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Wednesday Sunrise Weather 5/22/13
Stocks Soar After ECB Unveils Bond Buying Effort 9/6/12
Associated Press
September 6, 2012
NEW YORK (AP) - Financial markets are soaring after investors finally heard what they had been waiting for from the European Central Bank: concrete plans to support struggling countries in the region by buying government bonds.
The surge put the Standard & Poor's 500 index back its highest level since May 2008. The Dow Jones industrial average surged more than 200 points. European markets also shot higher.
The European Central Bank unveiled a new program Thursday to buy government bonds from the region's struggling countries with the aim of lowering their borrowing costs.
The number of people seeking unemployment benefits fell by 12,000 last week, a hopeful signal that the job market may be improving.
And a private survey shows U.S. businesses stepped up hiring in August, an encouraging sign ahead of Friday's government employment report. Payroll provider ADP says businesses added 201,000 jobs last month, the most reported by the survey since March.