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To quote Dennis Gartman: ” Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to be skidded into sideways, chocolate in one hand, dry martini in the other, tuxedo torn, totally worn out, eyes glazed and screaming at the top of one’s lungs, “Good Lord, What a ride! What’s next???”

And so we will do. Have a great holiday season. We will return January 8th.

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** US MARKETS **
Dow -0,34%; Nasdaq -0,48%; S&P -0,37%; Soxx -1,35%; Russel2k -0,34%; DJAIG
-0,43%; 10yr Bond -0,01%; 10yr Yield 4,55%; Crude future 62,68; Gold 619,3

| Telecom 0,56%| ConsStaples 0,05%| Healthcare -0,2%| Utilities -0,21%|
Financials -0,3%| ConsDisc -0,34%| Industrials -0,51%| Energy -0,57%| Technology
-0,71%| Materials -1,29%

- Evergreen Solar Inc. advanced 29 cents, or 3.8 percent, to $8 in after-hours
trading. German authorities approved a previously announced partnership between
Evergreen, Renewable Energy Corporation ASA and Q-Cells AG, the solar-panel
manufacturer said in a statement distributed by Business Wire.

- Micron Technology Inc. rose 64 cents, or 4.7 percent, to $14.13 in extended
trading. The largest U.S. maker of computer memory chips said first-quarter
profit surged to 25 cents a share, helped by higher prices and an acquisition.
That exceeded the 19-cent average of nine analyst estimates compiled by
Bloomberg.

- Research In Motion Ltd. rose $8, or 6 percent, to $141.70 in extended trading.
The maker of BlackBerry e-mail devices said third-quarter profit excluding some
costs was 95 cents a share. That beat the average 93-cent estimate of analysts
in a Bloomberg survey.

- Today: Personal Income & Spending, PCE Deflator, Durable Goods Orders and UoM
Sentiment.

** ASIAN MARKETS **
Nikkei 0,34%; Kospi 0,07%; HSI 0,26%; Taiwan 0,41%; China 0,03%; India 0,42%;
Thailand 0,55%; Australia 0,29%

- Toyota Forecasts Record Car Sales, Set to Surpass General Motors in 2007
- Asian Stocks Advance on Economic Reports; Toyota Gains on Record Forecast
- Baht Set for Biggest Weekly Loss Since 2002 on New Currency Restrictions
- China’s Government Rejects Plan to Break Up Agricultural Bank, Wen Says
- Hutchison Telecom Shares Rise on Report Vodafone Will Pursue Takeover Bid
- South Korea Has `Unlimited Resources’ to Steady Won, Finance Official Says
- Bank of Japan Shouldn’t Hesitate to Raise Interest Rates, One Member Said
- Euro Set for Second Weekly Gain Versus Yen Before German Inflation Report
- Guangshen Railway Shares Surge on China Debut After Demand Exceeds Supply
- Hyundai Motor Faces Bleak 2007 After Arrest of Chairman, Strikes, Delays

** EUROPE: IN PLAY TODAY **

- Air Liquide SA: The world’s second-biggest maker of industrial gases bought
the 45 percent of Japan Air Gases it didn’t already own from Linde AG for 590
million euros.

- Deutsche Bank AG: Germany’s biggest bank agreed to pay $208 million to end an
investigation by New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer into improper
mutual-fund trading.

- KBC Groep NV: Belgium’s second-largest financial- services company said its
brokerage arm KBC Securities agreed to buy Swiss Capital SA, a Romanian
brokerage, for an undisclosed amount from controlling shareholder Sorin Apostol.

- Telefonica SA: A government regulator ordered Spain’s biggest telephone
company to reduce the rates it charges competitors using its network to provide
high-speed Internet access services.

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** US MARKETS **
Dow 0,24%; Nasdaq -0,25%; S&P 0,22%; Soxx -1,41%; Russel2k 0,01%; DJAIG 0,57%;
10yr Bond 0,04%; 10yr Yield 4,59%; Crude future 63,24; Gold 623,05

| Energy 1,54%| Materials 0,69%| Healthcare 0,55%| Utilities 0,55%| Industrials
0,21%| ConsStaples 0,16%| ConsDisc 0,1%| Financials -0,09%| Technology -0,3%|
Telecom -0,65%

- U.S. Producer Prices Jump Most Since 1974; Housing Starts Exceed Forecasts

- Palm Inc.: The maker of Treo e-mail phones said that excluding some items,
second-quarter earnings were 17 cents a share. That beat the average estimate of
15 cents in a Bloomberg survey of analysts.

