Finance news

• European, US stocks fall as ECB stimulus disappoints

  03-12-2015 23:53 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Europe's stock markets nosedived, US stocks fell and the euro jumped Thursday after the European Central Bank's stimulus plan disappointed investors.
  
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• S&P posts biggest drop since September as ECB disappoints

  03-12-2015 22:55 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The ECB move triggered a spike in the euro that caught investors by surprise, forcing them to shift positions that hit most asset classes. The ECB cut its deposit rate deeper into negative territory and extended its asset buys by six months, as expected. All 10 S&P 500 sectors fell in a second day of sharp losses for U.S. stocks.
  
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• TSX down 1 percent, investors sell banks after earnings

  03-12-2015 22:48 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Alastair Sharp TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell more than 1 percent for a second straight day on Thursday, as some of its biggest banks retreated despite reporting profit growth and railway and pipeline stocks also weakened. The broad move lower was in line with losses in U.S. and European equity markets as investors expressed disappointment over the European Central Bank's latest policy easing measures. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index ended the day
  
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• Moody's says Brexit would hurt UK economy, benefits unclear

  03-12-2015 22:44 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By William Schomberg LONDON (Reuters) - Ratings agency Moody's said on Thursday that a British exit from the European Union would hurt the country's economy by damaging trade and investment and could put its credit rating at risk of a downgrade. Moody's, spelling out its thinking about a so-called Brexit in more detail than before, said Britain would face a long period of uncertainty if it had to negotiate a trade deal with its former EU partners following a vote to leave the bloc. Prime Ministe
  
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• JPMorgan defeats London Whale shareholder lawsuit in U.S.

  03-12-2015 22:32
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - A federal appeals court said JPMorgan Chase & Co Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon and other bank officials need not face a shareholder lawsuit claiming they did a bad job...
  
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• Pain but no gain: Indonesia's corruption crackdown

  03-12-2015 22:31 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Randy Fabi and Kanupriya Kapoor JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesian bureaucrats are holding off spending billions of dollars on everything from schools and clinics to garbage trucks and parking meters, fearful that any major expenditure could come under the scanner of fervent anti-corruption fighters. The paralysis is so bad that President Joko Widodo, desperate to pull Southeast Asia's largest economy out of a slump, is considering a decree that would shield civil servants from graft busters unti
  
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• Coldplay to withhold new album from Spotify - WSJ

  03-12-2015 22:15 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - British rock band Coldplay will not immediately release its new album on Spotify since the streaming service requires all of its music to be available to its free users, the Wall Street Journal said on Thursday. The album, 'A Head Full of Dreams', is expected to be available on streaming services that don't offer a free option such as Apple Inc's Apple Music, the newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The band will headline the halftime show at the National Footb
  
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• Investors wary of Canada banks' outlook even after profits beat

  03-12-2015 21:53 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By John Tilak TORONTO (Reuters) - Investors are overlooking forecast-topping profits reported by Canadian banks this week and choosing instead to focus on the lenders' ability to grow in a weak economy that is feeling the heat of depressed oil prices. Canadian banks are also trying to counter slow domestic growth by expanding to new markets, potentially adding risk. Investors are also worrying about lackluster loan growth, pressure on net interest margins and a challenging housing market.
  
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• Activist investor renews call for Yahoo to sell core business

  03-12-2015 21:32 via news.yahoo.com
  
  SAN FRANCISCO/BENGALURU (Reuters) - An activist investor on Thursday renewed its push for Yahoo Inc to abandon its plans to spin off its valuable stake in Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd  and instead sell its core business "at the highest price possible." The pressure from Starboard Value LP came as Yahoo's board, in a three-day meeting that started on Wednesday, was reportedly weighing a number of options for the troubled company. Alibaba, seen by some as a pot
  
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• Wall St. down more than 1 percent after ECB action, Yellen remarks

  03-12-2015 21:14 via news.yahoo.com
  
  European shares fell following the ECB's decision to extend its asset purchase program until March 2017 but not to increase its size. The ECB move came a day after Fed Chair Yellen expressed confidence in the U.S. economy and said she was "looking forward" to a rate hike that will be seen as a testament to the economy's recovery from recession. The Fed's next policy meeting is on Dec. 15-16.
  
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• Swiss EFG Bank to pay $29 million in Justice Department program deal

  03-12-2015 21:14
  (Reuters) - EFG Bank European Financial Group SA and its private banking unit will pay more than $29 million to the U.S. Justice Department to avoid possible prosecution for helping Americans to...
  
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• ECB stimulus falls short of hype, causing market plunge

  03-12-2015 21:05 via news.yahoo.com
  
  FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The European Central Bank has unveiled another stimulus injection for the sluggish eurozone economy, but the measures fell far short of what investors had expected and stock markets took a painful tumble.
  
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• Canadian province Manitoba to cut emissions, set carbon cap

  03-12-2015 20:57 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Manitoba pledged on Thursday to cut greenhouse gas emissions and start a carbon cap and trade system, the latest Canadian province to set long-term targets to fight climate change. Premier Greg Selinger's New Democratic Party government, which faces an election in April, said Manitoba will aim to cut emissions by one-third by 2030 from 2005 levels. The province, whose economy depends on farming, manufacturing and mining, will seek to be carbon-neutral by 2080, Seli
  
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• TRLPC: Golub Capital sees opportunity in choppy markets

  03-12-2015 20:43
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Credit asset manager Golub Capital is looking to take advantage of volatility in the leveraged loan market to expand its business into larger deals such as healthcare analytics...
  
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• EU's Tusk says deal to keep Britain in could come in February

  03-12-2015 20:14 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Gabriela Baczynska and Kylie MacLellan BRUSSELS/LONDON (Reuters) - European Union leaders could clinch a deal with British Prime Minister David Cameron in February to prevent the bloc's second largest economy leaving, European Council President Donald Tusk said on Thursday. Cameron is seeking to renegotiate Britain's relationship with the bloc it joined in 1973 ahead of a referendum on membership to be held by the end of 2017. Some EU leaders are wary of agreeing to all of his demands, howeve
  
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• Smartphone market seen as cooling

  03-12-2015 19:45 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Global smartphone sales growth will cool to single digits for the first time ever amid a slowdown in China, a new market forecast said Thursday. One key market in focus is China, which will be hit by an economic slowdown and is largely saturated. "IDC maintains its view that China has largely become a replacement market," the new forecast report said.
  
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• IMF denies China yuan decision was political

  03-12-2015 19:34 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The International Monetary Fund's decision to include China's yuan in its elite reserve currencies basket was based solely on "technical" considerations, spokesman Gerry Rice said Thursday. The IMF yuan announcement on Monday sparked allegations that the IMF was bowing to pressure from China as Beijing seeks greater global recognition of its economic power. In its review of its SDR currencies basket, which takes place once every five years, the IMF determined that the yuan, also known as the ren
  
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• Ahead of jobs report, Yellen says 100,000 would cover new entrants

  03-12-2015 19:31 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Howard Schneider and Jason Lange WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, speaking the day before a key employment report, said on Thursday the U.S. economy needs to add fewer than 100,000 jobs a month to cover new entrants to the workforce, setting an implicit floor for the jobs growth policymakers want to see. "To simply provide jobs for those who are newly entering the labor force probably requires under 100,000 jobs per month," with anything above that helping "absorb" t
  
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• Wall Street down after ECB action, Yellen comments

  03-12-2015 19:21 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The ECB decided to extend its asset purchase program until March 2017 but it did not increase its size as expected. The ECB move comes a day after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen expressed confidence in the U.S. economy and said she was "looking forward" to a rate hike that will be seen as a testament to the economy's recovery from recession.
  
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• The Latest: European stocks tank on ECB disappointment

  03-12-2015 19:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The latest developments on the day the European Central Bank announced a further stimulus for the 19-country eurozone economy. All times local:
  
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• Average US rate on 30-year mortgages slips to 3.93 percent

  03-12-2015 18:12 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates edged lower this week for a third straight week.
  
