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Mercury Computer Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:MRCY), Protalix BioTherapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:PLX) and Santander Bancorp (Nasdaq:SBP) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Spectrum Control Inc. (Nasdaq:SPEC), Amicus Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:FOLD), Fox Chase Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:FXCB), Citizens Inc. (Nasdaq:CIA), Wilshire Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:WIBC) and Midsouth Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq:MSL).

Geron Corp. (Nasdaq:GERN), Amicus Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:FOLD) and Epoch Holding Corp. (Nasdaq:EPHC) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: IncrediMail Ltd. (Nasdaq:MAIL), Heritage Crystal Clean Inc. (Nasdaq:HCCI), LSI Industries Inc. (Nasdaq:LYTS), Coldwater Creek Inc. (Nasdaq:CWTR), O'Charley's Inc. (Nasdaq:CHUX) and XenoPort Inc. (Nasdaq:XNPT).

ICT Group Inc. (Nasdaq:ICTG), FGX International Holdings Ltd. (Nasdaq:FGXI) and Kronos Worldwide Inc. (Nasdaq:KRO) are among the biggest percentage gainers in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: NPS Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq:NPSP), K-Fed Bancorp (Nasdaq:KFED), InterOil Corp. (Nasdaq:IOC), Amicus Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:FOLD), First South Bancorp Inc.  (Nasdaq:FSBK) and Community Capital Corp. (Nasdaq:CPBK).

Ampco Pittsburgh Corp. (Nasdaq:AP), Safe Bulkers Inc. (Nasdaq:SB) and Ladish Co Inc. (Nasdaq:LDSH) are among the biggest percentage losers in Tuesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Haynes International Inc. (Nasdaq:HAYN), Protective Life Corp. (Nasdaq:PL), Zoltek Companies Inc. (Nasdaq:ZOLT), Amicus Therapeutics Inc (Nasdaq:FOLD), Gaylord Entertainment Co. (Nasdaq:GET) and Geo Group Inc. (Nasdaq:GEO).

FCStone Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:FCSX), Polypore International Inc. (Nasdaq:PPO) and Amicus Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq:FOLD) are among the new 52-week lows in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Northwest Pipe Co. (Nasdaq:NWPX), Universal American Corp. (Nasdaq:UAM), Calgon Carbon Corp. (Nasdaq:CCC), Medicines Co. (Nasdaq:MDCO), Hutchinson Technology Inc. (Nasdaq:HTCH) and Hungarian Telephone and Cable Corp. (Nasdaq:HTC).

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

Small-cap stocks remained under pressure into mid-session, anchored down by renewed concerns about the economic picture and by ongoing jitters over the credit crisis. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) tumbled to session lows, snapping chart support at 734 while moving within striking distance of key support at 726. At 12:35 a.m. ET, the Russell was down 11.71, or 1.58%, at 730.26.

Small caps were noticeably weaker than large-cap index products, with the Dow off about 1.11% and the S&P 500 down 0.92%. Small caps have outperformed all year long and were overbought on momentum readings coming into this week’s action. Looking at dozens of individual small-cap stocks, one theme keeps repeating: stocks that were making new move highs just last week are getting pounded as investors scramble to book profits.

That desire to step aside on equities was ignited Monday when financial shares came under renewed fire from worries about the credit crunch amid reports that several large players still are facing massive debt write-downs. On that same theme today, analysts cautioned that Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LEH) could take another $4 billion in mortgage-tied losses this quarter, and LEH stock took a dive approaching 9%.

Fresh economic data on inflation and housing failed to offer any immediate good news to counter the dour investor mood, as the Producer Price Index (PPI) climbed to 27-year highs on a yearly basis. What’s more, the PPI also showed that inflation was creeping into other areas besides gas and food, which makes it harder to discount the data by pointing at recent declines in energy prices.

On the energy front today, crude oil prices were actually sinking, moving back toward $112 a barrel, as energy traders fret about soft demand from slumping economic conditions around the world. In addition, the latest tropical storm to slam through the Gulf of Mexico region veered away from key production areas, which negated the need to build a storm premium into the market. The U.S. dollar softened as the stock market ebbed, with the greenback tumbling 0.6% against the euro and slipping about 0.3% against the yen. Elsewhere on the commodities front, grains prices were . . .

