HP reports strong earnings

Stocks rebounded late to finish in the positive Tuesday. Hewlett Packard released a strong earnings report this morning to get the market rolling but the continued worry about the credit crunch brought it back down around noon. Freddie Mac posted a $2 billion third-quarter loss and said the fair value of its net assets had dropped $8.1 billion. The news came 11 days after larger rival Fannie Mae posted its own $1.4 billion loss. Crude-oil futures jumped more than $3 a barrel, closed above $98, and seem ready to make another run at $100 a barrel. DJIA +51.70 Nasdaq +3.43 S&P 500 +6.43