On Friday, the Dow was up 122 points and the S&P 500 was up 15 points, and both indexes closed at six-week highs. The Nasdaq gained 34 points and closed at its highest in 18 months. Friday’s better-than-expected non-farm payrolls report, showing 36,000 job losses for the month of February, was given partial credit for the stock market’s positive performance.

Employers hired an additional 48,000 temporary workers in February, the fifth consecutive month temporary employment has risen. The unemployment rate, however, remained at 9.7 percent last week.
Relief that the unemployment figures had not worsened may carry last week’s strength in the market over into next week’s market performance.

Next Friday, the retail sales report for February is expected to show a decline of 0.2 percent, compared to January’s 0.5 percent growth. Excluding autos, February’s sales are forecast to have risen 0.1 percent compared to January’s 0.6 percent. Also on Friday, the preliminary reading on consumer sentiment for March will be available. The reading is forecast to be 73.6, exactly the same as the final February figure.

The huge budget deficit in Greece continues to weigh on the international markets, and add to the uncertainty that economic recovery is viable.

12 Stocks to Watch

Twelve Big Caps are still poised for strong gains with market and sector strength and confirmation. The 12 stocks we're watching:

AFLAC Incorporated (AFL)
The Allstate Corporation (ALL)
Boston Properties, Inc. (BXP)
Celgene Corporation (CELG)
The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (EL)
Nike, Inc. (NKE)
The Procter & Gamble Company (PG)
RadioShack Corporation (RSH)
The Stanley Works (SWK)
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO)
Whirlpool Corporation (WHR)
Whole Foods Market, Inc. (WFMI)

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