Business and Financial News

By Angela Moon NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street may take a breather this week after an earnings-driven rally lifted the major U.S. stock indexes to their highest levels in months. The blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average .DJI climbed back above the 9,000 mark last week for the first time since January. And the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index .SPX ended Friday at 979.26 — up 44.7 percent from the 12-year closing low hit on March 9 — after a number of prominent companies’ earnings surpassed Wall Street’s expectations. This week’s “market enjoyed the better-than-expected earnings, or I should say, less bad-than-expected earnings, but we can play the game for only so long,” said Scott Marcouiller, senior equity market strategist at Wells Fargo Advisors in St. Louis. “Stay cautious. We can’t put a cap on it (the rally) yet, but there will be a correction.” The exuberance was interrupted Friday as disappointing quarterly revenues from Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) and Amazon.com (AMZN.O) hit their stocks and weighed on the Nasdaq, which fell on Friday and halted a 12-day run of gains.[...]

• Wall St futures point higher amid results flurry

  (Reuters) - Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average, Nasdaq and S&P 500 share indexes are up between 0.3 and 0.5 percent, pointing to a higher start on Wall Street. Stocks slid more than 3 percent on Monday after weak results from Bank of America (BAC.N) reignited concerns over the...
• Bank hopes and data lift market as S&P 500 tops 900

  By Ellis Mnyandu NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose on Monday, pushing the benchmark S&P 500 above 900 for the first time since early January, on bets that banks won’t have to raise as much capital as previously thought, and housing data fueled hopes that the recession is ebbing. Bank...
• Futures point to higher Wall Street open

  (Reuters) - Stock futures for the Dow Jones industrial average were up 0.2 percent, while the Nasdaq 100 were up 0.3 percent and the S&P 500 were up 0.04 percent on Friday. * European shares gained for a second straight session on Friday, led higher by mining and financial stocks,...
• Wall Street drops as Boeing delay, housing data weigh

  By Leah Schnurr NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks fell on Tuesday as Boeing again delayed the first test flight of its Dreamliner aircraft and housing data pointed to a sluggish economic recovery. Boeing Co (BA.N), the Dow’s biggest drag, said the inaugural flight of its long-delayed 787 Dreamliner will be...
• Wall Street rises, retailers gain

  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose on Thursday, reversing early losses, as gains in consumer shares offset jitters about an economic recovery after data showed more workers filed new jobless claims. Shares of Bed Bath & Beyond Inc (BBBY.O) boosted consumer discretionary stocks after it reported a surprise rise in...