In terms of volatile trading, it would be hard to match the last week. The markets opened today facing huge lay-offs at tech firm Sun Microsystems, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAVA) and with Nokia Corporation (NYSE: NOK) saying consumer buying was so broken that cellphone sales, which have grown worldwide for years, will drop in 2009.
When the opening bell rang at 9.30, it looked like the world had gone to hell. For reasons that no one can explain, trading settled down and the markets closed down modestly (by current standards):
Dow: 8,497.31 -337.94 (-3.82%)
S&P: 500 873.29 -38.00 (-4.17%)
Nasdaq: 1,516.85 -79.85 (-5.00%)
Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) moved down nearly 4%, probably based on the Nokia news. Since both PC and handset sales are weak, Apple has some real exposure.
On a tiny bit of hope that Congress still might send them a check this year, Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) and General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM) were flat to slightly up.
Research from the music video game industry showed slow sales and Electronic Arts, Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) and Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) took big tumbles.
Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.
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