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Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

Stocks Plunge; Dow Drops More Than 360

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER by -362.14 points -2.60% on Thursday November 1:
Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,567.87 -362.14 -2.60%
-- Day's Range: 13548.93 - 13924.16
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,794.83 -64.29 -2.25%
-- Day's Range: 2793.17 - 2835.63
-- 52wk Range: 2,316.82 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,508.44 -40.94 -2.64%
-- Day's Range: 1506.66 - 1545.79
-- 52wk Range: 1,360.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.6460% -0.1050
-- Day's Range: 4.6320 - 4.7290
-- 52wk Range: 4.525 - 5.408

NYSE Volume 4,241,924,500
Nasdaq Volume 2,580,105,000


Overseas
The plunge in U.S. stocks caused European bourses to tumble. Britain's FTSE 100 was down 2.17 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 1.77 percent, and France's CAC-40 dropped 2.09 percent.

Japan's Nikkei stock average, which closed before U.S. markets opened, rose 0.79 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,586.10 -135.50 -2.02%
DAX 7,880.85 -138.37 -1.73%
CAC 40 5,730.92 -117.03 -2.00%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 16,870.40 +132.77 +0.79%
Hang Seng 31,492.88 +140.30 +0.45%
Straits Times 3,803.56 -2.14 -0.06%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071101/wall_street.html?.v=66
Stocks Plunge; Dow Drops More Than 360
Thursday November 1, 5:06 pm ET
By Joe Bel Bruno, AP Business Writer
Wall Street Plunges on Fears That Interest Rate Cuts Will End Even As Economy Is Weakening

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street plunged Thursday, pulling the Dow Jones industrial average down more than 360 points as investors found themselves confronted by two uncomfortable prospects: an end to interest rate cuts and a slowing economy.

Mindful of a warning from the Federal Reserve Wednesday about inflation, the market nervously watched the price of oil, which passed $96 a barrel overnight for the first time before dipping on profit-taking. The Fed, which cut interest rates a quarter point, said in a statement that inflation remained a concern, and oil's ascent to another record raised the possibility not only that the Fed might stop cutting rates, but that it might even consider raising them if inflation accelerates.

Meanwhile, Wall Street also had to contend with concerns about a slowing economy. A report from the Commerce Department indicated consumers scaled back their spending in September as worries mounted about a worsening housing market and further credit market turmoil. And a trade group reported that manufacturing in the U.S. grew in October at the weakest pace since March.

The combination of factors led investors to pull back sharply from Wednesday's rally, in which the Dow climbed 137 points after the Fed said the economy had weathered the summer's credit crisis.

"Wall Street is in love with the idea of a rate cut, and realized that the Fed said inflation is still a concern -- that lowered the chances of a cut in December," said Ryan Detrick, a senior technical strategist with Schaeffer's Investment Research. "We're now feeling the pain now that investors have slept on it, and figured out what they said."

Christopher Cordaro, chief investment officer at RegentAtlantic Capital, said Wall Street remains anxious about the possibility of recession. He also believes the market is devoid of enough positive news "to have any type of sustained rally."

Investors were unswayed when the Fed pumped $41 billion into the U.S. financial system, one of its largest cash infusions since the credit crisis began in the summer. This increases the amount of money banks have to lend, and helps improve liquidity. In the past, such an action helped soothe the market, but that was not the case Thursday.

With the market growing pessimistic about the economy, the Labor Department's report on October jobs creation, scheduled to be released Friday morning, will be taking on even more importance than it usually has. The data is expected to show unemployment remained steady in October, with payroll growth of 85,000 new jobs, compared with 110,000 in September.

The Dow fell 362.14, or 2.60 percent, to 13,567.87.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index was off 40.94, or 2.64 percent, at 1,508.44, while the Nasdaq composite index dropped 64.29, or 2.25 percent, to 2,794.83.

Big late-session moves became common on Wall Street during the summer. Investors remain hopeful that a down market will turn around, but tend to launch a late afternoon selloff if that doesn't happen.

"We've been getting all these mixed signals, and this is just a confluence of bad news between the Fed, the financials, and this mixed earnings season," said Chris Johnson, president of Johnson Research Group.

Financial stocks were pummeled after Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Corp., the two biggest U.S. banks, were downgraded by CIBC World Markets on worries about the credit markets.

Investors pulling money out of stocks turned to the safe haven of the Treasury market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note dropped to 4.34 percent from 4.47 percent late Wednesday.

Crude prices vaulted above $96 per barrel in overnight trading. A barrel of light sweet crude settled down $1.04 at $93.49 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The Commerce Department's report that consumer spending rose by 0.3 percent in September, slightly lower than the 0.4 percent increase that analysts expected, raised concerns about a slowing economy.

In addition, the performance of the manufacturing sector in October suggested that ongoing troubles in the housing and credit markets have seeped into the industrial sector. The Institute for Supply Management, a Tempe, Ariz.-based trade group, reported its manufacturing index registered 50.9, down from 52.0 in September and below expectations for 51.8. A reading above 50 indicates growth; below that spells contraction.

Also Thursday, the Labor Department said the number of people filing for unemployment benefits declined by a larger-than-expected 6,000 last week to total 327,000.

Wall Street was also troubled by the day's corporate news. Exxon Mobil Corp., the world's largest publicly traded oil company, reported third-quarter profit fell 10 percent because of lower refining and chemical margins. Shares of the Dow component dropped $3.49, or 3.8 percent to $88.50.

Bank of America, the No. 2 U.S. bank, dropped $2.57, or 5.3 percent, to $45.71. Citi, the nation's largest financial institution, dropped $2.85, or 6.9 percent to $38.51 -- its lowest level in four years.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 4 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.74 billion shares, compared to 1.48 billion on Wednesday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies was down 32.84, or 3.97 percent, at 795.18.

The plunge in U.S. stocks caused European bourses to tumble. Britain's FTSE 100 was down 2.17 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 1.77 percent, and France's CAC-40 dropped 2.09 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average, which closed before U.S. markets opened, rose 0.79 percent.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER by +27.23 points +0.20% on Friday November 2:
Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,595.10 +27.23 +0.20%
-- Day's Range: 13446.02 - 13632.90
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,810.38 +15.55 +0.56%
-- Day's Range: 2773.82 - 2817.03
-- 52wk Range: 2,316.82 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,509.65 +1.21 +0.08%
-- Day's Range: 1492.53 - 1513.15
-- 52wk Range: 1,360.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.5950% -0.0510
-- Day's Range: 4.5820 - 4.6830
-- 52wk Range: 4.525 - 5.408

NYSE Volume 4,338,039,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,485,408,500

Overseas
Overseas, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.84 percent, Germany's DAX index shed 0.40 percent, and France's CAC-40 declined 0.18 percent.

Asian markets tumbled in the wake of Wall Street's losses on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 2.09 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 3.25 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,530.60 -55.50 -0.84%
DAX 7,849.49 -31.36 -0.40%
CAC 40 5,720.42 -10.50 -0.18%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 16,517.48 -352.92 -2.09%
Hang Seng 30,468.34 -1,024.54 -3.25%
Straits Times 3,715.32 -88.24 -2.32%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071102/wall_street.html?.v=40
Wall Street Ends Volatile Session Higher
Friday November 2, 6:30 pm ET
By Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer
Stocks Finish Higher As Credit Market Worries Ease Somewhat, but Wall Street Remains Shaky

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street twisted its way through another difficult session Friday, discouraged about the economy's prospects but still managing a higher finish after some concerns about the beleaguered financial sector lifted late in the session. The major indexes ended the week mixed.

Word shortly before the close that Citigroup Inc.'s board plans to meet in an emergency session over the weekend helped that stock and other financials pare steep losses.

Friday's session ended a week made turbulent not only by bad news from the financial sector but also by spiking commodity prices and hints from the Federal Reserve that it might be less generous with interest rate cuts in the coming months. A highly anticipated Labor Department report Friday showed employers added 166,000 jobs in October -- the most in five months and nearly double what analysts expected -- but didn't give stocks much of a lift a day after a sharp pullback as investors' unease about the financial sector blanketed trading.

Wall Street remained shaky after Thursday's sharp pullback, which took the Dow Jones industrial average down more than 360 points -- the fourth biggest drop of the year. The market has been mercurial lately, with economic data coming in mixed and the possibility of interest rate cuts ending, and Friday's trading saw the major indexes alternating between gains and losses.

"I think there is a lot of uncertainty in the markets about the financial institutions in particular," said Subodh Kumar, global investment strategist at Subodh Kumar & Assoc. in Toronto. "This market will remain volatile until these issues are resolved or until it's had a full 10 percent correction," he said, referring to unease about the extent of write-downs.

The Dow rose 27.23, or 0.20 percent, to 13,595.10 after being down more than 120 points at one point in the session.

Broader stock indicators also closed higher. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 1.21, or 0.08 percent, to 1,509.65, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 15.55, or 0.56 percent, to 2,810.38.

The Dow and the S&P 500 ended the week with losses, the Dow dropping 1.53 percent and the S&P off 1.67 percent. The Nasdaq managed a gain of 0.22 percent.

Bond prices rose as investors pulled more money out of stocks. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite the price, fell to 4.32 percent from 4.35 percent late Thursday.

Oil prices rebounded on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after dropping sharply Thursday. Prices have been exceptionally volatile in recent days as the market treads through record territory. A barrel of oil settled up $2.44 at $95.93.

The dollar traded mostly lower against other major currencies. The euro bought a record $1.4527 on Friday.

Some of the biggest losers in the stock market Friday, as they have been in the past few months, were financial institutions -- including Merrill Lynch & Co., Washington Mutual Inc., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. Several analysts have issued research notes in recent days expressing concern about banks' and brokerages' exposure to the tight credit markets and the likelihood that further write-downs are in the offing.

It's likely that as strong as the jobs number was, investors will need to see more evidence of a stronger economy and more stability in the credit markets before they can make any major commitments to stocks, observers said.

The market on Thursday was unnerved by news that consumers cut back their spending in September and that the manufacturing sector expanded in October at the slowest pace since March. But earlier in the week, an initial estimate of third-quarter economic growth came in stronger than economists had expected, at 3.9 percent.

