Finance news

• Lungu narrowly wins Zambia presidential vote, opposition cries foul

  24-01-2015 22:23 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Chris Mfula LUSAKA (Reuters) - Zambia's ruling party candidate Edgar Lungu secured a narrow victory in this week's presidential poll, results showed on Saturday, defeating his closest rival who said the election had been "stolen". The ballot was triggered by the death last October of the President Michael Sata. With another election scheduled for late next year when Sata's term had been due to end, Lungu will have little time to turn around a stuttering economy in one
  
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• BA-owner returns with 1.3 billion euro offer for Aer Lingus: reports

  24-01-2015 21:58
  
  LONDON (Reuters) - The owner of British Airways has made a third takeover approach to Aer Lingus , offering to pay 2.50 euros per share, or around 1.3 billion euros in total for the Irish airline,...
  
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• Pakistan slashes interest rates to 10 year low

  24-01-2015 21:41 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Pakistan's central bank Saturday slashed the basic interest rates by one percent to a 10-year low on the back of improving economic indicators at home. Addressing a press conference in the country's financial capital Karachi, the governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Ashraf Mehmood Wathra said the discount rate was being lowered by one percent to 8.5 percent. The central bank also revised its inflation rates projection for the current fiscal year from 4.5 to 5.5 percent, compare
  
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• Unlikely buddies Obama and Modi aim high on India trip

  24-01-2015 20:13 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Frank Jack Daniel NEW DELHI (Reuters) - In a fresh bid to make India an enduring strategic partner, U.S. President Barack Obama lands in New Delhi on Sunday for a highly symbolic parade and to nurture friendship with a prime minister who until last year was persona non grata in Washington. Obama will be the first U.S. president to attend India's Republic Day parade, a show of military might long associated with the anti-Americanism of the Cold War, and will host a radio show with Prime M
  
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• Factbox: Obama and Modi aim high with India summit

  24-01-2015 20:10 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama arrives in India on Sunday for the second time, to build on what he calls one of the defining relationships of the 21st Century. Following are some key areas likely to be discussed during his visit: STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE India's size, location, fast-growing economy and potential as a democratic counterbalance to China makes the South Asian nation an increasingly important element of U.S. military and commercial strategy. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's asser
  
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• Bank of Japan's Kuroda praises 'big decision' by ECB

  24-01-2015 19:58 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda on Saturday urged a Davos panel not to succumb to pessimism over the state of the world economy, as he welcomed the "big decision" by the ECB to embark on a huge bond-buying spree. Kuroda was addressing the closing event at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the four-day gathering that brings together 2,500 of the world's most influential executives and leaders. "Some of the pessimism prevailing in Davos this year is a bit exaggerated,&q
  
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• Tributes to Saudi King spark rights criticism in Britain

  24-01-2015 18:15 via news.yahoo.com
  
  As world leaders flew to Saudi Arabia to mark the death of King Abdullah, several prominent British politicians criticized the deference shown to the leader of a country accused of having a poor human rights record. Human rights campaigners and politicians from different parties questioned why the Union flag had been flown at half mast on public buildings including Westminster Abbey, for the leader of a country which still has the death penalty. Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, who di
  
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• After wave of QE, onus shifts to leaders to boost economy

  24-01-2015 17:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Noah Barkin and Paul Taylor DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Central banks have done their best to rescue the world economy by printing money and politicians must now act fast to enact structural reforms and pro-investment policies to boost growth, central bankers said on Saturday. Two days after the European Central Bank launched a bold bond-buying drive to revive inflation in the euro zone, a top ECB official warned that Europe's common currency project could come unstuck if the bloc lim
  
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• DAVOS WATCH: ECB stimulus in focus, WTO deal hopes raised

  24-01-2015 17:01 via news.yahoo.com
  
  DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — The World Economic Forum held in the Swiss ski resort of Davos has the official goal of "improving the state of the world." In practice, it's a massive networking event that brings together 2,500 heads of state, business leaders, philanthropists and artists.
  