- Redback Networks Inc. rose $3.63, or 17 percent, to $24.80 in extended trading
yesterday. Ericsson AB, the world’s largest maker of wireless-network
equipment, agreed to buy Redback for $2.1 billion, or $25 a share.

** ASIAN MARKETS **
Nikkei 1,4%; Kospi 1,02%; HSI 1,43%; Taiwan 0,65%; China 0,04%; India 0,28%;
Thailand 11,69%; Australia 0,82%

- Thai Stocks Rally After Government Scraps Day-Old Investment Restrictions
- Australia Slashes Economic Growth Outlook as Drought Sparks Wheat Shortage
- Abe’s First Budget Shows Japan May Eliminate Deficit Earlier Than Planned
- Paulson China Strategy Attacked as Treasury Declares No Yuan Manipulation
- Yen Slides to Record Low Against Euro as Widening Yield Gap Fuels Outflow
- Asian Stocks Gain After Thailand Scraps Investment Penalties; Toyota Rises
- Total May Spend $8 Billion to Develop Remaining Indonesian Energy Reserves
- Goldman Sells 100 Billion Yen of Bonds in Japan, Biggest Samurai in 2006
- Thai Baht Leads Asian Currencies Higher After Stock Controls Are Reversed

** EUROPE: IN PLAY TODAY **

- ABB Ltd.: The world’s largest builder of electrical networks had its credit
rating raised by Moody’s Investors Service to Baa1 from Baa3.

- ASM International NV: Fursa Alternative Strategies LLC, formerly known as
Mellon HBV, raised its stake in Europe’s second-largest semiconductor-equipment
maker to 8.3 percent and will keep buying shares, Chief Executive Officer Mickey
Harley said in a phone interview.

- Heineken NV: The Dutch brewer that owns brands including Amstel will open a
brewery in Tunisia as part of a joint venture in the country. Heineken will buy
a 49.99 percent stake in Societe de Production et de Distribution des Boissons

- RWE AG: Germany’s second-largest utility has been told by the German cartel
authority to lower its prices for industrial customers, German newspaper
Sueddeutsche Zeitung said, citing a letter from the regulator to RWE.

- Ericsson AB, the world’s largest maker of wireless-network equipment, agreed
to buy Redback Networks Inc. for $2.1 billion, taking on Cisco Systems Inc. in
the market for Internet routers. The cash offer of $25 a share represents an 18
percent premium to Redback’s closing share price of $21.17 yesterday.
Redback, based in San Jose, California, said in a statement yesterday it will
retain its management team and operate as a unit of Stockholm-based Ericsson.
The purchase allows Ericsson to offer routers that telephone carriers can use in
broadband networks handling everything from voice to video. Redback sales are
growing faster than larger rivals Cisco and Juniper Networks Inc.

- Euronext NV shareholders approved a takeover by NYSE Group Inc., clearing the
way for the first trans-Atlantic stock market. About 98.2 percent of Euronext
shareholders who voted electronically approved the acquisition, which is now
valued at 10.9 billion euros ($14.4 billion). NYSE Group investors are
scheduled to vote today in New York. The transaction will be completed in about
three months, Chief Executive Offer Jean- Francois Theodore said.

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** US MARKETS **
Dow 0,23%; Nasdaq 0,14%; S&P 0,11%; Soxx 0,03%; Russel2k -0,19%; DJAIG -0,79%;
10yr Bond 0,03%; 10yr Yield 4,59%; Crude future 63,17; Gold 618

| Materials 0,86%| Industrials 0,67%| Telecom 0,42%| Financials 0,4%| Healthcare
0,38%| ConsStaples 0,22%| Technology 0,12%| Utilities -0,2%| ConsDisc -0,41%|
Energy -1,19%

- Express Scripts Offers $26 Billion for Caremark to Trump CVS Takeover Plan
- Harrah’s Considers $16.7 Billion Texas Pacific, Apollo Offer, People Say
- U.S. Current-Account Deficit Probably Reached Record in the Third Quarter
- Venezuela’s Chavez Leads Push by Oil Producers to Buy Euros, Sell Dollars
- Stock Strategists Alarm Contrarians With Unanimous Call for 2007 Rally
- China’s Restrictions on Foreign Investment May Hurt Growth, Risk Backlash

- Strategists at 12 of the biggest Wall Street firms agree that U.S. stocks will
rally next year. The last year that happened was for 2001, when the Standard &
Poor’s 500 Index dropped 13 percent. Merrill Lynch & Co.’s Richard Bernstein and
Bear Stearns & Co.’s Francois Trahan, two of the most bearish forecasters in the
current four-year rally, both estimate the S&P 500 will surge to a record next
year.

