Latest News In Stock Market Investment Research – Dec 04, 2009

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Jobs report good news, but not good enough: Obama

4 Dec 2009 at 10:01am

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The drop in the unemployment rate in November to 10% is a piece of rare good news, but it doesn’t mean the tough times are over, President Barack Obama said Friday in a speech in Allentown, Pa. “We have a lot more work to do before we can celebrate,” he said. “Too many members of our American family have felt the gut punch of a pink slip,” Obama said. “Every one of us knows someone who has been swept up by this storm.” The steps taken earlier this year “have helped turn the tide,” he said, promising to announce more ideas “to help jumpstart private sector hiring and get Americans back to work.”

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


U.S. stocks turn negative; investors take profits

4 Dec 2009 at 9:49am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — The U.S. stock rally lost its steam Friday as investors moved in to lock in profits after an unexpectedly positive jobs report. “People are taking advantage of the strength in the market to close out positions to lock in performance for the year,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Jefferies & Co. Up 150 points earlier, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 38.77 points to 10,327.38. The S&P 500 Index fell less than 1 point to 1,099.02. The Nasdaq Composite remained 1.30 points up at 2,175.44.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Oil erases gains, turning lower on stronger dollar

4 Dec 2009 at 9:48am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Crude-oil futures edged lower Friday, erasing earlier gains, as a strongly rebounding U.S. dollar weighed on commodities prices, offsetting an upbeat jobs report which has raised economic hopes. The dollar rose sharply against most of its major rivals after the Labor Department reported the U.S. labor market improved markedly in November, with the unemployment rate falling back to 10% and job losses shrinking to the lowest level in nearly two years. The jobs report briefly pushed up oil prices to near $78 a barrel, but as the dollar extended its gains, oil turned lower. In recent trading, crude oil for January delivery lost 54 cents, or 0.7%, to $75.92 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude is set to end the week down slightly.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Rio sells Abu Dhabi carbon capture stake to BP

4 Dec 2009 at 8:59am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Rio Tinto said it’s sold its 50% stake in Hydrogen Energy International Ltd., a carbon capture and hydrogen-fuel business running a project in Abu Dhabi, to its venture partner, BP , for an undisclosed price. “The Abu Dhabi project is a ground-breaking and important project based on gas feedstock, but Rio Tinto prefers to focus on projects with solid fuel feedstocks, which are better aligned with our other businesses,” said Preston Chiaro, group executive for Rio Tinto technology and innovation. Rio Tinto will focus instead on Hydrogen Energy California, a proposed new hydrogen-powered electricity facility that will capture and store most of its carbon related emissions to produce clean electricity. BP also is a partner in that venture.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Delta Air Lines Nov. traffic, capacity decline

4 Dec 2009 at 8:48am

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Delta Air Lines Inc. said Friday that total November traffic fell 7.1% to 13.57 billion revenue passenger miles from 14.61 billion a year ago. A revenue passenger mile equals one passenger flown one mile. Capacity in November declined 8.4% to 17.06 billion available seat miles from a year ago. Load factor, or the percentage of available seats filled with passengers, in November rose to 79.6% from 78.5% last year.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Employment services’ firms rally on jobs report

4 Dec 2009 at 8:40am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Friday’s surprisingly good news on the U.S. labor market sent investors flocking to shares of employment-related companies, with online job search engine Monster Worldwide Inc. rising 9.6%. The Labor Department’s report that the nation’s unemployment rate fell to 10% in November from 10.2% the previous month also bolstered buying of staffing agency Robert Half International Inc. , its shares gaining 8.8%, and employment services company Manpower Inc. , its shares up
more than 12%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Kraft issues formal offer to Cadbury shareholders

4 Dec 2009 at 8:13am

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Kraft Foods on Friday formally posted its merger-offer documents for Cadbury shareholders to accept or reject. Based on Friday morning trading prices, the deal is worth $16.8 billion in stock and cash. Kraft is sticking by its original offer price, which involves 0.2589 new Kraft shares and 300 pence in cash for each Cadbury share. Under U.K. Takeover Panel rules, it sets the clock ticking on the deal. Cadbury’s board has already rejected the offer, saying it undervalues the company. Cadbury now has 14 days to issue a formal defense argument. No other company has made a formal offer for Cadbury even though U.S. chocolate maker Hershey and closely-held Italian chocolate maker Ferrero have expressed some interest.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