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• McDonald's under EU investigation over Luxembourg tax deals

  03-12-2015 18:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Foo Yun Chee BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU regulators are to investigate tax deals between McDonald's and Luxembourg which enabled the U.S. chain to escape paying taxes on European franchise royalties from 2009, a move which could lead to hefty back taxes for the company. The investigation comes two months after the European Commission ordered Luxembourg to recover up to 30 million euros ($32 million) from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles , and the Dutch to do the same for Starbucks , because of tax deals
  
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• Brazil speaker and government trade barbs, fan impeachment fire

  03-12-2015 17:52 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Leonardo Goy BRASILIA (Reuters) - The speaker of Brazil's lower house of Congress and the presidential chief of staff traded accusations on Thursday, as President Dilma Rousseff's government organized its defense for impeachment proceedings against her that started Wednesday. The accusations, with each camp branding the other as liars, added further acrimony to a political crisis in Brazil as the unpopular president begins what is likely to be a drawn-out battle to stay in office even as the
  
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• S&P downgrades holding companies of eight U.S. banks

  03-12-2015 17:48 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - Standard & Poor's cut its nonoperating holding company (NOHC) ratings on eight U.S. "global systemically important banks" by one notch, citing uncertainty about the U.S. government's willingness to provide support to the banking system if it came under stress. The ratings apply to the holding companies of Bank of America Corp , Citigroup Inc , Morgan Stanley , Wells Fargo & Co , Bank of New York Mellon Corp , State Street Corp , JPMorgan Chase & Co and Goldman Sachs Group
  
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• ECB to continue to support recovery: Eurogroup's Dijsselbloem

  03-12-2015 17:45 via news.yahoo.com
  
  FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The European Central Bank looks set to continue to support the economy as the euro zone's upswing broadens and strengthens, Eurogroup chief Jeroen Dijsselbloem said on Thursday.
  
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• EU set to extend Russia sanctions by six months

  03-12-2015 17:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The European Union will extend punishing economic sanctions against Russia for its involvement in the Ukraine crisis for another six months, diplomatic sources said Thursday. "It is looking like it will be a rollover for another six months," one diplomatic source told AFP. Amid differences over what line to take as Brussels and Washington seek Russia's help to resolve the Syrian conflict, the sources said the simplest option was to extend the measures.
  
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• Alibaba unlikely to be interested in Yahoo's core business: WSJ

  03-12-2015 17:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd  is unlikely to be interested in buying Yahoo Inc's Internet business, the Wall Street Journal reported. Yahoo's board, in a three-day meeting that started on Wednesday, is weighing a sale of the struggling business, Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing a source. The business isn't attractive, "given the difficulties successive managers have had in turning it around," WSJ reported on Thursday, citing a person famil
  
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• Wall Street lower as ECB stimulus seen not dovish enough

  03-12-2015 17:38 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The ECB decided to extend its asset purchase program until March 2017 but it did not increase its size as expected. The euro was on track for its biggest daily gain since mid-March following ECB's announcement. The ECB move comes a day after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen expressed confidence in the U.S. economy and said she was "looking forward" to a rate hike that will be seen as a testament to the economy's recovery from recession.
  
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• French far-right eyes big gains in high-stakes regional election

  03-12-2015 17:21 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Ingrid Melander PARIS (Reuters) - France's far-right National Front is set to score huge gains in regional elections on Sunday, redrawing the political landscape of the euro zone's second-biggest economy as it gears up for the next presidential election in 2017. The party, known by its initials FN, has become increasingly popular since Marine Le Pen took over the leadership from her father in 2011. "Everything is adding up for the National Front to make an unprecedented score," Ifop pollsters
  
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• Yellen says shootings, terror attacks could damage economy

  03-12-2015 17:10 via news.yahoo.com
  
  A surge in mass shootings and terror attacks have the potential to damage the economy, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said Thursday as the United States reeled from the latest incident in California. Asked about the risk to US growth from domestic and international terrorism in a congressional hearing, Yellen said the Fed keeps its eyes on the economic impact. Speaking a day after 14 people were killed in a yet-to-be-explained mass shooting in San Bernardino, California, and three weeks afte
  
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• South Africa's rand, stocks weaker ahead of ratings news

  03-12-2015 17:01 via news.yahoo.com
  
  South Africa's rand retreated slightly against the dollar on Thursday and traders said it could fall further should Fitch and Standard & Poor's issue unfavourable sovereign rating reviews on Friday. At 1540 GMT the rand was trading at 14.3860 versus the greenback, down 0.24 percent from Wednesday's close at 14.3515. The rand has been under pressure this week, hitting an all-time low of 14.4950 after data from the national revenue agency showed a sharp widening in the trade deficit, highlight
  
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• Fed's Yellen says doesn't see any impact from mass shootings on U.S. economy

  03-12-2015 16:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said on Thursday that she does not see any impact from mass shootings or recent attacks around the world on the U.S. economy, but added they could have a knock-on effect in the future.
  