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) futures are higher and the small-cap index will likely open in positive territory.

There is little in the way of economic or corporate releases today, but investors are stepping up to buy shares after a sharp decline on Friday following news of a worse-than-expected December jobs report.

Helping fuel the bullish mood on pre-market trading today is speculation that the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut interest rates to prevent the economy from slipping into recession. The Fed is scheduled to kick-off a two-day meeting on Jan. 29. At its previous meeting on Dec. 11, it lowered the federal funds rate to 4.25% from 4.50%.

Here are the biggest percentage gainers and losers in pre-market trading among companies with a market cap between $100 million and $750 million:

Biggest percentage gainers:

• Amicus Therapeutics, Inc. (FOLD), up 14% on news of positive results from a clinical trial of a drug candidate.
• Maxwell Technologies, Inc. (MXWL), up 10% on news an automotive electronics maker selected its products.
• Origin Agritech Ltd. (SEED), up 9%.

Biggest percentage losers:

• American Railcar Industries, Inc. (ARII), down 8%.
• TiVo Inc. (TIVO) down 5%.
• ShoreTel Inc. (SHOR) down 4% on news it projects fiscal second-quarter revenue will be below the previously announced range.

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) is in positive territory late in the session. At 3:01 p.m. ET, the small-cap index had climbed 4.03 points, or 0.53%, to 760.16. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) was up 11.79 points, or 0.09%, to 13,219.06.

The bears and the bulls are engaged in battle as investors struggle to make sense of news that suggests U.S. economic growth is slowing down.

Trading began with news that the U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 4.9% during the third quarter, according to final figures released by the Commerce Department. The economy grew 3.8% in the second quarter.

But investors didn’t cheer too much, as it’s widely expected that economic growth will slow down in the fourth quarter of 2007 and into the first half of 2008.

Employment numbers released before the opening confirm forecasts of a slower fourth quarter.

The U.S. Labor Department reported that jobless claims for the week ended Dec. 15 increased 12,000 to 346,000 from a level of 334,000 in the preceding week. The rise is greater than projected and a sign that the labor market is cooling, which is consistent with a decline in economic growth.

Here are the current biggest percentage gainers and losers among companies with a market cap between $100 million and $750 million:

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) and the other major U.S. indices are rising despite generally bearish economic and financial news.
 
At 10:45 a.m. ET, the small-cap index was up 2.14 points, or 0.28%, to 758.27. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) had climbed 20.49 points, or 0.16%, to 13,227.76.

The day began with news before the start of trading that the U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 4.9% during the third quarter, according to final figures released by the Commerce Department. The economy grew 3.8% in the second quarter.

The third-quarter growth was the fastest pace in four years, but many economists projected that growth will slow down markedly in the fourth quarter and into the first half of 2008 as the credit squeeze and falling home prices take their toll.

As the economy slows, the labor market will probably cool. Statistics released before the opening confirm this.

The U.S. Labor Department said that jobless claims for the week ended Dec. 15 increased 12,000 to 346,000 from an upwardly revised level of 334,000 in the preceding week. The rise is greater than projected.

The four-week moving average, considered a more stable measure, showed an increase of 4,250 to 343,000. The level a week earlier was 338,750.

Elsewhere, investment bank Bear Stearns (NYSE: BSC) reported a quarterly loss of $854 million, or $6.90 per share, compared with net income of $563 million, or $4.00 per share, a year earlier.

The New York-based company was one of the first to feel the pain of the meltdown in the subprime mortgage sector when two of its investment funds went belly-up this summer.

Chinese phone maker and distributor Qiao Xing Universal Telephone Inc. (Nasdaq: XING) said Wednesday that will need more time to file its 2006 annual report on account of “accounting matters.”

Franklin Bank Corp. (Nasdaq: FBTX) announced it will sell $23.3 million of its common stock at $15.70 per share to a group of investors as well as its officers, employees and directors.

Law firm Lerach Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP filed a class action suit on behalf of an institutional investor against Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: NBIX) today.

These are the biggest percentage losers in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $500 million: