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Stocks erase losses by close
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks erased losses to end higher Thursday as a rally in commodity and consumer shares helped investors to look past dour reports on jobs and manufacturing.
The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) gained 24 points, or 0.2%. The S&P 500 index (SPX) added less than 2 points, or 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) ended just above unchanged.
Stocks were mixed to higher early in the session as investors weighed a rise in weekly jobless claims with better news out of Europe. But the tone turned negative after the release of weaker-than-expected readings on manufacturing and leading economic indicators (LEI).
Nonetheless, stocks managed to erase losses and end above breakeven, with the Dow sporting a small advance.
Markets have been choppy the last two session after the Dow jumped nearly 600 points, or 6%, in just over a week. That advance following a six-week selloff that saw the major gauges each lose more than 13%.
The concerns were tempered somewhat by reports out of Europe that showed Spain getting solid results for its bond auctions, easing worries that the country's fiscal woes could be in as bad as those of Greece. A separate report showed improved retail sales in Britain last month.
"I think people want to remain bullish when they look at corporate earnings and GDP, but that's tempered by debt issues in Europe and the recent retail and jobs reports, which have been pretty poor," said Robert Siewert, portfolio manager at Glenmede.
"Market participants are questioning whether the recent selloff was a typical market correction or the start of something more protracted," he said.
COMEX gold for August delivery rose $18.20 to settle at $1,248.70 an ounce, an all-time high.
Worries that the European debt crisis could send the United States back into recession have dragged on U.S. stocks over the past two months.
Stocks were mixed Wednesday, after BP said it was canceling its quarterly dividend and establishing a $20 billion fund to cover damages related to the Gulf oil spill. BP (BP) remained in focus Thursday as chief executive Tony Hayward testified before a House committee.
Hayward told the committee he was "deeply sorry" for the catastrophe, after lawmakers lambasted him for being oblivious to the risks that led to the explosion at the Deepwater Horizon rig and subsequent oil leak.
Jobs: The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment rose last week to 472,000 from 460,000 the previous week. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com thought claims would drop to 450,000.
Continuing claims, a measure of Americans who have been receiving benefits for a week or more, rose to 4,571,000 from 4,483,000 the week before, versus forecasts for a drop to 4,475,000.
Other economic news: The Philadelphia Fed index, a regional reading on manufacturing, fell to 8 in June from 21.4 in May, missing forecasts for a drop to 20, as activity slowed far more than expected.
Another report, LEI, rose 0.4% in May versus forecasts for a rise of 0.5%. LEI was flat in April.
The Consumer Price index, a measure of consumer inflation, fell 0.2% in May versus forecasts for a drop of 0.1%. CPI fell 0.1% in April. So-called core CPI, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, rose 0.1% as expected after showing no change in the previous month.
Euro: The euro rose 0.6% versus the dollar, continuing to recover after touching a four-year low of $1.188 last week. The dollar fell 0.7% against the yen.
On the move: The Dow managed to end higher, with Caterpillar (CAT, Fortune 500), Chevron (CVX, Fortune 500), Travelers (TRV, Fortune 500), IBM (IBM, Fortune 500) and Wal-Mart Stores (WMT, Fortune 500) providing the lift.
In company news, grocery chain Kroger (KR, Fortune 500) gained 3.3% after reporting higher-than-expected quarterly earnings and saying current-quarter sales are tracking roughly in line with the previous quarter.
Food and consumer products maker J.M. Smucker (SJM) reported higher quarterly net income, sending shares up 6.6%.
Market breadth was negative. On the New York Stock Exchange, losers beat winners by a narrow margin on volume of 1.16 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, decliners topped advancers by a narrow margin on volume of 1.78 billion shares.
World markets: European markets gained. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.3%, Germany's DAX added 0.5% and France's CAC 40 gained 0.2%.
Asian markets were mixed. Japan's Nikkei lost 0.7% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.4%. China's Shanghai Composite lost 0.4%.
Commodities: U.S. light crude oil for July delivery fell $1.10 to settle at $76.57 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Bonds: Treasury prices rallied, lowering the yield on the 10-year note to 3.19% from 3.28% late Wednesday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Stocks sputter on job worries
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks churned in jittery trading early Thursday as investors weighed a worse-than-expected jobless claims report with better news out of Europe.
