January 2009 Archives

NEW YORK (AFP) – Wall Street kicks off the month of February with confidence still shaky and investors hoping for a quick government stimulus to counter the worst recession in decades.

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The stock market ended January on a sour note, losing ground for the week and showing a hefty decline for the first month of 2009. The Dow Jones Industrial Average of 30 blue chips lost 0.95 percent in the week to Friday to end at 8,000.86.

Full Story: Sputtering Wall Street awaits Obama stimulus (AFP)

NEW YORK – Stocks advanced modestly Friday after the government said the economy wasn't as troubled in late 2008 as many investors feared.

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The Commerce Department said the gross domestic product, the widely followed measure of the economy, shrank at a 3.8 percent pace in the final three months of the year . That compared with a 0.5 percent decline in the previous quarter. Friday's reading was much better than the 5.4 percent drop economists expected. Still, the figure could be revised lower in the months ahead — and some analysts believe the economy has been contracting in early 2009 at an even faster pace.

Full Story: Stocks move modestly higher after GDP report (AP)

Nasdaq as poor earnings, coupled with a fresh wave of bleak labor market and housing data, heightened fears of a deep recession.

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A day after financials propelled Wall Street to its longest winning streak in two months, insurer Allstate plunged 20.7 percent after posting a $1.1 billion quarterly loss and stirred concerns about more losses on insurers' books. Government reports showed the amount of people filing for unemployment benefits hit a record in mid-January, while orders for long-lasting goods fell for the fifth straight month in December and new home sales slid to a record low.

Full Story: Signs of deepening economic woe slam Wall St. (Reuters)

Stocks fell sharply after soaring Wednesday on hopes the government will develop a way to remove bad debt from banks' books.

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Some pullback was to be expected after the Standard & Poor's 500 index put up its first four-day advance since November. But investors' mood darkened after coffee chain Starbucks Corp . and chip maker Qualcomm Inc . both reported their profits tumbled the final three months of 2008. unemployment insurance for the week ending Jan. 17 was a seasonally adjusted 4.78 million, the highest on records that go to 1967. As a proportion of the work force, the total is the highest since August 1983.

Full Story: Stocks open lower on fresh worries about economy (AP)

S&P 500 's longest winning streak since November, as financial stocks soared on optimism the Obama administration was making progress on a plan to relieve banks of money-losing assets.

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Stocks initially added gains following the Federal Reserve's statement that it is prepared to buy long-term U.S. government debt, but the boost faded upon the realization that the Fed's purchases won't be made any time soon. Financial stocks stood out, with JPMorgan ( JPM .N) among the Dow's top advancers with a gain of 10.4 percent.

Full Story: Wall St. jumps on bank-rescue plan; Starbucks hit late (Reuters)

NEW YORK – Stocks are sharply higher following media reports that the Obama administration is considering a plan to set up banks that could absorb bad assets from financial companies.

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The rise in financial stocks is giving the overall market a lift. Investors have been worrying that banks won't be able to resume more normal levels of lending without somehow dumping or walling off the bad debt that is corroding their balance sheets . And the economy can't recover from a yearlong recession without improvements in lending and consumer confidence. The Dow Jones industrials are up 142, or 1.75 percent, at 8,317. Broader indexes are also higher.

Full Story: Stocks jump on reports of plan for bad bank assets (AP)

NEW YORK – Some of Wall Street's earnings anxiety is easing — at least for the time being.

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The market had its second straight moderate advance Tuesday, rising after companies including United States Steel Corp . and American Express Co . managed to post profits in a difficult recession. Financial stocks that were mostly higher also lent support to the market. The major indexes briefly stumbled after the Conference Board said its Consumer Confidence Index in January slipped to its lowest level since the reading's inception in 1967. The report indicated that consumers, who have already cut back drastically, are likely to remain reluctant to spend in the coming months. The index from the private research group slipped to 37.7 in January from a revised 38.6 in December.

Full Story: Stocks rise following US Steel, Amex earnings (AP)

Stocks extended their advance into a second session ahead of a reading on consumer confidence. The market also awaited the start of the Federal Reserve 's two-day meeting on interest rates.

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Even modest reports of earnings were a welcome reminder for investors that some companies are still able to make money despite the worst recession in decades. U.S. Steel, the largest U.S.-based steel producer, said its fourth-quarter earnings jumped as an acquisition boosted results. Meanwhile, American Express reported profits fell 79 percent in the final three months of 2008. The numbers weren't as weak as some investors had feared.

Full Story: Stocks open higher on US Steel, Amex earnings (AP)

Wall Street has managed an advance the hard way — zigzagging on a mix of earnings and economic news Monday before closing moderately higher. The major indexes reversed direction several times, rising in response to Pfizer Inc.

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's $68 billion planned acquisition of Wyeth. And the National Association of Realtors said existing homes rose rather than fell in December. But news from big companies weighed on the market including downbeat comments from Caterpillar Inc . about the health of its business.

Full Story: How the major market indexes fared (AP)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stocks edged up on Monday as a multi-billion dollar takeover in the drug industry buoyed sentiment but gains were capped by worries about the economy, fueled by a decline in Caterpillar ( CAT .N) shares after the heavy equipment maker posted a slide in quarterly profit.

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Full Story: Wall Street up as takeover boosts sentiment (Reuters)

waits for Congress to act on President Barack Obama's stimulus plan, investors will look to a swath of earnings reports and comments from the Federal Reserve this week for clues on when the economy might begin to improve.

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. will give an indication of consumers' willingness to spend. Reports from AT&T Inc ., ExxonMobil Corp. and Caterpillar Inc . are also due. While most major financial firms have already issued results, reports from American Express Co. and Wells Fargo & Co. could intensify concerns about the industry if they are worse than expected.

Full Story: Investors await earnings, Obama's stimulus plan (AP)

After all, when he became CEO of the New York Stock Exchange in 2004, he replaced Richard Grasso — a man who embodied the excesses of the times and was forced out for taking a massive annual pay package of $187.5 million. Thain at the time accepted a much smaller $4 million.

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Bank of America Corp . bought the investment bank on Jan 1. He also spent $1.2 million decorating his Manhattan office, according to media reports, as Merrill hemorrhaged money — a decision that's invoking particular rage among Americans, including President Barack Obama. Thain left his post at Bank of America on Thursday after unexpectedly big losses at Merrill Lynch; the bonuses were a likely contributing factor in his departure. Thain's actions exemplify how hard it is for the industry to wean itself off the hefty paychecks and spending the last decade brought — even as financial companies now rely on taxpayer dollars to stay in business.

Full Story: Wall Street's culture of entitlement hard to shake (AP)

a mixed performance Friday. Traders pounced on companies showing signs of life and dumped companies whose quarterly results fell short of expectations. Better-than-forecast results from Google Inc . helped technology shares while lackluster numbers from General Electric Co. reinforced investors' concerns about the depths of the recession.

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Insurer Aflac Inc . helped ease some of Wall Street's concerns about the financial industry after reassuring investors it had more than enough cash to maintain its credit ratings. The company's stock tumbled 37 percent Thursday on reports it did not have adequate capital to cover risky investments. The company issued a statement and an analyst released a research note backing the company's financial position. Stocks ended a volatile session well off their lows. A sizable comeback Friday was the latest back-and-forth seen throughout a turbulent week; the Dow tumbled 4 percent Tuesday, jumped 3 percent Wednesday and fell again Thursday.

Full Story: Wall Street ends mixed as tech, financials rally (AP)

in the middle of an earnings free fall, investors will eye any moves from the White House next week to revive banks and craft a recovery plan to salvage the economy from its year-long recession.

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Investors also will tune in to the Federal Open Market Committee 's statement from the meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday for any clues on how the Federal Reserve will address these problems. Next week, 137 companies in the S&P 500 and 12 Dow components will report earnings, in what's expected to be the weakest in this six-quarter streak of negative growth.

Full Story: Stocks eye Obama, Fed, earnings (Reuters)

Treasury Department official , misled investors in an appearance on CNBC's Mad Money show during the height of the financial panic last September.

