The September unemployment rate, out next Friday, is expected to
rise to 9.7% from 9.6% in August, according to Briefing.com.
The third-quarter reporting season unofficially kicks off
Thursday, when aluminum giant Alcoa Inc. (AA) posts results.
Meanwhile, major U.S. retailers will report September
same-stores sales Thursday. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters
expect the industry to report a 2% increase from a year ago, with
discount and department store retailers expected to post the
strongest growth.
U.S. September Unemployment Rate Seen Inching Up
The September unemployment rate is seen rising slightly as the
U.S. labor market continues to struggle with job creation after a
severe recession. President Barack Obama's top economic adviser
Austan Goolsbee in early September warned that even with
legislation and policies aimed at spurring business investment and
job growth, he didn't anticipate the unemployment rate coming down
rapidly. The figures will be released next Friday.
Alcoa 3Q Results Seen Improving On Demand
Alcoa is expected to report improved results Thursday after the
aluminum producer swung to a profit in the second quarter as demand
picked up in almost every one of its markets. But higher energy
costs and declining prices for each batch of aluminum it sells put
a dent in profits.
Overall, third-quarter earnings for companies in the Standard
& Poor's 500 Index are expected to increase 24% from a year
earlier while revenue is seen rising 8%, according to Thomson
Reuters.
Retailers To Report Sept Same-Store Sales
Major retailers will report September same-stores sales
Thursday. Analyst Brian Sozzi said the results could be
disappointing because of bad weather and consumers' reluctance to
buy unless they received significant discounts. In addition,
same-store sales returned to growth in September 2009 after a year
of declines, making for tougher comparisons.
Food, Beverage Companies Seen Reporting Growth
A handful of beverage and food companies--including Diamond
Foods Inc. (DMND), PepsiCo Inc. (PEP), Ruby Tuesday Inc. (RT) and
Yum Brands Inc. (YUM)--are set to report quarterly results next
week, with Wall Street expecting all four to report improved
results from a year ago. Diamond Foods is seen posting the most
impressive growth from a year ago as the snacks maker benefits from
its $615 million acquisition of Kettle Foods.
Ex-Societe Generale Trader's Verdict Due
The verdict in the criminal trial of former Societe Generale SA
(SCGLY, GLE.FR) trader Jerome Kerviel is expected Tuesday in Paris.
Kerviel's actions allegedly led to a loss of EUR4.9 billion ($6.75
billion) in January 2008. During the trial this past summer,
prosecutors said he should be imprisoned for four years and fined
for crimes that led to the biggest single trading loss in
history.
Nasdaq To Improve Option Orders Pricing
Nasdaq OMX (NDAQ) plans to introduce a new "price improvement"
mechanism for options orders sent to its PHLX options exchange
beginning Monday. The electronic process involves holding miniature
auctions on customers' options trades, with the aim of producing a
better price. All options contracts traded on the PHLX can be
entered into the price improvement mechanism, and all exchange
participants can join in the bidding process.
J&J To Resume Children's Tylenol Shipments
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) next week will begin shipping
bottles of grape-flavored children's liquid Tylenol, which have
been off the market for months due to a recall. The product is
being manufactured at J&J's McNeil Consumer Healthcare plant in
Guelph, Canada. McNeil's Fort Washington, Pa., plant, the source of
millions of bottles of liquid medicines that were recalled earlier
this year, has been shut down while the company fixes the problems,
and J&J has shifted manufacturing elsewhere.
New Supreme Court Term Begins Monday
The U.S. Supreme Court will have three female justices hearing
cases for the first time ever as it begins its new term next week.
But the newest justice, Elena Kagan, will sit out several cases
this term because she was involved in them when she served as U.S.
solicitor general. Kagan is the second justice nominated by Obama;
the first was Sonia Sotomayor last year.
China Will Host UN Climate Conference
China hopes a U.N. climate conference it hosts next week can
help narrow differences on the issue. China will host a final
preparatory meeting in the northern city of Tianjin ahead of U.N.
talks opening in November in Cancun in Mexico, with major carbon
emitters including the U.S. and China far apart on the issue. Hopes
have faded that any binding deals on cutting greenhouse gas
emissions can be reached at the talks in the Mexican resort amid
lingering bitterness following last year's global talks in
Copenhagen.
Nobel Prize Winners To Be Named Next Week
The Nobel prizes will be announced next week, starting with the
one in physiology or medicine on Monday, followed by physics on
Tuesday, chemistry on Wednesday, and economic sciences on Oct. 11.
No date has been set for the announcement of the literature prize.
The peace prize winner will be named next Friday, and as is often
the case, it is the subject of controversy. This year, there are
reports that Chinese officials are campaigning against the
nomination of Liu Xiaobo, a writer who is serving an 11-year
sentence in that country for "incitement to subvert state
power."
Bank Of Japan Expected To Take More Monetary Easing Steps
The Bank of Japan is expected to take more monetary easing steps
at its two-day policy board meeting starting Monday, according to a
Dow Jones Newswires poll. The move would come as the central bank's
own business sentiment survey reveals deepening concerns about the
outlook for the corporate sector and the yen's uptrend shows no
signs of abating.
Conferences
Among the significant conferences next week are the William
Blair & Co. Emerging Growth Stock Conference on Tuesday in New
York, Biotechnology Industry Organization Annual BIO Investor Forum
on Tuesday and Wednesday in San Francisco, and Deutsche Bank
Securities Inc. Leveraged Finance Conference from Tuesday through
Thursday in Scottsdale, Ariz.
-By John Kell and Kathy Shwiff, Dow Jones Newswires;
212-416-2480; john.kell@dowjones.com
(Dow Jones Newswires staff contributed to this report.)
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