The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) lost 17 points, or 0.2%, in the early going. The S&P 500 index (SPX) also eased a few points and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) was little changed.
Weekly jobless claims rose last week, after falling for the previous three weeks, reviving concerns about the strength of any recovery if job growth is lacking.
The concerns were tempered somewhat by reports out of Europe that showed Spain saw solid results for its bond auctions, easing worries the country could be in a fiscal shape as bad as Greece. A separate report showed improved retail sales in Britain last month.
Worries that the European debt crisis could send the United States back into recession have dragged on U.S. stocks over the past two months.
Stocks were little changed at the end of a choppy session Wednesday following mixed economic reports. In addition, investors considered BP's decision to cancel its quarterly dividend and establish a $20 billion fund to cover damages related to the Gulf oil spill.
The British oil company will be in focus again Thursday as chief executive Tony Hayward testifies before a House committee.
Economy: The weekly jobless claims report from the Department of Labor showed a gain of 12,000 to 472,000 initial claims in the week ended June 12.
The gain was much higher than expected. Economists had forecast 450,000 Americans to have filed new claims for unemployment last week, according to a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com.
The Consumer Price Index, the government's main inflation gauge, slipped 0.2% in May, a wider-than-expected decline. A consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com had expected to show that prices fell 0.1% in May after falling 0.1% the month before.
Excluding energy and food prices, the so-called core CPI, prices ticked up by 0.1% last month, after being unchanged in April. This report matched expectations.
After the market opens, reports on leading economic indicators and manufacturing in the Philadelphia area were scheduled to come out.
World markets: European shares were up in morning trading. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.8%, the CAC 40 in France edged up 0.9% and Germany's DAX added 0.6%.
In Asia, the major indexes ended mixed. Japan's Nikkei finished with a 0.7% decline, but Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.4%.
Dollar and commodities: The dollar eased against the euro, yen and British pound.
U.S. light crude oil for July delivery slid 78 cents to $76.89 a barrel. COMEX gold's August contract added $15.30 to $1,245.80 per ounce.
Bonds: Treasury prices inched up, with the 10-year note's yield down to 3.25% from 3.29% the day before. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Stocks set for higher open
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks were set to open higher Thursday as investors prepared for new readings on the labor market and inflation.
At 7 a.m. ET, Dow Jones industrial average (INDU), Nasdaq (COMP) and S&P 500 (SPX) futures were all about 0.3% higher. Futures measure current index values against perceived future performance.
Stocks were little changed at the end of a choppy session Wednesday following mixed economic reports. In addition, investors considered BP's decision to cancel its quarterly dividend and establish a $20 billion fund to cover damages related to the Gulf oil spill.
The British oil company will be in focus again Thursday as chief executive Tony Hayward is scheduled to testify before a House committee in the afternoon.
Economy: The weekly jobless claims report from the Department of Labor is due before the opening bell. Roughly 450,000 Americans are expected to have filed new claims for unemployment last week, down from 452,000 in the previous week.
The Consumer Price Index, the government's main inflation gauge, is expected to show that prices fell 0.1% in May after falling 0.1% the month before. Excluding energy and food prices, the so-called core CPI, prices are forecast to have risen 0.1% last month.
After the market opens, reports on leading economic indicators and manufacturing in Philadelphia are scheduled to come out.
World markets: European shares were up in morning trading. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.8%, the CAC 40 in France edged up 0.9% and Germany's DAX added 0.6%.
In Asia, the major indexes ended mixed. Japan's Nikkei finished with a 0.7% decline, but Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.4%.
Dollar and commodities: The dollar eased against the euro, yen and British pound.
U.S. light crude oil for July delivery slid 30 cents to $77.37 a barrel. COMEX gold's August contract added $7.30 to $1,237.80 per ounce.
Bonds: Treasury prices inched up, with the 10-year note's yield down to 3.28% from 3.29% the day before. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.
STI lower at midday
SINGAPORE shares were lower at midday on Thursday, with the benchmark Straits Times Index at 2,838.22, down 0.31 per cent, or 8.72 points.
About 538.7 million shares exchanged hands.
Losers beat gainers 204 to 109.
Stocks end flat after choppy session
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- U.S. stocks recovered from deep losses Wednesday and finished a choppy session near the previous day's closing levels as investors considered mixed economic news and BP's agreement to establish a $20 billion escrow fund and cancel its quarterly dividend.
The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) closed up 5 points, or 0.1%. It was down by as much as 72 points earlier in the session, following a disappointing report on the housing market.
Rebounding from an 8-point loss, the S&P 500 index (SPX) finished less than 1 point down, or 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) added half a point. The tech-heavy index was 16 points lower earlier.
Stocks gained Tuesday as fears about Europe's debt crisis continued to fade and the euro rallied, rising above the $1.23 level for the first time in more than a week. The three major indexes added more than 2% and finished above key milestone levels.
That momentum initially diminished Wednesday as investors faced disappointing economic reports and less-than-stellar corporate news. But it began to resurface after Obama administration officials confirmed that BP (BP) agreed to put roughly $20 billion in an escrow account to payout claims from the oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.
"After a tremendous rally yesterday and a mixed bag of economic news this morning, that fact that the market is virtually unchanged is a big win," said Art Hogan, chief market analyst at Jefferies & Co.
President Obama met with BP executives in the White House on Wednesday, including CEO Tony Hayward and the company's chairman, Carl Henric Svanberg.
Following the summit, the company announced it is canceling its quarterly dividend for the rest of the year, and promised it would revisit the issue next year.
In his first address from the Oval Office, the president told the nation Tuesday night he will make BP pay for the costs of cleaning up the oil disaster. He also pushed Congress to move on clean energy legislation.
Shares of BP finished up 1.4%.
Earlier Wednesday, stocks slipped on worse-than-expected housing news and a tempered outlook from FedEx.
While economists anticipated new home construction would ease in May -- the first month after the homebuyer tax credit expired -- the drop was steeper than they expected.
"We expected a decline, but the inventory of unsold new homes fell to a 40-year low," said John Canally, economist at LPL Financial.
And while FedEx (FDX, Fortune 500) posted a fiscal fourth-quarter profit Wednesday morning, the shipping giant said it expects earnings for fiscal 2011 to be "constrained" due to higher costs. The news sent the company's shares down nearly 6% and pressured the broader market earlier in the session.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve reported that industrial production climbed 0.2% in May, after rising 0.7% the previous month. Economists were expecting the figure to edge up 0.8%.
Canally said the surge was a "pleasant surprise" and helped curb some prior weakness in stocks.
"The data shows that factory production is still booming, led by exports, so it's comforting to see that the European debt crisis hasn't torpedoed global growth yet," he said.
But Canally warned that market participants will remain anxious about the impact of the Europe's fiscal instability on the global economy.
"The economy is transitioning from a period of recovery to sustainable growth, and as that expansion phase takes hold, it will be choppy," Canally said. "We'll see the market give and take -- take two steps forward and one step back -- but earnings season in July could change the battleground a bit."
Economy. The Commerce Department also said that building permits, a measure of builder confidence, also fell sharply, dropping 5.9% from the previous month.
Another report showed that the Producer Price index (PPI), a key measure of wholesale inflation, fell 0.3% in May after slipping 0.1% in April. The so-called Core PPI, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, rose 0.2%. Economists thought Core PPI would rise 0.1%.
Companies: Mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae (FNM, Fortune 500) and Freddie Mac (FRE, Fortune 500), which have been overseen by the government since September 2008, were ordered by their federal regulator to delist from the New York Stock Exchange. Shares of both were closed nearly 40% lower.
Nokia (NOK) shares plunged more than 10% after the tech company cautioned investors that its cell phone business will post weaker-than-expected second quarter results, due July 22.
World markets: European shares closed slightly higher Wednesday. Britain's FTSE 100, the CAC 40 in France, and Germany's DAX finished up about 0.2% .
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei spiked 1.8%, while markets in Hong Kong, Taiwan and China were closed for a holiday.
Dollar and commodities: The dollar was higher against rivals. The greenback rose 0.2% against the euro, but the shared currency remained above $1.23.
The edged up 0.1% against the British pound, It was slightly lower on the yen to ¥91.43.
U.S. light crude oil for July delivery rose 73 cents to settle at $77.67 a barrel, and gold for August delivery rose fell $3.90 cents to settle at $1,1230.50 per ounce.
Bonds: Treasury prices edged higher, lowering the 10-year note's yield to 3.28% from 3.31% the day before. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.
These are daily news reports.
They are valid for a Day only.
Today market falls, they will find reasons why the stocks fall.
Tomorrow market rises, they will also find reasons why the stocks rise.
They are good for information, but you still need to determine the market direction yourself.
E-war ( Date: 16-Jun-2010 23:39) Posted:
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Blastoff ( Date: 16-Jun-2010 23:13) Posted:
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Maybe can pick up later.
Now down 20+ only
Blastoff ( Date: 16-Jun-2010 23:13) Posted:
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Stocks slide on disappointing economic reports
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- U.S. stocks fell Wednesday, with the Dow sliding as much as 72 points at the open, as investors digested a dismal housing report and a tempered earnings outlook from FedEx.
The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) dropped 49 points, or 0.5%. The S&P 500 index (SPX) lost 5 points, or 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) shed 9 points, or 0.4%.
U.S. markets rallied Tuesday as concerns about Europe's debt woes eased. The Dow gained 2.1%, the S&P 500 jumped 2.4% and the Nasdaq climbed 2.8%.
But all that momentum was lost early Wednesday as investors faced disappointing economic news and less-than-stellar corporate reports.
Economy: The Commerce Department reported that new home construction sank 10% in May -- the first month after the a homebuyer tax credit expired -- to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 593,000.
Building permits, a measure of builder confidence, also fell sharply, dropping 5.9% from the previous month.
Another report showed that the Producer Price index (PPI), a key measure of wholesale inflation, fell 0.3% in May after slipping 0.1% in April. The so-called Core PPI, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, rose 0.2%. Economists thought Core PPI would rise 0.1%.
The Federal Reserve reported that industrial production climbed 1.2% in May, after rising 0.7% the previous month. Economists were expecting the figure to edge up 0.8%.
Companies: FedEx (FDX, Fortune 500) posted a fourth-quarter profit Wednesday morning, but said it expects earnings for fiscal 2011 to be "constrained" due to higher costs. The news sent the shipper's shares down 1.3%.
Mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae (FNM, Fortune 500) and Freddie Mac (FRE, Fortune 500) were ordered by their federal regulator to no longer trade their shares on the New York Stock Exchange. Shares of of both sank 23%.
Gulf oil spill: President Obama is due to meet BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward and company Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg Wednesday.
The meeting comes a day after Obama, during an Oval Office address, vowed to make BP (BP) pay for the costs of cleaning up the oil disaster.
World markets: European shares rose in early trading, although gains were modest. Britain's FTSE 100, the CAC 40 in France and Germany's DAX were all slightly higher.
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei rallied 1.8%. Markets in Hong Kong, Taiwan and China were closed for a holiday.
Dollar and commodities: The euro, British pound and Japanese yen posted slight losses against the dollar.
U.S. light crude oil for July delivery fell 51 cents to $76.43 a barrel. COMEX gold's August contract added 30 cents to $1,234.70 per ounce.
Bonds: Treasury prices inched up, lowering the 10-year note's yield to 3.29% from 3.31% the day before. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Good News.
WEDnesday: 16 JUNE 2010
China to pump
billions into Greece
ATHENS
A total of 14 investment deals were signed between companies from the two countries yesterday during a visit to Athens by Chinese Vice-Premier Zhang Dejiang.
The agreements included three between shipping companies and Chinese shipbuilder Cosco for the construction of seven dry bulk cargo ships.
Greek telco OTE also signed an agreement with China’s Huawei, while food companies inked four deals for Greek olive oil.
No figures were immediately available as to how much the deals were worth, but London’s
Athens is seeking to attract investment from countries with massive sovereign wealth funds — such as China — in an effort to stimulate growth in its debt-laden economy.
The European Union and the International Monetary Fund have given Greece a €110-billion ($188-billion) bailout package over three years to tackle its fiscal crisis.
— China is investing billions of euros in various industries in Greece, ranging from shipping to olive oil, as the European nation battles to slash its massive debt.Financial Times reported them as worth “billions of euros”.Agenciespharoah88 ( Date: 16-Jun-2010 09:05) Posted:
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Monday: 15 JUNE 2010
DOW +213.88
Ignored GREECE downgrade to JUNK
Ignored BP downgrade from AA to BBB
Stocks erase gains on Greece
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks gave up gains by the close Monday after Moody's downgraded Greece's debt rating, reminding investors that Europe's economic woes aren't going away anytime soon.
The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) lost 20 points, or 0.2%, the S&P 500 index (SPX) lost 2 points, or 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) ended little changed.
Stocks gained soundly in the morning after a report showed a big jump in industrial output in Europe, boosting the euro and reassuring investors about the global recovery. But the advance lost steam in the early afternoon on news that Moody's cut its debt rating on Greece to "junk status."
"The market is very concerned about Greece and Europe and what it means for U.S. growth, but we don't think the problems there are severe enough to send the U.S. or Asia back into recession," said Matt King, chief investment officer at Bell Investment Advisors.
He said that the Monday afternoon dip was also reflective of the fact that afternoon trading volume was thin, making the market more volatile. In addition, the market has tended to switch direction of late in the last hour or 30 minutes of each session.
However, the reaction to Moody's downgrade was fairly mild compared to how it might have unnerved investors a month ago. That's partly because the news was unsurprising, with Greece continuing to struggle despite European leaders having made billions in loans available to the nation. Six weeks ago, Moody's rival Standard & Poor's cut its rating on Greece's debt to junk.
Concerns that problems in Greece and other debt-plagued European nations would slow the global recovery pummeled U.S. stocks for more than a month. The three major gauges lost more than 10% each -- the technical definition of a "correction" -- on worries that the United States could be headed for a double-dip recession.
But stocks managed to recover at the end of last week and through early Monday afternoon as the focus expanded to include improving corporate earnings and signs the economy is recovering outside the job market.
"We think we've seen a short-term correction, not the start of a bear market," King said. "Hopefully the market will become less manic over the next few months and focus more on the fundamentals.
Caterpillar (CAT, Fortune 500), United Technologies (UTX, Fortune 500) and Wal-Mart Stores (WMT, Fortune 500) were among the few gainers on the Dow, while DuPont (DD, Fortune 500), JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500), Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500) and Travelers (TRV, Fortune 500) were among the decliners.
Market breadth was positive. On the New York Stock Exchange, winners topped losers three to two on volume of 1.14 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, advancers topped decliners seven to six on volume of 1.90 billion shares.
No major economic news was released Monday, but reports are due later in the week on housing, wholesale and consumer inflation and jobless claims.
BP: President Obama reportedly wants the company to set up a fund to pay for damages from the leaking oil well, two months after the initial explosion. Lawmakers want BP (BP) to make as much as $20 billion available.
But the company may not be able to comply, as it only had $7 billion in cash on hand at the end of the first quarter and is currently expected to pay out dividends on June 21st. BP is expected to have discussed the issue of dividends at its board meeting Monday. Meanwhile, its stock price continues to plummet, losing 9.7% Monday to $30.67 per share.
Euro: The euro rose 0.9% versus the dollar, continuing to recover after touching a four-year low of $1.188 last week. The dollar fell 0.1% against the yen.
World markets: European markets gained. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.7%, Germany's DAX rose 1.3% and France's CAC 40 gained 2%.
Asian markets gained. Japan's Nikkei rose 1.8%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.9% and China's Shanghai Composite added 0.3%.
Commodities: U.S. light crude oil for July delivery rose $1.18 to $74.96 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
COMEX gold for August delivery fell $7.60 to $1,222.60 an ounce.
Bonds: Treasury prices fell, raising the yield on the 10-year note to 3.28% from 3.22% late Friday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Investors could be in for a bumpy ride next week
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Markets could be in for another bumpy ride next week as investors continue to look for clues on where the global economy is headed.
