the nikkei dipped back into the negative by one point. a little bit of volatility we are seeing in the first few minutes of trading. nikkei in the negative and topix in the positive. >> thank you. that was our reporter at the tokyo stock exchange. >>> standard and poor's slashed its credit rating of tokyo electric power company. they cite huge losses an unclear compensation plan for the downgrade. standard and poor's downgraded tepco's rating to single b plus. they posted huge losses for the business year ending in march and the framework to help pay damages are unclear. a single b plus is considered a high risk investment. tepco says it is striving to contain the situation at the fukushima plant, while it continues to streamline its business and restore its image. moody's japan cut tepco's credit rating by two notches and will put the utility on review for a further possibility downgrade. let's get you a recap of the latest market figures. >>> that's all from me for this hour. back to you. >>> north korea is vowing to cut off military co

the nikkei posting pretty healthy gains and it's recovered to 9,500 mark. tokyo stocks could be getting support from wall street overnight. on wednesday the dow ended the three-day losing streak on the back of higher commodity prices and opened lower on weaker than expected april durable goods order data but reversed course as investors scooped up energy shares because they saw oil prices gain ground. dow finishing at 12,394 points, up 38 points or .3 of a%. the nasdaq finishing at 2,761, up 15 points or about half of 1%. now tokyo stocks could be getting support from overnight gains on wall street as well as in europe. they are relatively stable yen but caution over the global economic outlook could cap the upside. today will be a big day on the earnings front as sony gives out the full year earnings numbers. they said on monday that it expects to stay in the red for a third straight year, partly due to the impact of the march 11 disaster. yesterday sony shares fell on news of further security breaes of its website. the dollar is around 82 yen. trading has

so far both the nikkei and the topix both in negative territory. nikkei averages in the negative but still holding above the 9,400 mark. and the topix index also moving downward so far. overnight on wall street, both the dow and nasdaq fell by more than 1%. and what weighed on sentiment were continued jitters over europe's debt problems. standard & poor's cut italy's ratings from stable to negative on saturday and that became another piece of bad news surrounding europe's debt problems. growth link sectors like energy and tech shares were among the top losers. big you the closing levels in new york, the dow finishing at 12,381 points, down about 1%. the nasdaq finishing at 2,758 points. that was down 44 points, or more than 1.5%. here in tokyo the nikkei fell for a third straight session, yesterday breaking below the psychologically important 9,500 mark. you mentioned sony and that is going to draw a lot of attention here in tokyo. investors are eager to see how much impact the march 11th effort quake, as well as the cyber attack on its computer ne

the nikkei, as you see, down just a fraction. australia after being one of the best performers around the region yesterday, now one of the worst performers down to about half a percent. nina? >>. >>> well, andrew, markets in europe have been open for about 20 minutes. let's look at how that's affecting things particularly on the ftse 100. do remember that banking stocks and energy stocks like bp are weighty components. they're currently leading the charge by seven-tenth of 1.0%. we've had about five days worth of heavy losses before that. for the moment, things quite positive. >> yeah, i know. as opposed to the u.s. which has been volatile, it did finish on a better note today. linkedin's oak nomic report. we've got more on that. the indices up by between a fifth and a third of one percent. >>> well, the japanese economy is still reeling from the earthquake in tsunami that hit it on march 11, and now the owner of the crippled fukushima daiichi plant has revealed how much money it's lochlt it's not a pretty picture, but we'll brin

nikkei up by 1%. hang seng half a percent. shanghai almost 1%. another development which did hold back the australian market somewhat. it's a report from moody's. moody's has cut the debt rating on the four biggest banks in australia from a a-1 to aa 2. they say the commonwealth bank and west bank have. not hugely down, but they are major constituents there so that did hold back the broader gains on the market, nina. >>> let's move to the united states. trouble on the home front and gloom in the technology sector kept traders busy of tuesday. housing stoxx dropped by 10% and the industrial production came out as being flat. at the end of it the dow was off by half of 1% and if nasdaq pretty much unchanchd. s&p just below the waterline downtown 0.04%, andrew. >> i guess the only positive thing you can say is dow was down more than 1% in one state. >>> more trouble for hewlett-packard, one of the heavyweights after a tricky year. they've seen plenty of challengt the top. the ceo warning management of another tough quarter that sent the firm's stock

the nikkei down a half percent, sony not helping the nikkei. that's reaction to their forecast for weaker than expected profits in the current year. hong kong almost up by 1%. australia down by almost 1%. it's been a choppy week across the global investment world this week. >>> strength in the tech sector stemmed some of the losses on wall street after weekly jobless claims came in above 400,000 for the seventh week in a row. the revised reading on first quarter gdp stayed at 1.8%. at the close the dow was up a fraction. the nasdaq gains 0.75%. the s&p 500 up 0.40%. nina? >>> andrew, you will tell us about how the tech sector steamed ahead to stem some of the losses on wall street, i believe, right? >> yeah, i did. basically there's quite a lot of action in the tech world. texas have generally been outperforming the broader markets, any way. we sort of saw a bit of that continue yesterday, nina, but it's still difficult to get a grip on the direction. there's a lot of churning at the moment. it's a difficult one to pick at the moment. >> okay,

