ECONOMY & MARKETS

U.S. blue-chip stocks eked out a slim gain Monday but other market measures fell slightly as investors traded cautiously ahead of the first quarter corporate earnings season.

Consumer prices in Britain slowed for the first time in eight months in March, dampening expectations over interest rate hike by the Bank of England in the near term.

U.S. stocks ended mixed on Monday as energy shares declined on lower oil prices and investors cautious ahead of the unofficial start of first quarter earnings season.

The top after-market NYSE gainers on Monday are: Community Health Systems, KKR & Co, Callon Petroleum, Oxford Industries and New York & Co. The top after-market NYSE losers are: WMS Industries, Safe Bulkers, Alcoa, Dex One Corp and Flagstone Reinsurance.

Google will join BrightSource Energy Inc. and NRG Solar LLC as an equity investor in the Ivanpah solar electric generating system by making a $168 million investment.

Jefferies & Co. believes Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is about to launch a new video-focused cloud-based service. The brokerage continues to believe that the assault on the living room likely means the introduction of another Apple appliance or device.

US stocks are mixed on global worries ahead of the unofficial start of first quarter earnings season.

Shares of Baidu, Inc. (BIDU) touched a new life-time high of $148.92 on Monday, after media reports that Facebook Inc. signed an agreement with the company to set up a social-networking website in China.

The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market gainers are: Exelixis, KIT digital, Tibco Software, Layne Christensen, and Schnitzer Steel Industries. The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market losers are: Micrel, Extreme Networks, TranS1, Lionbridge Technologies, and NPS Pharmaceuticals.

Shares of Global Crossing Ltd. (NASDAQ: GLBC) touched a new 2-year high of $26.50 on Monday. Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: LVLT) agreed to buy Global Crossing in a tax-free, stock-for-stock transaction of about $3 billion.

Shares of Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) fell 3.15 percent in the after-hours trading, after reporting its first quarter sales that missed Street view as the dollar weakened.

U.S. blue-chip stocks eked out a slim gain Monday but other market measures fell slightly as investors traded cautiously ahead of the first quarter corporate earnings season.The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 1.06 points, or 0.01%, at 12381.11. The Nasdaq Composite shed 8.91, or 0.32%, to 2771.51. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index slipped 3.71, or 0.28%, to 1324.46. The mixed activity came as investors looked ahead to the first-quarter earnings season, which kicked off unoffic...

US stocks are mixed on global worries ahead of the unofficial start of first quarter earnings season.

The short yen thesis based on the resurgence of the G10 carry trade is not valid, according to Adam Cole of RBC Capital Markets.

It is widely reported that Facebook has obtained a license to operate in China and most likely, the operation will be done through a joint venture with Chinese internet giant Baidu.

The intense global interest in Canada's resource sector will drive the Canadian dollar even higher.

Following are the US stocks that were actively trading in the Monday morning session. The stocks include Global Crossing, American Medical Systems, Level 3 and Community Health Systems.

U.S. stocks advanced in early trade on Monday as successful acquisitions by U.S companies and anticipation of solid first-quarter corporate earnings buoyed sentiment.

Gold and [platinum-group metals] were irrelevant, according to one Asian dealer, as The silver market went nuts, with swift buying pushing spot silver prices to a fresh 31-year high above $42 per ounce.

U.S. stocks advanced in early trade on Monday as anticipation of solid first-quarter corporate earnings buoyed sentiment.

Level 3 Communications said it agreed to acquire Global Crossing for about $1.9 billion stock deal to boost its service portfolio.

The top pre-market NASDAQ Stock Market gainers are: Tasty Baking, Global Crossing, American Medical Systems Holdings, RAM Energy Resources, and VIVUS. The top pre-market NASDAQ Stock Market losers are: Sina, Medivation, Energy Conversion Devices, JetBlue Airways, and Netflix.

The companies whose shares are moving in pre-market trade on Monday are: Tyco International, Symantec, Cliffs Natural Resources, Apollo Group, Halliburton, Monsanto, Alcoa, Dr Pepper Snapple Group and PPL Corp.

FBR Capital Markets said Flushing Financial Corp.'s (NASDAQ: FFIC) story was well received by investors given that the company is growing loans, generates reasonable profitability, and its performance through the cycle is evidence of its strong credit quality.

Jefferies & Co. expects limited financial impact of Google Inc.'s (GOOG) acquisition of ITA Software Inc. on Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE). The brokerage maintained its buy rating on shares of Expedia with a price target of $31.

Shares of Time Warner Cable Inc. (NYSE: TWC) touched a new 2-year high of $73.19 on Friday. The company said it has filed a request for declaratory judgment relating to Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA) cable networks.

Two of the world's largest concrete pumps - normally used for concrete in construction projects - departed from the United States on Saturday morning to Japan's Fukushima Daiichi plant to help contain the damaged nuclear reactors there.

Shares of AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR) touched a new 52-week low of $5.71 on Friday, as crude oil futures climbed above $112 since September 2008.

U.S. stocks fell modestly Friday as investors exercised caution ahead of the potential shutdown of the federal government and the start of U.S. companies' first-quarter earnings reports.