Stocks fall as traders lock in profits after rally
NEW YORK (AP) -- With the
stock market in a bit of a news lull, investors decided to lock in some
profits.
Stocks fell modestly Monday
in the absence of any major corporate or economic developments. Investors were
also cautious ahead of earnings reports from major retailers and a two-day
meeting of the Federal Reserve on interest rates that starts Tuesday. Bond
prices jumped as stocks fell.
The day's selling wasn't
surprising after major indicators shot up 1 percent last week, including a
surge Friday in response to the government's stronger-than-expected jobs
report.
CEO of Nortel steps down as
company liquidates
TORONTO (AP) -- Nortel
Networks CEO Mike Zafirovski is stepping down from the troubled
telecommunications company, saying "a natural transition point" has
been reached as the company continues to liquidate.
The company also announced
Monday that its board of directors will be reduced to three, from nine, and
that its second-quarter losses more than doubled, partly on reorganization
costs.
Zafirovski, a protege of
former General Electric Co. head Jack Welch, was named CEO in 2005 after
serving as an executive at Motorola Inc. and GE.
McDonald's July same-store
sales rise 4.3 percent
NEW YORK (AP) -- McDonald's
Corp. said Monday its same-store sales climbed 4.3 percent in July, as the
nation's biggest hamburger chain benefited from budget-conscious consumers and
wide promotion of new coffee drinks.
The Oak Brook, Ill., company
said U.S. same-store sales climbed 2.6 percent because of new products,
including McCafe espresso-based coffee.
European same-store sales
surged 7.2 percent, helped by growth in France and the U.K.
Same-store sales for Asia
Pacific, the Middle East and Africa rose 2.1 percent, as strength in Australia helped
offset weakness in China. Longer operating hours also boosted sales.
Dish Network 2Q profit falls
on climbing costs
NEW YORK (AP) -- Dish
Network Corp. said Monday that its second-quarter profit slid 81 percent on
TiVo Inc. litigation costs and rising expenses, but the nation's second-largest
satellite TV provider managed to add subscribers and maintain revenue.
The Englewood, Colo.-based
company earned $63.4 million, or 14 cents per share, for the period ended June
30. That's down from $335.9 million, or 73 cents per share, last year.
Analysts polled by Thomson
Reuters, whose estimates typically exclude one-time items, forecast profit of
67 cents per share.
Revenue was nearly flat at
$2.90 billion, with prior-year revenue coming in at $2.91 billion. Analysts
expected revenue would not stray far from year-ago results, predicting $2.91
billion for the current quarter.
Dynegy sells plants for $1
billion, 2Q loss widens
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Power
provider Dynegy will sell eight plants plus another under development for about
$1 billion in cash and $500 million in stock as the company attempts to bolster
its finances and reduce debt.
Houston-based Dynegy
reported Monday that its second-quarter loss widened by 27 percent as it wrote
down the value of some of the plants it will sell to former development partner
LS Power Associates and because of falling energy prices. The company said it
will also slash expenses by $400 million to $450 million over the next four
years.
EBay, GM to start
car-selling trial Tuesday
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) --
Hundreds of General Motors' California dealers will let consumers haggle over
the prices of new cars and trucks through the eBay online marketplace under a
trial that begins Tuesday.
About 225 of California's
250 GM dealers are set to take part in the program. They will be selling Buick,
Chevrolet, GMC and Pontiac vehicles on cobranded Web sites through eBay Inc.'s
online auto marketplace, eBay Motors, until Sept. 8. The cars will also be
searchable through eBay Motors and eBay's main site.
Although the companies
previously said such a trial was in the works, details weren't released until
Monday.
Top insurance lobbyist:
August key in health drive
WASHINGTON (AP) -- August
will be a make-or-break month for the drive to revamp health care, as members
of Congress use the recess to either sell the need for an overhaul to voters or
continue criticism of the insurance industry, the chief of the insurers' main
lobbying arm said Monday.
Hoping to buttress support
for their effort to reshape health care, President Barack Obama and his
Democratic allies have targeted the insurance industry with some of their
sharpest barbs.
Karen Ignagni, president of
America's Health Insurance Plans, told editors and reporters from The
Associated Press that such attacks are designed as a distraction as the health
care debate becomes more contentious.
Hormel Foods boosts 2009
profit guidance
AUSTIN, Minn. (AP) -- Hormel
Foods Corp. raised its 2009 profit guidance Monday, citing strong performance
from its refrigerated foods and grocery segments, as well as improving
performance in its turkey business.
The company said its
third-quarter results were stronger than expected, so it boosted its guidance
to profit of $2.36 to $2.42 per share for the year. The company had previously
projected a profit of between $2.15 and $2.25 per share.
Analysts polled by Thomson
Reuters expect a profit of $2.29 per share for the year.
The company is due to
announce its third-quarter results Aug. 20.
Barnes & Noble to buy
company from chairman
NEW YORK (AP) -- Bookseller
Barnes & Noble Inc. said Monday it will buy Barnes & Noble College
Booksellers from its chairman in a deal worth $596 million.
The deal will cost Barnes
& Noble $460 million after accounting for College's cash on hand at the
expected closing date.
The purchase will boost
full-year earnings, reunite Barnes & Noble's brand and eliminate annual
royalty payments for online textbook sales.
The deal also gives Barnes
& Noble a business that's growing. College Booksellers saw same-store sales
growth of 1 percent in its 2009 fiscal year, which ended May 2. That compares
with a 5.7 percent decline in same-store sales for Barnes & Noble in its
first quarter, which also ended May 2.
Krugman says world avoided
second Great Depression
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP)
-- Aggressive stimulus spending by governments helped the world avoid a second
Great Depression but full economic recovery will take two years or more, Nobel
Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman said Monday.
Krugman said the worst of
the global crisis was over with economic and exports growth showing signs of
stabilization. Still, recovery was likely to be "disappointing" as
government spending wasn't sustainable in the long-run and employment still
lagging behind, he told a two-day world capital markets conference here.
There isn't likely to be any
"Phoenix-like" recovery such as in the 1997-98 Asian financial
crisis, where the economies expanded dramatically, led by a sharp rebound in
exports, he said.
By The Associated Press
The Dow Jones industrial
average fell 32.12, or 0.3 percent, to 9,337.95.
The Standard & Poor's
500 index fell 3.38, or 0.3 percent, to 1,007.10, while the Nasdaq composite
index fell 8.01, or 0.4 percent, to 1,992.24.
The Russell 2000 index of
smaller companies fell 0.53, or 0.1 percent, to 571.87.
Benchmark crude for
September delivery fell 33 cents to settle at $70.60 a barrel on the New York
Mercantile Exchange.
In other Nymex trading,
gasoline for September delivery gained about 1.9 cents to settle at $2.0274 a
gallon and heating oil rose 0.0154 cents to settle at $1.9276. Natural gas for
September delivery fell 3.3 cents to settle at $3.641 per 1,000 cubic feet.
In London, Brent prices fell
9 cents to settle at $73.50 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.