The economic news that arrived Friday added to the mixed picture. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.7 percent, in line with September and analysts' consensus forecast. And while the increase in jobs was well above what economists polled by Thomson/IFR had expected, the size of the civilian labor force shrank.

Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank, contends investors were downplaying an upbeat jobs figure and that the decrease in the labor force should be a lesser concern.

"I think investors who are worried about the direction of the economy should take comfort that we still have an engine," he said, referring to the overall employment picture. "We know we can't rely on the consumer to keep spending the way that they have but we can point to job growth and wage gains as solid evidence that our economy is on solid footing."

As has occurred frequently in recent weeks, technology and small-capitalization issues outperformed much of the broader market Friday.

"Certainly there are problems surrounding several financial institutions and investors seem like they are channeling their investments away from financials and toward growth stocks and things like consumer staples, health care and technology," said Ablin.

But enthusiasm for some corners of the market, concerns about the financials continued to weigh on investors. The Wall Street Journal, citing two people familiar with the matter, reported in the final minutes of the session Friday that Citi's board plans to meet over the weekend and that the discussion will include whether the bank will book further write-downs.

Citigroup, fresh off its biggest decline in years on Thursday, fell again Friday but pared much of the day's losses following report of the planned meeting. The stock closed down 78 cents, or 2 percent, at $37.73.

In addition to Citi, Merrill fell $4.91, or 7.9 percent, to $57.28; Washington Mutual fell $1.94, or 7.5 percent, to $23.81; Goldman Sachs fell $10.61, or 4.4 percent, to $229.60; and JPMorgan fell $1.17, or 2.6 percent, to $43.15.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 6 to 5 on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 4.18 billion shares, compared with 4.20 billion shares traded Thursday.

The Russell 2000 index, which tracks the performance of small-capitalization stocks, rose 2.60, or 0.33 percent, to 797.78.

Overseas, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.84 percent, Germany's DAX index shed 0.40 percent, and France's CAC-40 declined 0.18 percent. Asian markets tumbled in the wake of Wall Street's losses on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 2.09 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 3.25 percent.

The Dow Jones industrial average ended the week down 211.60, or 1.53 percent, at 13,595.10. The Standard & Poor's 500 index finished down 25.63, or 1.67 percent, at 1,509.65. The Nasdaq composite index ended up 6.19, or 0.22 percent, at 2,810.38.

The Russell 2000 index finished the week down 23.61, or 2.87 percent, at 797.78.

The Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Composite Index -- a free-float weighted index that measures 5,000 U.S. based companies -- ended Friday at 15,268.82, down 249.30 points, or 1.61 percent, for the week. A year ago, the index was at 13,683.52.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER by -39.10 points -0.29% on Monday November 5:
Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,556.00 -39.10 -0.29%
-- Day's Range: 13446.91 - 13618.27
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,798.12 -12.26 -0.44%
-- Day's Range: 2771.91 - 2807.51
-- 52wk Range: 2,316.82 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,504.06 -5.59 -0.37%
-- Day's Range: 1489.95 - 1510.13
-- 52wk Range: 1,360.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.6160% +0.0210
-- Day's Range: 4.5940 - 4.6340
-- 52wk Range: 4.525 - 5.408

NYSE Volume 2,410,050,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,988,166,620

Overseas
The concerns about credit weighed on stock markets overseas.

In Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.06 percent, Germany's DAX index shed 0.53, and France's CAC-40 declined 0.63 percent. In Asia,

Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 1.50 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 5.01 percent. The decline in Hong Kong also reflects concern over a possible delay of a government plan to list shares of mainland Chinese companies there.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,461.40 -69.20 -1.06%
DAX 7,807.55 -41.94 -0.53%
CAC 40 5,684.62 -35.80 -0.63%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 16,268.92 -248.56 -1.50%
Hang Seng 28,942.32 -1,526.02 -5.01%
Straits Times 3,670.18 -45.14 -1.21%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071105/wall_street.html?.v=50
Stocks Fall on Housing, Credit Concerns
Monday November 5, 3:48 pm ET
By Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer
Stocks Pull Back As Citigroup Write-Downs Stir Concerns About Widespread Credit Problems

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street pulled back Monday as investors grew more concerned about a deteriorating housing market and the widening impact of soured debt after Citigroup Inc. warned it plans to book $8 billion to $11 billion in additional losses. The market regained ground in late trading, but the buying was technical in nature and lacked any real conviction about the direction of stocks.

Citi's expected losses came on top of the $6.5 billion in asset markdowns and other credit-related losses the company recorded in the third quarter. The re-emergence of credit concerns -- like those that pummeled Wall Street this summer -- comes as the market is also contending with concerns about housing and the health of consumer spending, and with rising expectations that the Federal Reserve is leaning away from cutting interest rates when it meets next month.

Some of the uncertainty about debt centers on who might be holding more bad loans, including some that are kept at arm's length in off-book investment vehicles but that nonetheless could require some banks to take a hit should the investments falter.

A central banker's warning Monday that the subprime mortgage market will likely deteriorate further added to the pressure on stock prices. Fed Gov. Randall Kroszner told the Consumer Bankers Association Fair Lending Conference in Washington that "conditions for subprime borrowers have the potential to get worse before they get better."

The problems may be spreading. A Federal Reserve survey of banks showed that lenders are making it harder to get a home loan, even for borrowers with good credit. About 40 percent of respondents said they had tightened lending standards on prime mortgages during October, up from just 15 percent in July.

"We're at the point now where more and more evidence is starting to emerge that the next 12 months are going to be more difficult," said Joe Battipaglia, market strategist with Stifel Nicolaus & Co.'s private client group. "Problems in housing market are getting deeper and more treacherous," as home inventories rise and sale prices fall.

In the last minutes of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 11.54, or 0.08 percent, at 13,583.56. The Dow was down more than 120 points earlier in the session and briefly popped into the plus side in late afternoon.

The buying was likely the result of short covering, when traders buy stock to cover bets they made earlier that the market would decline. In short covering, traders are not looking to economics or other market fundamentals when they decide to buy.

"I think we're seeing a market that is probably absorbing all the negative news out of subprime and staying in a trading range now," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at brokerage house Avalon Partners Inc. "When we get down to certain technical levels, buying comes in and we're seeing that today."

Broader stock indicators also fell. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 2.70, or 0.18 percent, to 1,506.95, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 7.19, or 0.26 percent, to 2,803.19.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 4.14, or 0.52 percent, to 793.65.

Bonds prices fell, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rising to 4.34 percent, up from 4.32 percent late Friday.

A snapshot of the service sector appeared to briefly soften some investor concerns that the troubles in the financial sector would prove onerous enough to spill into other areas of the economy. The Institute for Supply Management said the service sector grew at a faster-than-expected pace in October amid strength in new orders.

The ISM's index gauging the health of non-manufacturing industries rose to 55.8 from 54.8 in September. A reading above 50 signifies economic expansion.

The unease over Citi's debt follows the widely expected decision by Charles Prince to resign as the company's chairman and chief executive at an emergency meeting of its board Sunday. Citi fell $1.83, or 4.9 percent, to $35.90 and was the steepest decliner among the 30 stocks that make up the Dow industrials.

Prince's resignation came less than a week after Stan O'Neal stepped down as CEO at Merrill Lynch & Co. Both Citi and Merrill have struggled with securities they hold that are tied to subprime loans, those made to borrowers with poor credit. A faltering housing market has made it difficult for those struggling with mortgage payments to refinance and pay off debts. Now, foreclosure rates are spiking and many banks are left holding loans worth far less than they had once been.

As it had Friday, Merrill Lynch fell amid concerns it would have to make an announcement of further write-downs. Last month, Merrill Lynch said it would write off $8.4 billion in losses. Merrill fell $1.13 to $56.15 after falling nearly 8 percent Friday.

"Financials are struggling with this really unknowable and unending plague of asset quality," said John Merrill, chief investment officer at Tanglewood Capital Management in Houston. He expects that while the big financial houses will likely continue to book write-downs as homeowners default on their mortgages the stock prices of the financials aren't likely to fall precipitously from where they stand.

Citigroup is down about 34 percent since the start of the year while Merrill Lynch is down about 42 percent.

Beyond concerns about debt, political uncertainty over a weekend decision by Pakistan President Gen. Pervez Musharraf to suspended the constitution helped shore up some support for the U.S. dollar as investors sought safety. The dollar rose against most other major currencies, while gold prices rose.

Light, sweet crude lost $1.95 to settle at $93.98 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by more than 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.32 billion shares.

The concerns about credit weighed on stock markets overseas. In Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.06 percent, Germany's DAX index shed 0.53, and France's CAC-40 declined 0.63 percent. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 1.50 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 5.01 percent. The decline in Hong Kong also reflects concern over a possible delay of a government plan to list shares of mainland Chinese companies there.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER by +76.82 points +0.57% on Tuesday November 6:
Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,620.22 +76.82 +0.57%
-- Day's Range: 13511.86 - 13626.80
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,813.25 +18.07 +0.65%
-- Day's Range: 2780.22 - 2814.79
-- 52wk Range: 2,331.57 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,514.95 +12.78 +0.85%
-- Day's Range: 1,499.36 - 1,514.95
-- 52wk Range: 1,363.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.6520% +0.0360
-- Day's Range: 4.6150 - 4.6650
-- 52wk Range: 4.525 - 5.408

NYSE Volume 2,322,956,250
Nasdaq Volume 2,075,326,620

Overseas
Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 1.62 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 1.71 percent a day after falling 5 percent.

Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.21 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.25 percent, and France's CAC-40 rose 0.44 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,474.90 +13.50 +0.21%
DAX 7,827.19 +19.64 +0.25%
CAC 40 5,709.42 +24.80 +0.44%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 16,249.63 -19.29 -0.12%
Hang Seng 29,438.13 +495.81 +1.71%
Straits Times 3,683.10 +12.92 +0.35%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071106/wall_street.html?.v=32
Wall Street Recovers After Pullback
Tuesday November 6, 2:39 pm ET
By Madlen Read, AP Business Writer
Investors Seek Bargains, Stocks Recover After Pullback on More Credit and Inflation Concerns

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street recovered from early losses Tuesday as investors, while still worried about credit problems at big financial companies, went in search of bargain stocks.

