The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission may propose within a month that the so-called uptick rule be reinstated, as regulators aim to bolster markets roiled by the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.
The SEC staff may advise the agency’s five commissioners to vote on the proposal at a public meeting, SEC spokesman John Nester said today in a statement. The agency will solicit public comment before deciding whether to bring back the rule, which bars investors from betting against a stock until it sells at a higher price than the preceding trade.

Shorting the finance sector has bolstered hedge fund performance, and that in turn has lent to the push in America for the reinstatement of the uptick rule cited by U.S. Rep. Barney Frank today.
So far in 2009, the HFN Short Bias Average is up 3.32%. In February, the index returned 3.16%. That bested the HFN Hedge Fund Aggregate Average, up 0.07% for the year.

Maytag and the U.S Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a voluntary recall of about 1.6 million refrigerators today, due to an electrical failure that could cause a fire.
The recall notice said an electrical failure in the relay component that turns on the refrigerator's compressor can cause overheating and pose a serious fire hazard.
Maytag received 16 reports of property damage ranging from smoke damage to extreme kitchen damage and 41 reports of refrigerator relay ignition.