Merrill's Strength Leads Rally

(NEWSER) - Stocks headed higher at the open today, after a pair of promising economic reports. The Dow added 75 points, while the Nasdaq and S&P rose 1.1% and 1% respectively. Durable goods orders rose 1.9% last month, and new jobless claims fell 13,000 last week; both numbers beat analyst estimates. Trading was halted on GM shares, after bondholders struck a new deal with the company. More»

Two-day rally quashed, ending July on a sour note

(NEWSER) - Stocks fell today as worrying economic reports put an end to a 2-day rally, MarketWatch reports. Financials slipped, and energy stocks took a hit as Exxon’s record profit failed to meet analysts' expectations and crude prices continued to fall. The Dow dropped 204.69 to 11,379.00. The Nasdaq, relatively insulated from financials and energy, fell only 4.17 to 2,325.55, while the S&P 500 tumbled 16.86 to close at 1,267.40. More»

S&P 500 and Nasdaq decline

(NEWSER) - This would fall under the category of "volatile" trading day: The Dow rose 61 points to close at 11,445 after a series of wild fluctuations. This morning's better-than-expected jobs report led to an early surge—the Dow rose 170 points shortly after the opening bell, but the rally proved brief. Around noon, the Dow was down more than 200 points. And an hour later, it was up 115, thanks to news that Italy and the EU had agreed on economic reforms, reports MarketWatch . More»

All major indexes are in negative territory for the year

(NEWSER) - The only good thing to say about today's stock market is that it's finally over. The Dow fell a staggering 513 points, or 4.3%, to close at 11,384. It's the worst point drop since December 2008 and the worst percentage drop since February 2009, reports MarketWatch . The S&P 500 plunged 60, or nearly 5%, and NASDAQ dropped 137, about 5%. All three major indexes are now in the red for the year. More»

Energy sector leads stocks lower; financials up on BofA settlement

(NEWSER) - Energy issues pushed stocks lower today after indexes hung around opening levels and briefly wandered into positive territory. Bank of America's settlement with the SEC over its acquisition of Merrill Lynch last year boosted financials, the Wall Street Journal reports.

• The Dow fell 18.97 points to close at 10,383.38.
• The Nasdaq lost 1.84, settling at 2,242.03.
• The S&P 500 dropped 1.16 to close at 1,108.01.