Snapshot 12/27/2006

American Stock Exchange equity volume 41,946,272.

VanEck

GDX Composite 306,000 Amex 137,200 45%.

EVX Composite 4,600 Amex 900 20%.

SLX Composite 6,500 Amex 5,200 80%.

SSGA

RWX (International Reit) Composite 118,000 Amex 111,900 95%.

PowerShares PGF (Preferred) Composite 36,400 Amex 11,600 32%.

Claymore 7 (older) Composite 1,296,200 Amex  527,700 41%.

Bric Composite 338,900 Amex 146,000 43%.

UCR (up oil) Comp. 792,900 Amex 291,900.

Claymore 4 (new) Composite 76,900 Amex 49,000 64%.

DEF Comp. 59,700 Amex 49,000.

ProShares 12 Composite 3,173,800 Amex 1,080,300 34%.

NASDAQ 10 PowerShares 10,949.

WisdomTree 30 Composite 358,200 NYSE 285,600 80%.

Rydex 9 Composite  6,600 Amex 5,300.

Christmas and the Creche.

A friend related to me his experience on Xmas Eve when his nephew(5 months old) was tapped to be the baby Jesus in our local church’s annual pageant. The baby performed well ( meaning he was silent). This brought back the memory of Christmas 1978. My younger son (then 6 months old) was chosen from many to be the baby Jesus in the same pageant. The current pageant is held on Christmas Eve. Twenty eight years ago the pageant was held at 5 p.m. on a random evening sometime in the pre Christmas week.

In late November we received the call that Nick had been chosen. In retrospect we believe he was chosen because he was evidently unable to talk of even make many noises. This was a blessing as a crying baby Jesus disrupts the service. We dutifully marked the date on our kitchen calendar. On the key date at about 8:30, I discovered a phone message. “Where are you? Nick is supposed to be the baby Jesus and the service starts in ten minutes.”  We had totally forgotten. That year they used a plastic doll as the baby Jesus. He/it(it was a girl doll) was silent for the entire service.  Maybe we were the reason they moved the pageant to Xmas eve. The same year they were short one King (my son Steve).

Snapshot 12/26/2006

Slow day. Amex Equity Volume 37,514,596

Of Note: An outfit called R3X Global Capital Group has offered to buy the American Stock Exchange-$606,000,000 all in. Letter from Craig Mulch at R3X to the membership. Appears to be a backdoor appeal after what we assume is a rebuff from the Exchange management. This might be the reason seats were trading last week, but I think it is unrelated. Maybe this gets the Amex in play.

Of Note: Options volume of 6.5 million contracts. Not bad for a slow day. Market share numbers are interesting but probably an anomaly.

ARCA/NYSE 27.68%

Philly              23.28%

CBOE             20.07%

ISE                 19.50% (usually the big winner).

Should revert to form tomorrow.

NASDAQ ProShares 10  4,003.

WisdomTree(NYSE) 30 Products Composite 347,300 NYSE 282,200 81%.

VanEck

3 Products Composite 443,600 shares Amex 136,600

Claymore 7(old) Composite 312,200 Amex 190,200.

Claymore 4(new)Composite 16,100 Amex 11,700.

SSGA RWX  Composite 182,700 Amex 163,500

Appears the assets are very sticky. Few sellers. Amex Mkt Shares 89.49%.  

Golf Carts and Grandmothers

In 1987 when my first born son was 12, we were visiting my mother in Rockport , Massachusetts. My Dad had recently died and my mother was looking for things to fill her day. She had always been a skilled and avid tennis player and I guess she figured that with the hand- eye skill down pat, that golf might be a possibility.

My son granted that he would play if he could drive the cart, so we trekked off to the local course. When checking in, the Pro made a big issue of the fact that one had to be 15 years old to drive a cart. I acknowledged that I understood, winked at my 12 year old and we set off on the first hole. As soon as we were out of sight of the Pro Shop, (400 yards and 30 swats by my mother), we switched seats and my son drove.

On the fifth hole, we finished up and moved to the sixth tee. My son realized that he had left a club back on the fifth green. He hopped in the cart with my mother in the passenger seat, drove across the small bridge over a drainage ditch, and hung a right towards the green. The drainage ditch was immediately on his right. The club was just off the green and maybe 8 feet from the ditch which was roughly 5 feet deep and half filled with muddy, goose dung filled water. My son evidently thought he could make a moving pickup of the club by leaning out of the cart and grabbing the it as he kept moving. Because of his lack of stature, as he leaned down to grab the club with his left hand, his right hand was pulled down while gripping the steering wheel (physics). Naturally the cart veered to the right and the two right wheels went over the edge of the drainage ditch flipping the cart upside down. My son fell out on the left side and landed on grass. My mother fell out into the drainage ditch landing on her side. Fortunately the cart did not land on her as she would have been pinned and almost certainly have drowned. I heard the yells and ran back across the bridge. I jumped into the ditch (almost waist deep) helped my mother up and started trying to lift the cart upright. I ordered my son into the ditch and the two of us struggled to correct the situation. After several minutes of trying we were surprised to hear a deep male voice from above ” had a little trouble I guess.” It was the course Ranger. Then he asked the ultimate question. “Who was driving?” Several things passed quickly through my mind, most importantly the warning that you had to be 15 to drive. I quickly answered “I was driving.” After a 5 minute chewing out, we grabbed our bags and walked back to the parking lot dripping mud. I cursed my son while my mother wondered what the repurcussions might be since she lived in the town while we would return to New Jersey the next day.

