NYSE Dow Jones finished today at:

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks surge on plan to ease European debt crunch

Stocks surge on global effort to ease European debt crunch; Dow industrials jump 405 points


Stocks rocketed to their biggest gain in a year and bond prices fell Monday after a nearly $1 trillion plan to contain Europe's debt crisis reassured investors.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose about 405 points to its biggest advance since March 2009. Broader U.S. indexes outpaced the Dow's 3.9 percent rise. Gains in several European markets topped 9 percent.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 3.54 percent from 3.43 percent late Friday. The drop in demand for safety holdings like Treasurys signaled that investors are less afraid that Europe's debt problems will endanger a global recovery.

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER +404.71 points +3.90% on Monday May 10
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,785.14 +404.71 +3.90%
Nasdaq 2,374.67 +109.03 +4.81%
S&P 500 1,159.73 +48.85 +4.40%
30-yr Bond 4.41% +1.30

NYSE Volume 7,959,239,000 (prior day 10,867,255,000)
Nasdaq Volume 2,869,847,750 (prior day 4,182,665,000)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,387.42 +264.40 +5.16%
DAX 6,017.91 +302.82 +5.30%
CAC 40 3,720.29 +327.70 +9.66%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 10,530.70 +166.11 +1.60%
Hang Seng 20,426.64 +506.35 +2.54%
Straits Times 2,880.48 +59.37 +2.10%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...0.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=6&asset=&ccode=

Stocks surge on plan to ease European debt crunch

Stocks surge on global effort to ease European debt crunch; Dow industrials jump 405 points

Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer, On Monday May 10, 2010, 5:41 pm
NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks rocketed to their biggest gain in a year and bond prices fell Monday after a nearly $1 trillion plan to contain Europe's debt crisis reassured investors.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose about 405 points to its biggest advance since March 2009. Broader U.S. indexes outpaced the Dow's 3.9 percent rise. Gains in several European markets topped 9 percent.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 3.54 percent from 3.43 percent late Friday. The drop in demand for safety holdings like Treasurys signaled that investors are less afraid that Europe's debt problems will endanger a global recovery.

The European Union and the International Monetary Fund agreed to create a nearly $1 trillion rescue fund to support European nations burdened by heavy debt. Analysts caution that countries like Greece will still need to make painful spending cuts in the coming years and that the debt problems won't disappear any time soon. Nonetheless, the size of Europe's response was far greater than most analysts had expected, and signaled that policymakers are ready to take significant measures to shore up the euro and keep Europe's debt woes from spreading.

"The market is breathing a huge sigh of relief that the EU has taken aggressive steps," said Alan Gayle, senior investment strategist at RidgeWorth Investments in Richmond, Va.

Investors drew reassurance after the Federal Reserve and other central banks stepped up with financial support to corral what analysts warned was a growing financial crisis.

The Fed restarted a program from 2008 to ship dollars overseas through the foreign central banks. Those central banks can then lend the dollars out to banks in their home countries. The Bank of England, the European Central Bank, the Bank of Canada, the Swiss National Bank and the Bank of Japan are also involved in the dollar-swap effort.

The advance in U.S. stocks was broad. Bank of America Corp., Caterpillar Inc. and General Electric Co. led the Dow with gains of more than 6 percent. All 30 stocks that make up the Dow ended higher for the first time since Nov. 5.

Markets around the world plummeted last week after fears grew that Greece's debt problems would spread to other struggling European economies like Spain, Portugal and Italy. The Dow slid 5.7 percent last week in its worst drop since the depths of the financial crisis in October 2008. On Thursday alone, the Dow was down nearly 1,000 points late in the day before recovering much of its losses.

Triple-digit Dow moves have again become the norm. The latest swings are reminders of the big swings that occurred during the credit crisis in late 2008 and early 2009.

The Dow rose 404.71, or 3.9 percent, to 10,785.14. At its peak, the Dow was up nearly 455 points. The climb came after four straight days of losses and was the biggest advance since March 2009, when the market was bouncing off its lowest levels in 12 years.

Even with its gain, the Dow is still below where it closed Wednesday last week. It is also down 420 points, or 3.8 percent, from its 2010 closing high of 11,205 on April 26.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 48.85, or 4.4 percent, to 1,159.73. Like the Dow, it was the best day for the S&P 500 index since March 23, 2009.

The Nasdaq composite index rose 109.03, or 4.8 percent, to 2,374.67.

For much of 2010, major stock indexes had been climbing steadily on signs the U.S. economy was recovering. Last week's plunge had erased the market's gains for the year, but the jump on Monday put major indices back in the black for 2010.

Investors had feared that the euro, which is used by 16 countries, would continue to slide if Greece didn't get more help.

"Europe has unequivocally said, 'We will defend the euro's integrity,'" said Oliver Pursche, executive vice president at Gary Goldberg Financial Services in Suffern, N.Y.

A drop in the dollar boosted prices of commodities, which become more attractive to buyers outside the U.S. when the dollar is weak.

The Chicago Board Options Exchange's Volatility Index fell after spiking last week. The index, which is known as the market's fear gauge, last week jumped to about 41 from 20. That meant more investors were expecting big drops in the market. The VIX slid 30 percent Monday to about 29.

Charlie Smith, chief investment officer at Fort Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh, said the market's bounce reflects short-covering. That occurs when investors are forced to buy stock after having earlier sold borrowed shares in a bet that the market would fall. That rush to cover ill-timed bets can hasten the market's climb.

"You don't solve the problem of debt by printing new money," Smith said. "Whatever euphoric action we're seeing, there is going to be a need for EU banks to raise more capital."

As investors jump back into riskier assets like stocks on Monday, U.S. bond prices tumbled. The price of the 10-year note fell by about a point, or $1 per $100.

Gold also fell, losing $9.60 to $1,200.80 an ounce. Treasurys and gold surged late last week as investors piled into safe assets.

Crude oil rose $1.69 to $76.80 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Bank of America rose $1.12, or 6.9 percent, to $17.30, while Caterpillar rose $4.59, or 7.4 percent, to $66.69. GE rose $1.16, or 6.9 percent, to $18.04.

At the New York Stock Exchange, nearly 3,000 shares rose while only about 150 fell. Consolidated trading volume came to 7 billion shares compared with 9.5 billion Friday.

Britain's FTSE 100 rose 5.2 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 5.3 percent, and France's CAC-40 climbed 9.7 percent. In Greece, the main stock index rose 9.1 percent. Portugal's PSI 20 rose 10.7 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 1.6 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The stock market showed signs of stability Tuesday as major indexes held on to most of their rebound from last week's big drop.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell about 37 points after fluctuating for much of the day. Broader indicators were mixed.

Analysts said it was reassuring that the market kept most of its gains from Monday, when the Dow soared 405 points in response to the creation of a bailout fund for weak countries like Greece. Tuesday's trading signaled that the previous day's big move wasn't solely driven by euphoria.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -36.88 points -0.3% on Tuesday May 11
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow Jones 10,748.26 -36.88 -0.3%
Nasdaq 2,375.31 +0.64 +0.03%
S&P 500 1,155.79 -3.94 -0.34%
30-Yr Bond 4.42% +0.12

NYSE Volume 6,615,932,500 (prior day 7,959,239,000)
Nasdaq Volume 2,493,289,250 (prior day 2,869,847,750)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,334.21 -53.21 -0.99%
DAX 6,037.71 +19.80 +0.33%
CAC 40 3,693.20 -27.09 -0.73%


Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 10,411.10 -119.60 -1.14%
Hang Seng 20,146.51 -280.13 -1.37%
Straits Times 2,857.67 -22.81 -0.79%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...tml?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=

Stocks mostly hold gains after European bailout

Stocks maintain most gains after debt plan eases fears that Europe will derail global recovery

Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer, On Tuesday May 11, 2010, 5:55 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- The stock market showed signs of stability Tuesday as major indexes held on to most of their rebound from last week's big drop.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell about 37 points after fluctuating for much of the day. Broader indicators were mixed.

Analysts said it was reassuring that the market kept most of its gains from Monday, when the Dow soared 405 points in response to the creation of a bailout fund for weak countries like Greece. Tuesday's trading signaled that the previous day's big move wasn't solely driven by euphoria.

"I'm very encouraged by the market action," said Keith Walter, portfolio manager of the Artio Global Equity Fund in New York. "I think today was a more important day than yesterday."

More bad news from Europe or elsewhere could always unravel the advance. Even with Monday's rise, stocks are only back to where they were about a week ago.

The easing of worries about Europe allowed traders to focus on the stronger economic picture in the U.S. The Commerce Department said wholesale inventories rose 0.4 percent in March. That was just short of economists' forecasts. But sales increased by more than double the expected amount, a sign that demand is improving.

Investors have been concerned that problems in weaker European countries would disrupt a global economic recovery.

"We've taken the panic out of the market," said Paul Zemsky, head of asset allocation at ING Investment Management in New York. "In the U.S. market the fundamentals are clearly good."

Zemsky also said last week's slide made it more likely that stocks would resume their climb. The bailout helped reassure investors that European countries would act decisively to protect the euro. However several weaker countries will still have to make deep spending cuts to rebuild confidence in the euro, which could slow a recovery in Europe's economy.

Asian markets retreated after a report showed inflation in China accelerated last month. China has already spooked markets by clamping down on bank lending to cool its economy, and investors worried that the inflation report could lead Chinese authorities to tap the brakes on its huge economy again. That could hurt U.S. and other companies that do business with China.

Global economic indicators, such as the U.S. government's monthly jobs report, have been overshadowed recently as investors feared debt problems in Greece would spread. Traders have also been concerned about how much European debt woes would hurt the euro, the currency used by 16 European countries.

The Dow fell 36.88, or 0.3 percent, to 10,748.26. The Dow dropped by as much as 100 points shortly after the opening bell and rose as much as 89 points in afternoon trading. The index has ended lower in five of the past six days.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 3.94, or 0.3 percent, to 1,155.79, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 0.64, or less than 0.1 percent, to 2,375.31.

On Monday, major stock indexes recorded their biggest advance since March 2009. The Dow rose 3.9 percent, while the S&P 500 index surged 4.4 percent.

Treasury prices were little changed after plunging on Monday when investors dumped safe investments following news of the European bailout. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, edged down to 3.53 percent from 3.54 percent.

Crude oil fell 43 cents to $76.37 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The dollar rose against the euro after traders grew concerned about the fallout from the debt Europe could incur from financing the rescue plan. That uncertainty drove gold sharply higher.

Among stocks, Intel Corp. fell 27 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $22.28 after the chipmaker's CEO said that the company expects revenue and net income per share to increase by the low double digits in the news few years because of rising demand.

Advancing stocks narrowly outpaced those that fell on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 5.9 billion shares, compared with 7 billion Monday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 5.87, or 0.9 percent, to 695.48.

Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.3 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 0.7 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 1.1 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

A dose of good economic news sent stocks sharply higher Wednesday and erased the Dow Jones industrials' big plunge of last week.

The Dow rose 148 points to return to where it stood before Thursday's tumble that briefly took the average down nearly 1,000 points. The technology-dominated Nasdaq composite index led major indexes with a 2.1 percent gain. Investors moved into tech stocks ahead of earnings from network gear maker Cisco Systems Inc. and following an upbeat forecast from IBM Corp.

Analysts say the market's rebound from last week's drop reflects investors' growing confidence that Europe's debt problems are contained for now. Fears that losses on debt would spill over to the U.S. fed the market's plunge.

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER +148.65 points +1.38% on Wednesday May 12
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,896.91 +148.65 +1.38%
Nasdaq 2,425.02 +49.71 +2.09%
S&P 500 1,171.67 +15.88 +1.37%
30-yr Bond 4.47% +0.51

NYSE Volume 5,918,238,000 (prior day 6,615,932,500)
Nasdaq Volume 2,308,334,750 (prior day 2,493,289,250)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,383.45 +49.24 +0.92%
DAX 6,183.49 +145.78 +2.41%
CAC 40 3,733.87 +40.67 +1.10%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 10,394.03 -17.07 -0.16%
Hang Seng 20,212.49 +65.98 +0.33%
Straits Times 2,882.44 +24.77 +0.87%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stocks-recover-from-recent-apf-255374208.html?x=0

Stocks recover from recent slide over debt fears

Stock market bounces back from last week's slide over debt fears; Dow gains 149 points

Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer, On Wednesday May 12, 2010, 5:37 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- A dose of good economic news sent stocks sharply higher Wednesday and erased the Dow Jones industrials' big plunge of last week.

The Dow rose 148 points to return to where it stood before Thursday's tumble that briefly took the average down nearly 1,000 points. The technology-dominated Nasdaq composite index led major indexes with a 2.1 percent gain. Investors moved into tech stocks ahead of earnings from network gear maker Cisco Systems Inc. and following an upbeat forecast from IBM Corp.

Analysts say the market's rebound from last week's drop reflects investors' growing confidence that Europe's debt problems are contained for now. Fears that losses on debt would spill over to the U.S. fed the market's plunge.

Economic reports from the U.S. and Europe helped reassure the market that the global recovery is intact. The Commerce Department said exports rose in March to their highest levels since 2008. That was a welcome signal for the manufacturing industry, which has been getting stronger since last year. Increased demand could eventually lead to more hiring.

Most European markets posted big gains after the German government reported that the continent's largest economy grew faster than expected in the first quarter. A round of spending cuts in Spain bolstered hopes that debt-strapped countries in Europe would take steps to slash costs. Stocks surged around the world Monday after European leaders agreed to a nearly $1 trillion bailout to contain fears of a debt crisis that pounded markets last week.

While stocks have rebounded, currency markets are still in flux. That signals that investors are still somewhat uneasy after last week's slide. The euro edged higher against the dollar Wednesday but is still hovering near a 14-month low.