Big names such as Citigroup Inc. and Merrill Lynch & Co. have stirred gloom on Wall Street by taking or warning of big debt write-downs. Citi and Merrill, among others, have been hurt by securities they hold that are tied to subprime loans, those made to borrowers with poor credit. A sharp pullback in housing prices has tripped up borrowers and sent mortgage defaults higher. That soured debt has come back to haunt banks.

But stocks fell far enough that investors saw opportunities to buy. Though Citigroup fell, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp., Wachovia Corp. and Washington Mutual Inc. all rose more than 2 percent. Other gainers included companies that impressed Wall Street with their earnings results, like Tenet Healthcare Corp., Nortel Networks Corp. and Archer Daniels Midland Co.

"Short-term volatility is here to stay," said Anthony Conroy, managing director at BNY ConvergEx Group, which means that it's a stock-picker's market. "If you do your due diligence, you can make money in the markets."

Meanwhile, concerns about inflation persisted. Gold prices neared 27-year high of $825 an ounce, and oil moved back into record territory. Light, sweet crude jumped $2.89 to $96.87 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier crossing $97 for the first time.

In midafternoon trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 50.07, or 0.37 percent, to 13,593.47 after falling in earlier trading.

Broader stock indicators also turned higher. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 7.86, or 0.52 percent, to 1,510.03, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 4.58, or 0.16 percent, to 2,799.76.

Advancing issues narrowly outnumbered decliners on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 963.3 million shares.

Government bonds dipped slightly. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite the price, stood at 4.36 percent, higher than the 4.34 percent seen late Monday.

The dollar reached yet another record low against the euro Tuesday. The 13-nation currency rose to a high of $1.4569 before falling back slightly.

Gold rose $13.80 to $824.60 an ounce.

One of the most active stocks on the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday was silver and gold miner Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp., which shot higher on higher metals prices and a Bear Stearns analyst's comment that the stock is underpriced. Shares climbed 55 cents, or 14.6 percent, to $4.39.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke spoke in San Antonio Tuesday afternoon, but his prepared remarks did not address monetary policy or the direction of interest rates, and he wasn't scheduled to take any questions during his appearance. Investors are also awaiting his scheduled testimony Thursday before Congress' Joint Economic Committee.

With no major economic news due Tuesday, investors were focused on corporate results.

Hospital operator Tenet Healthcare reported its third-quarter loss narrowed on higher charges and more admissions in commercial managed care. Tenet rose 58 cents, or 18 percent, to $3.81.

Nortel Networks said it swung to a profit in the third quarter despite lower revenue. The Canadian telecom equipment supplier reported its best operating margin since 2004. Nortel rose $2.17, or 13 percent, to $18.45.

Agricultural processor Archer Daniels Midland Co. said its fiscal first-quarter profit rose 9 percent as improved results at its oilseeds processing business offset higher corn prices. ADM rose $2.59, or 7.5 percent, to $37.11.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 1.75, or 0.22 percent, to 792.18.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 1.62 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 1.71 percent a day after falling 5 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.21 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.25 percent, and France's CAC-40 rose 0.44 percent.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
CORRECTION of prior posting for DOW, Nasdaq. S&P
-- prior pasted just before the close;

NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER by +117.54 points +0.87% on Tuesday November 6:
Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,660.94 +117.54 +0.87%
Nasdaq 2,825.18 +30.00 +1.07%
S&P 500 1,520.27 +18.10 +1.20%
30-yr Bond 4.6520% +0.0360
NYSE Volume 3,894,447,500
Nasdaq Volume 2,552,010,500

Overseas
Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 1.62 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 1.71 percent a day after falling 5 percent.

Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.21 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.25 percent, and France's CAC-40 rose 0.44 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,474.90 +13.50 +0.21%
DAX 7,827.19 +19.64 +0.25%
CAC 40 5,709.42 +24.80 +0.44%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 16,249.63 -19.29 -0.12%
Hang Seng 29,438.13 +495.81 +1.71%
Straits Times 3,683.10 +12.92 +0.35%

Thank you ToddPowers
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

Stocks Plunge; Dow Drops More Than 360 -- fetal positions everyone

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER by -360.92 points -2.64% on Wednesday November 7:
Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,300.02 -360.92 -2.64%
-- Day's Range: 13287.50 - 13647.29
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,748.76 -76.42 -2.70%
-- Day's Range: 2748.31 - 2810.19
-- 52wk Range: 2,331.57 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,475.62 -44.65 -2.94%
-- Day's Range: 1475.04 - 1515.46
-- 52wk Range: 1,363.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.6680% +0.0160
-- Day's Range: 4.6300 - 4.6870
-- 52wk Range: 4.525 - 5.408

NYSE Volume 2,652,862,250
Nasdaq Volume 2,463,561,500


Overseas
The plunge in U.S. stocks caused European bourses to tumble. Britain's FTSE 100 was down 2.17 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 1.77 percent, and France's CAC-40 dropped 2.09 percent.

Japan's Nikkei stock average, which closed before U.S. markets opened, rose 0.79 percent

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,420.10 -54.80 -0.85%
DAX 7,799.62 -27.57 -0.35%
CAC 40 5,683.22 -26.20 -0.46%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 16,096.68 -152.95 -0.94%
Hang Seng 29,708.93 +270.80 +0.92%
Straits Times 3,673.01 -10.09 -0.27%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071101/wall_street.html
Stocks Plunge; Dow Drops More Than 360
Thursday November 1, 5:55 pm ET
By Joe Bel Bruno, AP Business Writer
Wall Street Plunges on Fears That Interest Rate Cuts Will End Even As Economy Is Weakening

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street plunged Thursday, pulling the Dow Jones industrial average down more than 360 points as investors found themselves confronted by two uncomfortable prospects: an end to interest rate cuts and a slowing economy.

Mindful of a warning from the Federal Reserve Wednesday about inflation, the market nervously watched the price of oil, which passed $96 a barrel overnight for the first time before dipping on profit-taking. The Fed, which cut interest rates a quarter point, said in a statement that inflation remained a concern, and oil's ascent to another record raised the possibility not only that the Fed might stop cutting rates, but that it might even consider raising them if inflation accelerates.

Meanwhile, Wall Street also had to contend with concerns about a slowing economy. A report from the Commerce Department indicated consumers scaled back their spending in September as worries mounted about a worsening housing market and further credit market turmoil. And a trade group reported that manufacturing in the U.S. grew in October at the weakest pace since March.

The combination of factors led investors to pull back sharply from Wednesday's rally, in which the Dow climbed 137 points after the Fed said the economy had weathered the summer's credit crisis.

"Wall Street is in love with the idea of a rate cut, and realized that the Fed said inflation is still a concern -- that lowered the chances of a cut in December," said Ryan Detrick, a senior technical strategist with Schaeffer's Investment Research. "We're now feeling the pain now that investors have slept on it, and figured out what they said."

Christopher Cordaro, chief investment officer at RegentAtlantic Capital, said Wall Street remains anxious about the possibility of recession. He also believes the market is devoid of enough positive news "to have any type of sustained rally."

Investors were unswayed when the Fed pumped $41 billion into the U.S. financial system, one of its largest cash infusions since the credit crisis began in the summer. This increases the amount of money banks have to lend, and helps improve liquidity. In the past, such an action helped soothe the market, but that was not the case Thursday.

With the market growing pessimistic about the economy, the Labor Department's report on October jobs creation, scheduled to be released Friday morning, will be taking on even more importance than it usually has. The data is expected to show unemployment remained steady in October, with payroll growth of 85,000 new jobs, compared with 110,000 in September.

The Dow fell 362.14, or 2.60 percent, to 13,567.87.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index was off 40.94, or 2.64 percent, at 1,508.44, while the Nasdaq composite index dropped 64.29, or 2.25 percent, to 2,794.83.

Big late-session moves became common on Wall Street during the summer. Investors remain hopeful that a down market will turn around, but tend to launch a late afternoon selloff if that doesn't happen.

"We've been getting all these mixed signals, and this is just a confluence of bad news between the Fed, the financials, and this mixed earnings season," said Chris Johnson, president of Johnson Research Group.

Financial stocks were pummeled after Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Corp., the two biggest U.S. banks, were downgraded by CIBC World Markets on worries about the credit markets.

Investors pulling money out of stocks turned to the safe haven of the Treasury market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note dropped to 4.35 percent from 4.47 percent late Wednesday, and was unchanged in after-hours trading.

Crude prices vaulted above $96 per barrel in overnight trading. A barrel of light sweet crude settled down $1.04 at $93.49 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The Commerce Department's report that consumer spending rose by 0.3 percent in September, slightly lower than the 0.4 percent increase that analysts expected, raised concerns about a slowing economy.

In addition, the performance of the manufacturing sector in October suggested that ongoing troubles in the housing and credit markets have seeped into the industrial sector. The Institute for Supply Management, a Tempe, Ariz.-based trade group, reported its manufacturing index registered 50.9, down from 52.0 in September and below expectations for 51.8. A reading above 50 indicates growth; below that spells contraction.

Also Thursday, the Labor Department said the number of people filing for unemployment benefits declined by a larger-than-expected 6,000 last week to total 327,000.

Wall Street was also troubled by the day's corporate news. Exxon Mobil Corp., the world's largest publicly traded oil company, reported third-quarter profit fell 10 percent because of lower refining and chemical margins. Shares of the Dow component dropped $3.49, or 3.8 percent to $88.50.

Bank of America, the No. 2 U.S. bank, dropped $2.57, or 5.3 percent, to $45.71. Citi, the nation's largest financial institution, dropped $2.85, or 6.9 percent to $38.51 -- its lowest level in four years.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 4 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 4.20 billion shares, compared to 3.84 billion shares on Wednesday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies was down 32.84, or 3.97 percent, at 795.18.

