Finance news

• Wall Street ends choppy session lower, weighed by China, oil

  08-12-2015 23:00 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. stocks fell in a choppy session on Tuesday as lower oil prices pressured energy stocks for a fifth day and weak Chinese trade data reignited fears of a global slowdown. Crude prices hovered near 7-year lows after U.S. crude dipped below $37 per barrel and Brent fell below $40 for the first time since early 2009 on fears that global oil producers will pump even more crude in a saturated market. The China data added pressure to the energy and materials sectors as it sparked fears about a glob
  
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• Taiwan's likely first woman president keeps cards close on China game plan

  08-12-2015 22:37 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By J.R. Wu TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan's elections are just weeks away with little clarity about how a likely win by a party that traditionally favors independence from China will go down with a neighbor that has threatened force to ensure the island never goes it alone.     Taiwan votes in a new president and parliament in January when the ruling Nationalists (KMT) are expected to be soundly beaten by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), supported by youthful voters angered by a
  
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• CP says willing to take Norfolk bid to shareholders

  08-12-2015 22:30
  
  CHICAGO/MONTREAL/BOSTON (Reuters) - Executives of Canadian Pacific Railwaytouted the benefits of the firm’s proposed bid for U.S. railroad Norfolk Southern Corpduring a call Tuesday with...
  
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• China chips away at U.S., Taiwan semiconductor dominance

  08-12-2015 22:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Yimou Lee HONG KONG (Reuters) - China's multi-billion dollar drive towards self-reliance in semiconductors has spawned a cluster of chip designers that industry experts say could eventually rival leaders Qualcomm Inc and MediaTek Inc. The world's second-largest economy now boasts nine companies that design and sell chips in the global top 50 from just one in 2009. Clients such as Chinese smartphone manufacturers have also helped compatriot chip designers amass a market share of almost a fifth
  
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• Brazil's Cetip rejected BM&FBovespa takeover offer due to value: CEO

  08-12-2015 22:07
  
  SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil's Cetip SArejected a takeover bid from BM&FBovespa SA , Latin America's largest exchange operator, because the unsolicited offer undervalued the company, its chief...
  
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• Majority of Apple Watch owners plan to give it as a gift

  08-12-2015 21:36 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Julia Love SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - As Apple Watch enters the critical holiday shopping season, it looks likely to get a sales boost from happy customers, almost two-thirds of whom are planning to give one as a gift, a Reuters/Ipsos poll showed on Tuesday. The poll found that about 7 percent of U.S. adults plan to give the Watch as a gift this holiday season, including current owners. If even a fraction of consumers follow through, Apple would be well-positioned to meet or beat Wall Street's
  
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• Spotify to allow artists to withhold music from free service - WSJ

  08-12-2015 21:34 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - Spotify told music executives it was planning to allow some artists to start releasing albums only to its paid subscribers, while withholding the music temporarily from Spotify's 80 million free users, the Wall Street Journal reported. The music streaming service is initially trying the new approach as a test, the WSJ reported, citing a person familiar with the matter. Spotify hasn't decided which artist will first get to withhold music from the free service, according to the Journal
  
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• Majority of Apple Watch owners plan to give it as a gift: poll

  08-12-2015 21:32 via news.yahoo.com
  
  As Apple Watch enters the critical holiday shopping season, it looks likely to get a sales boost from happy customers, almost two-thirds of whom are planning to give one as a gift, a Reuters/Ipsos poll showed on Tuesday. The poll found that about 7 percent of U.S. adults plan to give the Watch as a gift this holiday season, including current owners. If even a fraction of consumers follow through, Apple would be well-positioned to meet or beat Wall Street's 2015 sales forecasts, which generally r
  
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• Rates can fall to -0.5 percent, but no need now: Bank of Canada

  08-12-2015 21:20 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Alastair Sharp and Jeffrey Hodgson TORONTO (Reuters) - The Bank of Canada estimated on Tuesday it could, if needed, set its benchmark interest rate as low as minus 0.5 percent, but stressed that the economy was recovering as expected and the bank did not expect to use such unconventional monetary policy. Governor Stephen Poloz laid out what he called an updated toolkit of unconventional monetary policy, one which showed the central bank had more room to maneuver than in 2009, when it estimate
  
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• KKR wins battle for forensic science firm LGC

  08-12-2015 21:11
  LONDON (Reuters) - KKR has won the auction to buy UK forensic sciences group LGC from Bridgepoint, the private equity firm said on Tuesday, after fighting off competition from three other sponsors...
  
