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Stocks ended mostly lower Friday as investors continued to react to the week’s downbeat economic reports that have raised concern about a double-dip recession.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) lost 58 points, or 0.6%, to close at 10,213 and the S&P 500 (SPX) fell 4 points, or 0.4%, to close at 1,072, according to early tallies. It was the second straight week of losses for the two indexes.

Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq (COMP) composite gained less than a point to 2,180, and up slightly overall for the week.

Stocks tumbled Thursday after three key economic reports slammed confidence. Weekly jobless claims rose to their highest level since November, manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region slowed, and a key measure of future economic activity was less than had hoped.

The Dow lost 1.4%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both shed 1.7%.

"When the area of great concern in the market place (jobs) gets a dismal report and the bright spot in the economy (manufacturing) gets whacked into oblivion, fear came back into the marketplace," Phil Flynn, a senior market analyst with PFG Best, said in a note to investors. "Some call it the risk aversion trade but I say that’s a polite way of saying people are scared."

Weak economic reports have spurred worries about a slower recovery this summer, but bullish traders have been eager to put those fears on the back burner amid some strong earnings from Fortune 500 companies in the last few weeks. Now that the quarterly reports are tapering off, some of those gloomy economic reports are once again taking over the spotlight.

"Investors remain on edge over the direction of the economy," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners. "Recent economic reports, especially employment data, continue to be a worry for the market and overshadow the good news, including the expansion of corporate America."

While takeover activity and merger deals are picking up steam, a sign that companies are preparing for "better times," Cardillo said the market is still debating whether the economy is headed for a double-dip recession personal loan for poor credit.

Companies: Shares of Research in Motion (RIMM) dropped 3.4% to $48.72 after analysts at Morgan Stanley downgraded the BlackBerry maker to a "sell" rating because the company could lose market share more quickly than previously anticipated.

The downgrade sent the stock inching closer to the company’s 52-week low of $47.42 a share.

Economy: State unemployment turned gloomier in July, with jobless rates rising in 14 states and remaining unchanged in another 18. But 18 states and the District of Columbia saw a decrease in their unemployment rates, according to the Labor Department’s monthly report on state unemployment.

The state unemployment picture was slightly worse than in June, when jobless rates eased in more than half of all U.S. states for a third straight month and only five states reported jobless rate increases.

The report came a day after a separate government reading showed the number of Americans filing for unemployment insurance unexpectedly surged last week.

World markets: European shares closed lower. Germany’s DAX fell 1.2% and the CAC 40 in France slipped 1.3%. Britain’s FTSE 100 was 0.3% lower.

Asian markets ended the session in negative territory. Japan’s Nikkei led declines in the region, sinking nearly 2%. The Shanghai Composite dropped 1.7% and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong fell 0.4%.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar rose against the euro, the U.K. pound and the Japanese yen.

Oil futures for September delivery settled down 97 cents to $73.46 a barrel. Gold for December delivery slipped $6.60 to settle at $1,228.80.

Bonds: Prices for Treasurys dipped in afternoon trading, sending the yield on the 10-year note up to 2.61% from 2.57% late Thursday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions. 

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The National Football League is the golden child in the world of professional sports. It has the best media deal, highest TV ratings and most lucrative revenue sharing pacts.

Now, its seems the NFL and Arizona Cardinals are avoiding (at least for now) the state's immigration fight over Senate Bill 1070.

There are no indications there will be SB 1070-related protests today at University of Phoenix Stadium for the Cardinals preseason opener against the Houston Texans.

Groups opposed to the immigration law are not planning any major protests at the Glendale stadium. The immigration issue has caused for some headaches for the Phoenix Suns and Arizona Diamondbacks in downtown Phoenix.

Hispanics groups opposed to 1070 want Major League Baseball to relocate the 2011 All-Star Game out of Chase Field. D-backs owner Ken Kendrick says he's personally opposed to 1070 but critics of the bill don't like that he gives to Republicans (some of whom back the measure).

A few blocks down the street Suns owner Robert Sarver and guard Steve Nash came out against the law and then wore 'Los Suns' jerseys once during the playoffs in the early days of the immigration controversy. The move earned grief from fans who like the law or don't want sports team being political, but accolades from 1070 opponents. The Cards actually got some ticket calls from a few fans irked by the Suns stance and political move.

The bill was signed in April during the NFL offseason and the team has steered clear of the debate. That's not to say the 1070 fight won't pop up later in the regular season. The Cards do have some nationally televised games and were in the playoffs the past two years.

But at least for now, it appears the immigration fight is avoiding the NFL team as it enters a crossroads season on the field and for its growing and somewhat bandwagon fan base. That fan base includes includes plenty of working class whites more friendly towards 1070, and Hispanics averse to the law.

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Healthcare Trust of America Inc. bought a medical office building in Stockbridge, Ga., for $8.1 million.

Overlook at Eagle's Landing, in Henry County, is 100 percent occupied. It opened in 2004 and is less than one-half mile from the 215-bed Henry Medical Center.

Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Healthcare Trust also owns Southcrest Medical Plaza I and II in Stockbridge, Marietta Health Park in Riverdale, Fayette Medical Office in Fayetteville, and 4000 Shakerag Hill Road in Peachtree City payday loan online.

"This acquisition continues our Atlanta expansion focused in attractive sub-markets, bringing our total Atlanta portfolio to over a half million square feet while generating greater market presence for HTA with the region's health-care providers," said Mark D. Engstrom, executive vice president of acquisitions, in a statement.

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IPhone seekers hoping to avoid days-long lines thought they’d have an ace in the hole: retail outlets other than Apple’s stores. Apple partner AT&T warned potential buyers that it wouldn’t have inventory for walk-in buyers until next week, but Wal-Mart, Best Buy and RadioShack all announced plans to have "limited" supplies available Thursday for shoppers who didn’t pre-order the iPhone 4.

That was the theory. The reality hasn’t played out so smoothly.

Wal-Marts around the country said that their iPhones were in short supply, and Twitter was ablaze with customers reporting from Wal-Mart stores that had just one or two of the devices in stock.

An Evansville, Ill., Wal-Mart said it had exactly one unreserved iPhone 4 available when it opened. But don’t race out the door: It’s already sold.

Only 1,500 of the 3,600 Wal-Mart stores in the United States are offering the phone on Thursday, according to company spokeswoman Ashley Hardie, though more stores will sell the phone after the launch day.

"They can’t get here soon enough!" Wal-Mart (WMT, Fortune 500) spokeswoman Melissa O’Brien added.

A spot check of two Best Buys and multiple RadioShack stores in New York City found no phones available for customers who hadn’t claimed them in advance.

But a few pockets of inventory emerged: A Best Buy on 62nd Street had a stash of 16 GB iPhone 4s available for sale mid-afternoon. Store employees wouldn’t say how many were left.

"Inventory remains constrained, and it is expected that many of the iPhones that Best Buy receives will go first to customers who reserved one during presale," Best Buy (BBY, Fortune 500) warned Wednesday in a statement. The company said availability would vary store by store, and that customers should call before heading out to pick up a phone.

To prevent long lines at Apple and AT&T stores — the only places to get the iPhone on the first day of sale in past years — Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) delivered devices to Best Buy, RadioShack and Wal-Mart stores across the country. But the inventory was not enough to meet the wild demand for the phone.

One RadioShack on 23rd Street in Manhattan said Apple had given it just eight iPhones — total. They were all reserved for pre-orders, but the store said that it would make them available to walk-ins at noon if they weren’t yet claimed.

Another RadioShack, on 57th Street, went through its scant inventory so fast it wasn’t able to fulfill all of its pre-orders. One block away, a RadioShack store that didn’t accept pre-orders — it stuck with first-come, first-served — sold out fast amid hectic demand.

Best Buy, which planned to have very limited iPhone stocks on hand, had no one in line at its Fifth Avenue outpost right before its opening.

