Commodities Ended the Week with Light Changes –Recap December 23

XCSFDHG46767FHJHJF

DG365FD46564GFH654FU898 Major commodities prices didn’t move on the last day of the week in the same direction as gold price slightly slipped, while silver price moderately inclined; crude oil prices slightly rose, while natural gas (Henry Hub) prices sharply declined. The news of the gains in the U.S. core durable goods in November and the rise in the new home sales may have helped push up crude oil prices and American stock markets. Major currencies also moved in different direction and the Euro and GBP slightly fell against the U.S dollar, while AUD and Yen slightly appreciated against the U.S. dollar. Here is a summary of the price developments of precious metals and energy commodities for December 23rd: Precious Metals Prices: Gold price slightly declined on Friday by 0.29% and reached $1,606.00; Silver price on the other hand increased by 0.13% to reach $29.08. During December, gold price declined by 8.2%, and silver price by 11.34%.

5 Aerospace and Defense Stocks to Buy

Over the past year, Americas military might has proven successful in fighting
the war on terror. Despite the proposed defense cuts and mishaps over captured
spy drones in Iran, contracts are still in abundance, and faith in our defensive
capabilities remains strong. I watch more than 5,000 publicly traded companies
with my Portfolio Grader tool, ranking companies by a number of fundamental and
quantitative measures. And this week, I have five aerospace and defense buys.
Here they are, in alphabetical order. Each one of these stocks gets an "A"
or "B" according to my research, meaning it is a "strong buy" or
"buy." Boeing (NYSE: BA ) works with commercial jetliners, military
aircraft, satellites, missile defense, human space flight and launch systems and
services. In 2011, BA stock has posted a gain of 12.5%. BA gets a "B" for
operating margin growth, a "B" for earnings momentum, a "B" for earnings
growth, an "A" for its ability to exceed the consensus earnings estimates on
Wall Street, an "A" for the magnitude in which earnings projections have
increased over the past month, a "B" for cash flow and an "A" for return
on equity in my Portfolio Grader tool. For more information, view my complete
analysis of BA stock . Goodrich (NYSE: GR ) supplies aerospace components,
systems and services to its customers. Year-to-date, GR stock is up 40%,
compared to a gain of just 4% for the Dow Jones. GR stocks get a "B" for
sales growth, a "B" for operating margin growth, a "B" for earnings
growth, a "B" for the magnitude in which earnings projections have increased
over the past month and an "A" for return on equity in my Portfolio Grader
tool. For more information, view my complete analysis of GR stock . Honeywell
International (NYSE: HON ) is a diversified technology and manufacturing company
based in New Jersey. HON has posted a modest gain of 2% since the start of 2011.
HON stock gets an "A" for earnings momentum, a "B" for its ability to
exceed the consensus earnings estimates on Wall Street, a "B" for the
magnitude in which earnings projections have increased over the past month and
an "A" for return on equity in my Portfolio Grader tool. For more
information, view my complete analysis of HON stock . Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT
) researches, designs, develops, manufactures, integrates and sustains advanced
technology systems and products. Compared to small gains by the broader markets,
LMT has posted a gain of 13.5% in 2011. LMT stock gets a "B" for earnings
growth, a "B" for earnings momentum, a "B" for its ability to exceed the
consensus earnings estimates on Wall Street, a "B" for the magnitude in
which earnings projections have increased over the past month, a "B" for
cash flow and an "A" for return on equity in my Portfolio Grader tool. For
more information, view my complete analysis of LMT stock . Raytheon (NYSE: RTN )
focuses on defense, homeland security and other government markets. A modest
gain of 1% ensures RTN a place on this defense stocks list. RTN stock gets a
"B" for earnings momentum, a "B" for the magnitude in which earnings
projections have increased over the past month, an "A" for cash flow and an
"A" for return on equity in my Portfolio Grader tool. For more information,
view my complete analysis of RTN stock . Get more analysis of these picks and
other publicly traded stocks with Louis Navellier's Portfolio Grader tool, a
100% free stock rating tool that measures both quantitative buying pressure and
eight fundamental factors.

