On Thursday August 19, 2010, 6:05 pm
Spike in layoffs feeds fear
of faltering recovery
WASHINGTON (AP) --
Employers appear to be laying off workers again as the economic recovery
weakens. The number of people applying for unemployment benefits reached the
half-million mark last week for the first time since November.
It was the third straight
week that first-time jobless claims rose. The upward trend suggests the private
sector may report a net loss of jobs in August for the first time this year.
Initial claims rose by
12,000 last week to 500,000, the Labor Department said Thursday.
Intel buys McAfee for $7.7B
in push beyond PCs
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Intel
Corp. is making the biggest acquisition in its history with the $7.68 billion
takeover of computer-security software maker McAfee Inc., an expensive example
of Intel's commitment to serve an increasing array of Internet-connected
devices.
The deal, announced
Thursday before the market opened, will help Intel improve the security of its
chips by sharpening the software that goes into them. It also opens a new
revenue stream for Intel, which will sell security software alongside new chips
it's developing for devices such as mobile phones, televisions and even cars.
Intel is the No. 1 maker of
microprocessors for personal computers and servers.
Stocks drop as jobless
claims rise unexpectedly
NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks
tumbled Thursday after two disappointing economic reports renewed investors'
concerns about the pace of the recovery.
The Dow Jones industrial
average fell 144 points. All the major stock indexes fell more than 1 percent.
Interest rates also fell sharply as investors moved back into the safety of
Treasury bonds.
The Labor Department said
initial claims for unemployment benefits rose unexpectedly last week and the
Federal Reserve of Philadelphia said manufacturing activity in the mid-Atlantic
region has dropped during August.
Budget analysts:
Near-record 2010 deficit of $1.3T
WASHINGTON -- This year's
federal deficit will surpass $1.3 trillion, a slight improvement over last
year's record red ink, Congress' top budget analysts said Thursday.
It gave no comfort to
lawmakers struggling to balance conflicting election-season pressures to cut
budget gaps, jolt the economy and reduce taxes.
With polls showing voters
unhappy with growing deficits, the issue will confront legislators when they
return from their summer recess in September, less than two months from
elections that will determine which party controls Congress.
BP accused of withholding
'critical' spill data
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The
company that owned the oil rig that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico is accusing
BP of withholding critical evidence needed to investigate the cause of the
worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history, according to a confidential document
obtained by The Associated Press.
The new complaint by
Transocean follows similar complaints by U.S. lawmakers about difficulties
obtaining necessary information from BP in their investigations.
In a sternly worded letter
to BP's attorneys, Transocean said the oil giant has in its sole possession
information key to identifying the cause of the accident.
BP's refusal to turn over
the documents has hampered Transocean's investigation and hindered what it has
been able to tell families of the dead and state and federal investigators
about the accident, the letter said.
HP's net jumps 6 pct in
last quarter under Hurd
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) --
Hewlett-Packard Co.'s net income jumped 6 percent and revenue notched 11 percent
higher in HP's last full quarter under now-ousted CEO Mark Hurd.
The numbers reported
Thursday squared with preliminary results HP revealed Aug. 6 in announcing
Hurd's abrupt resignation.
In his five years at HP,
Hurd aggressively cut jobs and other costs and orchestrated a broad push beyond
personal computers and printers. He left as HP is starting to face sharper
questions over his stewardship and how HP plans to grow beyond cuts and
acquisitions.
The latest numbers show
that one of Hurd's biggest projects -- transforming HP into a
technology-services powerhouse like IBM Corp. -- is progressing slowly.
Sears Holdings 2Q loss
narrows by half
CHICAGO (AP) -- Sears
Holdings Corp. cut its second-quarter loss by more than half as profit margins
perked up at its Kmart chain, the retailer led by billionaire Edward Lampert
said Thursday.
Still, the company's
results fell short of expectations. Weak shopper spending and increased
competition, especially on food, led to a revenue decline.
Sears shares dropped $6.22,
or 9.2 percent, to $61.03.
Dell 2Q net income rises 16
percent
SEATTLE (AP) -- PC maker
Dell Inc. said Thursday that its net income improved 16 percent in the most
recent quarter, though a key measure called gross profit margin fell.
The majority of Dell's
revenue comes from selling computers and other technologies to businesses, so
its results offer a gauge of the economic recovery in the form of business
spending on technology.
Companies spent more on
servers, storage and computers for employees in the fiscal second quarter,
which ended July 30, compared with the previous year.
Gap's 2nd-qtr net income
rises 3 percent
NEW YORK (AP) -- Rising
sales at its low-price Old Navy chain helped Gap Inc. post a 3 percent increase
in second-quarter net income, Gap said Thursday.
Based in San Francisco, Gap
also operates Banana Republic and Gap stores, plus its websites including its
Piperlime online business. And it affirmed a profit outlook for the year that
is in line with Wall Street estimates.
Gap also said Thursday that
its board has authorized a new $750 million share repurchase program, bringing
the total share repurchases authorization in fiscal 2010 to $1.75 billion.
Cost cuts help Staples 2nd-quarter
net income rise
NEW YORK (AP) -- Americans
and small businesses spent cautiously on office supplies, but belt-tightening
by Staples Inc. helped its second-quarter net income rise 40 percent.
CEO Ron Sargent said
Tuesday that despite the "challenging" backdrop, business seems to be
slowly improving even as the economy remains uncertain.
The nation's biggest office
supply chain said Tuesday that net income for the three months ended July 31
rose 40 percent to $129.8 million, or 18 cents per share, from $92.4 million,
or 13 cents per share, last year.
By The Associated Press
The Dow Jones industrial
average fell 144.33, or 1.4 percent, to 10,271.21. The Standard & Poor's
500 index fell 18.53, or 1.7 percent, to 1,075.63, while the Nasdaq composite
index fell 36.75, or 1.7 percent, to 2,178.95.
Benchmark oil for October
delivery fell 99 cents to settle at $74.43 per barrel on the New York
Mercantile Exchange.
In Nymex trading in
September contracts, natural gas for September delivery fell 6.8 cents to settle
at $4.171 per 1,000 cubic feet, heating oil lost 2.42 cents to settle at
$2.0007 a gallon and gasoline declined by 3.25 cents to settle at $1.9287 a
gallon.
In London, Brent crude fell
$1.17 to settle at $75.30 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.