Uncertainty over the long-term health of the euro helped lift gold to a record high. Investors worry that the euro could still lose value as European countries try to work though debt problems by taking on more debt. Investors have turned to gold as an alternative to holding currencies.

Gold settled up $22.80 at $1,243.10 an ounce after hitting a record high of $1,247.70. That lifted shares of gold producers Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. and Newmont Mining Corp.

Max Bublitz, chief strategist at SCM Advisors in San Francisco, said the swings of the past few weeks spooked investors who had become overconfident. Now, the focus can return to the U.S. economy. Expectations of a recovery have driven the market higher since major stocks indexes hit 12-year lows in March last year. The market made steady gains from February-April before concerns about Greece briefly erased stocks' gains for the year.

"We got a lot of the bullishness and complacency out of the market," he said. "As long as we have doubters out there, then I'm a lot more comfortable saying the trend that's been in place the last 14 months stays there."

The Dow rose 148.65, or 1.4 percent, to 10,896.91. The Dow stands at its highest level since May 4. The Dow is up 5 percent in three days, its best gain since July.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 15.88, or 1.4 percent, to 1,171.67, while the Nasdaq rose 49.71, or 2.1 percent, to 2,425.02. The index has gained 5.5 percent in three days, its best showing since July.

Bond prices fell, pushing yields higher. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note rose to 3.58 percent from 3.53 percent late Tuesday.

Crude oil fell 72 cents to $75.65 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after the International Energy Agency said global oil demand is expected to rise less than previously expected in 2010.

Alan Lancz, money manager at Alan B. Lancz & Associates in Toledo, Ohio, said the market's advance is warranted after the slide last week.

"It took a little of the frothiness off and brought rationality back to the market," he said. Lancz warned, however, that the market will have to slow to avoid getting overheated again.

The Commerce Department said that the nation's trade deficit rose to a 15-month high in March as higher oil prices drove up import costs. Exports rose 3.2 percent.

The report was a reminder that the economy is strengthening.

"Being able to step back and take a breath sometimes gives you a renewed view as to how things truly are," said Daniel Penrod, senior industry analyst for the California Credit Union League in Ontario, California.

Tech stocks led the market higher. Cisco rose 78 cents, or 3 percent, to $26.74 ahead of its report, which was released after the end of regular trading. The company said its net income for the latest quarter rose 63 percent from a year earlier. The stock fell 3 percent in after-hours trading.

IBM predicted it would earn at least $20 per share by 2015 on increased spending by companies on technology. The stock rose $5.79, or 4.6 percent, to $132.68.

Morgan Stanley fell after The Wall Street Journal reported that the investment bank is facing an investigation into its dealings in mortgage securities. The stock fell 58 cents, or 2 percent, to $27.80.

A Morgan Stanley spokesman said the bank hasn't been contacted by the Justice Department about the deals in question and that he isn't aware of an investigation.

Freeport-McMoRan rose $2.76, or 3.9 percent, to $73, while Newmont Mining rose 51 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $58.71.

About six stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.3 billion shares, compared with 1.5 billion Tuesday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 20.63, or 3 percent, to 716.11.

Germany's DAX index jumped 2.4 percent after the government report on economic growth. Britain's FTSE 100 climbed 0.9 percent and France's CAC-40 rose 1.1 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 0.2 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

A late-day slide left stocks lower Thursday following a disappointing forecast from department store chain Kohl's and a drop in financial shares.

The Dow Jones industrial average ended down about 114 points after shooting up by nearly 149 on Wednesday. The Dow has fallen six of the past eight days.

Stocks mostly made modest moves for much of Thursday's trading but fell in the final hour as the euro weakened. The drop in stocks signaled that traders remain skittish about the direction of the market after weeks of big swings.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -113.96 points -1.05% on Thursday May 13
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,782.95 -113.96 -1.05%
Nasdaq 2,394.36 -30.66 -1.26%
S&P 500 1,157.43 -14.24 -1.22%
30-yr Bond 4.4610% -0.1200

NYSE Volume 5,477,719,500 (prior day 5,918,238,000)
Nasdaq Volume 2,321,865,000 (prior day 2,308,334,750)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,433.73 +50.28 +0.93%
DAX 6,251.97 +68.48 +1.11%
CAC 40 3,731.54 -2.33 -0.06%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 10,620.55 +226.52 +2.18%
Hang Seng 20,422.46 +209.97 +1.04%
Straits Times 2,867.24 -13.09 -0.45%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...0.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&ccode=

Stocks fall after drop in retail, financial shares

Stocks slide in late trading after shares of retailers, financials slump; Dow falls 114

Tim Paradis, AP Business Writers, On Thursday May 13, 2010, 5:48 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- A late-day slide left stocks lower Thursday following a disappointing forecast from department store chain Kohl's and a drop in financial shares.

The Dow Jones industrial average ended down about 114 points after shooting up by nearly 149 on Wednesday. The Dow has fallen six of the past eight days.

Stocks mostly made modest moves for much of Thursday's trading but fell in the final hour as the euro weakened. The drop in stocks signaled that traders remain skittish about the direction of the market after weeks of big swings.

"It seems like the market is trying to find its footing," said Adam Gould, senior portfolio manager at Direxion Funds in New York.

Disappointing corporate and economic news dented sentiment. Kohl's Corp. fell 5.8 percent and dragged other consumer stocks lower after its increased forecasts fell short of what analysts had been expecting.

Bank stocks fell on reports that New York's attorney general is examining eight banks to determine whether they misled ratings agencies about mortgage securities.

Tech shares also got hit after investors saw a forecast from computer networking equipment Cisco Systems Inc. as cautious. The stock fell 4.5 percent to post the steepest drop among the 30 stocks that make up the Dow.

The Dow fell 113.96, or 1.1 percent, to 10,782.95. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 14.23, or 1.2 percent, to 1,157.44, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 30.66, or 1.3 percent, to 2,394.36.

Two stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.2 billion shares, compared with 1.3 billion Wednesday.

Volume has been decreasing this week since stocks jumped on Monday on relief over Europe's nearly $1 trillion plan help debt-strapped governments in the European Union. Some analysts say that the drop in volume is a sign of flagging confidence in the market's moves.

Stocks rose Wednesday after a Commerce Department report said exports rose in March to their highest levels since late 2008.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.57 percent from 3.58 percent late Wednesday.

Gold fell, a day after setting a record high.

Crude oil fell $1.25 to $75.40 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The drop in stocks late in the day came as the euro fell. The 16-nation currency is just above a 14-month low. Investors remain unsure whether countries like Greece and Spain that are saddled with debt will be able to cut spending and still manage to grow.

The euro has been dropping since Monday on diminishing expectations for an economic recovery in Europe.

"The currency market is saying that the stock market rebound won't be sustained," said Brian Dolan, chief currency strategist at Forex.com.

Meanwhile, an economic report signaled that gains in the job market are proceeding slowly. The Labor Department said first-time claims for jobless benefits dipped to 444,000 last week from an upwardly revised 448,000 the previous week. Economists had expected claims to drop to 440,000.

While a fourth straight weekly decline in claims is a welcome sign, it hasn't been enough to signal sustainable job growth. Economists estimate weekly initial claims need to fall below 425,000 to show employers are consistently adding workers. Claims have stalled around the 450,000 level throughout the year.

Unemployment remains a major obstacle to a strong recovery. The unemployment rate jumped to 9.9 percent last month, although employers added 290,000 jobs. Investors want to see consistent job creation as well as regular declines in claims for jobless benefits before becoming confident that the labor market is healing.

Kohl's fell $3.34, or 5.8 percent, to $53.81.

Among bank stocks, Citigroup Inc. fell 9 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $4.09, while Bank of America Corp. fell 20 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $16.87.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 6.26, or 0.9 percent, to 709.85.

Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.9 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 1.1 percent, and France's CAC-40 slipped 0.1 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 2.2 percent following Wednesday's big gains in the U.S.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

The market ended off its lows but it was still a wild week for investors. After jumping 405 points on Monday, the Dow slipped Tuesday and jumped 149 points on Wednesday. The gains helped the Dow erase its losses from late in the prior week when fears about debt woes in Greece pounded the market.

Selling resumed Thursday to send the Dow down about 114 points after more worries emerged about the cost of the Euroepan rescue.

For the week, the Dow rose 2.3 percent, the S&P 500 index added 2.2 percent and the Nasdaq gained 3.6 percent.

Stocks fall on worries European bailout will slow recovery; Dow falls 163 but ends week higher

Stocks tumbled for a second day Friday after concerns grew that the deep spending cuts under Europe's bailout plan would slow a global recovery.

The Dow Jones industrial average ended down 163 points but closed well off its lows of the day. The Dow and other major stock indexes still posted big gains for the week after rocketing higher Monday on hopes that a bailout plan for Europe would prevent a debt crisis in Greece from spreading.

The latest drop followed a slide of more than 3 percent in European markets. The euro dropped to a 19-month low against the dollar.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -162.79 points -1.51% on Friday May 14
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,620.16 -162.79 -1.51%
Nasdaq 2,346.85 -47.51 -1.98%
S&P 500 1,135.68 -21.75 -1.88%
30-yr Bond 4.3160% -1.4500

NYSE Volume 6,907,171,000 (prior day 5,477,719,500)
Nasdaq Volume 2,604,644,750 (prior day 2,321,865,000)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,262.85 -170.88 -3.14%
DAX 6,056.71 -195.26 -3.12%
CAC 40 3,560.36 -171.18 -4.59%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 10,462.51 -158.04 -1.49%
Hang Seng 20,145.43 -277.03 -1.36%
Sraits Times 2,855.21 -12.71 -0.44%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...tml?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=

Stocks tumble as worries about Europe return

Stocks fall on worries European bailout will slow recovery; Dow falls 163 but ends week higher

Stephen Bernard and Ieva M. Augstums, AP Business Writers, On Friday May 14, 2010, 4:48 pm EDT
NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks tumbled for a second day Friday after concerns grew that the deep spending cuts under Europe's bailout plan would slow a global recovery.

The Dow Jones industrial average ended down 163 points but closed well off its lows of the day. The Dow and other major stock indexes still posted big gains for the week after rocketing higher Monday on hopes that a bailout plan for Europe would prevent a debt crisis in Greece from spreading.

The latest drop followed a slide of more than 3 percent in European markets. The euro dropped to a 19-month low against the dollar.

Investors seeking safety piled into Treasurys and the dollar. Gold settled lower after hitting another record. Crude oil sank nearly 4 percent, and an indicator of stock market volatility jumped.

Currency traders have been moving out of the euro throughout the week because of concerns that cost-cutting measures in countries like Greece, Spain and Portugal would slow economic activity on the continent and elsewhere. Now stock investors are also looking at those same problems.

Shifting sentiment about the problems in Europe whipsawed the market during the week. Major indexes posted their biggest gains in more than a year on Monday after a nearly $1 trillion rescue package from the European Union and International Monetary Fund raised hopes that debt-strapped EU countries wouldn't be a drag on a global rebound.

But the glow from the bailout package faded during the week, pushing the euro down sharply against the dollar. The spike in the dollar hit the prices for oil and other commodities, hurting major U.S. energy and materials companies.

"Clearly the action in the euro is reflecting the fact that at least currency investors don't think the bailout plan plus the austerity measures are sufficient," said Uri Landesman, president of Platinum Partners in New York. "The euro is leading the market down."

Investors now worry that the spending cuts in Europe being called for in the bailout package will curtail the ability of weaker countries like Spain and Portugal to grow their way out of a recession. More strikes are expected in Spain and Greece as workers protest cuts in pensions and other public spending.

The euro, which is used by 16 countries, slid as low as $1.2359 in New York, its weakest point since October 2008. The euro has dropped more than 6 percent since the beginning of the month and is close to its lowest level in four years.

There were also concerns Friday about corporate profits. Shares of credit card companies tumbled after the Senate voted to force them to reduce fees for debit card transactions. Visa fell 9.9 percent, while Mastercard lost 8.6 percent.

According to preliminary calculations, the Dow fell 162.79, or 1.5 percent, to 10,620.16. The Dow had been down nearly 246 points. It has fallen seven of the last nine days.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index lost 21.76, or 1.9 percent, to 1,135.68, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 47.51, or 2 percent, to 2,346.85.

Stocks ended off their worst levels perhaps in part becuase traders aren't sure what leaders in Europe might do over the weekend to shore up confidence in the euro and the EU over all.

The market ended off its lows but it was still a wild week for investors. After jumping 405 points on Monday, the Dow slipped Tuesday and jumped 149 points on Wednesday. The gains helped the Dow erase its losses from late in the prior week when fears about debt woes in Greece pounded the market.

Selling resumed Thursday to send the Dow down about 114 points after more worries emerged about the cost of the Euroepan rescue.

For the week, the Dow rose 2.3 percent, the S&P 500 index added 2.2 percent and the Nasdaq gained 3.6 percent.

Treasurys jumped Friday, pushing down yields. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell to 3.43 percent from 3.53 percent late Thursday.

The Chicago Board Options Exchange's Volatility Index -- known as the market's fear gauge, jumped 17.1 percent.

Gold hit a record of $1,249.70 an ounce before settling down $1.40 to $1,227.80.

Crude oil fell $2.79 to $71.61 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Investors on Friday looked past improved reports on April retail sales and industrial production.

The Commerce Department said sales rose 0.4 percent in April. That was double the forecast by economists polled by Thomson Reuters. It was the seventh straight monthly rise in sales, providing hope that a consumer rebound will hold and help the economy grow.

The Federal Reserve said industrial production rose 0.8 percent in April, better than the 0.6 percent growth forecast by economists. It was the biggest jump in output from the nation's factories, mines and utilities since January.

Manufacturing growth has been steady in recent months as the sector plays a leading role in the domestic recovery.

Among stocks, Visa Inc. fell $8.47 to $77.26 and Mastercard Inc. fell $19.86 to $212.45 after the Senate vote to curb fees on debit cards.

