First Quarter ends with modest gains and light options volume. Read More.

Ominous trading in the iShares Hong Kong Fund (EWH), as an investor opened a substantial September 8/6 put spread. Shares are up a dime to $10.23 and it looks like a buyer paid 35 cents, 10000X. If so, the best pay-off is $1.65 if EWH falls to $6 or less by mid-September, which would represent a slide in excess of 40 percent for Hong Kong’s equity market.

State Street (STT) is up $3.61 to $31.59 and options volume is running at 2X the normal levels. The top trades of the day are in the January 2010 calls, as it appears the 25/35 call spread traded 10000X for $4.15. It looks like a sale, probably closing out a spread bought for $2.50 on March 6 when the stock was near $19.

Clearwire (CLWR), a Kirkland, WA-based wireless products company, is up 24 cents to $5.22 and options volume is running 26X the normal levels on increasing interest in April and May calls at the $5 strike. 3,500 contracts traded so far and, with almost all of the trades hitting ask-side and very little existing open interest, it looks like call buyers are dominating the trading activity. The company’s WiMax technology was featured in a Forbes article today.

TRowe Price (TROW) is up $1.70 to $29.07 and July 35 calls are seeing interest after an investor sold 17,000 for $1.90 earlier today. 18.8K contracts traded, compared to open interest of 685. No news on the stock and no signficant equity blocks traded today. The trade is possibly positioning for the 2nd quarter: i.e. selling calls against an existing holding and or on the view that a move beyond $35 in TROW by mid-July is unlikely.

Peabody Energy (BTU) is outperforming, up 94 cents to $25.98, on news of a joint venture in Mongolia with Polo Resources. Peabody will invest up to $25.8 million to take a 50 percent interest in the joint venture, called Peabody-Polo Resources. Sentiment in the options market is less bullish, however, with 5,624 April 22.5 puts traded, compared to open interest of 2,842. Trades include two blocks (1,903 on ISE and 1,338 on CBOE) at the offer for 65 cents. ISE sentiment data confirms opening customer put buy.

Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF) is up $1.40 to $17.91 and calls are heavily traded as unsubstantiated takeover chatter makes the rounds Tuesday. 19,000 contacts traded, compared to 2,200 puts. Speculative buying is being seen in April 17.5, 20, and 22.5 call options.

Suntech Power (STP) is up $1.50 to $12.45 and calls are active, as some of the solar names see relative strength Tuesday. 13,000 calls and 1,400 puts traded. JASO, YGE, TSL, LDK, SOLF, and SOL also seeing gains. CSIQ is leading the way after Piper upgraded the stock to Neutral from Sell saying, among other things, $30 bln in Green stimilus from China is under way and a positive catalyst.

Prices fall below $48 a barrel. Read More.

Alliant Tech (ATK) is up $2.04 to $66.04 and options volume is running at 17X the normal levels, as renewed takeover chatter makes the rounds. April 70 calls are the most actives, with more than 3000 traded. The activity seems to lack conviction, however, as only about half of the volume hit ask-side. At 40 percent, implied volatility isn’t much changed either.