U.S. stocks drop as financials weigh

Date: Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:01:04 (GMT)
U.S. stocks drop as financials weigh

U.S. stocks head south on further bleak news from the financial sector,
including word of a default at mortgage lender Thornburg Mortgage.

Subprime Today: Carlyle affiliate fails to make margin payments

NEW YORK
Welcome to our daily roundup of subprime- and credit-crunch-related news
from MarketWatch.

Economic Report: Pending home sales index flat in January

In a sign that home sales may be stabilizing, an index of sales
contracts on previously owned U.S. homes was flat in January, though it
was down almost 20% from the prior year.

UBS may have dumped $24 billion Alt-A portfolio, analyst says

UBS may have sold a portfolio of Alt-A securities worth 25 billion Swiss
francs ($24.1 billion), according to an analyst at J.P. Morgan.

Better-than-expected sales offer retailers some hope

U.S. retailers reported better-than-expected February sales, offering
some hope that consumers may still have more spending power to put into
the economy.