About seven stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.5 billion shares compared with 1.2 billion Thursday.

The Russell 200 index of smaller companies lost 15.87, or 2.2 percent, to 693.98.

Britain's FTSE 100 dropped 3.1 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 3.1 percent, and France's CAC-40 tumbled 4.6 percent.

9388

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks had another wild day, but there was no big event, no surprise announcement behind the swings.

All that happened was that the euro, battered to a four-year low Monday before trading began in the U.S., started rising again. And the stock market followed the currency shared by 16 European nations.

Shortly after noon Eastern time, the Dow Jones industrials were down 184 points. It looked like they would add to the pile of triple-digit losses they've suffered over the past two weeks as investors worried that Europe's economic problems would spread to the U.S.

But the euro, which seesawed after earlier falling to $1.2237, finally started its move higher -- a bumpy move, but an upward one nonetheless. The Dow also racheted higher, finally ending with an almost six-point advance.

In China, the benchmark index in Shanghai fell 5.1 percent to a one-year low on concern that the government will curb lending to slow the economy.

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER +5.67 points +0.05% on Monday May 17
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,625.83 +5.67 +0.05%
Nasdaq 2,354.23 +7.38 +0.31%
S&P 500 1,136.94 +1.26 +0.11%
30-yr Bond 4.3450% +0.2900

NYSE Volume 6,791,527,000 (prior day 6,907,171,000)
Nasdaq Volume 2,414,770,250 (prior day 2,604,644,750)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,262.54 -0.31 -0.01%
DAX 6,066.92 +10.21 +0.17%
CAC 40 3,543.55 -16.81 -0.47%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 10,235.76 -226.75 -2.17%
Hang Seng 19,715.20 -430.23 -2.14%
Straits Times 2,833.69 -21.52 -0.75%


http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Dow-recovers-from-184point-apf-2049575746.html?x=0

Dow recovers from 184-point drop to edge higher

Stocks end little changed after investors track gyrations of euro; Dow posts gain of 6 points

Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer, On Monday May 17, 2010, 5:48 pm
NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks had another wild day, but there was no big event, no surprise announcement behind the swings.

All that happened was that the euro, battered to a four-year low Monday before trading began in the U.S., started rising again. And the stock market followed the currency shared by 16 European nations.

Shortly after noon Eastern time, the Dow Jones industrials were down 184 points. It looked like they would add to the pile of triple-digit losses they've suffered over the past two weeks as investors worried that Europe's economic problems would spread to the U.S.

But the euro, which seesawed after earlier falling to $1.2237, finally started its move higher -- a bumpy move, but an upward one nonetheless. The Dow also racheted higher, finally ending with an almost six-point advance.

Investors are looking at the euro as an indicator of confidence in the European economies. The euro has been sliding on concerns that debt problems will undermine Europe's recovery, and in turn that of the U.S. And so, when it started rising Monday, stock traders interpreted its move as a "buy" sign.

But given stocks' erratic moves over the past few weeks, it's likely that there will be more days like Monday ahead. Traders still have many unanswered questions about how Europe will pull itself from its financial mess without hurting its recovery. Because economies around the world are dependent on one another, the broader concern is that Europe's problems will halt a rebound elsewhere.

Other investments seen as risky had a rough time Monday. Oil traded below $70 a barrel for the first time since February but finished above that psychological benchmark. Oil is priced in dollars so a stronger dollar discourages investors from buying oil. Crude fell $1.45 to $70.16 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Energy stocks, which make up about 10 percent of the Standard & Poor's 500 index, dropped after oil fell. Shares of consumer staples companies, which are seen as safer bets in weak economies, rose.

Peabody Energy Corp. fell 5.3 percent. Procter & Gamble Co., which makes Tide detergent and Gillette razors, rose 1.3 percent.

Investors are questioning whether steep budget cuts in countries including Greece, Spain and Portugal will hinder an economic recovery in Europe and in turn, the U.S. The fear is that the world banking system could see a replay of the losses that hobbled financial institutions in late 2008.

The austerity measures are required under a nearly $1 trillion bailout program the European Union and International Monetary Fund agreed to last week. The rescue package provides access to cheap loans for European countries facing mounting debt problems.

Traders are betting that U.S. export growth will continue to slow as Europeans, unnerved by problems at home, show less of an appetite to buy American goods. And if Americans get nervous and spend less on imports that could further curtail the global recovery.

"We need to quantify how much Europe can hurt us," said Philip Dow, managing director of equity strategy at RBC Dain Rauscher in Minneapolis. He said it could take a month or two before investors have a better sense of whether the debt problems in Europe will spread.

The Dow rose 5.67, or 0.1 percent, to 10,625.83. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 1.26, or 0.1 percent, to 1,136.94, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 7.38, or 0.3 percent, to 2,354.23.

Three stocks fell for every two that rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.4 billion shares, compared with 1.5 billion Friday.

Bond prices fell after steep gains last week. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 3.50 percent from 3.46 percent late Friday.

Gold fell 50 cents to $1,227.30 an ounce.

Europe's debt crisis poses risks to the U.S. financial system because it could make loans even harder to come by in the United States and push up the rates on them. European banks own bonds of overextended governments at the heart of the crisis. And, there are fears that those banks could suffer heavy losses -- or worse, collapse -- if they aren't repaid. If that happens, U.S. banks that lend to those European banks would suffer losses, too. That would make U.S. banks cut back on lending, which would hurt the economic recovery.

Fears about such losses makes lending more risky. That's prompting banks and other investors to demand a higher return when they lend to one another -- as well as to some businesses and people -- on a short-term basis. That's why an interest rate called the LIBOR is rising. That rate is used to peg many adjustable rate mortgages and business loans in the United States.

Analysts say that even a loss in confidence could make it harder for the U.S. economy to bounce back.

"In all likelihood our recovery is going to continue but it will be at a slower pace than we imagined a month ago," said Howard Ward, chief investment officer of the GAMCO Growth Fund.

A forecast from home-improvement retailer Lowe's Cos. hurt sentiment. The stock fell 81 cents, or 3.1 percent, to $25.26.

Peabody Energy fell $2.20 to $39.61, while Procter & Gamble rose 84 cents to $63.38.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 1.73, or 0.3 percent, to 695.71.

Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.1 percent, Germany's DAX index gained 0.1 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 0.5 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 2.2 percent.

In China, the benchmark index in Shanghai fell 5.1 percent to a one-year low on concern that the government will curb lending to slow the economy. There also was concern about the problems in Europe.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stock slide after euro falls to new four-year low; Germany plan to limit trading hits currency

Investors uneasy about the news coming out of Europe Tuesday went back to selling stocks sharply lower. The falling euro and news that German regulators plan to limit some kinds of short selling fed the drop.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed down almost 115 points after giving up an early gain of 93. The Dow and broader indexes lost more than 1 percent.

The euro gave stocks a boost early in the day when European Union countries sent bailout money to Greece. The move raised confidence about Europe's ability to prevent its debt crisis from spreading to other economies including the U.S.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -114.88 points -1.08% on Tuesday May 18
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,510.95 -114.88 -1.08%
Nasdaq 2,317.26 -36.97 -1.57%
S&P 500 1,120.80 -16.14 -1.42%
30-yr Bond 4.2540% -0.9100

NYSE Volume 7,114,171,500 (prior day 6,791,527,000)
Nasdaq Volume 2,428,810,250 (prior day 2,414,770,250)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,307.34 +44.80 +0.85%
DAX 6,155.93 +89.01 +1.47%
CAC 40 3,617.32 +73.77 +2.08%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 10,242.64 +6.88 +0.07%
Hang Seng 19,944.94 +229.74 +1.17%
Straits Times 2,844.35 +10.66 +0.38%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...2.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=3&asset=&ccode=

Stocks slide after euro falls to new 4-year low

Stock slide after euro falls to new four-year low; Germany plan to limit trading hits currency

Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer, On Tuesday May 18, 2010, 6:01 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- Investors uneasy about the news coming out of Europe Tuesday went back to selling stocks sharply lower. The falling euro and news that German regulators plan to limit some kinds of short selling fed the drop.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed down almost 115 points after giving up an early gain of 93. The Dow and broader indexes lost more than 1 percent.

The euro gave stocks a boost early in the day when European Union countries sent bailout money to Greece. The move raised confidence about Europe's ability to prevent its debt crisis from spreading to other economies including the U.S.

By afternoon, though, the upbeat mood faded and the euro fell. That sapped the stock market's strength. Treasury prices rose after demand for safer investments increased.

The euro, the currency shared by 16 European nations, has been driving stock trading for weeks as investors interpreted its slide as a sign of continuing economic problems in Europe. It hit a new four-year low of $1.2160 on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Germany said it is banning "naked" short selling, which occurs when traders bet on a stock or investment that they doesn't own. The ban covers government debt certificates and shares of several financial companies. The government said it was imposing the rule in hopes of keeping the financial markets stable.

Investors anxious about Europe's problems were further rattled by Germany's move. Naked short selling was cited as one of the factors in world markets' turbulence during the 2008 financial crisis. The latest step brought reminders of the desperation that U.S. regulators signaled in trying to stabilize the market and underscored a fear that a further drop in the euro will continue to pound world markets.

"If Europe really slows, the threat would be that it could take down the rest of the global economy," said Bruce McCain, chief investment strategist at Key Private Bank in Cleveland. He noted, however, that most economic numbers don't suggest that a recovery is stalling.

McCain said long-term investors should gather more evidence before making big changes to their portfolios.

"The markets tend to move in excesses of optimism and pessimism," he said.

The Dow fell 114.88, or 1.1 percent, to 10,510.95. It has fallen three of the past four days.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 16.14, or 1.4 percent, to 1,120.80, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 36.97, or 1.6 percent, to 2,317.26.

Major stock indexes are down about 8 percent from their 2010 highs in late April. That puts the market close to the threshold for a correction, which is usually defined as a drop of 10 percent to 20 percent.

Bond prices jumped, driving yields lower. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell to 3.35 percent from 3.50 percent late Monday.

Stock trading has been volatile for weeks. The Dow rebounded from a drop of 184 points to end Monday with a gain of about 6 points after the euro strengthened.

Mike Shea, managing partner at Direct Access Partners LLC in New York, said that with so many unanswered questions about the ballooning debts in Europe it isn't surprising to see traders selling.

"There is a prudent reduction of risk," Shea said.

The concerns about the ban on naked short-selling hit large banks, a sign that traders are uneasy about the possible chilling effect that Germany's moves might have on the markets and in turn, financial companies. Traders are also watching the financial overhaul bill making its way through the Senate. Debate could end as soon as Wednesday. Some traders are concerned that tighter rules will hurt bank profits.

Wells Fargo & Co. fell $1.38, or 4.3 percent, to $30.59, while Citigroup Inc. fell 13 cents, or 3.4 percent, to $3.73.

Gold fell $13.50 to $1,214.60 an ounce, while crude oil fell 54 cents to settle at $69.41 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

While so much attention has focused on Europe in recent weeks, investors have largely ignored signs of economic growth. Stocks had been posting solid gains earlier in the year on steady signs of improvement in the U.S. economy. Encouraging signals on the economy gave early support to stocks Tuesday. The Commerce Department said home construction jumped 5.8 percent in April, more than expected and the strongest level since late in 2008.

John Merrill, chief investment officer at Tanglewood Wealth Management in Houston, said investors are doing some mental juggling. They see signs that the U.S. economy is strengthening but still have concerns that Europe's problems will undermine the global economy's rebound.

"There are just two alternative themes and it just depends on where the focus is," he said.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. was the sole stock among the 30 that make up the Dow Jones industrials to rise. The world's largest retailer posted better-than-expected earnings. Investors also look to companies that sell consumer staples as a safe investment in weak economies. The stock rose 98 cents, or 1.9 percent, to $53.71.

More than three stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 6.2 billion shares, compared with 5.9 billion Monday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 12.96, or 1.9 percent, to 682.75.

Britain's FTSE 100 index rose 0.9 percent, Germany's DAX index gained 1.5 percent, and France's CAC-40 rose 2.1 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.1 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks stumble after investors look past rising euro to unanswered questions about Europe debt

Another wave of selling hit stocks Wednesday in response to growing fears that Europe has no quick fix for its debt crisis.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell about 67 points after having been down as much as 186. It was the Dow's ninth drop in 12 days.

The extent of investors' worries became clear after the euro bounced off a four-year low but stocks still fell. The euro has been driving stock trading for weeks.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index, widely considered one of the best measures of how the stock market is doing, neared a 10 percent drop from the 2010 trading high it reached last month. That would mark the first time the market has had what's known as a "correction" since it bounced off a 12-year low in March last year. Most analysts say a correction is a drop of at least 10 percent.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -66.58 points -0.63% on Wednesday May 19
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,444.37 -66.58 -0.63%
Nasdaq 2,298.37 -18.89 -0.82%
S&P 500 1,115.05 -5.75 -0.51%
30-yr Bond 4.2370% -0.1700

NYSE Volume 7,835,684,500 (prior day 7,114,171,500)
Nasdaq Volume 2,588,426,750 (prior day 2,428,810,250)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,173.18 -134.16 -2.53%
DAX 5,993.21 -162.72 -2.64%
CAC 40 3,526.80 -90.52 -2.50%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 10,186.84 -55.80 -0.54%
Hang Seng 19,578.98 -365.96 -1.83%
Straits Times 2,776.00 -68.35 -2.40%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...tml?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=

Stocks slump after investors focus on Europe woes

Stocks stumble after investors look past rising euro to unanswered questions about Europe debt

Stephen Bernard and Tim Paradis, AP Business Writers, On Wednesday May 19, 2010, 6:19 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- Another wave of selling hit stocks Wednesday in response to growing fears that Europe has no quick fix for its debt crisis.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell about 67 points after having been down as much as 186. It was the Dow's ninth drop in 12 days.

