STOCKS NEWS US-Raymond James downgrades two railroad companies

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0942 ET 02July2009-Raymond James downgrades two railroad companies
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Raymond James on Thursday downgraded a pair of railroads, citing a sharp
decline in freight volumes in the second quarter.

Both Canadian Pacific Railway (CP.N) (CP.TO) and Canadian National Railway
(CNI.N) (CNR.TO) were dropped to "market perform" from "outperform."

"Canadian 2009 second-quarter freight volumes showed steady signs of
deterioration throughout much of the quarter, down 24.6 percent during the
first 11 weeks," the firm wrote to clients.

Despite that, Raymond James wrote that, "We continue to view the long-term
outlook for the Canadian rails very favorably," citing economic indicators
suggesting the worst of the economic contraction may soon be over.

For details, see [ID:nBNG132675]

U.S.-listed shares of Canadian National fell 1.6 percent to $42.50 while
Canadian Pacific fell 2.3 percent to $39.37 on the New York Stock Exchange.

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
0930 ET 02July2009-Markets open lower after jobs data
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Major U.S. indexes opened lower on Thursday, after payrolls data showed
more Americans than expected lost their jobs in June, dampening hopes that the
economy may be heading out of recession quickly.

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI fell 0.6 percent to 8,448.89 while
the S&P 500 .SPX lost 0.7 percent to 916.84 and the Nasdaq .IXIC was off
1.2 percent to 1,822.47.

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
0851 ET 02July2009-FCStone to merge with International Assets unit
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FCStone Group FCSX.O on Thursday said it would merge with a wholly-owned
subsidiary of International Assets Holding (IAAC.O).

Under the terms of the agreement, stockholders will receive 0.2950 shares
of International Assets' common stock for each share of FCStone common stock
they own, according to an SEC filing.

For details, see [ID:nWEN0201]

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
0837 ET 02July2009-Jobless claims down 16,000 in latest week
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The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits fell by
16,000 last week, and the number staying on the rolls after collecting an
initial week of aid also fell, the government said in a report on Thursday.

Initial claims for state unemployment insurance fell to 614,000 in the week
ended June 27 from an upwardly revised 630,000 the prior week, the Labor
Department said. Economists had expected claims to fall to 615,000.

For details, see [ID:nN01517124]

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
0833 ET 02July2009-June payrolls fell 467,000, jobless rate up
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U.S. employers cut 467,000 jobs in June, far more than expected, while the
unemployment rate rose to 9.5 percent, the government said on Thursday in a
report that showed a labor market continuing to struggle with a deep
recession.

The June job losses were more than 100,000 greater than the 363,000
consensus of Wall Street economists polled by Reuters and broke a four-month
trend of moderation in job losses.

For details, see [ID:nN01210643]

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net