Finance news

• Ackman's fund sells 5 million Valeant shares to generate tax loss

  31-12-2015 23:32
  
  BOSTON (Reuters) - Billionaire investor William Ackman said on Thursday he sold about 5 million shares in drug company Valeant International in order to generate a tax loss as investors in his...
  
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• Federal judge throws out Quicken Loans' lawsuit against DoJ

  31-12-2015 23:27
  
  Dec 31 (Reuters) - A federal judge on Thursday dismissed a lawsuit by Quicken Loans Inc against the U.S. Justice Department that alleged the company was being forced to make a big settlement over its...
  
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• Dow, S&P 500 in red for 2015, worst year since 2008

  31-12-2015 23:26 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 racked up their worst annual performance in seven years Thursday after a sell-off in the final Wall Street session of 2015. The S&P 500 fell 0.9 percent to 2,043.94, leaving the broad-based gauge of US stocks down 0.7 percent for the year, its first loss since 2011. The blue-chip Dow dropped 1.0 percent in the session to 17,425.03, taking its annual loss to 2.2 percent.
  
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• A breakdown of the S&P 500's sectors in 2015

  31-12-2015 22:39 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — While the Standard & Poor's index is finishing 2015 around where it started, the index has been sharply divided between winners and losers. Four of the index's 10 sectors rose, while energy and five others lost ground.
  
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• Wall Street suffers feeble end to turbulent 2015

  31-12-2015 22:38 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Much of the blame for this year's underwhelming stock market performance can be laid at the feet of crude oil prices, which lost a third of their value during an unprecedented global glut. "If you went to sleep on December 31, 2014, and woke up today, you'd say what a dull year it's been, and yet in between we've had these wild swings," said Donald Selkin, chief market strategist at National Securities in New York. The Nasdaq Composite gained 5.73 percent after surpassing levels not seen since t
  
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• GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks slip, close year mixed; oil ends ugly 2015 with slight gain

  31-12-2015 22:33
  
  (New throughout, updates prices and market activity to close of trading, adds comments, details on metals, bond indexes) * US stocks end slightly lower in 2015; Europe mostly higher * Crude oil down...
  
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• Oil ends 2015 battered by supply glut

  31-12-2015 22:25 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Oil prices pared losses Thursday but ended 2015 sharply lower as the "black gold" was battered by prolonged global oversupply and a slowdown in energy-hungry China's economy. North Sea Brent, the European benchmark for oil, dropped almost 35 percent over the year, while the US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell 30 percent. "With Brent crude oil hovering near 11-year lows and WTI not faring all that much better, the markets are ending the year on a somber note, consistent with what we s
  
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• Factbox: U.S. stock market performance in 2015

  31-12-2015 22:18 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 saw its flattest year since 2011, ending a three-year streak of double-digit returns. Gains were led by the consumer discretionary sector, while the worst performing sector was energy. Here is a list of major indexes, sectors, and the S&P's best and worst performers for the year.
  
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• Wall Street ends turbulent 2015 on downward note

  31-12-2015 22:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street dropped on Thursday, leaving the S&P 500 marginally lower over a year marked by record highs as well as a major selloff. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 181.51 points, or 1.03 percent, to 17,422.36, the S&P 500 had lost 19.62 points, or 0.95 percent, to 2,043.74 and the Nasdaq Composite had dropped 58.44 points, or 1.15 percent, to 5,007.41. (Reporting by Marcus E. Howard; Editing by Nick Zieminski)
  
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• US stocks edge lower; S&P 500 goes red for the year

  31-12-2015 22:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Stocks are closing out 2015 on a downbeat note.
  
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• TREASURIES-Bond prices end turbulent 2015 higher

  31-12-2015 22:06
  
  * Bull-flattening expected in 2016 on doubts about Fed (New throughout, updates market action, adds quotes)
  
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• CANADA FX DEBT-C$ rises with oil, closing out worst year since 2008

  31-12-2015 21:27
  
  (Adds analyst quote, adds details, updates prices) * Canadian dollar at C$1.3840 or 72.25 U.S. cents * Ends year down 16 percent on weak oil prices * Bond prices higher across the maturity curve By...
  
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• Berkshire Hathaway unit buys Virginia newspaper

  31-12-2015 20:50
  
  (Reuters) - The newspaper unit of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc on Thursday said it purchased The Free Lance-Star, a newspaper in Fredericksburg, Virginia, from Sandton Capital Partners.
  
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• S&P 500 poised for uninspiring end to turbulent 2015

  31-12-2015 20:44 via news.yahoo.com
  
  In a reversal of one of 2015's major trends, oil shares moved higher, with the S&P energy sector up 0.73 percent and alone among gainers. With crude prices losing a third of their value this year under an unprecedented global glut, the energy sector has tumbled 23 percent, its worst annual performance since the global recession. The S&P 500 hit a record high in May only to slump 11 percent over eight days in August over fears of a China-led global economic slowdown.
  