The extent of investors' worries became clear after the euro bounced off a four-year low but stocks still fell. The euro has been driving stock trading for weeks.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index, widely considered one of the best measures of how the stock market is doing, neared a 10 percent drop from the 2010 trading high it reached last month. That would mark the first time the market has had what's known as a "correction" since it bounced off a 12-year low in March last year. Most analysts say a correction is a drop of at least 10 percent.

The latest worry came from Germany, where regulators banned what's called naked short selling. That occurs when traders bet against investments they don't hold. The rule covers European government bonds, credit default swaps and the shares of several financial companies.

The sudden announcement late Tuesday from Germany's financial regulator was seen in the markets as another example of disarray in Europe's financial system. Analysts said the hasty move only deepened the uncertainty about what steps governments might take next in hopes of containing the selling. Major European stock markets tumbled nearly 3 percent.

Maury Fertig, chief investment officer at Relative Value Partners, in Northbrook, Ill., said memories of the market's crash in late 2008 and early 2009 are still raw and that traders don't want to be caught when stocks start to slide.

"It's shoot first, ask questions later," Fertig said. "The freshness of the pain of 2008 is still really stuck in investors' minds."

Germany enacted the short-selling rule in hopes of curtailing sudden swings in European debt markets, like the ones that crippled Greece's ability to borrow money after the rates on its bonds shot higher earlier this year.

European leaders agreed last week to a nearly $1 trillion bailout program to help countries like Greece that face mounting debt problems. The deal was initially embraced by financial markets, but traders quickly became worried that the austerity measures tied to the rescue package would upend a rebound.

"People are still just very concerned about what's going on overseas," said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist in U.S. equity research at Standard & Poor's in New York.

The Dow fell 66.58, or 0.6 percent, to 10,444.37 after dropping 115 on Tuesday.

The S&P 500 index fell 5.75, or 0.5 percent, to 1,115.05. At its low Wednesday, the index was down 9.8 percent from its 2010 trading high. Based on where it closed Wednesday, the S&P 500 index is down 8.4 percent from its peak this year. Analysts at S&P who have evaluated the events driving the market this year say that a drop of as much 15 percent is possible.

The Nasdaq composite index fell 18.89, or 0.8 percent, to 2,298.37.

Bond prices slipped, pushing yields higher. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.37 percent from 3.35 percent late Tuesday. Bond yields have been falling in recent weeks as investors flock to safe investments.

Crude oil rose 46 cents to $69.87 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold fell.

U.S. investors haven't been focusing on the U.S. economy but given the downbeat mood on Wall Street downbeat news drew some attention.

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported that the number of homeowners who missed at least one payment on their mortgage rose to a record in the first quarter. That signaled that foreclosures could rise and suggested that troubles in the U.S. housing sector are far from over.

Minutes from the Federal Reserve's late April meeting indicated that policymakers were more upbeat about the prospects of the U.S. economy than they were at the start of the year. The forecast that was updated for last month's meeting was that the economy can grow by 3.2 percent to 3.7 percent this year. That's stronger than in January when the Fed predicted growth of 2.8 percent to 3.5 percent.

The Fed's take on the economy, however, came before the stock market started tumbling this month on concerns about debt in Europe.

Michael Church, president at Addison Capital Group in Philadelphia, said stocks were overdue for a break and that while the concerns about Europe are real, the slide in stocks could turn out to be little more than a correction.

"The risk is that this does derail things but I'm not convinced that that's reality yet," he said. Church contends that stocks will push higher again if it becomes clear that the debt problems in Europe can be contained, at least for now.

About four stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 6.8 billion shares, compared with 6.2 billion Tuesday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 8.35, or 1.2 percent, to 674.40.

Britain's FTSE 100 dropped 2.8 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 2.7 percent, and France's CAC-40 dropped 2.9 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 0.5 percent.

 

[explod]

Hope you dont' mind my little but into your thread Bigdog, but could not but smile at Chuck Butlers explanation of the new circuit breakers to stop huge gyrations on markets following the fall of the Dow some weeks back:-

Then there was this... Did you know that the it wasn't just the Eurozone announcing measures to stop "destructive markets"? The U.S. was at it too, but that didn't get in the way of dollar buying... The Securities and Exchange Commission announced new measures Tuesday to avoid a repeat of the dramatic market swoon earlier this month, saying trading should be halted in any stock if its value dives more than 10 percent in 5 minutes. The new measures were taken because existing circuit breakers were outdated and didn't work on May 6, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1,000 points in minutes.

Good luck with that... I think those new circuit breakers are going to get tested quite often very soon...

link:- http://www.dailypfennig.com/

cheers explod

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks plunged again Thursday as more investors woke up to the possibility that economic problems such as Europe's debt crisis might spread around the world and stop the growing recovery in the U.S.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 376 points, its biggest one-day point drop since February 2009, and all the major indexes were down well over 3 percent. Meanwhile, interest rates fell sharply in the Treasury market as investors once again sought the safety of U.S. government debt.

With Thursday's drop, the Standard & Poor's 500 index, considered the best indicator of the stock market's performance, is down almost 12 percent from its 2010 high close of 1,217.28, reached April 23. That means the market is officially in what's called a correction, a drop of 10 percent or more from a recent high. This is the first correction since stock indexes hit 12-year lows in March last year. The fact it has occurred in just 19 trading days shows how anxious traders are right now.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -376.36 points -3.60% on Thursday May 20
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,068.01 -376.36 -3.60%
Nasdaq 2,204.01 -94.36 -4.11%
S&P 500 1,071.59 -43.46 -3.90%
30-yr Bond 4.1350% -1.0200

NYSE Volume 9,682,053,000 (prior day 7,835,684,500)
Nasdaq Volume 3,371,783,750 (prior day 2,588,426,750)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,073.13 -84.95 -1.65%
DAX 5,867.88 -120.79 -2.02%
CAC 40 3,432.52 -79.15 -2.25%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 10,030.31 -156.53 -1.54%
Hang Seng 19,545.83 -33.15 -0.17%
Straits Times 2,753.51 -21.03 -0.76%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...tml?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=

Stocks dive, Dow off 376 on world economic worries

Tim Paradis and Stevenson Jacobs, AP Business Writers, On Thursday May 20, 2010, 5:28 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks plunged again Thursday as more investors woke up to the possibility that economic problems such as Europe's debt crisis might spread around the world and stop the growing recovery in the U.S.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 376 points, its biggest one-day point drop since February 2009, and all the major indexes were down well over 3 percent. Meanwhile, interest rates fell sharply in the Treasury market as investors once again sought the safety of U.S. government debt.

With Thursday's drop, the Standard & Poor's 500 index, considered the best indicator of the stock market's performance, is down almost 12 percent from its 2010 high close of 1,217.28, reached April 23. That means the market is officially in what's called a correction, a drop of 10 percent or more from a recent high. This is the first correction since stock indexes hit 12-year lows in March last year. The fact it has occurred in just 19 trading days shows how anxious traders are right now.

Analysts said there was no big event to set off Thursday's selling. More investors seemed to be grasping the possibility that the U.S. recovery could be in jeopardy. And many were wondering whether the stock market's big rebound since March 2009 may not have been entirely justified.

"The economic recovery story has started to look like a mirage and the new reality is a return to credit crunch conditions" like those seen during the financial crisis, said Tom Samuels, manager of the Palantir Fund in Houston. "If that's correct, stock prices are well ahead of economic reality."

Investors are concerned that the debt problems in European nations like Greece and Portugal will spill over to other countries, cause a cascade of massive losses for big banks and in turn halt the economic recovery in countries beyond Europe, including the U.S. They're also worried that China might take steps that will limit its economic growth, which would also affect the U.S. recovery. Analysts said the market is vulnerable to rumors about any of the major economies right now.

Investors appear increasingly convinced that European countries will need to adopt stringent spending cuts to pay down their heavy debt loads, independent market analyst Edward Yardeni said. Such cuts would likely to lead to long economic slump for those countries, a prospect that investors may now be accepting as reality as they sell stocks and the euro, the currency shared by 16 European nations, Yardeni said.

The euro, which has become a key indicator of confidence in Europe's economy, managed to rise to $1.2496 in late afternoon trading, a day after hitting $1.2146, a four-year low. But its advance didn't help stocks.

"The drop in the euro is the initial phase of a long-term, multi-year economic decline in Europe," Yardeni said. "It shows a declining confidence in the workability of the EU (European Union) monetary union, and that's why their stock markets are down."

"It's starting to look like one of these tragic stories were one person falls through the ice, then everyone else rushes in to help and ends up drowning," he added.

The market's slide over the past four weeks on worries about the global economy has been a painful reminder of the turbulent days during the 2008 financial crisis. On April 26, the Dow closed at its highest point since the market hit bottom on March 9, 2009. Since then, it has fallen nearly 1,000 points. It has fallen by at least 100 points in nine of the 18 trading days since its peak.

According to preliminary calculations, the Dow fell 376.36, or 3.6 percent, to 10,068.01.

The S&P 500 fell 43.46, or 3.9 percent, to 1,071.59. The Nasdaq composite index fell 94.36, or 4.1 percent, to 2,204.01.

At the New York Stock Exchange, only 153 stocks rose compared with 2,994 that fell. Volume came to a heavy 2.1 billion shares.

The market got some confirmation from a Federal Reserve official that Europe's problems could be a "potentially serious setback." Fed Governor Daniel Tarullo said that if the debt crisis curbed lending and the flow of credit globally, that would endanger both the U.S. and global recoveries, he says.

"Although we view such a development as unlikely, the swoon in global financial markets earlier this month suggests it is not out of the question," he said in prepared remarks.

Analysts said traders were retreating from any investment thought to be too dangerous to own right now. That has meant heavy selling in stocks, commodities and troubled currencies like the euro.

"Investors are in the midst of a major de-risking period due to debt concerns in Europe and signs of a slowdown in China, and now that's accelerating," said Peter Boockvar, equity strategist at Miller Tabak. "The fundamental concern right now are these threats to global growth."

As investors pulled out of stocks and other risky investments like commodities, they moved into safer investments such as U.S. Treasurys. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.22 percent from 3.37 percent late Wednesday.

Commodities prices also fell as investors speculated that a weak world economy would curtail demand for raw materials. Crude oil fell $1.86 to $68.01 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Traders were trying to anticipate the scenarios that could occur as Europe struggles to contain its debt problems.

"There's a question out there now that potentially we could be talking about a collapse of the eurozone or countries breaking away from the euro," said Tim Quinlan, an economist at Wells Fargo & Co. As recently as four months ago, that wasn't even considered a possibility, Quinlan said.

Such a stark change in views has unnerved investors. But analysts said they weren't seeing signs that fear is sweeping the market.

"These are not panic losses," said Todd Colvin, a vice president at MF Global Inc. in Chicago. "These guys are taking some profits off the table and taking some capital where they know it will be safe. And where's that? That's cash or even Treasurys."

Still, the Chicago Board Options Exchange's Volatility Index -- known as the market's fear gauge -- leaped almost 30 percent to its highest level since March 2009. The increase in the VIX signals that traders are bracing for more drops in the market.

The Labor Department's latest employment report added to worries about the global economy.

The department said new claims for unemployment benefits rose by 25,000 to 471,000, their largest amount in three months. That came as an unpleasant surprise to investors who were expecting a slight drop to 440,000. High unemployment remains one of the biggest obstacles to a sustained recovery in the U.S. The latest report snapped a streak of four straight weekly drops and again calls into question the strength of the job market.

Weekly claims have been stuck around 450,000 since January, unable to break closer to the 425,000 range that is considered a sign that employers are regularly hiring new workers.

A private research group reported an unexpected drop in its index of leading economic indicators. The Conference Board's index of future economic activity slipped in April for first drop since the stock market's bottom last year. Economists polled by Thomson Reuters had expected a gain. The slip signals that growth could slow this summer.

The demand for safety rose after Greek workers again took to the streets protesting recently approved budget cuts that were necessary for the country to receive a bailout. Greece was able to repay debt that came due Wednesday only because it had access to a rescue package from the European Union and International Monetary Fund.

In overseas stock trading, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.6, Germany's DAX index dropped 2 percent, and France's CAC-40 lost 2.3 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks end a seesaw week with a slight gain; Dow, S&P 500 are still in the red for 2010

The stock market had another tumultuous ride this week as disarray in Europe heightened fears of a global economic slowdown. Despite a late-day comeback on Friday, major stock indexes are down about 10 percent from the peak they reached in late April.

Declines of that size are known as a "correction." They are normal during a bull market and are even seen as a healthy way for a market to regain its bearings after a long period of uninterrupted gains. The correction that started this week is the first for the bull market that began in March of last year.

Whether the correction has mostly run its course or turns into a bear market, defined as a decline of 20 percent or more, is anyone's guess. Stock indexes ended with solid gains Friday after starting the day lower and dipping below 10,000; the Dow closed up 125 points.

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER +125.38 points +1.25% on Friday May 21
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,193.39 +125.38 +1.25%
Nasdaq 2,229.04 +25.03 +1.14%
S&P 500 1,087.69 +16.10 +1.50%
30-yr Bond 4.0650% -0.7000

NYSE Volume 9,262,020,000 (prior day 9,682,053,000)
Nasdaq Volume 3,359,069,500 (prior day 3,371,783,750)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,062.93 -10.20 -0.20%
DAX 5,829.25 -38.63 -0.66%
CAC 40 3,430.74 -1.78 -0.05%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 9,784.54 -245.77 -2.45%
Hang Seng 19,545.83 -33.15 -0.17%
Straits Times 2,696.58 -56.93 -2.07%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Late-...tml?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=

Late gain ends volatile week for the stock market

Stocks end a seesaw week with a slight gain; Dow, S&P 500 are still in the red for 2010

Seth Sutel and Tim Paradis, AP Business Writers, On Friday May 21, 2010, 6:13 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- The stock market had another tumultuous ride this week as disarray in Europe heightened fears of a global economic slowdown. Despite a late-day comeback on Friday, major stock indexes are down about 10 percent from the peak they reached in late April.

