Tuesday morning links

TOP STORIES
Home prices falling at record pace in Case-Shiller index - MarketWatch
Layoffs Spread to More Sectors of the Economy - NY Times
Corning cuts 3,500 jobs as 4Q profit slumps - AP
Bankers braced for bitter pill of regulation - Reuters
Why investors are rushing to Commodities - Commodity Online
Fannie, Freddie may tap U.S. Treasury for $51 bln - Reuters
Iceland’s Government Collapses - NY Times
Waking up to reality in Iceland - BBC

MARKETS/INVESTING
Gold dips 1 pct to below $900/oz on profit-taking - Reuters
Crude Oil Falls, Giving Up Earlier Gains - Bloomberg
Protecting Your Portfolio from Inflation - BusinessWeek
“Reintermediation” - Saut, Raymond James
Madman Across The Water? - Butler, Investment Rarities
'Gold and Silver will perform better than equities' - Commodity Online
Okun's Law, Ockham's Razor, and Economic Stimulus - Hussman Funds

ECONOMY
A Red-Letter Day for Layoffs - BusinessWeek
Economic Cures Are Like Booze for an Alcoholic - Baum, Bloomberg
CBO: Stimulus bill falls short of Obama goal - Reuters
Luxury Hotels Are Feeling Economy’s Pinch - NY Times
U.S. Economy: Home Sales, Leading Indicators Rise - Bloomberg

INTERNATIONAL
BOJ Focusing on Easing Corporate Borrowing Costs - Bloomberg
Reports offer hope for German economy - IHT
Paulson nets £100m from RBS slide - Guardian
Big Mideast Funds Scale Back Investments - WSJ
Australian Business Confidence Rises From Record Low - Bloomberg
Honda cuts output further in North America, Japan - Reuters
Iceland's government topples amid financial mess - AP
Will Britain Go Bust? - BBC

HOUSING
U.S. housing market may have turned a pivotal corner - Reuters
Existing-Home Sales Spike As Bargains Glut Market - Washington Post
How to Take Advantage of the Booming Real Estate Market - Seeking Alpha
Existing home sales in surprise jump - CNN/Money

FED/TREASURY/BANKING
Fed Move to ‘Uncharted Waters’ Spurs Forecast Review - Bloomberg
Toxic Assets Offer Buy-and-Hold Deal for U.S. - Bloomberg
Dudley to be named head of New York Fed - AP
Geithner Wins Confirmation - NY Times
Everything You Wanted to Know about Credit Default Swaps - RGE Monitor

INTERESTING
Wisconsin school's epic snowball fight flakes out - AP
Solar eclipse and planets favour Bullion - Commodity Online