That stock News

FEE CUT: American Express Co. fell 3.4 percent to $42.50 after analysts downgraded the company. Analysts say that a new set of rules proposed by the Federal Reserve could cap the fees that the company charges merchants.

FLIGHT CUT: Boeing Inc. fell 2.7 percent to $63.27 even as the company said it was increasing the production rate for its 777 aircraft in response to strong demand.

MIXED FINISH: The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.1 percent to 11,478. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite each rose 0.3 percent.

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FLAT DAY: Stocks meandered for much of the day and ended narrowly mixed. The Dow Jones industrial average gave up 7 points to end at 11,491 and the Standard & Poor's 500 edged up 1 to 1,243, another high for 2010.

STRONG WEEK: The Dow rose 0.7 percent over the course of the week, its third straight weekly gain. The Dow has gained 400 points, or 3.6 percent, over the past three weeks.

MORE DEALS: Marshall & Ilsley Corp. jumped 18.3 percent to $6.85 after Canadian bank BMO Financial Group said it will buy the Wisconsin-based bank for $4.1 billion in stock.

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MINES, OIL AND MINERALS: The Securities and Exchange Commission is proposing new reporting requirements for public companies that operate mines, pull oil or gas out of the ground or use certain minerals from Africa in their products. The proposed rules flow from the financial overhaul law enacted in July.

NEW DETAILS: Companies that operate mines would be required to provide information on health and safety violations. Companies that produce oil, natural gas or minerals would have to detail all payments related to commercial development that were made to the U.S. or a foreign government. And companies that use so-called "conflict" minerals from Congo and neighboring countries would have to describe the research the company did to trace the minerals back to their sources.

CONFLICT IN CONGO: The idea is that stricter reporting rules would help curb the violence in Congo, where minerals are produced in mines controlled by rebel groups.

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THAWING JOB MARKET: First-time claims for unemployment benefits fell last week for the third time in four weeks, the Labor Department said. Separately, the Commerce Department said that housing starts rose for the first time in two months.

CARDS SLASHED: Card companies tumbled after the Federal Reserve proposed a 12-cent cap on the fees that merchants pay every time a customer uses a debit card. Visa Inc. tumbled 12.7 percent and MasterCard Inc. fell 10.3 percent.

SHIPPING OUT: FedEx Corp. upped its profit expectations next year because customers are shipping more packages.

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NETFLIX JOINS PARTY: Movie rental company Netflix Inc. was added to the S&P 500. Its shares have returned 250 percent this year. The New York Times Co., Office Depot Inc. and Eastman Kodak Co. were dropped from the index.

GE BUMPS DIVIDEND: General Electric Co. announced that it would increase its dividend by 17 percent. The company rose 3.4 percent to $17.72.

ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER HIGH: The Standard & Poor's 500 index closed at a new yearly high for the third straight day. The index is now at 1,240.40. It rose 11.2 percent this year so far.

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BOND SHOCK: A deal between President Barack Obama and Republican leaders to extend tax cuts pushed bond prices sharply lower. Traders expect the deal to boost economic growth and increase the size of the budget deficit.

NEW HIGH: The Standard & Poor's 500 index closed at a new yearly high of 1,228.28. It reached its last high on Nov. 5. The index is now up 10.1 percent for the year.

LESS GOLDEN ARCHES: McDonald's Corp. fell 1.6 percent to $78.74 after reporting November sales figures that fell short of analysts' expectations.

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TAX BREAK: A deal between President Barack Obama and Republican leaders on extending tax cuts sent stock prices higher for much of the day, but the rally faded by late afternoon.

NEAR 2010 HIGHS: The Standard & Poor's 500 index closed within two points of its 2010 high reached on Nov. 5.

BONDS WHACKED: Bond prices slumped, sending their yields higher, as traders anticipated that the tax cuts would swell the budget deficit. The yield on the benchmar 10-year Treasury note jumped to 3.13 percent from 2.93 percent late Monday, its highest level since June 22.

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THIRD DAY RUNNING: Stocks shook off an early slump to end slightly higher. The Dow Jones industrial average added 19.68 points, stretching its gains into a third day.

STRONG WEEK: The Dow gained 2.6 percent for the week, ending at 11,382. It was the best week for the Dow in a month.

NEAR 2010 HIGH: The Dow is now just 0.5 percent below its 2010 high of 11,444 reached on Nov. 5.

