US MARKET & NEWS 30.7.2009

Stocks trimmed losses by the close Wednesday, but remained in the red after a weak durable goods orders report added to worries about the economy and investors soured on Yahoo's partnership with Microsoft. In addition to the day's news, Wall Street was also vulnerable to a pullback in the wake of a big two-week rally that lifted the Dow and S&P 500 by more than 11%
and the Nasdaq by 12%. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 0.3% (-26.0 pts, close9,070.7).The Nasdaq lost 0.4 (-7.7 pts,close 1,967.8) and the S&P 500 index lost 0.5% (-4.5 pts, close 975.2). In currency trading, the dollar gained against the euro and the Japanese yen. U.S. light crude oil for September delivery fell US$3.88 to settle at US$63.35 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. (CNNmoney)

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Orders for U.S. durable goods, excluding automobiles and aircraft, unexpectedly rose in June, signalling manufacturing may expand in 2H09. Excluding transportation equipment, demand for goods meant to last several years climbed 1.1%, the most in four months, the Commerce Department said yesterday in Washington. Total orders fell 2.5%, the first decrease in three months. The durable-goods figures used to calculate economic growth indicate companies plan to boost investment in coming months, adding to evidence the worst recession in five decades is starting to ease. Economists expected a 0.6% drop in orders, according to the median of 73 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey, after a previously reported 1.8% gain in May. Estimates ranged from a decline of 2% to a gain of 2%. (Bloomberg)
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The Federal Reserve said most of its 12 regional banks detected a slower pace of economic decline in June and July, further signs the worst U.S. downturn in at least five decades is closer to an end. “Economic activity continued to be weak” in June and July, the Fed said yesterday in its Beige Book business survey, published two weeks before officials meet to set monetary policy. San Francisco, the district with the biggest economy, and three others “pointed to signs of stabilization,” while Chicago and St. Louis showed a “moderating” pace of decline. The Beige Book provided few signs of outright growth. Retail demand was “sluggish” in most areas, with “mixed” auto sales. Non-financial services were “largely negative” with “a few bright spots,” and manufacturing was “subdued” yet “slightly more positive” than in the previous report, the Fed said. Lending in most regions “was stable or weakened further” in most loan categories, and banks tightened credit standards in seven districts, the report said. (Bloomberg)
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