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• Investors look to January effect at start of 2016

  31-12-2015 20:08 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Chuck Mikolajczak NEW YORK (Reuters) - As Wall Street wraps up its flattest year since 2011, investors will have to deal with many of the same issues next year as they attempt to gauge market direction. While many market participants have a host of worries heading into 2016 that could hurt stocks and keep volatility high, they remain optimistic for gains in 2016 and a strong start to the year could boost that case. Stocks could get a boost next week from the so-called "January effect," when s
  
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• Correction: Financial Markets-The Year in Deals story

  31-12-2015 19:41 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — In a story Dec. 30 about global deals, The Associated Press reported erroneously that Dow DuPont's products will include Ziploc bags and Saran Wrap. Dow Chemical developed those products but sold them to S.C. Johnson & Son.
  
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• Cruz Rakes in the Cash as He Closes In on Trump

  31-12-2015 19:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Ted Cruz seems poised to take his momentum well into the New Year, having raised $20 million in the fourth quarter of 2015, the Texas senator’s largest haul since becoming a White House hopeful. An official campaign memo obtained by The Wall Street Journal shows Cruz’s fundraising nearly doubled the roughly $12 million he raked in during the previous quarter. Cruz took in $4.3 million in the first quarter, then $10 million in the second, though his camp touted the fact that he had mo
  
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• Fed awards record $474.59 bln in one-day reverse repos

  31-12-2015 19:24
  
  Dec 31 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve on Thursday awarded a record $474.59 billion of one-day fixed-rate reverse repurchase agreements to 109 bidders at an interest rate of 0.25 percent, the New...
  
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• S&P 500 heads for a flat end to volatile 2015

  31-12-2015 18:55 via news.yahoo.com
  
  All three major U.S. stock indexes hit record highs this year but have since climbed down after crude's steep loss sent energy stocks tumbling. The Dow Jones industrial average was down about 1.4 percent for the year but the Nasdaq Composite was up 6.7 percent. "As we close out of the year, it's been a tale of two tapes, with narrow leadership holding up the major indices, while the vast majority of the market continues to underperform," said Adam Sarhan, chief executive of Sarhan Capital in New
  
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• UPDATE 1-DraftKings processor seeks NY court's help

  31-12-2015 18:49
  
  NEW YORK, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Calling itself a bystander caught between conflicting court rulings, a payment processor for DraftKings asked a New York judge to decide whether it may continue its work...
  
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• GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks slip to close year mixed; oil up modestly to end ugly 2015

  31-12-2015 18:12
  
  NEW YORK, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Stock and bond markets in major economies were set to close 2015 with a mixed performance, while oil prices and emerging markets cemented big losses during a year that...
  
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• DraftKings processor seeks NY court's help

  31-12-2015 17:54
  
  NEW YORK, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Calling itself a bystander caught between conflicting court rulings, a payment processor for DraftKings asked a New York judge to decide whether it may continue its work...
  
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• S&P 500 slips back into the red for the year

  31-12-2015 17:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The S&P 500 was down 0.53 percent for the year, while the Dow Jones industrial average was down 2 percent. Only the Nasdaq Composite was in positive turf, having risen 6.2 percent. "As we close out of the year, it's been a tale of two tapes, with narrow leadership holding up the major indices, while the vast majority of the market continues to underperform," said Adam Sarhan, chief executive of Sarhan Capital in New York.
  
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• American Airlines merges operations of unit U.S. Airways

  31-12-2015 17:39
  
  (Reuters) - American Airlines Group Incsaid its unit U.S. Airways Group merged with the company, as part of efforts to integrate operations of the businesses following a merger in 2013.
  
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• TREASURIES-Bond prices rise, on track to end year up

  31-12-2015 17:36
  
  NEW YORK, Dec 31 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasuries prices rose on Thursday and the yield curve flattened, with U.S. government debt set to end the year on a more positive note than many investors expected.
  
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• Dutch retail chain V&D declared bankrupt

  31-12-2015 17:19
  
  AMSTERDAM, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Vroom & Dreesman, the largest
  Dutch department store chain, has been declared bankrupt, it
  said in a statement published on its website on Thursday.
  
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• Why the US Wants New Sanctions Against Iran

  31-12-2015 17:09 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The aftermath of the nuclear agreement that the U.S. and other world powers struck with Iran over the summer has been confusing at best, with charges and counter-charges claiming that the participants have violated its terms or operated in bad faith. On Wednesday, things got even stranger, with the report in The Wall Street Journal that the U.S. Treasury Department is preparing sanctions against businesses and individuals that have supported Iran’s development of ballistic missiles.
  
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• US open: Wall Street on track to end 2015 with losses

  31-12-2015 17:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (ShareCast News) - Wall Street looked set to end the year lower following the release of weaker than expected data on jobs and manufacturing sector activity, although some economists were still sanguine ...
  
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• UPDATE 1-Mexico central bank board united in move to follow Fed hike

  31-12-2015 16:37
  
  MEXICO CITY, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Mexico's central bank board made a unanimous decision to hike borrowing costs earlier this month in a bid to stem further weakening in the peso currency after the...
  
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• US stocks edge lower, pulling S&P 500 into red for the year

  31-12-2015 16:22 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. stocks veered lower on the last day of the year as the market headed for a sluggish end to 2015. The modest losses in early trading Thursday dragged the Standard & Poor's 500 index back into the red for the year. With dividends included it will have a slight gain.
  
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• Gulf stocks dive over low oil prices, geopolitics

  31-12-2015 16:15 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Stock markets in the Gulf states ended 2015 in negative territory on Thursday, following a massive decline in oil prices and regional turmoil. The Saudi stock market, the largest in the region, led the slide by shedding 17 percent in 2015 followed by Dubai which dipped 16.5 percent. Gulf Cooperation Council states were forced to cut back this year after oil prices fell by more than 60 percent since mid-2014 to below $40 a barrel.
  
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• Mexico cenbank unanimous in decision to raise rates-minutes

  31-12-2015 16:10
  
  MEXICO CITY, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Mexico's central bank board made a unanimous decision to hike borrowing costs earlier this month in a bid to stem further weakening in the peso currency after the...
  
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• UPDATE 2-Brazil's Itaú buys BTG Pactual's debt collector stake, trumps rival bid

  31-12-2015 16:01
  
  SAO PAULO, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Itaú Unibanco Holding SA, Brazil's No. 1 bank by market value, has agreed to pay Grupo BTG Pactual SA about 1.21 billion reais ($305 million) for a stake in a debt...
  
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• CANADA FX DEBT-C$ edges higher, but set to fall 16 percent for 2015

  31-12-2015 15:29
  
  * Canadian dollar at C$1.3877 or 72.06 U.S. cents * Bond prices higher across the maturity curve TORONTO, Dec 31 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar edged higher on Thursday against its U.S. counterpart...
  
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• Credit Agricole Suisse pays $99.2 mln U.S. tax settlement

  31-12-2015 15:11
  
  PARIS, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Credit Agricole's Swiss division said on Thursday it had paid a $99.2 million penalty to avoid prosecution for helping American clients evade taxes, under a deal with the...
  
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• Wall Street set for lower open on last day of year

  31-12-2015 15:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. stock indexes were set to open lower on Thursday as crude slipped further to end the year in steep losses. Crude oil prices were set for their second year of losses suffering under an unprecedented global glut that may take another year to clear. Shares of Chevron were off 0.8 percent at $89.37, while Exxon was down 0.4 percent at $77.78 in premarket trading.
  
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• Global markets end 2015 with a whimper

  31-12-2015 14:44 via news.yahoo.com
  
  World stock markets on Thursday ended 2015 with a whimper after sharp volatility sparked by China's slowdown, eurozone stimulus, the Greek crisis, rising US rates and a commodities rout. European and US markets had enjoyed a record-breaking run at the start of the year, boosted by the expectation and then delivery of European Central Bank's quantitative easing (QE) stimulus. Investors fretted on uncertainty over the Federal Reserve's first interest rate hike in almost a decade, but the bank even
  
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• Champagne sales set for record year

  31-12-2015 14:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Pascale Denis PARIS (Reuters) - Champagne sales are set for a record year, driven by solid demand from export markets, favorable currencies and stabilizing sales in France, the fizzy drink's home market. The 2015 sales estimates reflected efforts to promote higher-priced products such as special blends and fine vintages, as well as growing demand for Rose Champagnes in Japan and the United States, Champagne's second export market after Britain. Economic woes in Champagne's home market of Fran
  
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• CORRECTED-Russian foreign debt falls to $538.2 bln on Oct. 1 - cbank

  31-12-2015 14:38
  
  MOSCOW, Dec 31 (Reuters) - The level of Russia's foreign debts fell to $538.2 billion on Oct. 1, down from $555.7 billion on July 1, the Russian central bank said on Friday.
  
