NST Online Business Times : latest

Posted: 24 May 2013 05:45 PM PDT

NEW YORK: US stocks closed flat Friday, reeling in early losses but showing caution following Japan's Thursday 7.3 per cent plunge and ahead of the three-day US Memorial Day holiday weekend.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 8.60 points (0.06 per cent) at 15,303.10.

The broad-based S&P 500 was down 0.91 (0.06 per cent) at 1,649.60, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.28 (0.01 per cent) to 3,459.14.

A slight 0.9 per cent rebound in Japan's Nikkei 225 index and modest further falls in Europe kept the mood on Wall Street cautious, with little reaction to data showing a rebound in US durable goods orders in April.

Orders gained 3.3 per cent, led by the volatile aircraft sector, after March's 5.9 per cent drop.

Procter & Gamble was the most heavily traded equity on the New York Stock Exchange, gaining 4.0 per cent after chief executive Bob McDonald stepped down late Thursday under pressure from disgruntled shareholders. McDonald will be replaced by his predecessor in the job, A.G. Lafley.

"McDonald was criticised primarily for not using P&G's old and powerful brands to lift revenue. Instead, he moved the company toward selling cheaper brands," said Douglas McIntyre of 24/7WallSt.

Computer maker Hewlett-Packard gave up 2.6 per cent after Thursday's 17 per cent jump on new optimism about the company's growth.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals surged 13.1 per cent on news that it was close to firming up a US$9 billion deal to buy eyecare firm Bausche & Lomb.

Retailer Sears Holdings lost 13.6 per cent after turning in a US$279 million loss for the first quarter, with a 3.6 per cent fall in comparable stores sales.

Hip youth clothing chain Abercrombie & Fitch sank 8.0 per cent as it turned in a smaller first-quarter loss but reported same-store sales fell 15 per cent, worse than what analysts had expected.

News Corp's board approved as expected the breakup of the media-entertainment conglomerate headed by Rupert Murdoch into two separate companies, effective June 28, sending its shares 0.7 per cent higher.

Murdoch will head both firms, including one company focused on news and publishing, to retain the News Corp name, and another on television and film, to be called 21st Century Fox. -- AFP

Kredit: www.nst.com.my

Jumaat, 24 Mei 2013

NST Online Business Times : latest

NST Online Business Times : latest

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