Russell closes somber; LINE, NWPX, and BPZ lead gainers

Small-cap stocks started out the final week of this year’s trading on a somber note, as familiar worries about the economy, spending and the credit crisis sparked selling from a holiday-reduced pool of investors. A decline in financial, retail and homebuilder shares was more than enough to cancel out gains for commodity stocks, especially since much of the rise in commodities was fueled by safe-haven and risk bid flows—and not by improved fundamentals. Today's small-cap percentage gainers are Linn Energy LLC (Nasdaq:LINE), Northwest Pipe Co. (Nasdaq:NWPX), and BPZ Resources (NYSE:BPZ).

Other Market Watch highlights included:

•    Yields on six-month bills were going for about 5% back in August 2007; today’s high yield was 0.25%.  
•    The Treasury auctioned off $27 billion in six-month bills Monday, and the result was the lowest yield in history on auctions that date back to the 1930s.  
•    Much of the rise in commodities was fueled by safe-haven and risk bid flows—and not by improved fundamentals.  
•    A decline in financial, retail and homebuilder shares was more than enough to cancel out gains for commodity stocks.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Linn Energy LLC gapped higher and was showing a gain of 19% after a bullish article in Barron’s. See (Nasdaq:LINE).
• Northwest Pipe Co., which makes welded steel pipes, was up 13.2% to $37.65. See (Nasdaq:NWPX).  
• Flow-measurement product maker Badger Meter up 11% to $33.64. See (NYSE:BMI)
• BPZ Resources, formerly known as BPZ Energy, up 10.5% to $5.39 after announcing increases in oil reserves at the Corvina Field. See (NYSE:BPZ)  


Small Cap Losers:

• Among today's other 52-wk lows: Skilled Healthcare Group, Minerals Technologies Inc. and Dionex Corp. See (NYSE:SKH, NYSE:MTX, and Nasdaq:DNEX)
• Real estate investment trust Macerich Company down 15% to $17.23. See (NYSE:MAC).   
• Riverbed Technology, Inc. down 13% to $9.93 after Wedbush Morgan downgrade to "Hold" from "Buy" See(Nasdaq:RVBD)  
• ATC Technology Corp., a vehicle remanufacturing and logistics company, hit a new year-low of $12.37. See (Nasdaq:ATAC) 

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