the nikkei average actually in the positive, recovered the 9,500 mark briefly but now dipped back below that. concerns about the global economic outlook have been one of the biggest neemz recent sessions and this was also true during europe trading overnight where the dow fell for the third straight session. there was positive news, including a rise in april new home sales and higher oil prices which pushed up energy shares but investors were disappointed by the fed survey which showed a fall in manufacturing activity. having a look at the closing levels in new york the dow finishing at 12,356 points and the nasdaq finishing at 2,746 points. here in tokyo, analysts say stocks could get some support from bargain hunting, but worries about the global economy could keep investors sidelined. in currency side the yen strengthened slightly at one stage against the dollar in new york, dealers sold the dollar to buy the yen as they saw u.s. interest rates were less attractive on falling u.s. yields. that period is back around the 82 yen level, and against the euro, the yen weakened against the

both tokyo's nikkei and hong kong's hang sang fell a fraction. the nikkei to a two-month low and the price of oil dropped to under $99 a barrel. today wall street gets the latest on the manufacturing sector. tuesday's stocks another rough day, the dow dropped 25 points, the nasdaq lost 13. the government may see some cash from its stake in aig this week. the treasury department will sell 200 million shares of the insurance giant it was forced to bail out in 2008. based on the share price, they should squeeze out a narrow profit, but even after the transaction is complete, the government will still own 77% of the company. >>> americans are doing a better job of paying off their plastic, according to the credit agency transunion, late payments on credit cards fell in the first quarter to their lowest level in 15 years. the average debt per person also dropped to just shy of $4,700, down 9% from a year ago. >>> if caffeine doesn't give you a jolt, the cost of your morning joe might. the maker of folgers and prepacked dunkin' donuts coffee has announ

looking at the broader markets, the nikkei finishing off sharply. the nikkei down by 1.5%. here in hong kong, the index down more than 2%, shanghai almost 3%. we had numbers out on a managers purchasing index showing it's slowing down, that the factories are not asking for as much. there are more indications there may be a bit of a slow down going on there. australia down nearly 2% as well. in the u.s., markets look set for a lower open when the new trading week gets under way. this is what the numbers look like so far. these numbers do change, of course, as we get closer to the opening bell. the nasdaq down 0.6% and the s&p by 0.6% as well. nina. >>> nominations more the imf's top job opened today. if you were to visit a british bookmaker you'd be forgiven for think that christine lagarde has it in the bag. trevor emanuel, he's on the bottom right-hand corner of the screen closest to me. he's making quite a strong impression. on the other hand, turkey's kemal dervis has ruled himself out of the running. the race continues. christine lagarde has come a long way since repres

the nikkei was down by 0.5%. two consecutive quarters of negative growth in japan, the annualized rate, which means the projected full-year contraction of the economy stands at 3.7%. that's significant given this is the world's third largest economy. perhaps not surprising given the huge disruptions it's faced in march. the rest of the reason, australia, the best one, up by 1.3%, nina. >>> what's going on in japan will have ramifications for european countries trading those shares on the markets today. it was a mixed picture where you are. seemed as though there's a mixed picture and a positive sentiment in the markets today. in particular, let's take a look at what's going on in london. the ftse was up by 0.6%. still holding strong where it is. this is partly because a lot of people are looking at one stock that's listed there. it is the shares of the commodities giant glencore after it made a $10 billion initial public offering. we saw that stock actually down by about 2% in early trading, trading at 583 pence.

the nikkei up by 0.2%.expensing yesterday that it expected a $3.2 billion loss for the financial year that ended the end of march. its stock is up by 2%. a lot of analysts saying better times are on their way. sony up 2%. the rest of the markets, not much going on. shanghai down 0.25%. still concerns about the strength of the chinese economy there. just want to update you on a story coming to us from south korea. hyundai has found itself handicapped after a strike by workers at a major supplier. they make piston rings an other parts for hyundai and kia. they stopped working almost a week ago amid calls for better hours and payment. hyundai says the strike must stop, claiming it stands to lose more than $4 billion worth of units if it continues into next month. now, needless to say, the news has hit hyundai's share price. it fell almost 3 rers on monday. it's back a little over 1% today. amid reports that police may be set to tackle that strike. >>> now, meanwhile authorities in japan now say there may have

caging a quarter of a percent after the nikkei newspaper said so you go to moshe's output will likely return to normal two or three months earlier than expected as the supply is stabilizing. and saying closed for a public holiday. here in russia they are she has has just opened after an extended weekend during the first minutes of tuesday's session dangerous and raise friday's gains and it was more than one percent down this hour long range loses energy and banking stocks undermines its will start trading in just a few minutes it closed around two point two percent in the black last week. well looking at their week ahead from troika dialog thanks last week's correction on the russian markets offers investors their one of a kind trading opportunity i think this is quite unique opportunity right now to make its wish from gas sector in two sectors which are the most likely a reinstated within the ruble can be strong in second half of this year and there's definitely very negative for oil and gas sector for exporters so right now i would recommend. russia oriented domestically or into com

