On the first day of the final quarter of 2015 stocks are higher again this morning. Wall Street closed out a negative September with the S&P 500, and Nasdaq both down about 7% for the third quarter. The fourth quarter has traditionally been positive for the market. Stock indices have rallied in four of the past five Octobers. (CNBC)
 
Layoffs by U.S.-based companies surged in September to 58,877 jobs, up 43% from August. The layoff count in the third quarter was 205,759, making it the worst quarter for job cuts in six years. Hewlett-Packard accounted for a big part of the reductions cutting 32,500 jobs. Energy remained the biggest job-cutting sector for the year, with 72,708 cuts announced since January. (Challenger, Gray & Christmas)
 
Wal-Mart will cut hundreds of jobs at its Arkansas headquarters in an effort to cut costs. The cuts make up a small portion of the more than 18,000 people employed there. (Reuters)
 
Spice maker McCormick reported fiscal third-quarter profit of $97.6 million. The results fell short of Wall Street expectations. The company posted revenue of $1.06 billion in the period. McCormick shares have climbed 11% this year. (AP)