TOP STORIES 
 
U.S. STOCKS END LOWER 

U.S. stocks fell, ending the recent winning streak at four sessions, as some of the post-ECB euphoria faded and worries about Greek elections over the weekend set in. The DJIA shed 141 points to 17672.

 
SEASONAL EXPENSES DENT UPS RESULTS 
 

UPS said higher-than-expected seasonal expenses dragged down its earnings in the fourth quarter as the shipping giant took steps to avoid a repeat of the holiday shipping snafus that plagued its network in 2013.

 
GE TO FEEL OIL DROP'S RIPPLE EFFECT 
 

General Electric's oil and gas business managed to blunt the hit from plunging prices of crude but the company is braced for deepening trouble in the year ahead.

 
MIDDLE EAST LEADERS MOURN DEATH OF SAUDI KING 
 

Middle East leaders offered their condolences to Saudi Arabia's ruling family on the death of Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al Saud, praising the late king as a "wise leader" who dedicated his life to his country.

 
FXCM TO CONSIDER SALE OF NONCORE ASSETS 
 

Foreign-exchange broker FXCM is said to be planning to consider sales of noncore assets to help pay off portions of a $300 million rescue loan it received after trading losses nearly sank the firm.

 
MORGAN STANLEY'S GORMAN GETS $4.5M STOCK BONUS 
 

Morgan Stanley awarded its chairman and chief executive, James Gorman, restricted shares valued at $4.5 million for his performance this past year.

 
U.S. EXISTING-HOME SALES REBOUND A BIT IN DECEMBER 
 

Sales of previously owned homes rebounded somewhat in December. Existing-home sales rose 2.4% from November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.04 million. Economists expected sales would rise to a level of 5.08 million.

 
MCDONALD'S REPORTS DISAPPOINTING RESULTS 
 

McDonald's posted a worse-than-expected 21% drop in 4Q earnings. It reported a profit of $1.1 billion, or $1.13 a share, on revenue of $6.57 billion, and unveiled its lowest capital budget in more than 5 years.

 
U.S. OIL PRICES SLIDE TO SIX-YEAR LOW 
 

U.S. oil prices declined to a new six-year low as investors bet that a change in Saudi Arabia's leadership was unlikely to alter the kingdom's policy of continuing to pump crude despite falling prices.

 
BOX SHARES SURGE IN MARKET DEBUT 
 

Shares of Box rose 66% in their market debut on the belief that the company can grow beyond the commodity business of online storage and into a more lucrative suite of tools tailored for industries such as health care and retail.

 
GAP ABANDONS ITS ONLINE BRAND PIPERLIME 
 

Gap Inc. is closing Piperlime, abandoning an online brand it launched to fend off hipper new Internet-based rivals. The decision to scrap the brand comes as the company is struggling to right its namesake Gap brand, which has posted weak sales.

 
 
 
 
  ======= DOW JONES NEWSWIRES ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARIES ======= 
 
 
Analysis 
AS EURO SLIDES, STRATEGISTS CUT FORECASTS 
 

A day after the European Central Bank unveiled its bond-buying program, the single currency was still in free fall, blowing past analysts' expectations for how low the euro can go.

 
The Wall Street Journal 
GREECE'S SAMARAS TRIES TO WOO VOTERS AHEAD OF POLLS 
 

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras warned that promises made by the main opposition party Syriza to end austerity imposed by international creditors could result in the country crashing out of the eurozone.