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• UPDATE 1-After wave of QE, onus shifts to leaders to boost economy

  24-01-2015 16:46
  * Coeure says low growth threatens Europe's political foundations
  
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• Global economy hopes raised after European stimulus

  24-01-2015 16:36 via news.yahoo.com
  
  DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — The global economic outlook just got brighter after this week's big stimulus from the European Central Bank, leading policymakers from around the world said Saturday.
  
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• West African franc zone plans $5 bln debt issuance in 2015

  24-01-2015 15:32 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The eight nations of the West African franc zone plans to issue some 2,865 billion CFA Francs ($5 billion) in debt in 2015, down 22.4 percent compared with issuance in the previous year, the region's debt planning agency said on Saturday. Ivory Coast, the region's largest economy, was due to issue the most debt: 1,046 billion CFA in total. The amount includes 500 billion CFA in Eurobonds, and a first-time 200 billion CFA franc Sukuk Bond, UMOA-Titres said in the statement. The Economic and Monet
  
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• BOJ's Kuroda sees Japan growth of 2 pct in fiscal 2015

  24-01-2015 14:59
  DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 24 (Reuters) - The Japanese economy will grow by around 2 percent in fiscal 2015, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Saturday at a panel discussion at the World...
  
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• Political foundation of euro project has been weakened - ECB's Coeure

  24-01-2015 14:47
  DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Weak growth and high unemployment are weakening Europe's single currency project and it is up to politicians to act following the decision by the ECB this week...
  
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• ASEAN to declare single market but delays deeper integration: Malaysia

  24-01-2015 14:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  ASEAN will officially call itself a single market by year's end, but "big things" like seamless travel within the 10-nation bloc would only come in 2020, Malaysia's trade minister told AFP in an interview. "We're going to declare ourselves as an ASEAN Economic Community," said Mustapa Mohamed, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the Southeast Asian bloc this year. "We don't have complete integration or harmonisation yet, 2015 is laying the
  
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• Italy cheers ECB bond buying plan, sees big boost to economy

  24-01-2015 14:26
  ROME, Jan 24 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank's bond buying programme will give a decisive boost to Italy's stagnant economy, business lobby Confindustria said on Saturday, while the Bank of...
  
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• UPDATE 1-Falling oil prices prompt Pakistan central bank to cut rates

  24-01-2015 14:18
  ISLAMABAD, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Pakistan's central bank cut its key discount rate to 8.5 percent from 9.5 percent on Saturday, in line with analyst expectations and citing lower inflationary pressure...
  
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• Venezuela's currency woes an increasing threat to U.S. corporate profits

  24-01-2015 14:02 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Tim McLaughlin and Svea Herbst-Bayliss (Reuters) - Venezuela's deepening economic troubles, and in particular the weakness of the bolivar and restrictive currency controls, have hurt U.S. corporate profits for the fourth quarter of 2014 and are set to inflict further pain this year.    In a likely sign of things to come from a number of companies this results reporting season, Ford Motor Co on Friday said it was taking a pre-tax charge of $800 million for its Venezuela business. Ford
  
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• Gates sees "miracle" tools for AIDS by 2030 in vaccine and drugs

  24-01-2015 12:48 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Two new tools to fight AIDS should be available by 2030 in the form of a vaccine and new intense drug treatments, ending most cases of a disease that has killed millions in the past 30 years, Bill Gates said. The Microsoft founder, whose philanthropic foundation has poured millions of dollars into medical research, told the World Economic Forum in Davos the "two miracles" were within reach in the coming years. A vaccine is seen as pivotal in preventing new infections among susceptible
  
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• Goldman president urges Britain to stay in the EU

  24-01-2015 11:01
  LONDON, Jan 24 (Reuters) - The president of Goldman Sachs has urged Britain to stay within the European Union, warning, ahead of a May general election, that an exit would put the capital's status as...
  
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• Views of the ECB stimulus from those who must make it work

  24-01-2015 10:27 via news.yahoo.com
  
  LISBON, Portugal (AP) — The fate of the European Central Bank's aggressive plan to stimulate the economy out of stagnation lies with the 340 million people in the 19-country euro alliance.
  