The plunge in U.S. stocks caused European bourses to tumble. Britain's FTSE 100 was down 2.17 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 1.77 percent, and France's CAC-40 dropped 2.09 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average, which closed before U.S. markets opened, rose 0.79 percent.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

WOW: "at one point the Dow had fallen another 200 points"

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER by -33.73 points -0.25% on Thursday November 8:
Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,266.29 -33.73 -0.25%
-- Day's Range: 13080.30 - 13354.00
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,696.00 -52.76 -1.92%
-- Day's Range: 2648.03 - 2753.05
-- 52wk Range: 2,331.57 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,474.77 -0.85 -0.06%
-- Day's Range: 1450.31 - 1482.50
-- 52wk Range: 1,363.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.6620% -0.0060

NYSE Volume 5,107,366,500
Nasdaq Volume 3,461,822,750


Overseas
Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 2.02 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 3.19 percent.

Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.05 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.25 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 0.91 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,381.90 -3.20 -0.05%
DAX 7,819.47 +19.85 +0.25%
CAC 40 5,631.63 -51.59 -0.91%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 15,771.57 -325.11 -2.02%
Hang Seng 28,760.22 -948.71 -3.19%
Straits Times 3,673.01 -10.09 -0.27%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071108/wall_street.html?.v=37
Wall Street Ends Down but Pares Losses
Thursday November 8, 4:36 pm ET
By Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer
Wall Street Pares Losses Brought by Economic Concerns, Worries About Tech

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street closed another difficult session lower but well above its worst losses Thursday after a late-day rebound in financial shares lifted many other stock sectors. Investors still kept their distance from technology shares after a lackluster forecast from Cisco Systems Inc.

Stocks extended the previous day's steep losses after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned that a raft of economic troubles could dent business growth and after Cisco's comments touched off unease about business spending. But buyers moved back in late in the session, apparently thinking the market's selloff had been overdone even with the host of concerns investors face, observers said.

Bernanke, appearing before Congress' Joint Economic Committee with the Fed's economic forecast, warned of threats to the economy but didn't offer solid evidence the bank is prepared to further cut interest rates.

The slide seen during much of the session -- at one point the Dow had fallen another 200 points -- came a day after stocks tumbled amid concerns about continuing credit woes, a weakening dollar and rising oil prices.

Investors also had fresh reason for concern about toxicity within the credit markets. Morgan Stanley issued a detailed accounting of its exposure to subprime debt, pleasing investors by eliminating some of the uncertainty that has wracked Wall Street to varying degrees in recent months. But Morgan said late Wednesday its fourth-quarter profit could be reduced by $2.5 billion in write-downs related to troubles in the credit market, a reminder of the widespread damage from soured loans.

"The market gets oversold regardless of the fundamentals," said Brandon Thomas, chief investment officer of Portfolio Management Consultants, the investment arm of Envestnet Asset Management.

"What the market does is it steps back and says 'Are we becoming oversold here even on a short-term basis?' I think there's been a lot of bottom fishing," he said.

According to preliminary calculations, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 33.73, or 0.25 percent, to 13,266.29. The decline comes a day after the blue chips fell 360.92; Wednesday's decline was the third drop of more than 350 points in a month, offering the latest sign of how jittery many investors remain.

Broader stock indicators also came off their lows. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 0.85, or 0.06 percent, to 1,474.77, and the technology-heavy Nasdaq fell 52.76, or 1.92 percent, to 2,696.00.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by more than 8 to 7 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to a heavy 2.17 billion shares compared with 1.66 billion traded Wednesday.

Government bonds rose as stocks retreated. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 4.27 percent from 4.30 percent late Wednesday.

The Chicago Board Options Exchange's volatility index, known as the VIX, and often referred to as the "fear index," which jumped nearly 24 percent Wednesday, fell 3.9 percent but still remained near levels not seen since mid-August.

The dollar was lower against most other major currencies. Gold prices advanced for the fifth straight day as investors looked for alternatives to an anemic dollar. Gold rose $4 to a record close of $837.50 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Light, sweet crude fell 91 cents to $95.46 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Bernanke's words -- even those that might have helped ease some of Wall Street's concerns -- appeared to leave investors with little optimism for much of the session.

Bernanke acknowledged the market's recent jitters but said he believes the economy will rebound from recent problems by the second half of next year. But he added that rising prices for oil and other commodities had stoked concerns about inflation and repeated the Fed's assessment made last week that monetary policy seemed well-balanced to allow for growth while curtailing inflation.

Thomas contends the Fed will only be able to do so much, particularly because a rate cut could give way to higher inflation and could further undermine the dollar.

"It's a real difficult time because whichever way they push and pull the level it causes problems," he said.

While investors parsed Bernanke's comments for clues about the Fed's plans, they also looked to mixed corporate news.

Morgan Stanley led financial stocks higher, rising $2.49, or 4.9 percent, to $53.68 after the nation's No. 2 investment bank appeared to relieve investors who had grown fearful that its subprime losses could be worse. The bank said it could lose up to $6 billion if all subprime mortgage-related investments were to go bad.

Cisco fell $3.12, or 9.5 percent, to $29.63 after the world's largest maker of networking equipment issued forecasts that disappointed Wall Street and stirred concerns of a further slowdown in spending by businesses.

A narrower-than-expected third-quarter loss at Ford Motor Co. and word of a buyout offer in the mining sector weren't able to sustain higher prices.

Stripping out items that analysts typically exclude, Ford's loss came to a penny a share. This was far less than the 46 cent-a-share loss analysts had been expecting on average, according to a Thomson Financial poll. Ford rose 24 cents, or 2.9 percent, to $8.48.

Mining company BHP Billiton PLC confirmed speculation it would go after rival Rio Tinto PLC. While Rio Tinto rejected the offer, the notion that BHP would make a buyout offer given recent uncertainty in the world's markets seemed to please investors. BHP Billiton fell $3.50, or 4.4 percent, to $76.85, while Rio Tinto surged $82.70, or 23 percent, to $440.20.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 4.94, or 0.64 percent, to 780.94.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 2.02 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 3.19 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.05 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.25 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 0.91 percent.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 220 points -- fetal positions everyone

The Dow Jones industrial average ended the week down 552.36, or 4.06 percent, at 13,042.74.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER by -223.55 points -1.69% on Friday November 9:
Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,042.74 -223.55 -1.69%
-- Day's Range: 13,017.30 - 13,262.14
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,627.94 -68.06 -2.52%
-- Day's Range: 2624.43 - 2668.79
-- 52wk Range: 2,331.57 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,453.70 -21.07 -1.43%
-- Day's Range: 1448.51 - 1473.83
-- 52wk Range: 1,363.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.6020% -0.0600

NYSE Volume 4,631,028,000
Nasdaq Volume 3,016,567,750

Overseas
Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 1.19 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.08 percent.

Britain's FTSE 100 was down 1.21 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 0.09 percent, and France's CAC-40 shed 1.91 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,304.90 -77.00 -1.21%
DAX 7,812.40 -7.07 -0.09%
CAC 40 5,524.18 -107.45 -1.91%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 15,583.42 -188.15 -1.19%
Hang Seng 28,783.41 +23.19 +0.08%
Straits Times 3,599.67 -73.34 -2.00%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071109/wall_street.html?.v=43
Stocks End Volatile Week With Huge Drop
Friday November 9, 7:04 pm ET
By Joe Bel Bruno, AP Business Writer
Stocks Skid Again; Investors on Edge As Wachovia Takes Writedown, Economic Worries Persist

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street finished a turbulent week with another huge drop Friday after major banks warned of further losses on their debt portfolios, raising investor concerns that the credit market slump shows no sign of abating. The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 220 points.

Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Wachovia Corp. all said the ongoing credit crisis will cause another round of heavy losses during the fourth quarter. Financial institutions took big hits during the last quarter as losses from subprime mortgages hurt their balance sheets, and these three companies were just the latest to report bad news that sent stocks lower.

BofA said continued "market dislocations," including those related to securities it owns that are backed by loans, will affect its fourth-quarter results. The bank did not provide an estimate of how large the impact will be. JPMorgan said difficult conditions may cause a fourth-quarter writedown, but did not say how much.

Wachovia, the nation's fourth-largest bank said it faced a $1.1 billion writedown for October alone. Investors also were rattled by speculation that Barclays PLC was about to announce a $10 billion writedown, though the U.K. bank denied the rumors.

"The extent of the situation is unknown, and that uncertainty doesn't give investors any reasons to believe that a bottom might be in place," said Todd Salamone, director of trading and vice president of research at Schaeffer's Investment Research. "We just got more of the same this week rattling investors, and the question for investors becomes what's the next catalyst to drive stocks higher."

Further worries about the continuing credit market slump kept investors on edge a day after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he expects the economy to "slow noticeably" this quarter.

He also said the dollar's weakness "may have some effect on import prices" -- which was confirmed Friday in new government data. The Commerce Department reported U.S. import prices soared last month at their fastest pace since early last year.

Meanwhile, the University of Michigan's preliminary November consumer sentiment index tumbled for its weakest performance since October 2005.

The Dow Jones industrials fell 223.55, or 1.69 percent, to 13,042.74. The blue chip index is down 1,155.35 points, or 8.14 percent, since its trading high of 14,198.09, reached in August.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index was off 21.07, or 1.43 percent, at 1,453.70, while the Nasdaq composite index tumbled 68.06, or 2.52 percent, to 2,627.94.

Friday's performance capped another dismal week for stocks. The Dow racheted up and down, including a 360-point plunge Wednesday that was the blue chips' third drop of more than 350 points in a month; the volatility was proof of how anxious and how quick to sell investors are in what has become a steady flow of bad news about credit losses.

For the week, the Dow dropped 4.06 percent and the S&P 500 tumbled 3.71 percent. The technology-focused Nasdaq, which often trades with more volatility, plunged 6.49 percent.

Light, sweet crude for December delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 86 cents to settle at $96.32 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Bond prices rose, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note falling to 4.22 percent from 4.27 percent late Thursday. Yields and prices move in opposite directions. The bond market will be closed Monday for the Veterans Day holiday observance; the stock market will be open. Meanwhile, both gold and the dollar were lower.