But that was for the best, since that store didn’t have a single iPhone 4 on hand for walk-in customers, according to a manager preparing for an early open. Customers who pre-ordered through Best Buy would be able to pick up their phones at scheduled appointment times throughout the morning, he said.

RadioShack (RSH, Fortune 500) did not immediately return requests for comment.

AT&T (T, Fortune 500) announced last week that it won’t start selling the iPhone 4 to walk-in buyers until June 29, and it stuck by that statement Thursday morning. Customers who turned up seeking one were set away.

Daniel Karbowitz, 32, lost his iPhone 3G last week and hoped to replace it with the latest model. When the AT&T store broke the bad news, Karbowitz set out for the nearby Apple store.

"I’m not optimistic," he said. "I hope I can get one today, but Apple likes keeping a scarce supply of their newest products."

Demand for Apple’s new phone was 10 times higher than it was for the previous version, the iPhone 3GS, according to AT&T. Apples said it sold 600,000 devices on the first day of pre-sales.

The unanticipated demand crashed AT&T’s servers, and a number of customers were unable to pre-order the iPhone 4 last week. AT&T stopped accepting pre-orders after just one day. It’s waiting for Apple to restock its inventory.

Meanwhile, the iPhone’s availability — or unavailability — at other retail outlets did nothing to quell demand at Apple’s flagship store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. Thousands lined up at the store Thursday morning, with many saying they came because they heard the phones would be in short supply.

With a line still out the door, the Apple store on 67th Street in Manhattan ran out of inventory mid-afternoon for customers who didn’t pre-order. Just after 2 p.m., the store closed down its walk-in line. Managers said they would take stock of their remaining supplies and see if the could re-open the queue later Thursday.  

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Rockville-based Washington Real Estate Investment Trust has completed the sale of four properties for $23.4 million.

All four buildings — three office buildings and one industrial property — are on Parklawn Drive in Rockville. WRIT has owned three of the buildings since 1993. It purchased the fourth in 1999.

This is the latest shuffle in WRIT’s local portfolio.

Earlier this month, the real estate investment trust paid $68 million to acquire two office buildings at the Quantico Corporate Office Center near Marine Corps Base Quantico in Stafford, Va.

The company owns more than 90 commercial real estate properties in the Washington market.

WRIT (NYSE: WRE) had $76.5 million in fiscal first-quarter revenue, little changed from year ago results.

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The foreclosure plague may have finally reached its peak in April 2010 — but don’t expect delinquency statistics to plummet anytime soon.

The total number of foreclosure filings — notices of default, auction notices and bank repossessions — fell by 9% from March to April, and 2% compared with April 2009, according to data released Thursday by RealtyTrac, the online marketer of foreclosed properties.

This is the first time that has happened in the history of the report, which goes back to January 2006.

But the number of homes repossessed during April is at an all-time high of 92,432. That is a 45% increase over April 2009. If repossessions continue at this pace, more than 1.1 million homes will be lost in 2010.

"There were two important milestones in the April numbers that show foreclosure activity has begun to plateau, but at a very high level that will not drop off in the near future," said RealtyTrac CEO James Saccacio.

Saccacio said he expects the pattern to become the norm for many months, with the overall numbers of filings staying high, but not increasing, and repossessions remaining at record levels.

The reason that repossessions can rise while filings hold steady is that lenders are working through a backlog of delinquent properties, taking more of them through the entire process to repossession, rather than letting them linger in limbo.

Walkaways

The numbers of repossessed properties, also called real-estate owned or REOs, have been boosted by a spike in the number of homeowners voluntarily giving up their homes because their the value has dropped so precipitously.

These "strategic defaults" now account for nearly one in three foreclosures, according to a recent report from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. That’s up from 22% 12 months earlier.

Some homeowners walk away when they are "underwater," owing far more than the value of their home, because they realize that they will never recoup the losses. The further homeowners fall underwater, the more likely they are to leave.

