Stockhouse @ the Bell: U.S. stocks get earnings lift

Today on Stockhouse

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Marin Katusa of Casey Research discusses how Canadian oil sands will be fueling the future.

While Frank Holmes of U.S. Global Investors explains how the VAR Model and Japan's tragedy affect investors.

Top Bullboards post: “Tomorrow looking forward to a positive EBTA, a full quarter with Line 1@2 sold out. The chatter with regards to Chapter11 and Refusal of Comerzbank to renew the operating line I find amusing. Reality is that Germany had another huge growth year in 2010 in renewables and is continuing its commitment to alternative energy. The recent nuclear scare just amplifies the worry. Arise continues to execute their business plan, expansion of the cell factory. Continued contracts for the systems division. Ongoing discussions with potential silicon partner. To reiterate, the companies in which Arise has contracts to supply cells are booming. What possible motive would there be for the second largest bank in Germany to foreclose on a renewable energy company that is only operating at 50% capacity but that also employs people in a growth industry.” From AUSTIN48 on the ARISE Technologies (TSX: T.APV, Stock Forum) board.

Top Bullboard:Copper Fox Metals (TSX: V.CUU, Stock Forum) received the most reads and the second-most posts.

Top blog: littleguy123 presents the second part in his series “Making Money on Miners” in the Outside the Market blog.

For news about small stocks that made big moves in Thursday’s trading, please read the Stockhouse Canadian Small and Micro-cap Stock Report.

Word on Wall Street

“Earnings are the support, and why the market is going up beyond all odds. You know two weeks from now there will be some really good news coming. Companies will beat expectations because they are the ones guiding those expectations,” said Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald, in an interview with MarketWatch.

Today In The Markets

TSX down, commodity stocks fall amid Portugal bailout concerns, Japanese crisis

DJIA	12,170.56	+84.54
NASDAQ	2,736.42	+38.12
S&P500	1,309.66	+12.12
S&P/TSX	14,029.37	-57.81
S&P/TSX Venture	2,304.58	-13.43

Toronto & New York (The Canadian Press) - The Toronto stock exchange closed lower Thursday as energy and mining stocks fell alongside prices for oil and gold.

The S&P /TSX composite index lost 57.81 points to 14,029.37.

The TSX Venture Exchange was off 13.43 points to 2,304.58.

New York stocks rose on stronger corporate earnings and hopes that the job market may be improving.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 84.54 points to 12,170.56. The Nasdaq composite index rose 38.12 points to 2,736.42 while the S&P 500 index added 12.12 points to 1,309.66.

Please click here for the complete U.S. and Canadian market summaries.

After-Hours News

Accenture (NYSE: ACN, Stock Forum)
Accenture reported strong financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2011, ended Feb. 28, 2011, with net revenues of $6.05 billion, an increase of 17 percent in U.S. dollars and 18 percent in local currency over the same period last year and exceeding the company’s guided range of $5.6 billion to $5.8 billion. Diluted earnings per share were $0.75, an increase of $0.15, or 25 percent, over the same period last year.

Research In Motion Ltd. (TSX: T.RIM, Stock Forum)
Research In Motion Ltd., a world leader in the mobile communications market, reported fourth quarter results for the three months and fiscal year ended February 26, 2011 (all figures in U.S. dollars and U.S. GAAP). The company's net income for the quarter was $934 million, or $1.78 per share diluted, compared with net income of $710 million, or $1.27 per share diluted, in the same quarter last year. Revenue for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2011 was $5.6 billion, up 36% from $4.1 billion in the same quarter of last year.