{"id":353451,"date":"2011-03-31T15:32:58","date_gmt":"2011-03-31T15:32:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/03\/31\/stocks-hold-steady-on-jobs-and-oil\/"},"modified":"2011-03-31T15:32:58","modified_gmt":"2011-03-31T15:32:58","slug":"stocks-hold-steady-on-jobs-and-oil","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/03\/31\/stocks-hold-steady-on-jobs-and-oil\/","title":{"rendered":"Stocks hold steady on jobs and oil"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"11chart_ws_index_dow.top.png\"<\/a>Click the chart for more market data.<\/b><\/span>
\nBy Ken Sweet, contributing writer<\/span>March 31, 2011: 11:32 AM ET<\/span>
<\/p>\n

NEW YORK\u00a0(CNNMoney) — U.S. stocks were swaying between minor gains and losses Thursday as investors digested a slightly worse-than-expected weekly jobless claims report and a notable jump in oil prices.<\/p>\n

Two big gainers on the Dow higher were the oil companies Chevron (CVX<\/a>, Fortune 500<\/a>) and Exxon Mobil (XOM<\/a>, Fortune 500<\/a>), following a 2% jump in crude prices. <\/p>\n

The job market was once again in focus. The government’s weekly jobless claims report showed a decline of 6,000 claims to 388,000 in the week ended March 26. The figure was higher than the 383,000 that economists surveyed by Briefing.com expected.<\/p>\n

The report foreshadows tomorrow’s closely watched government jobs report. A CNNMoney survey of 18 economists is forecasting a 180,000 jump in payrolls for March. They also expect the unemployment rate to hold steady at 8.9%.<\/p>\n

Dick Del Bello, senior partner with Conifer Group, a hedge fund service provider, said investors are relatively optimistic about the job market, but frustrated with its slow recovery.<\/p>\n

“I think the anticipation is that the job market is improving,” he said. “It’s slow, but it’s improving. I think everyone would like to see it happen faster, but it’s not going to happen.”<\/p>\n

For stocks to make substantial gains, “we’ll need to start seeing consistent signs of job creation,” said Frank Davis, director of sales and trading at LEK Securities.<\/p>\n

Ongoing debt concerns in Europe as investors await the results of bank stress tests in Ireland are another question mark for the market. On Thursday, Anglo Irish Bank announced a $25.2 billion loss, with its stress test results due later in the day.<\/p>\n

Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 0.3%, the DAX in Germany rose 0.2%, while France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.3%.<\/p>\n

U.S. stocks<\/a> ended Wednesday with solid gains, after two upbeat reports on job growth. One report from outplacement consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said private employers announced fewer planned job cuts<\/a> in March — even as government layoffs mounted.<\/p>\n

A second report, from payroll processor ADP, showed private sector employment rose<\/a> by 201,000 in March. Investors view the ADP report as a guide for what’s coming in Friday’s employment report from the Labor Department.<\/p>\n

Economy:<\/b><\/a> The Chicago-area purchasing managers’ index for March fell to a reading of 70.6 compared to February’s reading of 71.2. Economists were looking for a reading of 68.9.<\/p>\n

The Commerce Department said factory orders fell by 0.1% in February; economists had expected a 0.4% rise.<\/p>\n

Companies:<\/b><\/a> <\/b>Shares of <\/b>Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA<\/a>, Fortune 500<\/a>) fell 1.4% on Thursday after Buffett’s heir apparent, David Sokol, quit<\/a>. In a press release Wednesday, Buffett said the resignation was a “total surprise,” but he also revealed that Sokol had purchased shares of Lubrizol (LZ<\/a>, Fortune 500<\/a>) before pushing him to buy the company<\/a> in March for $9.7 billion. <\/p>\n

World markets:<\/b><\/a> Asian markets ended mixed. The Shanghai Composite fell 0.9%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong ticked up 0.3% and Japan’s Nikkei added nearly 0.5%.<\/p>\n

Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, in China for a meeting of G-20 finance ministers, said developing nations need flexible exchange rates to help absorb economic shocks. His comments came a day after criticism of U.S. monetary policy by a Chinese economist.<\/p>\n

Currencies<\/b><\/a> and commodities:<\/a><\/b> The dollar fell against the euro and the Japanese yen but was flat versus the British pound.<\/p>\n

Oil for May delivery gained $2.12 to $106.40 a barrel. <\/p>\n

Gold futures for June delivery rose $12.40 to $1,436.70 an ounce. <\/b><\/p>\n

Bonds<\/b><\/a>:<\/b> The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury edged slightly higher, pushing the yield down to 3.44% from 3.45% late Wednesday. \u00a0\"To<\/a><\/p>\n

First Published: March 31, 2011: 9:46 AM ET<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Link:
\nStocks hold steady on jobs and oil<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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About 2 hours into the session, the Dow Jones industrial average (INDU<\/a>) was down 3 points, or less than 0.1%; the S&P 500 (SPX<\/a>) index was down 1.5 points, or 0.1%; and Nasdaq (COMP<\/a>) composite lost points, or 0.1%. <\/p>\n