how the day ended across the region, the nikkei having a pretty strong day up nearly 2%. hong cohn better, up by more than 2%. shanghai, up 1.4% and australia almost 1% higher. charles? >>> ahead on "world business today," the second country in the world in terms of population and an economic powerhouse. but what's different now about india's financial might? >>> and watch out coffee drinkers. you'll soon be in for quite a jolt. blame it on the weather. we'll tell you why in a moment. nationwide insurance. talk to me. should i bundle all my policies with nationwide insurance ? watch this. on one hand, you have your home insurance with one company. and on another hand, you have your auto with another. and on another hand, you have your life with another. huh... but when you bundle them all together with nationwide insurance... ... they all work together perfectly-- and you could save 25%. wow... it's all in the wrists. ♪ nationwide is on your side >>> welcome back to cnn london. some of the other top business stories this hour -- france's finance minister on the road campa

e nikkei index eedrning sessiont that's dow nearly 11oifa thpened higher the dollar isaingund ag n. ouesayhe at the les hong ko's thi uray laying es f aooling ll wh ea min itlf ilng rf iacmang fusha clr wepl nd t ss ceum34t 8 meum1 to mi st e atat the he rld about japan's perspective as tear a country tha has experi >> sarkozy met kan in tokyo on after doot the disaster began at fukushima. they agreed to work together to das eaplan brnational safety e end of the year. >> translator: it is imperative to check the security of all nuclear plants, includin the fukushima accident serves as a warning to all countries that usnueaengy >> he said that some such as germany are reconsidering nuclear power generation. but france will continue to operate its nuclear power plants. he added that the g8 leaders will show agreemt t nd to heighten nuclear safety standards in a joint summit declaration. >>> ja ioow companies say the government should explain why it's asking them to he tpeto o t crippled fukushimaucarla padages to those affected by the disaster. last government dedeon framework to help

the nikkei index ended at 9,651, that's up 84 points or nearly 0.9% on the day. investors are placing buy orders on export-related shares. this is as the yen shows weakness against the dollar and euro compared to last week. concerns remain over a slowdown of the u.s. economy as share prices fell for a third straight day on wall street. this followed the release of worse than expected economic data. on the tokyo foreign exchange the dollar is being sold and the euro is strengthening on wednesday morning. the green back is trading betwen 81.30 to 32 yen. sources say that investors are selling the dollar following the overnight release of gloomy u.s. economic data. concern is spreading among the market players over the prospect of the u.s. economy. taking a look at the latest long-term interest rates, the yield on the benchmark 10-year japanese government bond is up nearly one basis point so far. in other asian markets we're seeing gains across the board. hong kong is up 0.4%. shanghai is up over half a percent and shenzhen is up a quarter of a percent it this wedne

japanese investors today -- the nikkei down by about a fifth of 1%.ig story really, though, remaining shanghai. that's eight days in a row now the shanghai composite has fallen. not much. still the trend is firmly down. fears about the state of inflation plus the state of economic growth in china certainly vexing investors. charles? >>> let's turn our attention to the big one. that's wall street where the economy and the labor market are front and center this week. even if those markets are closed for today. alison kosik with a preview. >> monday is a holiday in the u.s. so the stock and bond markets will be closed. but the first week of the month always brings the most important economic reading. i'm alison kosik at the new york stock exchange. investors will be focussed on the may jobs report due out friday. last month unemployment rate edged back up to 9% ending a streak of four straight months of declines. but the labor market has been recovering with more than 200,000 jobs being added in february, march and april. however, the consensus is that j

. >>> take a look at the overseas trading, the nikkei dropped 64 points, in hong kong, the hang seng was up 176. >>> investors will be looking for fresh clues on the economy after a much-needed dose of optimism gained ground on friday. after the drop in commodities, markets made a comeback thankses to a surprisingly strong employment report. commodities will be in focus when the government weighs in with the inflation index telling us how much prices have gone up on everything from food to fuel. >>> we get the take on april's retail sales along with earnings from kohl's, macy's, and nordstrom. friday's positive sentiment had woes of on going debt problems. >>> in a battle for global brand domination, apple has unseated google from the four-year reign at the top according to the report out today. the driver of traffic to on-line news sites safe. according to a study, the search engine provides 35% of the top new web visitors. the median value of salaries, bonuses, and long-term incentive award for the ceos of the major companies surged 11% to $9.3 billion. >>> speaking of big paydays,

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei dipped 16 points.hile in hong kong, the hang seng rose 66. >>> a handful of private businesses have their eye on the sky. that's because there's a new space race under way, a competition to pick up where nasa's retiring shuttle program is leaving off, carrying cargo and astronauts into space. here's nbc's tom costello. >> one small step for man -- >>> more than 40 years since the u.s. won the first space race with the soviets, the second space race is uniquely american. >> roger, "endeavour". >> with the space shuttle fleet retiring this summer, private industry is battling to win nasa's confidence in transporting astronauts to the space station. and a company called spaceex may be in the lead. it's launched a rocket called falcon 9 with a spacecraft called dragon, orbiting the earth, and splashdown in the pacific. space-ex isn't alone. boeing is developing a rocket system. blue origin found by jeff bezos kept its plans largely secret. nasa provided $319 million in seed money for the private sector to

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei dropped 145 points while in hongong the hang seng shed 102. >>> a stunning one-day plunge in the price of crude underscored wall street's uncertainty about the health of the u.s. economy. oil prices fell 9% yesterday to close below $100 a barrel for the first time in two months. energy giants exxon, chevron and slumburger all fell 2%. that nose dive indicated relief at the pump could arrive in time for memorial day. a big spike in weekly jobless claims caught investigators off guard and raised a red flag ahead of today's monthly jobs report. even an upbeat report from general motors was unable to offset the day's woes. the nasdaq got help from gamemaker electronic arts, which shot up 9% on its strong earnings. after the bell, bailed out insurer aig reported first quarter losses after paying back $2.4 billion it borrowed more than two years ago. after hours, visa jumped a healthy profit with increased card use at home and abroad. kraft reported better than expected first quarter profit and lowered its full year foreca

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei rose 188 points while in hong kong, the hang seng climbed 499. investors have a shortened trading week ahead on wall street where the economy will be front and center. the federal reserve is expected to end its $600 bond buying program in june. that means officials and investors will be looking for signs the economy is on the right track. elsewhere on this week's economic agenda, traders will get an up-dade on first quarter home prices as well as last month's consumer confidence. manufacturing data is on deck tomorrow, followed by retail sales thursday. and then friday, it's the biggie. the government's may jobs report. companies have been hiring more workers lately, but we'll see if that makes a dent in the nation's 9% unemployment rate. also this week, we'll see how japan's earthquake and tsunami factored into u.s. another sales for may. as for japan, new numbers out this morning show auto production there is down 60% as the country struggles to recover. driving home those worries, moody's said today japan's debt rat

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei lost 67 points but in hong kong, the hang seng added 202. >>> thursday was a roller coaster day on wall street as investors nervous about a recovery moved to so-called safe stocks. recently, defensive shares such as health care and consumer staples have been heading upward, suggesting jittery investors aren't bailing out on stocks altogether. pharmaceutical merck, coca-cola, kraft foods led stocks higher by end of day trade. april retail sales posted the smallest rise in nine months. pushing early losses, applications for unemployment benefits fell last week, but less than expected. commodities managed a modest comeback. oil recovered from steep, early losses, finishing nearly 1% higher, but still below $100 a barrel. cold and copper also rose. goldman sachs was lower after its shares were downgraded due to a growing chorus arguing charges should be brought against the bank for defrauding investors. cisco sank after reporting 18% slide in earnings, lower profit forecast and job cut plans. after the bell, nordstrom dr

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei was closed for a holiday, but in hong kong, the hang seng dropped 87. >>> well, this might make you think twice before giving our your personal information online. one day after sony made a public apology to some 77 million playstation users whose personal data had been hacked, the company revealed nearly 25 million online entertainment accounts had been compromised. sony is offering free service in exchange for the unprecedented intrusion. osama bin laden's death gave stocks a higher open yesterday. positive earnings from dishnetwork, humana and chrysler. investors' biggest worry, gas prices. the national average is now $3.96 a gallon. warnings pricey gas could eat into high-end grocery budgets sent whole foods down 5%. in deal news, teba pharmaceuticals will pay $6.8 million for drugmaker cephalon. timothy geithner says due to stronger than expected tax receipts, the white house and congress has three more weeks to reach a deal to raise the debt ceiling. >>> watch massey energy today. after the bell, massey reporte

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei was closed for a holiday, but in hong kong, the hang seng dropped 318. a disappointing report from the world's largest drugmaker set a dismal tone on wall street yesterday. pfizer fell short of earnings estimates following the bell followed by weak results from clorox, beezer homes and sears. crude prices dipped more than 2 bucks a barrel. today the government is expected to report a jump in u.s. supplies. metro pcs was one of the day's few bright spots. the phone carrier rose 10% after ringing up a record number of subscribers last quarter. general motors climbed 2% thanks in part to higher gas prices which are now driving sales of fuel efficient photos. for home loans, it should buy a mortgage company it bought back in 2007. in a suit filed yesterday, the u.s. demanded deutsche pay back hundreds of millions of dollars in defaulted loans. bp has agreed to pay $25 million in civil fines stemming from two alaskan oil spills back in 2006. the largest per barrel find for any oil company in a spill-related case. portugal

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei was up 24 points.hile in hong kong, the hang seng was closed for a holiday. >>> wall street wakes up this morning to one very big acquisition. reuters reports microsoft will announce it has beat out facebook and google buying the web video conferencing service skype in its biggest deal ever for $8.5 billion. monday the very same companies hobbled by last week's massive commodities selloff rode higher thanks to a rebound in oil and materials. silver rose climbing back from its worst weekly drop since at least 1975. energy stocks also led gains as oil once again moved above $100 a barrel. in financials, heavily traded citigroup dragged stocks falling over 2% after the company's one for ten reverse stock split. h&r block tumbled 7% after reports a group will try to force the company's defunct subprime lending unit to buy back billions in soured home loans. dollar thrifty soared 13% after hertz rivaling with avis raised its offer to more than $2.2 billion. european markets fell on worries about greece afte

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei lost 54 points but in hong kong the hang seng inched up 16. >>> europe's lingering debt crisis continued to dog markets on tuesday, despite a small rebound in oil prices. energy stocks had a big day after several banks predicted oil prices will climb later this year, including one estimate that crude could reach $135 a barrel by the end of 2012. yesterday, oil surged nearly $2 to settle just under $100 a barrel. still uncertainty about the impact european debt could have here at home outweighed gains in the energy sector and a modest rise in new home sales. on the earnings front, autozone shares shot up 6% on its strong sales report. russian search engine yandex unseated linkedin with a $1.3 billion debut on the new york stock exchange. chrysler took a big step in restoring its status with a $7 of 6 repayment of bailout loans. meanwhile, the u.s. unloaded a big chunk of its stake in bailed out insurer aig, $8.7 billion worth, including a small profit. >>> finally, the newly crowned duchess of cambridge is officially