Financial stocks were among the hardest hit Friday, though the banks that warned about the fourth quarter finished mostly flat amid hopes that their announcements might be signaling the end of the current period's trouble. BofA rose 49 cents to $43.99, JPMorgan fell 32 cents to $42.29, and Wachovia was up 31 cents at $40.61.

Investors were uneasy about tech stocks after Qualcomm Inc., the nation's second-biggest maker of chips that run mobile phones, predicted that heightened competition and legal troubles will cause 2008 results to fall 4 percent to 7 percent below Wall Street projections.

Qualcomm fell $1.66, or 4.2 percent, to $38.10.

Cisco Systems Inc. was another drag on the technology sector. It fell $1.05, or 3.5 percent, to $28.58 after the company warned of a dramatic decline in domestic business orders.

Merck & Co. said it will pay $4.85 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits over its painkiller Vioxx -- a move considered to be the biggest drug settlement ever. The offer was finalized early Friday as Merck and the plaintiffs met with three of the four judges overseeing the claims. Merck rose $1.13, or 2.1 percent, to $55.90.

Walt Disney & Co. shares fell 89 cents, or 2.7 percent, to $32.74 after the entertainment company said late Thursday fiscal fourth-quarter profit rose 12 percent, driven by sports network ESPN and turnout at its U.S. theme parks. However, executives remain concerned about a Hollywood writers strike that began this week.

Declining shares led advancers by a better than 2 to 1 ratio on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 4.53 billion shares, down from 5.35 billion Thursday.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 1.19 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.08 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 was down 1.21 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 0.09 percent, and France's CAC-40 shed 1.91 percent.

The Dow Jones industrial average ended the week down 552.36, or 4.06 percent, at 13,042.74. The Standard & Poor's 500 index finished down 55.95, or 3.71 percent, at 1,453.70. The Nasdaq composite index ended down 182.44, or 6.49 percent, at 2,627.94.

The Russell 2000 index finished the week down 25.40, or 3.18 percent, at 772.38.

The Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Composite Index -- a free-float weighted index that measures 5,000 U.S. based companies -- ended Friday at 14,709.29, down 559.53 points, or 3.66 percent, from 15,268.82 for the week. A year ago, the index was at 13,837.86.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

The Dow Jones industrials, up more than 100 points during the day, ended below 13,000 for the first time since August.

The Dow has fallen 1,210.55, or 8.53 percent, from the all-time trading high of 14,198.10 that it reached Oct. 11. Its record high close was 14,164.53, set Oct. 9.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER by -55.19 points -0.42% on Monday November 12:
Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 12,987.55 -55.19 -0.42%
-- Day's Range: 12981.04 - 13162.32
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,584.13 -43.81 -1.67%
-- Day's Range: 2583.00 - 2643.00
-- 52wk Range: 2,331.57 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,439.18 -14.52 -1.00%
-- Day's Range: 1,439.54 - 1,464.94
-- 52wk Range: 1,363.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.5940% -0.0080

NYSE Volume 3,946,730,500
Nasdaq Volume 2,765,917,500

Overseas
Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 2.48 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped 3.88 percent.

Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.52 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 0.07 percent, while France's CAC-40 rose 0.21 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,337.90 +33.00 +0.52%
DAX 7,806.84 -5.56 -0.07%
CAC 40 5,535.56 +11.38 +0.21%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 15,197.09 -386.33 -2.48%
Hang Seng 27,665.73 -1,117.68 -3.88%
Straits Times 3,511.12 -88.55 -2.46%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071112/wall_street.html?.v=53
Stocks Finish Lower Amid Credit Anxiety
Monday November 12, 4:22 pm ET
By Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer
Wall Street Extends Decline As Investors Remain Anxious About Credit Crisis

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street ratcheted its way through a fractious session Monday before finally closing lower on expectations of further fallout from the ongoing credit crisis. The Dow Jones industrials, up more than 100 points during the day, ended below 13,000 for the first time since August.

Stocks lost ground for the fourth straight session. Analysts said investors had few reasons to sustain a rally, even with many stocks at enticingly low prices after recent routs. The Nasdaq composite index was the biggest decliner among the major indexes as investors sold technology stocks.

News stories kept the subprime contagion in focus. Late Friday, E-Trade Financial Corp. said the value of its mortgage-backed securities has fallen significantly and that it will need to take bigger-than-expected write-downs in the fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, troubled home lender Countrywide Financial Corp. said in a U.S. regulatory filing it could be "severely" limited if its credit rating drops into junk status. And Britain's HSBC Holdings PLC was seen as the next major financial institution to write down losses from exposure to the debt markets, according to a report from The Times of London. The bank will announce a $1 billion charge to its portfolio of high-risk subprime mortgages when it reports third-quarter results from its U.S. division, according to the report.

Investors were uncertain in the wake of heavy selling last week. "I don't think anyone quite knows what to make of today's market," said Paul Nolte, director of investments at Hinsdale Associates. "It is a decent day, given all of the mess from last week. But this is very, very short-term. All we are doing is reversing some of the action from last week."

Blue chips held on to some of their gains, but selling was especially strong in tech stocks as more investors succumbed to the view that the sector is not strong enough to provide the economy with a cushion against the weakness in housing. Apple Inc. fell more than 7 percent after analysts described the weekend European launch of the iPod as disappointing.

According to preliminary calculations, the Dow fell 55.19, or 0.42 percent, to 12,987.55, after falling 4.06 percent last week.

The last time the Dow traded below 13,000 was on Aug. 17, when it index hit a low of 12,847.24, and the last time it closed below 13,000 was on Aug. 16, when it ended at 12,845.78.

The Dow has fallen 1,210.55, or 8.53 percent, from the all-time trading high of 14,198.10 that it reached Oct. 11. Its record high close was 14,164.53, set Oct. 9.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index on Monday fell 14.52, or 1 percent, to 1,439.18, while the Nasdaq composite index dropped 43.81, or 1.67 percent, to 2,584.13.

Falling issues outnumbered advancing shares by about 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.71 billion shares compared with 1.62 billion shares traded Friday.

Trading in many corners of the market was light because of Veterans Day, with the government bond markets closed. This could account for some volatility as institutional traders sought positions ahead of economic reports, including readings on inflation, later in the week.

The dollar rebounded against other major currencies, bolstered by a sharp decline in the price of gold. Gold futures briefly fell under $800 an ounce before recovering some strength to close down $27 at $807.70 an ounce.

Light, sweet crude fell $1.70 to $94.62 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The drop came on reports that OPEC would discuss increasing its output at an upcoming meeting in a bid to cool record crude prices.

"The problem is just the mood of the market," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners, said of Wall Street. "There is a tense feeling that there will be still more problems with the subprime situation and a fear that things are going to get worse rather than better."

"The feeling is so bad that we did not even get much help from a drop in commodities prices," he said. "Nothing will change until we get a positive catalyst and I don't see one."

Apple fell $11.61, or 7 percent, to $153.76.

E-Trade plunged $5.04, or 58.7 percent, to $3.55, while Countrywide fell 64 cents, or 4.6 percent, to $13.19.

Citigroup Inc. regained some strength after last week's sell-off and was the biggest gainer among the 30 stocks that make up the Dow industrials. Citi rose $1.49, or 4.5 percent, to $34.58.

There was deal news that perhaps helped contain the market's slide: International Business Machines Corp. said it will buy software developer Cognos Inc. for $5 billion, sending Cognos stock up $4.17, or 7.9 percent, to $57.15. IBM rose $1.20 to $101.45.

And Constellation Brands Inc. said it will pay $885 million for the U.S. wine business of Fortune Brands Inc. Constellation Brands dropped 39 cents to $22.60 as Fortune Brands shares rose 49 cents to $79.66.

Tyson Foods Inc. fell 42 cents, or 2.9 percent, to $14.33 after the world's largest meat company forecast earnings for this year that were below what analysts were expecting.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 5.29, or 0.68 percent, to 767.09.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 2.48 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped 3.88 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.52 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 0.07 percent, while France's CAC-40 rose 0.21 percent.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
Even better now and currently Dow 13,310.59 +323.04 +2.49% with 5 minutes to go

We could very well have a great day on ASX!!
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

Stocks Bound; Dow Ends Up Almost 320

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER +319.54 +2.46% on Tuesday November 13:

Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,307.09 +319.54 +2.46%
-- Day's Range: 12975.11 - 13318.96
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,673.65 +89.52 +3.46%
-- Day's Range: 2613.37 - 2673.65
-- 52wk Range: 2,331.57 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,481.05 +41.87 +2.91%
-- Day's Range: 1441.35 - 1481.37
-- 52wk Range: 1,363.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.6050% +0.0110

NYSE Volume 4,048,165,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,662,604,500

Overseas
Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 0.46 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.50 percent.

In Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.39 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 0.38 percent, while France's CAC-40 added 0.06 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,362.40 +24.50 +0.39%
DAX 7,777.56 -29.28 -0.38%
CAC 40 5,538.91 +3.35 +0.06%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 15,126.63 -70.46 -0.46%
Hang Seng 27,803.35 +137.62 +0.50%
Straits Times 3,475.47 -35.65 -1.02%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071113/wall_street.html?.v=44
Stocks Get Lift From Goldman, Wal-Mart
Tuesday November 13, 4:37 pm ET
By Lauren Villagran, AP Business Writer
Stocks Lifted by Goldman Sachs' Good News on Subprime and Wal-Mart's Strong Earnings Report

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street shot higher Tuesday, lifting the Dow Jones industrials nearly 320 points after reassuring news from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. quelled some of the market's worst fears about the credit crisis and the economy. A plunge in the price of oil gave investors further incentive to buy.

Goldman Sachs heartened investors with word that it didn't expect a significant hit from the subprime mortgage turmoil. Goldman Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein, speaking at a conference held by Merrill Lynch & Co., said the bank has a short position in the subprime mortgage market and won't be taking any significant charges to write off losses.

Goldman's news helped offset an announcement from Bank of America Inc., which joined other big financial companies including Citigroup Inc. and Merrill Lynch that have recently revealed heavy writedowns from soured mortgages; BofA said it will record $3 billion in pretax writedowns in the fourth quarter.

