Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News
3 Feb 2012 at 5:50pm
Time.com - The dramatic rise and swift fall of Bangladesh's stock market is a cautionary tale for emerging-market investors oblivious to the perils of hasty deregulation and rapid capital inflows
3 Feb 2012 at 5:32pm
Reuters - Nasdaq OMX Group Inc's core profit topped analysts' expectations for the fourth quarter, boosted by a rise in revenue from market data and technology, which helped offset a soft trading environment.
3 Feb 2012 at 5:27pm
AP - Federal regulators have appointed a top government auditor as a member of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, which polices the accounting industry.
3 Feb 2012 at 5:14pm
AP - The Securities and Exchange Commission has reached a settlement with former Qwest Communications International Inc. Chief Financial Officer Robert Woodruff over its civil fraud lawsuit.
3 Feb 2012 at 4:57pm
 AP - A drop in the unemployment rate to its lowest level in three years propelled the Dow Jones industrial average Friday to its highest close since May 2008, before the financial meltdown later that year. The Nasdaq composite index hit an 11-year high.
3 Feb 2012 at 4:38pm
AP - Underperforming money managers are losing their most reliable scapegoat.
3 Feb 2012 at 3:59pm
AP - A drop in the unemployment rate to its lowest level in three years propelled stocks higher Friday. The Dow Jones industrial average closed at its highest level since May 2008, before the worst days of the financial crisis.
3 Feb 2012 at 3:42pm
 Reuters - A surge in hiring in the world's largest economy last month drove the Nasdaq to an 11-year high on Friday as optimism grew that the labor market is on a steady path to recovery.
3 Feb 2012 at 1:44pm
Reuters - Stock-picking once again matters on Wall Street.
3 Feb 2012 at 8:42am
 AP - Stocks spiked sharply higher on Friday after forecast-busting U.S. jobs figures reinforced hopes that the recovery in the world's largest economy is gathering pace at a time when other regions, notably Europe, may be heading back into recession.
3 Feb 2012 at 4:17am
 Reuters - Caution ahead of U.S. jobs numbers kept a lid on gains for stock markets on Friday after an optimistic start to the year that has added more than 7 percent to global company values.
2 Feb 2012 at 4:39pm
AP - WE CAME HERE FOR THIS? Stocks traded in a narrow range all day and finished mixed and nearly unchanged. Only the Nasdaq moved more than a tenth of a percent.
2 Feb 2012 at 4:22pm
AP - Some recent high-profile stock offerings on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq:
2 Feb 2012 at 4:17pm
AP - A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Thursday:
2 Feb 2012 at 4:11pm
 AP - When Facebook goes public in a few months, will its stock appear on the New York Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq? Depends what its billionaire founder prefers for a backdrop — a trading floor on Wall Street or towering video screens in Times Square.
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Business - Google News
3 Feb 2012 at 7:42pm
New York Times
![]() Jobless Rate Falls to 8.3%, Altering Face of Campaign
New York Times
WASHINGTON — The burst of job growth in January gives President Obama a fresh — but tricky — opportunity to revise the grim economic narrative of his presidency while offering Mitt Romney a choice: embrace a new optimism or campaign against a sinking ...
Unemployment report: January job gains have economists rethinking outlooksWashington Post
Jobless rate at 3-year low as payrolls surge |Reuters
White House, GOP dispute significance of upbeat jobs reportFox News
San Antonio Express -BusinessWeek -Bloomberg
all 2,349 news articles »
3 Feb 2012 at 9:29pm
Telegraph.co.uk
![]() Dow Logs Highest Close Since May 2008
CNBC.com
Stocks ended near session highs Friday, with the Dow finishing at its best level since May 2008, buoyed by a monthly government employment report that blew past estimates and a handful of impressive economic news. All three major averages logged ...
3-Year High for the Dow as Wall St. Cheers DataNew York Times
Dow finishes at highest since 2008, Nasdaq at highest since 2000Los Angeles Times
Stocks jump on reports of strong January job growth; oil rises for first time ...Washington Post
all 1,087 news articles »
3 Feb 2012 at 10:48pm
Economic Populist
![]() Getting It Wrong on the BLS Employment Report
Economic Populist
The December to January unemployment statistics are often reported wrong in the press. We're sorry, god love ya, but these articles are plain incorrect. People like to compare the month to month change in population, the number of people no longer ...
