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The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) pushed higher Friday, fighting back from a midday slide into the red as commodity stocks, homebuilders and airline stocks offset another rough day for banks. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were Aercap Holdings (NYSE:AER), US Airways Group (Nasdaq:NYSE:LCC) and Polypore International (NYSE:PPO).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• Ahead of the open, the consumer price index came out at minus 0.7%, which was slightly below the forecast of minus 0.9%.
• The Michigan sentiment survey was reported at 61.9%, which was better than the forecast of 59.0. 
• Crude oil prices climbed 3.1% today, adding $1.11 a barrel to $36.51, which likely helped stabilize energy and other commodity markets.
• The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund was up 0.8%. 
• A slide in the U.S. dollar today likely helped support various commodity markets and provide a cushion for commodity-tied stocks.
• Within the commodities realm, oil refiners and gas utilities were strong performers today.
• In the physical market, corn prices shot up 6% amid worries about a drought in Argentina, which competes with U.S. farmers on the global market.
• Airline stocks in general were solid performers today, with the AMEX Airline Index up 4.6%. 

Small Cap Gainers:

• Aercap Holdings NV soared 22% to the highest daily close since early November. See (NYSE:AER).
• Small-cap carrier US Airways Group Inc. climbed 13% a day after the emergency crash landing in New York’s Hudson River was pulled off without . . .

Elizabeth Arden Inc. (Nasdaq:RDEN), Belden Inc. (Nasdaq:BDC) and Webster Financial Corp. (Nasdaq:WBS) are among the biggest percentage losers in Friday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Tecumseh Products Co. (Nasdaq:TECUA), LSI Industries Inc. (Nasdaq:LYTS), BancTrust Financial Group Inc. (Nasdaq:BTFG), Communications Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:JCS), Kimball International Inc. (Nasdaq:KBALB) and Rochester Medical Corp.(Nasdaq:ROCM).

Small-cap stocks jumped higher on the opening, bolstered by investor hope that yet another government cash infusion into Bank of America will stabilize a shaky situation in the financial arena. Bank stocks, mining companies, chipmakers and automobile manufacturers were up in overseas action, setting the stage for an extension of the bounce in U.S. markets Thursday afternoon. Some of today’s small-cap gainers were American Vanguard Corp.  (NYSE:AVD), Cryptologic (Nasdaq:CRYP) and Red Robin Gourmet Burgers (Nasdaq:RRGB).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• The yield on benchmark 10-year notes was up 8% early on, climbing back to 2.37% after slipping below 2.2% Thursday.   South Africa, a major exporter of commodity goods, saw their stock market upgraded this morning by Morgan Stanley analysts.  
• Shortly after the open, the greenback was down about 1.4% against the euro, which should help not only crude oil, but a host of commodity markets.  
• Crude oil was lower in European trading ahead of the stock market open, but rallied about $1 a barrel by the opening. 

Small Cap Gainers:

• American Vanguard Corp. will move into the S&P SmallCap 600 index; the agriculture products company rallied 12% on the news. See (NYSE:AVD).  
• Cryptologic up 6% in pre-market after announcing it will outsource its online poker network by end Q1 2009. See (Nasdaq:CRYP). 
• Red Robin Gourmet Burgers up 3.4%, paring some of the dramatics losses the stock saw on Thursday. See (Nasdaq:RRGB).
• Synchronoss Technologies up 2.2% ahead of its Q4 and fully year 2008 earnings release on Feb. 5. See (Nasdaq:SNCR).  

Small Cap Losers:

• Belden Inc. was off 12%, fueled by news that the electronics maker updated the outlook. See (NYSE:BDC).  
• Elizabeth Arden Inc. tumbled 13% as preliminary quarterly results were below expectations and the beauty products firm slashed the outlook for the upcoming quarter. See (Nasdaq:RDEN).  
• Rochester Medical drops 9% after reaching a settlement with Tyco Healthcare Group. See (Nasdaq:ROCM).  
• Meridian Bioscience, Inc. falls 10% in pre-market after issuing Q1 2009 guidance below analysts' expectations. See (Nasdaq:VIVO).

Small-cap stocks jumped higher on the opening, bolstered by investor hope that yet another government cash infusion into Bank of America will stabilize a shaky situation in the financial arena. Bank stocks, mining companies, chipmakers and automobile manufacturers were up in overseas action, setting the stage for an extension of the bounce in U.S. markets Thursday afternoon. At 9:56 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was up 2.42, or 0.52%, at 465.04.