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"In an extremely challenging and volatile time, Mr. Steel always did his best to convey the position of Wachovia accurately. Should any questions arise, he is very comfortable addressing them," the Journal quoted a spokesman for Steel as saying, adding that the SEC declined to comment. The SEC wants to ascertain whether Steel misled investors when he told CNBC's "Mad Money" program on Monday, September 15 , that the company had a great future "as an independent company," as panic about the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers roiled markets , the paper reported.

Full Story: SEC reviewing Steel's TV comments on Wachovia: report (Reuters)

AP - Stocks bounced off early lows and traded mixed Friday as weak corporate earnings reports stirred fears that the recession will be deeper and longer lasting than some investors had predicted.

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Full Story: Wall Street extends slide on economic worries (AP)

LONDON – World stocks were mixed Thursday after worse-than-expected U.S. unemployment and housing data cut off an earlier rebound that saw investors buying up beaten-down bank stocks.

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An announcement by Microsoft Corp . that it is cutting 5,000 jobs over the next 18 months — a sign of how badly even the biggest and richest companies are being stung by the recession — also sent U.S. stocks down in early trading. The Dow Jones industrials fell more than 150 points. Other indexes also declined, with the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite taking the biggest hit due to Microsoft's news. The software giant also posted an 11 percent drop in profits.

Full Story: World markets mixed as US data worse than expected (AP)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stocks slid on Thursday, after Microsoft 's ( MSFT .O) proposed job cuts and grim earnings rattled investors, while economic data showed further deterioration in the labor and housing markets.

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Microsoft Corp's stock fell as much as 11 percent to the lowest since 1998 and was among the biggest drags on the Dow and the Nasdaq , after the world's largest software maker said it would cut up to 5 percent of its estimated work force over the next 18 months. Microsoft warned that it could no longer offer profit forecasts for the rest of the fiscal year after reporting a quarterly profit that fell short of expectations. The tech bellwether further shook up Wall Street by releasing its earnings before the opening bell, instead of after the close as expected. "Coming into some OK earnings numbers from IBM and Apple , it was thought that Microsoft at least would follow suit," said Paul Nolte, director of investments at Hinsdale Associates in Hinsdale, Illinois.

Full Story: Wall Street slides on Microsoft and U.S. data (Reuters)

offset alarming new signs the region's economies were slowing faster than expected amid plummeting demand for their goods.

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India also gained. Despite the modest rises, trade was cautious as investors digested a round of bleak reports about some of the region's biggest economies. China 's economic slump deepened in the fourth quarter, with growth sliding to 6.8 percent from 9 percent the previous quarter and 10.6 percent in the first quarter. For the full year, China's economy expanded by 9 percent — its slowest yearly growth since 2001.

Full Story: Asian stocks up despite signs of deepening slump (AP)

His resignation took effect yesterday, agency spokesman JohnNester said. During Cox’s 3 1/2-year tenure, the SEC has beencriticized by lawmakers, investors and its own inspector generalas lacking aggressiveness and being deferential to Wall Streetbanks.

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President Barack Obama , a Democrat, picked Mary Schapiro ,the head of the U.S. brokerage industry’s self-regulator, tosucceed the Republican Cox. “I respect Chris Cox, but there’s no question that thecommission has been much too passive in area after area under hisleadership,” said Harvey Goldschmid , a former Democratic SECcommissioner who remains in contact with agency employees. “Themorale problems and the lack of public regard for the agency mustbe immediately addressed by Mary Schapiro,” said Goldschmid, alaw professor at Columbia University in New York.

Full Story: Cox Quits at SEC, Leaves Schapiro to Restore Clout (Bloomberg)

NEW YORK – Wall Street rebounded smartly in early trading Wednesday after investors found some reassurance from IBM's better-than-expected forecast for 2009.

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Stocks tumbled Tuesday on fears governments would be forced to take over wobbly banks to avoid their collapse. Technology stocks led Wednesday's rebound after IBM said late Tuesday that it expects to earn $9.20 per share this year — 45 cents a share better than the average analyst estimate, according to Thomson Reuters . IBM also said its fourth-quarter profit jumped 12 percent, easily topping analysts' estimates.

