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Article: Stocks edge higher after jobs data, retail sales
- Article from:
- AP Online
- Article date:
- September 3, 2009
- Author:
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Stocks edged higher in light trading Thursday as investors found little in a series of economic reports to push the market forward after a four-day slide.
The Labor Department said the number of people filing for unemployment claims fell last week by 4,000 to 570,000 while the number of those receiving benefits rose. Economists had been expecting a bigger drop and the report reminded investors that a recovery in employment will be difficult.
Investors are also cautious ahead of the government's August employment report on Friday. Many analysts consider unemployment the biggest obstacle facing a recovery in the economy because consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent ...