Some less actively traded names seeing bullish order flow: Steelcase (SLT), Crown Castle (CCI), Jones Apparel (JNY) Bearish order flow: Werner Enterprises (WERN), Tibco Software (TIBX), Momenta Pharm (MNTA) Post Earnings: Sequenom (SQNM), Ariad Pharm (ARIA), AthenaHealth (ATHN) Pre-Earnings: Discover Financial (DFS), Khongzong (KONG) Ex-div.: HSBC (HBC), Chubb (CB)

*Scanning all single-stocks subject to 2500 contracts minimum call or put volume

GE, which saw more than 68,500 Mar 17.5 calls traded yesterday, is up 63 cents to $17.92 today and heading to session highs after the Fed stood pat on rates and said it expects rates to stay low for quite some time. GE shares were already higher ahead of the announcement after the company said it expects to make profits and increase its dividend in 2011.

In the options market, trading remains brisk with another 281000 calls and 119000 puts on the tape so far. March 17.5 calls are agiain the most actives, with another 66.2K traded and some closing trades likely driving the action, as open interest is 174K and still the largest of any GE options contact. Some investors are likely rolling to the April 18, April 19, and June 18 calls on hopes the stock can continue its running to new 52-week highs.

Click here for yesterday’s comment on GE, which included signs of call buyers in morning action. We monitor the options order flow throughout the day and post free updates at WhatsTrading.com. Please see our info on Premium (to your right) if you’d like continuous updates like this throughout the trading day, as well as other tools to find options trading ideas, information, and education.

Starbuck’s (SBUX), gapped up, touched a new 52-week high, and was recently 81 cents higher to $25.23 after UBS upgraded the stock to Buy. Options action picked up as well, with 12,000 calls and 7,000 puts traded so far. March 25 and 26 calls, which have three days of life remaining after today, are the most actives. April 25 adn 26 calls are seeing interest as well. Implied volatility has eased about 1 percent and, at 25, is probing 52-week lows.

*Scanning all single-stocks subject to 2500 contracts minimum call or put volume

Etrade Financial (ETFC) is flat at $1.66 and the July 1.5 – 2 strangle trades at 18 cents, 15000X on ISE. Looks like both legs sold and possibly a play on the stock staying within the two strikes (or breakevens of $1.32 and $2.18) through the July expiration.

AMR lost 11 cents to $9.85 and in late-day action yesterday the bullish Aug 8 – 12 risk reversal trades at even, 4400X. Open interest data indicate that a new position was opened. Looks like a play on further gains for AMR over the next few months. Shares are 42.3 percent since early Feb amid renewed investor interest in the airline sector.

Stocks are indicated higher on better-than-expected housing data and ahead of a Federal Reserve rate announcement. Forty-five minutes before the opening bell on Wall Street, stock index futures indicate that the Dow Jones Industrial Average might add 15 or 20 points at the open.

Stock index futures ticked higher after the latest data showed housing starts at an annual rate of 575,000 homes in February; which was down from 611,000 in January, but better than the 570,000 that economists had expected. Building permits, a better a gauge of future activity, fell to 612,000 from 622,000, but ahead of the 601,000 that had been expected.

Attention turns to the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee [FOMC] meeting this afternoon. The FOMC releases its post-meeting statement at 14:15 eastern time. While no changes in rates are expected, the post meeting text will be scrutinized for indications of possible policy shifts.

Bonds are holding modest losses in cautious trading ahead of the Fed. The benchmark ten-year Treasury is down 2/32nd and now yields 3.70 percent.

The dollar edged up .14 to 90.60 against the Japanese yen. The euro added .0042 to 1.3715 against the buck.

Meanwhile, crude oil gained 50 cents to $80.30 a barrel and gold added $10.10 to $1115.50 an ounce.

Among the stocks to watch, Sequenom (SQNM) shares are down 20 percent after the biotech reported a 30-cent per share quarterly loss, which was a nickel worse than analyst estimates. Boston Scientific (BSX), which took a hit yesterday after halting production of its defibrillator, is down again after Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock. Limited Brands (LTD) announced a special dividend of $1 per share and shares rose 4 percent. Starbuck’s (SBUX) rose 2.4 percent after UBS upgraded the stock to Buy. Finally, General Mills (GIS) might see some action ahead of earnings, due out tomorrow before the bell.