NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street headed toward a flat opening Monday as investors smarting from a pummeling last week sifted through mixed reports on how companies are handling a slumping economy and tight credit markets.þþBlackstone Group, the private equity firm, posted worse-than-expected first-quarter results, due partly to tough credit conditions and its big stake in the troubled bond insurer Financial Guaranty Insurance Co.þþIn separate news Monday, Nationwide Financial Services Inc. said it has received a buyout offer of about $2.2 billion in cash from Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. and affiliates.þþMcDonald's Corp., meanwhile, said sales at stores open for at least a year jumped by 8.3 percent year-to-date in February. McDonald's shares rose more than 3 percent in pre-market trading.þþDow Jones industrial futures rose 9, or 0.08 percent, to 11,900.þþStandard & Poor's 500 futures were flat at 1,292.80, while Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 0.75, or 0.04 percent, to 1,708.00.þþLast week, the Dow ended down 3.04 percent, the S&P 500 index was off 2.80 percent, and the Nasdaq composite index closed with a loss of 2.60 percent.þþKey economic data arrives later in the week -- the Commerce Department's retail sales report comes out Thursday, and the Labor Department issues the consumer price index on Friday.þþRecent record-breaking surges in commodities prices have worried many investors about whether the Federal Reserve might hesitate to lower key rates by as much as they want -- at least a half percentage point. The central bank meets on Tuesday, and over the past few months, policy makers have cited the staggering economy as a greater risk than inflation.þþOn Monday, commodities prices pulled back, while the dollar traded mixed. Gold fell below $965 an ounce, while crude oil fell 76 cents to $104.39 a barrel.þþThere is great concern that the Fed's moves might not be enough to keep the sagging economy out of recession. News from the Labor Department Friday that the economy lost 63,000 jobs last month set off another steep drop in stocks.þþEarly Monday morning, JPMorgan analysts slashed their year-end target for the S&P 500 index and earnings for S&P 500 companies, after the bank's chief economist said he believes a recession began in January.þþMost Asian markets sank Monday, some in response to Wall Street's losses last week, with Tokyo's market falling to a 2 1/2-year low. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 stock average tumbled 250.67 points, or 1.96 percent, to 12,532.13 points, its lowest since September 2005.þþHong Kong's market bucked the trend, with a recovery in afternoon trading driven by bargain-hunting and gains at the bank HSBC. The Hang Seng Index rose 203.72 points, or 0.9 percent, to 22,705.05.þþStocks were modestly higher on European exchanges. In afternoon trading, Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.14 percent, Germany's DAX index was up 0.15 percent, and France's CAC-40 was up 0.02 percent.þþ
Source: NY Times
