On the upside
China Direct Industries (Nasdaq: CDII) cited improved visibility for providing an annual financial guidance.
Kandi Technologies (Nasdaq: KNDI) announced strategic alliances with China Potevio/CNOOC New Energy and Power, Ltd. and Tianneng Power International, Ltd. to design and market new electronic vehicles in China.
UBS analyst Robin Farley upgraded Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) saying that gaming revenue in Macau will continue to grow.
On the downside
Nokia (NYSE: NOK) said that its smartphone market share in Latin America will be on par with Research in Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM) in 2011.
Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) sold $3 billion worth of bills at interest rates lower than previous auctions.
Jefferies & Co. analyst Randal Konik downgraded AnnTaylor Stores (NYSE: ANN) to Underperform citing greater cost pressures.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of more than 4 to 1 on the NYSE and by nearly 7 to 2 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks advanced 13 points to 638.