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei inched up 16 points while in hong kong the hang seng added 19. >>> well, now that earnings season is over, wall street has it turned its attention overseas and so far the news hasn't been good. u.s. markets tumbled yesterday after a string of negative reports about europe's debt problems. the dollar rose against the euro creating a domino effect which sent stocks and commodities tumbling. u.s. shares of sony closed lower after news its losses from japan's recent disasters could total a staggering $3.2 billion. new government report finds companies actually owed the irs $757 million in back taxes. for those who pay their taxes, the government has filed & tie trust suit against h and r block to stop its purchase of tax act. bank of america has agreed to pay $412 million to settle its role in a class action lawsuit accusing banks of charging excessive overdraft fees on debit cards. >>> after the bell, campbell's beat earnings estimates thanks to snack sales from its pep original farm brand. >>> and finally, amazon.com's

looking at overseas trading in tokyo the nikkei sang 147 points and the hang seng fell 218. >>> wall street's three-day rally came to a screeching halt on wednesday as signs high gas prices are taking a toll, and it it set off another sell-off in commodities. demand for gas fell by the largest amount in seven weeks. a signal consumers are cutting back. that fed slowing growth worries setting off a chain reaction. oil tumbled back below $100 a barrel. gas futures fell almost 8%. in fact, trade was haltded after fast-falling prices tripped a five-minute circuit breaker, the first time that's happened since 2008's financial crisis. energy stocks had the steepest fall of all, 10 industries on the s&p 500. silver hit hard last week dropped almost 8%. other metals fell, pounding materials stocks. the dollar and bond prices rose as traders moved into safest assets. the euro sank against the dol r dollar. jitters set in earlier as china's industrial output eased much more than expected in april. there were positives. the government estimates corn supply forecast to shrink will actually grow,

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei shed 40 points. but in hong kong, the hang seng gained 217. after a bumpy start, upbeat earnings helped stocks rise for a second straight day thursday. most of the morning, wall street flowed up and down on news about europe's debt crisis. also darkening the mood, goldman sachs lowered its year-end expectations for the s&p 500 by more than 3%. gloomy data also didn't help. weekly unemployment unexpectedly rose. gross domestic product rose, but below expectations due to unexpectedly weak consumer spending. the bleak news drew investors into bonds, sending the treasury yield to its lowest level this year. later, though, stocks managed to come back, pushed by strong results by data storage firm netapp. microsoft dropped 2% after a major hedge fund manager called for the company's ceo to resign. tiffany zoomed almost 9% on a strong report and outlook. the day's flag was computer sciences. shares fell 15% after disappointing results and an announcement it's bp being investigated by the securities & exchan

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei was up 45 points but in hong kong, the hang seng dropped 44. after last week's giant commodities sell-off, china eased wall street's fears about global growth tuesday while paving the way for more american business. china not only posted an april trade surplus nearly four times better than expected, it agreed to open up its government contracts for more u.s. companies and let u.s. banks sell mutual funds there. >>> microsoft's mega deal to buy skype for $8.5 million fueled trade, but not microsoft. on the other hand, shares of ebay, which owns a large stake in skype, rose 2.5%. >>> a surprise departure by the ceo of boston pacific sent shares tumbling almost 9%. dean foods jumped on higher than expected quarterly profit. weight-loss program operator me difast rose 17% after reporting earnings that beat expectations. keep an eye today on disney. after the bell, shares fell on revenue that missed expectation. elsewhere, oil rose to $103 a barrel. all gas prices fell for the fifth straight day. >>> gm will invest about $

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei gained 95 points while in hong konghe hang seng rose 110. markets took some wild turns on tuesday, but stocks finished off with an afternoon rebound that could continue today. after the bell, pc maker dell reported its profit nearly tripled during its fiscal first quarter. the better than expected earnings pushed dell shares sharply higher in late trade. earlier in the day, a dramatically disappointing forecast from hewlett packard weighed heavily on the dow. hp shares tumbled heavily on the market. walmart dragged its stock 1% lower as shoppers pinched to buy higher gas prices opted to just buy the basics. weak manufacturing and housing data raised concerns about the economy's strength and helped pull industrial giants boeing and caterpillar down. elsewhere on the earnings front, sales slipped in the first quarter at home depot, but shares of the retailer rose, thanks to a healthy jump in profit. market watchers are keeping a close eye on linkedin ahead of its first publicly traded day tomorrow. they bumped up the pric

