stock markets

With the exception of the Dow, the rest of the markets struggled for direction Friday on what turned out to be a quiet news day as traders prepared for the long Presidents’ Day weekend.

Stock market declines were broad Wednesday, with nine of the 10 industry groups in the S&P recording losses. The only group that didn’t was materials, which was flat. Only five of the 30 stocks in the Dow rose for the day, and just barely.

Stocks staged a late rally Tuesday afer reports that the Greek debt talks might be back on. They were also hurt by a discouraging report on retail sales.

The U.S. stock markets were led by financial issues Monday to post small gains. The market’s gains were broad-based, with nine of 10 stock categories in the Standard & Poor’s 500 rising, led by industrial stocks. Utilities declined by a whisker. European stocks also rose.

Stocks tumbled sharply Friday on news that European finance ministers were insisting that Greece cut even more in wages and spending if the nation hopes to get bailout money to pay its creditors.

U.S. stocks rose Thursday morning after Greece announced an agreement to cut costs and keep from defaulting on its debt next month, but stocks dropped later in the morning and never returned to their highs for the day.

Stocks rallied Wednesday from early losses to close higher after Greek government leaders met in Athens to go over a deal on steep cuts in public spending demanded by the country’s lenders.

Stock indexes rose Tuesday after a report that Greece and the investors who bought its government bonds were close to a deal to reduce what Greece owes. Greece’s crushing debt has unnerved financial markets around the world for two years.

Stocks slipped Monday as talks on Greek cost-cutting continued. Greece is hoping the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission will release a second installment of $170 billion in loans. Without that money, Greece will likely default when a bond repayment comes due March 20.

Before the market opened Friday, the Labor Department said the economy added 243,000 jobs in January. It was the strongest job growth in nine months. The increase in hiring pushed the unemployment rate down to 8.3%, the lowest since February 2009. The surprising data gave financial markets a morning jolt that lasted throughout the trading day.

As of Jan. 31, shares of the six pure-play groups were trading at a multiple of 7.3 times trailing 12-month EBITDA, down 32% from the 10.7 times from two years earlier, according to a study by M.C. Alcamo & Co. Investors remain “cautious” despite positive signs, says Alcamo President Michael Alcamo.

U.S. stocks rose slightly in Thursday morning after the Labor Department said the four-week average of unemployment claims fell to 375,750, the lowest since June 2008 and enough to suggest a steadily improving job market.

Stocks climbed Wednesday after strong manufacturing data and encouraging reports about the Greek debt crisis. The Dow Jones industrial average closed within 100 points of its post-2008 financial crisis peak.

Stocks and bond yields dropped Monday as borrowing costs for European countries with the heaviest debt burdens shot higher.

Friday was the 17th day in a row of moves of less than 100 points up or down for the Dow. The last time the index had a longer period of such small moves was a 34-day stretch that started Dec. 3, 2010.

Solid news on factory orders and strong earnings from U.S. manufacturers helped the market open higher Thursday, but the Dow turned negative after weaker reports on home sales and future economic growth were released in the late morning.

Stocks closed higher Wednesday after the Fed promised to keep interest rates low. The big moves in both markets came at 12:30 p.m. ET, when the Fed’s monetary policy committee said it was unlikely to raise interest rates before late 2014. It had previously promised to keep rates low into the middle of 2013.

A slew of U.S. corporate earnings Tuesday did little to bolster investors’ confidence and stocks ended mostly lower. Treasury prices rose from their lowest levels this year on uncertainty about whether Greece will reach a deal with its creditors.

Stocks ended mixed Monday after the continent’s finance ministers put pressure on banks that hold Greek government bonds to accept new ones that are worth half as much and carry a lower interest rate.

IBM and Microsoft drove the Dow Jones industrial average higher Friday after the tech giants reported stronger earnings than analysts expected.

The economic news Thursday was good and the markets responded in kind. The number of people seeking unemployment benefits plummeted last week to 352,000, the fewest since April 2008. The decline added to evidence that the job market is strengthening.

Wednesday was a good day for the stock markets. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index closed above 1,300 for the first time since July 28, and the Dow Jones industrial average finished at its highest since July 25.

Debt auctions by Spain, Greece and Europe’s bailout fund drew solid interest from investors, easing fears that recent credit-rating downgrades would prevent them from obtaining funds. The downgrades had threatened to increase borrowing costs and intensify the region’s debt crisis.

Stocks closed lower Friday after a disappointing report from JPMorgan. It was the first time JPMorgan missed Wall Street expectations since the final quarter of 2007, a period that includes the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009. JPMorgan is widely considered one of the best-managed big banks. Traders figured that if JPMorgan had trouble as 2011 came to a close, the rest of the industry probably did, too.

Stocks finished Thursday higher after being down for most of the day. Stocks drove higher in the last hour and a half of trading after oil prices dropped below $100 per barrel for the first time this year.

Stocks crept lower Wednesday as Europe edged closer to a recession that would hurt corporate profits in the U.S. The first earnings reports from American companies didn’t add much encouragement.

Stocks closed higher Tuesday after European markets rallied and corporate bellwether Alcoa predicted stronger demand in 2012.

There was calm on Wall Street Monday as traders waited for corporate financial results to start rolling in so they could look for clues about the economy.

A positive jobs report Friday failed to lift stocks. The indexes teetered between small gains and losses all day as traders fretted about Europe’s ongoing financial drama.

Bruised once again by uncertainty about European debt, the U.S. stock market fell sharply Thursday at the open, then steadily gained ground for six hours.

Stock markets ended Wednesday mixed after a day of big gains. Specialty stores such as Bed Bath & Beyond rose on a report that mall shopping was strong in the week after Christmas.

Stocks rose sharply Tuesday in the first trading of 2012 after investors returned from the holiday and found encouraging economic reports from the United States and around the world.

Stocks ended flat for the year after big ups and downs. The conventional wisdom is the more risk, the greater the potential rewards. But the opposite is proving true this year: Investors playing it safe have gained the most.

Wall Streeters throughout 2011 became starry eyed when they talked about tech stocks. But they still had a soft spot in their hearts for traditional media companies all year long. Five of the seven companies in the Big Media group beat the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s 6.1% increase (through December 29th) — four of them by a lot.

The four-week average of unemployment claims fell to a three-and-a-half-year low Thursday, an indication that hiring could pick up. This drove stocks higher.

Worrying news Wednesday from the European Central Bank overshadowed two successful auctions of Italian government debt, resulting in weaker stock values.

Traders were relieved Friday by news that Congress extended a payroll tax holiday for workers and emergency unemployment benefits. The final business day before Christmas also was the slowest full day of trading so far this year. Traders exchanged just 2.22 billion shares, about half of the recent average.

Stocks closed higher Thursday on better job market news. The Conference Board also reported that its measure of future economic activity had a big increase last month. It was the second straight gain, signaling that the U.S. economy was picking up speed and the risk of another recession was fading.

A rare earnings miss by Oracle raised worries that weak government and business spending might hurt other big technology companies, resulting in mixed market averages Wednesday.

Stocks soared Tuesday after the Spanish government pulled off a successful debt auction and gauges of business and consumer confidence in Germany rose unexpectedly.