Stocks slipped Thursday as Wall Street, still pleased about the Federal Reserve's rate cut but sobered a bit by mixed earnings reports, stopped to cash in profits from this week's rally, according to AP. Wall Street held onto most of its gains, though, thanks to a strong third-quarter earnings report from Goldman Sachs and a drop in jobless claims last week. The Labor Department said jobless claims declined by 9,000 last week _ a good sign for the economy, particularly given August's decrease in payrolls and that the market had been predicting a slight rise in claims. Investors were also relieved that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reported a surprisingly large 79 percent rise in profit, saying it managed to hedge losses in subprime mortgages during the tumultuous third quarter. In August, stocks plunged and credit markets tightened up due largely to problems in the housing market. Bear Stearns & Cos. didn't weather the storm as well. Wall Street had forecast a profit decline, but Bear Stearns' 62 percent drop was larger than anticipated. FedEx Corp. also disappointed investors, despite posting a 4 percent rise in earnings, when the delivery company lowered its outlook for the year. Since the Fed's big half-point cut in its target fed funds rate, the Dow Jones industrials has surged more than 400 points over the past two days, and investors now appear unsure where to go from here. Testimony from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke about the mortgage and credit markets before the House Financial Services Committee gave the markets little direction. Bernanke said the credit crisis has created «significant market stress,» but assured the market that regulators are willing to step in to curb the fallout. In mid-morning trading, the Dow slipped 12.44, or 0.09 percent, to 13,803.12. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 1.97, or 0.13 percent, to 1,527.06. The Nasdaq composite index fell 0.16, or 0.01 percent, to 2,666.32. Bonds fell, pushing the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note up to 4.60 percent from 4.52 percent late Wednesday. Crude oil prices crept further into record territory on the New York Mercantile Exchange, rising 25 cents to $82.18 a barrel. Gold prices also rose, extending their recent streak. Meanwhile, the dollar fell to a new low against the euro. The euro traded above $1.40 for the first time since the 13-nation currency was introduced in 1999. In other economic data Thursday, Conference Board's August index of leading economic indicators declined, as expected. Earlier Thursday, Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. and Borse Dubai said they reached a deal under which Nasdaq will take over Nordic bourse operator OMX AB, and Borse Dubai will buy about 20 percent of Nasdaq and 28 percent of the London stock exchange. Nasdaq rose $1.95, or 5.4 percent, to $37.97. Goldman shares rose $2.91 to $208.41 after releasing its earnings, while Bear Stearns shares fell 62 cents to $115.02. FedEx fell $2.74, or 2.6 percent, to $104.77. Declining issues narrowly outnumbered advancers on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 231.36 million shares. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies was down 1.62, or 0.20 percent, at 815.78.
