World stocks were mixed Thursday as more bad news on the U.S. economy piled up but some companies _including Wal-Mart _ produced better-than-expected results, according to AP. A massive jump in jobless claims and another round of weak retail sales figures in the world's largest economy weighed on markets that had already opened lower. But stronger financial stocks and some U.S. earnings helped strengthen European stocks late in the day. Britain's FTSE 100 index closed up 0.01 percent at 4,228.93 and last-minute gains in Frankfurt also helped push Germany's DAX into positive territory. It finished 0.4 percent up at 4,510.49. France's CAC 40 ended down 0.1 percent at 3,066.29. All three indexes had been down more than 2 percent earlier in the afternoon. «We were preparing for fairly weak earnings (in the U.S.) but that didn't materialize and on that basis it turned around» said Richard Hunter, head of UK equities at Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers. Europe's close followed losses in Asia, where Japan's Nikkei 225 slipped 1.1 percent to 7,949.65, and China's Shanghai index lost 0.5 percent to 2,098.02. Shares on Wall Street fell early in the day after the U.S. Labor Department said initial claims for unemployment benefits rose to 626,000, a 26-year high. It also said continuing unemployment claims reached a new record of nearly 4.8 million. And the U.S. Commerce Department reported orders to U.S. factories fell for a record fifth straight month in December, closing out the worst year for American manufacturers since 2002. Troubling results from Cisco Systems Inc. weighed on technology stocks. The world's largest maker of computer networking equipment posted a 27 percent drop in profit late Wednesday and said incoming orders dropped off sharply in January. Although many retailers reported dismal retail sales, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. was a notable exception. The world's largest retailer reported sales that beat Wall Street's forecast, as shoppers continued to focus on necessities like groceries. In morning trading in New York, the Dow Jones industrial index rose 0.4 percent to 7,987.08. The Standard & Poor's 500 index added 0.7 percent to 837.86, while the Nasdaq 100 index was up 1.1 percent at 1,531.81. In Europe, widely expected interest rate decisions by the European Central Bank and the Bank of England failed to affect markets. The European Central Bank left its benchmark refinancing rate at 2 percent, halting its recent campaign of rate cuts, while the Bank of England lowered its rate to a record 1 percent low. «That's been one of the mostly widely anticipated moves of recent months so the immediate impact on the market was negligible, » said Hunter, referring to the Bank of England decision. He added that there had been «a tinge of disappointment» with the ECB decision, with some fearing the European Central Bank is moving too slowly in dealing with the economic crisis. Market sentiment was already weighed down by grim corporate earnings. Sharp losses at Deutsche Bank, Swiss Re and a weak statement from consumer goods giant Unilever followed similarly grim reports from technology bellwether Cisco and China's Lenovo Group. Swiss Re shares dropped as much as 28 percent after it said it needed to raise more money _ including $2.6 billion from U.S. financier Warren Buffett _ after predicting a 1 Billion francs ($869 million) loss for the full year. Deutsche Bank AG, Germany's largest bank, announced a hefty ¤4.8 billion ($6.1 billion) net loss in the fourth quarter, resulting in a shortfall for the full year, due to a large trading loss. The company said it expected global economic weakness to continue posing «significant challenges.» Shares in Unilever _ the maker of Dove soaps and Ben & Jerry's ice cream _ fell 4.8 percent despite a 58 percent rise in fourth-quarter earnings, as the company scrapped its outlook and investors judged it likely to be hurt by lower-priced competition. China's Lenovo Group, the world's fourth-largest computer manufacturer, announced its first quarterly loss in nearly three years and said its chief executive, William J. Amelio, had resigned. Its shares fell 0.7 percent. In Asia, the downbeat earnings sapped early enthusiasm over figures about Chinese manufacturing and lending that suggested the world's third-largest economy was faring better than expected despite slumping demand for its exports. South Korea's Kospi slid 1.5 percent to 1,177.88, while markets in Australia, India and Taiwan also retreated. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng rose 0.9 percent at 13,178.90, but closed well off its highs. Oil prices fell in European trade, with light, sweet crude for March delivery trading down 24 cents at $40.08 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract dropped 46 cents to settle at $40.32 overnight.
