Stocks Turn Positive during Final Hour of Trading

Word on the Street

• Research In Motion Ltd. (RIMM), maker of the BlackBerry smartphone, reached an agreement with Motorola Inc. (MOT) over a patent complaint. Under the settlement, both companies will set up a cross-licensing agreement in which they will receive patent rights related to certain key technologies and industry standards.
• Businesses continued to ramp up their inventories in April. Wholesale inventories rose 0.4 percent last month after a 0.7 percent gain in March while sales increased 0.7 percent in April. Higher demand for autos, lumber, computers and electrical equipment helped boost sales.
• BP (BP) is preparing to defer payment of its next dividend to help quell the political uproar in America. The oil giant may place the money in escrow until the full scale of the company’s liabilities from the Gulf of Mexico disaster can be determined.
• Consumer Sentiment Rises in June – Confidence among US consumers rose in June to the highest level in more than two years. The index came in at 75.5 vs. 73.6 reported in May. Consumers’ initial 1-year inflation expectations came in at 2.7% compared to May’s final expectation of 3.2%.
• Billionaire investor Carl Icahn is still after Lion Gate Entertainment Corp. (LGF). Icahn lashed out at executives in an open letter to the Canadian-US film and TV company for allowing its stock price to sink over the past five years. He said he hopes a new board will move quickly to replace management.
• Retails sales fell unexpectedly aa consumers cut back on spending. The Commerce Department said retail sales tumbled by 1.2%, making it the worst (and first) decline in eight months.
• National Semiconductor Corp. (NSM) swung to a fiscal fourth-quarter profit compared to a loss in the same period last year. The results signaled that demand is bouncing back after a horrendous 2009 for the microchip industry.

Other Interesting Tidbits

• Pull your portfolio out of its rut – You can’t rely on old investing habits to guide you in this volatile market; instead, explore your discomfort zone. Here’s how. Also: 3 finds from out-of-the-way places.
• What to Do When You Hate Your Job – Four steps to take to figure out the solution.
• The Killer iPhone – How Apple designed its new model to be sweet to customers and vicious to rivals.
• That’s enough ‘kicking ass’, Mr President – Barack Obama’s attacks on BP may play well at home, but they are damaging millions of British people.