Financials remain thorn is stock market's side

Date: Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:00:56 -0500

FINANCIALS REMAIN THORN IS STOCK MARKET'S SIDE
News that Citigroup and Wells Fargo are paying back government funds
did little to bolster a sector plagued by rising delinquencies and a
hobbled lending environment.

U.S. STOCKS DROP AS WHOLESALE PRICES HEAD HIGHER
Concerns over rising wholesale prices and deteriorating manufacturing
conditions send stocks lower, although gains in commodities help to
pare earlier declines.

BEST BUY PROFIT TOPS VIEW; STOCK HIT ON MARGIN
Boosted by U.S. holiday shoppers buying items from laptop computers to
mobile phones, Best Buy's third-quarter profit more than quadruples as
the retailer raises its forecast for the full fiscal year. But
investor concerns about margins for the all-important fourth quarter
leave Best Buy's shares on the defensive.

RETAIL STOCKS FALL; BEST BUY HIT ON MARGIN OUTLOOK
Retail stocks fall after No. 1 U.S. electronics chain Best Buy Co. says
fourth-quarter gross margin, a measure of profit, would be worse than
expected in the face of deflation in notebook computers and flat panel
televisions.

KRAFT CHALLENGES CADBURY'S UPBEAT FORECAST
Kraft claims the U.K. chocolate producer is being ambitious over
targets it's never previously achieved.