Countdown to the close: 59 min 59 sec

INVESTOR ALERT
Financial stocks pace sell-off

January 15 2009 12:31 P.M. EST

Dow extends losing streak
Dow industrials close to slipping below 8,000 level; run of declines is index's longest since Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy in October.
• Banks lead broad-based slump | Apple, B. of A. in focus
 • Consumer deflation is here to stay, bond market shows

mortgage rates | 3.16 mln foreclosure filings in 2008
30-year mortgage below 5%
With 11th straight weekly decline, the average long-term fixed-rate loan's interest rate moves below 5% threshold for first time on record. 

financials | Sector report
Dimon in the rough
The news coming out of J.P. Morgan Chase is not good, but don't blame the bank (First Take).
 • J.P. Morgan's profit dives — but it's on mark
 • Jamie Dimon's bumpy ride (Minyanville)
• Time to impose conditions on bailouts (First Take)
• B. of A. set to seek billions more in bailout
 • Citi triggers new fears | More cuts?
 • Disappearing TARP (24/7 Wall St.) | Cozy under TARP (Minyanville)
europeAN ECONOMICS
ECB bows to pressure
European Central Bank slashes key rate 
to 2%. Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet (above) signals policy makers will likely take a breather in February.
 • Europe down for seventh session
 • HSBC, Barclays weigh on London shares
• No liquidity trap at ECB, Trichet says
• Rug pulled out from under euro
• No price deflation in Germany

Trichet's trick
It's uncanny how ECB chief remains detached amid crisis (First Take).

 
Latest News more » Top Stories more » Market Pulse more » Headlines more » Press Releases more »

  • 11:28 a.m.

    [MI] S&P cuts Marshall & Ilsley on "massive" loan loss provision

  • 10:40 a.m.

    U.S. natural-gas inventories down 94 bcf last week: EIA

  • 10:25 a.m.

    [BAC] Bank of America shares fall 25%, to $7.58

  • 10:20 a.m.

    House bill has about $275 billion in tax cuts

  • 10:19 a.m.

    House stimulus bill contains about $550 billion in spending

  • 10:18 a.m.

    House Democrats call for $825 billion stimulus plan

  • 10:16 a.m.

    [JPM] Moody's cuts JP Morgan on concerns over possible losses

  • 10:10 a.m.

    [FRE] Freddie Mac: 30-yr mortgage rate falls for 11 straight weeks

  • 10:07 a.m.

    [FRE] Freddie Mac: 30-yr fixed-rate mortgage average 4.96% Jan. 15

  • 10:04 a.m.

    Jan. Philly Fed -24.3 vs. revised -36.1

  • 9:50 a.m.

    [INDU] Dow Jones Industrial Average falls 101.71 points to 8,098.43

  • 9:34 a.m.

    [ADSK] Autodesk shares down 10% in early trading

  • 9:34 a.m.

    [APH] Amphenol rises more than 13% in opening action

  • 9:34 a.m.

    [GOOG] Google shares down 1% in early trading

  • 9:33 a.m.

    [AAPL] Apple shares down 4% in early trading

  • 9:33 a.m.

    [SPX] S&P 500 Index drops 2 points to 841

  • 9:33 a.m.

    [COMP] Nasdaq Composite Index flat at 1,489

  • 9:32 a.m.

    [INDU] Dow Jones Industrial Average falls 19 points to 8,181

  • 9:32 a.m.

    [JPM] J.P. Morgan shares rise 1.8% in early trading

  • 9:31 a.m.

    [CVH] Coventry Health shares fall 7.6% in early trading

 
Today inside MarketWatch
   IN COMMENTARY
writing on the wall
 Evil genius 'Smirk'
or SEC full of jerks?
Bernard Madoff didn't outsmart regulators; the feds are inept, claims David Weidner.

Also in Commentary:
 • Nutting on all the bad things about Bush
• Friedman says don't hire Dick Parsons
• Harrison searching for staying power

  IN NEWSLETTERS
pETER bRIMELOW
 Stocks' slide doesn't spook Slothower
Here's why he's remarkably calm in the face of Wall Street's six-session skid.

Also in Newsletters:
• Hulbert on January Effect's arrival

  IN PERSONAL FINANCE
Robert Powell
 Six brutal facts
about your nest egg

You can be hopeful about retirement savings, after you get real.

Also in Personal Finance:
 • Openshaw sees wolf in sheep's clothing
• Gerencher says surgeon general matters
• Cheaper stocks benefit young savers
• Re-examined finances — to what end?

  IN TAX GUIDE 2009
TAXWATCH
Scam season
upon us again
Beware of those email come-ons promising you can get huge refunds or save big bucks on taxes. They're almost always frauds.

Also in Tax Guide :
 • January to-do list
• IRS says it's easing some rules
 • More tax news, tools and tips

  IN MULTIMEDIA
bailout
 TARP'S future 
Rep. Brad Sherman (above, at right) talks to MarketWatch's Ron Orol about his problems with the $700 billion bailout.

Also in Multimedia :
• Obama woos Republicans  
• 14 female Fortune 500 CEOs
• Retail revival — but not till 2010 Audio
 • Right property for wrong time

Airlines, unions rise to call for change
Carries and labor groups hope for new era in troubled industry. Unions hope for more leverage, end to continuous negotiations.
Part of a weekly series on what's ahead for key sectors of the economy.
MORE FROM WASHINGTON
• Darrell Delamaide: 'Czar' penchant says something about Obama
 • President-elect agrees to home-loan relief as part of bailout bill

U.S. ECONOMY | Economy & Politics
Claims back atop half-million mark
 Weekly data show 524,000 first-time claims for unemployment benefits.
• Wholesale prices slip for a fifth straight month
 • Credit crunch costs factories: Philly Fed | N.Y. factories contract further

tech and telecom
 Yahoo backpedals on search deal
Shares slide nearly 7% following reports that company's new CEO may not be sold on deal to hand over online search unit to Microsoft.
• Google orders rare round of layoffs
• San Francisco Fed says tech in recession, will cut more jobs
• Xilinx posts 35% profit rise | Street cheers new Yahoo CEO
• Motorola warns of weaker sales, axes 4,000 more workers

apple
 Steve Jobs takes break
Visionary CEO of Apple to take medical leave of absence till June 30, saying his health issues are more "complex" than he'd thought.
• Staff note |  Apple's public face | Jobs in denial? (First Take)
• Successor Cook a low-key exec, respected for expertise (WSJ.com)

TECH TALES
 Silicon Valley will miss Bill Watkins
 Straight-talking CEO, shown door Monday by Seagate, was a rarity in the tech world, writes Therese Poletti.
• Seagate to lay off nearly 3,000

FOOD AND BEVERAGE
Bad-news beers
Global economic crisis hits brewers SABMiller, which reports weaker demand, and Carlsberg, which announces job cuts.

RETAIL
Carphone rings in OK holiday season
 U.K. mobile-to-computer retailer comes out the uncontested winner with revenue beating out rival DSG International.

AUTOMOTIVE
Nissan scaling back
 With potential of red ink looming, Nissan trims production further.
• European car sales see biggest decline in 15 years

Asian economy 
 More grim news for Japan
 Machinery orders drop 16.2% to lowest level since 1987 as global recession tightens hold on world's second-largest economy.
• China's foreign direct investment rises 23.6% in 2008

THE MADOFF SCANDAL
 If it looks too good to be true ...
 Recognizing a scheme like the one Bernard Madoff is accused of using to defraud clients of as much as $50 billion can make you a smarter investor, Bob Clark writes in Personal Adviser.
• UBS, HSBC on hook for billions in affair
Surreal returns
 If the Madoff case proves anything, it shows that you can't bank on paper returns, writes Chuck Jaffe.

NEWSROOM ROSTER | CORRECTIONS | CODE OF CONDUCT | FEEDBACK

U.S. Europe Asia Currency/Rates More Markets»
Dow
8,020 -179.84
Nasdaq
1,460 -29.45
S&P 500
820 -22.48
Global Dow
1,387 -38.36
Oil
$34.92 -2.36
Gold
$809.40 0.60
London
4,121 -59.53
Paris
2,996 -56.12
Frankfurt
4,337 -85.62
Global DowEU
999 -21.00
Tokyo
8,023 -415.14
Hong Kong
13,243 -461.65
Sydney
3,477 -147.50
Global Dow
1,387 -38.36
10yr Treas
2.21% 0.01
Euro / $1US
1.31 -0.0084
$1US / Yen
89.38 0.4600
Pound / $1US
1.46 0.0004
Recent Quotes Portfolio
Visit the quote page and your most recently viewed stocks will automatically be displayed here in the watchlist.
Sign in to view your portfolio.
Partner Center