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• Pimco adding energy-related securities to some portfolios

  08-12-2015 21:07
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Global investment management firm Pimco is adding energy-related securities to some of its portfolios as the Newport Beach, California firm expects oil prices to rise over the...
  
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• Quit 'crying' and fix Venezuela economy, opposition tells Maduro

  08-12-2015 21:04 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Alexandra Ulmer and Eyanir Chinea CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's opposition on Tuesday urged leftist President Nicolas Maduro to stop making excuses for his candidates' defeat in legislative elections, and instead urgently tackle food shortages and free jailed politicians. The worst economic crisis in the OPEC country's recent history has Venezuelan staples including flour, milk, meat and beans running scarce. "We urge the government to stop crying and start working," Democratic Unity coalit
  
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• 'Big Short' goes long on comedy to look at 2007-09 financial crisis

  08-12-2015 19:59 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Bob Tourtellotte LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - It is not easy to find the humor in the financial crisis that hit the U.S. economy eight years ago, but the "The Big Short" uses comedy as a lens to examine the intricacies and failures of Wall Street. The movie, starring Christian Bale, Brad Pitt and Steve Carell and out in New York and Los Angeles on Friday, takes a quirky look at the mortgage-backed security debacle that led to the U.S. sliding into recession from 2007, and the money managers who be
  
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• Lansing Trade Group says sells 20 percent stake to New Hope Liuhe Co.

  08-12-2015 19:48
  CHICAGO (Reuters) - U.S. grains and energy merchant Lansing Trade Group LLC sold a 20 percent stake of its business to Chinese animal feed maker and meat processor New Hope Liuhe Co , a Lansing...
  
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• Oil bull Hall's fund down 10 percent in Nov, heads for worst year

  08-12-2015 19:24
  
  (Reuters) - Oil bull Andy Hall's Astenbeck Capital Management lost almost 10 percent in November as the hedge fund heads toward its worst year ever amid a global crude glut, data showed on...
  
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• Fairchild Semiconductor gets unsolicited $2.46 billion bid

  08-12-2015 19:16
  (Reuters) - Fairchild Semiconductor International Incsaid it had received a buyout proposal from an unnamed party - identified by Bloomberg as a group led by China Resources Holdings Co - that...
  
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• Wall Street falls as weak Chinese data, oil slump weigh

  08-12-2015 19:03 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Wall Street was lower on Tuesday as oil prices steadied but hovered near their 7-year low and weak Chinese trade data reignited fears of a global economic slowdown. "We do think oil is putting in a bottom here as U.S. production is expected to fall and view this as a good buying opportunity," said Gary Bradshaw, portfolio manager of Hodges Capital Management in Dallas, Texas. At 12:35 p.m. ET (1735 GMT) the Dow Jones industrial average was down 173.17 points, or 0.98 percent, at 17,557.34, the S
  
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• Could private equity fill the mining M&A vacuum?

  08-12-2015 18:56
  
  LONDON (Reuters) - Expectations of a takeover frenzy in global mining have been dashed by falling commodity prices, leaving the field open for private equity funds looking to deploy billions of...
  
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• Bank of Canada: rates can go to -0.5 percent, but no need now

  08-12-2015 18:47 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The Bank of Canada estimated on Tuesday that it could if needed set its benchmark interest rate as low as minus 0.5 percent, but stressed that the economy was recovering as expected and it did not expect to use such unconventional monetary policy. Governor Stephen Poloz laid out what he called an updated toolkit of unconventional monetary policy, one which showed the central bank had more room to maneuver than in 2009, when it estimated that it could not cut rates lower than 0.25 percent.
  