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• Madagascar needs reforms to hit 5 percent growth: IMF

  24-01-2015 10:08 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Lovasoa Rabary ANTANANARIVO (Reuters) - Madagascar will not achieve the 5 percent growth the International Monetary Fund has projected for it this year unless it introduces reforms to boost tax revenue and improve the business climate, an IMF official told Reuters. Without reforms, growth would be lower, its representative in Madagascar, Patrick Imam, told Reuters. "We are waiting for courageous decisions from this government." Madagascar's economy was battered after a 2009 cou
  
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• Obama to cut short India visit, fly to Saudi: sources

  24-01-2015 09:24
  
  NEW DELHI (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama will cut short his visit to India on Tuesday to visit Saudi Arabia, following the death of King Abdullah, sources in the Indian capital familiar with...
  
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• UPDATE 2-Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer Ernie Banks dead at 83

  24-01-2015 08:38
  CHICAGO, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer Ernie Banks, the pioneering and famously affable slugger hailed by the team for which he played 19 seasons as "the greatest Cub in franchise...
  
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• Rupee closes 27 paise stronger at 61.44 per dollar

  24-01-2015 08:37 via news.yahoo.com
  
   The Indian rupee on Friday strengthened against the US dollar after the European Central Bank (ECB) announced larger-than-expected measures to stimulate the region's sagging economy. The local currency largely mirrored the stock market, while strength in other Asian currencies boosted the sentiment. Most of the Asian currencies ended higher against the dollar. The Taiwan dollar was up 0.46%, Indonesian rupiah 0.23% higher, Japanese yen was up 0.14%, Philippines peso rose 0.11%, South Korean wo
  
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• Potential 2016 Republican presidential candidates gather in Iowa

  24-01-2015 07:03
  DES MOINES (Reuters) - For Republicans, the long road to the 2016 presidential election begins in earnest on Saturday in Iowa when a group of potential candidates compete for support among...
  
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• Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer Ernie Banks dead at 83

  24-01-2015 06:21
  CHICAGO, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Chicago Cubs baseball Hall of Famer Ernie Banks, hailed by the team for which he played 19 seasons as "the greatest Cub in franchise history," has died at age 83, the club...
  
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• Exclusive: Some counter-terrorism efforts in Yemen frozen for now - U.S. officials

  24-01-2015 06:09
  
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has halted some counter-terrorism operations against al Qaeda militants in Yemen following a takeover of the country by Iran-backed Houthi rebels, U.S....
  
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• Mexico agency issues recommendations to insure fair train tender

  24-01-2015 04:54
  MEXICO CITY, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Mexico's antitrust watchdog on Friday said the government should change various aspects of a new tender to build a high-speed train system following a political...
  
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• Wall St Week Ahead - Eyes on Fed after ECB, other bank stimulus moves

  24-01-2015 03:23 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Caroline Valetkevitch NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve could be key for Wall Street next week as investors get to hear from the U.S. central bank for the first time since a series of moves by its global peers, including the European Central Bank's massive stimulus plan. Thursday's larger-than-expected stimulus package from the ECB lifted U.S. stocks, helping indexes post gains for the week after three straight weeks of losses.
  
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• UPDATE 2-U.S. seeks reversal of landmark insider trading ruling

  24-01-2015 03:21
  NEW YORK, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Federal prosecutors in New York on Friday asked a U.S. appeals court to reconsider a landmark ruling that curtailed their ability to pursue insider trading cases and...
  
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• Exclusive: Big mortgage investors take first step toward suing Ocwen

  24-01-2015 02:05
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Major mortgage bond investors including BlackRock , MetLife and Pimco on Friday took a first step toward suing Ocwen Financial Corp , accusing it of having failed to properly...
  
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• UPDATE 3-Doctors group urges measles shots as Disneyland outbreak spreads

  24-01-2015 02:02
  LOS ANGELES, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The leading U.S. pediatrician group on Friday urged parents, schools and communities to vaccinate children against measles in the face of an outbreak that began at...
  
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• Exclusive: USDA Secretary orders update of animal welfare research strategy

  24-01-2015 01:54
  
  CHICAGO (Reuters) - U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has directed agency staff to create and deliver an updated Animal Welfare Strategy plan within 60 days, according to an...
  
