- Elena
- 02 Oct, 2006
- New York City
On the first day of the fourth quarter, stocks traded in a lackluster manner, reflecting mixed economic data, falling oil prices and merger news. The Institute for Supply Management said the manufacturing sector grew at the slowest pace in more than a year in September due to weaker U.S. auto sales and a slowing housing market. The Commerce Department said construction spending in August rose 0.3% after falling 1% in July.
- Elena
- 02 Oct, 2006
- New York City
U.S. stocks opened below the flat line Monday after Wal-Mart Stores said September same-store sales came in at the low end of a forecast. Company''s shares slipped nearly 2%. In corporate news, casino operator Harrah''s Entertainment rallied 19% after it received a $15.05 billion offer from private equity firms Apollo Management and Texas Pacific Group.
- Ivaylo
- 02 Oct, 2006
- New York City
PartyGaming weighed down on the market on reports it is considering suspending its US business but miners are having a good day led by Anglo-American and BHP Billiton. Utilities are also riding high after water stock AWG announced it has agreed a with Osprey, but said it has received a number of other approaches. Scottish Power is performing well and current trading is expected to be ahead of expectations. The FTSE 100 is up 0.07% at 5,965.10 at 2pm GMT.
- Elena
- 02 Oct, 2006
- New York City
Stock market futures reversed from earlier gains to move slightly down, as Wal-Mart reported disappointing sales results and the stock of Apple Computer was downgraded. Wal-Mart posted September same-store sales rose 1.8%, just below the mid-point of its 1% to 3% forecast range. Apple dropped fell 2% to $75.40 in pre-open trading after Citigroup downgraded shares to hold.
- Elena
- 02 Oct, 2006
- New York City
PartyGaming plunged 60% to 43 pence (81 cents), shares in 888 sank 48% to 76 pence ($1.42), while Sportingbet shares dropped 67% to 60 pence ($1.12). PartyGaming said it would pull out of the United States if President Bush signs the legislation into law.
- Ivaylo
- 02 Oct, 2006
- New York City
The Bank of Japan tankan survey of business conditions stated Monday, although some economists expressed worries forward-looking sentiment estimates pointed to a nearing slowdown. The headline diffusion index for big manufacturers'''' sentiment came in at 24, higher than market expectations of 20 for the past three months. The tankan suggested the economy will be softening into next year, mainly because of the direction of the diffusion index into next quarter.
- Ivaylo
- 02 Oct, 2006
- New York City
Gains from commodities companies such as oil and gold helped European stocks start the fourth quarter on a positive note Monday, although shares in online gambling companies including PartyGaming plunged in London after a law was passed that may lead to companies to stop accepting bets from their top customers, Americans. The FTSE 100 in London climbed 0.2%, Frankfurt Xetra Dax added 0.3% and in Paris, the CAC 40 gained 0.2%.
- Ivaylo
- 02 Oct, 2006
- New York City
Firmer dollar sentiment and light profit taking in the oil market weighed on gold and the other precious metals on Friday. With the dollar stronger and oil down sharply, stimuli are negative, both from a technical and fundamental standpoint, and fund selling occurred. December gold was unable to maintain momentum through the $610 an ounce area as a factor contributing to the pullback.
- 123jump.com Staff
- 29 Sep, 2006
- New York City
Market averages lacked direction as the third quarter closed down. Dow for the September month rose 2.6% and crude oil dropped 15%. For the third quarter Dow gained 4.7%, Nasdaq rose 4% and S&P 500 advanced 5.2%. General Motors gained 70% at the end of the third quarter leading the other companies int he index. Akamai Technologies led the Nasdaq 100 with a gain of 151%.
- Elena
- 29 Sep, 2006
- New York City
European markets finished Friday session in the positive territory, led by telecommunication and automotive shares. A decline in oil prices lent support to automakers like BMW, up 1.2%, but weighed on oil companies at the same time, with BP falling 0.9% and Cairn energy losing 1.5%. The German DAX 30 ended up 0.3%. The French CAC 40 ended flat at 5,250. London FTSE 100 advanced 0.2%.
- Elena
- 29 Sep, 2006
- New York City
Stocks were little changed Friday, with the Dow Jones industrial average briefly surpassing its all-time high close before retreating to lower levels. Losses by DuPont and Exxon Mobil helped offset gains for the blue-chip index. Among the leading gainers, Research in Motion surged 19% and Corel Corp. rose 17% after reporting upbeat quarterly earnings. Hewlett-Packard rose more than 2% as investors appeared pleased with the testimony of Hurd.
- Elena
- 29 Sep, 2006
- New York City
The Sensex was steady throughout the trading session on heavy buying following an efficient rollover in the futures and options segment for September. Metal stocks led the rally, consumer durables surged, autos advanced. Banking and oil and gas shares declined. Maruti Udyog led the advancers, Tata Steel and Bajaj Auto also gained. India GDP grew 8.9% in the April-June 2006 quarter from a year earlier. Finance Minister said the government will target inflation below 4%.
- Elena
- 29 Sep, 2006
- New York City
U.S. stocks lacked direction at opening following downbeat economic news, with consumer spending down by the largest amount in a year and inflation higher by 2.5%. The Dow once again briefly tapped its all-time closing high, up to 11,724.78 surpassing its record-high close of 11,722.98 for the second session in a row.
- Ivaylo
- 29 Sep, 2006
- New York City
This is its highest level since the index slipped a 10 % correction mode in May and took its gains for the week to more than 3%. With the Dow Jones briefly overtaking its record closing high overnight, the FTSE 100 reached 6,002.9 in morning trade.By late morning, though, profit taking was witnessed already, and the index was 10.60 points higher, or 0.18%. Mining stocks led the advancers with Antofagasta in the lead.
- Elena
- 29 Sep, 2006
- New York City
The Commerce Department reported that consumer spending dropped by 0.1% in August, the first one since September 2005. Personal incomes rose by just 0.3%, the weakest performance in nine months. Core inflation, excluding energy and food, gained 2.5%, the biggest increase in more than a decade.