Investors need a solid defense right now, says Martin Denholm. This means holding high-dividend stocks. Consumer staples and telecoms industries are the best places to cherry pick strong companies. For a lower-risk alternative, try these two high-dividend ETFs (AMEX:SDY, PEY).

U.S. stocks yesterday (Monday) staged their biggest rally since the Great Depression – with the Dow Jones Industrial Average soaring an all-time record 936 points – on a Federal Reserve-led push to flood the ailing global financial system with dollars and on a U.S. government plan to buy stakes in banks.

What They’re Saying About The Financial Sector Sounds Nice… As I was running to catch my early morning flight on Saturday, I grabbed a copy of the New York Times and Barron’s. I looked at the Barron’s cover and figured that I must not have gotten enough sleep and was still in dreamland.

The last time I recommended a bank to anybody was last August. And it was a Canadian Bank – Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS). Once upon a time – not that long ago – banks were solid, safe investments that generated a steady stream of income through the dividends they issued.

Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) is eying larger rival National City Corp. (NCC), the ninth-largest U.S. bank with approximately $150 billion in assets, as a potential acquisition target, according to several media reports.