Top 10 News Items 6/6-6/10: Stocks Fall for Sixth Straight Week; Fed Says 'Accommodative Policies Still Needed' But Won't Discuss QE3; Bernanke/Jamie Dimon Stand-Off
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Here is a recap of the top ten news items from this week on Wall Street:
1. US stocks declined for the sixth straight week as worries regarding a "recovery" intensified. A lack of economic data this week left the bad taste of last week's gruesome data points in the mouths of traders. Talks of a "double dip" were heard on the Street, a phrase which has been repeated ad nauseum since 2008. The Nasdaq turned negative for the year on Friday, and the Dow closed below 12,000.
2. Speaking at the International Monetary Conference this week, Ben Bernanke suggested "accommodative monetary policies are still need." Still, the Fed head avoid thee debate of this month (with the Fed's bond purchases ending later this month): QE 3. Later in the week, Appaloosa's David Tepper, emailing into CNBC's Squawk Box also suggested to not count on QE3.
3. Following his prepared speech at the IMC, Bernanke took questions from the audience. One of those audience members happened to be JPMorgan's (NYSE: JPM) Jamie Dimon. The rare public exchange cornered on Dimon's concerns about the new bank regulations and how they will impact an economic recovery. Check out our full report to see the Q&A.
4. OPEC had its "worst meeting" ever this week after the Organization could not reach an agreement on increasing production. Oil had fallen ahead of the meeting as traders were already pricing in a likely output hike, however the stalemate pushed prices back over $100/barrel. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait voted to raise OPEC output by 1.5 million barrels a day, while Iran, Venezuela, Libya, Angola, Ecuador and Algeria opposed an increase in production.
5. Friday afternoon Corn futures rose to a record $7.9975 a bushel on the CBOT. Ag stocks were mixed this week but closed about 2 percent lower (as measured by the Market Vectors Agribusiness ETF (NYSE: MOO)).
6. The SEC issued an investor bulletin warning about investing in companies that enter U.S. markets through so-called "reverse mergers" or "reverse takeovers." "Given the potential risks, investors should be especially careful when considering investing in the stock of reverse merger companies," said Lori J. Schock, Director of the SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy. "As with any investment, investors should thoroughly research the company – including ensuring there is accurate and up-to-date information – before making a decision to invest."
7. After pricing at $19, above the expected $16-$18 range which was recently raised from $13-$15, shares of Fusion-io (NYSE: FIO) closed this week's session at $24 even. The stock opened on Thursday at $25.50.
8. Chinese Internet and new media stocks had another rough week, continuing a recent downside trend. The recent selling in the sector has been related to concerns over accounting practices. Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) shares, often considered the creme of the crop in the Chinese Internet group, fell 8.8 percent.
9. Steve Jobs appeared onstage at Apple's (Nasdaq: AAPL) always highly-anticipated WWDC. Jobs, of course, received a standing ovation, however investors were not so pleased with his company's offerings: the new Lion OS for the Mac, an iOS upgrade and the iCloud and iTunes Match. Apple shares were down more than 5 percent this week.
10. Initial jobless claims for the week ended June 4 come in at 427,000, which compares to the economist estimate of 419,000. The initial reading 422,000 reading for the prior week was revised higher to 426,000. Continuing claims for the week ended May 28 were 3.676 million, vs. the consensus of 3.7 million. The previous week reading was revised from 3.711 million to 3.747 million.
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1. US stocks declined for the sixth straight week as worries regarding a "recovery" intensified. A lack of economic data this week left the bad taste of last week's gruesome data points in the mouths of traders. Talks of a "double dip" were heard on the Street, a phrase which has been repeated ad nauseum since 2008. The Nasdaq turned negative for the year on Friday, and the Dow closed below 12,000.
2. Speaking at the International Monetary Conference this week, Ben Bernanke suggested "accommodative monetary policies are still need." Still, the Fed head avoid thee debate of this month (with the Fed's bond purchases ending later this month): QE 3. Later in the week, Appaloosa's David Tepper, emailing into CNBC's Squawk Box also suggested to not count on QE3.
3. Following his prepared speech at the IMC, Bernanke took questions from the audience. One of those audience members happened to be JPMorgan's (NYSE: JPM) Jamie Dimon. The rare public exchange cornered on Dimon's concerns about the new bank regulations and how they will impact an economic recovery. Check out our full report to see the Q&A.
4. OPEC had its "worst meeting" ever this week after the Organization could not reach an agreement on increasing production. Oil had fallen ahead of the meeting as traders were already pricing in a likely output hike, however the stalemate pushed prices back over $100/barrel. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait voted to raise OPEC output by 1.5 million barrels a day, while Iran, Venezuela, Libya, Angola, Ecuador and Algeria opposed an increase in production.
5. Friday afternoon Corn futures rose to a record $7.9975 a bushel on the CBOT. Ag stocks were mixed this week but closed about 2 percent lower (as measured by the Market Vectors Agribusiness ETF (NYSE: MOO)).
6. The SEC issued an investor bulletin warning about investing in companies that enter U.S. markets through so-called "reverse mergers" or "reverse takeovers." "Given the potential risks, investors should be especially careful when considering investing in the stock of reverse merger companies," said Lori J. Schock, Director of the SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy. "As with any investment, investors should thoroughly research the company – including ensuring there is accurate and up-to-date information – before making a decision to invest."
7. After pricing at $19, above the expected $16-$18 range which was recently raised from $13-$15, shares of Fusion-io (NYSE: FIO) closed this week's session at $24 even. The stock opened on Thursday at $25.50.
8. Chinese Internet and new media stocks had another rough week, continuing a recent downside trend. The recent selling in the sector has been related to concerns over accounting practices. Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) shares, often considered the creme of the crop in the Chinese Internet group, fell 8.8 percent.
9. Steve Jobs appeared onstage at Apple's (Nasdaq: AAPL) always highly-anticipated WWDC. Jobs, of course, received a standing ovation, however investors were not so pleased with his company's offerings: the new Lion OS for the Mac, an iOS upgrade and the iCloud and iTunes Match. Apple shares were down more than 5 percent this week.
10. Initial jobless claims for the week ended June 4 come in at 427,000, which compares to the economist estimate of 419,000. The initial reading 422,000 reading for the prior week was revised higher to 426,000. Continuing claims for the week ended May 28 were 3.676 million, vs. the consensus of 3.7 million. The previous week reading was revised from 3.711 million to 3.747 million.
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