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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Oil futures ended little changed Thursday after paring losses as upbeat U.S. data offset lackluster Chinese manufacturing data, giving a mixed picture for energy-demand prospects. New-home sales in April rose to 454,000, the second-highest level since the recession, beating economist expectations. In China, HSBC's flash purchasing managers' index for May fell to a seven-month low of 49.6, showing an unexpected contraction in activity. July crude fell 3 cents to settle at $94.25 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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S&P MidCap 400 constituent Kansas City Southern (KSU) will replace Dean Foods (DF) in the S&P 500, the Dean Foods stub will replace Kansas City Southern in the S&P MidCap 400, and WhiteWave Foods (WWAV) will replace Quicksilver Resources (KWK) in the S&P MidCap 400 after the close of trading today.

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages have made another run at fresh session highs. The Dow has returned into positive territory while the Nasdaq trades with a loss of 0.1%. In addition, the S&P 500 is off by 0.3% as the weakness in financials continues to pressure the benchmark average. Elsewhere, the health care sector has been able to shake off its early weakness as biotechnology displays some ...

Japan's Nikkei falls 7.3%

China's HSBC Flash Manufacturing PMI: 49.6 actual, 50.5 expected, 50.4 prior

Weekly initial claims: 340,000 actual, 348,000 Briefing.com consensus, 363,000 previous

March FHFA Housing Price Index: +0.7% actual, +0.6% prior

April new home sales: 454,000 actual, 425,000 Briefing.com consensus, 444,000 prior

July corn rose 5 cents to $6.62/bushel July wheat rose 18 cents to $7.05/bushel July soybeans rose 1 cent to $14.95/bushel June ethanol fell 1 cent to $2.63/gallon July sugar (#16 (U.S.)) rose 0.17 of a penny to 19.58 cents/lbs

Treasurys move higher Monday as stocks lingered in the red during a volatile day that saw global markets fall decisively.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Former Goldman Sachs investment banker Neil Morrison agreed to pay a $100,000 fine to settle Securities and Exchange Commission charges for his role in a pay-to-play scheme involving undisclosed campaign contributions to then-Massachusetts state treasurer Timothy Cahill while he was a candidate for governor. The SEC charged Goldman Sachs in September 2012 and the firm paid more than $12 million to settle the charges at that time. Morrison also will be barred from the securities industry for five years, according to the SEC. The alleged infringement involved so-called "pay-to-play" violations, where campaign contributions or other payments are made in an attempt to influence the awarding of public contracts for securities underwriting business.

U.S. stocks erase most of their losses leaving the Dow roughly flat, after Japanese equities dived overnight.