How To Learn Stocks | How To In Invest In Stock | How To Pick Stock

News at a Glance

• Major Indexes: Stocks stay mixed after weak retail numbers.
• Earnings Season: Alcoa results do little to move market.
• Oil Roils: Futures circle $60 mark.
• Carbon Impasse: No agreement from G-8 leaders.

The Lowdown

Weak retail sales and a tired start to earnings season kept major stock indexes flat in midday trading.

Stocks rose slightly Thursday, after Alcoa (AA) posted a lower than expected loss. As of 12:10 P.M., the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 4 to 8182, while the Nasdaq rose 10 to 1757 and the S&P 500 was up 4 at 884.

Earnings season got underway after the bell Wednesday when Alcoa surprised traders and analysts. Excluding one-time items, the aluminum giant lost 26 cents a share during the second quarter, compared to a gain of 66 cents a share in the same period a year ago. Analysts had expected a loss of 38 cents a share. As the first Dow component to report, Alcoa is traditionally seen as an economic bellwether and an indicator for second-quarter releases to come.

Retailers reported same-store sales for June, and the results were disappointing but unsurprising, with most reporting sdeclines from a year ago. From Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) to Zumiez (ZUMZ), sales hit double-digit drops. Wal-Mart (WMT) stopped offering monthly sales figures, leaving Target (TGT) as the largest retailer to report. It posted a 6.2% same-store sales drop.

Oil prices wavered after data released by the Energy Department Wednesday suggested weak demand. By 12:15 p.m. crude futures traded on the Nymex dropped 30 cents to $59.84 a barrel.

Corporate News

• Alcoa (AA) posted its third consecutive quarterly loss. Excluding special items, the aluminum maker lost 26 cents a share in the second quarter, compared to a gain of 66 cents a share during the same period a year ago. Analysts had expected a loss of 38 cents a share.
• AIG (AIG) has restarted talks to sell its American Life Insurance unit to MetLife (MET), a deal which could help the insurer raise more than $15 billion, the Financial Times reported Thursday. Talks between the two companies fell apart earlier this year because of a disagreement about the sale price.
• Costco (COST) reported that June same-store sales fell 6% as customers held off on pricier items like cameras and cell phones. The warehouse retailer saw sales slip 6% in the U.S. and 3% internationally. The declines were in line with analysts’ expectations.

The Economy

• The initial jobless claims for the week ending July 4 were 565,000,  down from the revised 617,000 for the previous week, the Labor Department said Thursday. Forecasters expected the number of first-time filings for state unemployment benefits to come in at 603,000.  REPORT
• The Commerce Department reported better than expected figures on wholesale inventories for May, which declined 0.8%, less than the 1.0% estimated decline. They declined 1.4% in the previous month. REPORT

SMARTMONEY ® Layout and look and feel of SmartMoney.com are trademarks of SmartMoney, a joint venture between Dow Jones & Company, Inc. and Hearst SM Partnership. © 1995 – 2009 SmartMoney. All Rights Reserved.

Source: http://feeds.smartmoney.com/smartmoney/investing

Click Here to Learn How To Generate Profitable Winning Trades
On Autopilot In Only An Hour A Day