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• Shares slip on seesaw in oil prices, weak China data

  08-12-2015 18:25 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Sam Forgione NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock markets worldwide slipped on Tuesday, weighed down by weak China trade figures, but indexes were off their lows after oil prices steadied a bit after falling within reach of a seven-year nadir. Oil prices stabilized after plumbing lows last seen during the financial crisis as an intensifying supply glut sparked fears the world will run out of storage for crude. U.S. crude hit $36.64 a barrel and Brent hit $39.81, their lowest levels since February 2009,
  
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• Aging population seen restraining U.S. labor force growth

  08-12-2015 18:25 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. labor force growth is set to slow further over the next decade as more Americans retire, which will confine the economy to a moderate growth path, according to government report on Tuesday. In its biennial employment projections for 2014-2024, the Labor Department forecast the work-age population increasing at an annual rate of 0.5 percent, reaching 163.8 million in 2024. Labor force participation was forecast to decline to 60.9 percent in 2024 from
  
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• Disney doubles stake in Vice to $400 million: source

  08-12-2015 18:24
  
  (Reuters) - Walt Disney Cois doubling its stake in youth-focused digital media company Vice Media to $400 million, a source familiar with the matter said.
  
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• Nasdaq to buy Chi-X Canada to access Canadian equities market

  08-12-2015 17:59 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Nasdaq said it would acquire the Canadian unit of alternative equities trading platform Chi-X Global Holdings in a deal giving it direct access to the Canadian equities market. Nasdaq said the purchase of Chi-X Canada would be accretive to its earnings, excluding transaction-related costs, and deliver attractive returns on capital. Bloomberg reported in November that the deal would value Chi-X Canada at about $100 million.
  
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• Ruble nears 70 per dollar as oil prices slide

  08-12-2015 17:52 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Russia's battered ruble currency on Tuesday approached 70 per dollar for the first time since August as oil prices sank below $40 a barrel. Brent crude prices sank under $40 on Tuesday for the first time in almost seven years following OPEC's recent decision to maintain record-high oil output levels. The slide in oil prices and Western sanctions over Moscow's role in the Ukraine crisis have pummelled the oil-dependent Russian economy in recent months.
  
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• Yahoo may restructure media unit: Re/code

  08-12-2015 17:41
  
  (Reuters) - Yahoo Incmay make big changes to its media unit, restructuring and consolidating it, including making cuts and shuttering some efforts, tech news site Re/code said.
  
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• Confidence, not rates, is key for U.S. economy: Wells Fargo CEO

  08-12-2015 16:18
  
  (Reuters) - Still-fragile consumer confidence, rather than expected interest rate hikes, is the most important factor holding back a stronger U.S. economic recovery, Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf said...
  
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• Wall Street opens lower as oil plunges further

  08-12-2015 16:09 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Wall Street opened lower on Tuesday as shares of energy companies and miners were dragged down by a continued slide in oil prices and fears of a global economic slowdown on weak Chinese trade data. Oil majors Exxon and Chevron were down more than 3 percent, while miner Freeport McMoRan fell 3.6 percent. Exxon was the biggest drag on the S&P and was the second-biggest drag on the Dow.
  
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• How 'Super Savers' take retirement to the next level

  08-12-2015 16:03
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - You have been saving 10 or 15 percent of your income, every single year. You have paid off your student loans, and avoided debt. You are on track for a dream retirement -...
  
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• Global carbon emissions growth to stall in 2015 -research

  08-12-2015 15:34 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Nina Chestney PARIS (Reuters) - Growth in global carbon dioxide emissions is expected to slow for a second year running in 2015, in spite of economic growth, after typically rising by around 2 to 3 percent since the turn of the century, according to research published on Monday. Global carbon emissions edged up by 0.6 percent last year, compared to 2.4 percent annual growth from 2004-2013, said the study by Britain's University of East Anglia (UEA) and the Global Carbon Project, which compile
  
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• Canadian housing starts, building permits show strength

  08-12-2015 15:22 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Andrea Hopkins TORONTO (Reuters) - Canadian housing starts rose unexpectedly in November and building permits surged in October, fueling Canada's prolonged housing boom even as the nation's weak economy contributed to underlying softness in some regions, reports showed on Tuesday. The continued strength in homebuilding was concentrated in condo building and in two regions - Ontario and the Prairies - and left economists wondering at a patchy housing boom that was not expected to last as long
  
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• Wall Street set to open lower on China trade data, oil slide

