Friday, August 17, 2012

Investors close up a quiet week






Cilck on chart for more premarket data




NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks were poised for a mixed start Friday as investors close the books on a quiet trading week.



U.S. stock futures were mostly flat.




Firms including retailer Foot Locker (FL, Fortune 500) and food producer J.M. Smucker (SJM, Fortune 500) reported their financial results Friday morning, as quarterly earnings season draws to a close. The Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index and the Conference Board's Leading Indicators reading will also be released before the bell.



Trading volume has been low over the past few days, with vacation season at its height and little news out of Europe.



U.S. stocks closed higher Thursday following strong earnings from Cisco Systems (CSCO, Fortune 500) and a mixed bag of economic data.



Fear & Greed Index



World Markets: European stocks moved slightly higher in morning trading. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.2%, the DAX in Germany added 0.3% and France's CAC 40 was flat.



German Chancellor Angela Merkel reiterated that European policymakers are committed to doing everything they can to support the euro, reigniting hope for further central bank action.



Asian markets ended higher. The Shanghai Composite closed up 0.1%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong and Japan's Nikkei gained 0.8%.





Economy: At 9:55 a.m. ET, the University of Michigan will release the August edition of its Consumer Sentiment Index. The reading is expected to come in at 72.2, down slightly from July's 72.3.



At 10 a.m. ET, the Conference Board will release its Leading Indicators Index for July, which is expected to have increased by 0.2%.



Companies: Foot Locker's second-quarter earnings beat forecasts, but shares of the athletic-wear retailer slid in premarket trading.



J.M. Smucker reported earnings of $1 per share on $1.3 billion in revenue, topping analyst expectations.



Facebook (FB) shares rose slightly early Friday, after sliding in after-hours trading Thursday after sinking 6.3% during the trading day. More than 150 million shares changed hands Thursday, pushing the stock down as much as 7% to an all-time low, as the social media company's "lock-up period" expired.



Shares of Electronic Arts (EA) and Redbox-parent Coinstar (CSTR) extended gains in premarket trading Friday on takeover speculation. The New York Post reported that both companies are targets for private equity firms.



Currencies and commodities: The dollar lost ground against the euro, but picked up against the British pound and Japanese yen.



Oil for September delivery fell 5 cents to $95.05 a barrel.



Gold futures for December delivery lost 9 cents to $1,613.20 an ounce.



Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury fell, pushing the yield up to 1.84% from 1.81% late Thursday.








Source & Image : CNN Money

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