Some news for investors

U.S. Stocks Advance on Optimism About Earnings, Economy Growth

US stocks posted gains Thursday as a string of positive first quarter earnings reports boosted investor confidence.

Shipper UPS and computer chip maker Intel were among the winners on Wall Street after announcing first quarter earnings. Intel reported overnight record first-quarter profit nearly quadrupled from ayear earlier, while UPS said Wednesday profits had increased by a third.

April 15 (Bloomberg) -- Manufacturers are charging ahead as sales and inventories grow, spearheading a U.S. economic recovery that shows scant signs of lifting labor markets.

Stocks gained for a sixth day as the reports depicted a mixed picture of the economic recovery

Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said yesterday the labor market will be slow to recoup the jobs lost since the recession began in December 2007.

Economic uncertainty, a highly partisan environment and overwhelming discontent with Congress and elected officials were all factors contributing to the current wave of public distrust, the report said.

WBU ALUM wrote:The underpinnings of the economy are based on those who participate. Their outlook isn't so hot and has worsened, not improved.

Majority of Americans Distrust the Government: Survey

Economic uncertainty, a highly partisan environment and overwhelming discontent with Congress and elected officials were all factors contributing to the current wave of public distrust, the report said.

The survey was conducted by the Pew Research Center.

Forty-three percent of Republicans, 50 percent of independents who lean Republican and 57 percent of those who agree with the Tea Party movement said the government presents a major threat to their personal freedom.

That compares with 18 percent of Democrats, 21 percent of independents who lean Democratic and 9 percent of those who disagree with the Tea Party movement.

The American economy appears to be in a cyclical recovery that is gaining strength. Firms have begun to hire and consumer spending seems to be accelerating.

The Comeback Country

The recovery came quickly because the public and private sectors reacted with great speed. In the 1990s, Japanese policymakers deliberated and delayed before embarking on a program that included interest-rate cuts, a huge stimulus program, expanded bank insurance, and the nationalization of failed institutions. In 2008 and 2009 it took the U.S. just 18 months to conduct the aggressive fiscal and monetary actions that Japan waited for 12 years to carry out. And the patient responded to the shock therapy, as the credit markets and financial sector bounced back. Since the announcements of the Treasury-imposed stress tests in May 2009, banks have raised more than $140 billion in new equity capital. In August 2009, not even the most cockeyed optimists could have projected that within four months, Bank of America, Citi, and Wells Fargo would return $100 billion in borrowed funds to the taxpayers. But they did.

Over the past year, a number of economists have proclaimed the recession's end. The media, too, have urged economic optimism, particularly in the last few weeks. At the New York Times, Floyd Norris argued that the economy is experiencing "a cyclical recovery that is gaining strength." This week's Newsweek cover story trumpets the valiant recovery of a "comeback country" now roaring ahead in post-recessionary times.

But a closer look reveals a far more muddled picture. In the first quarter of 2010, economic activity fell in half of the U.S. states, the number of national housing foreclosures jumped back near their 2009 peak, and household debt as a percentage of GDP, long-term unemployment, and income inequality are still at or near their historic highs.

Before you get too excited about the recovery, check out these charts from the recession's still lingering impact:

cookie wrote:and indeed some more positive news for our investors....

U.S. Stocks Advance on Optimism About Earnings, Economy Growth

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601010&sid=aXErqmAnBBaY



The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 21.46 points, or 0.19 per cent, to 11,144.57. The broader Standard and Poor's 500 Index increased 1.02 points, or 0.08 per cent, to 1,211.67. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index gained 10.83 points, or 0.43 per cent, to 2,515.69.

US stocks posted gains Thursday as a string of positive first quarter earnings reports boosted investor confidence.

Shipper UPS and computer chip maker Intel were among the winners on Wall Street after announcing first quarter earnings. Intel reported overnight record first-quarter profit nearly quadrupled from ayear earlier, while UPS said Wednesday profits had increased by a third.

U.S. Economy: Factories Grow, Labor Market Struggles

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601010&sid=a52NgIaANKTI

April 15 (Bloomberg) -- Manufacturers are charging ahead as sales and inventories grow, spearheading a U.S. economic recovery that shows scant signs of lifting labor markets.

Stocks gained for a sixth day as the reports depicted a mixed picture of the economic recovery

Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said yesterday the labor market will be slow to recoup the jobs lost since the recession began in December 2007.

Stocks gained for a sixth day as the reports depicted a mixed picture of the economic recovery

Last year, 140 banks failed in the U.S. That was the highest annual number since 1992 during the peak of the savings and loan crisis. The failures last year cost the FDIC's insurance fund more than $30 billion.

Twenty-five banks failed in 2008 and three in 2007.

FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair has predicted that the number of bank failures will peak this year and be slightly more than in 2009.

parrot wrote:Since this thread seems to be focused on the bad news, I thought I'd add a few 'good news' headlines.

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Affects mainly US markets, but anything the US does always affects the rest of the world in a negative way.

Wall Street hits 19-month high on healthcare, energy

Even in the face of an extended recession, devastating double-digit unemployment and a barrage of political charges that President Barack Obama’s health care reform will decimate the economy, the U.S. stock market finished the week at a 19-month high.

U.S. stocks rose to a 19-month high on Friday as Merck eased concerns about the impact of healthcare reform, saying its costs will be relatively low.

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI gained 69.99 points, or 0.63 percent, to 11,204.28. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX rose 8.61 points, or 0.71 percent, to 1,217.28. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC added 11.08 points, or 0.44 percent, to 2,530.15.

For the week, the S&P 500 was up 2.1 percent, the Dow gained 1.7 percent and the Nasdaq rose 2 percent. It was the eighth straight week of gains for the Dow and Nasdaq, while the S&P has gained in seven of the past eight weeks.

Strong earnings have contributed to the market's gains in recent weeks, with the benchmark S&P 500 up nearly 80 percent from the 12-year lows of March 2009.

The home builders index racked up its biggest weekly advance since July 2009, rising 12.8 percent, and is on track for its sixth straight month of gains.