The U.S. government announced plans to support $800 billion worth of mortgage-backed securities. However, investors continued to worry about the shrinking economy and falling home prices. The Dow rose more than 100 points to 8547 while Nasdaq slipped 2 points to 1469.
On the upside
The financial sectors continued to rally with shares of Citigroup (NYSE: C), Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) and JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) opening higher.The Wall Street Journal reported that Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) was planning to cut back its pool of contract workers.
D.R. Horton (NYSE: DHI) posted falling revenues and more than $800 million in losses due to slower home sales. The results beat lowered expectations.
On the downside
Due to falling commodity prices, BHP Billiton (NYSE: BBL), the world's biggest mining company, scrapped a hostile $68 billion takeover bid for rival Rio Tinto (NYSE: RTP).
Jewelry retailer Zale Corp. (NYSE: ZLC) posted a wider loss and withdrew its full-year earnings guidance due to the uncertainty of the overall economy.
Shares of Research in Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM) failed to join the rally as analysts worried that strong initial sales of its Storm smartphone still faced headwind from weak consumer and business spending.