Jobs Report A Pleasant Surprise As US Payrolls Add 243K WorkersForbes
Controversial Jobs Report Stokes Bulls: Dave's DailyTheStreet.com
U.S. Employment Situation Report for January (Text)Bloomberg
Wall Street Journal -BusinessWeek -DailyFinance
all 91 news articles »
3 Feb 2012 at 10:12am
Telegraph.co.uk
![]() Central bank liquidity tap to stay open
Reuters
By Richard Hubbard | LONDON (Reuters) - After a blockbuster January for both equities and bonds - rallies that caught many in the market by surprise - investors will be paying keen attention to the world's central banks in the coming week for signs of ...
FOREX WEEK AHEAD: With Greek Deal Still Elusive, Euro Awaits ECBWall Street Journal
ECB Said to Consider Ways to Use Its Bond Holdings to Bolster Greek RescueBloomberg
Dollar pares gains as euro cuts lossesMarketWatch
San Francisco Chronicle -AFP
all 543 news articles »
3 Feb 2012 at 9:49pm
Kansas City Star
![]() American Airlines' plan for pension bailout draws criticism
Washington Post
American Airlines has saved $2.1 billion since 2006, thanks to two congressional measures that allowed it to reduce contributions to its pension plans. The company said it would make up any shortfall later. Later has come, but there's been a change in ...
American Airlines' CEO cool on merger talkThe Herald | HeraldOnline.com
AMR's Horton Expects American to Exit Bankruptcy Without MergerBloomberg
AMR wants to cut 13000 jobs, pensionsReuters
TheStreet.com -Forbes
all 258 news articles »
3 Feb 2012 at 6:42pm
USA TODAY
![]() Swiss bank indictment details tax evasion ploys
USA TODAY
By Kevin McCoy, USA TODAY NEW YORK – It was a cool August Tuesday in 2007 when Swiss banker Urs Frei walked into a Manhattan restaurant for meetings with two US clients. One of the clients carried an unmarked envelope containing $16000 in cash.
US indicts Wegelin bank for helping Americans avoid taxReuters
Swiss Bank Wegelin Charged With Helping US Tax EvasionBusinessWeek
Swiss Bank Wegelin Indicted on US Tax ChargesWall Street Journal
Bloomberg -Financial Times -New York Times
all 186 news articles »
3 Feb 2012 at 10:59pm
New York Post
![]() Banks hit on faulty foreclosures
New York Post
By MARK DECAMBRE Hard-charging New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman — thumbing his nose at an imminent global foreclosure settlement — charged Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America with using a dodgy mortgage database to unlawfully ...
New York sues 3 big banks over use of mortgage registry databaseLos Angeles Times
New York sues Reston firm over foreclosure documentsWashington Post
New York sues banks over electronic mortgage systemReuters
New York Times -Bloomberg
all 331 news articles »
3 Feb 2012 at 11:07pm
CTV.ca
![]() Greek Premier Faces Impasse Over Foreign Lenders' Demand to Cut Private Wages
New York Times
ATHENS — Lucas Papademos faced his most difficult test as Greece's interim prime minister on Friday when his three-month-old government reached an impasse over proposed demands by the country's foreign lenders to reduce private-sector wages drastically ...
Greek debt talks to stretch into weekend, FinMin says 'crucial' issues remainWashington Post
ECB must be "mobilized" for debt deal: Greek finance ministerReuters
Greek PM To Seek Consensus On Conditions In Exchange For Aid, Debt DealWall Street Journal
BusinessWeek
all 1,415 news articles »
3 Feb 2012 at 7:35pm
The Atlantic
![]() South Sudan: Violence at Peace Meeting
New York Times
More than 10 people were killed and a United Nations employee was shot and wounded when clashes broke out at a peace meeting in South Sudan, United Nations officials said Friday. The local authorities called a meeting in Unity State on Wednesday in ...
Oil risks fuelling flames of Sudan conflictReuters
Total of France Says It Plans to Resume Exploration in South Sudan Block BBloomberg
UN official Valerie Amos warns of looming crisis in South SudanLos Angeles Times
Washington Post
all 489 news articles »
3 Feb 2012 at 9:21pm
Wall Street Journal
![]() Worn Pipes Shut California Reactors
Wall Street Journal
By REBECCA SMITH The two reactors at the San Onofre nuclear-power station near San Clemente, Calif., will remain shut down this weekend while federal safety officials investigate why critical—and relatively new—equipment is showing signs of premature ...