Full Story: Wall Street moves higher in early trading (AP)

The departure of Cox, an independent regulatory official whose term extends through next year, had been expected. He also relinquished his position as one of the five members of the SEC. His resignation wasn't officially announced; it was confirmed by agency spokesman John Nester.

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President Barack Obama has nominated securities industry regulator Mary Schapiro to head the SEC at a time of economic crisis and shaken investor confidence that has conferred heightened importance to the position. Obama is expected to name an acting chairman until Schapiro is confirmed by the Senate and installed in the job. The acting chairman could be one of the sitting SEC commissioners. As the financial crisis has raged, the SEC has been going through one of the most difficult times in its history — buffeted by criticism for failing to detect signs that major Wall Street banks were in trouble before the crisis erupted last year, and for possibly lax oversight and enforcement in other areas. The scandal involving money manager Bernard Madoff brought new scrutiny on the SEC after it was revealed that agency staff repeatedly failed over the course of a decade to fully investigate credible allegations against him and to detect his alleged $50 billion fraud.

Full Story: SEC chairman Cox resigns (AP)

The Royal Bank of Scotland forecast a $41.3 billion loss for 2008, leading the British government to again bail out banks.

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Investors feared the second government bailout in recent months might be a move to fully nationalize some British banks. The British government has increased its stake in the Royal Bank of Scotland to nearly 70 percent. Citigroup also said it planned to split its operations in two in an effort to return to profitability.

Full Story: Wall Street falls amid further banking worries (AP)

ended in the red on Monday even as the government made attempts to to boost lending by banks crippled by the credit crisis.

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The authorities unveiled an insurance scheme to protect banks from so-called toxic assets, in a second multi-billion pound rescue package. But the initial euphoria gave away to frustration after the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) said it expected an annual loss of up to 28 billion pounds -- a record in British corporate history -- due to the credit crisis and its part-takeover of ABN Amro .

Full Story: London stocks end in the red (AFP)

LONDON – European stock markets declined Monday with banks in free fall as investors fretted over a second British government bailout of the sector in just over three months.

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Europe's early gains were erased as the markets feared for the future of the region's banks and the possibility that much of the sector may have to be nationalized or receive further government help to stave off collapse. Germany's DAX was down 39.06 points, or 0.9 percent, at 4,327.22, while France 's CAC-40 fell 19.63 points, or 0.7 percent, at 2,997.12.

Full Story: European markets down as banking stocks plummet (AP)

has managed its second straight comeback, but the rebound was more a sign of the market's turmoil than strength.

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Stocks closed moderately higher Friday after an erratic session that had investors tussling with concerns about the ongoing problems in the banking industry in response to more billion-dollar losses at Citigroup Inc . and Bank of America Corp . Yet investors were also heartened by plans for both banks to restore themselves to profitability, and they were also willing to place bets on a range of consumer and industrial stocks. "It's that tug of war between problems and promise," said Alan Gayle, senior investment strategist at RidgeWorth Investments. "I think there is a bit of a sigh of relief that there is assistance coming for Citi and Bank of America , but it seems like there is an ongoing need for this assistance." The companies' fourth-quarter losses — Citi said it lost $8.29 billion, while Bank of America lost $2.39 billion — were sobering reminders that the sagging economy is aggravating the problems that began with the mortgage crisis in 2007.

Full Story: Wall Street rebounds after banks report big losses (AP)

Citigroup Inc . and Bank of America Corp . Yet investors were also heartened by plans for both banks to restore themselves to profitability, and they were also willing to place bets on a range of consumer and industrial stocks.

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Full Story: Scorecard for the major stock market indexes (AP)

as investors tussled with concerns about the ongoing turmoil in the banking industry and its impact on the economy but also placed bets on a range of consumer and industrial stocks. The major indexes were up in late trading after changing direction several times.

