Russell falls as Dow rises

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The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) is down while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) is holding on to a slim gain on good news from the U.S. mortgage sector.

At 10:18 a.m. ET the small-cap index had lost 5.93 points, or 0.74%, to 792.63. The Dow was up 11.38 points, or 0.09%, to 13,247.51.

Stocks opened in positive territory following news that Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) has bought a $2 billion stake in troubled mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp. (NYSE: CFC). The deal, which was announced after Wednesday’s close and has since been approved by regulators, is a welcome reprieve for Countrywide, the largest U.S. mortgage lender.

Over the past couple of weeks the Calabasas, Ca.-based company has struggled to find the funds necessary to stay afloat and has had to deal with rising delinquencies. The deal is likely to persuade investors that the lender has solid backing that it can rely on to survive the subprime meltdown.

A number of lenders nationwide have gone bankrupt in the wake of the slump in the U.S. housing sector and the subprime mortgage mess, and at least 38,000 workers have lost their jobs at mortgage lending institutions, according to the Associated Press.

Elsewhere, the U.S. Labor Department reported that unemployment claims for the week ended August 18 fell by 2,000 to 322,000, inline with economists’ expectations and a sign that the labor market remains healthy.

However, the less volatile four-week average increased 4,750 to 317,750 from 313,000.

The following are the most actively traded companies with market capitalizations under $500 million: