard for fact in their pursuit of a Limbaugh-hyped myth of the day about the economic recovery package," said Erikka Knuti, a spokesperson for Media Matters. "As the story traveled from Rush to Drudge to segments on Fox News, several media figures ignored the issue of whether the provisions were substantively valid in favor of baseless political rhetoric disguised as truth."
On February 9, Limbaugh repeated a falsehood that originally appeared in a Bloomberg "commentary" by McCaughey. McCaughey claimed that under provisions in the economic recovery bill passed by House Democrats, "[o]ne new bureaucracy, the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology, will monitor treatments to make sure your doctor is doing what the federal government deems appropriate and cost effective. The goal is to reduce costs and 'guide' your doctor's decisions."

The Limbaugh-promoted falsehood quickly popped up on the Drudge Report as well as in segments on Fox News, where Wall Street Journal senior economics writer Stephen Moore credited Limbaugh for bringing it to his attention. By February 10, McCaughey was invited on both CNN's Lou Dobbs Tonight and Fox News' Glenn Beck to peddle false claims about the bill.
Limbaugh even took credit for spreading the story, saying "Betsy McCaughey writing at Bloomberg, I found it. I detailed it for you, and now it's all over mainstream media. Well, it's -- it headlined Drudge for a while last night and today. Fox News is talking about it."

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5. Low margin requirement.
6. Full Hedging capabilities.
7. Sigma is a registered financial institution, and registered with the European registration authorities. The regulations set out into notice by these agencies are created to help ensure the safety of our clients’ deposits.
8. We maintain enough liquid capital to meet the needs of the amount required to cover all client deposits, potential shift back and forth in the firm’s currency positions and outstanding expenses.
9. We put forward our financial information to regulatory bodies on a weekly and monthly basis.
10. In addition to all the above, Sigma holds all deposits with only highly reputable financial institutions. We are appreciate the trust of our clients place in us.

Earnings Forecasts AIB cuts earnings forecasts as bad debts rise

AIB has almost halved its earnings per share forecasts for this year and has taken a €500 million charge in relation to its rising bad loans for property development.
Earnings per share (EPS) this year will be 66 cent, down from an estimate of €1.20 given in November, the bank said.
The worsening condition of many of the bank’s loans forced it to revise up its bad debt charge to 137 basis points, or 1.37 per cent of total loans, from earlier estimates of 0.75 per cent.
The bank said in a trading statement this afternoon “asset quality has further deteriorated" and “key trends have changed” since its market update in November.
“Consequently the bad-debt provision requirement has materially increased.”

As a result the bank has raised its bad debt provision to 1 per cent.

It has taken a bad debt charge of €500 million, or 0.37 per cent of total lending, on loans that are showing signs of stress, but are still performing. It said 75 per cent of these relate to its Irish property development loan book.
“Although not currently impaired, this portfolio is showing significant and growing signs of stress as a result of the adverse conditions at the end of 2008”, the bank said, adding it believed some of these loans would become impaired.
Following the charge, the bank's core Tier 1 ratio at the end of 2008 is estimated at 5.7 per cent. The €3.5 billion to be invested by the Government under the recapitalisation plan will see that ratio rise to 8.2 per cent, the bank said.
Shares in AIB Allied Irish were trading at 63.5 cent at 3.45pm, a gain of 0.8 per cent.
The bank is scheduled to publish its results for the year to December 31st on March 2nd.


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Paper Markets CP and Money Markets Pulling Out of Nosedives Says Berretta in AFP

The latest issue of AFP Exchange, the Association of Financial Professional's bimonthly magazine, features an article by Frederick Berretta, Bank of America's head of Global Liquidity Solutions, entitled "Rough Seas: Navigating the Liquidity Maelstrom." The piece says, "Volatility has put liquidity at risk, but thanks to several initiatives, commercial paper and money markets are pulling out of their nosedives."
Berretta reviews the credit crisis and tells readers, "The days of yield chasing are over, at least for the moment. The flight to quality continues, with bank deposits from strong financial providers, treasury securities, and money market funds reaping the benefits. The Fed has launched several tools, such as Money Market Fund Insurance, Commercial Paper Funding Facility (CPFF), Asset Backed Commercial Paper Money Market Fund Liquidity Facility (AMLF) and Money Market Investors Funding Facility (MMIFF) ... to help this particular aspect of the global credit crisis, as the money market is fundamental to the health of the overall economy."
"The good news is that the tools seem to be working: Commercial paper issuance has risen dramatically since the CPFF was launched, and institutional prime money market fund assets are climbing again. The bad news is that we are not sure how these markets will function when these programs expire, and a long-term dosage of them may lead to side effects that we cannot predict. Withdrawal effects may be inevitable," he says.
Berretta gives a number of tips to consider, including, "Avoid overreacting to falling rates." He says, "The embedded and hidden risks of esoteric and highly complex securities have been made manifest.... Understandably, it appears that some investors may even have overreacted by overly conservative, impulsive investing. Complex investments will probably return again in popularity, but when they do, investors will demand greater transparency. It seems that liquidity investing has gone back to an era of simplicity that would seem refreshing, were it not the product of a financial 'perfect storm'."
Finally, Berretta writes in the AFP Exchange article says, "Now is the time to chart a course for your liquidity that will endure when the appetite for capturing those basis points returns. Yield optimization is a worthy cause, but it is probably best pursued in tandem with principal protection."

[SigmaForex Partnership Services]

Overall View:

Sigma helps a various groups of partners around the world to enlarge their business and expand the full
potential of the Forex market.
Sigma’s services include:

Introducing Brokers: Join our IB network and receive compensation for directing new clients to Sigma.
Money Managers: Full service trading capabilities, plus dedicated account management, client fund
administration and reporting.
White Labels: White Label Program helps fitted firms set up an online presence in the Forex industry
quickly and cost effectively.

A dedicated Partner Services team supports Sigma partners with a full range of account management services.
- Daily P&L, credits, commission allocation, etc.
- Account funding, transfers, allocations, etc.
- Customer on-boarding.

Introducing Broker.
Money Manager.
White Label.

UPM Kymmene Newsprint Price Rises May Be Clipped, Springer Says

Papermakers are being forced to moderate price demands for newsprint in central Europe this year as weakening demand fuels resistance from publishers, according to an official at Axel Springer AG, Europe’s largest producer of newspapers.
“Price demands have become more moderate,” Herbert Woodtli, head of corporate purchasing at the Berlin-based publisher of Die Welt and Bild, said in an interview yesterday.
Talks in Germany are now focused on increases of about 6 to 8 percent, and suppliers may end up agreeing to 6 to 7 percent, Woodtli said. Norske Skogindustrier ASA on Oct. 17 proposed at least 15 percent price rises for most of Europe. The region’s largest newsprint maker is delivering “basically” what it set out to, spokesman Tom Bratlie said in a Jan. 22 interview. He declined to be specific.
UPM-Kymmene Oyj, Stora Enso Oyj and other paper companies have shut newsprint lines to tackle an oversupply and regain pricing power. They have met resistance from publishers reeling from the financial crisis and cutbacks in advertising budgets. Norske Skog is still negotiating some contracts and preparing for “somewhat lower” production in 2009, Bratlie said.
“Both producers and consumers are unclear about price developments because consumption is weakening as a result of the economic crisis,” Springer’s Woodtli said. “It will take another four weeks” to conclude talks, Springer’s Woodtli said in the phone interview. “We should not do it too early.”

Svenska Cellulosa
Norske Skog, which closed more than 260,000 tons or 13 percent of permanent capacity in 2008, last year proposed euro- dominated price increases equivalent to more than 20 percent in the U.K., which constitutes a separate market. Higher newsprint charges and declining ad revenue prompted Daily Mail and General Trust Plc, publisher of the Daily Mail, to cut costs by about 100 million pounds ($141 million), the U.K. company said in a Nov. 20 statement.
Svenska Cellulosa AB, the Swedish tissue maker that also sells paper and packaging, has achieved 15 percent price increases in the newsprint contracts it has settled so far, Chief Executive Jan Johansson said on a conference call with analysts yesterday. The figure includes the U.K. where price increases of 20 percent have been achieved, he said.
Norske Skog, Stora, UPM, and Swedish newsprint maker Holmen AB are all scheduled to report earnings on Feb. 4, and they may give comments about the general pricing environment.


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For those who did not trade in the forex market before can get accustomed to following a market, and open themselves to a whole new way to invest, and it also gives them the chance to understand how the trading platform works.

For Regular Traders
For those who are familliar with trading in forex market, a practice account can help them to get use to the particular characteristics of the Forex market or our trading platform.

For Experienced and Professional Traders
A practice account can even help experienced and professional traders as they can test and practice their trading strategies without risking capital.
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If you have any problem regarding Sigma Practice Account you can see User Guides or click on the Live Chat button on the right menu and our customer support staff will help you through the process.

Stora Enso Reschedules Possible Pulp and Paper Mill Project At Nizhny Novgorod in Russia

Stora Enso has decided to defer its final decision regarding the proposed pulp and paper mill project at Nizhny Novgorod in Russia to a later stage due to the weak global financial situation and near-term outlook for the forest products industry. The project is not cancelled by this decision, and various actions will be taken to facilitate possible implementation of the project in the future.
Stora Enso will hold discussions with the Nizhny Novgorod regional administration in the near future to establish a new timetable for the proposed project.

Previous press releases concerning the project are available http://atwww.storaenso.com/press
23 May 2008: Stora Enso starts feasibility study for a world-class pulp and paper mill in Nizhny Novgorod region
20 December 2007: Stora Enso signs letter of intent concerning possible pulp and paper mill in Russia
17 July 2007: Stora Enso starts pre-feasibility study for a world-class pulp and paper mill in Russia

Stora Enso is a global paper, packaging and forest products company producing newsprint and book paper, magazine paper, fine paper, consumer board, industrial packaging and wood products. The Group has 32 000 employees and 85 production facilities in more than 35 countries worldwide, and is a publicly traded company listed in Helsinki and Stockholm. Our annual production capacity is 12.7 million tonnes of paper and board, 1.5 billion square metres of corrugated packaging and 6.9 million cubic metres of sawn wood products, including 3.2 million cubic metres of value-added products. Our sales in 2008 were EUR 11.0 billion.


[Sigma Services]

As a professional online trading service Sigma strives to give an eminent beyond comparison of professional and individualized trading services, Sigma also provides several facilities for all kinds of traders.
Sigma helps private and institutional clients achieve their trading goals by offering an inclusive forex trading package, along with the state-of-art trading platform, real-time news and wireless access. We relegate to meeting and exceeding our customers' expectations with the utmost professionalism and integrity.

Sigma provides appropriate services satisfying the needs of all business partners’ specified requirements. A client's profit is our success and a client's loss is a significant call of action for us, we consider every client as a special case and a partner.
Sigma's Customer Support is our business core, as we provide 24/7 customer support. We keep in touch with all our clients to make sure that we are on the right pass.

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Open Demo Account

Recession Forecast UK recession forecast put at 50-50

Britain now faces a 50-50 chance of a recession next year amid the "toxic combination" of a housing market slump and the fallout from the credit crunch, experts have warned.

