Sour Earnings Sink Stocks

But a modest hit

(NEWSER) - Stocks got a modest bump at the opening bell today despite an ugly job report, as mixed earnings clouded the waters. The Dow rose 69 points, while the S&P and Nasdaq rose 0.7% and 0.5% respectively. Jobless claims took an unexpected spike last week, and the Wall Street Journal reports that Goldman Sachs is about to cut 10% of its workforce. More»

New Wachovia deal boosts optimism

(NEWSER) - Stocks climbed higher today, buoyed by Wells Fargo’s deal to snatch Wachovia from Citigroup. The Dow is up more than 100 points in early trading, while the Nasdaq and S&P rose 1.7% and 1.5%, respectively. Seemingly ignored was a worse-than-expected employment report, which showed the sharpest drop in nonfarm payrolls since 2003, the Wall Street Journal reports. Many investors were also remaining on the sidelines, awaiting today's House bailout vote. More»

Rally extends into 4th day on Roubini comments, tech optimism

(NEWSER) - Stocks gained today as the tech sector continued to inspire and economist Nouriel Roubini predicted a recovery in late 2009, the Wall Street Journal reports. Though the looming bankruptcy of CIT Group depressed stocks most of the day, financials were able to trim losses before the close. The Dow rose 95.61, closing at 8,711.82. The Nasdaq gained 22.13, settling at 1,885.03, and the S&P 500 added 8.06, to 940.74 More»

(NEWSER) - Stocks barely budged at the open, after a good quarter from Apple and a lousy one from UPS. The Dow fluctuated between gains and losses, and was recently down 13 points. The S&P and Nasdaq were similarly flat. Apple rose 3% after beating expectations with a 15% earnings jump. Radio Shack and JetBlue also posted nice numbers. But other reports were less rosy: Dow component UPS saw its net income fall 56%. More»

Jobless claims reach 7-year high

(NEWSER) - Jobless claims rose to a 7-year high last week, but that didn’t appear to move the needle for stocks, which barely budged at today's open. The Dow crept up 66 points, while the S&P and Nasdaq rose 0.9% and 0.4% respectively. A staggering 32,000 filed new jobless claims last week, to a seasonally adjusted 516,000, a much bleaker number than analysts anticipated. More»