Oil Takes a Spill; SEC Expands Madoff Investigation; Sony Could Lose Largest Game Publisher; Nasdaq Outpaces Other Indices; Walgreens Misses Street Estimates; U.S. Car Brands Close Gap with Toyota Quality…

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.

U.S. stocks slid on Monday as investors questioned the strength of an economic recovery, while energy shares were dragged down by lower oil prices. After a sharp three-month rally, indexes have eased as traders increasingly questioned if stocks are due for a correction.

Abu Dhabi Buys Daimler Stake; Tata Launches Nano; Walgreen Beats 2Q Estimates; Banks Hurt by Plunging Commercial Property Prices; Gannett Furloughs Workers Again; Oil Nears 3-Month High; TreeHouse Foods Climbs on Private-Label Buying

Retail stores confirmed yesterday (Thursday) what most analysts had already suspected – the Grinch stole Christmas. The huge discount programs big retailers devised to bolster sales failed to attract enough consumers to save the holiday season.

Kenya Growth Stalls Quickly; Caterpillar Cuts Pay and Jobs; Wal-Mart Offers $2.66 Billion for Chile’s Biggest Grocer; Walgreen Falls Short, Cuts Opening Plans; Palm Gets $100 Million Injection; JPMorgan Buys UBS Assets; Oil Falls 6%

Buy/Sell/Hold ETF Zooms 42%; Magna Reports 3Q Loss, Slashes Dividend; U.S. Factory Orders Down 2.5%; Walgreen Same-store Sales Rise 2%, Yahoo Shares Upgraded; Oil Rises 12% on Production Cuts; Archer Daniels Midland Doubles Profit; UBS Turns Profit; Verizon Cleared to Take Over Alltel.

There was some reprieve for U.S. shares yesterday. Helped by expectations that the government is ready to bail out stricken mortgage giants Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE), the markets closed mostly higher.

But the markets are still in turmoil, says Aaron Lehman in The Smart Profits Report. And the Fed is running out of options to save the system. But some stocks still offer investors great long-term potential returns.

Aaron is bullish on cellphone maker Nokia Corp (NYSE: NOK) and small biotech Enzo Biochem (NYSE:ENZ)…

For years, certain advisors have touted the “buy-and-hold” strategy as the pathway to optimal investment returns. While it’s true that short-term gyrations can lead to temporary investment setbacks, any resulting losses can be overcome, since stocks always rise over the long haul.