On Friday, all three major stock indexes gained a fraction of one percent before the market closed. The gains were attributed to investors looking for bargains in the technology and materials sectors. For the week, the Dow was down 0.6 percent, the Nasdaq was down 0.3 percent and the S&P 500 was down 0.7 percent.

Continued uncertainty over the instability of southern European economies and the possibility of sovereign default has moved investors to seek the safety of US Treasuries. That sentiment is also reflected in the dollar’s recent gain against the euro.

Next week, investor anxiety may be compounded as President Obama, who has already submitted a budget with a record deficit, will sign a bill authorizing an increase in government borrowing. Chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke will testify at the House of Representatives about plans for moderating federal emergency programs.

Economic reports of interest to investors next week will include, on Thursday, the Commerce Department’s retail sales figures for January, expected to show a 0.3 percent gain over December. And on Friday the consumer sentiment survey’s preliminary February reading is expected to show a slight increase over the previous month.

Revisions to government data reveal that the economy suffered a loss of nearly 8.5 million jobs since December 2007, and “discouraged job seekers” now number 1.1 million. Still, the unemployment rate, at 10 percent in December, dropped to 9.7 percent in January. And temporary hiring, seen as a leading indicator to permanent job creation, rose by 52,000 employees last month. Next Thursday’s weekly figure for initial unemployment claims may generate more interest than usual.

9 Stocks to Watch

Nine Big Caps are still poised for strong gains with market and sector strength and confirmation. The nine stocks we're watching:

The Black & Decker Corporation (BDK)
Cooper Industries plc (CBE)
The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (EL)
Limited Brands, Inc. (Public, NYSE:LTD)
Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMT)
PerkinElmer, Inc. (PKI)
Raytheon Company (RTN)
Sara Lee Corp. (SLE)
W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW)

Dave Mecklenburg is the Editor-in-Chief of TigerSharkTrading.com.