Markets closed higher Tuesday through a choppy session, as indicators gave conflicting signals on the U.S. economy, while Ireland announced it would hold a referendum on Europe's new fiscal treaty. All eyes are now turned to European Central Bank's second liquidity injection set to take place Wednesday.
The Dow closed above 13,000 for the first time since 2008 on Tuesday and the S&P 500 also hit a milestone, as buoyant U.S. consumer confidence data and a sharp drop in oil prices nudged the nearly five-month rally forward.
Stock index futures rose in low volume on Tuesday a day after the S&P 500 hit a fresh 4-year high and ahead of economic data and this week's liquidity injection by the European Central Bank aimed at supporting the euro zone's ailing banking sector.
Stock index futures rose in low volume on Tuesday a day after the S&P 500 hit fresh 4-year highs and ahead of economic data and this week's liquidity injection by the European Central Bank aimed at supporting the euro zone's ailing banking sector.
Despite talk of an improving economy and a surge in stock markets, doomsayers have warned of tougher times ahead for Americans with an imminent financial crash looming in the near future.
Warren E. Buffett, whose Berkshire Hathaway holding company has made him one of the richest men around, said he’s pleased by new holdings in technology.
Germany, the chancellor says, is willing to put €11 billion ($14.7 billion) into the euro zone's main bailout fund this year and next -- as long as its currency partners do the same.
Stock index futures fell on Monday in low volume following the S&P 500's four-year closing high last week and after the Group of 20 leading economies told Europe it must commit more money to fight the EU debt crisis before seeking broader help.
Stock index futures fell Monday in low volume following the S&P 500's four-year closing high last week and after the Group of 20 leading economies told Europe it must commit more money to fight the EU debt crisis before seeking broader help.
Why is one professional observer so negative about America's short-term economic prospects?
A rally on Wall Street will be put to the test next week, with the S&P 500 index at its highest closing level since before the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in 2008 and the European Central Bank about to flood the financial markets with a new wave of cheap money.
The S&P 500 rose on Friday to close at its highest level since before the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in September 2008, continuing a pattern of steady gains on apparent signs of U.S. economic recovery.
The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index closed Friday at its highest level since June 2008 as a result of the rise of the U.S. stocks subsequent to increasing confidence on revival of economic situation with the approval of the Greece bailout package.
The S&P 500 rose on Friday to close at the highest level since before the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008, continuing a pattern of steady gains on signs of U.S. economic recovery.
No matter which direction investors faced Friday, whether it was the recent past or the immediate future, all the signals were positive. Investors responded by boosting prices for stocks, bonds and commodities.
Buoyed by another round of better-than-expected economic data, the Standard & Poor's 500 advanced above its highest close since June 2008. Optimism on the economy also lifted the Dow Jones Industrial Average back above 13,000.
Stocks were little changed on Friday, hovering around highs not seen since June 2008, while energy shares gained alongside crude oil prices.
U.S. stock index futures pointed to a slightly higher open for equities on Friday, with futures for the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq 100 rising 0.1 percent to 0.2 percent.
A closely-watched indicator of German business confidence jumped in February, the fourth month in a row the index has risen, suggesting that country's economy is continuing to grow at a moderate pace even as the wider Eurozone area experiences near-recessionary stagnation.
Sears Holdings Corp. (SHLD) posted a fourth-quarter loss Thursday and said it will spin off its Hometown, outlet and hardware-store businesses as part of an effort to increase liquidity.
It didn't take long for the initial relief following Tuesday's long-awaited Greek bailout deal to die down. Global stocks ended Wednesday lower as investors took a cautious stance on the Eurozone economic outlook following disappointing business activity data and Fitch's announcement to cut Greece's credit rating further into junk status.
Platinum prices shot up more than three percent Wednesday after Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd., the world's second largest platinum producer, told buyers April deliveries would be slashed in half because of a strike in South Africa.