Goldman's assessment was the first substantial good news from the financial services industry about a company's credit exposure, and was comforting to investors whose fears about widening credit problems have sent Wall Street plunging over the past month.

"People just want to know what's out there," said Todd Leone, managing director of equity trading at Cowen & Co. "They want to feel like they're being told the truth."

Meanwhile, Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, reported third-quarter profit surpassed projections and hinted that consumer spending might be stronger than anticipated this holiday shopping season. The results also showed that heavy discounting during the period did not hurt margins, which the company said bodes well for the fourth quarter.

A sharp pullback in energy prices also encouraged Wall Street. Oil prices plummeted after the International Energy Agency reduced its expectations for demand in the fourth quarter and next year and said crude supplies are growing. Light, sweet crude for December delivery fell $3.45 to settle at $91.17 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

According to preliminary calculations, the Dow rose 319.54, or 2.46 percent, to 13,307.09.

A day earlier, a turbulent session pushed the Dow below 13,000 for the first time since August. Tuesday's advance snapped a four-day losing streak for the blue chip index.

Broader indexes also rose sharply Tuesday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index jumped 41.86, or 2.91 percent, to 1,481.04, and the Nasdaq composite index gained 89.52, or 3.46 percent, to 2,673.65.

"Over the last week there has been so much bloodshed on the Street, it's finally enticed people back to the market," said Ryan Larson, senior equity trader at Voyageur Asset Management. "At some point, it's hard to turn your head when all these issues become so cheap."

Bonds fell as investors moved back into stocks. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 4.26 percent from 4.22 percent late Friday. The market was closed Monday in observance of Veterans Day.

Gold prices declined, settling at $799 an ounce on the Nymex. It was the first close below $800 since Nov. 2. The dollar was mixed.

Investors were expected to position their portfolios ahead of key economic data out during the week. Two key barometers of inflation and the economy will be released, with the Labor Department's Producer Price Index on Wednesday and the Consumer Price Index on Thursday.

News in the troubled housing market was mixed Tuesday, but didn't spoil Wall Street's rally. The National Association of Realtors said its index for pending home sales edged higher in September at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.2 percent to 85.7 from 85.5 in August. It was the first increase since June. However, the trade group said it expects the market slump to worsen into 2008.

Goldman shares gained $18.33, or 8.5 percent, to $233.04, while Bank of America added $2.29, or 5.2 percent, to $46.27.

Wal-Mart spiked $2.65, or 6.1 percent, to $45.97 after the retailer said quarterly profit rose 8 percent as it heads into the holiday shopping season. Chief Executive Officer Lee Scott said it has been a tough year for consumers, but that the company's new focus on pricing is paying off.

TJX Cos. -- the operator of T.J. Maxx and Marshalls -- reported third-quarter profit rose 13 percent. Results, which missed Wall Street expectations, were hurt by unseasonably warm early fall weather. Shares added $1.10, or 3.8 percent, $30.42.

Home Depot Inc., the world's largest home improvement chain, reported third-quarter results fell 26.8 percent because of the continuing slump in the housing sector. Shares rose 66 cents, up 2.3 percent, to $29.12.

Troubled lender Countrywide Financial Corp. said total mortgage origination volume fell 48 percent in October due to continued weakening of the mortgage market and the company's decision to cut down on its subprime lending operations. However, shares rose 53 cents, or 4 percent, to $13.72 after Countrywide said it significantly reduced some of its riskier loans that triggered recent financial problems.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 22.06, or 2.88 percent, to 789.15.

Advancing issues led decliners by roughly 5 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where 1.66 billion shares were traded.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 0.46 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.50 percent. In Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.39 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 0.38 percent, while France's CAC-40 added 0.06 percent.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -83.16 points -0.62% on Wednesday November 14:

Stocks bobbed in and out of positive territory for much of the day before taking a sharp turn lower in the last half-hour.

Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,223.93 -83.16 -0.62%
-- Day's Range: 13198.08 - 13367.17
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,644.32 -29.33 -1.10%
-- Day's Range: 2636.32 - 2698.35
-- 52wk Range: 2,331.57 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,470.58 -10.47 -0.71%
-- Day's Range: 1466.84 - 1492.14
-- 52wk Range: 1,363.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.60% 0.00

NYSE Volume 3,932,556,750
Nasdaq Volume 2,452,797,750

Overseas
Japan's Nikkei stock average closed up 2.47 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 4.90 percent.

In Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 added 1.10 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.07 percent, while France's CAC-40 rose 1.35 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,432.10 +69.70 +1.10%
DAX 7,783.11 +5.55 +0.07%
CAC 40 5,613.60 +74.69 +1.35%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 15,499.56 +372.93 +2.47%
Hang Seng 29,166.01 +1,362.66 +4.90%
Straits Times 3,544.43 +68.96 +1.98%


http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071114/wall_street.html?.v=41
Stocks Finish Lower After Wobbly Session
Wednesday November 14, 4:40 pm ET
By Lauren Villagran, AP Business Writer
Stocks End Lower Amid More News of Credit Write-Downs; Government Reports Tame Inflation Data

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street closed an uneasy session lower Wednesday as investors, uncertain if the worst of the credit crisis is over, refrained from extending Tuesday's huge advance.

Stocks bobbed in and out of positive territory for much of the day before taking a sharp turn lower in the last half-hour. Traders may well have been rattled when the chief executive of e-Trade Financial Corp., Mitch Caplan, appeared on CNBC and talked about the online brokerage's problems resulting from losses in its $3 billion portfolio of mortgage debt. While Caplan was upbeat, any reminder of credit-related uncertainty has easily unnerved the market -- especially late in a session.

"All month long, once a direction has been established, it tends to accelerate in the last hour," said Steven Goldman, chief market strategist with Weeden & Co., in Greenwich, Conn. "They hit a grease spot, and that was the case today, as well."

The market was initially relieved after Bear Stearns Cos. Chief Financial Officer Sam Molinaro said the investment bank's leveraged finance business is improving. He said the company expects to take a $1.2 billion writedown during the fourth quarter, which eased worries of even higher losses.

Wednesday's news followed reassuring comments from Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s chief executive about its own credit exposure that helped propel the Dow Jones industrials up nearly 320 points on Tuesday.

But more evidence of the tenuousness of the credit markets came from Britain's HSBC Holdings PLC, which said it would have to write down a further $3.4 billion from its U.S. business during the third quarter because of exposure to subprime loans, after writing down billions earlier in the year.

Meanwhile, after plunging on Tuesday, oil prices resumed their climb Wednesday, raising concerns that inflation risks could prevent the Federal Reserve from lowering rates to calm the shaky market.

According to preliminary calculations, the Dow fell 83.16, or 0.62 percent, to 13,223.93.

Broader stock indicators also fell. The Standard & Poor's 500 index lost 10.70, or 0.72 percent, to 1,470.35, while the Nasdaq composite index tumbled 29.33, or 1.10 percent, to 2,644.32.

Treasury bonds were flat. The 10-year Treasury note's yield, which moves in the opposite direction of its price, held at 4.26 percent, even with late Tuesday.

Gold prices rose $15.70 to settle at $814.70 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while the dollar was mixed against rival currencies.

The Labor Department reported wholesale prices registered a slight gain in October, held down by a drop in energy costs. The moderation in inflation could be temporary, however, with oil prices surging to fresh records of around $98 a barrel in early November.

A barrel of light sweet crude rose $2.92 to settle at $94.09 a barrel on the Nymex, after plunging Tuesday by $3.45.

And while the wholesale price report suggests the Fed could afford to lower rates further when it meets on Dec. 11, the central bank did indicate after its Oct. 30-31 meeting -- where it cut rates by a quarter-point -- that it was satisfied with the current state of the economy and still concerned about rising inflation.

Bear Stearns Cos. rose $2.58, or 2.6 percent, to $103.45, after its CFO's encouraging comments. Other financial stocks -- which have lagged other sectors this year -- rose as well but several pared their advance at the close.

Merrill Lynch & Co. rose $1.03 to $57.98, on reports that NYSE Euronext CEO John Thain is leaving to become CEO of Merrill.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Department reported retail sales managed a small increase in October as consumers struggled to cope with a steep slump in housing, volatile financial markets and soaring energy costs. It was the weakest showing since August and represented a significant slowdown from September.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by roughly 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.56 billion shares.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 6.80, or 0.86 percent, to 782.36.

About a half hour before the market's open, The Associated Press reported Dow futures shot up 413 points, or about 3.16 percent. The index was later corrected to a gain of about 67 points, or 0.50 percent. Data provider Thomson Financial said it was investigating the discrepancy, which was likely the result of a software glitch.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average closed up 2.47 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 4.90 percent. In Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 added 1.10 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.07 percent, while France's CAC-40 rose 1.35 percent.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

Wall Street skidded lower Thursday as investors grappled with concerns about the strength of consumer spending and the overall economy after downbeat comments from J.C. Penney Co. and Wells Fargo & Co.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -120.96 points -0.91% on Thursday November 15:
Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,110.05 -120.96 -0.91% -- Day's Range: 13057.37 - 13260.11
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,618.51 -25.81 -0.98%
-- Day's Range: 2601.39 - 2652.65
-- 52wk Range: 2,331.57 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,451.15 -19.43 -1.32% -- Day's Range: 1444.17 - 1471.93
-- 52wk Range: 1,363.98 - 1,576.09

10 Yr Bond(%) 4.1590% -0.1100

Overseas
Major stock indexes overseas slumped. Britain's FTSE 100 declined 1.13 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 1.49 percent, while France's CAC-40 shed 0.93 percent.

Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 0.67 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 1.42 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,359.60 -72.50 -1.13%
DAX 7,667.03 -116.08 -1.49%
CAC 40 5,561.13 -52.47 -0.93%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 15,396.30 -103.26 -0.67%
Hang Seng 28,751.21 -414.80 -1.42%
Straits Times 3,477.59 -47.32 -1.34%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071115/wall_street.html?.v=40
Stocks Fall Amid Concerns About Consumer
Thursday November 15, 4:28 pm ET
By Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer
Stocks Slide on Anxiety About Health of Consumer Spending Ahead of Holidays, State of Banks


NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street skidded lower Thursday as investors grappled with concerns about the strength of consumer spending and the overall economy after downbeat comments from J.C. Penney Co. and Wells Fargo & Co.

