Non-farm payrolls came in higher than analysts' forecasts and the unemployment rate fell to 8.8%. That good news sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average to a new 2011 high. At midday the Dow was up 78 points to 12,397 -- as reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Except for a brief sell-off to the 11,500 level, the market has moved quickly to regain lost ground and is now at new highs. Last week the USDA's crop report was bullish for grains. It's not surprising that Caterpillar (CAT) led the charge, up 1.7%. But there are always some losers. Office Depot (ODP) fell 11% after reporting a fourth quarter loss and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts (KKD), which also had a fourth quarter loss, fell 17%.

The market tried to hit a new two-plus-year high again today. Anything cautious for the markets is being discounted and valuation concerns are out the door. It seems the bulls are in charge -- regardless of what comes down the pipe in the Middle East, Japan, the PIIGS and elsewhere. Even a goal of only aiming to cut foreign energy dependence by one-third did not rattle markets. The TARP even made money. Maybe we can just convince Bernanke to go ahead and raise rates to get the pain over with, once and for all.

Here were today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow Jones: 12,350.61 +71.60 (0.58%)

S&P500: 1,328.26 +8.82 (0.67%)

Nasdaq: 2,776,78 +19.90 (0.72%)

Top Analyst Calls

In a recent letter to the governor of Illinois, Doug Oberhelman, CEO of heavy machinery maker Caterpillar (CAT), outlined his concerns about new state taxes that could force the Illinois-based company to move operations to another state. Reportedly, Wisconsin, Indiana and New Jersey are all courting the company.

With 23,000 Caterpillar employees in Illinois, the stakes are high. Hopefully, Governor Pat Quinn and Oberhelman will be able to work something out.

With several major developments occurring around the world, many investors may wonder how they could affect their portfolios or their lives. Here are two of the current, newsworthy events and how investors may interpret them.

Libya

The oil from Libya totaled about 2 million barrels a day before the revolution, half of which was exported. About 1 million barrels a day are no longer available to the world. That isn't enough to really affect the price of oil for a long period of time. Plenty of other countries can supply that amount without straining their capacity. But they're unlikely to step in to fill the gap when oil prices are above $100 a barrel. That price should recede once the conflict finishes and a more stable government is in place.

"Benjamin Graham has been recognized for decades as the father of value investing; Warren Buffett was a student of Ben Graham at Columbia University and later worked for Mr. Graham for several years," notes J. Royden Ward.

The editor of the Cabot Benjamin Graham Value Letter explains, "We've combined Warren Buffett's and Ben Graham's investing criteria for choosing stocks and and found six high-quality companies.

"We believe that the six stocks that passed our screen each sell at sensible prices, offer reasonable appreciation potential, and provide solid dividends.

The Japanese devastation is almost incomprehensible. First there was the earthquake, followed by the tsunami, followed by radiation. It seems the disaster has no end. The people are suffering beyond imagination. It will be a long time for the country to heal. In the north, it will take decades.

Investors are trying to understand what the economic aftershocks will be. Which industries will be hurt and which ones will benefit? Because the crises change from day to day, it's extremely difficult to ascertain. But there are a few themes that seem to be emerging. Some of these will be short lived, such as the closing of the Japanese auto manufacturers. While they will lose days of production, the long-term effect will be minor, unless supplies are interrupted, causing further delays.

Analyst Upgrades

• Wells Fargo (WFC) to conviction buy from neutral at Goldman.
• Adobe (ADBE) to buy from neutral at UBS.
• Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) to outperform from market perform at FBR Capital.
• Vail Resorts (MTN) and Goldcorp (GG) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
• OmniVision (OVTI) to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.
• Penn Virginia (PVA) to hold from sell at Canaccord.
• Hub Group (HUBG) to outperform from market perform at Morgan Keegan.

With less than two hours to go before the market bell, Caterpillar (CAT) is off by 1.2% to $95.47. Volume is above average. How should investors look upon a dip in the stock? Does weakness offer an opportunity?

According to Briefing.com, net income for the fourth quarter came in at $1.47 per share. This was much better than the projection of $1.27 per share. In addition, the forecast for the new fiscal year is higher than what Wall Street was expecting. One negative note: there isn't any plan for share repurchases because of acquisition activities.

With earnings season in full swing, the FOMC meeting on interest rates, the GDP estimate, and housing numbers due out, the coming week is shaping up to be a busy one. So here's a peek at what's on the economic calendar.

Monday

Quarterly reports from American Express (AXP) and McDonald's (MCD) will highlight Monday. Amgen (AMGN), CSX (CSX), Halliburton (HAL) and Texas Instruments (TXN) are also expected to report strong earnings results.

As is often the case, growth and recovery in America begins at ground level. Current upbeat news from regional food producers is signaling good news for many companies, including Deere & Company (DE). While developing industrial bases such as China and India have taken on the lion's share of mid to heavy manufacturing duties, they are also developing increased needs to feed hungry work forces. Indeed, they are also developing the capital to feed those needs.

The spin-off from this morphing consumption dynamic is a surge of growth in America's agricultural and food production sectors. Indications are that the increased demands being put upon American agricultural output is fueling an increased demand for heavy weight farm tractors and is requiring food processing facility expansions. "Sales of 100-horsepower tractors, which cost about $75,000 to $100,000 each, were up 27 percent last month over the same month last year, said Charlie O'Brien, vice president of agricultural services for The Association of Equipment Manufacturers, in an Associated Press interview.

Investors should get used to the refrain, at least for the short-term: "The company generated strong international sales, which offset a modest sales increase in the U.S."

Tuesday's high-profile case study is retail giant Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (WMT), whose strong international performance in the third quarter compensated for a 0.1% sales decline in the United States, but the macro trend is the point here. Namely -- a high U.S. unemployment rate and a "frugal consumer" habit in which adults are watching every dollar is likely to weigh on domestic sales.

The market for construction equipment in Asia and North America is strong -- and Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) has benefited from this boom.

Caterpillar reported its profit surged to $792 million or $1.22 a share, up from $404 million or 64 cents a share a year earlier. Revenue rose 53% to $11.13 billion, a turnaround from a 44% drop a year ago.

The company is in a sweet spot with orders outpacing shipments. It plans to overhaul production by increasing manufacturing capacity in China and Brazil.