• Damian Reece: The evidence is there, we're heading down
• Your View: Is the UK set for a recession? • Get the latest news and views on the UK economy

The chilling warning underlines the severity of the downturn facing the UK in the coming months. Economists at investment bank Dresdner Kleinwort said the economy faced a major slowdown in the next year, with the worst pain likely to be felt in the first three months of the year.
The bank's chief European economist David Owen said: "We are looking at a toxic combination of headwinds facing the economy.
"The chances of a recession in the UK next year are close to 50pc - as they are in the US."
It comes amid growing evidence that the property market is facing its sharpest falls since the last crash in the early 1990s.
The Monetary Policy Committee cut borrowing costs earlier this month, warning that the economy faces a sharp slowdown next year. The stock market had another bad day with the FTSE 100 falling 119.2 to 6277.8 as traders bet the effects of the credit crunch will worsen in the coming months.
The bank's warning is among the most severe from a major City forecaster.
• Landlords quit the buy-to-let market
• The latest news and analysis of the credit crunch

Mr Owen said that, although he was forecasting growth of 1.8pc over 2008, most of the risks were on the negative side, and that it was quite feasible that there could be two successive quarters of negative growth - the strict definition of a recession.

He warned that the prime reason for a slump was an expected fall in house prices, which, according to Halifax, have now fallen consecutively for the past three months.
"The last time the Halifax house price index was dropping like this was back in 1995, when the housing market was just getting going after the last crash," said Mr Owen. "I'm no longer comfortable with this view that the housing market can just tread water for a few years. What's much more likely is that there will be outright falls in house prices - probably of 5pc-10pc."
He said that there had been four major peaks in house prices and affordability in the post-war period - the late 1940s, 1973, 1989 and, now 2007. "After each of the first three peaks in this post-war period, values dropped by 30pc in real terms. In the 1950s, house prices fell for 10 consecutive years. There is always a severe correction following a bubble."
"I don't think it will be on that scale this time, though it is certainly a possibility."
Bank of England governor Mervyn King is expected to be grilled on the prospects for the economy at his appearance before the Treasury Select Committee today.
Mr King will also be questioned on the increasing difficulty facing the MPC in bringing money market rates back into line with its official base rate.
Dresdner said that, while the prospects for the UK are dim, there are similar troubles on the other side of the Atlantic, where the chances of recession in the coming year are marginally higher.

Dresdner's chief economist Ian Harwood warned that the US housing market crash would last for longer than most economists currently expect.

[Why Sigma]

1. Lowest spreads in the forex market, No other broker offers such competitive spreads .
2. Sigma is the only broker that allows you to customize your trading account as you wish.
3. Maintaining the security of your money is a major objective at Sigma.
4. Our devotion to our clients has made our firm a respected industry leader, that we have a strong commitment to maintain a long term relationship with our clients.
5. Low margin requirement.
6. Full Hedging capabilities.
7. Sigma is a registered financial institution, and registered with the European registration authorities. The regulations set out into notice by these agencies are created to help ensure the safety of our clients’ deposits.
8. We maintain enough liquid capital to meet the needs of the amount required to cover all client deposits, potential shift back and forth in the firm’s currency positions and outstanding expenses.
9. We put forward our financial information to regulatory bodies on a weekly and monthly basis.
10. In addition to all the above, Sigma holds all deposits with only highly reputable financial institutions. We are appreciate the trust of our clients place in us.

Asian markets rally on Wall Street's Recovery

Stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region rallied Friday ahead of a two-day Group of Seven industrialized nations' meeting on optimism that a U.S. plan, which is reportedly being contemplated, to aid homeowners by subsidizing mortgage payments would provide a concrete form of financial policy to tackle the global slowdown.

After losing about 14 percent this week, crude oil price rose above $34 a barrel in Asian trading, helped by a modest gain on Wall Street Thursday and on hopes that a new mortgage plan for homeowners could pull the world's largest economy out of the recession.