Investors soured on retailers and banks, while falling oil prices hurt shares of energy companies.

Wall Street is concerned about rising gas prices. Although oil has come off the highs seen last week, prices remain elevated and could crimp consumer spending as the all-important holiday shopping season approaches.

"The J.C. Penney comments in terms of their guidance have sort of put another nail in retail. The assumption is the consumer has given up," said Charlie Smith, chief investment officer at Fort Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh. "Three-dollar to $3.20 a gallon gas and house prices falling at 5 percent a year is really a double-whammy the consumer can't overcome."

Wells Fargo president and chief executive John Stumpf said the housing market is seeing its steepest decline since the Great Depression. The bank has boosted its loss provisions in recent quarters to cover increasing defaults on mortgages and home-equity products. Still, the company has been able to avoid big writedowns that other banks have faced because it has little exposure to some complex financial instruments such as mortgage-backed securities that have recently soured.

Investors also reacted to a Barron's report late Wednesday that a General Electric Asset Management bond fund has suffered losses in mortgage-backed securities. The General Electric Co. unit is offering investors the option to redeem their holdings in the short-term institutional bond fund at 96 cents on the dollar. The losses in the bond fund raised concerns that the squeeze on credit markets could spread and hurt small investors.

Barclays Group said its Barclays Capital investment unit became the latest financial institution to book a writedown on losses stemming from turbulent credit markets. The business took a $2.7 billion charge in the third quarter but the also said Thursday its profit beat last year's strong performance.

According to preliminary calculations, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 120.96, or 0.91 percent, to 13,110.05.

Broader stock indicators also declined. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 19.43, or 1.32 percent, to 1,451.15. The Nasdaq composite index fell 25.81, or 0.98 percent, to 2,618.51.

Government bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, slid to 4.16 percent from 4.25 percent late Wednesday.

Oil prices slipped on the New York Mercantile Exchange, where a barrel of light, sweet crude fell 66 cents to settle at $93.43 after domestic crude oil and gasoline inventories rose more than expected last week and OPEC forecast fourth-quarter demand for oil would be less than expected. Gold prices fell as the dollar strengthened.

In economic news, the Labor Department said Thursday its Consumer Price Index rose 0.3 percent in October on high energy and foods costs, in line with September's increase and analysts' forecast.

Robert A. Dye, senior economist at PNC Financial Services Group, is concerned that readings on consumer prices and Wednesday's report on producer prices indicate the economy could start to feel pressure in coming months from higher energy costs as well as a weakening dollar.

"This number tells us that we might be concerned that the Fed might not have the leeway we thought it had a few months ago to ease the fed funds rate," he said, referring to the CPI report and the Fed's efforts to keep inflation in check.

Investors were troubled by corporate news. J.C. Penney reported a 9 percent drop in fiscal third-quarter profit on weak sales and cut its fourth-quarter outlook, indicating that housing market problems are taking a toll on shoppers, as well. J.C. Penney fell $2.40, or 5.1 percent, to $44.33.

Wells Fargo fell $1.28, or 3.9 percent, to $31.97. Among other financial companies, Citigroup Inc. fell $1.46, or 4.1 percent, to $34.58, while Lehman Brothers Inc. fell $2.48, or 3.8 percent, to $62.97.

Barclays Group fell 88 cents, or 2 percent, to $43 .

Exxon Mobil Corp. fell $1.82, or 2.1 percent, to $84.49, while other energy companies also lost ground. ConocoPhillips fell $1.33 to $78.04.

GE fell 70 cents to $38.31.

Ralcorp Holdings Inc., a maker of private-label cereals, said it will buy Kraft Food Inc.'s Post cereals division for $1.65 billion plus $950 mllion in debt.

Kraft fell 61 cents to $32.37, and Ralcorp rose $5.77, or 10.4 percent, to $61.24.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by more than 3 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.47 billion shares compared with 1.56 billion shares traded Wednesday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 10.87, or 1.39 percent, to 771.60.

Major stock indexes overseas slumped. Britain's FTSE 100 declined 1.13 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 1.49 percent, while France's CAC-40 shed 0.93 percent.

Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 0.67 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 1.42 percent.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER +66.74 points +0.51% on Friday November 16:

Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 13,176.79 +66.74 +0.51%
-- Day's Range: 13051.60 - 13211.17
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,637.24 +18.73 +0.72%
-- Day's Range: 2596.59 - 2640.03
-- 52wk Range: 2,331.57 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,458.74 +7.59 +0.52%
-- Day's Range: 1443.99 - 1462.18
-- 52wk Range: 1,363.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.5230% -0.0110

NYSE Volume 4,129,040,250
Nasdaq Volume 2,515,753,750

Overseas
Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.08 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 0.71 percent, while France's CAC-40 shed 0.61 percent.

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 1.57 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 3.95 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,291.20 -68.40 -1.08%
DAX 7,612.26 -54.77 -0.71%
CAC 40 5,523.63 -37.50 -0.67%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 15,154.61 -241.69 -1.57%
Hang Seng 27,614.43 -1,136.78 -3.95%
Straits Times 3,440.96 -36.63 -1.05%


http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071116/wall_street.html?.v=37
Wall Street Ends Volatile Session Higher
Friday November 16, 4:35 pm ET
By Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer
Stocks Closed Higher As Investors Set Aside Unease Over Consumer Spending, Banking Sector

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street ended a volatile week with a late-day comeback Friday after investors set aside some concerns about the banking sector and the health of the overall economy.

Stocks began Friday's session having fallen in six of the prior seven sessions as investors have fretted about whether consumers would succumb to higher energy prices, rising mortgage costs and an anemic dollar. Continuing credit turmoil has also stirred concerns about the soundness of corporate balance sheets and profits. A sharp rally Tuesday was largely undone by subsequent pullbacks; on Friday, the market appeared headed to another down day before the major indexes, which had flip-flopped all day, turned higher in the last half-hour.

Financial stocks fell, partly due to a Fortune story that raised the possibility the mortgage lender could be masking the true magnitude of credit-related hits to its profits. Fannie Mae executives, in a conference call with Wall Street analysts, defended a change in the way the largest U.S. buyer and backer of home loans calculates losses on home loans.

Giving investors further reason for worry, FedEx Corp. lowered its earnings expectations for the fiscal second quarter and full year and Starbucks Corp. slashed its earnings forecast for the fourth quarter after it reported traffic at stores open at least 13 months dropped by 1 percent.

But tech stocks fared better. Investors have at times viewed technology companies as likely to fare better during an economic downturn than some groups such as retailers. Cisco Systems Inc., the world's largest network equipment company, said Friday it plans to repurchase an additional $10 billion in stock and an analyst upgraded Hewlett-Packard Co.

Meanwhile, rising oil prices gave a boost to energy names such as Exxon Mobil Corp. and ConocoPhillips.

According to preliminary calculations, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 66.74, or 0.51 percent, to 13,176.79

Broader stock indicators also recovered. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 7.59, or 0.52 percent, to 1,458.74. The Nasdaq composite index rose 18.73, or 0.72 percent, to 2,637.24.

Despite the gains in the major indexes, declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 6 to 5 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.77 billion shares compared with 1.47 billion traded Thursday.

The major indexes managed gains for the week, with the Dow rising 1.03 percent and the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq each adding 0.35 percent.

Government bond prices fell as stocks fluctuated. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 4.15 percent from 4.14 percent late Thursday. The dollar slipped against other major currencies, while gold prices rose.

Oil prices rose Friday amid expectations that global crude supplies will remain tight despite a U.S. oil inventory report that showed a surprising build in domestic crude stockpiles. Light, sweet crude rose $1.67 to settle at $95.10 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The economic news arriving Friday seemed to offer investors little incentive to bid stocks higher. Industrial production in October showed the sharpest decrease in nine months. The Federal Reserve said output at the nation's factories, mines and utilities fell by 0.5 percent last month -- a much weaker showing than had been expected. The reading revealed a big drop in utility output and continued troubles in sectors tied to automobiles and housing.

Friday's uneven trading followed a 120-point drop in the Dow on Thursday and didn't signaly easing of long-simmering concerns about woes in the credit markets. In particular, investors are wondering whether financial companies are facing a further souring of loans and will be forced to write down more than the $45 billion seen in the third quarter and the $30 billion companies have outlined for the fourth quarter.

Fannie Mae fell $2.35, or 5.5 percent, to $40.69 after falling 10 percent Thursday. Chief Financial Officer Stephen Swad said some of the $670 million in provisions for credit losses on soured home loans that Fannie Mae wrote off in the third quarter likely would be recovered.

Reports late Thursday said Residential Capital, the troubled mortgage lending arm of GMAC, was close to breaching bank loan covenants. The unit is operated by private equity fund Cerberus Capital Management and General Motors Corp., which may not step in with an infusion of additional capital, according to the Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal.

Other corporate news weighed on the markets. FedEx fell $4.57, or 4.5 percent, to $96.80 after lowering its forecast amid rising fuel costs and a troubled U.S. freight market. And Starbucks fell 93 cents, or 3.9 percent, to $23.17 after the coffee retailer reported its first-ever decline in traffic at stores open more than a year. The company also said it plans to slow the pace of U.S. store openings.

The strength in technology and energy stocks lent some support to stocks. Cisco rose 64 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $29.94 after saying it would expand its stock buyback program to $62 billion. H-P gained after Morgan Stanley raised its rating on the largest maker of printers to "overweight" from "equal weight." The stock rose $1.85, or 3.8 percent, to $50.75.

And Exxon rose 61 cents to $85.10, while ConocoPhillips advanced 89 cents to $78.93.

As Friday's flip-flops would suggest, uncertainty remains a big force on Wall Street. Four of the past five sessions have seen selloffs in the final hour of trading.

