Dow Jones Industrial Average, Stock Market | featured news

Stocks edged higher on Wall Street, pushing the Dow toward 14,000, as investors digested the latest round of earnings and economic reports... Stocks are approaching record levels after a January rally that has pushed the Dow 6.5 percent higher this month and the S&P 500 up 5.7 percent, to its highest level since December 2007. Demand was bolstered after lawmakers reached a deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff" at the start of the year and by reports that have added to evidence showing the U.S. housing market is recovering and the jobs market is slowly healing.

Stocks soared 2% Wednesday in the first trading of 2013, after Congress' last-minute passage of a plan to avert the brunt of the so-called fiscal cliff. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 234 points, or 1.8%, to 13,338 shortly after the opening bell on Wall Street. Wednesday morning's rally follows the Dow's 1.3% jump late in trading on New Year's Eve on signs of an emerging deal between President Obama and congressional leaders.

Investors, gradually coming to believe that policy makers will fail to reach a meaningful agreement to avert the so-called fiscal cliff before a year-end deadline, dumped stocks Friday in a selloff that put the blue-chip index into the red for the month.

The markets are already fretting over the "fiscal cliff": On Thursday, the Dow seemed to surge and fall with every bit of micro-news about a deal or lack thereof, as Joe Weisenthal documented.

Stocks are closing lower after a weak holiday shopping report sent shares of major retailers lower. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 24 points to close at 13,114 Wednesday. It was the third straight loss for the Dow.

Stocks extended their climb on Friday, with the Dow Industrial Average gaining over 100 points. Retailers are strong on what is usually the biggest shopping day of the year, with techs and materials also advancing.

The "fiscal cliff" sounds like a scary place. Headlines about "taxmaggeddon" are flashing on TV screens, next to clocks ticking down to Jan. 1. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has skidded more than 7 percent over the last month, largely due to concerns about the standoff in Congress over how to stop a barrage of tax hikes and spending cuts. But some major investors say the doomsayers are getting too much attention and cliff watchers should relax a bit.

Stocks accelerated their post-election sell off across the board Wednesday, triggered by worries over the looming "fiscal cliff" and re-emerging fears over Europe's economy. The Dow fell below 13,000, while the S&P 500 traded under 1,400 for the first time since early September.

Weak earnings from several large companies and a credit rating downgrade of several regions in Spain raised concerns about a slowing global economy... The Dow Jones industrial average finished the day down 1.8 percent, or 243.36 points, to end at 13,102.53, its worst performance since June. The losses added to the big declines on Friday, and dropped leading indexes to their lowest levels since early September, before the Federal Reserve announced its latest monetary stimulus program.

A weaker forecast of economic growth in Asia is sending stocks lower in early trading on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average is down 47 points at 13,563 shortly after the opening bell Monday morning. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell seven points to 1,454 and the Nasdaq composite gave up 22 points to 3,113.