Overnight, stocks on Wall Street closed mixed amid a better-than-expected report on U.S. retail sales, reports about a government's plan to subsidize mortgages and bad economic news from Europe, where industrial output saw its worst contraction in 15 years. While the Dow closed down 6.77 points or 0.1 percent at 7,932.76, the Nasdaq closed up 11.21 points or 0.7 percent at 1,541.71 and the S&P 500 closed up 1.45 points or 0.2 percent at 835.19.

The Japanese market snapped a three-day losing streak, helped by short covering and gains in exporter stocks such as Canon and Honda Motor following the weakening of the yen relative to the U.S. dollar.

The Nikkei 225 index closed at 7,779, up 74 points or 0.96%, while the broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 4 points or 0.57% to 765. Rubber products, pulp and paper, and mining stocks led the bounce back, while insurance, sea transport and consumer finance stock ended in the red. On the First Section, 1031 stocks advanced compared to 545 decliners, while 130 stocks closed unchanged.


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Expand your business and revenue potential while offering your referred clients the highest available level of service and support.
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Refer new self-directed or managed account clients to Sigma and make easier the account opening and funding process. In return, Sigma provides all of the essential tools and resources you need to launch and manage a successful IB operation.
We are committed to delivering the highest levels of service and a quality product offering to help you grow your business.
Sigma provides an array of services and as an Introducing Broker, you and your clients will benefit from:

Sophisticated trading platform

Our trading platform feature quality execution capabilities as well as advanced and easy-to-use order entry and position management tools, all in a secure environment. A full suite of decision support tools, from charting to research, news and more, are also available to clients free of charge.
Furthermore, our software, service, and execution is second to none.
Account for all levels of experience

Your clients will be able to organize their trading account according to their needs and their experience level and risk appetite. Sigma is best suited and ideal for experienced traders and individual investors.
Unique Product, is the only firm to offer competitive spreads and zero commissions and zero swaps
Dedicated back-office support

Sigma supplies complete back office services.
Sigma’s Partner Services team is dedicated to providing Outstanding Compensation and full account management support to our IB clients. As part of our service, Sigma provides all IB partners online access to our proprietary reporting tool, allowing you to closely monitor referred account volume and revenue. Our customer support is 24 hours, customers may fund around the clock.

For more details contcat IB@SigmaForex.com

Most actively traded companies on Canadian stock markets

TORONTO — Some of the most active companies traded Thursday on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the TSX Venture Exchange:

Toronto Stock Exchange (8,778.78 up 40.89 points):

Eastern Platinum Ltd. (TSX:ELR). Miner. Up three cents, or eight per cent, to 34.5 cents on 18,450,734 shares.
Yamana Gold Inc. (TSX:YRI). Miner. Up 21 cents, or 1.87 per cent, to $11.45 on 11,049,127 shares.
Manulife Financial Corp. (TSX:MFC). Insurer. Down $1.16, or 5.99 per cent, to $18.20 on 10,987,470 shares after recording its first quarterly loss ever since becoming a public company a decade ago. Net loss came to $1.87-billion as it was ravaged by slumping global financial markets.
Teck Cominco (TSX:TCK.B). Miner. Up five cents, or 1.01 per cent, to $5 on 10,057,171 shares.
Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSX:TD). Financial. Down $1.13, or 2.89 per cent, to $37.93 on 7,704,807 shares.
Uranium One Inc. (TSX:UUU). Miner. Down a penny, or 0.45 per cent, to $2.23 on 6,448,520 shares. A Japanese consortium reported earlier in the week that it will pay $270 million for a 19.95 per cent interest in the Toronto-headquartered miner.

TSX Venture Exchange (915.87 up 4.61 points):
Slam Exploration Ltd. (TSXV:SXL). Junior explorer. Up half a cent, or 25 per cent, to 2.5 cents on 8,750,000 shares.
Cloudbreak Resources (TSXV:CDB). Mining. Up half a cent, or 6.67 per cent, to eight cents on 6,253,658 shares.

