To: GROUND ZERO™ who wrote (36469 ) 8/31/2010 7:47:04 PM From: Hope Praytochange 1 Recommendation Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 103300 The stock market ended its worst August since 2001 with meager gains after minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting showed officials' increasing concern about the economy. Stock indexes gave up most of their gains in mid-afternoon after the release of minutes from the Fed's Aug. 10 meeting. Fed officials said during their discussions that they recognized that the economy might need further stimulus beyond the purchases of government debt the central bank announced that day. Some of the officials acknowledged that economy had softened more than they had anticipated. The Dow Jones industrial average ended with a gain of 5 points, having been up 64 following a reading on consumer confidence in August that came in stronger than expected. Stocks fell sharply for much of August after a series of reports suggested that the recovery has weakened. The S&P 500, the measure used most by stock market professionals, finished August with a loss of 4.7 percent. It was the S&P 500's worst showing for the month since August 2001, when it lost 6.4 percent as the dot-com bubble collapsed. Year-to-date, the S&P 500 is down 5.9 percent. Some traders said there was disappointment that the Fed wasn't pessimistic enough to consider quicker steps to stimulate that economy. The Dow rose 4.99 to close at 10,014.72. Broader indexes were mixed. The Standard & Poor's 500 index edged up 0.41 to 1,049.33. The Nasdaq composite index fell 5.94 to 2,114.03. Other market indicators also had dismal performances in August, having surged ahead in July on a series of strong earnings reports. The Dow lost 4.3 percent in August, while the Nasdaq lost 6.2 percent. Rising stocks outpaced falling ones by about 4 to 3 on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume was low at 4.5 billion shares.