Industrials Fall; Dow Down 186

Disappointing data drives indices lower; RIM falls 17.1%

(NEWSER) - Stocks fell today after reports of a smaller-than-expected rise in new home sales and a drop in orders for durable goods over the last month. Blue chips Alcoa, Amex, and Wal-Mart all fell at least 2%, and RIM dropped 17.1% after issuing a disappointing earnings forecast. The Dow dropped 42.25 points to close at 9,665.19. The Nasdaq lost 16.69, closing at 2,090.92, and the S&P 500 fell 6.40 to settle at 1,044.38, the Wall Street Journal reports. More»

Low-volume day 'slowest of the year,' Miller Tabak strategist says

(NEWSER) - Cisco Systems led the tech sector ahead of a major announcement tomorrow, but the rest of the markets dragged today as investors tried to gauge the state of the global economy, the Wall Street Journal reports.

• The Dow lost 13.68 points to close at 10,552.52.
• The Nasdaq gained 5.86, settling at 2,332.21.
• The S&P 500 dipped .19 to end the session at 1,138.50.

Mining giants Bucyrus, Terex to merge

(NEWSER) - Stocks saw broad gains today as analysts upgraded blue chips Alcoa and Intel and big mergers were announced in the mining and health-care sectors, the Wall Street Journal reports.

• The Dow rose 85.25 points to close at 10,414.14.
• The Nasdaq added 25.97, ending the session at 2,237.66.
• The S&P 500 gained 11.58 to settle at 1,114.05.

Retail sales beat expectations in November

(NEWSER) - Stocks ended today's session mixed, with the Dow posting solid gains. Alcoa saw a. 8% jump on an optimistic profit estimate by JPMorgan, and the University of Michigan/Reuters December consumer sentiment index beat expectations, the Wall Street Journal reports.

• The Dow rose 65.67 points to close at 10,471.50.
• The Nasdaq fell 0.55, settling at 2,190.51.
• The S&P 500 gained 4.06, closing at 1,106.41.

Weekly unemployment claims fall to lowest level since January

(NEWSER) - Stocks closed below their session highs but still finished in positive territory after Alcoa set a strong tone for the third-quarter earnings season. The firm posted a $77 million profit after the bell yesterday. Also helping was good news on the jobs front, with last week’s initial claims for jobless benefits down 33,000 to 521,000. The Dow gained 61 points to close at 9,787. The Nasdaq added 14 points to close at 2,124, and the S&P 500 gained 8 points, closing at 1,065, the Wall Street Journal reports. More»