Reporters or Prophets

MY comments are in DARK YELLOW
U.S. Stocks Advance as Government Pledges More Aid for Banks

By Lynn Thomasson

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks gained for the first time in six days, extending a global advance, after financial regulators pledged to inject more cash into the nation’s banks to prevent their collapse ( At 10:08 am only 20 minutes after this article was written The NASDAQ was down 14.69 , the S&P was down 1.4 and the Russell was down 3.4.. the DOW was only up 3 POINTS.

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Bank of America Corp. rallied 13 percent, Citigroup Inc. jumped 11 percent( perspective CITY GROUP HAD A HGH THIS HEAR OF OVER 27 DOLLARS A SHARE AND WAS TRADING FOR 2.20 A SHARE up .25 cents anyone with an investment in this company a year ago has experienced a -90.849% LOSS) and JPMorgan Chase & Co. added 6.4( A 49% LOSS on the year) percent after officials said the U.S. has a “strong presumption” for banks to stay private even as it prepares to identify companies that need more funds. Exxon Mobil Corp.(-15.152% lossYTD) and Chevron Corp.-19.547%lossYTD) rose more than 2 percent as oil prices climbed to an eight-day high. Stocks in Europe and Asia increased, sending the MSCI World Index higher for the first time in 10 days.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index added 0.6 percent to 774.43 at 9:47 a.m.(DOWN3.6 POINTS AT 10:22) in New York. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 52.17 points, or 0.7 percent, to 7,417.84( down to 7,356.51 OR -9.16 POINTS AT 10:23)

after dropping to a six-year low on Feb. 20. The Russell 2000 Index climbed 0.2 percent. ( Then fell to 406.51 with a -4.45 LOSS at 10:24 AM)

“They are going out of their way to say they’re in favor of a private banking system,” said Dan Greenhaus, an analyst in the equity strategy group at Miller Tabak & Co. in New York. “Seeing as how the rumors of nationalization didn’t come to pass, people are riding a little high as a result.” The Market had been open for less than 2 minutes this guy had most likely just woke up

The S&P 500 snapped its longest losing streak ( LIE) since October as regulators said they will begin examining which banks have enough capital to survive a deeper economic slump.( NOT TRUE it was DOWN .99 at 10:12 Am) Banks that need additional funds after the so-called stress tests and cannot raise the money from private investors will be able to tap additional taxpayer funds. The capital would be in the form of “mandatory convertible preferred shares” that would be exchanged into common stock “only as needed.”

Worst Start

The S&P 500 last week extended its worst start to a year to 15 percent as President Barack Obama failed to assuage investors by approving a $787 billion economic stimulus plan that combines tax breaks and government spending meant to resuscitate the moribund U.S. economy. Homebuilders and banks retreated even after Obama announced a plan to stem home foreclosures.( TRUE) ( the following is all in electronic trading and was mostly gone when real people showed up by 10:28 in the morning.. Some stayed on but others vanished the point being this reported was giving information aS THOUGH THE MARKET WERE ALREADY CLOSED. using ED endings on verbs rather than ING endings.)

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index increased 0.3 percent today and Europe’s Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index gained 0.8 percent.

Bank of America climbed 49 cents to $4.28. Citigroup rallied 21 cents to $2.16. At 10:27 THEY HAD DROPPED TO 2.08 JPMorgan, the second-biggest U.S. bank, added $1.11 to $21.01. ( AT 10:27 THEY HAD DROPPED TO 20.93)

Citigroup is in talks with federal officials that may result in the government holding as much as 40 percent of its common stock, the Wall Street Journal said. Executives at the bank would prefer the stake to be closer to 25 percent, the newspaper reported. Citigroup spokesman Jon Diat declined to comment.

Government Efforts

Governments across the world are stepping up measures to stem the worst global recession since World War II. Bank of America and Citigroup have received a combined $90 billion in U.S. aid in four months.

“The government measures will prevent the world from going under,” said Rudolf Buxtorf, who manages the equivalent of $114 million at RBS Coutts Bank in Zurich. “We won’t see a bankruptcy or an even worse catastrophe.” ( Sounds like the CEO of ENRON don't he)

Exxon increased 2 percent to $72.64. Chevron climbed 2.6 percent to $66.73.

Crude oil climbed as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries signaled its resolve to support prices by reducing supplies. Oil for April delivery gained as much as 77 cents, or 1.9 percent, to $40.80 barrel, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Bank Debt

The cost of protecting against a default on senior and subordinated bank debt soared to a record in Europe, credit- default swap prices showed. The iTraxx Financial Index rose 5 basis points to an all-time high of 159, while the subordinated index climbed 15 to 315, according to JPMorgan prices.

The U.S. recession will be the worst in more than three decades as job losses mount and consumers and companies retrench, a survey of business economists showed. Billionaire investor George Soros said the current economic upheaval has its roots in the financial deregulation of the 1980s and signals the end of a free-market model that has since dominated capitalist countries.( George Soros also said that the "prevailing world order" was threatened by Iran and Iraq and Venezuela and Russia with high oil prices supporting their plans, with 40 Dollar oil he thinks the prevailing world order can be fixed...OIL is a weapon Soros basically confirms this.)

General Motors Corp. increased 2.8 percent to $1.82. Advisers to the U.S. Treasury have taken steps to arrange loans of at least $40 billion for GM and Chrysler LLC, should the two automakers need the cash, the largest bankruptcy loan ever, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unidentified people familiar with the situation.(

Ford Motor Co., the second-biggest U.S. automaker, added 6.3 percent to $1.68.

Loews Gains

Loews Corp. rose 2.5 percent to $20.66. The diversified holding company may rally to almost $30 during the next year if financial markets stabilize and the value of the company’s assets recover, Barron’s reported, without citing anyone.

While the S&P 500 is trading close to the lowest price relative to earnings since 1985 and all 10 Wall Street strategists tracked by Bloomberg forecast a rally this year, predictions based on dividends show shares are overvalued by as much as 46 percent. A total of 288 companies cut or suspended payouts last quarter, the most since Standard & Poor’s records began 54 years ago.

To contact the reporter on this story: Lynn Thomasson in New York at lthomasson@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: February 23, 2009 09:48 EST
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EVEN WHILE THIS REPORTED WAS POSTING THIS FORBES website was doing the same thing with this head line and link

Street Bolstered By Hope For Bank AidThe market heads higher on possibility of additional help for Citigroup; Ford appears close to an agreement with its unions.

next to a chart that read at 10:52 AM DJIA 7,331.58 -34.09

• Nasdaq
• 1,422.55
• -18.68

• S&P 500
• 763.97
• -6.08

• Russell 2000
• 404.55
• -6.41

All I am asking is " Is this reporting the news or is it trying to create it?"
I By the end of the day the markets may be up or they may be down, but lets not " as a reporter) try to be a prophet..

That's my job... LOL
In Christ
The Preacher