Wall Street slides amid Greek referendum call

NEW YORK (Xinhua) — U.S. stocks ended sharply lower on Tuesday, with each of the three major indexes losing over 2 percent amid news that Greece is to hold a referendum on the bailout deal.
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Wall Street rallies on European summit hopes

NEW YORK (Xinhua) — Wall Street rose on Wednesday, with the blue-chip Dow and the broader S&P 500 up in four of last five sessions, as investors were expecting a comprehensive resolution to euro zone’s debt problems on the EU summit.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 162.42 points, or 1.39 percent, to 11,869.04. The Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 12.95 points, or 1.05 percent, to 1,242.00. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 12. 25 points, or 0.46 percent, to 2,650.67.

As the European leaders are meeting in Brussels, trying to achieve a definitive solution to the region’s debt woes, news from Europe still set the tone for the U.S. market.

Encouragingly, German lawmakers voted 503 to 89 with four abstentions in favor of leveraging the European bailout fund to make it more effective, which is believed to add to the chance for EU leaders to seal a deal during the meeting.

Stocks got a lift in afternoon trading, pushing major indexes to session highs, after a report said China has agreed to invest in Europe’s bailout fund.

With more and more details revealed about the possible plan, the gains in equities hold to the last minute.

According to headlines coming from Europe, European leaders intended to multiply their rescue fund fourfold to one trillion euros and press Greece’s creditors to accept losses of over 50 percent on their bond holdings, but the details of their plan to end the debt crisis are still not fully formed.

Wednesday’s positive economic data added to the gains in the market. According to the Commerce Department, demand for long- lasting manufactured goods recorded their largest gain in six months in September, suggesting the U.S. economy was gaining some momentum.

Data showed that durable goods orders excluding transportation component rose 1.7 percent after falling by a revised 0.4 percent in August, much bigger than the 0.4 percent rise anticipated by the market.

Meanwhile, a separate report showed sales of new homes rose in September after four straight monthly declines.

Among stocks in focus, Boeing jumped nearly 4.5 percent after the aircraft maker reported better-than-expected quarterly results while Amazon slumped more than 12 percent after the online retailer cut its forecasts for the quarter.

Wall Street jitters on bleak economic outlook, Europe

NEW YORK (Xinhua) — U.S. stocks extended losses on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve said the economy was losing steam across much of the nation.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 72.43 points, or 0.63 percent, to 11,504.62. The Standard & Poor’s 500 was down 15.50 points, or 1.26 percent, to 1,209.88. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 53.39 points, or 2.01 percent, to 2,604.04.
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G20 financial leaders expect bigger European bailout fund for debt crisis

PARIS (Xinhua) — G20 financial leaders gathering in Paris welcomed the progress the Europe made on the eurozone debt issue on Saturday, but meanwhile expected the euro area to rely more on itself with bigger bailout fund to avoid contagion.
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Dollar falls amid European optimism, economy concerns

NEW YORK (Xinhua) — The U.S. dollar fell against most major currencies in late New York trading on Wednesday as optimism rose on the expansion of euro zone bailout fund and the Federal Reserve’s minutes showed U.S. economy faces downside risk.
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