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• U.S. services sector slows; labor market remains resilient

  03-12-2015 16:36 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. services sector activity slowed in November but a resilient labor market suggested the economy remained on a steady growth path. Other data on Thursday showed planned job cuts in November were the lowest in 14 months, with the purge in the oil sector appearing to be slowing. The Institute for Supply Management said its index of non-manufacturing activity fell to 55.9 last month from a reading of 59.1 in October.
  
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• Wall St. lower after ECB actions fail to impress

  03-12-2015 16:29 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The ECB cut its deposit rate by 0.1 percentage points and extended its asset-purchase program into 2017. The ECB move comes a day after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen expressed confidence in the U.S. economy and said she was "looking forward" to a rate hike that will be seen as a testament to the economy's recovery from recession. The Fed's next policy meeting is on Dec. 15-16.
  
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• Canadian miner Lydian to invest $480 million in Armenia gold project

  03-12-2015 16:26 via news.yahoo.com
  
  YEREVAN (Reuters) - Canadian miner Lydian International plans to invest up to $480 million in development of its Amulsar gold project in Armenia, the former Soviet state's economy minister said on Thursday. Lydian International, a gold-focused mineral development company, operates in Armenia through its local subsidiary Geoteam CJSC, which obtained mining right for the Amulsar gold project in 2014. Karen Chshmarityan told a government meeting that construction works at the mine are expected to s
  
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• TD quarterly earnings climb on retail, capital markets

  03-12-2015 16:19 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By John Tilak TORONTO (Reuters) - Toronto Dominion Bank reported a higher quarterly profit on Thursday, with growth in its domestic retail and capital markets divisions offsetting concerns about the impact of depressed oil prices. Despite investors' worries about the impact of a weak economy and the oil price slide on the five biggest Canadian banks, they all managed to beat market expectations for the fourth quarter.
  
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• Yellen gives Congress upbeat view on march towards liftoff

  03-12-2015 16:18 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen opened a Congressional committee hearing on the U.S. economy on Thursday with an upbeat assessment of where the country stands as the Fed marches towards its first interest rate hike in a decade. Yellen's prepared testimony to Congress' Joint Economic Committee largely repeated the case she laid out in a high-profile speech the day before: unemployment is low, growth continues at a modest pace, and she is confident inflation will return to the Fed's target over
  
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• Yellen signals growing likelihood of a December rate hike

  03-12-2015 16:01 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen tells Congress that economic conditions are falling into place for policymakers to raise interest rates when they meet in two weeks — as long as there are no major shocks that undermine her confidence.
  
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• European markets sink after ECB disappoints on stimulus

  03-12-2015 16:01 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Europe's stock markets nosedived and the euro rose Thursday after the European Central Bank cut a key rate and expanded stimulus with analysts saying it should have done more to rekindle eurozone growth. At the ECB's last monetary policy meeting of the year, the governing council decided to lower the key deposit rate, already in negative territory, by a further 0.10 percentage point. "The cut in the ECB’s deposit rate from -0.2% to -0.3% comes as a bit of a relief after incorrect last minu
  
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• IMF says Zambia's electricity price to attract investment in power sector

  03-12-2015 15:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Chris Mfula LUSAKA (Reuters) - Zambia's electricity price hike will ease power shortages that have put pressure on the economy of Africa's No. 2 copper producer, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday. Zambia's economy is likely to grow by less than 5 percent in 2015 due to the power crunch, which has hit output at mining firms, already grappling with a slide in global copper prices, the government of the southern African nation has said. Zambia's energy regulator allowed stat
  
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• The Latest: Euro surges as ECB package falls short of hype

  03-12-2015 15:28 via news.yahoo.com
  
  FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The latest developments on the day the European Central Bank announced a further stimulus for the 19-country eurozone economy. All times local:
  
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• MIDEAST STOCKS-Egypt rises on FX hopes; Gulf falls on weak oil

