Economic News January-22 2009

Apple rises 7 percent following strong results
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Apple Inc (AAPL.O) shares rose more than 7 percent on Thursday a day after it announced stronger than expected financial results and solid outlook for the current quarter despite the weak economy.

Its shares rose $6.31 to $89.14 in brisk morning trade on Nasdaq as investors showed relief that demand for Apple products appeared to be holding up. While it sold fewer iPhones than expected, iPod sales beat analyst estimates.

Apple's results came the night before Microsoft surprised Wall Street with a disappointing profit and said it would cut 5,000 jobs.

Apple's results also contrasted sharply to consumer electronics rivals LG Electronics (066570.KS) and Sony Corp (6758.T), which posted big losses due to a slump in consumer demand for gadgets.

Needham analyst Charlie Wolf said Apple results were strong even as he cut his price target for the stock to $200 from $240 and said it was clear the company was not immune to the recession.

DJIA8,122.80-105.30
Nasdaq1,465.49-41.58
S&P 500827.50-12.74
Russell 2000442.85-13.
Gold$855.40+$2.70
Crude Oil$43.04-$0.63


http://uk.reuters.com/article/pressReleases/idUKTRE50L3YD20090122