Fort Myers & Naples Insurance | Site For Lease

By Nick Godt, MarketWatch

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Treasurys fell on Thursday, sending yields higher, as investors trimmed safe-haven positions after the Labor Department reported an improvement in U.S. weekly jobless claims.

Yields on benchmark 10-year Treasurys
/quotes/comstock/31*!ust10y
(UST10Y
2.71,
+0.06,
+2.19%)
, which move inversely to prices, were up 3 basis points at 2.690%.

Yields on two-year notes
/quotes/comstock/31*!ust2yr
(UST2YR
0.54,
+0.02,
+3.06%)
, while those on 30-year bonds
/quotes/comstock/31*!ust30y
(UST30Y
3.78,
+0.06,
+1.56%)
.

Bonds also fell Wednesday, as U.S. stocks rose and a sovereign bond auction in Portugal saw a strong reception, reducing investors’ sense of need for the relative security offered by U.S. government debt.

On Thursday, the trend continued as the latest indication on U.S. employment offered some relief amid mounting evidence that the economy is slowing.

Jobless claims fell 27,000 to 451,000 in the latest week. Economists polled by MarketWatch had expected a level of 470,000.

“The report flags a modest improvement in September private-sector payrolls,” said Sal Guatieri, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets.

Nick Godt is MarketWatch’s markets editor, based in New York.

Bond Report: Treasurys slump as jobless claims fall

By Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch

MADRID (MarketWatch) — European stocks eked out gains on Friday, buoyed by a late surge on Wall Street in the prior session, but action was subdued as traders took to the sidelines ahead of key U.S. nonfarm payrolls data due later.

The Stoxx Europe 600 index
/quotes/comstock/22c!sxxp
(ST:SXXP
259.32,
+1.14,
+0.44%)
gained 0.2% to 258.66 points, after ending unchanged on Thursday at 258.18 points, with bigger gains becoming muted by the day’s end after an initial boost on a string of upbeat U.S. economic data.

While Europe markets are firmer in the early going, the backdrop was looking jittery. Asian markets were struggling to stay positive late on Friday and early indications for U.S. futures showed expectations for opening losses on Wall Street.

Key data on the table is August non-farm payroll data. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch forecast a net gain of 30,000 private-sector jobs, but an overall decline of 105,000.

Analysts warned that if the data falls short, it could reverse the big rally seen for markets on Wednesday. The Stoxx 600 index logged a 2.7% gain that day, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average
/quotes/comstock/10w!i:dji/delayed
(DJIA
10,320,
+50.63,
+0.49%)
rose 254.75 points, or 2.5%.

Ben Potter, market strategist at IG Markets, said “anything with a bit of gloss on it could help again lock in confidence for equities.”

“Another risk, however, comes with the U.S. Labor Day holiday on Monday, so any uncertainty could add to the temptation to take money off the table, ensuring traders don’t get caught on the wrong side of any big move lower in Asia or Europe at the start of next week,” he added.

Among regional indexes, Germany’s DAX-30
/quotes/comstock/30p!dax
(DX:DAX
6,112,
+27.94,
+0.46%)
rose 0.1% to 6,090.95 points.

France’s CAC-40 index
/quotes/comstock/30t!i:px1
(FR:PX1
3,653,
+21.23,
+0.58%)
added 0.2% to 3,638.38 points and the U.K. FTSE 100 index
/quotes/comstock/23i!i:ukx
(UK:UKX
5,397,
+25.82,
+0.48%)
gained 0.2% to 5,380.75 points.

Among sectors contributing to the positive European tone were oil and mining stocks.

Shares of BP PLC
/quotes/comstock/13*!bp/quotes/nls/bp
(BP
36.57,
+0.41,
+1.13%)

/quotes/comstock/23s!a:bp.
(UK:BP.
393.85,
+1.25,
+0.32%)
gained 0.5% after the firm said the total cost of responding to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill has now reached $8 billion. The company has created a $20 billion escrow account to cover related costs of the spill.

Shares of U.K.-based mining group Antofagasta
/quotes/comstock/23s!a:anto
(UK:ANTO
1,084,
+2.00,
+0.18%)
were cut to hold from buy at Citigroup for valuation reasons. The broker said it would seek cheaper copper exposure through their top mining pick, Xstrata
/quotes/comstock/23s!a:xta
(UK:XTA
1,095,
+7.00,
+0.64%)
. Shares of Antofagasta dropped 0.5% on the London Stock Exchange.

In Zurich, shares of Roche Holding AG
/quotes/comstock/06p!rog
(CH:ROG
142.10,
+2.40,
+1.72%)
gained 1.2% after the Swiss pharmaceutical firm announced a cost-cutting initiative and confirmed its full-year outlook.

In Germany, car makers’ shares posted gains. Daimler AG
/quotes/comstock/11e!fdai
(DE:DAI
41.01,
+0.14,
+0.33%)
and Volkswagen AG
/quotes/comstock/11e!fvow3
(DE:VOW3
81.55,
+0.12,
+0.15%)
both rose 0.6%.

Barbara Kollmeyer is an editor for MarketWatch in Madrid.

Europe Markets: Europe stocks gain as traders await U.S. jobs data

By Sarah Turner, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Commodity firms were in the spotlight Monday, after mineral extractor Vedanta Resources and oil-exploration firm Cairn Energy signed a deal for Cairn’s Indian unit.

The U.K. FTSE 100 index
/quotes/comstock/23i!i:ukx
(UK:UKX
5,276,
+0.66,
+0.01%)
ended virtually unchanged, up 0.01% at 5,276.10 points.

Shares of Vedanta Resources
/quotes/comstock/23s!e:ved
(UK:VED
2,153,
+100.00,
+4.87%)
rose 4.9% after it announced it will acquire as much as 60% of Cairn Energy’s Indian unit. Shares of Cairn Energy
/quotes/comstock/23s!e:cne
(UK:CNE
493.20,
+24.90,
+5.32%)
jumped 5.3%.

Vedanta said it expected the deal to immediately enhance its earnings per share, and Scotland-headquartered Cairn Energy said it intends to return a substantial portion of the deal proceeds to its shareholders.

J.P. Morgan analysts said they believe Vedanta needs to move into new resource areas to keep its business growing beyond 2015.

Insurance group Aviva
/quotes/comstock/23s!a:av.
(UK:AV.
377.90,
-9.50,
-2.45%)
declined 2.5%, paring monthly gains to 5.7%.

It has received and rejected a 5 billion-pound ($7.8 billion) bid from RSA Insurance Group
/quotes/comstock/23s!a:rsa
(UK:RSA
124.50,
-2.90,
-2.28%)
— which was trading down 2.3% — for most of its general insurance businesses in the U.K., Ireland and Canada.

A combination of life and nonlife insurance operations allows the company to operate with substantially less capital than the two businesses would on a stand-alone basis, it added.

Banks were broadly weak, with Royal Bank of Scotland Group
/quotes/comstock/23s!a:rbs
(UK:RBS
45.92,
-1.05,
-2.24%)
shares ending down 2.2%.

Oil giant BP
/quotes/comstock/23s!a:bp.
(UK:BP.
409.75,
-6.65,
-1.60%)

/quotes/comstock/13*!bp/quotes/nls/bp
(BP
38.52,
-0.41,
-1.05%)
declined 1.6%.

Outside the top index, shares of recruitment firm Michael Page International
/quotes/comstock/23s!e:mpi
(UK:MPI
368.00,
-5.00,
-1.34%)
fell 1.3%.

The firm’s first-half net profit rose 46% to £41.5 million from £28.3 million in the year-earlier period, as revenue grew 7.9% to £393.5 million.

“Although this was an excellent set of results, we believe this is already priced in the shares and there are still some doubts over the outlook for the second half,” said analysts at Seymour Pierce.

Sarah Turner is a markets reporter for MarketWatch in London.

London Markets: Vedanta Resources outperforms flat FTSE

By Polya Lesova, MarketWatch

FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) — Utility giant RWE AG warned Thursday it will have to review its medium-term goals because of the German government’s plans to introduce a nuclear-fuel tax.

The firm reported an 8% decline in first-half net profit, but operating earnings grew 21% and it confirmed its full-year forecasts.

RWE will reassess its goals through 2013 given “growing political risks and burdens.”

“Such a [nuclear-fuel] tax would substantially diminish our earnings power — and thus our financial scope for investment in renewables, low-carbon power stations and smart grids,” said Chief Executive Juergen Grossmann in a statement.

He also said that officials have promised to make clear statements about the future of nuclear energy in Germany.