U.S. Oct. factory orders up 0.6% vs flat expected

4 Dec 2009 at 8:00am

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – Orders for U.S. factory goods expanded in October for the six month out of the last seven, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Factory orders increased 0.6% in October, above the flat reading expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. Analysts had expected a weak report after an advanced report last week that orders for durable-goods decreased 0.6% in October. But the more complete data showed that overall factory orders rose led by 1.6% jump in nondurable-goods orders. Core capital equipment orders fell 3.4% in October, revised down from a 2.9% fall estimated a week ago, the government said. Inventories rose 0.4% in October, the first gain following 13 straight declines.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


U.S. stock markets cheers good news on jobs front

4 Dec 2009 at 7:56am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks rose sharply on Friday as investors cheered surprisingly good news on the labor market. Industrial shares gained the most after the Labor Department reported the nation’s unemployment rate fell to 10% in November from 10.2% the previous month. Up as much as 150 points, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was lately up 139.13 points, or 1.4%, at 10,505.28. The S&P 500 Index gained 17.22 points, or 1.6%, to 1,117.14. The Nasdaq Composite added 37.66 points, or 1.7%, to 2,210.80.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Euro drugmakers lead sector stocks higher

4 Dec 2009 at 7:49am

BOSTON (MarketWatch) — European drugmakers led sector stocks higher early Friday, with shares of U.K. pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca plc at the forefront. The NYSE Pharmaceutical Index rose 1.3% to 315.30 and the NYSE Biotechnology Index climbed 1.4% to 919.84. Shares of AstraZeneca were up 3% at $47.12.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Tech stocks join in broad early rally

4 Dec 2009 at 7:45am

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Technology stocks climbed across the board in early trading Friday as a fall in the U.S. unemployment rate spurred a broad market rally. The government reported that unemployment in November fell to 10%. Among tech stocks, gains came from Apple Inc. , Microsoft Corp. , Hewlett-Packard Co. and Cisco Systems Inc. . The Nasdaq Composite Index surged 36 points to a new 52-week high of 2,210.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Fed futures raise bets on rate hike by August

4 Dec 2009 at 7:45am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Interest-rate futures indicated traders raised bets that the Federal Reserve will increase its target rate by mid-2010 on Friday after the Labor Department said the economy shed far fewer jobs than predicted last month and the unemployment rate unexpectedly declined. The August 2010 fed funds contract indicated traders expect rates to rise to 0.50% by then, compared to a 0.34% rate a week ago and from the current range of zero to 0.25%. Futures for December 2010 show traders expect the benchmark rate to be 0.94% by then, compared to 0.81% on Thursday. The Fed typically changes rates in 0.25-point increments, but futures contracts settle at the average rate fed funds traded at for the month.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Retail stocks rise on improving jobs data

4 Dec 2009 at 7:41am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) – Retail stocks rose Friday after the government reported the unemployment rate fell to 10% last month while the number of jobs lost also was much smaller than economists expected. The S&P Retail Index [s:$rlx] rose 1.6% to 413.65. Big Lots Inc. surged 16% after its third-quarter profit jumped more than expected and it also lifted its outlook for the year.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Energy stocks dive into rally

4 Dec 2009 at 7:42am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Energy stocks rose with the broad market on Friday amid hopes that better-than-expected U.S. jobs data could feed demand for fossil fuels. The NYSE Arca Oil Index rose 1.8% to 1,094. The NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index rose 2.3% to 513. The Philadelphia Oil Service Index rose 2.6% to 192. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose more than 100 points, or about 1.1%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


U.S. stocks open strongly up on positive jobs data

4 Dec 2009 at 7:36am

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks opened robustly higher Friday after the November unemployment report exceeded expectations, with the unemployment rate falling from 10.2% in October to 10% last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 102.03 points to 10,468.18. The S&P 500 Index added 12.49 points to 1,112.39. The Nasdaq Composite rose 28.45 points to 2,201.59.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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December 04 2009 09:16 am | Stock Market News

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