Declines of that size are known as a "correction." They are normal during a bull market and are even seen as a healthy way for a market to regain its bearings after a long period of uninterrupted gains. The correction that started this week is the first for the bull market that began in March of last year.

Whether the correction has mostly run its course or turns into a bear market, defined as a decline of 20 percent or more, is anyone's guess. Stock indexes ended with solid gains Friday after starting the day lower and dipping below 10,000; the Dow closed up 125 points.

The Dow Jones industrial average plunged 376 points Thursday, its worst one-day drop in more than a year. Stocks are now about where they were in early February and down 2 percent for the year.

Jacob Gold, a financial adviser and CEO of Jacob Gold & Associates in Scottsdale, Ariz., says the market collapse of 2008 is fresh in the memories of clients who have been peppering him with calls and e-mails this week.

"They're second-guessing themselves because they don't want to end up giving the economy the benefit of the doubt and having it hurt them," he said. "People are still licking their wounds from 2008 and they're not in a position to put themselves at risk like they once did."

The immediate catalyst for this week's sharp declines was deepening confusion over how Europe intends to get control of its public finances, restore order to financial markets and instill confidence in the continent's shared currency, the euro.

Germany broke ranks from its European neighbors this week, single-handedly reining in speculative trading in European bonds. And on Friday it was rebuffed in its calls for harsh punishments for European countries that consistently flout rules on fiscal spending limits.

Greece is struggling to cope with staggering debt, and investors fear it could end up dragging other economically weak European countries down with it. If Europe's banks crack down on lending, the thinking goes, other banks around the world could follow suit, tripping up economies around the world.

The unsettling news from Europe this week also reminded investors how tepid the U.S. economic recovery really is in historical terms. Gross domestic product rose at an annual rate of 3.2 percent in the first three months of the year, but that's not nearly as strong of a comeback as is typical after a deep recession. Companies also aren't hiring that much, unemployment is still 9.9 percent and the housing market hasn't recovered from its slump.

"Normally you would get a much stronger snapback," said Paul Ballew, chief economist at Nationwide Insurance in Columbus, Ohio, and a former senior economist with the Federal Reserve. "Given the magnitude of the downturn, growth should be much stronger than that already."

U.S. markets opened lower again on Friday, but a rally in financial shares helped stocks move higher. JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp. were the biggest gainers in the 30 stocks that make up the Dow Jones industrial average. They and other financial shares rose after the Senate passed long-awaited financial reform legislation, removing a significant overhang for U.S. banks.

In other signs that some investors were regaining an appetite for risk, Treasury prices edged lower after spiking on Thursday, the dollar edged lower, commodity prices stabilized and gold prices fell.

The Dow rose 125.38, or 1.3 percent, to 10,193.39. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 16.10, or 1.5 percent, to 1,087.69. The Nasdaq composite index rose 25.03, or 1.1 percent, to 2,229.04.

The Dow fell below 10,000 during early trading Friday before recovering. It last fell through that level on May 6, when it briefly plunged nearly 1,000 points in an afternoon rout that was its biggest ever intraday slide. Regulators have said they are still unclear on what caused that brief plunge.

The three-week slide since the market hit its recent peak in late April has shaved $1.3 trillion of value from the S&P 500 index in the 19 trading days through Thursday. That's more than the $1 trillion Europe and the International Monetary Fund pledged to shore up weak European economies.

On the positive side, traders said it was encouraging to see that the S&P 500 came close to, but didn't fall below the level it touched on Feb. 8, its lowest point it reached so far this year. Market analysts pay close attention to technical indicators like that one, which they call "support levels."

With this week's bumpy ride and the "flash crash" of two weeks ago, individual investors have been calling financial advisers more, struggling to make sense of all the factors whipsawing the market.

"Uncertainty is driving investors' money right now," said Andrew B. Busch, global foreign currency and public policy strategist at BMO Capital Markets. "There are so many unresolved issues -- Europe's debt crisis, the flash crash, financial reform -- and nobody knows how its going to play out."

The Nasdaq composite index, which is dominated by technology stocks, has been more volatile than the broader market in the last week. Tech stocks tend to recover faster than those of other industries since businesses will often ramp up spending in computer equipment early in an economic recovery.

By the same token, those companies may be the first to feel the pinch if negative economic signs lead businesses to tighten their purse strings. Some money managers say those declines are overdone.

"I think a lot of good technology companies are being taken down unnecessarily in the latest downdraft," said Michael Cuggino, president and portfolio manager at Permanent Portfolio Family of Funds in San Francisco. "That may present some interesting opportunities."

Bond prices were mixed after jumping Thursday as investors dumped anything seen as risky. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.24 percent from 3.22 percent.

9828

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks end lower after jitters about financial overhaul bill drag down market; Dow drops 127

Financial companies dragged stocks lower Monday as already anxious investors grew even more uncertain about the U.S. government's financial overhaul plan and debt problems in Europe.

The Dow Jones industrial average slid 80 points in the final 15 minutes of trading to end with a loss of almost 127. It was the lowest close for the Dow since Feb. 10. The Dow and the Standard & Poor's 500 index fell more than 1 percent.

Investors are worried about limits that could be placed on U.S. banks in a final version of the financial overhaul bill. A bill that passed the Senate last week is now being reconciled with the House version. The late drop illustrates how jittery traders are in particular about what will happen in Europe.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -126.82 points -1.24% on Monday May 24
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,066.57 -126.82 -1.24%
Nasdaq 2,213.55 -15.49 -0.69%
S&P 500 1,073.65 -14.04 -1.29%
30-yr Bond 4.1040% +0.3900

NYSE Volume 5,956,688,500 (prior day 9,262,020,000)
Nasdaq Volume 2,077,958,120 (prior day 3,359,069,500)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,069.61 +6.68 +0.13%
DAX 5,805.68 -23.57 -0.40%
CAC 40 3,430.93 +0.19 +0.01%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 9,758.40 -26.14 -0.27%
Hang Seng 19,667.76 +121.93 +0.62%
Straits Times 2,723.87 +22.67 +0.84%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Late-...4.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&ccode=

Late slide in financial stocks hits stock market

Stocks end lower after jitters about financial overhaul bill drag down market; Dow drops 127

Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer, On Monday May 24, 2010, 6:04 pm
NEW YORK (AP) -- Financial companies dragged stocks lower Monday as already anxious investors grew even more uncertain about the U.S. government's financial overhaul plan and debt problems in Europe.

The Dow Jones industrial average slid 80 points in the final 15 minutes of trading to end with a loss of almost 127. It was the lowest close for the Dow since Feb. 10. The Dow and the Standard & Poor's 500 index fell more than 1 percent.

Investors are worried about limits that could be placed on U.S. banks in a final version of the financial overhaul bill. A bill that passed the Senate last week is now being reconciled with the House version. The late drop illustrates how jittery traders are in particular about what will happen in Europe.

"People are afraid to go home and say 'All of the sudden what's going to happen overnight in Europe? Is something new going to pop up?'" said Joe Saluzzi, co-head of equity trading at Themis Trading LLC.

The rescue of a Spanish bank raised investors' uneasiness about Europe's economy. Investors can't shake their concerns that there could be more bank bailouts in Europe if a wave of bad debt cascades through financial markets. It's not clear that will happen, but traders remember well the problems in the U.S. that began with bad subprime loans. Those problems started small but eventually helped take down Lehman Brothers in September 2008.

The Bank of Spain stepped in to rescue Cajasur after it failed to complete a merger. It was only the second time Spain's central bank saved a regional lender. The country is one of those already dealing with ballooning deficits.

Meanwhile, traders still don't have a clear idea about which financial overhaul provisions will remain in the combined House and Senate bill. That is making some traders cautious about betting on financial stocks.

It remains uncertain, for example, whether a final bill will include a Senate provision that would require big banks to sell their derivatives operations. Derivatives are often profitable but risky investments. Derivatives that were tied to mortgages were blamed for worsening the housing crisis.

The Dow fell 126.82, or 1.2 percent, to 10,066.57. The S&P 500 index fell 14.04, or 1.3 percent, to 1,073.65, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 15.49, or 0.7 percent, to 2,213.55.

About three stocks fell for every two that rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to came to 8.1 billion shares compared with 2.3 billion Friday.

Bond prices rose. Investors have been flocking to the relative safety of government bonds and have at times dumped riskier assets like stocks and commodities. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.20 percent from 3.24 percent late Friday.

Gold rose $17.90 to $1,194 an ounce.

Crude oil rose 17 cents to $70.21 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The euro fell against the dollar, dropping to $1.2361. The 16-nation currency has become a symbol of investors' concern about the continent's economy. Traders have been dumping the euro on fears that massive debts will cause a default by a weaker country in the European Union. The euro hit a four-year low against the dollar last week.

Analysts question whether countries like Greece, Spain and Portugal will be able to contain mounting debt through steep spending cuts. Investors are also worried that those budget cuts will upend an economic recovery in Europe and slow a worldwide rebound.

"Right now the U.S. financial markets are trading very much out of fear and not any fundamentals," said Guy LeBas, chief fixed income strategist of Janney Montgomery Scott in Philadelphia.

Despite a rally Friday that lifted the Dow 125 points, major indexes still ended lower last week. Stocks are now trading at about where they were in early February and are down for the year.

Major indexes are down about 10 percent from their highs of the year, set in late April. That size drop is known as a "correction." It's the first retreat of that scale since stocks began a largely uninterrupted advance off of 12-year lows reached in March of 2009.

Mark Coffelt, portfolio manager at Empiric Funds in Austin, Texas, said traders are still cautious about the financial overhaul bill because big changes could disrupt the way financial companies operate.

"We're giving more oversight to the various regulators that failed us before," Coffelt said. He is concerned that tighter rules will constrict the availability of credit and hurt the economy. "Governments aren't looking very competent."

Bank of America Corp. fell 59 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $15.40, while JPMorgan Chase & Co. fell $1.43, or 3.6 percent, to $38.62.

Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.1 percent, Germany's DAX index dropped 0.4 percent, and France's CAC-40 rose less than 0.1 percent.

Investors brushed off gains in Asia, where China's president said the country will loosen its currency policy. No timetable was given, however. China's Shanghai Composite index jumped 3.5 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks plunge early, then bounce back; Dow finishes above 10,000, but debt worries persist

The Dow Jones industrials plunged below 10,000 to their lowest level of the year Tuesday before a late-day rebound that erased most of the losses if not lingering worries about Europe's debt crisis.

The Dow dropped more than 250 points after the opening bell and stayed under 10,000 most of the day, then charged back to finish down only 22 when signals from Washington suggested that banks would not be forced to sell their lucrative derivatives units as part of financial reform. The Standard & Poor's 500 index even managed a slight gain.

But more turbulent days are likely. The market worries that even austerity measures by European governments will not be enough to fix the problem and fight off a prolonged economic slump in Europe, or even another global recession.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -22.82 points -0.23% on Tuesday May 25
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,043.75 -22.82 -0.23%
Nasdaq 2,210.95 -2.60 -0.12%
S&P 500 1,074.03 +0.38 +0.04%
30-yr Bond 4.0500% -0.5400

NYSE Volume 8,494,575,000 (prior day 5,956,688,500)
Nasdaq Volume 2,903,145,250 (prior day 2,077,958,120)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 4,940.68 -128.93 -2.54%
DAX 5,670.04 -135.64 -2.34%
CAC 40 3,331.29 -99.64 -2.90%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 9,459.89 -298.51 -3.06%
Hang Seng 18,985.50 -682.26 -3.47%
Straits Times 2,651.19 -72.68 -2.67%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Dow-d...tml?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=

Dow dips below 10,000, then bounces back

Stocks plunge early, then bounce back; Dow finishes above 10,000, but debt worries persist

Tim Paradis and Stevenson Jacobs, AP Business Writers, On Tuesday May 25, 2010, 6:24 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- The Dow Jones industrials plunged below 10,000 to their lowest level of the year Tuesday before a late-day rebound that erased most of the losses if not lingering worries about Europe's debt crisis.

The Dow dropped more than 250 points after the opening bell and stayed under 10,000 most of the day, then charged back to finish down only 22 when signals from Washington suggested that banks would not be forced to sell their lucrative derivatives units as part of financial reform. The Standard & Poor's 500 index even managed a slight gain.

But more turbulent days are likely. The market worries that even austerity measures by European governments will not be enough to fix the problem and fight off a prolonged economic slump in Europe, or even another global recession.

"It seems like the Europeans are playing 'tag, you're it' -- first it was Greece, and now it's maybe Spain or Portugal," said Jonathan Corpina, a New York Stock Exchange floor trader and president of Meridian Equity Partners.

"We know someone else is next. The problem is that it seems like every plan in place isn't going to satisfy the needs," he said.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth opened Parliament with a warning of hard times, saying in a speech on behalf of Britain's new government that there would be budget cuts because "the first priority is to reduce the deficit and restore economic growth."

Other European countries are imposing budget cuts as well, trying to control their debt. Investors are concerned that these steps will stifle economic growth, and that the growth of other countries, including the U.S., will inevitably be stunted.

Besides the financial crisis in Europe, investors were reminded that political issues, such as tension between North and South Korea, can threaten economic growth. Analysts said the unresolved Gulf of Mexico oil spill also contributed to the foul mood.

It was enough to send stocks into a deep dive. In just the first half-hour of trading, the Dow sank to 9,774.48, its lowest reading this year, and for much of the day threatened to set a new closing low for the year. The average is down more than 10 percent in just the past month.

But bank stocks surged, and the rest of the market followed, after Rep. Barney Frank, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, suggested financial companies should not have to spin off their derivatives businesses, as a Senate provision would have them do.