“This is urgently needed for our long-term investment plans,” Grossmann said.

For the six months through June, RWE
/quotes/comstock/11e!frwe
(DE:RWE
54.15,
-0.10,
-0.18%)
posted net profit of 2.04 billion euros ($2.63 billion), down from €2.22 billion in the same period a year ago.

Operating profit rose 21% to €4.96 billion from €4.08 billion. Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires expected net profit of €2.33 billion and operating profit of €4.56 billion.

Revenue increased 12% to €27.35 billion, exceeding expectations of €26.14 billion. In the first half, electricity sales rose by 8% and gas sales surged 37%.

RWE reiterated that its still expects approximately 5% growth in its operating result in fiscal 2010.

“This means our shareholders can continue to look forward to another attractive dividend,” Grossmann said.

On Wednesday, rival E.ON AG
/quotes/comstock/11e!feoan
(DE:EOAN
23.18,
+0.06,
+0.26%)
reported a 9% drop in first-half net profit and confirmed its full-year earnings guidance.

E.ON also expressed concern over the policy debate in Germany, saying the nation needs “a non-ideological, technology-neutral and market-based energy strategy that includes an environmentally and economically sensible decision on the future of nuclear energy.”

Shares of both RWE and E.On have dropped around 20% so far this year.

Polya Lesova is MarketWatch’s London bureau chief.

RWE warns on nuclear-tax impact, net profit slips

By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) — Electronics Arts Inc., Whole Foods Market Inc. and Priceline.com Inc. will provide snapshots into the videogame, food retail and travel industries when the companies release their quarterly reports Tuesday evening.

Electronic Arts
/quotes/comstock/15*!erts/quotes/nls/erts
(ERTS
16.24,
-0.26,
-1.59%)
is expected to post an adjusted loss of 35 cents a share, wider than its loss of 2 cents a share in its fiscal first quarter a year ago, according to a FactSet Research survey of analysts. Sales are also expected to have declined during the period, by 38% to $502 million.

The June quarter looks to have been a tough one for videogame publishers, but analysts expect an upturn in business during the second half of the year.
Read more about upcoming results for videogame publishers.

Shares of EA fell 1.8% to $16.21 ahead of the release. The shares are down nearly 9% for the year.

Earnings at Whole Foods
/quotes/comstock/15*!wfmi/quotes/nls/wfmi
(WFMI
39.06,
+0.13,
+0.33%)
are forecast to jump 50% to 38 cents a share, on a 14% revenue rise to $2.14 billion for its fiscal third quarter. Shares of the upscale grocer traded slightly higher in the regular session, and have climbed 42% since the start of the year.

Priceline.com
/quotes/comstock/15*!pcln/quotes/nls/pcln
(PCLN
232.83,
+5.45,
+2.40%)
is forecast to report earnings of $2.65 a share, up 31% from the second quarter last year. Revenue looks set to come in 21% higher at $732.7 million. Stock in the online travel-services provider recently rose 2.7% to $233.50 in dayside trade. This year, shares are up 7%.

CBS Corp.’s
/quotes/comstock/13*!cbs/quotes/nls/cbs
(CBS
15.03,
-0.27,
-1.77%)
second-quarter earnings are expected to more than double to 21 cents a share. Revenue is pegged at $3.24 billion, up 8% from the year-ago period.

Anadarko Petroleum Corp.
/quotes/comstock/13*!apc/quotes/nls/apc
(APC
53.20,
-0.07,
-0.13%)
is likely to swing to a profit of 37 cents a share for the second quarter, as revenue is expected to surge 60% to $2.79 billion.

On Monday, the company agreed to sell its Wattenberg gathering system and related assets in Colorado to Western Gas Partners
/quotes/comstock/13*!wes/quotes/nls/wes
(WES
24.79,
+0.16,
+0.65%)
for $498 million.

U.S. stocks ahead of the late-trading session were mostly lower, weighed by reports of a decline in factory orders and pending-home sales, as well as flat readings on consumer income and spending.
Read Market Snapshot.

The S&P 500 Index
/quotes/comstock/21z!i1:inx
(SPX
1,122,
-3.92,
-0.35%)
fell 0.4% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average
/quotes/comstock/10w!i:dji/delayed
(DJIA
10,651,
-23.24,
-0.22%)
fell 0.3%. The Nasdaq Composite Index
/quotes/comstock/10y!i:comp
(COMP
2,287,
-8.67,
-0.38%)
lost 0.4%.