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei shed 13 points, but in hong kong, the hang seng was up 36. investors hope linkedin's impressive wall street debut is a preview of what's in store for other social networks planning to go public this year. shares of the professional network jumped 109%, rising from an initial price of $45 to close just over $94. that success, however, didn't do much for the mainstream tech sector as goldman sachs issued a sell recommendation on intel and advised caution for the entire semiconductor sector. >>> meanwhile, concerns about the economy weighed on the dow. fresh data showed a slump in sales of previously owned homes. weak regional manufacturing and a surprisingly slow forecast for future economic activity. oil prices fell after the international oil agency countered opec's stance that oil supplies are just fine, saying there is a, quote, urgent need to ramp up production to prevent further damage to the global economy. after the bell, late, barnes & noble shares soared after liberty media's $1 billion buyout offer. in a pr

the nikkei index closed the morning session at 9,648, that's down 28 points, a loss of a little over a quarter of a percent. some export-related stocks were bought following the overnight rise in new york shares while utilities dropped due to concerns over a worse outlook. all eyes are on tepco which will release its earnings report later in the day. >>> on the tokyo foreign exchange, the dollar is moving within a narrow range against the yen friday morning. the greenback is currently trading between 81.60 to 65 yen. the euro now stands between 116.78 to 83 yen. sources say that market players sold the dollar in overseas markets as they were cautious about prospects for the u.s. economy. this was in reaction to the release of poor economic data. however, in tokyo, exporters are buying the dollar as funds to be used for settlement. >>> here's a look at the latest long-term interest rates. the yield on the benchmark ten-year jp kneapanese governme bond is down nearly two basis points. >>> and looking at other asian markets, hong kong's hang seng is in positive territory, a gain of just

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei inched up 8 points, but in hong kong, the hang seng dipped 59. >>> worries that the market's recent gains may be in jeopardy took a toll on stocks yesterday with tech shares leading the way down. outperformers amazon.com, priceline.com and netflix shares all fell yesterday as in-have investors sold recent winners in a sign of growing uncertainty about the u.s. recovery. tech and consumer related shares were the biggest drags on the s&p outweighing gains in so-called stable sectors such as health care and utilities. meanwhile weakness in new york area manufacturing and some less than impressive retail earnings did little to reassure anxious investors. oil prices fell more than $2 a barrel on concerns mississippi river flooding could disrupt gulf coast crude production. however the prospect of lower gas prices lifted shares of jetblue and american airlines. more fallout from the nation's financial crisis. new york's attorney general has been quietly requesting information from bank of america, goldman sachs and morgan

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei dropped 41 points. but in hong kong, the hang seng was up 152. >>> well, stocks bounced back to snap a three-day losing streak yesterday. news that fed officials think the economy is on the right track fueled a rally among raw materials. oil led in commodities rising back above $100 a barrel. meanwhile, dell's strong earnings drove economic optimism as businesses began buying computer hardware again. however, companies are still cutting some corners. office supply chain staples plunged 15% after reporting weak sales and lowered its full year forecast. investigators have taken kodak's side in a patent battle with apple and research in motion. after the bell, limited brand said strong sales boosted its quarterly income. overseas, japan has fallen back into recession. the country's economy contracted sharply for a second straight quarter in the wake of its recent disasters. back at home, u.s. officials are calling the world trade organization's ruling that airbus benefited from improper european government

the nikkei finished the morning at 9,868. that's up about 50 points or 0.50% from tuesday's close. the key index opened higher with exporters leading the advance following an overnight rise in new york. the upside was capped as many investors stayed on the sidelines to keep an eye on a string of corporate earnings reports due out this week. >> on the tokyo foreign exchange, the dollar is almost unchanged against the yen on wednesday morning. the greenback is currently trading between 80.90 to 91 yen, whereas the euro stands between 116.53 to 57 yen. market sources say the dollar is expected to move in a narrow range against the yen amid receding worries about debt problems in greece. >>> let's look at the latest long-term interest rates. this is the yield on the benchmark ten-year japanese government bond. we are seeing hong kong and mainland china shares trading in the negative. shanghai major blue chips down about 0.28%. shenzhen down 1.06% currently. >> companies in japan have been taking a range of measures to prepare for power shortages expected this summer. one key initiative

the nikkei ended at 9,786. that's down 77 points or about three-fourths of a percent from wednesday's close. a wide range of shares have been sold. observers say uncertainty over the japanese economy is weighing down market sentiment as many firms didn't provide forecasts when reporting last business year's results. the dollar is gaining ground against the you'euro and yen. the euro is trading between 115.45 to 48 yen. market sources say the downgrading of greek bonds prompted investors to sell the euro and buy the dollar. in parallel to these mooufls, the yen was sold. a look at the latest long-term interest ratd. the yield olt 10-year japanese government bond down half a basis point this session. we are seeing losses across other asian markets as well. mainland china shares are currently down about half a percent, where as hong kong is down nearly 1% this thursday morning. >>> two months after the march 11th earthquake and snatsunami, attention is drawn to the future course of the jap dmeanese econ. we focus

the key nikkei index closed at 9,693. that's down 23 points or a quarter of a percent from thursday's close. trading is mixed as investors are considering the effects of the quake in northeastern japan. now to currencies on the tokyo foreign exchange. the dollar is slightly lower against the yen. the greenback is currently as 80.93 yen. the euro is at 114.88 yen. observers say it prompted buying of the euro against the dollar. this also weakened the greenback against the yen, and that momentum carried over to tokyo. here's a look at the latest long-term interest rates. the yield on the benchmark ten-year japanese government bond is up one basis point so far this session. a mixed picture this friday morning. hong kong is down 0.16%, shanghai trading in positive territory. and i will be back in a bit, but for now back to the main news with katherine. >> thanks very much, ai. >>> the nuclear crisis in fukushima has had a devastating impact on the surrounding communities. many of those who have had to evacuate their hometowns