About one in four U.S. homeowners is underwater, according to CoreLogic, a financial data provider. Nearly 5 million of those borrowers owe mortgage debt that exceeds their property values by 25% or more. The total of negative equity in these deeply underwater borrowers is a whopping $655 billion.

Foreclosure epicenters

Nevada continues to rank as the worst-hit foreclosure state, with one of every 69 households receiving some kind of filing. That’s nearly six times the national rate which is one household for every 387 receiving a filing.

Arizona had the second highest rate; Florida the third; and California the fourth. California, the largest state in the union, had nearly 70,000 filings, more than any other state. Michigan, where the vast number of foreclosures can be traced to job losses and economic turmoil, recorded more than 19,000.

The metro area market that recorded the highest rate of foreclosure filings in April was Las Vegas, where one of every 60 homes was delinquent, Second was Modesto, Calif., with one in 101, and neighboring Merced, where one in 104 homeowners was in some stage of default. 

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With austerity the national mindset in this iffy economy, anything hip or trendy may seem extravagant.

Everyone must be too busy clipping sale coupons and saving soap slivers to have time for such frivolity, right? To the contrary, according to some investment experts who believe that hip can be a smart investor direction.

"People don’t feel flush right now so they need a reason to buy stuff," explained Marie Driscoll, retail analyst for Standard & Poor’s Corp. in New York.

The ability to keep up with often-fickle trends is a worthy skill that many companies have failed miserably to master. Those that have done it best often command top dollar for their shares, but their likelihood of continued success could make them worth their premium price.

One retailer that consistently attracts the hippest of young people — ranging in age from the teens to mid-20s — is Urban Outfitters Inc., according to Driscoll. Its ever-changing merchandise, ranging from fashion and furniture to electronics, is part of a strategy to transform casual shoppers into motivated buyers. Its innovative Anthropologie and Free People brands are growing faster than its regular Urban Outfitters stores.

"You go into one of its stores and it’s like a flea market or thrift market, the appeal being that you don’t know what you’re going to see," she explained, noting that even snowy weather didn’t dampen sales. "It has an ear to both guys and girls as target customers and knows how to change to keep up with those customers."

Stock of Urban Outfitters (URBN) is up 4 percent this year after last year’s dramatic 134 percent gain. It receives a consensus "buy" rating from the Wall Street analysts who track it, according to Thomson Reuters.

It is quite possible that when those young customers return home they relax by playing best-selling video game Guitar Hero, which lets them simulate playing the guitar across a variety of rock music songs. It is from Activision Blizzard Inc., the firm that resulted from the 2008 merger of Activision and Vivendi Games.

"Cool games that hardcore gamers like are still coming from the traditional players in this space," noted Toan Tran, technology analyst with Morningstar Inc. in Chicago.

The video game portfolio of Activision Blizzard includes Call of Duty, Tony Hawk and the role-playing game World of Warcraft. If you’re behind the times on those, you’ll surely recognize its Spider-Man and James Bond titles. The durability and worldwide appeal of its franchises, especially throughout Asia, position it for future growth, Tran believes.

The stock of Activision Blizzard (ATVI) is up 5 percent this year after last year’s 29 percent increase. Its consensus analyst rating is between "strong buy" and "buy."

For the modern crowd that expects the latest communication devices, Apple Inc no teletrack payday loans. is hotter than BlackBerry maker Research in Motion, believes Michael Lippert, portfolio manager of Baron iOpportunity Fund (BIOPX) in New York. Although outstanding for e-mail, the BlackBerry hasn’t connected with younger consumers, he said.

"Apple’s iPhone will gain even more market share when it moves to multiple carriers rather than just AT&T," predicted Lippert, who acknowledges BlackBerry’s competency but doesn’t believe the younger crowed is all that excited about it. "I feel that if you can walk into a Verizon store and get a BlackBerry or iPhone for the same price, why will anyone get anything other than an iPhone?"

Apple has remained a relevant company, said Lippert, who expects that its new iPad tablet computer will also be popular with the college-age crowd.

"There is no more hip company in technology than Apple," agreed Tran. "While it remains to be seen how big an impact the iPad will have on the market, I’m leaning toward the view that it will be another huge hit."

The stock of Apple (AAPL) is up 7 percent this year after last year’s 147 percent increase. Its consensus analyst rating is between "strong buy" and "buy."

Lippert’s $182 million Baron iOpportunity Fund is up 82 percent in value over the past 12 months and has a five-year annualized return of 8 percent. Besides Apple, another big holding is Google Inc. (GOOG).

"The YouTube service used by millions of people is one reason why Google is still hip and cool," said Lippert. "Other companies such as Facebook, Twitter and Hulu are at the epicenter of what’s considered cool, but unlike Google they aren’t public companies that you can invest in."

Engadget, a popular Web-based consumer electronics magazine based in Silicon Valley, is also considered hip these days, added Lippert. Not everyone may know that this weblog and podcast operation is owned by AOL Inc., now a stand-alone company after its divorce from Time Warner. Shares of AOL (AOL), up 9 percent this year, are a consensus "hold" among the analysts who track them.

Another Driscoll favorite is J. Crew Group Inc. (JCG), whose merchandise always has a fresh look and increasingly attracts shoppers from luxury designer stores, she said. Meanwhile, Tran admires Electronic Arts Inc. (ERTS) for its leadership in video games, with Asia the growth driver. Its Rock Band game competes with Activision Blizzard’s Guitar Hero.

Whether 2010 hipness leaders will continue into 2011 and beyond will be decided by their hip customers.

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If the economy cooperates and auto sales recover a bit, General Motors Co. has a reasonable chance of turning a full-year profit in 2010, its new chief financial officer said Wednesday.

Former Microsoft Corp. CFO Chris Liddell, at his first meeting with reporters, said the automaker was making money in Brazil and China, in the middle in North America and struggling in Europe cheapest personal loan rates.

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European confidence in the economic outlook unexpectedly worsened in February after the euro region’s recovery almost stalled in the fourth quarter.

An index of executive and consumer sentiment in the 16 nations using the euro slipped to 95.9 from a revised 96 in January, the European Commission in Brussels said today. The economic recovery may fail to gather strength for most of 2010, the commission said in a separate report.

European domestic demand remains weak and it’s not yet clear to what extent the euro region will benefit from a global recovery, the commission said. As governments seek to bolster the recovery, they also are trying to stem investor concern about widening budget deficits in Greece and other nations, which is pushing up bond yields.

“There are still some dark clouds in the air,” European Union Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said today at a press conference in Brussels. “Clearly, turning the European economy back on a strong and sustainable path is now our overriding objective.”

The February drop in the confidence index was the first in 11 months. Economists had projected an increase to 96.4 from a previously reported January reading of 95.7, according to the median of 25 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey.

The euro declined against the dollar and was at $1.3489 as of 1:12 p.m. in London, down 0.4 percent. The yield on the German 10-year bond fell 2 basis points to 3.11 percent.

Cautious Outlook

The German economy, Europe’s largest, may fail to grow in the three months through March before expanding 0.3 percent in the following two quarters, the commission forecast. France may grow 0.4 percent in the first quarter and stall in the second. The U.K., which isn’t part of the euro area, is seen expanding 0.2 percent in both quarters.

The commission sees the euro-area economy expanding 0.7 percent this year after a 4 percent contraction in 2009, unchanged from its previous forecast in November. In the fourth quarter, the economy expanded just 0.1 percent.

Carrefour SA doesn’t “see any change in the European environment for the next six months at least,” Chief Executive Officer Lars Olofsson said on Feb. 19, after Europe’s largest retailer reported a 70 percent drop in full-year profit.

Separate data today showed that loans to households and companies in Europe declined in January from a year earlier after the economic expansion curbed demand for credit. German unemployment increased for a second month in February.