Frank, D-Mass., said he believes banks should be able to use the complex financial instruments to hedge their own risks. Bank regulators and Obama administration officials also oppose the Senate provision, which was inserted by Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark.

The Dow has only closed below 10,000 once this year, in early February. Since then, it has traded below 10,000 seven times but each time managed to push above that psychological barrier by the close.

On Tuesday, the Dow finished down 22.82 at 10,043.75. The Nasdaq composite index closed down 2.60 at 2,210.95, and the S&P 500 gained 0.38 to close at 1,074.03.

Investors also fled from the euro and commodities including oil, and again sought safety in government bonds. That drove interest rates lower. The benchmark 10-year note's yield fell to its lowest level since April 2009.

The market's continuing slide, with frequent triple-digit drops in the Dow, recalls the unrelenting selling of the 2008 financial crash -- and begs the question of what can halt the plunge.

Jim Dunigan, managing executive of investments for PNC Wealth Management, said good news about jobs or corporate earnings could stabilize stocks by signaling that a U.S. recovery is intact.

The government's monthly jobs report in less than two weeks is expected to show that employers are ramping up hiring further. And companies will soon start giving hints about profits for the quarter that ends in June.

"You could derail growth in Europe and not derail growth in the United States, but people don't necessary use a lot of logic when they're headed to the exits," Dunigan said.

For now, traders are unswayed by upbeat U.S. economic news. They ignored a better-than-expected report Tuesday showing consumer confidence index rose for the third straight month.

"Market participants feel like they're walking on eggshells," said Oliver Pursche, executive vice president at Gary Goldberg Financial Services in Suffern, N.Y. "Every small piece of potentially bad news is being exaggerated and mentally being fast-forwarded to the worst-case scenario."

Meanwhile, the monthlong effort to cap the BP oil well that has spewed millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico is also rattling investors, Corpina said. Oil is coming ashore across a 150-mile swath of the Gulf Coast, endangering wildlife and livelihoods in commercial fishing and tourism.

"The worry is that the situation is getting worse and there's no real fix," he said. "First we were just talking about the oil industry being affected. Now it's the environment and fishing industries. Next we'll be talking about the hotel and leisure industries."

A disappointing report on home prices added to the downcast mood. The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index fell 0.5 percent in March from February, a sign the housing market remains weak even with mortgage rates near historic lows.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.17 percent from 3.20 percent late Monday. It fell as low as 3.07 percent, its lowest level since April 2009.

The yield on the 30-year bond briefly fell below 4 percent for the first time since October, before rising slightly. It is down to 4.07 percent from 4.08 percent late Monday.

Crude oil fell $1.06 to $69.16 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, in part a reflection of expectations that weak economic growth will curtail demand for fuel.

Overseas markets were also down sharply. Britain's FTSE 100 dropped 2.5 percent, Germany's DAX index lost 2.3 percent, and France's CAC-40 plummeted 2.9 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 3.1 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 3.3 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks give up early gains and end lower after the euro sinks again; Dow closes under 10,000

A drop in the euro set off a late-day slide in stocks Wednesday and sent the Dow Jones industrial average to its first close below 10,000 in nearly four months.

The Dow, up 135 points in morning trading, ended down about 69. It was the eighth drop for the Dow in 10 days. Wednesday's trading extended a streak of volatility since stocks went to their highest level of the year in late April.

The late reversal underscored how jittery traders are about Europe. They are worried that heavy debt loads in European countries and more rounds of cost-cutting will hamper a recovery there, which could spread quickly to other regions.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -69.30 points -0.69% on Wednesday May 26
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 9,974.45 -69.30 -0.69%
Nasdaq 2,195.88 -15.07 -0.68%
S&P 500 1,067.95 -6.08 -0.57%
30-yr Bond 4.12% +0.65

NYSE Volume 7,997,516,000 (prior day 8,494,575,000)
Nasdaq Volume 3,081,370,000 (prior day 2,903,145,250)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,038.08 +97.40 +1.97%
DAX 5,758.02 +87.98 +1.55%
CAC 40 3,408.59 +77.30 +2.32%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 9,522.66 +62.77 +0.66%
Hang Seng 19,196.45 +210.95 +1.11%
Straits Times 2,710.04 +59.43 +2.24%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...6.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=3&asset=&ccode=

Stocks fade late as euro sinks; Dow ends under 10K

Stocks give up early gains and end lower after the euro sinks again; Dow closes under 10,000

Tim Paradis, AP Business Writers, On Wednesday May 26, 2010, 6:14 pm EDT

NEW YORK (AP) -- A drop in the euro set off a late-day slide in stocks Wednesday and sent the Dow Jones industrial average to its first close below 10,000 in nearly four months.

The Dow, up 135 points in morning trading, ended down about 69. It was the eighth drop for the Dow in 10 days. Wednesday's trading extended a streak of volatility since stocks went to their highest level of the year in late April.

The late reversal underscored how jittery traders are about Europe. They are worried that heavy debt loads in European countries and more rounds of cost-cutting will hamper a recovery there, which could spread quickly to other regions.

"We had a nice rally all day and we expected it to have had legs," said Phillip Orlando, chief equity market strategist at Federated investors in New York, which manages about $400 billion. The sudden sell-off, he said, suggests "that investors are as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a roomful of rocking chairs."

The euro fell in late trading, pulling major stock indexes lower, following a Financial Times report that China is reviewing its holdings of European government bonds because of the crisis in government debt there.

China has been seeking ways to diversify its massive foreign exchange holdings out of dollars for some time. However any indication that it was losing confidence in the euro, leading it to sell some portion of its European bond holdings, would deliver a major blow to the European currency.

The sliding euro has become a symbol of waning confidence in Europe's ability to contain its debt problems. The euro remains close to the four-year low it hit last week. It fell to $1.2179 Wednesday.

"The inability of the market to hang on to the early gains today certainly does not send a very positive message," said Teddy Weisberg, a New York Stock Exchange floor trader with Seaport Securities. "It's a function of there being no confidence among investors."

The Dow fell 69.30, or 0.7 percent, to 9,974.45. It was the first close below 10,000 since Feb. 8 when the Dow finished at 9,908.

The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 6.08, or 0.6 percent, to 1,067.95.

The Nasdaq composite index closed down 15.07, or 0.7 percent, to 2,195.88.

About two stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange. Consolidated volume came to 7.1 billion shares, compared with 7.4 billion traded Tuesday.

Treasury prices pared an early slide as investors late in the day went back in search of safe investments. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.19 percent from 3.16 percent late Tuesday.

Crude oil rose $2.76 to $71.51 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold rose.

The stock slump at day's end marked an opposite to the pattern seen on Tuesday, when traders chipped away at a steep slide by the close and the major indexes ended little changed.

The slide in stocks has rattled investors still shaken by the market's plunge in late 2008 and early 2009.

"Everyone is so scared from what happened back in the big crash and now they're just all gun-shy," said Frank Ingarra, co-portfolio manager at Hennessy Funds.

Stocks were higher for most of the day after traders focused on economic news. Two reports from the Commerce Department offered the latest evidence that the U.S. economy is improving. Orders for big-ticket manufactured goods rose 2.9 percent last month. It was the biggest jump in three months and more than double the gain economists polled by Thomson Reuters had forecast.

U.S. manufacturing has been strong throughout the recovery. April's figures were boosted by a big rise in transportation orders. Excluding transportation, orders fell 1 percent.

The government also said that sales of new single-family homes rose 14.8 percent to an annual rate of 504,000 units after buyers raced to secure an expiring tax credit. That followed a 29.8 percent rise in March that was the biggest increase in 47 years. The latest gain was well ahead of estimates.

The slide in stocks extended their slump for May. At its 2010 high last month, the Dow was up 71.2 from a 12-year low in March 2009. Since then, it's fallen 1,231 points, or 11 percent.

A drop of more than 10 percent from a peak in short order is considered by most analysts a "correction."

Kevin Giddis, managing director of fixed income at Morgan Keegan in Memphis, said the slide in stocks and the rush to Treasurys has been overdone. The economic numbers confirm that the economy is in far better shape than it was two years ago when Lehman Brothers collapsed and credit evaporated.

"It is a giant fear trade that is being overblown," he said.

Among technology stocks, Apple Inc. moved ahead of Microsoft Corp. as the world's largest tech company by the value of its outstanding shares.

Apple fell $1.11, or 0.5 percent, to $244.11, while Microsoft fell $1.06, or 4.1 percent, to $25.01. That put Apple's market capitalization at $222 billion compared with $219 billion for Microsoft. Apple is now the No. 2 U.S. company by market capitalization behind Exxon Mobile Corp.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 2.60, or 0.4 percent, to 642.62.

Major European indexes snapped back after big losses Tuesday. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 2 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 1.6 percent, and France's CAC-40 climbed 2.3 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks surge after China says it doesn't plan to sell European debt; Dow jumps 285 points

Stocks had another turnaround Thursday and rocketed higher after China reassured investors it doesn't plan to sell the European debt it holds.

The Dow Jones industrial average surged nearly 285 points. Treasury prices tumbled as traders funneled money into riskier assets like stocks and commodities.

China's show of confidence in Europe let the market resume a rally that stalled late Wednesday following a report that the Chinese government was considering cutting its European debt holdings. If that were true, such a move would have signaled that China didn't think Europe would be able to contain its debt crisis. The agency that manages China's $2.5 trillion in foreign reserves denied the report.

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER +284.54 points +2.85% on Thursday May 27
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,258.99 +284.54 +2.85%
Nasdaq 2,277.68 +81.80 +3.73%
S&P 500 1,103.06 +35.11 +3.29%
30-yr Bond 4.2390% +1.2400

NYSE Volume 6,298,330,000 (prior day 7,997,516,000)
Nasdaq Volume 2,392,125,500 (prior day 3,081,370,000)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,195.17 +157.09 +3.12%
DAX 5,937.14 +179.12 +3.11%
CAC 40 3,525.31 +116.72 +3.42%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 9,639.72 +117.06 +1.23%
Hang Seng 19,431.37 +234.92 +1.22%
Straits Times 2,739.70 +43.68 +1.62%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...6.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&ccode=

Stocks jump after China shows confidence in Europe

Stocks surge after China says it doesn't plan to sell European debt; Dow jumps 285 points

Stephen Bernard and Tim Paradis, AP Business Writers, On Thursday May 27, 2010, 6:19 pm EDT

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks had another turnaround Thursday and rocketed higher after China reassured investors it doesn't plan to sell the European debt it holds.

The Dow Jones industrial average surged nearly 285 points. Treasury prices tumbled as traders funneled money into riskier assets like stocks and commodities.

China's show of confidence in Europe let the market resume a rally that stalled late Wednesday following a report that the Chinese government was considering cutting its European debt holdings. If that were true, such a move would have signaled that China didn't think Europe would be able to contain its debt crisis. The agency that manages China's $2.5 trillion in foreign reserves denied the report.

Analysts also said some bounce has been expected after the slide that drove the Dow down 11 percent from its 2010 peak a month ago. Traders cautioned that this might not be a rally but merely a break in selling.

Some of the climb could be tied to what's called "short-covering." That occurs when traders are forced to buy stock after having earlier sold borrowed shares in a bet that the market would fall. Though it's difficult to determine how much lift short-covering might be giving stocks, the rush to cover misplaced bets can add to a rally.

The steep gains Thursday were welcome after the Dow dropped eight of the prior 10 days. Twice this week, stocks have climbed for much of the day only to see the advances erased in late slides. The Dow rose 135 points Wednesday morning, but ended the day down about 69.

Peter Tuz, president of Chase Investment Council in Charlottesville, Va., said the market has fallen too quickly. He said a break was due because there have been so many days with heavy selling.

"It's like a 100-year flood -- having 3 of them in a year," Tuz said. "That to me was an indication that the market was clearly oversold."

Concerns about debt problems in Europe have pounded stocks around the world this month. Traders were initially worried that banks would be hit if weaker countries like Greece or Portugal defaulted on their debt. Now that a nearly $1 trillion European Union rescue plan has emerged, the more recent fear has been that budget cuts in European countries will slow a global recovery.

The euro, which is seen as an indicator for confidence in the health of Europe's economy, rose to $1.2358 Thursday a day after nearing the four-year low it hit last week. Trading in major markets around the world has often tracked the euro in recent weeks.

Yu-Dee Chang, principal at ACE Investment Strategists in McLean, Va., said investors know that the problems in Europe will take time to resolve. Chang said the uncertainty about whether the U.S. economy will continue to rebound is leading many traders to make short-term bets on stocks. That is adding to the market's swings.

"I'm willing to buy at certain times on dips but any time I get a nice profit after a certain stretch -- I'm going to take my profit," Chang said. He expects that the market will remain volatile for at least the next six months. "I just don't want to be long-term committed."

The Dow rose 284.54, or 2.9 percent, to 10,258.99. It was the biggest gain for the Dow since it soared 405 points on May 10 after the European Union announced a bailout for debt-strapped countries.

The climb vaulted the Dow back above 10,000. It closed below that psychological benchmark on Wednesday for the first time since February.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 35.11, or 3.3 percent, to 1,103.06. The Nasdaq composite index climbed 81.80, or 3.7 percent, to 2,277.68, putting it back in the black for 2010. The Dow and the S&P 500 index are still lower for the year.

Major stock indexes have also erased their losses for the week.

At the New York Stock Exchange, 2,885 shares rose while only 220 fell. Consolidated volume came to 5.5 billion shares compared with 7.1 billion Wednesday.

Bond prices tumbled, pushing interest rates higher. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 3.36 percent from 3.19 percent late Wednesday.

Analysts say the market's abrupt slide in the past month is part of the hangover from the financial crisis in late 2008 and early 2009. The collapse of Lehman Brothers dried up credit around the world and pounded an economy already in recession. With that fresh in investors' minds, traders found it safer to dump stocks first without waiting to see whether the problems in Europe would hurt the U.S.

