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By Alix Steel, TheStreet

 

Gold prices hit a five-month high, reaching $1,225.20, as investors questioned whether Europe's financial aid plan will be enough to save the euro.

 

Gold for June delivery was rising $21, or 1.6%, to $1,221.90 an ounce at the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The US dollar index was also rising 0.1 to $84.25, while the euro was little changed at $1.27 against the dollar. The spot gold price today was up $16.50, according to Kitco's gold index.

 

Gold prices could top their record of $1,227 an ounce as investors remain wary of the recently announced bailout initiative for eurozone countries.

 

By David MacDougall, TheStreet

 

The US stock market is ricocheting, jumping 4.4% yesterday after declining 6.4% last week. With a bailout of southern Europe's sovereign debt, a fragile American economy and an overheating China, expect more of the same.

 

The situation calls for dominant US companies with growth potential and stable finances. In other words, Cisco (CSCO).

 

Business spending is a smaller part of the American economy than consumer spending is, but it's highly variable, making it more influential. Because of that, stocks such as Cisco are a bellwether for their industry and the economy as a whole. What's good for Cisco is good for America. We'll see how good that is tomorrow, when the world's biggest maker of computer-networking equipment reports earnings for the three months through May 1, giving investors a glimpse of the beginning of most companies' second-quarter results.

 

The debate rages: Do we need the euro to advance, for Europe's economies to get strong and for Greece and Spain to come roaring back? Or do we just not need them to collapse?

 

I think the latter is the issue. We just need not to be so Europe-focused. Of course, no sooner do we become less Europe-focused than we become China-focused -- and we don't like what we see.

 

China's bad. It has been bad. It has not yet bent to the will of the government, so the tightening will continue. I think that the market deserves to sell off on China after the run we have just had. But I continue to believe that the European situation has stabilized and I would rather have to deal with Chinese braking than euro breaking.

 

 

I almost bought American Tower Corp. (AMT) for Jubak's Picks on Friday, but the stock was hovering just below its 200-day average and I was afraid that a continuation of the European debt crisis would push the stock below that support level. 

Instead of more crisis, however, Monday has brought a huge relief rally based on a $1 trillion rescue plan worked out by European Union leaders over the weekend. 

So I missed what I believe is the local bottom on Friday, but on Monday, with Friday's risk reduced, the stock is still a great buy, in my opinion.

 

Up to now, it's been nearly impossible to watch a movie at home that is still in its first run at theaters. Legally, at least.

But that could change in the future. Hollywood studios won a key regulatory ruling Friday allowing them to control the inputs of consumer home entertainment devices, and thus digitally pipe movies into the home while they're still in theaters.

• Video: Who controls the Web?

Approving a request by the Motion Picture Association of America, the Federal Communications Commission gave Hollywood studios a waiver on laws governing "selectable output technology."

 

Apple's iPhone has been kicked to third place in the smartphone wars. A new report says that phones powered by Google's (GOOG) Android system are now outselling iPhones.

Android phones rocketed to the No. 2 position for smartphones sold in the U.S. last quarter, the NPD Group reports. Android phones nabbed 28% of the market compared with 21% for the iPhone.

The leader, of course, is still the BlackBerry line by Research In Motion(RIMM), which had a 36% market share.

 

By Michael Brush

Investors cheered Europe's "shock and awe" proposal to fix the Greek debt problems this morning, and rightly so. Near term, at least, the risk that defaults on government debt will wound European banks has been reduced.

 

But Europe isn't really out of the Black Forest just yet -- as Europe's "shock and awe" plan still leaves plenty of ammo for the bears.

• Video: Details on the EU bailout deal

So despite today's rally, there's still a good chance that the European debt issues come back and nag the U.S. stock markets -- if bears manage to spread more fear by harping on any of the following three themes:

 

By Michael Baron, TheStreet

 

The unusual trading in Procter & Gamble (PG) stock believed to be at the center of the market's most volatile moments on Thursday is thought to have originated from Terra Nova Financial (TNFG), a Chicago-based provider of prime brokerage and clearing services, a person familiar with the situation told TheStreet.