  03-12-2015 15:21 via news.yahoo.com
  
  * Foreigners remain net sellers in Egypt * Global Telecom climbs on buyout hopes * Saudi's Al Tayyar soars in heavy trade * Kingdom Holding outperforms again * Blue chips sold in Qatar By Celine Aswad DUBAI, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Egypt's stock market rose on Thursday on hopes that the central bank would resolve the country's foreign exchange shortage, while Gulf markets fell back because of an overnight tumble of oil prices. Egypt's central bank will inject U.S. dollar liquidity into the market this
  
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• Bill Gross urges investors to gradually de-risk portfolios

  03-12-2015 15:14 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Bill Gross, the closely watched bond investor, on Thursday said low interest rates are keeping alive "zombie corporations" that are unproductive and warned investors to de-risk portfolios into the new year. Gross, who oversees the $1.4 billion Janus Global Unconstrained Bond Fund, has said since earlier this year that the U.S. central bank should raise interest rates to more normal levels as zero-bound levels are harming the real economy and destroying insurance company balance sheets
  
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• Euro zone countries must do more for economy, ECB's Draghi says

  03-12-2015 14:55 via news.yahoo.com
  
  FRANKFURT (Reuters) - European Central Bank President Mario Draghi called on Thursday for euro zone member states to do more to improve the economy.
  
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• ECB lowers 2016 and 2017 inflation forecasts

  03-12-2015 14:51 via news.yahoo.com
  
  FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The European Central Bank lowered slightly its inflation forecasts for 2016 and 2017 on Thursday but kept its economic growth projections broadly unchanged.
  
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• Futures up day after Yellen's comments weigh on markets

  03-12-2015 13:34 via news.yahoo.com
  
  * Yellen expressed confidence in the U.S. economy and said she was "looking forward" to a rate hike that will be seen as a testament to the economy's recovery from recession. The Fed's next policy meeting is on Dec. 15-16. * Yellen is due to testify on the economic outlook before a joint Congressional committee scheduled at 10 a.m. ET (1500 GMT) on Thursday.
  
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• EU to investigate McDonald's tax deals with Luxembourg

  03-12-2015 13:25 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Foo Yun Chee BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU antitrust regulators will investigate McDonald's tax deals with Luxembourg which enabled the U.S. fastfood chain to escape paying taxes on European franchise royalties from 2009, in a move which could lead to hefty back taxes for the company. The action by the European Commission comes two months after it ordered Luxembourg to recover up to 30 million euros ($32 million) from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the Dutch to do the same for Starbucks because thei
  
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• EU regulators to investigate McDonald's tax deals with Luxembourg

  03-12-2015 12:05 via news.yahoo.com
  
  EU antitrust regulators opened an investigation on Thursday into McDonald's tax deals with Luxembourg, saying these enabled the U.S. fastfood chain to escape paying taxes on its European royalties both in Luxembourg and in the United States. The move by the European Commission comes two months after it ordered the Grand Duchy to recover up to 30 million euros ($31.7 million) from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the Dutch to do the same for Starbucks because their tax deals were seen as unlawful ai
  
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• Malaysia anti-graft agency meets PM Najib's office over 1MDB scandal

  03-12-2015 11:57 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Malaysia's anti-graft agency said on Thursday it met with officials at Prime Minister Najib Razak's office over investigations into 2.6 billion ringgit (409.33 million pound) in funds that were transferred into his bank accounts. Najib is facing calls to step down over a graft scandal surrounding state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) [TERRN.UL] that erupted in July when the Wall Street Journal reported that investigators had found that funds had been transferred into Najib's bank accoun
  
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• Kazakhstan sees 'big danger' in Russia-Turkey dispute, urges calm

  03-12-2015 11:44 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Vladimir Soldatkin VIENNA (Reuters) - Kazakhstan, an ally of Russia which also has close trade, linguistic and cultural ties with Turkey, urged Moscow and Ankara on Thursday to think "strategically" and de-escalate their dispute over the Turkish downing of a Russian jet. The dispute threatens to wreck efforts to end Syria's civil war, Kazakh Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov told Reuters in an interview, though he added that Kazakhstan had no plans to offer its services as a mediator between Ru
  
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