Carla Mozee is a reporter for MarketWatch, based in Los Angeles.

After Hours: EA, Whole Foods, Priceline.com results on deck

By Steve Goldstein, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Springtime in Europe reflected one of the most tumultuous economic periods in years, with Greece requiring international assistance to avoid default and with countries from powerhouse Germany to minnow Portugal unveiling austerity plans to calm bond-market vigilantes.

So as second-quarter earnings season on the Continent starts in earnest, it would be natural to assume that companies here will be reporting a difficult April-through-June experience.

It also would be wrong.

Second-quarter earnings per share for constituents of the Stoxx Europe 600 index
/quotes/comstock/22c!sxxp
(ST:SXXP
248.29,
-4.68,
-1.85%)
are projected to grow 26%, according to data from FactSet Research. That’s not so much lower than the 30% EPS growth rate seen for S&P 500
/quotes/comstock/21z!i1:inx
(SPX
1,072,
-24.05,
-2.19%)
constituents.

Sales growth also won’t be drastically different: 9% in Europe, 10% in the U.S.

Take Novartis, one of the first major European companies to report second-quarter results. The drugmaker said it was able to grow European sales by 8% even as governments across the region cut prices.
See Novartis story.

“It’s a classic case that the market is not the economy,” said Georgina Taylor, equity strategist at Britain’s Legal & General Investment Management.

“We have had concerns about fiscal issues, that’s about to be a drag on growth, but that hasn’t happened yet.”

Indeed, Novartis said the impact from European pricing will be felt more in the second half of the year.

Besides, European firms are hardly unprepared for tepid growth at home. The likes of BMW
/quotes/comstock/11e!fbmw
(DE:BMW
42.14,
-0.19,
-0.44%)
, which on Tuesday upped its earnings outlook, Siemens
/quotes/comstock/11e!fsie
(DE:SIE
74.20,
-0.88,
-1.17%)
, Alstom
/quotes/comstock/24s!e:alo
(FR:ALO
36.57,
-1.71,
-4.46%)
and Nokia
/quotes/comstock/22u!noki-sek
(FI:NOK1V
6.77,
-0.06,
-0.88%)
have become giants by selling overseas, not by focusing domestically.
See BMW story.

Alstom reports sales figures next Tuesday, Nokia reports earnings Thursday, Siemens releases quarterly results the following week and BMW’s full second-quarter results are due Aug. 3.

“You have very global companies, particularly the large caps that have sales outside the U.K. and the euro zone, and sell to the U.S. and also fast-growing areas like Asia,” said Nick Nelson, strategist at UBS.

In a research note, Citigroup analyst Adrian Cattley says the best lead indicator for European earnings growth over the last 20 years isn’t any European economic release — it’s the Institute for Supply Management’s U.S. manufacturing index.

“History shows a good fit between the two,” he said, which would imply a pretty good second-quarter earnings season in Europe.

Still, if the ISM/Europe earnings pattern holds up, it spells caution in future quarters because that gauge is beginning to decelerate.

But Cattley also found a close correction between Europe earnings and global GDP.

European Stocks to Watch: Second-quarter earnings may miss euro-zone pain

By Claudia Assis and Kate Gibson, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Crude-oil futures pared their losses on Wednesday after a government report showed a larger-than-expected decline in inventories.

Crude oil for August delivery declined 19 cents, or 0.2%, to $76.93 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The Energy Department’s Energy Information Administration on Wednesday reported a decline of 5.1 million barrels in crude inventories in the week ended July 9.

Analysts polled by Platts expected a drop of 2.6 million barrels.

The EIA also reported an increase of 1.6 million barrels for gasoline stocks and a rise of 2.9 million barrels for stocks of distillates, which include heating oil and diesel.

The analysts surveyed by Platts had projected increases of 950,000 barrels in gasoline supplies and 800,000 barrels in distillate supplies.

Refineries operated at 90.5% of their operable capacity last week, the EIA said. Analysts had forecast a drop by 0.4 of a percentage point to 89.4%.

On Tuesday, crude for August delivery rallied $2.20, or 2.9%, to $77.15 a barrel, closing above the $77-a-barrel level for the first time since June 28.

