Report: Forecasts warn of low earnings

This week, the markets will monitor the amount of companies that release earnings warnings. According to First Call/Thomson Financial, more than two-thirds of companies that have put out first-quarter forecasts have warned of lower than expected earnings.\nInvestors will also look at the revised productivity report for the fourth quarter, scheduled for release Tuesday. Economists predict productivity grew at 2 percent in the fourth quarter, down from 2.4 percent in the previous quarter. \nThe February employment is scheduled to be released Friday morning. Although a number of companies have been slashing their workforces, unemployment is expected to remain at 4.2 percent.\nLast Week\nFriday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 16.17 to close at 10,466.31. \nThe Nasdaq Composite Index ended the trading session down 65.67 to finish the week at 2,117.18. The Nasdaq lost more than 8 percent for the week and is down to its lowest level since mid December 1998.\nStock News\nDow component SBC Communications issued a first-quarter profit warning Friday. The company said it would fall short of expectations because of high costs associated with upgrading its Ameritech unit and offering Internet and long-distance services. SBC now expects earnings of 50 cents to 53 cents a share. Wall Street was looking for the company to earn 59 cents a share, according to First Call/Thomson Financial.\nThursday, technology giant Oracle announced it would not meet earnings forecasts. The software company said it would earn 10 cents per share for its fiscal third quarter. Oracle, expected to report its earnings March 15, was forecast to earn 12 cents per share, according to First Call/Thomson Financial.\nThe Gap reported earnings of 31 cents a share Thursday, beating predictions by a penny. The company said first-quarter sales continue to look dismal. The Gap now expects earnings of 10 cents to 15 cents a share for the quarter. Analysts had expected the retailer to post earnings of 20 cents a share, according to First Call/Thomson Financial.\nFinal Note\nThe Nasdaq Composite Index has been under pressure for months and has wiped out all gains from 1999. Just one year ago, the index was near a record high above 5000. The S&P 500 index has now fallen 20 percent from its highs -- a percentage drop considered by many analysts on Wall Street to be the sign of a bear market. \n"The technology sector is dragging everything else down," Jeff deGraas, chief technical analyst at Lehman Brothers told MSNBC. "You have had an investment bubble and a misallocation of capital. As the bubble deflates people are pulling back on their risky investments and it's going to take a while to work through the system"