Detrick contends investors worried about further writeoffs from financial companies are reluctant to make big bets.

"People just don't want to hold overnight," he said. "You could come in next Monday morning and see another big write-off from a bank."

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 2.10, or 0.27 percent, to 769.50.

Overseas, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.08 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 0.71 percent, while France's CAC-40 shed 0.61 percent. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 1.57 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 3.95 percent.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com
* the biz.yahoo article link below can be accessed from the finance.yahoo link above under heading "Top Financial News"

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER by -218.35 points -1.66% on Monday November 19:

Sym Last........ ........Change..........
Dow 12,958.44 -218.35 -1.66%
-- Day's Range: 12,937.88 - 13,176.30
-- 52wk Range: 11,926.80 - 14,280.00

Nasdaq 2,593.38 -43.86 -1.66%
-- Day's Range: 2,583.26 - 2,628.15
-- 52wk Range: 2,331.57 - 2,861.51

S&P 500 1,433.27 -25.47 -1.75%
-- Day's Range: 1,430.42 - 1,456.70
-- 52wk Range: 1,363.98 - 1,576.09

30-yr Bond 4.4780% -0.0450

NYSE Volume 4,096,860,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,189,924,500


Overseas
Stock markets overseas also slumped.

In European trading, Britain's FTSE 100 closed down 2.71 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 1.32 percent, and France's CAC-40 slid 1.65 percent.

In Asian trading, Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 0.74 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index decreased 0.56 percent.

Europe
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,120.80 -170.40 -2.71%
DAX 7,511.97 -100.29 -1.32%
CAC 40 5,432.57 -91.06 -1.65%

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 15,042.56 -112.05 -0.74%
Hang Seng 27,460.17 -154.26 -0.56%
Straits Times 3,420.87 -20.09 -0.58%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071119/wall_street.html?.v=45
Stocks Fall Amid Banking Concerns
Monday November 19, 5:22 pm ET
By Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer
Stocks Fall on Goldman Downgrade of Banks, Including Citigroup; Homebuilders, Airlines Fall

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street resumed its slide Monday as investors absorbed a gloomy outlook for the banking sector as well as bleak news about housing. The major stock market indexes each fell more than 1.5 percent, with the Dow Jones industrial average giving up more than 200 points.

Concerns about the banking sector dominated the session. Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s downgrade of large banks, and its estimate that Citigroup Inc. would have to write down $15 billion due to its exposure to risky debt over the next two quarters, unnerved Wall Street.

Other sectors suffered big hits during the session, including homebuilders and airlines.

The latest concerns about the housing sector arose after a downcast survey from the National Association of Homebuilders and a weak showing by home-improvement retailer Lowe's Cos. The worry on Wall Street is that the housing market is getting so weak it will crimp consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of economic activity and has helped keep the economy afloat. Ahead of the holiday shopping season, any signs that Americans are pulling back could prevent a December rally.

The NAHB's November housing forecast remained unchanged at its lowest-ever level even after the October figure was revised to 19 from 18. Economists polled by Thomson/IFR had expected the index would come in at 18. The survey began in 1985.

"I think that a lot of folks are digesting the news from last week and they're worried about the economy and the ability to grow earnings at the larger companies in America," said Rob Lutts, chief investment officer at Cabot Money Management Inc. in Salem, Mass.

The Dow industrials fell 218.35, or 1.66 percent, to 12,958.44.

Broader stock indicators also declined. The S&P 500 index fell 25.47, or 1.75 percent, to 1,433.27, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 43.86, or 1.66 percent, to 2,593.38.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 19.17, or 2.49 percent, to 750.33. The pullback left the Russell firmly in negative territory for the year, with a drop of 4.74 percent. Investors often view smaller companies as more likely to be hard hit in a slowing economy because they might not as easily get by on thin profit margins as would some big companies with big overseas operations.

With Monday's decline, stocks have seen losses in seven of the past eight sessions. Last week, stocks ended higher after a string of volatile sessions. Many traders are wondering whether the major indexes will test the lows for the year that came in August.

Government bond prices rose sharply Monday as investors sought safety. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 4.08 percent from 4.15 percent late Friday. The 10-year note hasn't gone below the 4.1 percent level since September 2005.

The dollar fell against other major currencies and gold prices slipped.

Crude oil futures for January delivery rose 80 cents to settle at $94.64 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

John Merrill, chief investment officer at Tanglewood Capital Management in Houston, contends investors are still grappling with the scope of the writedowns related to the housing market and the related ramifications, such a more cautious consumer.

"Certainly in the financial sector the concerns seem to be never-ending. The potential for write-offs seems to keep growing," he said. "This is having to settle in and the process of settling in means you become more aware of how more meaningful and how restricting these writedowns are."

One big area of concern for investors was again Citigroup, which said earlier this month it would likely write down $8 billion to $11 billion in the fourth quarter. The bank, one of the 30 stocks that makes up the Dow industrials, fell $2, or 5.9 percent, to $32 after the Goldman downgrade to a "sell" rating.

Among other financial-services companies, Merrill Lynch & Co. fell $2.24, or 4 percent, to $53.87, while Morgan Stanley fell $1.77, or 3.4 percent, to $51.13.

Lowe's Cos. posted a 10 percent decline in third-quarter profit Monday, slightly better than expected. But the home improvement retailer lowered its forecast in anticipation of further deterioration in housing. Lowe's fell $1.89, or 7.6 percent, to $23.12.

Celgene Corp.'s announcement late Sunday that it agreed to buy Pharmion Corp. for $72 a share in a cash-and-stock deal worth $2.9 billion failed to lighten the overall mood on Wall Street. Celgene fell 90 cents to $64, while Pharmion jumped $15.84, or 32 percent, to $65.12.

Meanwhile, other sectors that could be bruised by an economic slowdown fell Monday. Delta Air Lines Inc. fell 96 cents, or 4.8 percent, to $19.01, while Continental Airlines Inc. fell $1.76, or 6 percent, to $27.82.

The decline in the airlines helped push the Dow Jones Transportation index down 105.87, or 2.32 percent, to a fresh 52-week low, 4,457.97.

Among homebuilders, Lennar Corp. fell $1.67, or 8.7 percent, to $17.57 and hit a new 52-week low of $17.54. Its previous low was $18.90. Pulte Homes Inc. fell $1.04, or 8.1 percent, to $11.80. It likewise sank to a 52-week low of $11.76; the previous low was $12.15.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by 5 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.68 billion shares, compared with 1.77 billion traded Friday.

Stock markets overseas also slumped. In European trading, Britain's FTSE 100 closed down 2.71 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 1.32 percent, and France's CAC-40 slid 1.65 percent. In Asian trading, Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 0.74 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index decreased 0.56 percent.

New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com

Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
 
Tonight's DOW could be in for a better day!!!!

Asia
Symbol..... Last............ .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 15,211.52 +168.96 +1.12%
Hang Seng 27,771.21 +311.04 +1.13%
Straits Times 3,438.27 +26.55 +0.78%

Europe currently HIGHER at 10:23 AM; early times!!!!
Symbol... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 6,168.90 +48.10 +0.79%
DAX 7,572.66 +60.69 +0.81%
CAC 40 5,467.53 +34.96 +0.64%

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071120/world_markets.html
Major Asian Markets Recover After Swoon
Tuesday November 20, 5:30 am ET
By Yuri Kageyama, AP Business Writer
Major Asian Markets Recover From Early Swoon After Wall Street Plunge; Tokyo Leads Turnaround

TOKYO (AP) -- Major Asian markets recovered from an early swoon Tuesday after a sharp drop on Wall Street overnight with investors in Japan leading an afternoon turnaround by snapping up stocks that had been battered in recent weeks.

But smaller bourses in Australia, Malaysia and the Philippines sank amid lingering concerns about U.S. housing and banking woes and their broader impact on the U.S. economy, a key export market.

In a roller-coaster day, markets across the region tumbled in early trading as investors reacted to a 1.7 percent slide Monday in New York in the Dow Jones industrial average.

But by afternoon trading, even jittery investors in Tokyo were beginning to feel that recent declines were getting overdone, says Tomochika Kitaoka, equity strategist at Mizuho Securities Co. in Tokyo.

"It's conceivable people will start to rethink their recent selling as an overreaction to the U.S. problem," Kitaoka said, although he cautioned that more news about U.S. economic woes could trigger another sell-off.

By day's end the Nikkei 225 index, which fell as much as 1.9 percent earlier to its lowest since July 2006, rose 1.1 percent to finish at 15,211.52 points. Since the start of November, the index had dropped 10.8 percent before Tuesday's recovery. Gainers included machinery maker Komatsu Ltd. and mega-bank Mizuho Financial Group Inc.

Tokyo's recovery heartened investors in Hong Kong, where the Hang Seng index, down as much as 3.8 percent, climbed 1.1 percent to 27,771.21.

In mainland China, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.5 percent to 5,293.70, while Singapore's benchmark index bounced back 0.8 percent. South Korea's benchmark index pared early losses, ending down 1.1 percent after having fallen as much as 3.9 percent.

Asian stock markets have been among the world's best-performing this year, but trading has been extremely volatile in recent months amid persistent worries over rising defaults in risky, or subprime, mortgages in the United States, and their wider fallout.

The morning drop followed a sell-off on Monday in New York, where investors were unnerved by Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s downgrade of large banks, and its estimate that Citigroup Inc. would have to write down US$15 billion due to its exposure to risky debt.

In Manila, investors dumped shares, sending the the Philippine Stock Exchange Index down 2.9 percent. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index closed down 1.7 percent.

"We are continuing to feel the effect of the subprime crisis that started in the middle of this year," said Jose Vistan, AB Capital Securities research director in Manila. "Most likely it will persist. It's hard to reverse because of the negative sentiment that's prevailing."

But other analysts said recent declines offered a possible buying opportunity.

"It's not safe to say we've already seen the bottom today as uncertainties over the U.S. market are still lingering, but a nice rebound is likely to become visible at the current level," said Oh Hyun-Suk at Samsung Securities in Seoul.

Associated Press writer Teresa Cerojano in Manila contributed to this report.
 

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