Deficit Woes

Concern about Greece’s ability to finance its deficit and debt has roiled financial markets since the government revealed it had a budget gap of 12 guaranteed approval cash loans.7 percent of GDP last year. That’s more than four times the limit allowed for countries using the euro and the highest in the 27-nation EU.

Standard & Poor’s said late yesterday that it may lower its BBB+ rating on Greece by the end of March and Moody’s Investors Service said today that it may reduce its A2 grade in a few months.

The commission said its deficit forecasts remain “broadly unchanged” from its November assessment, when it projected the region’s average budget gap would widen to 6.9 percent of GDP in 2010. All euro-area nations will breach EU deficit limits this year and next, the commission forecast.

It also said there’s a possibility that the impact of sliding sovereign bonds could be “broader, weighing further on the recovery” by pushing up financing costs.

Euro-Area Inflation

Euro-area inflation may accelerate to 0.8 percent in the current quarter and 1.3 percent in the second quarter, according to the commission. For the full year, the commission sees inflation averaging 1.1 percent, compared with 0.3 percent in 2009. In the confidence report, a gauge of consumers’ price expectations over the next 12 months rose to the highest since March 2009.

The European Central Bank, which aims to keep inflation just below 2 percent, earlier this month kept borrowing costs at a record low of 1 percent. The Frankfurt-based central bank will decide next month on a further “gradual” phasing-out of emergency measures introduced to fight the economic crisis, ECB council member George Provopoulos said.

“It’s premature to talk about a self-sustaining, jobs- creating recovery,” said Martin Van Vliet, an economist at ING Group in Amsterdam. The confidence data “highlight the need for the ECB to tread carefully in unwinding unconventional stimulus and to keep interest rates firmly on hold for the time being.”

Companies across Europe are already seeking ways to expand in faster-growing economies to help boost sales. Paris-based Pernod Ricard SA, the world’s second-largest liquor maker, said on Feb. 18 that sales from China will shortly overtake those in Spain, and emerging markets such as Russia are “starting to turn around.”

“The question is how robust the global cycle will prove to be and how much EU economies will benefit from it,” the commission said. “A rather cautious export outlook is therefore warranted.”

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U.S. venture investment activity in 2009 was as low as its been since 1997, according to a report from the National Venture Capital Association and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

The $17.7 billion invested was down 37 percent from 2008 and the 2,795 deals was down by 30 percent.

There was $6.98 billion invested in Silicon Valley companies, about 40 percent of the U.S. total, down from $10.7 billion in 2008. That is the lowest valley total since the end of the tech bust in 2003 when only $6.4 billion was invested.

The number of deals in the Bay Area dropped to 863 from 1,232 in 2008.

By sector, the report said:

— Biotechnology investing declined in 2009 by 19 percent in both dollars and deals, but was the largest investment sector for the year in terms of dollars with $3.5 billion going into 406 deals.

— The medical device sector fell 27 percent in dollars and 19 percent in deals in 2009, finishing the year as the third largest sector with $2.5 billion going into 309 deals.

— The life sciences sector (biotech and medical devices combined) accounted for 34 percent of all venture capital dollars invested in 2009 compared to 28 percent in 2008 fast cash advance.

— In the software sector, venture capitalists invested $3.1 billion into 619 deals, a 40 percent decline in dollars and a 35 percent decline in deals from 2008. Software was the largest single industry category in terms of deal volume and second largest behind biotechnology in terms of dollars.

— Clean technology investing saw a significant decline in 2009 with $1.9 billion invested in 185 deals. This is a 52 percent decrease in dollars and a 31 percent decline in deal volume from 2008.

— Investing in Internet-specific companies dropped 39 percent to $2.9 billion. There were 629 deals in 2009, down 30 percent.

The industries with the biggest declines were telecommunications (down 67 percent); semiconductors (down 53 percent); and industrial/energy (down 50 percent). The media and entertainment industry decreased 32 percent in terms of dollars and 38 percent in terms of deals with $1.2 billion going into 251 deals in 2009.

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