China bulls beware… Chinese regulator warns of American-style housing bubble… Market rejoices over housing start rebound… should you be celebrating too? Dan Amoss on shorting the stock market’s recent strength… Sign of the times… Mexicans, Czechs no longer welcome in Canada… Plus, Byron King reveals an arresting historic gold chart…

Risk aversion has left the building…  CIT survives without Fed help…  SNB tries to fight the markets…  Light week for US data… And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

No real surprise here, Existing Homes Sales are expected to increase. It should be a combination of two factors, too-good-to-pass-up deals on foreclosed homes, and families moving to new school districts over the summer to avoid switching schools mid-year.

Risk Assets soar! …  What’s behind this stock rally? … Charts and fundamentals…  Aussie Consumer Confidence Drops…  And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

On the earnings calendar, as you can see from the ones I have listed there is a significant amount of retailers reporting this week. That’s only a partial list, here’s the rest: ANN, BJ, APP, DDS, HOTT, DKS, ARO, GPS, PSUN, NWY, ROST, and TJX.

Housing and Construction Stats Improve; Mobius: Emerging Markets Close to Bull Market; Sprint Beats Expectations; Bovespa Hits Seven-Month High;  Buffett Says Wall Street Sold “Sewage”; Liberty Spins Off DirecTV; Airlines Low on Cash; Mexico Lifts Work Ban on Flu Scare

Geithner rescues the stock market…  Commercial real estate, the next big drag…  Norway: the new safe haven…  China pushes for a new reserve currency… And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

The dollar rally pauses…  Another Mortgage Bill…  Yen in trouble?  Gold pushes higher again! And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Are you a “responsible homeowner?” If so, President Obama has a gift for you.

With the markets closed today in observation of President’s Day, we can take a little while to clear our heads. We will need it, since the next four days are chocked full of reports.