Stocks Fall on Retail, Job Data

(NEWSER) - Stocks headed south this morning, following worse-than-expected housing and job data. Jobless claims rose by 62,000 last week, and housing starts slid 15.5%, to their slowest pace on record. The Dow sunk 144 points, accompanied by an 18-point decline in the S&P. A strong quarter from Apple initially lifted Nasdaq futures, but news that Microsoft is slashing 5,000 jobs sent the tech-heavy index down 45 points. More»

Dow makes miniscule move

(NEWSER) - Stocks barely moved at the open in the wake of a gruesome but unsurprising jobs report. The Dow fluctuated between gains and losses, recently trading down 27 points, with the Nasdaq and S&P registering 0.6% and 0.5% declines. The country lost 2.6 million jobs in 2008, the Labor Department announced, with nearly 2 million of those coming in the last four months alone. The jobless rate is now 7.2%. More»

Retailers not doing so hot

(NEWSER) - Stocks tumbled at the open today after Wal-Mart slashed its earnings estimates, driving fear in the retail sector. The Dow dropped 62, while the Nasdaq and S&P fell 0.5% and 0.7% respectively. There was more bad news on the job front, with unemployment claims climbing to their highest level since November 1992. Economists expect tomorrow’s nonfarm payroll report will show a contraction of at least 500,000 jobs. More»

Nowhere to go but up?

(NEWSER) - Stocks started their final 2008 session with tepid optimism, sending the Dow up 28 points, and the Nasdaq and S&P up 0.3% and 0.2% respectively. Fueling the optimism was a stronger-than-expected employment report, which showed new jobless claims dropping by 94,000 last week. Keep an eye on Dell today, which announced management changes, and on oil, which reversed recent gains and fell below $37 a barrel. More»

But FedEx is cutting payroll...

(NEWSER) - There was good news and bad news on the job front today. Good news: Initial claims for unemployment dropped more than expected last week. Bad news: They’re still near a 26-year high, and FedEx announced that it’s cutting salaries by 5%. But the good outweighed the bad for investors this morning, who sent the Dow creeping up 23 points at the open, while the Nasdaq and S&P rose 0.3% and 0.1%. More»