By Don Miller Associate Editor Money Morning

U.S. retail sales rose unexpectedly in October as vehicle sales rebounded from a deep slump. However, non-auto sales rose less than forecast, suggesting consumers remain cautious as unemployment surges amid a “jobless recovery.”

Sales at the nation’s retail outlets increased 1.4%, the Commerce Department said today (Monday), much better than the 0.9% increase projected by the median estimate of 66 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. But September sales were revised downwards to a 2.3% decrease from the previous estimate of a 1.5% decline.

Aside from automobiles, other sales rose just 0.2%. That increase marked the third month in a row that sales rose, but failed to meet the 0.4% climb economists had predicted.

Sign up below…and we’ll send you a new investment report for free:

...

Siemens AG (SI) has targeted orders worth more than 6 billion Euros for intelligent power networks (Smart Grids) over the next five fiscal years. The company is already a leading international supplier of Smart Grids and continues to strengthen this position.

Intelligent power grids, or smart grids, are based on the conventional power grids which transport electricity from large power plants to individual households. However, digital technology allows individual households or businesses to manage their electricity more efficiently, allowing them to receive, or deliver back to the grid, electricity from other sources like wind or solar power facilities, or even from batteries in electric cars.

According to studies, more than a billion tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions could be abated with intelligent power networks by 2020. Smart Grids are essential for integrating renewable power sources into power networks and for ensuring stable power supplies from solar and

...

AK Steel Holding Corporation (AKS) announced its second-quarter 2009 results on Jul 21.

Net losses were 43 cents per share, which was narrower than our expectations for a loss of 53 cents. However, the company had reported a profit of $1.29 in the year-ago period. Operating loss of $72.5 million in the quarter was marginally lower than the estimated loss of $75 million to $80 million.

Net sales for the quarter plunged 64% to $793.6 million on shipments of 740,600 tons, higher than the expected shipments of 725,000 tons in the quarter. But on a year-over-year basis, shipments were down about 57% from 1,737,800 tons. The average selling price for the second quarter was $1,072 per ton, a 17% decrease over the second quarter of 2008. AKS had expected the selling price to decline 3%-4% per ton.

AK Steel provided its guidance for the third quarter of 2009. Shipments are expected

...

[Editor's Note: Fifteen trades. All profitable. Since launching his Geiger Indextrading service late last year, Money Morning Investment Director Keith Fitz-Gerald is a perfect 15 for 15, meaning he's closed every single one of his trades at a profit. And he did this during one of the most volatile periods for the U.S. stock market since the Great Depression. Fitz-Gerald says the ongoing financial crisis has changed the investing game forever, and has created a completely new set of rules that investors must understand to survive and profit in this new era. Check out our latest insights on these new rules, this new market environment, and this new service, the Geiger Index.]

Individual investors who still hold any doubts about Mainland China’s future growth potential should take a long hard look at Airbus SAS, the Pan-European commercial airliner maker that is now building airplanes …

If you like the car, will you love the company?

When it comes to Ford Motor Co. (F), a Canadian car dealer bet a month’s sales on that premise.

Rose City Ford dealership owner John Chisholm offered 100 shares of Ford stock to anyone who bought a new or used vehicle from the dealership during the month of November, the Windsor Star newspaper reported. Chisholm, the president and general manager of Rose City, said he got the idea from a General Motors Co. (GM) dealership in Texas that offered GM shares for each vehicle sold. So Chisholm opted to try it in Windsor, the Ontario, Canada city where Ford has both a long history and deep community roots.

“What a great way to show our confidence in the company,” Chisholm, who employs 80 at a

...

[“Hot Stocks” is a new Money Morning feature that analyzes the investment outlook of global companies that are in the news. This is the eighth installment of this ongoing investment series.] Money Morning Staff Reports If you like the car, will you love the company? When it comes to Ford Motor Co. (F), a Canadian car dealer bet a month’s sales on that premise. Rose City Ford dealership owner John Chisholm offered 100 shares of Ford stock to anyone who bought a new or used vehicle from the dealership during the month of November, the Windsor Star newspaper reported. Chisholm, the president and general manager of Rose City, said he got the idea from a General Motors Co. (GM) dealership in Texas that offered GM shares for ...