  08-12-2015 15:05 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Wall Street looked set to open lower on Tuesday as weak trade data out of China reignited fears of a global economic slowdown and oil prices continued to slide. Data showed China's imports fell for the 13th consecutive month, with an 8.7 percent decline in November compared with a year earlier. Oil prices resumed their slide, with U.S. crude falling below $37 per barrel for the first time since early 2009, amid fears the world was running out of capacity to store crude as a global glut intensifi
  
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• Egypt sees tourist returns down 10 pct after plane crash, eyes gradual recovery

  08-12-2015 15:05 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Lin Noueihed and Michael Georgy CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's tourism revenues in 2015 will be at least 10 percent below last year's after a Russian plane crash prompted Moscow and London to suspend flights, and authorities are now working to restore confidence, the tourism minister said on Tuesday. Hit by political and economic upheaval since the 2011 uprising ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule, Egypt's tourism sector had been set to grow this year. Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of the Eg
  
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• Pep Boys says Icahn's buyout proposal could be superior

  08-12-2015 15:03
  
  (Reuters) - U.S. auto parts retailer Pep Boys - Manny, Moe & Jack said its board determined that Carl Icahn's offer to buy the company for $15.50 per share could result in a "superior proposal"...
  
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• Doubts about the rich-poor nation divide loom over U.N. climate debate

  08-12-2015 15:00 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Valerie Volcovici PARIS (Reuters) - Among the stumbling blocks for a global climate deal in Paris is a decades-old U.N. view that divides the world into two camps -- wealthy countries that bear the financial responsibility for climate change and developing nations that do not. From the outset, one of the biggest issues has been moving money from those rich nations that have produced most of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions since the industrial revolution to developing nations that w
  
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• Egypt sees tourist returns down 10 percent after plane crash, eyes gradual recovery

  08-12-2015 14:55 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Lin Noueihed and Michael Georgy CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's tourism revenues in 2015 will be at least 10 percent below last year's after a Russian plane crash prompted Moscow and London to suspend flights, and authorities are now working to restore confidence, the tourism minister said on Tuesday. Hit by political and economic upheaval since the 2011 uprising ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule, Egypt's tourism sector had been set to grow this year. Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of the Eg
  
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• Kumba Iron Ore cuts 2016 output guidance, shares tumble

  08-12-2015 14:53 via news.yahoo.com
  
  South Africa's Kumba Iron Ore cut its 2016 production target by about 28 percent to 26 million tonnes at its main mine as it forecast prices for its commodity sinking further, sending its shares to an all-time low. Shares fell 11 percent to 34 rand after Kumba Chief Executive Norman Mbazima said the Sishen mine would be restructured because the supply glut for the steel-making ingredient had persisted and growth in top consumer China was "ever more cautious". Kumba, a unit of London-listed Anglo
  
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• Equities slump on commodities rout

  08-12-2015 14:06 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The global commodities rout sent world stock markets plunging on Tuesday, with mining companies under fierce pressure as Anglo American vowed to slash thousands of jobs.
  
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• TSX futures fall on weak Chinese trade data

  08-12-2015 13:45 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - - Stock futures pointed to a lower opening for Canada's main stock index on Tuesday, after weak Chinese trade data raised worries about growth in the world's second-biggest economy. Oil prices, however, steadied after falling to their lowest level in nearly seven years on Monday. December futures on the S&P TSX index were down 0.56 percent at 7:15 a.m. ET. Canadian housing starts data for October is due at 8:15 a.m. ET. ...
  
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• Futures lower after weak China economic data

  08-12-2015 13:28 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were lower on Tuesday as oil prices steadied but remained close to their 7-year low and weak trade data out of China reignited fears of a global economic slowdown.
  