 

Terra Nova issued a statement late Sunday saying it's "not aware of any link between Terra Nova and the unusual trading activity and wide market price changes" in P&G's stock. There is no indication of wrongdoing on Terra Nova's part at this time.

 

The exact circumstances of the trading action on Thursday are still unclear but sponsored direct-market access -- the practice of broker-dealers essentially leasing their credentials out to non-broker-dealer customers so they can trade directly with an exchange -- is said to have played a central role.

 

In a recent Wall Street Journal interview, top Nike (NKE) executive Mark Parker talked about his ambitious goal to boost global sales 40% by 2015. His strategy? Focus on China, India and Brazil and connect with these emerging markets’ emerging middle classes. And most interesting of all, Nike is planning this move under brands that don't bear its trademark "swoosh."

Nike is looking to build on strong momentum in the last year or so. Shares are up about 5% as of early this morning as the market opened higher, bringing the stock’s YTD returns to about 13% while the market is up by only 3% since January 1. Shares are trading at a new all-time high of about $75, considerably above the high $60s pricing we saw before the financial crisis.

So can will this global focus mean even bigger success for Nike, or is it a gamble that could cause the stock to give back what it has gained recently?

 

By Jim Woods, InvestorPlace.com.

Several years ago, no investor needed convincing that General Electric (GE) was a stock to sell. In fact, for most of this century GE stock shares were dead money. After General Electric peaked at around $60 a share in late 2000, the stock moved steadily downward before finding a comfortable range between $25 and $35 for the most of the decade.

But after the financial crisis, things got even worse. During the height of the global economic meltdown, the stock was one of the biggest dogs in the park -- with a severe flea infestation. In March 2009, GE stock hit a historic intraday low of just $5.73. With shares cruising under $17 at the opening bell today, some bulls are saying General Electric is a buy because it has bottomed out and will move back up to its old $30 range.

Don't believe it. GE isn't growing fast enough right now, and there are more reasons to sell this stock than to buy or hold. Here are the top 3 reasons:

 

They went nuclear. They went nuclear against the euro opponents, against those leaning against Greece and Spain and Portugal. No more conventional arms. Nearly $1 trillion of firepower designed to do one thing: end it, end it all. A truly impressive show. It's one of the most amazing displays of force I have ever seen in the marketplace.

 

Why did the European Union do this? Why did the IMF do this? Why did the heads of the major European governments do this?

 

The riots.

 

 

On April 27 I decided to hold onto shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) for a little longer. I thought the risk was relatively small and the upside to my target of 17% provided enough reward.

Well, the world looks significantly different two weeks later. 

Risk has gone up, and the reward for investing in Taiwan Semiconductor has gone down. The Taiwanese stock market has shown itself very susceptible to anything that roils China's markets, and I think the direction of China's stock market still points down for another few months at least, and the volatility of all emerging markets is on the rise.

 

Greece's debt woes are continuing to dominate the news and roil the U.S. markets. But while the problems in Europe -- and America's own debt problems -- may provide some stiff headwinds, the U.S. economy is continuing to show strength. 

Somewhat lost in the Greek hubbub, for example, was news that the U.S. added close to 300,000 jobs in April, nearly doubling the much-welcomed 162,000 figure from March.

 

The turnaround we've seen at home hasn't been lost on some of the top strategists I follow, including Warren Buffett. In an interview with CNBC this week, Buffett said that he's seen "real strength" in the economy over the past couple months. 

 

Facebook is developing a new feature that lets you announce your location as a status update. The company has never been one to let an advertising opportunity go by, so it's tying the feature to marketers.

One of the first partners to sign up for the service is McDonald's (MCD), reports AdAge.com. McDonald's is working on technology that lets users check in to Facebook from its restaurants. That person's post would feature a McDonald's product, such as an Angus Quarter Pounder.

A few days later, the user could get a McDonald's coupon to use at another visit.