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei was closed for a holiday.n hong kong, the hang seng fell 53. >>> as earnings season winds down, serious doubts about the health of the economy are setting in. driving fears yesterday was news that hiring was nowhere near expected last month. raising caution about tomorrow's monthly jobs report. silver and oil prices slid for another day, dragging down mining giant freeport mcmoran and accideoccidental petroleum. it took a toll on time warner while aol blamed dwindling revenue for its lackluster report. rising costs put a strain akellogg's bottom line while ralcorp rebuffed con agra's sweetened takeover deal for a second time. bailed-out lender freddie mac posted its first quarterly gain in two years and is not asking for more federal aid. apple says a new update will reduce the time your iphone stores location data from one year to one week. this after the phone's tracking device was sending info back to apple. news corp missed earnings estimates while whole foods weighed in with its strongest results in five

the key nikkei index ended the morning session at 9,822. that's down 1.8% from monday's close with a loss of 181 points. sources say the nose-dive is due to a plunge on wall street and the stronger yen. >>> here's a look at latest long-term interest rates. this is the yield on the benchmark 10 year japanese government bond. taking a look at other asian market, we're seeing losses there as well with chong, shanghai and shin zen all down this friday morning with losses of over half a percent. >>> the european union and the international monetary fund have agreed to a 78 billion euro or $116 billion financial aid package for portugal. this is on the condition the country tries to reduce its deficit by 2013. the plan was unveiled thursday at a news conference in lisbon. portugal has promised to cut public sector jobs. it has also promised privatizations in its energy and telecommunications sectors. the issue of fiscal reconstruction prompted the japanese prime minister to resign in march. a general election is planned for june. >> in the presen

the nikkei finished the morning session at 9,771. down 23 points, or about 1/4 of a percent from monday's close. the key index opened higher, following an overnight rise in new york, but it later headed south as a lack of fresh incentives prompted investors to lock in gains. trading was mixed overall, while firms with robust earnings were bought. those with an uncertain outlook were sold. on the tokyo foreign exchange, the dollar is losing ground against the yen on tuesday morning. the greenback is currently trading between 80.29 to 32 yen, whereas the euro stands at 1.15.12 to.17 yen. many investors are selling if the dollar for the yen to lock in profits. here is a look at the yield in the 10-year japanese government bond. modest moves in other asian markets this tuesday. the shanghai key index for major blue chips is up just about 0.15%. the sse is currently flat. and hong kong markets are closed for a holiday today. >>> survivors of the march 11 earthquake and tsunami are facing severe water shortages as they wait for supply to b

in tokyo the nikkei was close for a holiday. but in hong kong the hang seng dropped 318. >>> a disappointing report from the world's largest drugmaker. pfizer fell short before the bell followed by weak results by clorox, homes and shears. energy shares slumped. today the government is expected to report a jump in u.s. supplies. metro pcs was one of the day's few bright spots. the discount phone carrier rose 10% after ringing up a record number of subscribers last quarter. general motors climbed 2%, thanks in part to higher gas prices which are now driving sales of fuel-efficient autos. >>> deutsche bank is in hot water where the u.s. government for home loans issued by a mortgage company it bought back in 2007. in a suit filed yesterday the u.s. demanded deutsche pay back hundreds of millions in defaulted loans. >>> bp has agreed to pay $25 million in civil fines stemming from two alaskan oil spills back in 2006, the largest per-barrel fine for any oil company in a spill-related case. >>> portugal is the latest european company

the nikkei ended the morning session at 9,516, down 42 points from monday's close. the key index opened lower following an overnight decline in new york. weakness in commodities also weighed down on market sentiment. turns to currencies, the dollar was the changed against the yen on tuesday morning. the greenback is now at the upper 80 yen levels. investors remained on the sidelines ahead of the release of the latest data on u.s. housing starts and other key economic indicators. >>> and now a look at the latest long-term interest rates. the yield on the benchmark 10-year japanese government bond is up half a basis point. in other asian markets, we are seeing losses across the board. hong kong leading the way with a 0.6% loss this tuesday morning. more countries have been voicing concerns over possible radiation contamination of japanese farming and industrial products since the accident at the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant. some firms in japan are at a loss on how to cope with their clients abroad. >> reporter: this village is 80 kilometers away from the pow

tokyo's nikkei average was down a fraction today. hong kong's hang seng gained a small amount. in london, the ftse is also closed. when wall street opens tomorrow, the dow will be at 12,441. >>> lock heheed martin says it a target of a significant hack attack this month. no critical data was stolen. the company, the largest military contractor, says it has already taken stoeps control the breach. >>> the airlines have hiked their fares seven times this year. it doesn't appear that they'll go down anytime soon. ticket vaels up 1.5%. >>> you'll be hearing about one of those airlines a lot in the upcoming nba finals. the heat play in the american airlines areen nap the mav vicks play in the american airlines center. >>> and hollywood could be heading to a new memorial day record. thanks to "the hangover part two." it opened to twice the sales of the original film. second was another sequel, "kung fu panda two." >>> coming up, the father of the soldier accused in the wikileaks case speaks out. >>> and an update on the casey anthony case. tearful testimony from the suspect's mother

taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo the nikkei was closed for a holiday while in hong kong the hang seng dropped 87. >>> this might make you think twice before giving out any personal information online. just one day after sony made a public apology to some 77 million playstation users whose personal information had been hacked, the company revealed nearly 25 million online entertainment accounts have also been compromised. sony is offering free service in exchange for the unprecedented intrusion. >>> osama bin laden's death gave stocks a higher start yesterday, but the early rally was short-lived as investors shrugged off upbeat economic data and earnings from dish network, humana, and chrysler. >>> investors' biggest worry, gas prices. the national average is now $3.96 a gallon. warnings pricey gas could eat into high end grocery budgets sent whole foods down 5%. >>> in deal news, teva pharmaceuticals will pay $6.8 million for drug maker cephalon. >>> treasury secretary timothy geithner said, due to stronger than expected tax receipts, the white house and congre

tokyo's nikkei jumped 1.5%. hong kong's hang seng went up a notch and oil dipped slightly to just over $113 a barrel. today, wall street gets it latest on manufacturing and the april auto sales numbers. on monday, stocks fell after an early rally ran out of steam. the dow is at three points while the nasdaq lost nine. >>> sony cyberattack problems are expanding. the company said monday that the sony entertainment center, an online gaming center for pc users has been hit by hackers. sony shut down the site when they discovered the attack. hackers got the names, birth dates, and addresses of nearly 25 million users, but not any credit card information. the company's playstation network was hit earlier this month putting the customer information of 77 million users at risk. sony hopes to get at least part of that network back on-line this week. >>> if you're not already paying $4 a gallon, you probably will be soon. the price has jumped another 8 1/2 cents in the past week to a nationwide average of $3.96 a gallon,

tokyo's nikkei average gained almost 2% today. hong kong's hang seng was also positive. in london, the ftse opened higher, too. when wall street reopens this morning, the dow will start above 12,400. the nasdaq index begins at 2800 points. >>> and more americans are saving for colleges. contributions to government-sponsored savings plans are rising sharply, after plunging during the recession. that's because parents worried about tuition hikes. but the contributions to the plans are less than five years ago. >>> a man in suburban new york is serving to have his divorce settlement renegotiated. his wife was given cash, but it was in bernard madoff. he is suing to get a better deal. >>> also, a new restaurant opening in the southern california. but it's not the menu that everybody's talking about. it's actually how you order. the astronaut is called stacked. and it as has an ipad on every table. >> you use the ipad to swipe your credit card and place your order. in case you're wondering, there is a live human being to bring out the food to. you can't tip the ipad. >> you c

the nikkei average is up. the hang seng is down slightly. in london, the ftse opened up also very slightly. >>> when we come back, on this historic monday morning. spontaneous celebrations here in the u.s. crowds have been up all night, elated with the news of bin laden's death. >>> and, of course, everyone thinking of the 9/11 families who are now sharing the joy. you'll hear from some of them. you're watching coverage of the death of osama bin laden. the weight started coming off. ahh! oh my gosh! [ laughs ] we're college kids, we go out all the time. having my food tracker what i'm having at the restaurant. i lost 73 pounds with weight watchers online. i don't think i've ever smiled this much in my whole life. it kind of hurts my cheeks. [ female announcer ] hurry, join for free today. weight watchers online. finally, losing weight clicks. [ female announcer ] hurry, join for free today. man: and all the pens are put down... woman: and everything there is to learn is learned. man: till the heroes retire and the monsters return to their de

tokyo's nikkei average lost 0.7%. hong kong's hang seng, however, is up a little. in london, the ftse opened lower. and on wall street, the dow rose yesterday, thanks to a small recovery in commodities. the nasdaq index also gained. >>> the rivalry between two online giants is now heating up. facebook admits it hired a p.r. firm to plant negative stories in the media about google's social circle. facebook denied they were engaging in a smear campaign against google, saying they just wanted to highlight privacy concerns. analysts agree that facebook lost face on this one. >>> nabisco is confirming a new variety of oreos. the triple-double. one of the cream fillings is vanilla. the other, chocolate. the news first leaked on the internet, although nabisco claims they tried to keep it a secret. there's no word when the triple-double will be available. a healthy snack for the country. >> reminds you of the ridiculous burgers. that have like the -- >> the three patties. >> the layers and the ten patties. >> they will sell out. >> i do like the plain oreo. there you go. >

the nikkei closed 0.3% higher while hong kong's hang seng was flat. >>> on wall street, news that applicationsunemployment dropped more than expected sent stocks higher. the dow jumped over 45 points, while the nasdaq added 8. >>> despite that jobs report yesterday, job creation in this country remains at the slowest post-recession pace since the great depression. the unemployment rate standing at 9%. "usa today" reports the nation has 5% fewer jobs today than it did when the recession began back in december of 2007. >>> quite a market debut for the business networking site linked in. linked in went public yesterday, and within minutes its shares more than doubled in price. by the closing bell the company had a market value of $9 billion. that is the highest for any internet offering since google had its initial public offering seven years ago. >>> honda's recalling more than 1,000 new honda civics in the u.s. at issue is a possible fuel leak in the 2012 model. honda says a manufacturing error is to blame. the car went on sale this spring but many of the cars affected have not yet been sold. >