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Bank of America aimed at restoring them to profitability; Citi is splitting in two and BofA is getting more help from the government. "It's that tug of war between problems and promise," said Alan Gayle, senior investment strategist at RidgeWorth Investments. "I think there is a bit of a sigh of relief that there is assistance coming for Citi and Bank of America, but it seems like there is an ongoing need for this assistance." The companies' fourth-quarter losses — Citi said it lost $8.29 billion, while Bank of America lost $2.39 billion — were sobering reminders that the sagging economy is aggravating the problems that began with the mortgage crisis in 2007.

Full Story: Wall Street seesaws after banks report big losses (AP)

March S&P 500 futures were up 8.5 points, or 1 percent, at 847.80. Ten-year U.S. Treasuries fell 20/32 in price to yield 2.270 percent, up 7 basis points from late U.S. trade.

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Full Story: Stock futures up after BofA gets aid (Reuters)

Trading was cautious early on after a tumultuous week that saw markets fall sharply, with some investors picking up beaten down shares but still wary of more trouble ahead as economies contract and company profits shrink.

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Investors found a glimmer of hope after Wall Street regained its footing on signs the U.S. government would do whatever is necessary to prevent its economy from sinking deeper into recession. American lawmakers authorized a second $350 billion from the government's emergency bailout funds as speculation mounted that debt-laden banks would need even more rescue money.

Full Story: Asian stocks gain as US bails out Bank of America (AP)

LONDON (AFP) – The London stock market slumped more than five percent in late trade on Wednesday, undermined by weakness in the banking sector and after more sharp losses on Wall Street, analysts said.

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The FTSE 100 index of leading shares closed down 5 percent at 4,180.64 points, having earlier slipped to 4,162.54 at 1520 GMT. Vodafone was the most traded stock, seeing 158 million shares switch owners, followed by Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) which saw 131 million units change hands.

Full Story: London stocks plunge over 5% (AFP)

SAO PAULO, Brazil – Latin American stocks fell Wednesday as retail sales plunged more than expected in the U.S., signaling a prolonged recession that is already slowing demand for the region's exports.

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Petroleo Brasileiro SA slid 3.3 percent to 23.16 reals amid a 3.8 percent slide in world crude oil prices . The companies together represent 30 percent of the index. Brazil's currency meanwhile slipped 2.6 percent to trade at 2.35 reals to the U.S. dollar, its weakest point this year.

Full Story: Latin America stocks fall on worsening US data (AP)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stocks sagged on Wednesday on renewed fears about the outlook for the bank sector while news of a sharp drop in retail sales showed consumers are still besieged by the year-long recession.

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Citigroup ( C .N) tumbled more than 23 percent as investors and analysts worried whether the bank can be profitable and function effectively as it unravels its business model. It is expected to post a multibillion-dollar loss this week. Government data suggested the recession was deepening. Sales at U.S. retailers fell 2.7 percent in December as the economic slowdown made consumers cut back on spending during retailers' crucial holiday selling period.

Full Story: Wall Street pulled down by bank woes and bleak sales (Reuters)

extended its 2009 retreat Wednesday, falling sharply after the government issued a dismal reading on retail sales and investors grew increasingly anxious about the banking industry. Major stock indexes lost more than 2.5 percent, including the Dow Jones industrial average , which fell about 225 points, its sixth straight slide.

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Although investors already knew that retailers suffered a terrible holiday season, a government report on December sales was much worse than anticipated. The Commerce Department said retail sales dropped 2.7 percent last month, more than double the 1.2 percent decline analysts forecast. The pullback in sales marked a record sixth straight month of declines and was the latest sign of the troubles still facing consumers. A steep drop in home prices, rising unemployment and difficulty accessing credit have given many consumers no choice but to pare their spending. That's troubling for investors because consumer spending accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity. Many predict the recession, already the longest in a quarter-century, will persist at least until late this year.

Full Story: Stocks tumble on disappointing retail sales (AP)

Wall Street is expecting fourth-quarter and full-year numbers to be particularly bleak, especially after several companies warned last week that they are being hit hard by the recession.

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Aluminum producer Alcoa Inc ., which last week announced it would slash production, fell again Monday after an analyst lowered his rating on the stock ahead of the company's planned earnings release after the closing bell . Oil fell below $40 a barrel as investors worried that a weak economy will hurt demand. That weighed on energy stocks. Financial stocks also declined as investors looked to Citigroup and Morgan Stanley , which could announce as early as Monday a deal to combine their brokerages. The potential tie-up underscores the troubles with tattered balance sheets that many banks are still trying to address.

Full Story: Stocks slip ahead of earnings reports (AP)

RIYADH (AFP) – Saudi stocks fell three percent on Saturday as the slowing economy in the oil superpower and global economic stress continued to dampen investor sentiment.

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Petrochemicals giant Sabic lost 3.84 percent to close at 56.25 riyals (15.00 dollars), after trading as low as 54.75 riyals. Developer Emaar fell 7.27 percent to 2.42 riyals (65 cents), while a buoyant profits report pushed Alinma bank shares higher by 3.41 percent to close at 12.1 riyals (3.23 dollars).

Full Story: Saudi stocks lose 3% (AFP)

NEW YORK (AFP) – US stocks face an uphill battle next week with investors bracing for an onslaught of dismal corporate earnings and economic reports amid the deepening recession.

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"The earnings season is going to be difficult. I think that's probably what the market is worried about more than anything else," said Marc Pado, analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald . World War II . Friday's bleak report showed the economy shed 2.6 million jobs in 2008, with the bulk of them, 1.9 million, in the last four months of the year.

Full Story: Wall Street braces for weak earnings season (AFP)

NEW YORK – Investors sent stocks sharply lower Friday after the U.S. unemployment rate shot above 7 percent — a sign that Americans will be sticking to their tightened budgets for a while.

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The Labor Department said employers cut 524,000 jobs in December, a smaller decline than economists' forecast for a loss of 550,000 jobs. But the unemployment rate jumped to a 16-year high of 7.2 percent — more than the 7 percent economists predicted — from 6.8 percent in November. "If you look at the number objectively, it's a bearish number. It's going to elicit some selling," said Nick Kalivas, vice president of financial research at the brokerage MF Global . "The unemployment rate at 7.2 percent is pretty ugly." Rising unemployment tends to erode consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S.

Full Story: Stocks slump after jump in unemployment rate (AP)

WASHINGTON – The markets can help the nation emerge from the current financial crisis by providing transparency for secretive investments that helped fuel the disaster, but the government needs to put better rules in place to make that happen, the head of the Nasdaq stock market said Thursday.

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Nasdaq OMX Group Inc . Chief Executive Bob Greifeld noted a recent stream of business leaders trooping to the capital to explain what went wrong and offered his prescriptions. "If we fix these markets, we will create a better foundation" for President-elect Barack Obama's economic stimulus plan , Greifeld said in a speech at the National Press Club. "We believe in the need to jump-start the economy but we should not turn up the heat on an oven that is broken." That means Congress and the new administration will need to "fundamentally rethink" the system of regulation of the financial markets, he said, aiming to put new rules on the books that are smarter and more efficient.

Full Story: Nasdaq CEO sees market role in financial crisis (AP)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stocks were little changed on Thursday as investors took bleak signs of more deterioration in consumer spending as likely to spur Washington to approve a stimulus plan quickly to jolt the economy out of recession.

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Wal-Mart Stores Inc ( WMT .N) cast gloom over the market, with disappointing December sales and a dim profit outlook. Expectations that U.S. President-elect Barack Obama , who is due to be sworn in on January 20, will push for a massive economic stimulus plan helped the market cut losses, however.

Full Story: Stocks flat as stimulus hopes offset Wal-Mart (Reuters)

NEW YORK – A warning from tech giant Intel about poor business conditions and more evidence of rising unemployment left stocks with their biggest losses in a month Wednesday.

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The news upended some investors' hopes for a speedy economic recovery this year and sent the major stock indexes down more than 2.5 percent, including the Dow Jones industrials , which lost 245 points. Intel's second warning since November, as well as bleak outlooks from aluminum producer Alcoa and media industry bellwether Time Warner , underscored the breadth of the economy's slowdown. In addition, the ADP National Employment Report said private sector jobs fell by a greater-than-expected 693,000 in December. That made investors nervous ahead of Friday's employment report from the government.