The Michigan sentiment survey was reported at 61.9%, which was better than the forecast of 59.0. Just ahead of the market open, the industrial production data came in at minus 2%, which was worse than the forecast for a decline of 0.9%. This marked the largest 12-month output drop since 1975, and capacity usage was the lowest since December 2001. Despite the downbeat news, the market didn’t seem to flinch on the industrial production report. Earlier this morning, the consumer price index was pegged at minus 0.7%, which was slightly above the forecast of minus 0.9%. Meanwhile, the “core” rate, which excludes volatile food and energy prices was unchanged, close to the forecast of plus 0.1%. Inflation data has very little immediate trading impact right now as investors simply aren’t worried about inflation in the current stage of the economic cycle.

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) and Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) released earnings ahead of today’s open, with BAC generating their first quarterly loss in some 17 years and Citigroup reporting a staggering loss of $8.2 billion. However, the big supportive news for banks was that the U.S. government will provide a direct $20 billion injection into BAC and will guarantee another $118 billion for underlying assets. BAC shares were up 10% early, while C was up 16%.

Crude oil was lower in European trading ahead of the stock market open, but rallied about $1 a barrel by the opening, supported by expectations for higher equities and a weak tone in the U.S. dollar. Shortly after the open, the greenback was down about 1.4% against the euro, which should help not only crude oil, but a host of . . .

Small caps dove again at closing, careening 2.4%. Small-cap stocks were especially punished today relative to the broad market and for the first time in months the Dow officially replaced the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) as a better performing index for 2008. Today’s small-cap gainers are Amerigroup (NYSE:AGP), Vasco Data Security (Nasdaq:VDSI) and Eagle Bancorp (Nasdaq:EGBN).

Other Market Watch highlights today include:

• The Russell is down 36% for the year, while the Dow is off 34% and the S&P 500 is down 38%.
• It should be noted that the market staged an impressive recovery move off the lows late in the session.
• AIG CEO Edward Liddy said that the $112.8 billion bailout by the government “may not be enough” and the firm may need to tap into additional capital.
• Financial stocks, homebuilders, airlines and retailers took a hit on Thursday.
• The ISE Homebuilders Index was down 9% following a study by RealtyTrac this morning saying that foreclosures were up 21% from September 2007 and up a jarring 71% from the third-quarter of last year. 
• Energy stocks were a source of solid support today for equities, underpinned by a $1-a-barrel bounce in crude oil prices ahead of this week’s OPEC meeting in Vienna.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Amerigroup up 15% after health insurer reported a 26% increase in Q3 earnings on strong revenues. See (NYSE:AGP). 
• Vasco Data Security International Inc. gapped higher and rallied some 28% as quarterly revenue and income set records for the firm. See (Nasdaq:VDSI).
• Eagle Bancorp posts 17% increase in net, earnings beat sole analyst . . .

Small-cap stocks remained in a tailspin Thursday, pulled down by sloppy earnings, recession fears, persistent talk of rampant redemptions and sinking financial shares. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) closed down 12.05, or 2.40%, at 489.92, which marked the lowest daily close since September 2003. Small-cap stocks were especially punished today relative to the broad market and for the first time in months the Dow officially replaced the Russell 2000 as a better performing index for 2008. The Russell is down 36% for the year, while the Dow is off 34% and the S&P 500 is down 38%. As investors flee equities for cash, their appetite for riskier small-cap fare has fallen off the table amid a mentality that only the biggest and strongest firms are in a position to weather this downturn.

Now that we’ve got all the gloom out of the way, it should be noted that the market staged an impressive recovery move off the lows late in the session. The Dow actually rallied 2% today, and even though the Russell was down more than 2%, it was still more than 4% above the intraday low. More importantly, the strong rally off that intraday low left a potential double bottom on daily charts with the Oct. 10 bear market trough. If the market rallies away from this quickly, then it would provide an important successful test of the lows and would be one of the better bottoming signals we’ve seen on the charts.

Now, back to the sour news from today: American International Group (NYSE:AIG) CEO Edward Liddy said that the $112.8 billion bailout by the government “may not be enough” and the firm may need to tap into additional capital, which sent a collective groan through the financial markets.

The big negative elements in play today were the AIG comments, more talk of forced liquidation amid heavy redemptions, particularly in the leveraged loan market, Nick Kalivas, vice president of financial research with MF Global, said in an email interview. Kalivas also noted that commercial paper market was “plugged” and that earnings are lackluster as companies admit business isn’t going to get better any . . .

Amer Land Lease REIT (Nasdaq:ANL), Belden Inc. (Nasdaq:BDC) and Air Methods Corp. (Nasdaq:AIRM) are among the new 52-week lows in Thursday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Parexel International Corporation (Nasdaq:PRXL), AtriCure Inc. (Nasdaq:ATRC), Kendle International Inc. (Nasdaq:KNDL), Hiveld Steel Depository Receipt (Nasdaq:HSVLY), Mercadolibre Inc. (Nasdaq:MELI) and Forest City Enterprises (Nasdaq:FCE.A).

Here are the new 52-week lows among small caps: