Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Earnings season begins

Earnings season begins on a down note. Dow is down 43, decliners ahead of advancers 2-1 & NAZ is down 10. Gloomy earnings news from Alcoa (AA) & AMD (AMD) got traders worrying about a tough Q1. Alcoa fell 61¢ at the open (but rallied to break even) on a negative earnings report from higher costs. AMD is cutting 10% of it's workforce after lowering guidance. The IMF issued a report with a very negative assessment on the global financial system. Credit problems & slow growth economies are putting a strain on financials. However, that won't stop TPG Capital from investing $7B in Washington Mutual (WM) the troubled S&L dealing with enormous mortgage loan problems, down 78¢ after yesterday's big run up.

Earnings reports should dominate news for the next few weeks & the markets are getting nervous about what to expect.

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