Merrill Calls Rise; Stocks Positive

Stocks are holding on to early gains Thursday that followed a weekly jobless
report that showed a big jumped in new jobless claims. Oil services are the
day’s top sector while semiconductors are the weakest.

At mid-day, the VIX is down 1.24 to 30.03.

Among bigger movers on heavier-than-average volume:

Merrill Lynch
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is up 2.35 to 65.08 in a strong broker/dealer group.
The Merrill June 65 calls are up 1.00 to 4.60 on more than 2000 contracts.

Peoplesoft
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is up 5.99 to 35.92 on a strong earnings report. The
PSFT May 25 calls are up 5 to 12 on heavier-than-average volume.

VoiceStream
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has lost 1.81 to 104.30 while the VSTR May 75 puts
are down .40 to .45 on more than 1000 contracts.

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