There will be no shortage of data to fuel the debate between bears and bulls. Economic reports are due on manufacturing, real estate and inflation, among others.
"The economic news will be important as investors look for direction on the second half of the year," said Lawrence Creatura, a portfolio manager with Federated Clover Investment Advisors. "There are multiple, overlapping uncertainties right now and any illumination from the macro data could tilt the balance."
Stocks ended last week on a high note, with the Dow Jones industrial average booking its first weekly gain in a month. But analysts expect trading to remain volatile in the weeks ahead as investors await clear direction on the economy in the United States and abroad and the debt situation in Europe.
While fears of a full-scale meltdown in Europe eased slightly last week, questions about the fiscal health of some economies in the region will continue to weigh on stocks, according to Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners.
"The rhetoric out of the EU will continue to be a dominating factor," he said.
The energy sector will also be in focus, as executives from BP travel to Washington next week to answer questions about the ongoing oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Shares of the British oil company have plunged recently amid growing speculation that it will be forced to cut its dividend payment. Some analysts think BP (BP) could end up in bankruptcy court because of the spill.
In addition to corporate and economic drivers, the ongoing debate in Washington over Wall Street reform will also be in focus. The House and Senate will meet to merge two proposed bills that would mandate sweeping changes, including steps to curb risk taking, protect consumers and prevent financial firms from getting too big to fail.
"Investors as well as leaders of corporations are awaiting stability in the regulatory environment so they can make plans for the future," said Creatura. "We don't know what the rules of the road are, and markets hate uncertainty."
Meanwhile, trading is expected to be volatile due to the simultaneous expiration of stock index futures and options as well as individual stock futures and options next week. The event can cause wild fluctuations in the underlying stocks and greater volatility in the broader market.
"Next week I think volatility will remain quite high due to quadruple expiration," said Cardillo. "With the market already in a downward trend, we could retest the lows we saw earlier this week."
On the docket
Monday: No significant economic reports are scheduled to be released.
Tuesday: Government data on import and export prices is due before the market opens, though the report is usually not a market mover. Consumer electronics giant Best Buy (BBY, Fortune 500) releases quarterly results and a report on manufacturing activity in New York comes out before the opening bell.
After the market opens, the Treasury Department will release a report on foreign purchases of U.S. debt.
Wednesday: The government will release a report on housing starts and building permits before the market opens.
Economists surveyed by Briefing.com expect housing starts fell to an annual rate of 655,000 units in May from 672,000 the month before. Building permits, considered a leading indicator, are forecast to rise to an annual rate of 655,000 from 610,000.
The producer price index, a measure of wholesale inflation, is expected to show prices fell 0.4% in May. Excluding volatile energy prices, producer prices likely rose 0.1%, according to estimates.
A report on capacity utilization and industrial production comes out after the opening bell.
The government's weekly oil inventory report also is due Wednesday morning
In corporate news, parcel delivery service FedEx (FDX, Fortune 500) is scheduled to report quarterly results in the morning.
In the evening, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke will deliver a speech in New York on proposed financial reform.
Thursday: The weekly jobless claims report from the Department of Labor is due in the morning. Roughly 450,000 Americans are expected to have filed new claims for unemployment last week, down from 452,000 in the previous week.
The consumer price index, the government's main inflation gauge, is expected to show that prices fell 0.2% in May after falling 0.1% the month before. Excluding energy and food prices, the so-called core CPI, prices are forecast to have risen 0.1% last month.
After the market opens, reports on leading economic indicators and manufacturing in Philadelphia are scheduled to come out.
In the afternoon, BP chief executive Tony Hayward is scheduled to testify before a House committee on the Deepwater Horizon, a drilling rig operated by the British oil company, which sank in April after an explosion and caused the worst oil spill in U.S. history.
Friday: The Labor Department will release a report on state unemployment levels at 10 a.m. ET.
STI higher at midday
SINGAPORE shares were higher at midday on Monday, with the benchmark Straits Times Index at 2,805.94, up 0.35 per cent, or 9.65 points.
About 335.8 million shares exchanged hands.
Gainers beat losers 223 to 97.