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• Nigeria's stock index up 3.1 pct as investors balance books ahead of year-end

  31-12-2015 14:30 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Nigeria's benchmark stock index rose more than 3 percent on Thursday to its highest level in more than a month as some corporate investors moved to balance their portfolios ahead of the financial year-end. The stock market, which has the second-biggest weighting after Kuwait on the MSCI frontier market index, was up 3.1 percent, or 28,643 points, by 1250 GMT, touching its highest since Nov. 12. The rise was driven by Nigerian Breweries, with a 9.7 percent rise, followed by Pan Africa banking gro
  
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• UPDATE 3-India's Cadila Healthcare shares plunge after FDA warns of violations

  31-12-2015 13:17
  
  * Cadila says working to respond to the FDA's concerns (Adds management comments from conference call; updates shares)
  
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• South African white maize prices more than double in 2015 on drought jitters

  31-12-2015 12:58 via news.yahoo.com
  
  South African white maize prices more than doubled in 2015 to record highs on mounting concerns about a scorching drought, which has been exacerbated by an El Nino weather pattern. South Africa's central bank, which is in a tightening cycle, has frequently expressed concern about the impact of the drought and food price pressures on inflation in Africa's most advanced economy. White maize is the staple crop that provides much of the caloric intake for the country's lower-income households.
  
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• Iran says any U.S. sanctions on missiles illegal

  31-12-2015 12:33 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Iran condemned on Thursday as arbitrary and illegal reported U.S. plans for new sanctions on international companies and individuals over Tehran's ballistic missile programme. "As we have declared to the American government ... Iran's missile programme has no connection to the (nuclear) agreement," state television quoted Foreign Ministry spokesman Hossein Jaber Ansari as saying. In Washington, sources familiar with the situation said on Wednesday the U.S. government was preparing the sanctions,
  
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• Sky-high stocks book fourth year of gains, tipped for more

  31-12-2015 12:29 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By John Geddie LONDON (Reuters) - Stock markets in developed economies were set to record their fourth straight year of gains on Thursday while oil prices cemented losses of more than 35 percent as a roller-coaster year drew to a close. Ultra-easy monetary policy and pockets of economic resurgence have helped equity valuations break new ground this year. U.S. stocks are finishing 2015 near record highs, European equities have hit all-time peaks and Japanese shares have risen to levels not seen s
  
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• Thyrocare files draft IPO papers

  31-12-2015 11:54 via news.yahoo.com
  
  MUMBAI (Reuters) - Diagnostic company Thyrocare Technologies Ltd said on Thursday it had filed draft red herring prospectus with the country's market regulator for an initial public offering (IPO) of 10.7 million shares. Thyrocare said it plans to list on both the BSE and NSE exchanges. JM Financial, Edelweiss Financial, ICICI Securities are lead managers for the issue. Reuters reported in February Thyrocare was planning to raise $85 million to $100 million through a stock market listing, citing
  
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• Lockheed wins more than $1 billion contract for C-130J aircraft

  31-12-2015 11:45
  
  (Reuters) - Lockheed Martin Corp has been awarded a contract worth more than $1 billion for 32 C-130J aircraft, the Pentagon said on Wednesday.
  
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• MIDEAST STOCKS-Saudi opens weak as petchems soft; Egypt continues rally

  31-12-2015 10:08 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Saudi Arabia's stock market opened weak on Thursday as petrochemical firms remained soft following gas feedstock price rises in Monday's 2016 state budget. Egypt's bourse continued rallying after breaking technical resistance. The biggest stock in the sector, Saudi Basic Industries , was flat but Saudi Kayan lost 2.2 percent and PetroRabigh SE fell 2.4 percent after saying it would restart only gradually its high-olefin fluid catalytic cracker and subordinate units after an extended maintenance
  
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• Energy stocks sink but oil bounces as year ends

  31-12-2015 09:17 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Energy shares fell again Thursday on the last trading day of the year, tracking losses in New York and Europe although oil prices bounced slightly following another hefty loss. Along with a sharp growth slowdown in China, the slump in commodities has been a key story through 2015, with the cost of oil down more than 60 percent from recent peaks seen in summer 2014. Crude has been hammered by anaemic demand, a slowdown in the global economy -- particularly China -- a worldwide supply glut and a s
  
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• South Africa's rand edges up after mixed data

  31-12-2015 08:57 via news.yahoo.com
  
  South Africa's rand firmed up on Thursday after falling sharply overnight as the dollar extended gains on the back of a slide in global oil prices. By 0645 GMT the rand had risen 0.1 percent to 15.5400 per dollar, clawing back some ground after shedding more than one percent to 2-1/2 week lows in the previous session. The rand is on track to end 2015 more than 35 percent weaker against the dollar, with Africa's most advanced economy battered by severe electricity shortages, drought and the shock
  
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• Nigeria's forex reserves decline 15.61 pct to $29.13 bln yr/yr by Dec 29

  31-12-2015 08:56 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Nigeria's foreign exchange reserves declined by 15.61 percent year-on-year to $29.13 billion by Dec. 29, from $34.52 billion a year ago, data from the central bank showed on Thursday. The forex reserves of Africa's biggest economy and top crude exporter also dropped by 2.6 percent in one month from $29.91 billion a month earlier. The forex reserves fell to their lowest since July 1, 2015 when they stood at $29.07 billion because the central bank has been using the reserves to support the ailing
  
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