But the weaker retail sales figures took the bullish edge off the market, said Tim Evans, an analyst with Citigroup’s Citi Futures Perspective unit, in a note to clients. Also weighing on the market are prospects of an increase in supplies.

The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that sales at U.S. retailers dropped 0.5% in June, joining other evidence in recent weeks that has pointed to the economic recovery slowing down.

The American Petroleum Institute, a Washington-based trade group, on Tuesday reported that oil inventories had climbed 1.74 million barrels last week.

The front-month contract has traded between $70 and $80 a barrel since late May amid mixed economic reports and relatively few changes in overall supply and demand.

The dollar offered some support to crude and other commodities, with the dollar index
/quotes/comstock/11j!i:dxy0
(DXY
83.29,
-0.36,
-0.43%)
, which compares the U.S. unit to a basket of six currencies, off 0.3% at 83.32.

A weaker dollar usually bolsters commodities as it makes them less expensive to holders of other currencies.

U.S.-listed shares of BP PLC
/quotes/comstock/13*!bp/quotes/nls/bp
(BP
36.62,
-0.26,
-0.70%)
fell 1.9% after the oil giant announced further delays in an effort to stem the flow of crude in the Gulf.
Read more about BP’s efforts.

Claudia Assis is a San Francisco-based reporter for MarketWatch.
Kate Gibson is a reporter for MarketWatch, based in New York.

Futures Movers: Oil trims losses after supply report

By Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch

MADRID (MarketWatch) — U.S. stock futures were pointing to a weaker start for Wednesday, with slowing growth worries continuing to hang over investors and global markets weak after Wall Street nearly lost its grip on gains in the prior session.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 48 points to 9,634, while those for the S&P 500 were down 5.7 points to 1,018.50. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 fell 8.25 points to 1,726.25.

The main U.S. stock benchmarks survived an afternoon challenge Tuesday, managing to hold onto gains and break multisession losing streaks after an earlier rally lost steam in the face of consumer discretionary losses and concerns over global growth.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 57.14 points, or 0.6%, at 9743.62, to snap a seven-session losing streak, led by consumer discretionary stocks. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index finished up 5.48 points, or 0.5%, at 1,028.06. The Nasdaq barely eked out a gain, up 2.09 points, or 0.1%, at 2,093.88.

Jim Reid, strategist with Deutsche Bank, said disappointing ISM Manufacturing data on Tuesday has weighed on markets overnight. “This disappointing data and also the uncertainties around what will be (or not be) disclosed around the stress test seems to have kept risk takers on the back foot overnight,” he said in a note to investors.

There is no data on the schedule for Wednesday.

Stocks in focus include Microsoft
/quotes/comstock/15*!msft/quotes/nls/msft
(MSFT
23.82,
+0.55,
+2.36%)
, which is planning to lay off a small number of employees as early as this week, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing a person familiar with the matter. The number is far smaller than the roughly 5,000 laid off last year, this source said.

Shares of the Silicon Valley electric car maker Tesla
/quotes/comstock/15*!tsla/quotes/nls/tsla
(TSLA
16.11,
-3.09,
-16.09%)
could see more pressure after falling below their original offering price in Tuesday trading, sliding 16%. The stock debuted last week, climbing 41% in the first day of trade.

European shares were weak, returning gains of the prior session, especially among resource stocks. Poorly received results from Irish construction group CRM and U.K. retailer Marks & Spencer also pressured bourses.

Asian stocks largely declined Wednesday after weak U.S. data refueled worries about the strength of the global economic recovery. Technology shares dropped, unimpressed by Samsung Electronics’ forecast of a record operating profit, and focus fell to the massive IPO for Agricultural Bank of China, which priced in Asia at the middle (for Hong Kong) and above (for Shanghai) its indicated range.

“It’s the same story from before; the market can’t free itself from recent worries about slowing growth in the U.S. and China,” said Samsung Securities analyst Oh Hyun-seok in Seoul. “The U.S. market’s weakness toward the end of (Tuesday’s session) is also negatively affecting sentiment.”

The dollar rose against the euro, changing hands around $1.2570. Gold futures were down $8.30 to $1,186.80 an ounce, while crude oil futures fell 4 cents to $71.94 a barrel.

Euro-area GDP increased 0.2% in the first-quarter of 2010, compared with the previous quarter, a second estimate from Eurostat confirmed Wednesday. In the fourth quarter of 2009, growth was 0.1%. Year-on-year, seasonally adjusted first-quarter GDP rose 0.6%.

Barbara Kollmeyer is an editor for MarketWatch in Madrid.

Indications: U.S. stock futures point to weaker start

By Rebecca L. McClay, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Canadian stocks closed with losses Monday, weighed down by metals stocks. The Toronto exchange continued its losing streak from last week, when its benchmark index declined more than 4%.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index (CA:$ISPTX) closed down 0.9%, pressured by the S&P/TSX Capped Diversified Metals and Mining index, which fell 2.8%. Shares of Teck Resources (CA:TCK.B), Canada’s largest producer of diversified metals, lost 4.3%.

Shares of Taseko Mines (CA:TKO) plummeted 20.2% to $3.32 after a federal panel ruled that development of the company’s Prosperity copper-gold mine would have a “significant adverse environmental impact,” according to The Globe and Mail.

The Vancouver-based company has invested more than $100 million in the mine, which could still open if the government rules that the mine’s benefits outweigh the environmental damage.

In the financials sector, Canadian Western Bank (CA:CWB) fell 0.8%, and Royal Bank of Canada (CA:RY) reversed earlier declines to close up 0.4%. The S&P/TSX Capped Financials Index (CA:TTFS) inched 0.5% lower.

Energy stocks also fared poorly as crude-oil prices for August delivery slipped below $72 a barrel. The S&P/TSX Capped Energy Index was down 1.5%, with Progress Energy
/quotes/comstock/11t!prq
(CA:PRQ
12.00,
-0.47,
-3.77%)
as the main decliner, closing down 3.4%.

U.S. markets were closed Monday for the Independence Day holiday.

“Markets around the world have been fairly directionless overnight, and thus it appears that quiet, low-volume trading may be the tone for the day,” said CMC Markets analyst Colin Cieszynski in a note Monday morning. “Volatility may pick up as the week progresses on; everyone is back tomorrow and focus starts to shift toward the upcoming earnings season.”

Rebecca L. McClay is a MarketWatch reporter based in San Francisco.

Canadian Markets: Canadian stocks close in the red

By Jim Jelter, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Oil and gas stocks fell Monday as concerns that Tropical Storm Alex might plow into the Gulf of Mexico eased, knocking the wind out of the storm’s earlier threat to offshore production.

In early trade, the NYSE Arca Oil Index
/quotes/comstock/10t!xoi.x
(XOI
920.70,
-1.60,
-0.17%)
was off 0.3% at 919.4 points, with only three of the index’s 13 components managing to hang on to gains.

BP PLC
/quotes/comstock/13*!bp/quotes/nls/bp
(BP
27.65,
+0.63,
+2.33%)
was one of those gainers, leading the index with a 1.9% advance to $27.53 a share, as meteorologists predicted Alex, now churning off Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, would likely steer clear of BP’s efforts to corral its wild well 40 miles off Louisiana.

BP raised its cost of the cleanup Monday to $2.65 billion.
Read more about the price of BP’s cleanup.

Alex remains a potentially dangerous storm and could reach hurricane force within the next 24 hours, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. But with the storm veering to the west, it appears unlikely to disrupt oil and gas output from the main cluster of rigs off Louisiana.

Given the diminishing threat from Alex, oil prices fell back below $78 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. At last glance, the August futures contract was down 96 cents to $77.90 a barrel.
Read more about oil prices.

The NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index
/quotes/comstock/10t!xng.x
(XNG
505.49,
-6.39,
-1.25%)
fell 1.2% to 505.9 points, with all components in the red.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index
/quotes/comstock/10y!i:osx
(OSX
172.26,
-0.95,
-0.55%)
slipped 0.5% to 172.4 points, with 13 of its 15 components trading lower.

Noble Corp.
/quotes/comstock/13*!ne/quotes/nls/ne
(NE
30.51,
+1.23,
+4.20%)
was a notable exception, up 5.56% to $30.88 a share on word that it has bought privately held drilling company FDR Holdings for $2.16 billion in cash, a move that adds six floating drill rigs to Noble’s fleet and about $2 billion worth of backlogged contracts. The move aims to curb Noble’s exposure to slower drilling activities in the Gulf as a result of the BP spill.

Jim Jelter is Industrials Editor for MarketWatch in San Francisco.

Energy Stocks: Energy stocks slide as Gulf storm threat eases