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• American Airlines sued by mechanics union organizers

  24-01-2015 01:53
  Jan 23 (Reuters) - Union organizers sued American Airlines on Thursday, alleging that maintenance directors pressured workers to skimp on federal safety procedures and threatened discipline if they...
  
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• Davos: Closing gender gap 'good for business', says Lloyd's boss

  24-01-2015 01:52 via news.yahoo.com
  
  As the first female head in the 325-year history of the Lloyd's of London insurance market, Inga Beale is something of a shining light at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where gender equality is a key theme this year. The London insurance market is "completely out of kilter" even with the male-dominated world of the top corporate boardroom in London, she said, with around four percent of executives being women -- to its own detriment, according to Beale.
  
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• Critic re-elected to U.S. futures-industry regulator's board

  24-01-2015 01:44
  CHICAGO, Jan 23 (Reuters) - A critic of the U.S. National Futures Association won re-election to its board, the industry regulator said on Friday, setting the stage for more tension over its...
  
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• UPDATE 1-U.S. FDA approves NPS drug, in move validating Shire takeover deal

  24-01-2015 01:39
  Jan 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved NPS Pharmaceuticals Inc's drug Natpara to treat a rare hormone disorder, validating a bet by Shire Plc , which recently agreed to...
  
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• California reports 68 measles cases in state since Disney outbreak

  24-01-2015 01:14
  LOS ANGELES, Jan 23 (Reuters) - State health officials on Friday reported 68 confirmed measles cases in California, most of them linked to an outbreak at Disneyland that began in December.
  
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• DIARY-Emerging Markets Economic Events to Feb 10

  24-01-2015 01:01
  ** This Diary is filed daily *** -------------------------------------------------------------
  
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• DIARY- Top Economic Events to Feb 10

  24-01-2015 01:00
  ** This Diary is filed daily ** ----------------------------------------------------------- TOP ECONOMIC EVENTS
  
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• FDA approves NPS drug, in move validating Shire takeover deal

  24-01-2015 01:00
  Jan 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved NPS Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s drug Natpara to treat a rare hormone disorder, validating a bet by Shire Plc , which recently agreed...
  
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• Supreme Court to review Oklahoma execution procedure

  24-01-2015 00:57
  
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to review Oklahoma's controversial method of execution by lethal injection, taking up a case brought by three death row inmates who accuse...
  
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• Senior U.S. diplomat ruffles Cuba by meeting dissidents

  24-01-2015 00:57
  
  HAVANA (Reuters) - A senior U.S. diplomat in Cuba for negotiations on restoring long-frozen diplomatic relations met a group of dissidents on Friday, seeking to underline Washington's concern over...
  
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• U.S. futures regulator raises minimum security deposits for more currencies

  24-01-2015 00:56
  CHICAGO, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. National Futures Association on Monday will increase the minimum security deposit requirements for five more foreign exchange transactions due to volatility in...
  
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• Diaper wars: Kimberly to take on P&G through innovation, higher ad spend

  24-01-2015 00:41
  Jan 23 (Reuters) - Kimberly-Clark Corp is set to increase advertising and promotional spending for its diapers and launch new products in an escalating war with bigger rival Procter and Gamble Co in...
  
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• U.S. to seek reversal of landmark insider trading ruling

  24-01-2015 00:32
  NEW YORK, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Federal prosecutors in New York plan on Friday to ask a U.S. appeals court to reconsider a landmark ruling that curtailed their ability to pursue insider trading cases...
  
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• New Saudi king seeks to reassure on succession and policy

  24-01-2015 00:28
  
  RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's new King Salman pledged continuity in energy and foreign policies on Friday and moved quickly to appoint younger men as his heirs, settling the succession for years...
  
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• Pennsylvania tops next week's U.S. municipal bond sales

  24-01-2015 00:24
  Jan 23 (Reuters) - A $1 billion general obligation deal from Pennsylvania tops next week's $6.7 billion calendar of U.S. municipal bond and note sales, a total that is down slightly from roughly $8...
  
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• Online data storage provider Box's shares soar in debut

  24-01-2015 00:20
  
  (Reuters) - Shares of online data storage provider Box Inc rose as much as 77 percent in their market debut as investors bet on the company's ability to turn profitable in a highly competitive...
  
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