ENERGY, METALS, CURRENCIES

Oil prices steadily hovered round $62 a barrel. Light sweet crude for November delivery rose 34 cents to trade at $61.70 a barrel on the Nymex. London Brent gained 35 cents to $58.72.

Gold prices further climbed in European trading. In London the precious metal closed at $475 per troy ounce, up from $471.40. In Hong Kong gold rose $6.40 to close at $472.55. Silver traded at $7.67, up from $7.51.

In European trading the U.S. dollar traded higher against all major currencies The euro was quoted at $1.2121, down from $1.2154.The dollar changed hands at 113.76 yen, up from 113.36. The British pound was trading at $1.7610, down from $1.7719.

EARNINGS NEWS

GenCorp Inc. (OXM: chart), automotive, aerospace fine chemicals and real estate company, posted a Q3 net loss of 53 cents a share, down from the loss of $1.05 a share in the year-ago period. The company's Q3 loss from continuing operations went down to 8 cents a share vs. 33 cents last year. Sales from continuing operations soared to $134 million, up vs. $116 million in Q3 year-ago.

GenCorp Inc. (GY: chart), automotive, aerospace fine chemicals and real estate company, posted a Q3 net loss of 53 cents a share, down from the loss of $1.05 a share in the year-ago period. The company's Q3 loss from continuing operations went down to 8 cents a share vs. 33 cents last year. Sales from continuing operations soared to $134 million, up vs. $116 million in Q3 year-ago.

Lone Star Steakhouse & Saloon (STAR: chart), restaurant chain, posted Q3 net earnings of 2 cents a share, vs. 17 cents a share in the same period last year on a flat revenue compared with the year-ago period.

Accenture Ltd (ACN: chart), provider of management consulting and technology, posted Q4 net earnings of 38 cents a share, vs. 30 cents a share in the same period last year on revenue growth, beating analysts’ expectations of 36 cents a share. The company also reported revenue including reimbursements of $4.31 billion vs. $3.81 billion. Accenture announced that it expects first-quarter net earnings of between 32 cents and 34 cents a share. The company also forecast fiscal 2006 earnings of $1.45 to $1.50 on revenue growth of 9% to 12%.

Burlington Coat Factory Warehouse Corp. (BCF: chart), retailer, reported a Q1 net loss of 36 cents a share, vs. 42 cents a share in the same period last year on revenue growth, missing analyst estimate of 30 cents a share.

Net2Phone (NTOP: chart), provider of Internet protocol communications services, posted a Q4 net loss of 13 cents a share, down vs. a net loss of 8 cents a share in the same period last year on slight revenue decline, missing analysts forecast by a penny.