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CONSTRUCTION FALLS: Construction of new homes fell 11.7 percent in October, the Commerce Department reported.

LENDING A HAND: Britain offered to provide support to Ireland beyond what it may receive from the European Union or the International Monetary Fund. Shares in Europe rose following the announcement. The Euro Stoxx 50, which tracks blue chip companies in the euro zone, gained 0.5 percent.

RETAILERS JUMP: Target Corp rose 3.9 percent after it beat analyst earnings estimates. Competitors Macy's and Costco Wholesale Corp. rose as well.

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CHINA SLOWDOWN: The Shanghai composite fell by 4 percent as investors grew concerned that China was set to raise interest rates in an attempt to control its pace of economic growth.

LITTLE LUCK FOR THE IRISH: Ireland refused to take any financial assistance from its fellow members of the European Union. Investors have raised concerns that the country will be unable to repay its debts.

DOLLAR GAINS: The dollar rose against an index of other currencies as investors flocked to safe assets. The dollar's gains contributed to the largest one-day loss for the Dow Jones Industrial average since August.

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DEALMAKING DAYS: Caterpillar Inc. and data storage company EMC Corp announced acquisitions Monday, giving investors a bullish sign that companies are no longer planning to hoard cash.

RETAIL SURPRISE: A spike in demand for automobiles helped push consumer spending dollars up to their highest levels in seven months, according to the Commerce Department.

DOLLAR GAINS STRENGTH: The dollar rose against an index of other currencies as investors flocked to safe assets. The euro fell 0.9 percent against the dollar amid continuing concerns that Europe will need to bail out Ireland.

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CHINA SLOWDOWN: Stocks and commodities took a nosedive Friday on worries that China might put the brakes on its surging economy, which would reduce global demand for oil and metals. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 90.52, or 0.80 to 11,192.58.

COMMODITIES DIVE: Gold fell $37.80, or 2.7 percent, to $1,365.50 an ounce. Crude oil fell $2.93, or 3.3 percent, to $84.88 a barrel.

INTEL SHINES: Intel Corp. was among the few gainers, rising 1.51 percent to $21.53 after the chip maker said it will raise its dividend 15 percent.

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PULLBACK: Stocks pulled back as traders retreated from a rally that brought indexes to their highest levels since the peak of the 2008 financial crisis last week. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 37 to close at 11,406.

GOLD HITS $1,400: Gold crossed $1,400 an ounce to another record as traders looked for safe places to park money.

DOLLAR PAIN: The dollar rose 0.5 percent against an index of currencies. That hurt companies with a lot of business overseas, since a stronger dollar makes their products more expensive in other countries.

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? Property luxury LVMH group is finalizing a 17 1pc issue Hermes at a discount purchase of 50pc. LVMH has denied that it was the first step in taking complete control.

Large shareholder ? Wellstream - Schroders - has sold more than half of its participation in the oil services company has rejected a 775 m earlier in October, ￡ offers an approach of General Electric.

The Sunday mail

? Deutsche Bank was named by co-operative Financial Services in order to assess the interests of the sale of either part or all of its life insurance activities from ￡ 18bn.

? Plans for new investment in energy projects and transport will be announced by the Government this week to provide an "offensive growth" after ￡ 83bn George Osborne sections.

? Old Mutual advisors are working on a variety of options for the future of 53pc issue life insurer Nedbank South Africa, including placement of shares worth up to ￡ 1. 5bn.

Sunday Independent

? Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov is in talks to sell a stake in its mining company Metalloinvest, Mitsui in advance of a London Japan list next year.

? ITV is close to the acceptance of terms to consolidate its operations in the Northwest and to join the BBC and other Salford MediaCity UK crossroads.

? Lord Browne, former CEO of BP is set to become President of a new Advisory Committee of Stanhope Capital, one of main London asset managers specialized in wealthy private clients.

The Sunday Times

Insurer ? Lloyd and sponsors of cricket in England that Brit Insurance should accept a 850 m ￡ bid capital Apollo and CVC Capital Partners group.

? Official figures point to a sharp slowdown in the British economy in the summer with growth fell to 0 4pc in the third quarter, fuelling fears of a recession in duplicate.

? The Russian internet company which owns a minority stake in Facebook could list in London in a fortnight, worth up to $emissions (￡ 3 5.3).

Economy ? Britain has slowed in the third quarter, the official data show this week.

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