http://www.rttnews.comGlobal financial news, market analysis, economics and forex newsen-usSat, 21 Nov 2009 09:25:01 GMTStocks moved mostly lower on Friday, as a lack of significant economic catalysts gave traders the further opportunity to cash in on recent gains ahead of next week's deluge of data. The major averages all closed in negative territory, slipping further away from Tuesday's yearly highs. Nonetheless, The major averages turned in a mixed performance for the week, with the Dow posting a modest gain.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136832Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:46:11 GMTIn advance of a crucial vote Saturday, leading Senate Democrats criticized their Republican opponents for seeking to stop health reform efforts without advancing an alternative. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., sought to take Republicans to task for one of their chief complaints about the measure, that it is too long and complicated. "Senate Republicans want to talk about the number of pages in this bill; we want to talk about the number of people who will get affordable care," Durbin said.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136770Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:30:06 GMTThe American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) released new guidelines Friday recommending that women wait until they reach age 21 before having their first cervical cancer screening. The news comes on the heels of recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force against routine screening of women aged 40 to 49 years for breast cancer.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136676Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:23:31 GMTAs only the eighth release of the year to be distributed to 4,000 or more theaters, "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" should be able to ride its wave of popularity into one of the biggest opening weekends of the year. Drama "The Blind Side" also gets a strong release at more than 3,000 theaters as does animated "Planet 51," although both will likely get overshadowed by the phenomenon of "The Twilight Saga."http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136662Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:57:31 GMTOil refiner Valero Energy Corp. announced Friday its intention to permanently shutter the Delaware City refinery, citing high operating costs and capital spending leading to financial losses amid the poor economic conditions. The company added that declining demand for refined products, and poor coking margins have also negatively impacted the refinery operations. The intent to close down the refinery was intimated to company employees that is likely to affect about 550 jobs at the plant.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136640Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:14:34 GMTFood products maker The J. M. Smucker Co. Friday reported a sharp rise in second-quarter profit, helped by 52% revenue growth and higher margins, both led by Folgers Coffee Co. acquisition. Adjusted earnings came in better than analysts' estimate. Boosted by the strong first-half performance, the company lifted its fiscal 2010 adjusted earnings per share outlook and confirmed its full-year sales forecast.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136582Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:19:43 GMTWomen's specialty retailer Ann Taylor Stores Corp. reported Friday better-than-expected profit for the third quarter, compared to a loss last year, helped by strong gross margin growth as well as cost saving initiatives, despite a drop in quarterly revenues. The company projects total sales dollars in the fourth quarter to be slightly below that of the third quarter, while it expects gross margin performance to be considerably stronger than the levels achieved in the fourth quarter last year.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136550Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:56:33 GMTHomebuilder DR Horton Inc. on Friday reported a net loss for the fourth quarter that narrowed from last year, helped by fewer charges. Quarterly revenues dropped 42% year-over-year, reflecting lower home sales as market conditions in the homebuilding industry continued to be challenging. However, the company's net sales orders for the quarter increased 26% from last year.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136488Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:20:14 GMTMobile phone giant Nokia Corp. said Friday that it plans to align its research and development operations in Finland and Denmark to be in line with the company's focused portfolio of future products, which will eliminate up to 330 jobs. The planned changes are expected to affect up to 230 employees at the company's Oulu site in Finland and about 100 employees at Nokia's Copenhagen site. The total number would represent nearly 2% of Nokia's R&D personnel globally.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136267Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:02:36 GMTU.S stock futures point to a lower opening Friday morning as traders turn jittery about prospects of sustaining economic recovery that dragged the indices lower in the previous session. Sharp drop in third quarter profits for Dell Inc. and weaker commodity prices amid strengthening dollar might also impact market sentiment. With no major economic data on tap on Black Friday, traders might exercise caution and move to the sidelines awaiting further cues on direction. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136254Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:33:48 GMTHomebuilder DR Horton Inc. is slated to announce its fourth-quarter results before the market opens Friday. Analysts are of the view that the company's quarterly loss per share would narrow significantly from last year while they forecast a year-over-year decline in revenues.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136243Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:18:15 GMTLondon-based pubs and bars operator Fuller, Smith & Turner Plc (FSTA.L) reported Friday an increase in first-half profit, as revenues grew 10% helped by an excellent performance of its core business as a result of acquisition of new pubs as well as good weather. Results for the period also reflect reduced costs of borrowing. Looking forward, the company remains cautious about the outlook for the UK economy and expects its second half to be significantly tougher than the first.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136224Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:50:20 GMTBroadcaster NDTV jumped nearly 8% thus far on the BSE Friday after the group reached a definitive agreement with US-based media company Scripps Networks Interactive Inc (Scripps) to create a strategic alliance for lifestyle channels in India. Totally, 5.83 lakh shares changed hands compared to a two-week daily average volume of 70,728 shares. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136184Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:07:24 GMTWomen's specialty retailer AnnTaylor Stores Corp. (ANN) is scheduled to report its third-quarter results before the market opens Friday, with analysts forecasting earnings of $0.07 per share on revenues of $473.85 million. In the year-ago period, the company reported a breakeven per share on a non-GAAP basis, and net sales of $527.2 million.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136158Fri, 20 Nov 2009 07:34:23 GMTFood products maker J. M. Smucker Co. (SJM) is scheduled to announce second-quarter results before the market opens Friday. On average, 9 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect the company to report earnings of $1.04 per share for the quarter with estimates ranging between $0.97 per hare and $1.08 per share. Revenues for the quarter are estimated to be $1.24 billion. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136114Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:08:15 GMTPinnacle Foods Group LLC, owned by private equity funds controlled by The Blackstone Group (BX), said Thursday that it signed a definitive agreement to acquire frozen-vegetable and meals company Birds Eye Foods, Inc. from a holding company controlled by Vestar Capital Partners, Pro-Fac Cooperative, and Birds Eye management, for $1.3 billion. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1136061Thu, 20 Nov 2009 03:57:10 GMTBusiness and financial management solutions provider Intuit Inc., Thursday reported a wider first quarter loss, hurt by higher operating loss and expenses, however, better than what analysts expected. Bolstered by Employee Management Solutions' Payroll service and the Financial Institutions segment, revenues rose from last year, comfortably beating estimates.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135850Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:36:45 GMTEuropean leaders attending a summit in Brussels on Thursday named Belgian Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy as the first permanent president of the European Commission, a post created by the recently adopted Lisbon Treaty. Even before the eventual outcome, Rompuy was widely tipped to become the first European Commission President as he had the crucial French and German support. Van Rompuy,a poetry-writing economist, was not well-known outside before he became the Prime Minister of Belgium inhttp://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135826Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:20:41 GMTDallas Federal Reserve President Richard Fisher said Thursday that full global financial stability would not be achieved until the issue of "too-big-to-fail" is addressed. Speaking at the conclusion of the Cato Institute's 27 annual Monetary Policy Conference, Fisher said that misperceptions of risk caused last year's financial crisis to "metastasize" in large financial institutions and spread throughout the entire financial system.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135786Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:50:19 GMTStocks moved considerably lower on Thursday, with some disappointing economic data prompting traders to cash in on the recent strength in the markets. The major averages all closed in negative territory, backing further off of the one-year highs set on Tuesday. The Dow fell by about 94 points, adding to the modest loss posted in the previous session.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135776Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:45:13 GMTOne day after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's, D-Nev., $848 billion health care reform plan was made public, the war of words between Democrats and Republicans over the bill continued. The 2,074-page bill was released on http://democrats.senate.gov/ Wednesday night, marking the first time it has been openly available to be viewed by the public. According to Democratic aides, the bill will reduce deficits by $127 billion over a decade and would require most Americans to have health insurance.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135684Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:47:37 GMTThe Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Thursday launched an investigation into the recent massacre at Fort Hood. Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., the chairman of the committee, said the committee would seek to determine whether there had been a breakdown in communications that could otherwise have prevented an Army psychiatrist from going on a shooting rampage that left 13 dead and nearly 30 wounded.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135682Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:42:44 GMTThursday, Internet company AOL informed its employees of its plan to cut around one-third of its 6,900-strong workforce upon completion of a previously announced spin-off from Time Warner Inc. (TWX) The proposed job cuts, estimated at 2,300 positions, are part of New York-based AOL's continuing cost-reduction activities, in an effort to align its organizational structure and costs with its strategy, the company said.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135438Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:22:54 GMTTreasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Thursday that the U.S. has a long way to go to ensure a full economic recovery and guarantee that last year's financial collapse will not happen again in the future. Speaking before the congressional Joint Economic Committee, Geithner said that the regulatory regime that is currently in place is the same regime that failed to prevent the financial crisis, filled with too many agencies and too many regulatory gaps.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135435Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:21:26 GMTMeat products company Tyson Foods, Inc. Thursday announced the selection of Donnie Smith by its Board as president and chief executive officer with immediate effect. Smith takes over the positions from Leland Tollett, who has been serving as interim president and chief executive officer of the company since January.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135430Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:18:57 GMTRoss Stores, Inc. (ROST), Thursday said its third quarter profit rose sharply from a year ago, helped by higher margins and a 12% increase in quarterly sales reflecting strong comparable store sales. Quarterly earnings were in line, while sales beats estimates. The off-price retailer, however,said it is maintaining its fourth quarter earnings forecast at its prior level, which is also below current Street expectation. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135428Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:14:01 GMTActivity in the mid-Atlantic region's manufacturing sector is picking up in November, according to a report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia on Thursday, with the index of activity in the sector increasing by much more than expected. The Philly Fed said its index of regional manufacturing activity rose to 16.7 in November from 11.5 in October, with a positive reading indicating growth in the manufacturing sector.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135425Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:12:44 GMTUS media reports say flights are being delayed or schedules are canceled nationwide by a "computer glitch" within the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The FAA computer system, the Atlanta-based National Airspace Data Interchange Network, (NADIN) which generates the flight plans for all flights on the East Coast, is affected by a malfunction. FAA spokesman Les Dorr said that there's a "problem with the telecommunications network that's affecting automated processing system."http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135401Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:53:26 GMTContract driller of oil and gas wells Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (HP) reported Thursday a 59% year-over-year drop in profit for the fourth quarter, hurt by a significant drop in quarterly revenues amid sharply lower rig utilization across operating segments. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135400Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:51:33 GMTVideo game and entertainment software retailer GameStop Corp. on Thursday reported a 12% increase in profit for the third quarter, helped by sales growth of new video game software and used video game products. Looking ahead, GameStop said that the holiday season has started strong and reiterated its earnings outlook for the fourth quarter. The company also tightened its earnings forecast range for the full year.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1135393Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:44:50 GMT