Following two solid days of gains, the Dow Jones Industrial Average
After the Fed's Open Market Committee indicated rates should stay steady until 2014, economic attention will today turn to weekly jobless claims and pending home sales. Among individual stocks, active names could include ExxonMobil, which is expected to report first-quarter earnings of $2.09 per share before the open, and Pepsico, which might unveil earnings of $0.67 per share.
Over in Europe, most markets registered small losses this morning as an index of the region's consumer sentiment declined more than forecast. The Spanish bourse, however, slipped 2% as further worries about the country's bonds surfaced. One results highlight came from German car manufacturer Volkswagen, which motored 6% higher after beating quarterly estimates. Greater sales at the group's Audi division helped profits accelerate 10%.
In the UK, several blue-chip names issued first-quarter numbers to push the FTSE 100
Oil major Royal Dutch Shell
Other British blue chips with Q1 numbers included Barclays and British American Tobacco.
However, none of these British large caps have been attractive enough to encourage Warren Buffett to invest more than $1 billion. The legendary investor recently bought a famous UK blue chip with global expansion potential -- and you can discover the name of the company and the price he paid in this latest free report.
Back home, earnings season will continue tonight, with Amazon.com and Starbucks among those issuing releases after the close.
The Motley Fool is helping Britain invest. Better. Are you looking to profit from this uncertain economy? "10 Steps To Making A Million In The Market" is The Motley Fool's free report. We urge you to read the report today -- it may transform your wealth. Click here now to request your free, no-obligation copy.
Further investment opportunities: