Stocks are lower after unemployment report shows 663K job losses last month
Wall Street is edging lower after the government reported that the U.S. economy continued to shed jobs at a rapid pace in March.
The Labor Department’s report Friday that unemployment rate jumped to 8.5 percent last month wasn’t good news for a stock market that has hung a 20 percent surge over the past four weeks on incremental signs that the economy could be righting itself.
Employers slashed a net total of 663,000 jobs last month. That was slightly worse than the 654,000 economists expected but not as bad as some traders had feared.
The monthly employment report is often regarded as the most important piece of economic news affecting the market. There is even greater focus on jobs data now that the U.S. recession has stretched into the longest period of economic contraction since World War II.
The fact that the jobs data out Friday wasn’t even worse was cause for some comfort given the market’s recent knee-jerk reactions to bad surprises about the economy. But in order for the market to resume its forward march investors will need to see more convincing signs that the economy is improving, and analysts said the labor market is unlikely to provide much encouragement in the near term.
AUSTIN, TX — (Marketwire) — 04/03/09 — Ronn Motor Company, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: RNNM) announced today the acclaimed H2GO(TM) powered Scorpion(TM), a hydrogen assisted, eco-exotic supercar capable of reaching more than 200 miles per hour and achieving fuel efficient results of 40 miles per gallon, will be featured on Discovery Channel’s upcoming program, “World’s Most Expensive Rides” which is expected to air within the next few months.
Ronn Motors was recently contacted by Discovery Channel requesting the participation of their eco-friendly Scorpion(TM) supercar in the made-for-TV feature. The Scorpion(TM), on location today at the airport in Horseshoe Bay, Texas, has been “put through its paces” and filmed under the direction of New York City-based KAOS Studios.
LAS VEGAS, April 1, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A headline yesterday for Ronn Motor Co. (Pink Sheets:RNNM) announced that a FedEx fleet operator will be running a test of Ronn’s H2GO hydrogen fuel system on fleet vehicles in April, hoping to find fuel efficiency increases that it can take fleet-wide. Clearly, this is a dramatic event for a company previously known for creating the eye-popping Scorpion, a vehicle that gets 40 miles per gallon and can go 200 miles per hour.
But for some enthusiasts of the emerging company, this news seems more preamble than pinnacle, with the test a portend to their wildest dreams for Ronn Motor Co. The release clearly indicates that the fleet operator hopes that the test succeeds so that he can install money-saving H2GO systems across his truck fleet. That hypothetical news, should this success manifest and transpire, would seem the largest news that Ronn would have to date, trumping the Schwarzenegger test drive or its manufacturing and distribution agreement with high-end auto part firm Frigette.
Stocks rise despite record drop in home prices
Wall Street resumed its advance on the last day of the quarter as investors focused on economic data.
Tuesday started with news that home prices sank in January and that Chicago-area business conditions deteriorated in March. But consumer confidence data is expected to show a slight improvement in March.
The market is coming off a two-day pullback after rallying on better-than-expected home sales, retail sales and durable goods data. A Treasury plan for banks’ toxic assets and calming remarks from the banks’ CEOs also helped the Dow Jones industrial average soar 21 percent in fewer than three weeks.
If Wall Street can get more evidence that the economy is bottoming out, it has a better chance of making up the sharp losses logged this year. The Dow is still down 14.3 percent for 2009, but up 14.5 percent from its nearly 12-year low on March 9.
Stocks extend gains following upbeat corporate and economic data
Stocks extended their gains to a second day Thursday after an upbeat profit report from Best Buy Co. and new unemployment numbers added to a sense that the economy might be finding its footing.
The report from Best Buy boosted hopes that consumer spending could show more resilience than some analysts had expected.
Readings on the nation’s economic output and weekly unemployment claims gave mixed signals about the economy. But the numbers still largely supported a growing notion in the market the past two weeks that the economy might be showing early signs of stabilizing.
In midmorning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 59.02, or 0.8 percent, to 7,808.83. Broader stock indicators also rose. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 7.39, or 0.9 percent, to 821.27, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 26.85, or 1.8 percent, to 1,555.80.
AUSTIN, TX — (Marketwire) — 03/26/09 — Ronn Motor Company, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: RNNM) announced today that while the Scorpion(TM) was in Sacramento, California being viewed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Damon Lavrinc of Autoblog.com conducted an interview, photo shoot and initial driving impression of the eco-exotic car. Mr. Lavrinc’s story and photos can be seen at:
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/03/16/driven-ronn-motor-company-scorpion-the-worlds-first-green-s/
Headquartered in Horseshoe Bay, Texas, Ronn Motor Company, Inc. is a design and manufacturing company focused on the leading edge engineering of environmentally friendly, finely built premium automobiles and “green,” eco-responsible technology. These technology systems include Hydrogen Fuel, Fuel Cells, and Plug-in Electrics and will be incorporated into our automobiles to be made available for aftermarket applications. Our products, coupled with RMC’s core values of a strong sense of ethics, environmental sensitivity and premium quality, position the company as one of the new leaders in an automotive industry transitioning toward fuel efficiency. For more information, please visit www.ronnmotors.com