Companies reporting major news:
Canadian Tire Corp.(TSX:CTC). Retailer. Up $3.45, or 6.76 per cent, to $54.50 on 400 shares. Canada's largest hard goods retailer reported a 23 per cent drop in its fourth-quarter profit. The iconic retailer also said it's worried about the impact of the growing recession and said it won't provide profit and revenue predictions for the year because of the volatile economy.
Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund (TSX:CGX.UN). Theatre operator. Up 19 cents, or $13.95 on 142,217 shares as the movie theatre operator recorded its best year ever. Cineplex said that Hollywood blockbusters boosted theatre attendance in the final 2008 quarter by 16 per cent pushing revenues up at $211.4 million compared to $182.6 million from a year earlier.
EnCana Corp. (TSX:ECA). Energy. Up 29 cents, or 0.55 per cent, to $53.41 on 3,011,569 shares as it posted a flat net income in the last three months of 2008 at $1.08 billion compared to the same 2007 period. The energy giant said it locked in most of its 2009 natural gas production at prices well above their current levels to add a measure of protection against market volatility in the months ahead.

Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSX:SLF). Insurer. Up 15 cents, or 0.65 per cent, to $23.15 on 3,062,480 shares as the firm suffered a 77 per cent decline in fourth-quarter net earnings as a result of deteriorating equity and credit markets.

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Teeing Off on Merrill Lynch

I'm certainly not looking to tar and feather Wall Street. In fact, I've been known to go as far as sticking up for the bonuses that some of those folks take home.

However, I couldn't help but regurgitate a little of my breakfast when I read Dealbreaker's coverage of Merrill Lynch's latest boondoggle in Florida. It seems that Merrill -- which Dealbreaker jokingly refers to as Bank of Amerillwide due to Bank of America's (NYSE: BAC) acquisitions of Merrill Lynch and Countrywide -- took 400-plus brokers to the Ritz Carlton in Orlando for some sun and golfing. Reportedly among the attendees is former Countrywide CEO Angelo Mozilo, casting his sinister orange glow on Florida's lush greens.
As a shareholder of Bank of Amerillwide -- both through direct share ownership and the piece that I've inherited as an American taxpayer -- I know that the firms that have received government cheese still need to get on with business. But come on, you'd think that the brouhaha that erupted over Wells Fargo's (NYSE: WFC) (or Wells Wachargo if we stick with Dealbreaker's nomenclature) planned trip to Las Vegas would have rung some warning bells for Merrill's higher-ups.

Of course, I don't expect this to be the last time that we'll have a chance to gasp at some seemingly over-the-top trip that a TARP-taking bank plans. In a business where wooing clients and keeping employees fat and happy is paramount, we'll likely continue to see Wall Street bumble along, trying to figure out what's truly necessary to conduct business and what's holdover from the time when structured desks thought they could perform alchemy by turning bundles of subprime junk into AAA gold. While it looks like Merrill may be taking a devil-may-care attitude in deciding where the show must go on, Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) has jumped to the other end of the spectrum, paying Las Vegas' Mandalay Bay $600,000 to move its Technology and Internet Conference from Las Vegas to San Francisco -- without any clear benefit to the firm other than avoiding headlines that may pummel it for sending anybody to Las Vegas.

If you're wondering how an investor might benefit from all of this, the collective opinion of The Motley Fool's CAPS community seems to be to avoid these former financial highfliers altogether. Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) has been given a two-star rating (out of five) by the community, whereas Goldman, B of A, and Wells Fargo all carry mediocre three-star ratings. It seems that CAPS members tend to prefer the financial institutions like Umpqua Holdings (Nasdaq: UMPQ), Charles Schwab (Nasdaq: SCHW), and The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE: BNS) -- all of which seem to stay out of the headlines.

