REUTERS – The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged to a record on Tuesday, breaking through levels last seen in 2007 as investors poured money into blue-chip stocks in expectation of more gains amid signs of a strengthening U.S. economy. The oldest U.S. stock market gauge has gained more than 8 percent so far this year, ahead of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite Index. Nine of its component... 

REUTERS – The stock market slowly returned to life on Wednesday after two days in the dark, in the wake of the massive storm Sandy that caused the market’s first weather-related two-day closure since Grover Cleveland was president. The major stock indexes’ early gains were short-lived as buying receded quickly. The S&P 500 was modestly lower in a session that is on track to be... 

REUTERS – The Dow industrials ended slightly higher on Thursday while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq cut most of the day’s losses in a sign that investor sentiment remains generally positive despite several weak manufacturing surveys from around the world. Pockets of strength included housing, with an index of housing stocks .HGX up 0.8 percent, following Wednesday’s gains on... 

Gold jumped to a record high on Friday and global equity markets extended a sharp sell-off as fears of a global recession and a funding crunch for regional banks in Europe intensified. Gold prices rallied more than 2.5 percent as investors sought refuge from a second day of hefty losses in stocks as equity markets reeled on fears of stalling economic growth around the world. Wall Street stocks... 

Fear returned to Wall Street on Wednesday, sending the S&P 500 to another 4 per cent decline, triggered by worries that Europe’s debt crisis could engulf French banks and spill onto the U.S. financial sector. Trading was once again marked by sharp moves on heavy volume. For a fifth straight day, the Dow industrials fluctuated in a range of more than 400 points. “What you’re seeing... 

Bank of America said on Tuesday that it lost $9.1 billion in the second quarter, due to its record-breaking settlement over subprime mortgage claims stemming from the financial crisis. Its earnings amounted to a swing into a loss of 90 cents a share, in line with analysts’ forecasts after the bank set aside $14 billion last month to compensate angry investors for their losses on dodgy mortgage-backed... 

JPMorgan Chase & Co agreed to pay $153.6 million to settle U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges that it defrauded investors who bought mortgage securities sold just before the nation’s housing market collapsed. The regulator’s complaint against the banking giant was larded with excerpts from internal JPMorgan communications that indicated bankers sold a collateralised mortgage... 

Stocks extended losses for the sixth straight day on Wednesday as investors worried that a slowing economy could deepen the market’s retreat. The latest evidence of a slowdown came in the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, which gives an anecdotal report on the economy. It reinforced Fed chief Ben Bernanke’s bearish assessment on growth delivered late on Tuesday. The market’s mood... 

Stocks extended a losing streak for a fifth day on Tuesday on mounting concerns about the economy after bearish comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. The market, which started off on a positive note after the S&P 500 hit a two-month low in the previous session, reversed course to turn negative after Bernanke started speaking. He acknowledged a slowdown in the economy, but offered... 

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. unveiled a $15 billion share buyback program Friday as it hammered home its message to shareholders at its annual meeting that the world’s largest retailer will keep growing. At a packed basketball arena at the University of Arkansas, CEO Mike Duke said Wal-Mart would add sales wherever it can: overseas, online, and in small towns and big cities. “We are right in the...