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1035 EST 3March2010
Eastman Chemical plant closure to hurt Q1 profit

Eastman Chemical Co said on Wednesday a recent shutdown at a Texas plant will likely cut first-quarter earnings by at least 20 cents per share.

The Kingsport, Tennessee, company had previously announced a power outage at its Longview, Texas, plant.

Eastman expects the closure of two crackers, devices that break down petroleum into a simpler state, to lower first-quarter earnings by 20 cents to 25 cents per share.

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Shares of Eastman rose 2.2 percent to $61.85.

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1030 EST 3March2010
Markets rise after ISM services data

U.S. stocks added to gains on Wednesday after data showed the U.S. services sector grew in February at its fastest pace in more than two years.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 40.28 points, or 0.39 percent, to 10,446.26. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index added 4.84 points, or 0.43 percent, to 1,123.15. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 7.21 points, or 0.32 percent, to 2,288.00.

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1026 EST 3March2010
Microsoft COO says demand recovery still gradual

Microsoft Corp is seeing a lot of interest around Windows 7, launched late last year, but customers are still conservative and demand recovery will be gradual, its chief operating officer said.

'We have a lot of interest in the Windows 7 refresh,' Kevin Turner told an audience at the London School of Economics on Wednesday. 'There's lots of momentum around that.'

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Shares of Microsoft, a Dow component, rose 0.2 percent to $28.51.

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1010 EST 3March2010
Services sector expands in Feb: ISM survey

The U.S. services sector grew in February at its fastest pace in more than two years, according to an industry report released on Wednesday.

The Institute for Supply Management said its services index rose to 53.0 from 50.5 in January. The reading was the highest since December 2007 and well above the 51.0 median forecast of 71 economists surveyed by Reuters.

A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the services sector, which accounts for the majority of U.S. employment.

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1001 ET 03Mar2010
Goldman suggests Oracle calls

Investors should consider buying Oracle Corp April call options ahead of the March earnings report. The options look inexpensive and the upcoming report should be a positive catalyst, with ongoing improvement in information technology spending and potential upside from the Sun Microsystems acquisition, Goldman Sachs derivative strategists wrote in a note.

Oracle said Wednesday its fiscal third-quarter results will be released on March 25. With earnings due after the March cycle, the strategists said they prefer April options and recommend the $25 calls, recently offered at 68 cents with the stock at $24.58. 'We like calls for upside with limited risk,' they said. Call option buyers risk losing the entire premium paid. Oracle options imply a plus/minus 6 percent move on earnings, below the stock's average 7 percent earnings move, Goldman said. Oracle shares rose 0.1 percent to $24.61 Wednesday.

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