In other trading, crude oil rose $3.04 to $74.55. Most metals and gain prices rose, while gold fell.

Financial and energy stocks led the market higher. American Express Co. posted the biggest gain among the 30 stocks that make up the Dow industrials. The stock rose $2.16, or 5.7 percent, to $40.33.

BP PLC rose $2.97, or 7 percent, to $45.38 after the company said its effort to plug the leaking oil in the Gulf of Mexico appeared to be making progress.

At the same time, new government estimates indicated that the spill has topped the 1989 Exxon Valdez accident to become the worst in the nation's history.

The news from China overshadowed disappointing reports on the U.S. economy. The Labor Department said initial claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, but not by as much as economists had forecast. A report on gross domestic product indicated that the U.S. economy did not grow as fast in the first quarter as previously thought.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 27.89, or 4.3 percent, to 670.51.

Britain's FTSE 100 and Germany's DAX index each rose 3.1 percent, while France's CAC-40 climbed 3.4 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 1.2 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Monday is a holiday in the USA

Stocks closed out their worst month in more than a year by sliding again on more unsettling news about Europe.

The Dow Jones industrials dropped 122 points Friday after Fitch Ratings gave Spain the second downgrade of its credit rating in a month. The rating agency's action was another reminder to traders of the long-term economic problems still facing several European countries, and pehaps the rest of the continent and the global economy as well.

May was difficult as persistent and intensifying worries about Europe's debt problems sent the Dow down 7.9 percent and the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index down 8.2 percent. Both indexes had their worst monthly performance since February 2009, the month before stocks began their recovery from 12-year lows. The Dow lost nearly 872 points, its biggest point drop ever for May.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -122.36 points -1.19% on Friday May 28
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,136.63 -122.36 -1.19%
Nasdaq 2,257.04 -20.64 -0.91%
S&P 500 1,089.41 -13.65 -1.24%
30-yr Bond 4.2140% -0.2500

NYSE Volume 5,764,268,500 (prior day 6,298,330,000)
Nasdaq Volume 2,185,725,000 (prior day 2,392,125,500)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,188.43 -6.74 -0.13%
DAX 5,946.18 +9.04 +0.15%
CAC 40 3,515.06 -10.25 -0.29%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 9,762.98 +123.26 +1.28%
Hang Seng 19,766.71 +335.34 +1.73%
Straits Times 2,739.70 closed today

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...6.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&ccode=

Stocks retreat as Fitch downgrades Spain's debt

Stocks fall as Fitch downgrades Spain's debt; market heads to worst month in more than a year

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...6.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&ccode=

Stephen Bernard, AP Business Writer, On Friday May 28, 2010, 6:03 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks closed out their worst month in more than a year by sliding again on more unsettling news about Europe.

The Dow Jones industrials dropped 122 points Friday after Fitch Ratings gave Spain the second downgrade of its credit rating in a month. The rating agency's action was another reminder to traders of the long-term economic problems still facing several European countries, and pehaps the rest of the continent and the global economy as well.

May was difficult as persistent and intensifying worries about Europe's debt problems sent the Dow down 7.9 percent and the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index down 8.2 percent. Both indexes had their worst monthly performance since February 2009, the month before stocks began their recovery from 12-year lows. The Dow lost nearly 872 points, its biggest point drop ever for May.

The last trading day of May fit the pattern of the rest of the month. Stocks alternately plunged and recovered, then dropped late in the day as investors facing a three-day holiday weekend decided to play it safe and sell.

Fitch cut Spain's rating by one notch, saying the country's plan to cut its budget will likely slow economic growth. Mounting debt forced Spain, among other European countries, to recently impose austerity measures to try and contain its rising deficit.

The rating agency also cited the recent bailout of a regional bank by Spain's central bank as a sign that the country's economic recovery will lag. Earlier this month, Standard & Poor's lowered its rating of Spain's debt. Greece and Portugal have also suffered downgrades.

Stocks were already down before the news about Spain broke in the early afternoon.

"People are worried about Europe and we're seeing a knee-jerk reaction, particularly ahead of a long weekend," said Joe Heider, a principal at Rehmann in Cleveland. He said traders won't want to be holding some investments since U.S. markets are closed Monday, while European ones are open.

Heider noted that the new rating, just one short of Fitch's highest, is still quite good. It was more the timing of the cut before the holiday weekend than the actual downgrade itself that surprised investors, he said.

The market's reaction was an example of how quick investors have been to sell during May. Although the day didn't see the huge swings stocks had earlier this month, there was still plenty of emotion. The biggest shock of the month came May 6, when the Dow took a dive of 1,000 points in less than 30 minutes before recovering most of its losses.

Greece, the most troubled European country, has received a bailout and several other countries are also cutting their spending, but investors fear that the region's debt problems can't be contained. They're also worried that austerity measures will stifle economic growth, and that Europe's slowdown will become the world's slowdown.

The market's drop this month has given it what's called a "correction." That's considered a drop of 10 percent or more from a recent high. The S&P 500, the index most watched by market pros, ended May down 10.5 percent from its high for the year, reached April 23. The Dow is down 9.5 percent from its 2010 high, reached April 26. The Dow has regained some ground from the low of 9,974.45 it closed at on Wednesday.

On Friday, the Dow fell 122.36, or 1.2 percent, to 10,136.63, its ninth drop in 12 days. The S&P 500 index fell 13.65, or 1.2 percent, to 1,089.41, while the Nasdaq composite index dropped 20.64, or 0.9 percent, to 2,257.04.

The Russell 200 index of smaller companies fell 8.90, or 1.3 percent, to 661.61.

About two stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 5.09 billion shares, down from Thursday's 5.5 billion.

With investors pulling out of stocks, bond prices rose. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.29 percent from 3.36 percent late Thursday.

The anxiety about Europe sent interest rates tumbling in May. Investors were buying U.S. government debt because of its reputation for safety. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to around 3.70 percent at the beginning of the month, but then fell to a 2010 low of 3.07 percent this week. Since mortgage rates are tied to that note, mortgage rates fell to 4.78 percent, their lowest level since December when they touched a record low of 4.71 percent.

However, corporate borrowing rates rose, particularly junk bond rates, as investors grew uneasy about company bonds. Barclays Capital's index that tracks high-yield U.S. corporate debt fell nearly 4 percent in May.

The problems in Europe led investors to ignore continuing signs of improvement in the U.S. economy during May. Investors' fear is that forced cutbacks in government spending in Europe in the coming months will curb the continent's economic growth, and in turn, the U.S. recovery.

Next week will bring a series of economic reports that will test the market, including the Labor Department's May employment report and readings on manufacturing, consumer spending and housing.

If there are any signs that the U.S. economy is being affected by news of Europe's problems -- for example, if consumers seemed to be spending less -- investors are likely to start selling again. And if the jobs report is disappointing, the market is also likely to suffer.

A report Friday showed that the U.S. recovery might be slowing a bit. The Commerce Department said consumer spending was flat in April, compared with the previous month. Economists polled by Thomson Reuters had forecast spending would rise 0.3 percent. It was the first time in seven months that spending had not risen in a month, indicating that consumers are still somewhat tentative about the health of the economy.

Personal income rose 0.4 percent, slightly worse than the 0.5 percent growth forecast by economists.

"This month was damaging to the psychology of investors, so consumption may taper in the near term," said Jamie Cox, managing director at Harris Financial Group in Richmond, Va.

Cox said consumers are more tentative after last year's market drop and recession, so they are more likely to cut back quickly at any signs of economic weakness. Investors, particularly retail investors, are also more likely to sell stocks at the first sign of a pullback, he said.

"We're not far enough removed from the 2009 drop," Cox said. "People are saying 'not again.'"

Overseas, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.1 percent, Germany's DAX index was down less than 0.1 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 0.3 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 1.3 percent.

0479

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Monday was Memorial Day holiday in the USA

European markets mostly flat despite Spain rating downgrade; Paris' CAC down 0.1 percent

The NYSE DOW was closed closed for Memorial Day on Monday May 31
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,136.63 closed for Memorial Day
Nasdaq 2,257.04
S&P 500 1,089.41
30-yr Bond 4.2140%

NYSE Volume 5,764,268,500
Nasdaq Volume 2,185,725,000

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,188.43 closed for Bank Holiday
DAX 5,964.33 +18.15 +0.31%
CAC 40 3,507.56 -7.50 -0.21%


Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 9,768.70 +5.72 +0.06%
Hang Seng 19,765.19 -1.52 -0.01%
Straits Times 2,752.60 +56.58 +2.10%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Europ...7.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=6&asset=&ccode=

European markets flat despite Spain downgrade

European markets mostly flat despite Spain rating downgrade; Paris' CAC down 0.1 percent

Greg Keller, AP Business Writer, On Monday May 31, 2010, 10:51 am EDT

PARIS (AP) -- European stock markets traded mostly flat Monday as investors shrugged off more sobering news about shaky government finances ahead of a busy schedule of U.S. economic data later in the week.

The CAC 40 index of leading French shares was down almost 3 points at 3,512.16 while Germany's DAX rose 38.47 points or 0.7 percent to 5,984.65. Spain's IBEX index fell 0.7 percent to 9,363.2.

Oil, meanwhile, rose above $74 a barrel, and the dollar gained against the yen and weakened against the euro.

Markets in the U.S. and Britain were closed for public holidays.

In an otherwise quiet session due to the U.K. bank holiday, investors remained focused on Europe's debt crisis. The French parliament is scheduled to go over a revised budget bill today ahead of its expected approval of France's share of the trillion dollar bailout for struggling member states.

German markets shrugged off the surprise resignation of President Horst Koehler. Koehler quit Monday from the largely ceremonial post after being criticized for remarks in which he appeared to link military deployments abroad with the country's economic interests.

Eurozone inflation increased in May but remained well below the 2 percent medium-term target set by the European Central Bank, figures released by Europe's statistics office showed Monday.

Markets had no direction from U.S. markets, which were closed for Memorial Day. But a heavy schedule of economic data due later in the week including the May jobs report is expected to drive trading as investors get a clearer picture of the economic recovery.

Comments by European Central Bank chief Jean-Claude Trichet in support of closer control of financial and economic policy across the 16-nation European currency zone were not enough to stir a reaction on markets, where volumes were thin.

In an interview with French daily Le Monde, Trichet reiterated his call for a "budgetary union" to complement the eurozone's monetary union.

Analysts characterized the markets as volatile and saw investors holding back as doubts remain the European Union can contain a debt crisis that has sent the euro to four-year lows.

"They are still cautious at this point," said Mark Tan, who helps manage about $15 billion of equities and bonds at UOB Asset Management in Singapore. "Liquidity in the stock market is still pretty tight."

On Friday, the Dow Jones industrials shed 1.2 percent to 10,136.63 after Fitch Ratings gave Spain the second downgrade of its credit rating in a month. The rating agency's action, coming just after European markets closed Friday, gave investors another reminder of the long-term economic problems still facing debt-laden countries.

The news, however, did not come as a shock to investors in Asia, where expectations of a downgrade of Spain had been circulating for some time. Markets in Asia were mixed in early trade and then mostly headed higher.

"Asians were prepared for the downgrade for Spain," said Francis Lun, general manager of Fulbright Securities Ltd. in Hong Kong. "So Asian markets are quite stable today. Even Bangkok is up."

Jackson Wong, vice president at Tanrich Securities in Hong Kong, also said he viewed Asia as stabilizing, despite some investor nervousness.

"The momentum is still on the positive side," Wong said.

Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average inched up 5.72 points, or 0.1 percent, to 9,768.7 amid news that industrial production in the world's No. 2 economy rose for a second straight month in April, propelled by robust growth in China and the rest of Asia.

Separately, India's economic growth accelerated to 8.6 percent in the January-March quarter, its best in two years as Asia's third-largest economy returns to pre-crisis levels of expansion.

In currencies, the dollar rose to 91.45 yen from 91.02 yen late Friday. The euro rose to $1.2309 from $1.2272, a bump upward that may stem from the overselling of euros last week.

Benchmark crude for July delivery was up 49 cents at $74.46 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks turn sharply lower in late trading on announcement of BP investigations; Dow falls 113

Stocks took another late-day dive Tuesday after the government said it was starting criminal and civil investigations into the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped almost 113 points. Its plunge came shortly before the close and minutes after Attorney General Eric Holder made the announcement. Stocks in energy companies and oil service providers tumbled on the news, and other stocks followed.

Holder would not say which companies or individuals might be under investigation. But investors quickly dumped stocks across the energy industry. BP PLC, which operated the rig that caused the spill, fell almost 15 percent. Anadarko Petroleum Corp., which has a stake in the rig that exploded, tumbled nearly 20 percent. Oil services company Halliburton Inc. fell almost 15 percent.

The NYSE DOW closed LOWER -112.61 points -1.11% on Tuesay June 1
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,024.02 -112.61 -1.11%
Nasdaq 2,222.33 -34.71 -1.54%
S&P 500 1,070.71 -18.70 -1.72%
30-yr Bond 4.2020% -0.1200

NYSE Volume 6,122,615,500 (prior day 5,764,268,500)
Nasdaq Volume 2,151,189,250 (prior day 2,185,725,000)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,163.30 -25.13 -0.48%
DAX 5,981.27 +16.94 +0.28%
CAC 40 3,503.08 -4.48 -0.13%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 9,711.83 -56.87 -0.58%
Hang Seng 19,496.95 -268.24 -1.36%
Straits Times 2,715.44 -37.16 -1.35%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...6.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=3&asset=&ccode=

Stocks turn sharply lower in late trading on announcement of BP investigations; Dow falls 113

Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer, On Tuesday June 1, 2010, 5:51 pm EDT

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks took another late-day dive Tuesday after the government said it was starting criminal and civil investigations into the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped almost 113 points. Its plunge came shortly before the close and minutes after Attorney General Eric Holder made the announcement. Stocks in energy companies and oil service providers tumbled on the news, and other stocks followed.

