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Published March 28, 2008 at 6:10 PM
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 The U.S. Commerce Department's report on soft consumer spending contributed to the battering Wall Street has taken this week. Following two straight days of 100-plus point declines, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 86.06 points Friday to close at 12,216.40 as the Commerce Department said consumer spending was down 0.1% last month, representing the weakest personal spending growth in just over a year-and-a-half. Deal Stocks were no exception to this market sell-off.
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- Positive regulatory news surrounding the pending record-breaking C$52 billion ($52 billion) buyout of BCE Inc. by Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan was not enough to buoy the stock amid the market decline, as it slid 5.24% to $34.37. Approval for the deal came on Thursday from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission.
- Ailing home lender Countrywide Financial Corp. fell 4.25% Friday to close at $5.63 per share following Thursday news that the Federal Reserve Board in an unprecedented move will hold public hearings in Chicago and Los Angeles in April to get comments on Bank of America Corp.'s planned $4 billion acquisition.
- Delta Air Lines Inc. and Northwest Airlines Corp. fought off the market doldrums, and both soared Friday following a Wall Street Journal report that Northwest has resumed merger talks with Delta proposing that the airlines move forward with the deal without salary enhancements and provisions that would have given each pilot a stake in the combined company. Northwest gained 3.55% Friday to close at $8.76, and Delta increased 3.11% to $8.61. The deal has reportedly been held up for weeks due to the inability of pilots to reach an understanding.
- Michael Rudnick
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