Stocks Mixed; Bernanke Comments in Focus

June 8, 2010 - PRLog -- Last night, Ben Bernanke expressed a cautious outlook for the economy, stating that the recovery was underway, but that growth would be moderate and unemployment would remain high. He does not believe there is a significant chance of a double-dip recession.

Rating agency Fitch put out a report calling the fiscal challenge in the U.K. formidable, and that the government needs to do more to bring the deficit lower.

At midday the Dow and S&P 500 were 0.3% and 0.1% higher respectively while the NASDAQ was off 0.7%

Stocks on the Move:

Dollar General's reported solid first-quarter results. The firm posted a solid 6.7% increase in comparable-store sales during the quarter, on top of 13.3% growth in the prior year, as value-conscious consumers continued to turn to the dollar store for low-priced necessities. Given strong top-line growth, the firm delivered a record 9.3% operating margin during the quarter, compared to 8.1% in the prior-year period.

This was largely driven by direct sourcing efficiencies, a mix shift toward higher-margin private label products, and operating leverage gained--partially offset by higher distribution and labor costs, as well as expenses related to the secondary offering. Shares were up 1.2% at midday.

McDonald's (same-store sales rose 4.8% in May, driven by growth across the globe. Europe was up 5.7%, 3.8% in Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa and 3.4% in the U.S. Sales were driven by new beverages, Happy Meal promotions and other deals. Shares rose 0.7%.

Foreign Markets:

European stocks were lower today as investors continued to fret over the region's fiscal problems. The FTSE 100, Paris CAC and Germany's DAX were down 0.8%, 1.1% and 0.9% respectively.

Asian markets ended mostly higher after United States Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Monday said the U.S. economy was recovering. The Shanghai Composite, Nikkei 225 and Hang Seng were up 0.1%, 0.2% and 0.6% respectively. By Jeremy Glaser, Markets Editor for Morningstar.com.

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