Holder would not say which companies or individuals might be under investigation. But investors quickly dumped stocks across the energy industry. BP PLC, which operated the rig that caused the spill, fell almost 15 percent. Anadarko Petroleum Corp., which has a stake in the rig that exploded, tumbled nearly 20 percent. Oil services company Halliburton Inc. fell almost 15 percent.

Analysts have said the oil spill has been among the many issues nagging at investors in recent weeks. Among the fears in the market is the potential economic hit from the spill. But Tuesday's announcement raised the possibility that oil companies might have to pay out huge amounts in fines, or see their operations hampered by a government investigation.

"Right now it's headline risk that's killing us in this market," said Ken Kamen, president of Mercadien Asset Management in Hamilton, N.J. He said the question marks that pop up when news breaks are making traders think it's safer to just retreat.

"When you just get over third-degree burns you don't go too near that stove. Last year is not too far out of peoples' minds," Kamen said, referring to the market's slide in 2008 and early 2009.

Trading was choppy for much of the day before Holder's announcement, a sign that investors weren't sure where to put their money. Investors were juggling worries about Europe's debt problems with upbeat reports on U.S. manufacturing and construction.

The euro slid as low as $1.2112, its lowest level since April 2006, before climbing back to $1.2210. The euro's moves against other currencies have come to reflect traders' confidence in Europe's ability to manage a sovereign debt crisis that started in Greece but has spread to other European nations like Portugal and Spain.

Stocks did get some early support from the Commerce Department's report that construction spending rose by the biggest amount in nearly a decade. The 2.7 percent April gain was the largest since August 2000. Economists forecast spending would be flat. However, homebuilders' stocks fell although the report showed a big jump in residential building. That blip upward was expected to disappear now that a homebuyers' tax credit has expired.

Meanwhile, the Institute for Supply Management said its manufacturing index fell to 59.7 in May from 60.4 in April. The figure was better than economists' forecast of 59.

The Dow fell 112.61, or 1.1 percent, to 10,024.02. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 18.70, or 1.7 percent, to 1,070.71, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 34.71, or 1.5 percent, to 2,222.33.

About four stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 5.3 billion shares compared with 5.1 billion Friday. Volume was light because some traders were away for a long Memorial Day holiday. Light volume can intensify swings in the market.

Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist at Schaeffer's Investment Research in Cincinnati, said volatility is likely to continue through the summer in part because some everyday investors who put money into the market before its drop in May are giving up. That leaves the pros who use automated trades to try to profit from moves in stocks.

"It just seems like it's computers versus computers," he said. "This volatility is probably here to stay, unfortunately, but that doesn't mean that the market is going to collapse."

Bond prices rose, sending interest rates lower. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell to 3.27 percent from 3.29 percent late Friday.

The dollar rose against most other major currencies, while gold rose. Crude oil fell $1.39 to $72.58 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

BP's U.S.-listed shares dropped $6.43, or nearly 15 percent, to $36.52. Offshore drilling contractor Transocean Ltd., which owns the well, fell $6.73, or 11.9 percent, to $50.04.

Anadarko fell $10.23, or almost 20 percent, to $42.10. Halliburton dropped $3.68, or 14.8 percent, to $21.15.

Among consumer stocks, Procter & Gamble Co. rose 7 cents to $61.16 and Kraft Foods Inc. rose 30 cents to $28.90.

Homebuilder KB Home fell 75 cents, or 5.2 percent, to $13.73, while Toll Brothers Inc. fell 94 cents, or 4.5 percent, to $20.13.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 20.65, or 3.1 percent, to 640.96.

Overseas, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.5 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.3 percent, and France's CAC-40 slipped 0.1 percent.

Asian markets fell following a report that China's manufacturing industry slowed last month. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.4 percent, while Japan's Nikkei stock average lost 0.6 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks bounce higher after April homes sales increase 6 percent; Energy shares lead rebound

The stock market rebounded Wednesday following a stronger-than-expected increase in pending home sales and a recovery in shares of energy companies.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose about 226 points, its third biggest gain of 2010. Major indexes recovered the losses they suffered Tuesday shortly before the close, when the government announced criminal and civil investigations into the Gulf oil spill.

Energy stocks bounced back sharply after selling off the day before. Schlumberger, which provides services to oil companies, rose more than 8 percent, while Baker Hughes gained more than 10 percent.

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER +225.52 points +2.25% on Wednesday June 2
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,249.54 +225.52 +2.25%
Nasdaq 2,281.07 +58.74 +2.64%
S&P 500 1,098.38 +27.67 +2.58%
30-yr Bond 4.2380% +0.3600

NYSE Volume 5,892,672,500 (prior day 6,122,615,500)
Nasdaq Volume 2,179,625,000 (prior day 2,151,189,250)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,151.32 -11.98 -0.23%
DAX 5,981.20 -0.07 -0.00%
CAC 40 3,501.50 -1.58 -0.05%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 9,603.24 -108.59 -1.12%
Hang Seng 19,471.80 -25.15 -0.13%
Straits Times 2,727.57 +12.13

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...tml?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=

Stocks rebound on housing news; Oil shares jump

Stocks bounce higher after April homes sales increase 6 percent; Energy shares lead rebound

Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer, On Wednesday June 2, 2010, 6:04 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- The stock market rebounded Wednesday following a stronger-than-expected increase in pending home sales and a recovery in shares of energy companies.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose about 226 points, its third biggest gain of 2010. Major indexes recovered the losses they suffered Tuesday shortly before the close, when the government announced criminal and civil investigations into the Gulf oil spill.

Energy stocks bounced back sharply after selling off the day before. Schlumberger, which provides services to oil companies, rose more than 8 percent, while Baker Hughes gained more than 10 percent.

Treasury prices fell, pushing up interest rates, after demand for riskier investments like stocks increased.

The upbeat report on home sales provided some hope on the nation's housing market. An increase in signed contracts for homes was due partly to a rush to meet a tax credit that expired in April. The National Association of Realtors said its index of signed contracts for existing homes rose 6 percent. The increase was ahead of the estimates of economists polled by Thomson Reuters.

"Anything that indicates more of a stabilization -- and not rapid declines -- in housing is probably a good thing," said Jason D. Pride, director of investment strategy at Glenmede in Philadelphia.

A rise in the euro from a four-year low Tuesday also drew buyers. Movements in the euro, which is used by 16 European countries, have often steered trading in the past month. The currency is seen as a reading on confidence in Europe's ability to contain a debt crisis that began in Greece, but has spread to other parts of Europe, including Spain and Portugal.

Stocks have been pounded in the last month by concerns that spending cuts in Europe would hobble a recovery in the global economy. After reaching a 2010 peak in late April, the Dow fell 7.9 percent last month for its worst May since 1940. The market has been logging big swings because traders are trying to determine how deep the retreat in stocks will be.

Even with the big gains Wednesday, analysts said the fractiousness isn't likely to soon disappear.

"It's a symptom of a market that doesn't have a lot of conviction about where it's going yet," said Dorsey Farr, co-founder of financial adviser French Wolf & Farr in Atlanta.

The Dow rose 225.52, or 2.3 percent, to 10,249.54 after falling 235 points in the two previous days.

Wednesday's climb was the biggest point and percentage climb for the Dow since Thursday, when the index advanced 285 points, or 2.9 percent. The index is still down 8.5 percent from its high this year on April 26.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 27.67, or 2.6 percent, to 1,098.38, while the Nasdaq composite index climbed 58.74, or 2.6 percent, to 2,281.07.

Bond prices dropped. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 3.35 percent from 3.27 percent late Tuesday.

Crude oil rose 28 cents to $72.86 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold fell.

Analysts warn that traders are still jittery and could resume selling on one disappointing headline. That's what occurred Tuesday when the news about the oil spill investigation erased the gains that had come from upbeat reports on manufacturing and construction spending.

Investors are now awaiting the Labor Department's monthly employment report, which is due Friday. It is widely regarded as the most important economic report each month because high unemployment remains a major obstacle to a sustained recovery.

Economists predict the unemployment rate dipped to 9.8 percent in May from 9.9 percent in April and that employers added 513,000 jobs.

Among stocks, Schlumberger Ltd. rose $4.56, or 8.8 percent, to $56.31. Baker Hughes Inc. advanced $3.76, or 10.5 percent, to $39.63. BP PLC rose $1.14, or 3.1 percent, to $37.66 after dropping nearly 15 percent Tuesday.

Builder KB Home rose 28 cents, or 2 percent, to $14.01, while Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. advanced 18 cents, or 3 percent, to $6.15.

Airlines rose following upbeat comments from analysts. Continental Airlines Inc. climbed $2.25, or 11.1 percent, to $22.54, while US Airways Group Inc. advanced 80 cents, or 9.3 percent, to $9.44.

Five stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated fell to 5.1 billion shares compared with 5.3 billion Tuesday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 19.56, or 3.1 percent, to 660.52.

Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.2 percent, while Germany's DAX index and France's CAC-40 each slipped less than 0.1 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average dropped 1.1 percent.

 

[bigdog]

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com

Stocks rise for 2nd day after economic reports signal continuing rebound; Dow climbs 6 points

Stocks closed higher for a second day Thursday after traders found room for optimism in mixed economic reports.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose about 6 points a day after leaping 226. It was the first back-to-back gain for the Dow since late April.

Stocks climbed on reports that business at the nation's services companies grew in May and that the number of people seeking first-time jobless claims slipped for a second week. The gains faded at times as the day wore on, but stocks recovered by the close as traders looked to the Labor Department's May jobs report on Friday.

The NYSE DOW closed HIGHER +5.74 points +0.06% on Thursday June 3
Sym. Last......... ........Change..........
Dow 10,255.28 +5.74 +0.06%
Nasdaq 2,303.03 +21.96 +0.96%
S&P 500 1,102.83 +4.45 +0.41%
30-yr Bond 4.2880% +0.5000

NYSE Volume 5,709,877,000 (prior day 5,892,672,500)
Nasdaq Volume 2,206,732,250 (prior day 2,179,625,000)

Europe
Symbol.... Last...... .....Change.......
FTSE 100 5,211.18 +59.86 +1.16%
DAX 6,054.63 +73.43 +1.23%
CAC 40 3,557.34 +55.84 +1.59%

Asia
Symbol...... Last...... .....Change.......
Nikkei 225 9,914.19 +310.95 +3.24%
Hang Seng 19,786.71 +314.91 +1.62%
Straits Times 2,793.47 +65.90 +2.42%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stock...8.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&ccode=

Stocks extend gain to 2nd day ahead of jobs report

Stocks rise for 2nd day after economic reports signal continuing rebound; Dow climbs 6 points
Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer, On Thursday June 3, 2010, 5:57 pm EDT

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks closed higher for a second day Thursday after traders found room for optimism in mixed economic reports.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose about 6 points a day after leaping 226. It was the first back-to-back gain for the Dow since late April.

Stocks climbed on reports that business at the nation's services companies grew in May and that the number of people seeking first-time jobless claims slipped for a second week. The gains faded at times as the day wore on, but stocks recovered by the close as traders looked to the Labor Department's May jobs report on Friday.

The employment report is the most closely watched item on the economic calendar. Economists predict that employers added 513,000 jobs in May. It would be the biggest jump in 26 years, but as many as 300,000 of the workers hired in May were expected to be temporary positions to help conduct the U.S. census. Still, even temporary hiring could bring a bump in consumer spending.

The economic news gave a boost to much of the market but energy stocks posted some of the biggest gains after the price of oil rose. Range Resources rose more than 6 percent, while Noble Energy added more than 5 percent.

Stocks have moved erratically in the past week after major indexes hit new trading lows for the year on May 25. It's still not clear whether the market has finished a slide that began in late April after stock indexes touched their highest points of the year.

The market has been vulnerable to swings because of worries about the economic fallout of the Gulf oil spill and the economic problems in Europe.

Bill Schultz, chief investment officer at McQueen, Ball & Associates in Bethlehem, Pa., said the gyrations are keeping some everyday investors from putting money into the market.

"They're seeing these whipsaw trades and for a lot of them it feels almost like a casino," he said.

The Dow rose 5.74, or 0.1 percent, to 10,255.28. The Dow's two-day gain of 231 points, or 2.3 percent, was the first since April 28-29.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 4.45, or 0.4 percent, to 1,102.83, while the technology-focused Nasdaq composite index rose 21.96, or 1 percent, to 2,303.03.

About two stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 5 billion shares compared with 5.1 billion Wednesday.

Bond prices slipped, sending interest rates higher. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.37 percent from 3.35 percent late Wednesday.

Crude oil rose $1.75 to $74.61 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold fell.

In economic news, the Labor Department said first-time claims for unemployment benefits fell by 10,000 to 453,000 last week. The drop coincided with a report from payroll company ADP that said private employers added 55,000 jobs in May.

Both reports fell just short of economists' forecasts, but still showed some improvement in the job market.

The Institute for Supply Management's report on services businesses provides some hope that more jobs will be added in the coming months. The ISM's index remained steady at 55.4 last month. Any reading above 50 indicates growth. Its employment index signaled job growth in services for the first time in 28 months.

While service industries recover slowly, manufacturing continues to show some of the most consistent growth. The Commerce Department said factory orders rose by 1.2 percent in April. That was below the 1.8 percent gain forecast by economists polled by Thomson Reuters. The slowdown came after orders jumped in March by their highest levels in six years.

Among stocks, Range Resources Corp. rose $3.11, or 6.5 percent, to $51.01. Noble Energy Inc. climbed $3.26, or 5.4 percent, to $63.41.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 6.85, or 1 percent, to 667.37.

Britain's FTSE 100 gained 1.2 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 1.2 percent, and France's CAC-40 climbed 1.6 percent. Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 3.2 percent.