Analysts are concerned about the real health of the economy the past half and whether or not it can usher another boost for the next half.

Stocks rallied in the later part of 2009 and into the first months of 2010 but got into a slump after issues like the European debt crisis spelled weaker economic health in general.

Financial data from the first half weren’t too good either. Home sales declined. First-quarter GDP had to be revised, and jobs are still an issue despite the boost from the census jobs.

As for the week ahead, a critical report will be the June jobs report to be relased on Friday. Bad jobs data would contribute to the possibility of a “double-dip” recession which will inevitable affect the market.

Source: CNN Money

The bank is the first of the Big Four banks to report their first-quarter results. The bank earned 63 cents a share thanks to investment banking and trading activities. The unit was responsible for $2.5 billion of the take.

Problems still hounded the bank’s other units, particularly loans and housing. However, numbers revealed that delinquencies on mortgage, auto and student loans dropped in the first quarter.

“There is a clear and broad-based improvement in economic factors in the U.S. and around the world,” said JPMorgan’s chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon.

But what’s this news about them selling their stock? BBC reports that both Page and Brin will be selling 10 million of their shares at today’s prices. The figure amounts to $5.5 billion.

The sale would mean that the co-founders will no longer have majority control of the company as their voting rights will drop from 59% majority to just 48%.

While some people would probably be raising eyebrows because of this move, Google claims that the two are still very much committed with Google.

Still, factoring in CEO Eric Schmidt’s 10% voting power, the three still has things pretty much under control.

Stocks have been good to investors during the latter half of the year. You can always try to earn back your losses but the smart investor would also try exploring the industries that do offer growth.

BusinessWeek offers some projections on which industries you can bank on for 2010. Analyst favor the tobacco industry and the Internet and catalog retail industry.

Also on the must-watch industries are health and tech but the health care reform bill is a key factor whether stocks would soar or drop.

As for the not-so-popular industries according to analysts – leisure equipment and products.

The Dow Jones rose 30 points or 0.3% to close at 10,501.05. The Standard&Poor 500 index closed gaining 8 points or 0.7% at 1,114.11. Tech-heavy Nasdaq ended its run up 22 points or 1% at 2,212.10.

The jump was triggered by Citigroup’s announcement that it will be paying back the bailout money.

The weak dollar also helped buoy shares and stocks of companies that do a lot of business overseas. Exchange rates factor in stocks of such companies.

Source: CNN