By John Solomon
How the government's punishing of the exposure of official wrongdoing can linger for years
The Big Board just isn't so big anymore.
The stock market moved between small gains and losses in early trading Thursday. Uncertainty about the approaching "fiscal cliff," just days away, was top of mind for many traders.
The New York Stock Exchange is being sold to a little-known rival in Atlanta for about $8 billion, ending more than two centuries of independence for the iconic Big Board.
Stocks closed mixed on Wednesday in their first session since Hurricane Sandy forced a historic two-day shutdown of trading.
Wall Street stock markets and Atlantic City casinos shut down, hundreds of flights were canceled, and numerous companies postponed earnings announcements. The short-term economic impacts of Hurricane Sandy were already evident by Monday evening, but the ultimate bill for the struggling nation's economy could take a while to add up.
News that Spain's economy entered another recession renewed worries about the fragility of Europe's finances Monday and nudged stocks lower. The market ended its first losing month this year.
Food company Sara Lee Corp. said Friday that its shareholders will get stock valued at up to $4.55 billion when it spins off its international coffee and tea business later this year.
Retailers reported mixed sales results for January in a sign that U.S. consumers continue to be cautious about when and where they spend their money in the shaky economy.
The Justice Department announced Thursday that it will allow the creation of the world's largest stock exchange operator after the German conglomerate that wants to buy the New York Stock Exchange sells its stake in a third, smaller American stock exchange operator.
The leaders of France and Germany called Tuesday for greater economic discipline and unity among European nations but declined to take immediate financial measures seen by many investors as the only way to halt the continent's spiraling debt crisis.
A bounce back in materials and financial companies erased early losses in the stock market Monday.
The parent company of the New York Stock Exchange said Sunday that it rejected an $11.3-billion bid from Nasdaq and IntercontinentalExchange to buy the company.
The four companies that are still receiving the largest amounts of government bailout aid won't be able to raise the amount of cash they pay out to their top executives this year, the administration's pay czar has ruled.
While the formal end of summer is still a tad away, the Labor Day weekend and back to school signal a return to business as usual for most if not all of us.