Full Story: Stocks tumble as companies warn of weak results (AP)

NEW YORK – Stocks fell sharply Wednesday, as a handful of bleak profit outlooks and more evidence of escalating unemployment served as stark reminders that the economy remains in rough shape. The Dow Jones industrials dropped more than 175 points.

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Underscoring investors' growing fears that 2009 is shaping up to be a difficult year for many sectors, Time Warner and Intel on Wednesday issued disappointing guidance. Time Warner Inc . said it expects to record a fourth-quarter $25 billion impairment charge for its cable, publishing and AOL units that will lead to an operating loss for the period and a loss for the full year. It had expected a profit between $1.04 and $1.07 per share for the year.

Full Story: Stocks fall on fresh evidence of economic woes (AP)

China's three largest banks attracted big strategic investments from western financial giants at the time of their initial public offerings . Those investors are now under pressure to sell as the global financial crisis ravages the banking industry, and further sales are expected.

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Bank of America sold more than 5.62 billion shares, or nearly 13 percent of its holding in Construction Bank, at HK$3.92 apiece, in a widely anticipated sale, according to a term sheet obtained by Reuters and a person familiar with the matter. "The news has been expected but investors will still take it hard because BoA will most definitely sell more. They need the money," said Francis Lun, general manager with Fulbright Securities in Hong Kong .

Full Story: Bank of America sells $2.8 billion CCB stake (Reuters)

Investors expect the data to show more deterioration, but they are hoping the pace of the declines will be more moderate. The market is eager for signs that the U.S. recession will end this year.

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The Institute for Supply Management's December index of non-manufacturing activity is due at 10 a.m. Eastern time, as are the Commerce Department's report on November factory orders and the National Association of Realtors' November index of pending sales of existing homes. , also said at the time it was considering buying other types of securities, too, such as Treasurys .

Full Story: Stock futures regain momentum ahead of data (AP)

AP - Stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily Monday on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Stock Market:

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Full Story: Apple, Tyson, Barnes & Noble are big movers (AP)

moved higher Monday, with the benchmark Nikkei-225 index rising above the psychologically-important 9,000 level for the first time since November 11 in early trading.

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About 10 minutes after the opening bell, the Nikkei index was trading at 9,051, up 191.50 points or 2.16 percent. Year in review The sights and sounds of what will likely be known as the crash of 2008.

Full Story: Tokyo stock index rises above 9,000 level (AFP)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Wall Street's bid to rally from its worst year since the 1930s will be tested next week by the year's first wave of likely dismal corporate news and possible roadblocks to President-elect Barack Obama's stimulus plan.

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Investors will also contend with a spate of economic news also expected to be dismal, including unemployment figures. Still, analysts were cautiously optimistic that stocks might extend their three-day rally on hopes that the stimulus package would pass quickly in Congress, despite Republican concerns over its price tag.

Full Story: Market rally faces first New Year tests (Reuters)

NEW YORK – Wall Street started 2009 with a big rally Friday as investors, brushing aside a disappointing report on manufacturing, sent the Dow Jones industrials up more than 250 points and to their first close above 9,000 in two months. All the major indexes shot up more than six percent for the week.

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The market lived up to the hopes of many analysts that it would have a fresh start in the new year after a horrific 2008. But many traders were also waiting to see how the market fares next week; they're cognizant of the fact that post-holiday volume was light and therefore Friday's trading might not be the best indicator of market sentiment . Still, the market held to its recent pattern of taking bad economic news in stride, a pattern that began to emerge after it touched multiyear lows on Nov. 20.

Full Story: Wall Street enjoys upbeat start to 2009 (AP)

AP - Two mega acquisitions in the banking sector have been completed following the biggest financial crisis to hit the United States since the 1930s, capping a year in which Wall Street stocks were hammered, home foreclosure rates soared and job losses mounted.

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Full Story: 2 big banking sector acquisitions completed (AP)

AP - World stock markets kicked off the new trading year brightly Friday as European and Asian indexes rose, though trading volumes remained light with many traders not back at their desks until next week.

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Full Story: World markets kick off 2009 brightly (AP)