Finance committee gives nod to stimulus measures. Proposals to give tax rebates to seniors and aid the unemployed gain support. Next step: Full Senate vote.

By Jeanne Sahadi, CNNMoney.com senior writer
January 30 2008: 6:36 PM EST
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday approved a proposal intended to curb a further slowdown in the economy. The proposal, which differs from a bill overwhelmingly approved Tuesday by the House, could be introduced as a bill and voted on by the full Senate as early as Thursday. Lawmakers are aiming to send final legislation to President Bush by Feb. 15.

The committee meeting took place the same day that the government issued a report that economic growth in the last quarter of 2007 was weaker than expected and the Federal Reserve cut a key interest rate another 50 basis points following its emergency move last week that lowered the federal funds rate by 75 points.

 CNN.Money.Com – Click for Complete Story

Big moves today. I think there are a lot of stocks for sale. And with the DOW moving down so much , it looks like investors finally realized they better buy some value before things move up and they miss a good deal. I think its a good time to pick up stocks and maybe even flip some for some quick profits. Also always this is my opinion and always due your own research and seek professional advice as needed.

AP
Wall Street Whiplash: Stocks Plunge, Then Post Big Gains on Day After Fed Rate Cut — NEW YORK (AP)

It started with another stomach-turning drop at the open, and a loss of more than 300 points by midday. Then stocks changed course, raced higher and closed with a dramatic gain of nearly 300. This wasn’t just volatility. This was Wall Street whiplash.
Amid tumbling housing prices, an ongoing credit crisis and growing fears of a recession, turbulence has become a hallmark of Wall Street in recent weeks. And after five straight days of pullbacks, analysts saw some positive signs in Wednesday’s trading.

Investors certainly found a reason to buy, perhaps encouraged by the Federal Reserve’s unprecedented 0.75-point interest rate cut a day earlier and a widely held bet on another half-point cut next week. By day’s end, the Dow had swung 631.86 points from its low point to its high — the largest single-day turnaround in more than five years.

Finance.Yahoo.Com – Click Here for Complete Story

AP
Stocks Dive, Then Rebound After Fed Cut
Tuesday January 22, 6:23 pm ET
By Madlen Read, AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP)

The opening bell hadn’t even sounded on Wall Street when the Federal Reserve announced an emergency interest-rate cut. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 465 points including 300 in the first minute then rebounded to finish down a more bearable 128. The recovery Tuesday was a victory of sorts for a battered market. But a long-term comeback may depend on factors much more difficult to achieve a turnaround in the housing market and renewed confidence among U.S. consumers, who hold up most of the economy.

The alarming early drop in U.S. stocks followed the lead of markets abroad, where investors fled stocks and sent indexes plummeting on fears of a U.S. recession that could spread to other global economies.

By the close, the Dow had recovered to a loss of 128.11, or just over 1 percent, at 11,971.19. Before trading began, the Federal Reserve moved to slash its benchmark federal funds rate by 0.75 percentage points, to 3.5 percent. It was the widest cut since 1990, the beginning of what the Fed says is a comparable period in the way it handled the rate. The Fed cut the discount rate, the interest rate the Fed charges banks directly, to 4 percent, also a three-quarter-point cut.

Finance.Yahoo.com – Click for Complete Story