The major European averages opened Friday’s session higher and rose further in early trading. However, they have pared back some of their gains since then. In Thursday’s session, the averages closed on a mixed note.The French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are advancing 0.02% and 0.50%, respectively, while the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is rising 0.73%.
In corporate news, Sony Ericsson, a joint venture between Sony (SNE) and Ericsson (ERIC), reported a profit of 12 million euros compared to a net loss of 213 million euros in the year-ago period, the first profit since the second quarter of 2008. Nevertheless, the profit missed the expectations of some analysts. The company’s revenues rose 4.3% to 1.76 billion euros, as unit shipments came in at 11 million.
Meanwhile, BP (BP) is rallying after it said it succeeded in plugging the leak in its oil well in the Gulf of Mexico region.
U.S. Economic ReportsConsumer prices showed a modest decrease in the month of June, according to a report released by the Labor Department, with prices falling for the third consecutive month amid another notable decrease in energy prices.
The report showed that consumer prices edged down by 0.1 percent in June following a 0.2 percent drop in May and a 0.1 percent decrease in April. The modest decrease in prices came in line with the expectations of economists. Meanwhile, core prices, which exclude food and energy prices, increased by 0.2 percent in June after edging up by 0.1 percent in May. Economists had expected core prices to rise by 0.1 percent
The Treasury Department is due to release a report on the flows of financial instruments into and out of the U.S. in April at 9 AM ET.
The preliminary report on the Reuters/University of Michigan's consumer sentiment survey for July is scheduled to be released at 9.55 AM ET. The consumer sentiment index is expected to decline to 74.5 from June's 76.
EarningsBank of America (BAC) said its second quarter earnings after preferred dividends came in at 27 cents per share, lower than the 33 cents per share earned in the year-ago period. Total revenue net of interest expense fell to $29.45 billion from the year-ago’s $33.09 billion. Analysts estimated earnings of 22 cents per share on revenues of $29.75 billion.
Citigroup (C) reported that its second quarter net revenues fell to $22.07 billion from $29.97 billion in the year-ago period. The company reported net income of 9 cents per share. Analysts estimated earnings of 5 cents per share on revenues of $22.16 billion.
Mattel’s (MAT) second quarter net sales rose 13% year-over-year to $898.2 million. The company’s earnings climbed to 14 cents per share from 6 cents per share last year. The consensus estimates had called for earnings of 15 cents per share on revenues of $1.02 billion.
General Electric (GE) said its second quarter earnings rose to 28 cents per share from 25 cents per share last year. The company’s earnings from continuing operations came in at 30 cents per share, ahead of the 27 cents per share consensus estimate. However, revenues of $37.4 billion missed the mean analysts’ estimate of $38.37 billion.
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