Nuclear plant offers no timetable on leak fixU-T San Diego
SAN ONOFRE: Worker at nuclear plant fell into reactor pool last weekNorth County Times
Close look at leak days away at Cal nuke plantSan Francisco Chronicle
Washington Post -Los Angeles Times -The Associated Press
all 918 news articles »
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Stock Market Outlook from Seeking Alpha
3 Feb 2012 at 9:41pm
By Martin Lowy:I have a new working hypothesis as to the first moving cause of the boom that led to bust of 2007-2008. It is the structure of the European banking system. Yes, the problem began in Europe, not the United States, and it is the same problem that caused the boom and bust in European housing and the European sovereign debt crisis. I will spell that out shortly. But first let me forecast that the ECB is on the case and is in the process of correcting that original problem, as well as providing liquidity to the banking sector and succor to the sovereign debt market. If the ECB is successful, it will rid the world of this economic scourge that has cost Europe and the U.S. so dearly. One can only hope that the American authorities will take similar actions to fix the American transmission mechanism that permitted the EuropeanComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 5:23pm
By Michael A. Gayed:
"Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go." - T.S. Eliot
I'm still unsure why the market is "surprised" by today's jobs data. I have noted in prior interviews that staffing companies have been strongly outperforming broader stock markets for several weeks in a way suggesting that investors - whether consciously or subconsciously - are indeed expecting a pick-up in growth. Sure - many may begin to position more aggressively into the stock market now because of this. It does appear to be the case that we are more likely to be positively surprised than negatively surprised. As I referenced in the latest article, Marc Faber of the Gloom Boom and Doom report published and the Minyanville article addressing why it's possible stocks end 2012 up over 40% (here), if we are indeed in a reflationary environment similar to 2003 andComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 4:01pm
<< Return to Part I
5. German national character. To invoke culture in a discussion of economic or political policy is always fraught with risks, and even more so when discussing Germany. Yet however much people would like to deny it or ignore it, there is such a thing as national culture. And Germans, while hardly monolithic, tend to possess certain traits or combination of traits that distinguish them as a people. I would say that high on the list of cultural traits that distinguish the German national culture is a characteristic that I will call "idealism" (not to be confused with the more technical philosophical sense of this term). In economic affairs, this idealism is reflected in a perceived need to adhere strictly to orthodox (i.e. "ideal") theories of balanced budgets and hard money in terms of fiscal and monetary policy. For example, expansionary monetary policy by the centralComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 3:15pm
By Brooks McFeely:
Dow Jones Industrial Average up 156.82 (+1.23%) to 12,862.23
S&P 500 up 19.36 (+1.46%) to 1,344.90
NASDAQ Composite up 45.98 (+1.61%) to 2,905.66
GLOBAL SENTIMENT
Nikkei down 0.51%.
Hang Seng up 0.08%.
Shanghai Composite up 0.77%.
FTSE-100 up 1.8%.
Stocks rallied strongly on Friday after the government said U.S. employers added 243,000 jobs during January, blowing past forecasts and sending traders into equities as confidence grows that the U.S. economy continues to mend. The S&P 500 was ahead 1.25% just before the close, extending its weekly gains to a fifth week and making for its best year start since 1989. Other major indices higher. Coupled with the positive jobs growth, the nation's unemployment rate also fell to 8.3%, its lowest level in nearly three years. The Labor Department also revised December's gain to 203,000 new jobs. Both the drop in the unemployment rate - down 0.8% since August - andComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 12:52pm
By Jeremy Robson:A CNBC article highlights the low volume rally that we are presently experiencing. I quote below from a different article from Yahoo on the same subject:
This month's 4.6 percent rise in the S&P 500 (SPY) has failed to offset the decline in volume. About 6.85 billion shares worth $209.6 billion have changed hands each day this year, down 16 percent and 12 percent, respectively, from the same period in 2011, Bloomberg data show. The S&P500 rose to an almost six- month high of 1,315.38 last week. The New York Stock Exchange (MVALNE) has fared worst among the biggest venues. Trading on the Big Board slumped to the lowest level since 1999, with the 50-day average reaching 847.5 million shares last week, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Based on value traded, the average stood at $25.1 billion, a level not seen since at least 2005.On the Nasdaq Stock Market,Complete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 12:26pm
By Stockopedia:For much of the last 25 years, most of the investment management world has promoted the idea that individual investors can't beat the market. To beat the market, stock pickers of course have to discover mispricings in stocks, but the Nobel-acclaimed Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH) claims that the market is a ruthless mechanism acting instantly to arbitrage away any such opportunities, claiming that the current price of a stock is always the most accurate estimate of its value (known as "informational efficiency"). If this is true, what hope can there be for motivated stock pickers, no matter how much they sweat and toil, vs. low-cost index funds that simply mechanically track the market? As it turns out, there's plenty!
The (absurd) rise of the Efficient Market Hypothesis
First proposed in University of Chicago professor Eugene Fama’s 1970 paper Efficient Capital Markets: A Review of Theory and Empirical Work, EMH hasComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 12:03pm
Several countries in the eurozone including Italy, Spain, Portugal, Ireland and Greece (PIIGS) are no longer able to raise new debt or even roll over old debt in private financial markets without multilateral assistance. Indeed, without massive intervention from the EU, ECB and other multilateral lenders to secure the financing of new deficits and roll-overs, these PIIGS nations will be forced to default on their debts and possibly exit the common currency. As the largest and most powerful member of the EU, Germany will play a major role in determining the fate of the PIIGS and of the Eurozone (EZ) as a whole. German leaders must decide whether, how and to what extent their nation will be willing to underwrite comprehensive rescues of PIIGS economies. Until now, German leaders have insisted on an orthodox approach: Germany has been willing to support emergency multi-lateral financing and other measures, but only onComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 11:52am
By Streetwise Blog:
Facebook is about to top a dubious list as the biggest-ever Internet initial public offering. Dubious, because for long-term investors the names on the list have been duds more often than not. There's previous No. 1 World Online, along with other busts such as T-Online, Thus PLC, and Wanadoo SA. Wait, you say, those are from the Internet bubble. No fair! But even post-bubble IPOs have a mixed record. Here's a look at the six biggest in the world -- pre-Facebook. According to rankings provided by Thomson Reuters, the largest IPO in the pre-Facebook era was that of World Online BV. World Online raised $2.7-billion (U.S.) in a 2000 IPO. The stock debuted on the Amsterdam exchange at €43 a share. The deal immediately proved a bad one, as by the second trading day the stock was well below its listing price. Only months later World Online merged with Tiscali,Complete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 9:08am
By SL Advisors:
By Simon Lack
This looks on the surface to be good news across the board. Private payrolls up almost 100K greater than consensus, increased hourly workweek, and a drop in the unemployment rate in spite of an increase in the labor force. Not a 4% GDP type of number, but good enough to reassure that the 2-2.5% level GDP growth trajectory we're on is sustainable.It also supports the case for equities over bonds. The Equity Risk Premium is wide, but this type of data will cause it to narrow somewhat, as stocks rise and bonds fall. In addition, the utility of holding a short euro position, such as EUO, in combination with long stocks is highlighted. The U.S. economy is likely to grow 3% faster than the eurozone this year. The dollar can draw support just from the relatively better prospects here, as well as providing tail risk insuranceComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 8:45am
By Emerging Money:
By Randall Mah
Progress on a deal between Greece and its private debt holders continued to stall on Friday, as euro zone finance ministers pledged yesterday to try and agree to a second financing package for the country by Monday. By mid-morning, Britain’s FTSE had risen 0.29%, the German DAX was up 0.26%, and France’s CAC 40 had climbed 0.10%. The British pound appreciated 0.23% to $1.5843 and the euro rose 0.17% to $1.3166. However, the mood remained tentative after losses in Asia. The Nikkei (EWJ) fell 0.51%. Shares of Sony (SNE) enjoyed a whopping 8.06% jump just days after the company announced Kazuo Hirai will take over from Howard Stringer as CEO and president in April. Stocks of Canon likewise climbed 1.98% after the company announced a share buyback worth up to $657 million. In Shanghai, Chinese shares (YAO) got a boost of 0.77%.During a visit to BeijingComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 7:49am
By Marc Chandler:The U.S. dollar is softer ahead of the employment report, but largely within yesterday's ranges, which themselves where inside Wednesday's ranges for the most part. Prior to the jobs report, the euro is the weakest G10 currency, off about 0.4%. The strongest has been the New Zealand dollar, up 0.7% and the British pound up 0.65%, followed by the yen, which is up 0.55%. Sterling has been aided by yet another upside economic surprise. The service PMI rose to 56 from 54.0 and defied expectations for a decline. It is the 13th month above 50 and is the best since last March. This follows the stronger-than-expected manufacturing survey earlier this week. Nevertheless, the BOE should still be expected to announce a new round of gilt purchases next week. At 50.4 the eurozone service PMI was in with the flash (50.5) after the 48.8 reading in December, which is a 5-monthComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 7:31am
By Stephen L. Weiss:As I have noted before, the best plan that Europe can author for solving the sovereign debt crisis is not to devise a plan. Admittedly a facetious statement, the reality does not fall far from the tongue firmly planted in my cheek. Consider the brilliance of indecision; the markets have been so conditioned to negative news that it would take the default of a major country such as Italy - not going to happen - to shake investors from their positions. Even a "no deal" - unlikely - on Greece's debt swap, which would likely push the country into default, would only be a minor nuisance, a knee jerk sell-off before a collective sigh of relief that no more energy need be expended searching for that plume of white smoke signaling that a settlement has been reached. I can imagine the conversations between the EU ministers and bank CEO's overComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 6:23am
Wall Street Breakfast Editors submit:
By Yigal Grayeff and the Market Currents team
Panasonic forecasts record annual loss. Panasonic (PC) has reported a Â¥197.6B ($2.6B) net loss for FQ3 and now expects its full year results to be its worst ever at a projected loss of Â¥780B. The contributing factors include: a strong yen, production problems related to Thai flooding, costs from its absorption of Sanyo, the global slowdown, and the eurozone-driven instability in financial markets. Alan Mulally To Seeking Alpha: Ford could raise dividend. Having only recently reinstated its dividend, Ford (F) could increase its payout to shareholders in the next year or two, CEO Alan Mulally told Seeking Alpha in an interview. "That’s something that we’ll definitely consider based on the economic situation,…but clearly where we are in the growth cycle worldwide will be a primary consideration," Mulally said, adding that buybacks were "always a consideration" also. Senate votes to ban insider tradingComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 2:49am
By DeWayne Reeves:The E-Mini S&P 500 stayed in a fairly narrow range Thursday as uncertainty seemed to sweep the market. The US Initial Jobless Claims benefits decreased 12,000 to 367,000 while forecasts for 375,000 were circulating. Analysts seem to think that the market may go either way. With so many pieces of the puzzle missing, it is difficult to presume that the market will continue the trend higher. We still have about 23.7 million Americans out of work or underemployed. Technology shares seemed to support the market as Qualcomm (QCOM) reported better earnings. Healthcare reports were among the losers. The US reports may point to recovery, but there is still an undertone of anxiety over the Eurozone debt crisis and the effects of the turmoil on the US.Finance Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, of Luxembourg, had regarded the summit of the European Union as "largely insufficient" and further spoke of the Greek negotiationsComplete Story »
3 Feb 2012 at 1:29am
By Cameron Kaine:In the first part of this article, we discussed some stocks that made headlines for a variety of reasons and what effect market news will have on their movement. We started the discussion by acknowledging the disappointing end of the fourth week of trading in the new year. The Dow capped its first weekly loss in the month - which leads many investors to wonder if indeed the so called "January effect" ended last week.Friday brought some profit taking as several of the indices ended lower. It appears that investors seemed undecided about which course to take and how to digest the news that the U.S. economy grew more slowly than expected in the last three months of 2011. But to me, the silver lining is that it is indeed growing again. But I appreciate that not all investors have the "glass-half-full" mentality - as evidenced by the market'sComplete Story »
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MarketBeat
3 Feb 2012 at 4:45pm
Everett
Economic calendar
Monday
No major data
Tuesday
NFIB Small Business Survey
Job Openings and Labor Turnover
Consumer Credit
Wednesday
No major data
Thursday
Jobless claims
Wholesale inventories
Friday
US Trade Deficit
Reuters/UMich consumer sentiment (preliminary)
Federal Budget
Earnings
Monday
Anadarko Petroleum
Boardwalk Pipeline
BRE Properties
CNA Fincl
Coinstar
Comstock Resources
Dun & Bradstreet
Hasbro
HCA
Healthcare Services
Humana
Lazard
Leggett & Platt
Lincare Holdings
Loews
Mercury General
NCR
Nielsen Holding
Owens & Minor
PartnerRe
Pioneer Natural Resources
PMC-Sierra
Post Properties
Sysco
Temple-Inland
Towers Watson
UDR
Unum
USG
Veeco Instruments
Wausau Paper
Yum Brands
Tuesday
AGCO
Atmos Energy
Becton Dickinson
Belo
CBRE Group
Cerner
Church & Dwight
Coca-Cola
Emerson Electric
Harman Intl
Hartford Financial
K12
Knoll
Levi Strauss
Liberty Property Trust
Lincoln National
Louisiana-Pacific
Magellan Midstream
Martin Marietta Materials
McClatchy
Panera Bread
Pantry
Perrigo
Ralcorp
RenaissanceRe
Solera
Scotts Miracle-Gro
TransDigm
Walt Disney
Western Union
Wednesday
Agrium
Akamai Tech
Alere
Apartment Invest
Atmel
CAE
Cisco Systems
Cognizant Tech
Computer Sciences
Coventry Health
CVS Caremark
Equifax
Everest Re
FMC
General Growth
Genesee & Wyoming
Gildan
Groupon
HHGregg
Ingersoll-Rand
Ingram Micro
IntercontinentalExchange
Jones Group
Kimco Realty
Level 3 Commun
Madison Square Garden
McDonaldÂ’s (monthly)
Moody’s
News Corp.
O’Reilly Automotive
PAA Natural Gas
Plains All American Pipeline
ProLogis
Prudential Financial
RailAmerica
Ralph Lauren
Reynolds American
Sprint Nextel
Taubman Centers
Time Warner
TMX Group
TW Telecom
Visa
WestJet Airlines
Whole Foods Market
Wyndham Worldwide
Thursday
Activision Blizzard
Air Canada
AptarGroup
Beacon Roofing Supply
BCE
Bunge
Cameco
Canadian Tire
CBOE
Coca-Cola Enterprises
Corn Products Intl
Dunkin’ Brands
Exide Tech
Expedia
Home Properties
Husky Energy
Imperial Sugar
KKR
LinkedIn
Lorillard
Mack-Cali
Manulife
Montpelier Re
Noble Energy
Nuance Communications
Och-Ziff
Pacer Intl
PepsiCo
Philip Morris Intl
Pitney Bowes
Republic Services
Scripps Networks Interactive
Sealed Air
Shoppers Drug Mart
Sigma-Aldrich
Sirius XM Radio
Sonoco Products
Teck Resources
Teradata
Thomson Reuters
XL Group
Friday
AllianceBernstein
Alliant Energy
Apollo Global
Arch Coal
Brookfield Office
Buckeye Partners
Calpine
Flower Foods
LabCorp
PPL
Telus
3 Feb 2012 at 4:21pm
A tear down of the government’s jobs report – Ritholz
It’s okay to celebrate the labor market’s good news – Felix Salmon
Gold’s rally won’t last – MarketWatch
What will be the fallout from the Facebook IPO – Howard Lindzon
Photo ops with Warren Buffett -Â WSJ
What’s the bigger mistake — allowing Greece into the Euro, or forcing them to stay? – Economist’s View
The day the music died – The Reformed Broker
21 rules for surviving your Super Bowl party — Jason Gay
3 Feb 2012 at 4:05pm
Reuters
S&P’s Index guru Howard Silverblatt sent a quick factoid that got our attention: The S&P 500 has jumped 6.9% in 2012, its best start to a year since 1987.
And we all know what happened in 1987…
But as stocks keep climbing, its worth looking at trading volume. Friday’s surge was accompanied by the largest volume day of the year and biggest amount since Dec. 16.
About 4.56 billion shares traded hands in NYSE composite volume on Friday, exceeding this year’s average of 3.96 billion.
Higher volume moves tend to suggest more conviction behind market action. More volume on the up days represents more fodder for the bulls.
“The marketÂ’s continued ability to bounce back from any attempted pullback is clearly early bull market price action,” says Mark Arbeter of S&P, which “suggests further gains in the first half of 2012.”
3 Feb 2012 at 3:53pm
Dow Industrials,
up 201.77 points this week, or 1.59% to 12862.23.
Highest close since May 19, 2008.
Today, it rose 156.82 points, or 1.23%.
Today’s top contributors to the Dow’s movement and their point contribution: CAT (27.32), IBM (15.97), CVX (13.70), XOM (10.52), MCD (10.52).
Today’s laggards and their point contribution: PG (-4.16), MRK (-0.53), JNJ (0.38), WMT (0.68), PFE (0.68).
Nasdaq Composite,
up 89.11 points this week, or 3.16% to 2905.66.
Biggest weekly point and percent gain since the week ended December 2, 2011.
Highest close since December 12, 2000.
Today, it gained 45.98 points, or 1.61%.
S&P 500,
up 28.57 points this week, or 2.17% to 1344.90.
Biggest weekly point and percent gain since the week ended December 23, 2011.
Highest close since July 22, 2011.
Today, it added 19.36 points, or 1.46%.
3 Feb 2012 at 3:35pm
Bloomberg News
By John Shipman and Paul Vigna
Based on the stock market’s strong rally, emboldened by the encouraging January jobs report, it would seem investors think earnings growth is poised to bounce back into double-digit percentage gains.
Not so fast.
The fourth-quarter earnings growth rate for the S&P 500 is running at 8.4%, or 5.3% if Apple’s results are excluded, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Thomson says 43 S&P 500 companies have had negative EPS preannouncements for the current quarter compared to 12 positive EPS preannouncements.
“The 3.6 negative to positive ratio is the largest showing since the 3.7 ratio in Q2 2001,” firm says.
Nevertheless, stocks finish near session highs after the market gets the best “upside surprise” it’s had in some time: a blowout jobs report.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 156.82 points, or 1.23%, to 12862.23, its highest close since May 2008. S&P 500 jumps  19.36 points, or 1.46%, to 1344.90.
Nasdaq Comp rises 45.98 points, or 1.61%, to 2905.66, its highest close since December 2000.
Stocks are enjoying their best start to a year in two decades, and the bulls are in firm control here. So forget, for now, the euromess. Forget, for now, the weak profit growth and poor outlooks for the first quarter.
Just enjoy the ride.
3 Feb 2012 at 2:29pm
Nymex crude
for March delivery lost $1.72 per barrel this week, or 1.73% to $97.84.
Today Nymex Crude Oil gained $1.48 per barrel, or 1.54%.
Snaps a five-day losing streak.
Comex gold
for February delivery gained $5.70 per troy ounce this week, or 0.33% to $1737.90.
Up for five consecutive weeks.
Today Comex Gold lost $18.90 per troy ounce, or 1.08%.
3 Feb 2012 at 2:11pm
REUTERS
A running debate in the markets for the last few years has been the degree to which exchange traded funds have been driving the ups and downs of underlying stocks that make up ETFs.
A big part of the problem is simply that itÂ’s difficult to know precisely just how much trading of individual stocks is generated by shares of ETFs being bought and sold, especially if the trading doesnÂ’t result in ETF shares being created or redeemed (which is more likely to result in the underlying stocks being bought or sold by ETF market makers as part of the ETF basket.)
Then thereÂ’s the question of whether the impact is a positive of negative. Many argue ETFs contribute to volatility (weÂ’re looking at you VNQ, IYR and RWR!) Seemingly just as many argue that any increase in the trading of the underlying stocks generated by ETF shares is a positive. ThatÂ’s because, they say, it increases the volume of stocks that otherwise would be lightly traded as individual names.
Steven DeSanctis, Merrill Lynch’s head of U.S. small cap strategy, has waded into the question with a lengthy report published today looking at the impact of ETFs on small caps – specifically the $16 billion iShares Russell 2000 Index Fund (IWM). DeSanctis looked at the impact from both the standpoint of manager performance and the underlying market.
We think ETFs have had a significant effect on trading volume and can also impact both relative and absolute performance. When ETF flows were strong, active managers tend to struggle to get ahead of their benchmarks and when flows were weak, managers tend to outperform.
DeSanctis crunched the numbers and came up with some estimates of how much of individual stock trading volume can be traced to trading in the IWM ETF.
In 2011, we estimated that the IWM saw $384.2 million dollars of flows on an absolute basis each day, this is both inflows and outflows. We then took the current IWM holdings and their respective weights in the ETF and multiplied each name by the $384.2 million. This represents the theoretical dollar amount traded each day by each name. We then divided this figure by the stock’s current price to come up with the average number of shares that could hypothetically traded by the ETF on daily basis. Lastly, we took this share amount and it divided by each stock’s 52-week average daily volume to get the percent of trading volume potentially traded by the IWM. We then quintiled the universe by market cap bucket and looked at size buckets. “We estimate that the IWM could represent about 5.4% of the index’s overall volume, with the smallest names (in Q5) seeing the ETF represent 8.0% of the total trading volume. In contrast, the ETF could represent just 3.6% of the largest market cap quintiles trading volume. Breaking it out by size bucket, we see that the ETF could be 7.7% of the volume for names under $250 million as opposed to 3.7% for those companies with market caps above $1 billion.
Where the impact has really shown up, DeSanctis data suggests, is in correlations. Taken at face value, his data would validate lots of grumblings from frustrated stock pickers.
The pair-wise correlation in the Russell 2000 was 54.5% in the fourth quarter, which just below the high of 56.4% set in the third quarter of 2011. We have noticed that pair-wise correlations have been on the rise in the small caps since the IWM was introduced in 2000. Prior to the introduction of the IWM in the second quarter of 2000, pair-wise correlations in the small caps averaged 5.3%. Since then, pair-wise correlations have risen dramatically, averaging 25.0%. We think ETFs have contributed to the increase in pair-wise correlations. In fact, the since the IWM was introduced in the second quarter of 2000, the correlation between the IWMÂ’s shares outstanding and the average pair-wise correlation is a very strong 72.9%.
There you have it. Let the “ETFs are our savior/ETFs are evil” debate continue….
3 Feb 2012 at 2:01pm
Getty Images
Look, this morning’s jobs report was a big step in the right direction. Let’s get that out of the way right now so there’s no confusion.
There’s a very bullish tone in the market, evidenced by the Dow flirting with multi-year highs and the Nasdaq Comp jumping to its highest level since 2001.
Adding 243,000 jobs in January combined with the unemployment rate dipping to 8.3% represents good news both for Main Street as well as Wall Street.
That said, the jobs data weren’t perfect. David Mann, head of research in the Americas for Standard Chartered Bank, offers several reasons investors shouldn’t get carried away by the data.
January is the month that typically experiences the largest seasonal adjustments, dwarfing other months, he says. “Therefore we are reluctant to read too much into JanuaryÂ’s labor market data.”
Aside from seasonal issues, he lays out three other reasons investors shouldn’t get carried away by today’s data. From Mr. Mann:
Inventories vs. Investment: We did not see the run up in investment in Q4 that we had anticipated. Instead it was inventories rather than investment that actually supported growth (contributing 1.94ppt in Q4) while the contribution from fixed investment was less in Q4 than in Q3. This is evidence that there was not much impact from the tax incentive for corporates to invest more in 2011 (at the expense of 2012). Most likely this is because of still weak sentiment keeping corporates cautious from investing in the US. We may well see the same impact as the reversal of investment would have had but coming from inventory drawdown instead.Â
Consumer savings rate bottomed in November 2011 – income effect is not there: US Consumers’ real disposable income (shown below) was flat in 2011 (ending the year more or less where it started). The sharp drop in the savings rate through 2011 had been supportive for spending but this seems likely to have reached a bottom at 3.5% (it is now up to 4% as of December 2011). Whether the savings rate rises or simply stays where it is, this means that consumer spending is going to need stronger real disposable income to support growth. While this week’s NFP report points to an improving labour market we need to see the extension of the social security tax credit before the end of February. If this doesn’t get extended expect many to clamber to revise down their GDP forecasts. Also we would expect to see this in the event of a Greek default (with its unintended consequences).
Wealth effect – housing market is hardly riding to the rescue: With a weak income effect the hope some see is from the housing wealth effect (which helped so much in the early-mid 2000s). Some people have tried to argue that the housing market is recovering. The issue with this is that the pick-up is relative. House prices are still falling on aggregate y/y (and the monthly data we have is not conclusive). Sales are making good percentage gains but at an absolute level the housing market is still in deep crisis. The Case-Shiller price index (20 city) continues to push close to new lows.
3 Feb 2012 at 1:06pm
Bloomberg
Steve Appleton (left), outside the White House in Feb. 2011
Micron Chairman and CEO Steve Appleton passed away this morning in a small plane accident, the company announced in a press release. Mr. Appleton was 51 years old.
Here’s the statement:
We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Appleton, Micron Chairman and CEO, passed away this morning in a small plane accident in Boise. He was 51.
Our hearts go out to his wife, Dalynn, his children and his family during this tragic time.
Steve’s passion and energy left an indelible mark on Micron, the Idaho community and the technology industry at large.
The company expects to provide additional information later today.
Micron shares have been halted. The chip maker’s stock was up 3% prior to the devastating news. It ahd surged 26% in 2012.
UPDATE: The news has sent shockwaves through the chip industry, which has already been in a state of flux. Newswires chip reporter Shara Tibken offers her take on the industry impact:
The gap left atop Micron by the small-plane crash that claimed CEO Steve Appleton’s life comes at a time when the memory-chip market is going through a lot of changes. Prices have been falling and demand has been softening, largely due to PC and macro weakness, and some Asian rivals are struggling to stay in business. MU has been doing fairly well and is one of the stronger memory-chip makers, but it’s not immune to the market weakness. Meanwhile, President Mark Durcan said last month he planned to retire at the end of August.
3 Feb 2012 at 12:24pm
Reuters
Zynga shares are off to the races again as the Facebook IPO love has extended for a second straight day.
Facebook disclosed late Wednesday that 12% of its revenue came from Zynga, which has investors giddy that the gaming company has such a big impact on the hottest social network on the planet.
Zynga shares are up 11% at $13.67 after earlier hitting a fresh intraday high of $14.44. The run-up comes a day after Zynga jumped 17% yesterday.
The stock, which went public in December, has spent much of its early days as a public company trading below its IPO price. But shares have taken a one-way ticket higher over the last few weeks, jumping nearly 60% since Jan. 19.
As the stock soars, the options market isn’t certain the rally is sustainable. Here’s Brendan Conway’s take on the split options activity swirling around Zynga:
Trading volume leans to bullish calls over bearish puts, but both are unusually active. The heaviest in puts is to sell ZNGA at $12 and $13 within next two weeks, while for calls it’s to buy shares at $15. What might be termed Zinga’s “fear gauge” (a reading of 30-day implied volatility) jumps again to a new high of 120%, Livevol data show. The options market’s clearest takeaway is traders view ZNGA as a stock with plenty of volatility in its future.
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