Searching For Direction

Good morning. Premarket futures are currently negative but have been volatile throughout the morning as investors search for any reason to buy stocks.

Last night the U.S. House approved a $14 billion dollar loan package for the auto industry but it may face tough opposition in the Senate. A final vote is scheduled for tomorrow.

In other news, jobless claims rose 58K to 573K last week, import prices fell 6.7%, a larger than expected trade deficit was reported, retail sales post a big drop in November, concerns continue to mount over the charge-off rates among credit-card issuers, and finally while foreclosure activity decreased 7% in November, RealtyTrac thinks is is simply a temporary lull before another foreclosure storm. Bottom line, not a lot of great news out there this morning, but that hasn't matter much of late.

Premarket gainers: AMLN, VVUS, CPE, HWD, GEOY, NR, GOLD, BIDU, SMBL, SSRI, PAAS, MKTAY, EMKR, REXX, TOT, EL, FRED, BRY, MMR, HMC, & HAS.

Premarket losers: URBN, CIEN, EGLE, DRYS, FMCN, AAUK, EMKR, GIL, LULU, JASO, IBKC, ACGY, ZRAN, CENX, CBT, MT, AU, AAUK, HL, SWK, HBI, & AMR.

We have nothing of significance on today's economic calendar and we'll see if the market can break free of its relatively tight trading range this week. Believe it or not, we're still in overbought territory and while the positive bias may continue, the upside should be limited.

Have a terrific Thursday!