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• Air France to resume Paris-Tehran flights after eight-year gap

  08-12-2015 13:21 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Air France-KLM will resume flights between Paris and Tehran from April 2016, the company said on Tuesday, the latest sign of improving ties between France and Iran five months after major powers agreed a deal over Iran's nuclear program. It had suspended direct flights between Paris and Tehran in 2008 for economic reasons. "Air France is showing its ambition to develop itself in a country with dynamic growth and for which the European Union is Iran's fourth economic partner," the company said in
  
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• South Africa's Eskom loses 220 MW of power imports from Mozambique

  08-12-2015 12:44 via news.yahoo.com
  
  South Africa's Eskom lost 220 megawatts of power imports from Mozambique due to a technical fault, the power utility said on Tuesday, but added that a unit at its nuclear power station would resume operations. "Eskom technicians are busy with repair work, which is expected to be completed within five days," the utility said in a statement referring to the hitch at the plant in Mozambique. Eskom, which is managing tight electricity supply in Africa's most industrialised economy, said that Unit 2
  
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• Over 10 million Ethiopians will need food aid next year -charity

  08-12-2015 12:25 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Aaron Maasho ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - More than 10 million Ethiopians will need food aid in 2016, up from 8.2 million this year, due to the worst drought in decades, the charity Save the Children has said. Although it has one of the highest growth rates in Africa, Ethiopia's economy still depends heavily on farming, which employs three quarters of the workforce in the nation of over 90 million people. Caused by failed spring and summer rains and worsened by the El Nino weather phenomenon, the
  
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• Egyptian president in Greece for energy, security talks

  08-12-2015 12:03 via news.yahoo.com
  
  ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is in Athens for a two-day visit that will focus on energy and shipping, as financially troubled Greece seeks economic cooperation with regional partners.
  
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• Paris attacks wipe a quarter off French growth: central bank

  08-12-2015 11:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The economic impact of last month's attacks in Paris will likely wipe a quarter off the growth that had been expected in the final three months of the year, the Bank of France said on Tuesday. The French central bank said it was now expecting 0.3 percent growth in the fourth quarter, against 0.4 percent previously. A cut of 0.1 percentage points in growth represents around 500 million euros ($543 million) in economic activity, according to an estimate by the French Treasury.
  
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• Egypt expects $1.5 bln in aid by year-end, eyeing IMF

  08-12-2015 11:36 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Lin Noueihed and Michael Georgy CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt expects to receive $1.5 billion from the World Bank and African Development Bank by year-end to support the budget and could discuss potential IMF financing once parliament convenes, International Cooperation Minister Sahar Nasr said.     Egypt is implementing a series of reforms aimed at reviving its economy after the 2011 uprising that ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule frightened off tourists and foreign investors, on which
  
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• China imports and exports fall again

  08-12-2015 11:36 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Chinese imports and exports both fell in November, official data showed Tuesday, the latest poor figures from the world's second-largest economy. The gloomy trade figures sent Chinese stocks down Tuesday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index closing down 1.89 percent at 3,470.07.
  
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• Turkey determined to accelerate 'harmonization' with EU: PM

  08-12-2015 11:10 via news.yahoo.com
  
  ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey is determined to accelerate "harmonization" with the European Union, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Tuesday, after Ankara last month promised to help stem the flow of migrants in return for cash and renewed talks on joining the EU. Davutoglu, who was speaking at meeting of his ruling AK Party in parliament, also said that he sees growth in industrial output continuing and contributing to fourth-quarter economic output. (Reporting by Ercan Gurses; Writing by Davi
  
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• Are We Headed For A Slowdown?

  08-12-2015 10:08 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Should we take the idea of an economic slowdown seriously? Commonwealth Financial Network's CIO Brad McMillan explores the possibility and what it could mean for 2016.
  
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• Rio Tinto cuts spending due to diving commodity prices

  08-12-2015 09:57 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Mining giant Rio Tinto said on Tuesday it would slash forecast spending next year to maintain profits in the face of a commodity price rout. Global commodity prices have plunged in recent months as growth slows in China, the world's second-largest economy. The situation has been worsened by a supply glut blamed on rising output by leading miners such as BHP Billiton and Rio.
  
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• Market and currency volatility, key risk for region: S&P's

  08-12-2015 09:35 via news.yahoo.com
  
  KUALA LUMPUR: The near term worry for Asia-Pacific economies is the move toward normal interest rates due to the pile of new debt in the region warned S&P's in its latest report. China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand will need to service their debt at higher interest rates. In its Asia-Pacific Credit Outlook 2016, it pointed to an ‘elevated’ risk and ‘increasing’ trend in huge debt due to past stimulus measures by China and the region's policymakers and
  
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