The markets drifted lower after the government's February durable goods report showed a second straight month of declines. The Dow lost 89 points to 12,442 while Nasdaq dropped 19 points to 2321.
On the upside
Motorola (NYSE: MOT) announced plans to spin off its handset business into another publicly-traded company, a move long sought by shareholder activists.
Shares of Clearwire (Nasdaq: CLWR) rose on reports that the company may be selected to run a new wireless venture funded by Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) and Time Warner (NYSE: TWC).
Ceragon Networks (Nasdaq: CRNT) is launching a new carrier-grade wireless Ethernet platform at an upcoming trade show. The stock rose in heavy trading.
On the downside
Efforts by private equity firms to raise $19.5 billion for the buyout of Clear Channel Communications (NYSE: CCU) was reportedly on the verge of being called off. The stock promptly lost 15% of its value.
Electronic parts manufacturer Jabil Circuit (NYSE: JBL) posted a 2nd quarter loss while lowering its guidance. Analysts promptly downgraded the stock.
Shares of Electronic Arts (Nasdaq: ERTS) slipped after it was officially rebuffed by rival game maker Take-Two (Nasdaq: TTWO) over a too-low $2 billion takeover bid.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of nearly 2 to 1 on the NYSE and by 2 to 1on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks dropped 6 points to 698.
