March 18, 2010 2:29 PM EDT
The U.S. stock market is trading flat as Thursday's unemployment and inflation data offered little surprise.
Concerns that Greece may turn to the IMF also eased as Greece's Prime minister denied such plans.
The S&P 500 Index is down 0.59 points, or 0.05 percent, to trade at 1,165.59 at 10:15 am EST. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 18.67 points, or 0.17 percent, to trade at 10,752.34. The Nasdaq Composite is down 0.07 percent.
Earnings
FedEx (NYSE:FDX) reported third quarter earnings $0.76 per share, beating Wall Street expectations of $0.72 and up from $0.31 a year ago. Revenues also increased 7 percent from a year ago.
CEO Frederick Smith credits the improving performance of his company to "outstanding execution" and the "improving global economy."
However, shares of FedEx are down 0.20 percent.
Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) reported earnings of $1.16 per share, in line with expectations. The figure is up from $0.76 a year ago. Its shares are down 1.80 percent.
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U.S. Economic Data
At 8:30 am EST, a pair of government economic reports issued figures mostly in line with expectations. The Department of Labor reported declining unemployment claims for the week ending March 13. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that consumer prices were unchanged in February. Excluding food and energy, prices increased 0.1 percent.
At 10:00 am EST, the Philadelphia Federal Reserve reported a better than expected manufacturing index.
Although Thursday's data showed no extraordinary results, they pointed to subdued inflation, a stabilizing job market, and continued growth in manufacturing.
Greece
Earlier Thursday, global markets were weighed down by reports that Greece, impatient with the refusal of euro zone leaders to commit to a concrete aid plan, would go to the IMF for help as early as next week.
However, Greek Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou told Reuters that Greece is not turning to the IMF soon. He called the reports "ridiculous."
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