- Today: current account balance & NAHB housing market index.

** ASIAN MARKETS **
Nikkei 0,28%; Kospi 0,8%; HSI 0,13%; Taiwan 1,14%; China 1,42%; India -0,4%;
Thailand -0,35%; Australia 0,27%

- Asian Stocks Climb for Fifth Day on U.S. Rates Outlook; Sony, Samsung Gain
- Guangshen Rail Sells $1.3 Billion of Shares After Demand Overwhelms Supply
- Singapore’s Exports Rise More-Than-Expected 8.1 Percent on Drug Shipments
- Bank of Japan Set to Keep Rates Unchanged Tomorrow, Raise Them Next Month
- LG Electronics Names Nam Yong New Chief Executive, Replacing Kim Ssang Su
- Taiwan Stocks May Catch Up With Asia Gain on Playstation, Wii, PC Demand
- Japanese Bonds Lure JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank as Omi Plans to Reduce Sales
- China’s Restrictions on Foreign Investment May Hurt Growth, Risk Backlash
- Toshiba’s Shares Rise on Record $5.3 Billion China Nuclear Plant Contract

** EUROPE: IN PLAY TODAY **

- Hardman Resources Shareholders Approve $1.1 Billion Takeover by Tullow Oil
- Ireland Faces Power Shortages in Winter If Older Plants Fail, ESRI Says

- Areva SA: The world’s biggest maker of nuclear reactors may decline after
China picked Toshiba Corp.’s Westinghouse Electric Co. for the biggest
international nuclear reactor contract in history, trumping Areva for a project
worth about $5.3 billion.

- Corus Group Plc: Tata Steel Ltd. is unlikely to raise its offer again for U.K.
steelmaker Corus Group Plc, clearing the way for a takeover by Brazil’s Cia.
Siderurgica Nacional SA, the Daily Mail reported Dec. 16, citing people close
to Tata that it didn’t identify.

- Fiat SpA: Italy’s largest carmaker will meet its profit targets by introducing
new models and adding markets, Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne was
quoted as saying in an interview with weekly Borsa&Finanza. The company will
report net income of 3.5 billion euros ($4.6 billion) in 2010 and will
meet targets to sell 1.9 million cars annually that year, Marchionne said in the
interview.

- Hypo Real Estate Holding AG: The commercial property lender said it will book
a tax gain of approximately 60 million euros this year because of changes in
German taxation rules.

- KBC Group NV: The Belgian financial services company acquired a majority stake
in leasing company Romstal Leasing for 70 million euros as it plans to take
advantage of economic growth in Romania.

- Nokia Oyj: The Enterprise Solutions division of the world’s largest mobile
phone maker will return to profit next year, the head of the unit said in an
interview with the Danish newspaper Berlingske Tidende on Dec. 17.

- Vallourec SA, the world’s second-largest maker of tubes used to drill for oil
and gas, may make acquisitions and is large enough to develop on a stand-alone
basis, Le Journal des Finances reported Dec. 16, citing an interview with
Chairman Pierre Verluca.

- Norsk Hydro ASA Monday said that the board of directors of Hydro and Statoil
ASA have agreed to recommend to their shareholders a merger of Hydro’s oil and
gas activities with Statoil, creating the worlds largest offshore operator with
a strengthened platform for future growth.

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** US MARKETS **
Dow 0,81%; Nasdaq 0,88%; S&P 0,87%; Soxx 1,86%; Russel2k 0,69%; DJAIG 0,78%;
10yr Bond 0%; 10yr Yield 4,59%; Crude future 62,64; Gold 626,95

| Energy 1,81%| Utilities 0,28%| ConsDisc 1,09%| Materials 0,82%| Financials
0,75%| Technology 1,06%| Telecom 0,05%| Healthcare 0,56%| ConsStaples 0,4%|
Industrials 0,94%

- Kohlberg Kravis, Permira Agree to Acquire ProSiebenSat.1 for $7.8 Billion
- Clayton, KKR May Bid for Ahold’s $6 Billion Foodservice Unit, People Say
- Bernanke Urges China to Let Yuan Gain, End `Effective Subsidy’ of Exports
- Paulson Says China’s Government Agrees to Increase Currency Flexibility

- Advanced Micro Devices Inc. added $2.54, or 13 percent, to $22.71. The
second-largest maker of personal-computer processors after Intel Corp. (INTC US)
forecast shipments will rise about 20 percent in 2007, twice the rate it
expects the market to grow. The company expects profitability to increase, Chief
Financial Officer Robert Rivet said in a presentation to analysts. Gross margin,
the percentage of sales remaining after deducting costs of production, will be
about 50 percent in 2007, Rivet forecast.

- Bear Stearns Cos. rose $4.07, or 2.6 percent, to $159.96. The securities firm
reported bigger-than-expected profit on increased trading in stocks and bonds
and higher fees from advising on mergers. Fourth-quarter net income was $4 a
share, topping the $3.36 average analyst estimate.

- Today triple witching, CPI & capacity utilization.

** ASIAN MARKETS **
Nikkei 0,51%; Kospi 0,25%; HSI 0,71%; Taiwan 0,78%; China 0,94%; India 0,98%;
Thailand 0,19%; Australia 0,11%

- Business Confidence in Japan Rises to Two-Year High; Spending to Increase
- Japan Tobacco Offers to Acquire U.K.’s Gallaher, Maker of Benson & Hedges
- Paulson Says China’s Government Agrees to Increase Currency Flexibility
- Asian Stocks Advance, Led by Honda, Sony on U.S. Profits, Japan’s Tankan
- Wilmar Shares Surge as Family of Billionaire Kuok Propose Palm Oil Merger
- Bernanke Urges China to Let Yuan Gain in Value and Widen Its Trading Band
- Japan’s Notes Have Biggest Drop in a Month on Rise in Business Confidence
- Sri Lanka Raises Key Interest Rate for Fourth Time This Year on Inflation
- Samsung Electronics, LCD Makers May Face Record Fines in Antitrust Probe
- China Merchants, Modern Terminals Will Increase Stakes In Shenzhen Port

** EUROPE: IN PLAY TODAY **

- Clayton Dubilier & Rice Inc. and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. may make a
joint bid for Royal Ahold NV’s U.S. Foodservice unit, a division valued at as
much as $6 billion. The two buyout firms intend to make an offer next month
for the Columbia, Maryland-based unit, the second-largest U.S. food distributor,
said two people with direct knowledge of the matter. The people spoke on
condition of anonymity because the group’s plans are private.

- Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and Permira Advisers LLP will buy ProSiebenSat.1
Media AG in a transaction that values Germany’s biggest broadcaster at 5.9
billion euros ($7.8 billion) and will help form a pan-European company. The
buyout firms agreed to purchase 50.5 percent of the broadcaster for 3.1 billion
euros from U.S. billionaire Haim Saban’s German Media Partners LP, KKR and
Permira said in an e-mailed statement. As required under German law, the firms
also plan to bid for the company’s remaining stock.

- Romania and Bulgaria clinched membership in the European Union, as the EU set
limits on further enlargement by putting the brakes on entry talks with
Turkey.

- ABN Amro Holding NV, the largest Dutch bank, plans to open its first Islamic
consumer banking branch in Pakistan, making the South Asian nation the test case
of its expansion into financial services based on Koranic law.

- TUI AG, Europe’s largest travel company, plans to cut 3,600 jobs at its
tourism division, omit payment of a dividend this year and sell assets to rein
in costs and pay back debt to offset slowing earnings growth.

- E.ON AG: Europe’s second-biggest utility expects to post a one-time gain of
about 1.2 billion euros this year after a change in German tax law. RWE AG
Germany’s second-largest utility expects to post a one-time gain of about 600
million euros this year after a change in German tax law.

- Getronics NV: The largest Dutch computer-services provider announced a cash
tender offer for all or some of its outstanding 100 million-euro 5.5 percent
unsubordinated convertible bonds due 2008.

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