US dollars  are floating everywhere, all over the world,  how to let it fail or simply it is just too big to fail,    though it looks like it is failing.....

Stocks drift higher ahead of jobs report

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) gained 50 points, or 0.5%. The S&P 500 (SPX) gained 9 points, or 0.9%, and the Nasdaq (COMP) composite rose 23 points, or 1%.

On Wednesday, payroll processing firm ADP said private sector employers cut 10,000 jobs in August -- a drop from the downwardly revised 37,000 jobs they added the month before. Economists had expected the report to show an increase in private sector payrolls.

Friday's report to is expected to show that employers cut a total of 120,000 jobs in August after payrolls fell by 131,000 in July, according to economists surveyed by Briefing.com. The unemployment rate is forecast to rise slightly to 9.6%.

Meanwhile, trading volumes continued to be light Wednesday as many market participants are on vacation this week. On the New York Stock Exchange, just under 1 billion shares traded hands.

IBM (IBM, Fortune 500) and Merck (MRK, Fortune 500) led decliners on the Dow, while Boeing (BA, Fortune 500), 3M (MMM, Fortune 500) and Home Depot (HD, Fortune 500) gained. Of the 30 stocks in the blue-chip average, 24 were higher.

After closing out a dismal August, stocks rallied more than 2% on Wednesday to start September on a strong note. But the market is still down between 1% and 3% year to date.

Retail: A majority of retailers reported surprisingly strong August same-store sales, as consumers responded to back-to-school deals and tax holidays. Same-store sales, an important gauge of a retailer's health, measure sales at stores open at least a year.

Sales tracker Thomson Reuters said 65% of the retailers in its index, that have reported sales so far, have beat expectations.

Shares of major retailers were higher in early trading. JC Penny (JCP, Fortune 500), Macy's (M, Fortune 500) and Nordstrom (JWN, Fortune 500) led the charge.

Economy: Weekly jobless claim figures dipped slightly, by 6,000 claims, to 472,000 in the week ended Aug. 28. Economists expected the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment insurance to have edged up slightly last week to 475,000.

Pending home sales -- a forward looking gauge -- rose 5.2% in July, according to an index from the National Association of Realtors. But the index, which is based on sales contracts signed in the month, was down over 19% from July 2009. Economists had expected pending home sales would be flat in July.

The housing data helped boost shares of homebuilders Hovnanian (HOV), PulteGroup (PHM) and D.R. Horton. (DHI)

Separately, the government said factory orders rose 0.1% in July, versus a forecasted 0.3% gain. But the Commerce Department said orders fell 0.6% in June, an improvement over the originally reported 1.5% drop.

The Labor Department said labor productivity in the non-farm business sector fell at an annual rate of 1.8% in the second quarter of 2010. The drop came as hours worked increased 3.5%, the largest quarterly gain in over four years, and output rose 1.6%.

The drop in productivity was roughly in line with estimates from private sector economists.

Companies: Shares of Mariner Energy (ME) fell 2.5% after a fire occurred on an oil and gas production platform the company owns in the Gulf of Mexico.

All 13 people onboard the Vermilion 380 have been accounted for, Mariner said. They are currently investigating the causes of the incident. The company said an initial flyover found no indication that oil or gas had leaked as a result of the fire.

Burger King (BKC) said Thursday that it has agreed to be acquired by investment firm 3G Capital in a deal valued at $4 billion. Shares of the fast-food company rose 25% after surging 14% in the previous session on rumors of the deal.

HP (HPQ, Fortune 500) raised its offer to buy data storage company 3PAR to $33 per share, topping a $32 bid from Dell (DELL, Fortune 500). The computer makers have been engaged in a bidding war for 3PAR since Dell made an $18 per share offer on Aug. 16.

World markets: European shares were essentially flat. The CAC 40 in France gained 0.2%, while Britain's FTSE 100 and the DAX in Germany were both little changed.

Asian markets closed higher. Japan's benchmark Nikkei index added 1.5%. The Shanghai Composite rose 1.3%, and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 1.2%.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar slipped against the euro and the Japanese yen, but edged higher versus the British pound.

Oil futures for October delivery rose $1.03 to $74.94 a barrel. Gold for December delivery added $5.30 to $1,253.40 an ounce.

Bonds: The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.63% from 2.58% late Wednesday. 

Stocks poised for flat start

Dow Jones industrial average (INDU), S&P 500 (SPX) and Nasdaq (COMP) futures were little changed ahead of the opening bell. Futures measure current index values against perceived future performance.

After closing out a dismal August, stocks began the new month with a bang Wednesday, rallying more than 2% after strong readings on manufacturing boosted investor confidence.

Economy: Weekly jobless claim figures are due before the opening bell. Economists expect the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment insurance to have edged up slightly last week to 475,000 from 473,000 in the previous week.

Continuing claims, a measure of Americans who have been receiving benefits for a week or more, are expected to have dropped to 4,435,000 from 4,456,000.

A report on pending home sales is due after the start of trading. Economists forecast the figures to remain unchanged in July, after dropping 2.6% in June.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Department reports on July factory orders, which economists expect to show a 0.3% rise, following a 1.2% drop in June.

A separate government report is expected to show that second-quarter business productivity was downwardly revised to a decline of 1.7%, from the 0.9% drop that was initially projected.

