MARKETS:
Stocks: Best monthly gain in a year
Major indexes end flat Friday, but post the first monthly rise since April.
Stocks cap the best monthly gain in a year, with all three major
indexes rising more than 7% in July.
KABUL, Afghanistan -- The Associated Press is reporting that three
U.S. service members have been killed in Afghanistan, bringing the
toll for July to at least 63. That makes it the deadliest month for
American forces in the nearly 9-year-war.
U.S. STOCKS SLUMP AS GROWTH FIGURES DISAPPOINT
U.S. stocks fall Friday after government data showed economic growth
slowed in the second quarter, though they regain some lost ground
after better-than-expected reports on consumer confidence and
manufacturing.
MERCK'S PROFIT DROPS ON MERGER COSTS, REVAMP
Merck & Co. reports sharply lower second-quarter earnings, its bottom
line dragged down by costs associated with its recent takeover of
rival Schering-Plough Corp and a continuing restructuring program.
CHEVRON PROFIT TRIPLES AS REFINING RECOVERS
Chevron on Friday said its second-quarter net income tripled on higher
crude prices and a 3% rise in oil production, as the oil giant beat
Wall Street's profit target.
AEP'S QUARTERLY NET FALLS ON ONE-TIME COSTS
American Electric Power's second-quarter net earnings fall, but
adjusted profit comes in ahead of analysts' consensus forecast.
ROSY SECOND-HALF OUTLOOK LIFTS ALCATEL-LUCENT
Shares of Alcatel-Lucent rise as much as 8% as the telecoms-equipment
giant reports in-line underlying earnings.
> PRIVATE SUSPECTED IN WIKILEAKS TRANSFERRED
An Army private suspected of leaking classified material,
including videos and other documents, has been moved from Kuwait
to a Marine Corps brig in Virginia.
> DAUGHTERS: MOM IN BABY CASE SECRETIVE
A French woman who admitted to giving birth to and smothering
eight babies over a 17-year period was secretive but always
supportive of her family, two of her daughters say in a local
newspaper report.
> BA POSTS PRE-TAX LOSS OF $256.5 MILLION
British Airways announces a pre-tax loss of 164 million pounds
($256.5 million) for the three months ending June 30.
> NEW BP BOSS TO DISCUSS GULF RECOVERY
Incoming BP CEO Bob Dudley is expected to discuss the oil
giant's long-term recovery efforts in the Gulf of Mexico during
a news conference in Mississippi on Friday.
> OFFICIALS: MAJOR DRUG TRAFFICKER SLAIN
Ignacio "Nacho" Coronel, a top leader of the Sinaloa drug
cartel, was killed during a military raid in Guadalajara,
Mexico, sources say.
> ISRAELI CITY HIT BY PALESTINIAN ROCKET
The Israeli city of Ashkelon was hit by a rocket fired by
Palestinian militants in Gaza early Friday, causing minor
damage, but no injuries, the Israel Defense Forces spokesman
said.
> GULF OIL CLEANUP CHIEF DETAILS PLANS
The man overseeing the federal response to the Gulf oil disaster
will meet New Orleans parish presidents Thursday to outline the
plans after the well is permanently sealed.
> U.N., N. KOREA BACK IN SHIP SINKING TALKS
The U.S.-led United Nations Command will meet again Friday with
North Korea to discuss the sinking of a South Korean warship,
according to the U.S. Forces Korea website.
BUSINESS
~~~~~~~~~~~
> AT $139, IS THE NEW KINDLE 'CHEAP'?
Prices in consumer electronics tend to fluctuate wildly.
> DEATH TOLL UP IN CHINESE FACTORY BLAST
The death toll stands at 13 in Wednesday's blast at a factory in
the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing, state-run Xinhua news
agency reported, citing remarks by authorities on Thursday.
> WHY IS OBAMA TAKING ON BIG BUSINESS?
Corporate chiefs may seem hardboiled, but they can be sensitive,
too. Take the ruckus they've been raising over what they
perceive to be rough treatment from the Obama White House.
U.S. economy grows at 2.4% annual rate in 2nd quarter, government
says; 4th straight quarter of growth but below forecasts.
Major U.S. indexes edge into positive territory; Dow, S&P 500 erase
weekly losses
07/30/2010 10:46:38 AM EDT
