Indices
Dow - 14.49 at 10,456.02  I   Nasdaq + 0.98 at 1,990.22  I  S&P 500 + 0.82 at 1,172.53 

Market Wrap
(Briefing):

The market showed resilience in the face of heightened inflation fears but a collapse in oil prices and falling bond yields were only enough to close the indices in mixed fashion... The wording in yesterday's FOMC policy statement, which noted signs of inflation for the first time in more than four years, was one issue of concern... But when rising consumer prices in the form a disappointing CPI report this morning merely reiterated the Fed's statement of a pick up in inflationary pressures, overall sentiment was more than cautious all day as the possibility of more aggressive Fed tightening loomed... Feb CPI rose 0.4% (consensus +0.3%), the most in four months, while core CPI, which excludes food and energy costs, rose 0.3% (consensus +0.2%)... However, while bearish breadth figures and split industry leadership underpinned market action, a 4.0% decline in oil prices provided a respectable level of support for buyers looking for bargains in an arguably oversold market... Crude oil prices recorded their largest one-day decline in 2005, falling $2.22 to $53.81/bbl following the largest build in crude oil supplies since July 2002... Crude oil inventories rose 4.1 mln barrels (consensus +2.0 mln), as refineries increased imports in preparation for meeting summer gasoline demand, but gasoline inventories fell 4.1 mln barrels (consensus -1.5 mln) and distillates declined 2.8 mln barrels (consensus -1.2 mln)... To wit, investors tiptoed through equities amid concerns that high gas prices could restrain discretionary spending... Energy (-1.7%) paced the way lower while interest-rate sensitive areas like Utility (-0.8%) and Homebuilding (-1.2%) were also some of the hardest hit, as yields flirted with 8-month lows following the disappointing CPI data... Treasurys regained their footing late in the day and closed near session highs as the benchmark 10-year note finished up 10 ticks to yield 4.60%... Higher rates, however, were exactly what the dollar needed, as the greenback strengthened against the euro (1.2988) amid raised inflationary pressures and an unexpected decline in business confidence in Germany... Also gaining ground was Semiconductor, which paced technology gains amid Applied Materials' (AMAT 16.21 +0.40) approved $4.0 bln share buyback program and dividend declaration as well as upbeat Q1 revenue guidance from Lattice Semiconductor (LSCC 5.22 +0.13)... Health Care (+1.3) enjoyed its largest gain in 2005, led in part by gains in Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY 25.32 +0.61), which said it would buy back up to $2.5 bln in debt, while modest strength in Banking and Insurance kept Financial (+0.1%) afloat... Telecom Services (+1.1%) also closed higher after reports suggested MCI (MCIP 23.27 +0.30) will mull over Qwest's (Q 3.80 +0.03) sweetened $8.45 bln bid... Airline (+2.0%) also surged but Transportation as a whole failed to take advantage of falling oil prices... The sector closed lower after a warning from trucking company Covenant Transport (CVTI 16.81 -2.42) that Q1 results would miss expectations trumped mediocre Q1 guidance from Yellow Roadway (YELL 58.82 -0.54)... Separately, while Feb existing home sales declined 0.4% to a 6.79 mln annual rate (consensus 6.7 mln), suggesting flat home resales, housing demand continues to run at high levels...NYSE Adv/Dec 797/2539...NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1098/2010.

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Trade system guidelines (edited):
Only available to Newsletter Subscribers.

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Today's Picks - March 24, 2005

1.   GILD - Gilead Sciences

Entry Date	Exit Date	Position	Entry Price	Target Price	Stop Price	Max P/L
03-24		Long	Above 15 high	Sell 1/2 once risk covered	Below LOD at time of setup
	* Please Note: If the stock gaps down at the open do not enter the trade unless it trades above 36.07

2.   CVS - CVS Corp

Entry Date	Exit Date	Position	Entry Price	Target Price	Stop Price	Max P/L
03-24		Long	Above 15 high	Sell 1/2 once risk covered	Below LOD at time of setup
	* Please Note: If the stock gaps down at the open do not enter the trade unless it trades above 53.39

3.   CMTL - Comtech Telecommunications

Entry Date	Exit Date	Position	Entry Price	Target Price	Stop Price	Max P/L
03-24		Long	Above 15 high	Sell 1/2 once risk covered	Below LOD at time of setup
	* Please Note: If the stock gaps down at the open do not enter the trade unless it trades above 49.10

4.   BRY - Berry Petroleum

Entry Date	Exit Date	Position	Entry Price	Target Price	Stop Price	Max P/L
03-24		Long	Above 15 high	Sell 1/2 once risk covered	Below LOD at time of setup
	* Please Note: If the stock gaps down at the open do not enter the trade unless it trades above 49.80

5.   ACI - Arch Coal

Entry Date	Exit Date	Position	Entry Price	Target Price	Stop Price	Max P/L
03-24		Long	Above 15 high	Sell 1/2 once risk covered	Below LOD at time of setup
	* Please Note: If the stock gaps down at the open do not enter the trade unless it trades above 43.23

6.   AMX - America Movil Sa

Entry Date	Exit Date	Position	Entry Price	Target Price	Stop Price	Max P/L
03-24		Short	Below 15 min low	Cover 1/2 once risk covered	Above HOD at time of setup
	* Please Note: If the stock gaps up at the open do not enter the trade unless it trades below 50.28

7.   WFT - Weatherford Intl

Entry Date	Exit Date	Position	Entry Price	Target Price	Stop Price	Max P/L
03-24		Short	Below 15 min low	Cover 1/2 once risk covered	Above HOD at time of setup
	* Please Note: If the stock gaps up at the open do not enter the trade unless it trades below 55.73

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EOD = End of day.
LOD = Low of day.
PDC = Previous Day's Close.
S/R = Support/Resistance.
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