Regional Banks Coming Back to Life

SPDR KBW Regional Banking ETF (NYSE: KRE ) This exchange-traded fund (ETF)
replicates the performance of the U.S. regional banking sector. Since February,
the regional banks have been in a sharp decline as they mirrored the economic
outlook of theUnited States, the poor real estate market, and European contagion
that has had an impact on the larger banks. But it appears that because of their
limited exposure and recent improvement in many sections of theUnited States,
the sector has come back to life. Yesterday, KRE broke its long-term downtrend
by closing above its bearish resistance line and 200-day moving average. Thus,
its long-term trend is now up and its 12-month target is $30-plus. Traders
should also consider profitable banks for active trades. Next week, I will
review several favorites including BB&T (NYSE: BBT ), SunTrust (NYSE: STI ),
Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ: FITB ) and KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY ). Click to Enlarge

Commodities Ended the Week with Light Changes –Recap December 23

Major commodities prices didnt move on the last day of the week in the same
direction as gold price slightly slipped, while silver price moderately
inclined; crude oil prices slightly rose, while natural gas (Henry Hub) prices
sharply declined. The news of the gains in the U.S. core durable goods in
November and the rise in the new home sales may have helped push up crude oil
prices and American stock markets. Major currencies also moved in different
direction and the Euro and GBP slightly fell against the U.S dollar, while AUD
and Yen slightly appreciated against the U.S. dollar. Here is a summary of the
price developments of precious metals and energy commodities for December 23rd:
Precious Metals Prices: Gold price slightly declined on Friday by 0.29% and
reached $1,606.00; Silver price on the other hand increased by 0.13% to reach
$29.08. During December, gold price declined by 8.2%, and silver price by
11.34%.

What We Can Realistically Expect From the Market’s Latest Buy Signal

Better-than-expected economic data helped stocks close a light-volume,
pre-holiday session with modest gains yesterday. Initial jobs claims decreased,
the Conference Board's index of leading economic indicators reported the
seventh straight monthly advance, and the University of Michigan consumer
sentiment index showed that consumer confidence was improving. European markets
were higher, and our markets followed with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up
62 points to 12,170, up 0.51%; the S&P 500 rose 10 points to 1,254, up 0.83%;
and the Nasdaq gained 21 points, closing at 2,599, up 0.83%. The NYSE traded 773
million shares and the Nasdaq crossed 387 million. Advancers led decliners on
both exchanges by just under 3-to-1. Click to Enlarge The S&P 500 remains the
focus of most technicians, and despite yesterday's 10-point gain, has yet to
successfully attack its intermediate bearish resistance line or its 200-day
moving average at 1,259. Therefore, it is still in a sideways consolidation.
Resistance lines are seldom broken on low-volume, pre-holiday sessions and most
likely won't break before January despite the buy signal from MACD. However,
if the S&P 500 does break these immediate barriers, it will enter a target zone
between 1,259 and 1,325, and that would give long traders a quick profit. (In
the past week, my colleague Joe Burns closed a BIDU trade for a 158% profit, a
FSLR trade for 143.75%, and a GOOG trade for 80%. Get in on his new trades now.
) But don't expect a major breakout through the May high. That should take
much more work and many more months to accomplish. Click to Enlarge Until May,
the Nasdaq was the leader of a market that appeared to be charging ahead. But
since then, it has badly faltered, has dragged the broad indices lower, and is
still in a flat trend with a bearish bias. The 2,600 line is its first barrier,
and it closed just below it yesterday. But for it to take on a more positive
tone, it also needs to break above its 50-day moving average at 2,617 and
finally pierce its 200-day moving average at 2,662. Click to Enlarge But there
may be hope for the Nasdaq in that an anchor to its progress, the financial
group, is showing new life as evidenced by the Financial Select Sector SPDR
(NYSE: XLF ). Yesterday's drive and close above its 50-day moving average and
a new MACD buy signal are in response to better economic numbers. With over 10%
of the Nasdaq's make-up in financials, a full breakout of the sector could,
with time, propel the index through the most stubborn barriers. Todays Trading
Landscape To see a list of the companies reporting earnings today, click here .
For a list of this weeks economic reports due out, click here .

Top 10 Best-Performing U.S.-Listed Chinese Stocks Year-to-Date: CHU, MPEL, FTLK, NTES, BIDU, SPRD, SNP, CHA, SSW, SNDA (Dec 23, 2011)

Below are the top 10 best-performing U.S.-listed Chinese stocks year-to-date.
Stocks with very low market caps are excluded. China Unicom (Hong Kong) Limited
(ADR) (NYSE:CHU) is the 1st best-performing stock year-to-date in this segment
of the market. It is up 48.3% year-to-date, and it is up 41.7% for the last 52
weeks. Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd (ADR) (NASDAQ:MPEL) is the 2nd
best-performing stock year-to-date in this segment of the market. It is up 47.6%
year-to-date, and it is up 47.8% for the last 52 weeks. Funtalk China Holdings
Ltd. (NASDAQ:FTLK) is the 3rd best-performing stock year-to-date in this segment
of the market. It is up 26.6% year-to-date, and it is down 8.9% for the last 52
weeks. NetEase.com Inc (ADR) (NASDAQ:NTES) is the 4th best-performing stock
year-to-date in this segment of the market. It is up 24.5% year-to-date, and it
is up 24.8% for the last 52 weeks. Baidu.com, Inc. (ADR) (NASDAQ:BIDU) is the
5th best-performing stock year-to-date in this segment of the market. It is up
19.7% year-to-date, and it is up 15.0% for the last 52 weeks. Spreadtrum
Communications, Inc (ADR) (NASDAQ:SPRD) is the 6th best-performing stock
year-to-date in this segment of the market. It is up 16.0% year-to-date, and it
is up 14.2% for the last 52 weeks. China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (ADR)
(NYSE:SNP) is the 7th best-performing stock year-to-date in this segment of the
market. It is up 11.1% year-to-date, and it is up 11.9% for the last 52 weeks.
China Telecom Corporation Limited (ADR) (NYSE:CHA) is the 8th best-performing
stock year-to-date in this segment of the market. It is up 10.9% year-to-date,
and it is up 12.9% for the last 52 weeks. Seaspan Corporation (NYSE:SSW) is the
9th best-performing stock year-to-date in this segment of the market. It is up
9.2% year-to-date, and it is up 5.4% for the last 52 weeks. Shanda Interactive
Entertainment Ltd ADR (NASDAQ:SNDA) is the 10th best-performing stock
year-to-date in this segment of the market. It is up 1.0% year-to-date, and it
is up 0.5% for the last 52 weeks.

4 Platinum/Palladium ETFs That Could Glitter in 2012

XCSFDHG46767FHJHJF

tdp2664 InvestorPlace Investors looking to cash in on precious metals can look beyond the lure of gold and silver — platinum and palladium have become new objects of their affection. Investing in "P&P" used to be as difficult as investing in any other physical asset, such as gold or silver. But exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have emerged as a more convenient way to gain exposure to these commodities. Platinum and palladium ETFs have traded on European exchanges for years but are relative newcomers to U.S. markets. Several funds were launched within the past couple of years, so they don't bring the extra assurance of a long track record. But to all precious metals, there is a time and a season. These twin white metals (they're actually "sister" elements in the platinum family) soared last year as nightmares of the 2009 supply glut gave way to a resurgence of demand for both commodities. But the March earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in Japan interrupted their comeback season. A little background: Platinum is the upgrade to gold in jewelry, but palladium is important to jewelry, too.