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Details of Fees in G.M.A.C. Deal

The General Motors Corporation said yesterday that it expected to receive some $100 million a year in fees under the terms of a deal to sell a majority stake in its financing arm, the General Motors Acceptance Corporation.
G.M., which agreed to sell a 51 percent stake in the finance unit to a consortium led by the hedge fund Cerberus Capital Management, outlined the fee payments and the agreed profit-sharing framework yesterday in a filing with regulators.
G.M. said G.M.A.C. would pay the automaker $75 million annually to be the exclusive provider of incentives related to retail financing.

In addition, G.M. would collect royalty fees of at least $15 million a year from G.M.A.C., the automaker said. G.M. said it expected those royalties, related to sales of warranties and auto service agreements, would be $25 million annually.

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About PIMCO

Who We Are

We are PIMCO, a leading global investment management firm with more than $747 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2008 and more than 1,200 employees in offices in Newport Beach, New York, Singapore, Tokyo, London, Sydney, Munich, Toronto, and Hong Kong.
We are driven investment professionals who are motivated by the opportunity to work with the best in a high-performance, entrepreneurial culture.

We are committed to being the best provider of global investment solutions in the world. By leveraging our thought leadership, and combining topflight talent, cutting edge technology and a long-term investment approach, we work around the globe in an effort to provide our clients with consistently superior returns and client service second to none.
We are dedicated to our clients. From our founding in 1971, PIMCO's focus has been our clients. PIMCO's team of investment professionals dedicated to client servicing allows our portfolio managers to focus on returns. We manage assets for a wide and diverse client base, ranging from central banks to multinational corporations to individual investors. For our institutional clients, we offer privately managed separate accounts as well as mutual funds. We serve retail investors as well, through our pooled mutual fund complexes in the U.S. and Europe.

We are a trendsetter in the fixed income industry, and have been throughout our 37-year history. We were at the forefront in sectors like mortgage-backed securities and emerging market bonds. We remain at the forefront today, pioneering the use of innovative solutions for our clients, including portable alpha and absolute return strategies. Our flat management structure allows us to focus on client needs and respond quickly to an ever-changing external environment.

[Sigma Contract Specification]

Sigma Forex provide the clients with the lowest spreads in Forex Market for the most traded pairs and Forex spots.

Trading Hours
Sigma Dealing Room operate 24/5 from Sunday 23:00 CET until Friday 23.00 CET.
You Can contact us directly: + 41 435 004 145

Margin Requirements
The margin requirements must be respected by Friday at 23:00 GMT and before holidays.
One of our dealers will contact you if you are below your margin requirements at that time. Your margin requirements will depend on the client's account equity. However, if you approach the level where the loss of your open positions approaches the balance of your account, you will be stopped out and your positions will be closed. Stop positions will be executed when there is only around 50% equity of the required margin left in your account.

Streamline Dealing
Clients will not suffer Price Re-Quote that you can buy and sell directly on real-time prices without a request for quote (RFQ).
Clients taking advantage of wrong price quotes in the Market Watch will be requoted.
Sigma Forex effort is taken to ensure correct pricing at all times. However, there are rare circumstances when wrong prices are given.

Stop Order Execution
Volatile market conditions can result in prices gapping, which may prevent the execution of stop orders (sell stop, buy stop, stop loss) at the price you initially requested. However, our dealers strive to execute all stop orders at the price, or failing that, at the best attainable rate the market allows.
Lot Types
Sigma Forex has generated an ultimate account type that allow you to trade Standard, Mini and Micro lot in the same account which is Sigma Account to make it more simple and easy for traders.
Multi Currency Denomination

Sigma offers the ability to set-up accounts denominated in the following currencies:

• United States dollar (USD)
• Euro (EUR)
• Great Britain pound (GBP)
• Australian dollar (AUD)
• Swiss Frank (CHF)

There is no minimum deposit for opening an account, in order to review the spreads, pip value & margin requirement choose the required pair, leverage & the lot type.

If you have any problem regarding Sigma Contract Specification click on the Live Chat button on the right hand side and our customer support staff will help you through the process.