Business news with words department+earnings+fall. 3 news.

US stocks rose for a fifth straight week, the longest stretch of gains since May, after minutes from the Federal Reserve and better-than-expected retail sales bolstered hopes that the economy will keep expanding. Wal-Mart Stores Inc, the world's largest retailer, climbed to a two-month high after boosting its third-quarter profit forecast. Yum! Brands Inc, owner of the Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurant chains, jumped the most since September 2005 on earnings that topped analysts' estimates. Exxon Mobil Corp, the biggest oil company, led a gauge of energy shares to a record after crude prices rose to an all-time high. Minutes from the Fed's September 18 policy meeting showed central bankers avoided language that might have suggested the economy would fall into a recession. The Commerce Department said retail sales added 0.6 percent last month, from the 0.2 percent gain predicted by analysts in a Bloomberg News survey. "The consumer is a staying force, earnings growth is

WALL Street finished a quiet session modestly higher yesterday as Wall Street awaited the government's September employment report, hoping it will strike a balance between steady growth and more room for interest rate cuts. Yesterday's economic data, which showed a gain in jobless claims and a drop in factory orders, gave investors little incentive to make any big moves ahead of the payrolls report. Wall Street appears optimistic that the Labor Department report today will indicate a rebound from August and include revisions to that month's dismal numbers. August's job creation report showed a decline in payrolls when economists had predicted a rise, and sent the Dow Jones industrial average down nearly 250 points the day it was released. Since then, the Federal Reserve has lowered a key interest rate and the Dow quickly bounced back to where it was in mid-July, before the credit markets tightened up and caused stocks to fall sharply. Today's report is important because this year's relatively stable job market has been an important prop for the US economy, helping to offset the housing slump and sluggish growth. "The jobs report can be a real distraction for the market, and with good reason. The number of people working, where they work, how much they get paid, tells us a whole lot about the economy," said Alan Gayle, senior investment strategist at Trusco Capital Management. "In the meantime, the markets are pretty much treading water. A strong report tomorrow will revive notions that the Fed is one and done. If the report continues to be soft, that's going to suggest more easing coming our way." But while investors are angling for the Fed to lower rates again when it meets October 30-31 -- which would spur spending by making borrowing cheaper -- they don't want the job market to weaken. When people don't have incomes, they tend to trim spending and can become delinquent in their bill payments. "A relatively strong employment report will be good news for stocks in that it will help support profit growth," Gayle said. "Obviously Fed rate cuts are good, but more earnings is always the best." The Dow rose 6.26, or 0.04 percent, to 13,974.31, after shooting to a record high Monday and then giving back a large chunk of its gains Tuesday and Wednesday. Broader stock indicators were also little changed on the day, which was notable for its low volume and low volatility. The Standard & Poor's 500 ind

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Job growth came to a screeching halt in August, the Labor Department said Friday. Nonfarm payrolls contracted by 4,000 in August. This was the first decline in payrolls since August 2003. The decline was much weaker than than the 115,000 increase expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.6% in August from the previous month. Average hourly earnings increased 5 cents, or 0.3% to $17.50. This was in line with expectations. Earnings are up 3.9% in the past year. The average workweek held steady at 33.8 hours. This was also in line with expectations.