U.S. stocks close lower after rate-cut rally falls apart

Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 22:01:04 (GMT)

U.S. stocks close lower after rate-cut rally falls apart

U.S. stocks crumble into the close, after earlier rallying in reaction
to the Federal Reserve's much-anticipated half-point rate cut, with
speculation that bond insurers Ambac Financial and MBIA Inc. faced
downgrades helping to fuel the late-session losses.

The Fed: Fed cuts rate by half a point to 3%, signals for more

The Federal Reserve lowers interest rates by half a percentage point and
signals that the door remains open for more cuts.

Edwards quits race for Democratic nomination

The field of presidential candidates is likely narrowing to two major
hopefuls for each party, with Democrat John Edwards reportedly dropping
out along with Republican Rudy Giuliani.

Societe Generale chief keeps job following $7.1 billion loss

LONDON
Daniel Bouton, the chairman and chief executive of troubled French bank
Societe Generale, will remain in his post after receiving the unanimous
backing of the board of directors on Wednesday.

Wal-Mart revamps apparel unit
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., in a bid to fix its lagging apparel division, said
it's restructuring the unit to make products more relevant and deliver
them to stores in a more timely fashion.