STOCKS NEWS US-Corn, soy prices rally on US stockpile cuts

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1315 ET 12Jan2011
Corn, soy prices rally on cuts in U.S. stockpiles

U.S. corn and soybean futures rallied more than 4 percent on Wednesday to the highest levels in 30 months as both also touched their daily trading limits after a surprisingly deep cut in U.S. stockpiles. For details, see

Soy rose 4.6 percent to $14.12 a bushel, while corn gained 4.7 percent to $6.35-1/2 a bushel. Soaring grains also sent livestock prices up 1.5 percent.

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1245 ET 12Jan2011
Noble Corp shares jump on return to S&P

Shares of Noble Corp, an offshore drilling rig contractor, rose 6.5 percent to $38.27 on Wednesday after Standard & Poor's announced the stock would return to the S&P 500 index.

S&P removed Noble from the index less than two years ago after the driller moved to Switzerland. Late on Tuesday, S&P said Noble would return and replace QLogic Corp starting next week. For details, see

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1235 ET 12Jan2011
Zale surges 35.2 pct on holiday sales gains

Shares of Zale Corp leaped 35.2 percent to $5.51 to the highest level in nearly 15 months after the mid-tier jeweler announced strong sales gains during the holidays following several periods of decline. For details, see

With the share price jump, Zale became the top percentage gainer on the New York Stock Exchange.

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1230 ET 12Jan2011
Financial firms seek better climate information

Major financial firms feel they lack information about climate change to help clients manage increasing risks, according to a U.N.-backed study released on Wednesday.

'Climate expertise is an emerging factor of competition,' according to the survey of 60 insurers, banks and asset managers including Aviva, Banco Santander, Deutsche Bank, Mitsubishi UFJ and Citigroup.

For details see

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1220 ET 12Jan2011
LeapFrog plunges on sharp cuts in earnings forecast

Shares of LeapFrog Enterprises Inc plunged 22.7 percent to $4.2, making the small-cap educational toy maker the biggest percentage decliner on the New York Stock Exchange.

Earlier on Wednesday, the company slashed its full-year earnings forecast as it did not sustain the strong demand for its toys after the holiday season.

For details, see

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1120 ET 12Jan2011
ITT Corp shares surge on plan to break up into three firms

Shares of ITT Corp jumped 16 percent to $61.24 in mid-afternoon trading after the manufacturer said on Wednesday it plans to break itself into three companies as U.S. defense budget tightening threatens to cut into the manufacturer's profits. For details see

ITT was the top percentage gainer on the PHLX defense sector index, which rose 2.1 percent.

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1129 EST 12Jan2011
Crude rises on supply disruptions, inventory data

February crude futures rose on Wednesday, helped by recent oil production disruptions and a snowstorm hitting the U.S. Northeast.

For details, see

In addition, crude inventories fell more than expected last week while gasoline and heating oil stocks rose more than forecast in spite of a drop in refinery runs as imports rose, according to data from the Energy Information Administration on Wednesday.

The contract gained 1 percent to $91.97 per barrel.

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1105 ET 12Jan2011
Geithner gauges support for big corporate tax changes

The Obama administration is exploring ways to boost tax incentives for corporate investment, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Wednesday, ahead of his meeting with chief financial officers from some of the biggest U.S. companies.

Geithner is expected to meet with CFOs of firms including Microsoft Corp and Cisco Systems on Friday to hash out ideas for simplifying and trimming the corporate tax, one of the highest in the industrialized world. For details see.

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1050 ET 12Jan2011
U.S. crude rises above $92 after EIA data shows stocks fall

Price for U.S. crude oil for February delivery continued its climb and rose $1.09 to $92.20 a barrel after a government inventory report showed crude oil stocks fell more than expected last week.

Prices were up 53 cents when the report came out.

Over the past six weeks, crude inventories are off 26.6 million barrels, the biggest six-week decline since January 2008.

For details, see

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