Wall Street fell sharply Wednesday recovering almost its closing levels of the end of June, clings to the balance at the opening on Thursday. The Dow Jones gleans indeed 0.03% to 12,307 points, while the Standard & Poor's 500 and Nasdaq 100 are respectively 0.06% to 1306 points and 2767 points to 0.07%.
The bad news accumulated including the announcement of a slowing U.S. economy by the Fed on Wednesday night. In its Beige Book, the Fed noted that "economic activity continued to grow, but the pace has diminished." The two black dots for the United States continues to use, with "moderate increases in employment" and a labor market "remained calm," and real estate, where "activity remains weak," according Fed.
The weak economic recovery is not the only concern.The other fear comes from the U.S. sovereign debt and the apparent lack of progress in Congress six days before the deadline after which the U.S. may default in payment. The White House has acknowledged Wednesday night thinking about how to run the U.S. federal government if Congress does not get along by 2 August on raising the debt ceiling, exposing the country to default.
The euro against the dollar stable
Macroeconomic side, new jobless claims in the U.S. fell after mid-July to their lowest since early April, according to figures released Thursday by the Labor Department. At 398,000 in seasonally adjusted data for the week of July 17 to 23, the first time in three and a half months that the estimate of unemployment claims dropped below the 400,000 mark.It is still awaiting figures on the promises of sales in the U.S. that will be particularly monitored 16 hours today.
On the foreign exchange market, the euro lost more ground against the dollar. It is trading around 15.30 U.S. $ 1.4265, down 0.72%. Oil prices, they were in small drop at the opening in New York, in a market trying to regain a foothold in the very quagmire of American debt crisis. Around 3:10 p.m., the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex), a barrel of "light sweet crude" for September delivery was trading at 97.00 dollars, down 40 cents from the previous day.
Sprint Nextel fall, Symantec is appreciated
The side of values, Symantec (3.99% to 19.15 dollars) reported for the first quarter of 2011/2012 a profit of $ 172 million, or 22 cents per share. Turnover was up 15% to 1.65% to 1.65 billion.For the current quarter, the company expects a growth in turnover from 12% to 13% minimum to 1 655 to 1 675 billion.
The chemicals group DuPont (1.76% to 53.20 dollars) shows a marked increase. The company announced on Thursday a net income up 5% in the second quarter, better than expected and raised its annual forecast results for 2011. Net income rose to $ 1.21 billion in the second quarter, against 1.15 billion last year, according to a statement from the group. DuPont also raised its annual earnings forecast "because of positive expectations for global growth."
However, Sprint Nextel (-15.70% to 4.35 dollars) falls after posting a quarterly loss Thursday than expected from April to June, the third largest U.S. mobile phone registered with more departures than arrivals of customers.Its loss widened to $ 847 million, 28 cents a share, against 760 million, 25 cents per share, a year earlier.
Exxon (-1.82% to 81.79 dollars). The tanker has reported a quarterly profit below expectations, in the refining business was worse than expected.
Colgate Palmolive (-0.25% to 85.28 dollars) announced quarterly results slightly above analysts' expectations, the good performance of international sales offsetting poor sales performance in North America. The manufacturer of toothpaste and care products posted a profit of $ 622 million over the period, or $ 1.26 per share for a turnover of 4.19 billion. Financial analysts anticipated $ 1.25 per share and 4.18 billion.
Visa (0.66% to 88.33 dollars) reported Wednesday a quarterly profit up 40%, while announcing the establishment of a new tariff structure for American traders. The first global network card payments reported earnings per share, excluding special items, of $ 1.26 while analysts had expected $ 1.23.
The investment fund Blackstone (0.06% to 17.38 dollars) is in talks with the American Medical Informatics Emdeon for a possible bid. The Wall Street Journal, the purchase price could reach $ 3 billion, including debt, if an offer materializes. The company Emdeon, which must publish its results on August 8, specializes in services and financial management software for physician offices.The Nashville company expects a turnover of 1.1 to 1.13 billion in 2011.
The Ford Motor Company (0.81% to 12.47 dollars) on Thursday announced plans to invest one billion dollars in a second plant in India to take advantage of the rapid expansion of the internal market and achieve its growth objectives.
Aflac (5.32% to 46.50 dollars) on Wednesday released after the close of Wall Street, earnings per share in the second quarter from 0.6 dollar against 1.23 dollar last year. The company maintained its forecast of growth of operating profit per share of 8% in 2011 and 2% to 5% in 2012.
Ameriprise Financial (3.78% to 53.52 dollars) announced earnings per share up 22% for the second quarter to $ 1.25.The amount of assets under management rose 17% to $ 670 million.
Cliffs Natural Resources (-4.95% to 88.96 dollars) has issued an earnings per share for the second quarter rose 52% to 2.92 dollars, thanks to acquisitions and higher prices for iron ore .
Murphy Oil (-6.23% to 62.75 dollars) made a profit of 1.6 dollar per share in the second quarter, up 13% thanks to higher crude oil and improved refining margins and retail margins.