A notice filed with the U.S. National Response Center said Exxon Mobil's (2011 new watches) 192,500 barrel per day (bpd) joint venture refinery in Chalmette, Louisiana, reported a spill of lubricating oil into the Mississippi south of New Orleans on Friday.European shares slipped 0.3 percent on Monday, with Dutch group Philips Electronics (PHG.AS) dropping after lower than expected fourth-quarter profit.The focus was also on the euro zone peripheral countries after Ireland's junior coalition party withdrew from Prime Minister Brian Cowen's government on Sunday, signaling the end of a crisis-riddled administration and hastening an election due on March 11.The Dow and S&P 500 rose on Friday after forecast-beating results from General Electric (GE.N), considered a bellwether for the economy and corporate America.power balanceInvestors will look to Tuesday night for President Barack Obama's second State of the Union address in which he will likely talk about boosting jobs and economic growth. The Federal Reserve's FOMC two-day meeting, which ends on Wednesday, will also draw significant interest. The Fed was expected to nod to brighter economic prospects without changing the course of its much-maligned bond buying.* Fourth-quarter gross domestic product data was due Friday, with economists expecting it to show the economy expanded at a 3.6 percent pace, up from the third quarter's 2.6 percent.Looking at company news, Google (GOOG.O) was set to give Eric Schmidt a $100 million equity award as he hands over the chief executive officer job to co-founder Larry Page.* Packaging and paper company RockTenn Co (RKT.N) announced on Sunday it was to buy bigger rival Smurfit-Stone Container Corp (SSCC.N) in a deal which will triple annual revenue to more than $9 billion.A source familiar with the situation said on Sunday that Sara Lee Corp (SLE.N) will this week weigh an offer from a group of private equity firms which values it at nearly $13 billion.If successful, the deal would be among the largest leveraged buyouts since the credit crisis.One-time Bear Stearns investors can move ahead with a proposed securities class-action fraud case after a judge said a case against the fallen investment bank and its outside auditor, Deloitte & Touche, can go forward.* The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI rose 0.4 percent, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX added 0.2 percent and the Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC shed 0.6 percent. U.S. stock index futures pointed to a flat open on Monday, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.04 percent, Dow Jones futures down 0.03 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.1 percent at 5:27 a.m. ET. Earnings news was set to be a focus, with fourth-quarter figures expected from American Express (AXP.N), Amgen (AMGN.O), wedding dresses Corp (CSX.N), Halliburton Company (HAL.N), McDonald's (MCD.N) and Texas Instruments (TXN.N). No major economic data was set for release, with the main economic focus expected later in the week.
Commentaires