World markets: European shares were mixed in early trading. The CAC 40 in France and Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.1%, while the DAX in Germany ticked slightly lower.

Asian markets closed higher. Japan's benchmark Nikkei index added 1.5%. The Shanghai Composite rose 1.3%, and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 1.2%.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar slipped against the euro and the Japanese yen, but edged higher versus the British pound.

Oil futures for October delivery rose 9 cents to $74.00 a barrel. Gold for December delivery added 50 cents to $1,248.60 an ounce.

Bonds: The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.60% from 2.58% late Wednesday. 

September surprise: Stocks soar

Stocks end August with a whimper

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) gained 4 points, or less than 0.1%. The S&P 500 (SPX) edged up less than 1 point. The Nasdaq (COMP) composite lost 6 points, or 0.3%.

On Tuesday, stocks were supported earlier in the session by a larger-than-expected rise in consumer confidence and a jump in U.S. home prices. But the tone turned bearish late in the day after the Fed released minutes from its Aug. 10 meeting.

The minutes raised concerns that the central bank may not take steps to support the faltering economic recovery unless conditions deteriorate significantly, said Dan Cook, senior market analyst at IG Markets.

"The market was anticipating that they would get in with a bit of a slowdown," he said. "But the minutes suggest that things will have to get a lot worse."

Cook said trading will probably remain volatile as investors await key economic reports due later this week, including the government's closely watched monthly jobs numbers on Friday.

"It's hard to be long or short ahead of the non-farms payroll report," he said.

Investors have been focused on the outlook for the U.S. economy recently as the nation's growth has slowed. In particular, they are worried that the weak job market will continue to weigh on consumer spending -- which drives the bulk of economic activity.

Economic reports due Wednesday morning include an index of nationwide manufacturing activity and a report on private sector job cuts in August. In addition, major automakers report August sales figures throughout the day.

The uncertainty surrounding the economic outlook and historically low trading volumes led to increased turbulence on Wall Street during August. The CBOE Market Volatility Index, or VIX (VIX), rose more than 18% in August to 26.05.

Trading volumes continued to be light Tuesday with many market participants on vacation this week. Stocks dropped more than 1% in thin trading Monday.

Economy: Investors welcomed a slight improvement in the economic news Tuesday with better-than-expected readings on consumer confidence and home prices.

The Conference Board's index of consumer confidence rose to a reading of 53.5 in August from an adjusted 51 in July. Economists were expecting the index to come in at 50, according to consensus estimates from Briefing.com.

The rebound in confidence numbers was attributed mostly to an improvement in how consumers view the short-term economic outlook, the Conference Board said. Meanwhile, the weak job market continues to darken their long-term view.

"The comfort in this release is that confidence did not fall further," said Paul Dales, an economist at Capital Economics. "But there are few signs that households will ramp up their spending."

Separately, the Chicago PMI, a regional reading on manufacturing activity, fell to 56.7 in August. That's down from 62.3 in July and slightly weaker than expected. Economists were looking for 57 in August.

Before the market opened, a report showed that national home prices jumped a substantial 3.6% in the past year, versus a forecasted 3.1% gain. The S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index also showed that prices climbed 4.4% in the second quarter, compared with a 2.8% plunge in the first quarter.

Investors are especially wary ahead of Friday's big employment report, which is expected to show that the economy lost jobs for a third month in a row in August.

Economists expect employers to have shed 120,000 jobs in August, after cutting payrolls by 131,000 in July. The unemployment rate is forecast to creep up to 9.6% from 9.5%.

Companies: Technology shares came under pressure after research firm Gartner lowered its forecast for PC sales in the second half of 2010, citing an uncertain economic outlook in the United States and Europe.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, or SOX (SOX), fell nearly 2%.

Monsanto (MON, Fortune 500) fell almost 6% after the company warned that its fiscal year earnings per share will be at the lower end of its forecasted range. The agribusiness giant said it expects to earn between $2.40 and $2.45 a share this fiscal year. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expect $2.48 per share.

Shares of Saks Inc. (SKS) spiked 20% after a report from the Daily Mail said a group of U.S. and U.K. private equity companies may soon bid $1.7 billion, or $11 per share, for the high-end retailer.

Data-storage company 3PAR (PAR) rose nearly 1% as a Reuters survey revealed that most analysts and investors expect Dell (DELL, Fortune 500) to bow out of the bidding war with Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ, Fortune 500) Dell has until Wednesday to match HP's $2 billion bid for 3PAR.

World markets: European shares closed higher. The CAC 40 in France edged up 0.1%, the DAX in Germany rose 0.2%, Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.4%.

Asian markets ended lower. Japan's benchmark Nikkei index sank 3.6% to a 16-month closing low. The Shanghai Composite decreased 0.5% and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 1%.

Meanwhile, India's economy grew by 8.8% during the three months ended June 30. That compares with 8.6% during the previous quarter and 6% growth during the same quarter a year ago.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar edged lower against the euro and the Japanese yen but was higher versus the British pound.

Oil futures for October delivery fell $3 to $71.70 a barrel. Gold for December delivery gained $11.10 to $1,250.30 an ounce.

Bonds: The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.48% from 2.54% late Monday.