There were no repercussions. For the last 20 years this incident has been part of the family folklore. “When Stevie tried to kill his grandmother.”  My mother never played golf again and I avoided playing that course for the next ten years until I heard that the Pro had left. What we do to protect our children.

Snapshot 12/22/2006 Friday

Amex Equity Volume 37,899,772 shares.

VanEck

Evx Composite 9,800 Amex 9,600

SLX Comp. 900 A,ex 500

GDX Comp 611,300 Amex 129,600

SSGA

RWX Composite 169,800 Amex 130,100

PGF Comp. 33,000 Amex 5,500

Claymore 7 (old) 28,700 Amex 19,200

Claymore 4 (new) Comp 28,700 Amex 19,200

DEF (Defender) Comp. 20,200 Amex 13,200

CSD (spin off) Comp 800 Amex 500

ProShares 12 Comp. 5,800,500 AMEX 1,409,900

NASDAQ PowerShares 10 Comp.122,849

WisdomTree 30 NYSE Comp. 426,400 NYSE 379,900.

Very large number of new ETFs hitting the market in January. More ProShares downside and double downside stuff which intrigues the Bear in me.

Snapshot 12/21/2006 Thursday

American Stock Exchange Equity Volume 45,857,840 shares.

VanEck

EVX Composite 1000 Amex 700

SLX Composite 22,300 Amex 6,900

GDX Composite 1,078,700 Amex 284,100 26%.

SSGA

RWX Composite 353,800 Amex 237,700 67%.

Continues to do very well. Sticky assets/few sellers.

PGF PowerShares Preferred Composite 42,400 Amex 2,400 6%.

Claymore 7 products Composite 312,100 Amex 166,000 53%.

Claymore 4 (new) Composite 83,900 Amex 68,200 81%.

BRIC Comp 151,200 Amex 91,000 60%.

DEF (new) Composite 57,900 Amex 45,800 79%.

CSD (spin off) Comp 18,100 Amex 16,500 91%.

ProShares 12 products Comp.4,696,300 Amex 1,149,600 24%.

WisdomTree 30 NYSE Composite 586,500 NYSe 459,600 78%.

12/20 and 12/21

Will catch up on Thursday and Friday Stats tomorrow morning.

Snapshot 12/20/2006

Amex Equity Volume 47,822,384

Star of the day:

RWX from SSGA International REIT

First day yesterday at 50,000 shares. Today 113,871 shares (tape reads 110,100-does not include odd lots which totalled 3,771 shares. Similiar to yesterday-high number of odd lots indicates retail and therefore sticky assets).

VanEck

EVX Comp. 6,700 Amex 5,300

SLX Comp 7,200 Amex 5,000

GDX 1,061,400 Composite-great day.

Claymore (4 new) Composite 111,800  Amex 60,200 98,500 in DEF which is very strong.

Claymore (old 7) Composite 263,400 Amex 143,300

BRIC robust at 128,100 shares

PowerShares (new 3-today) all three did well with PKW (BuyBack) the star.

PKW Comp 98,000 Amex 48,200

PGZ   Comp 10,400 Amex 8,300 (Agressive Growth)

PVM Comp 13,300 Amex 10,300

ProShares

Composite 3,942,400 Amex 962,300 slower day.

QID the strongest volume at 2.5 million shares

PowerShares NASDAQ 10 15,840

WisdomTree 30 Composite 331,300 NYSE 279,200 shares 84%.

These products continue to gain traction. interesting firm to watch in 2007.

Quickie:

VanEck SLX traded 18,100 shares on the day-major uptick. EVX 4,900-also a plus.

RWX International REIT from SSGA-52,000 shares day one and they look like sticky assets. Tomorrow will tell the tale. Interesting factoid-SSGA related interview on CNN with Maria B. and the volume almost doubled in a ten minute period.Impressive launch.

Snapshot 12/18/2006

Amex Equity Volume 51,711,600 shares

NASDAQ 10 PowerShares products 10,700.

WisdomTree 30 NYSE Composite 430,900 NYSE 374,200 87%.

RYDEX Composite 72,200 Amex 7,300

Claymore 4 (new) Composite 65,600 Amex 55,100 84%

Claymore 7 (old)   Composite 357,800 Amex 209,700 59%

VanEck

GDX Composite 729,500 Amex 169,600 23%.

SLX and EVX getting more consistent buying but still slow.

ProShares Composite 6,079,100 Amex 1,619,500 27%.

IWR (Barclays) Started trading on ARCA today. 43% of the flow was executed on the Amex UTP.

RWX starts tomorrow. Lots of hype but will it translate into buyers??