Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are moving higher in early trading on Wall Street as the market stabilizes after its worst drop since September. Bank stocks are gaining after JPMorgan Chase reported earnings that were better than analysts expected. Yesterday, the S&P 500 index slumped 2.5 percent, putting it 10 percent below its peak in November
WASHINGTON (AP) — Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates have fallen this week amid continued turbulence in global stock markets. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says the average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dipped to 3.92 percent from 3.97 percent last week. The average rate on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages eased to 3.19 percent from 3.26 percent.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Labor Department says more Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, but the level remains near historic lows. Applications for jobless aid rose by 4,000 to a seasonally adjusted 284,000. The less volatile four-week average rose 3,000 to 278,750. Layoffs generally tend to rise in the early weeks of January as retailers let go of holiday workers, but even on an unadjusted basis jobless claims are lower than a year ago.
NEW YORK (AP) — JPMorgan Chase says its fourth-quarter profits rose 9 percent from a year earlier, helped by strong performance in its consumer banking division. The largest U.S. bank by assets says it earned $4.91 billion after payments to preferred shareholders. On a per-share basis, the bank earned $1.32 per share, compared with $1.19 per share a year earlier.
NEW YORK (AP) — Best Buy says sales were down during the holiday season. And the company now expects a wider drop in fourth-quarter revenue, partly on weak mobile phone and personal device sales. One key measure, domestic same-store-sales, fell 1.2 percent in the nine-week period that ended in Jan. 2. Online revenue rose 12.6 percent, compared with growth of 13.4 percent a year ago. Best Buy expects a 4 percent drop in revenue for its fourth quarter.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
