Finance news

• US stocks edge mostly lower as energy prices plunge again

  01-02-2016 23:30 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market was able to recover from steep losses to close slightly lower on Monday as investors looked past another drop in the price of oil and renewed concerns about U.S. and Chinese economic growth. Oil and gas companies remained in the red.
  
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• S&P cuts BHP ratings, places Rio on watch negative

  01-02-2016 23:22 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Ratings agency Standard & Poor's on Tuesday lowered the credit ratings of BHP Billiton Ltd and put it on negative watch, while it placed Rio Tinto (LSE: RIO.L - news) on watch negative, both actions due to challenging market conditions for commodities. The ratings agency cut BHP's debt to A from A-plus and said a further downgrade by one notch will depend on BHP's dividend policy and capital expenditure guidance due out this month. S&P also placed rival company Rio Tinto's A-minus rating
  
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• NFL says CBS to share Thursday Night Football games with NBC

  01-02-2016 23:15 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - The National Football League will split the broadcast rights for its Thursday Night Football games between NBC and CBS Corp, a move that reportedly earns the League higher fees and underlines the increasing cost of content for TV networks. The NFL also said that it was in "active discussions" with potential partners for streaming rights for the games, but it did not name any specific company. The NFL will get about $450 million in total rights fees from CBS and NBC for broadcasting 1
  
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• TSX falls as drop in oil prices, dour data weigh

  01-02-2016 23:13 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Alastair Sharp TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index lost ground on Monday, with shares in energy companies weighing heavily as oil prices tumbled and weak economic data out of Europe and China exacerbated concerns about a global slowdown. The index's energy group retreated 3.7 percent, with pipeline operator Enbridge Inc off 3.5 percent at C$46.97 and Suncor Energy Inc falling 4.1 percent to C$31.83. Suncor, the country's largest oil and gas company, could provide further insight on
  
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• Exclusive: Pentagon to hike spending request to fund fight versus Islamic State

  01-02-2016 23:01 via news.yahoo.com
  
  President Barack Obama's administration will seek a significant increase in funding for the fight against Islamic State as part of its 2017 defense budget request, U.S. officials say, in another possible sign of U.S. efforts to intensify the campaign. The fiscal year 2017 Pentagon budget will call for more than $7 billion for the fight against Islamic State, a roughly 35 percent increase compared with the previous year's request to Congress, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity
  
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• Wall Street cuts losses to close flat; Alphabet jumps after hours

  01-02-2016 22:53 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Alphabet rose up 1.2 percent at $770.77 ahead of its results. Stocks had been lower earlier in the day as weak Chinese economic data added to concerns about a global slowdown and oil prices resumed their slide. "Maybe people were relieved that there wasn't a selloff and that kind of brought some buyers into the market," said Eric Kuby, chief investment officer, North Star Investment Management Corp in Chicago.
  
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• S&P downgrades Shell to A+/A-1; keeps door open to further downgrade

  01-02-2016 22:28 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Credit ratings agency Standard and Poors on Monday downgraded oil major Royal Dutch Shell Plc to A+/A-1 from AA-/A-1+ and put its long-term credit rating on creditwatch negative citing sliding oil prices. S&P said Shell's one-notch downgrade, driven by weaker forecasts for its credit metrics over 2016-2018 and slower profit improvements, excluded the ratings impact of its BG Group Plc acquisition. Shell had said it was prepared for a downgrade as a result of the BG deal.
  
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• Barracuda Networks hires Morgan Stanley to find potential buyers: BBG

  01-02-2016 22:23
  
  (Reuters) - Data storage services provider Barracuda Networks Inc is working with Morgan Stanley to look for potential buyers, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
  
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• Wall Street ends little changed after late rally

  01-02-2016 22:12 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks ended flat on Monday after a late-day rebound, helped by strong gains in Facebook and Alphabet . The Dow Jones industrial average fell 17.46 points, or 0.11 percent, to 16,448.84, the S&P 500 lost 0.98 points, or 0.05 percent, to 1,939.26 and the Nasdaq Composite added 6.41 points, or 0.14 percent, to 4,620.37. (Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Nick Zieminski)
  
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• TSX falls as oil price plunge weighs on energy, financials

  01-02-2016 22:09 via news.yahoo.com
  
  TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell on Monday as a plunge in crude oil prices and dour economic data weighed on the resource-linked market. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index unofficially closed down 147.76 points, or 1.15 percent, at 12,674.37. It included losses for heavyweight energy and financial sector stocks. (Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)
  
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• Alphabet reports 17.8 pct rise in revenue

  01-02-2016 22:04
  
  Feb 1 (Reuters) - Google parent Alphabet Inc reported a 17.8 percent rise in quarterly revenue on Monday, boosted by strong sales of advertising on mobile devices and YouTube.
  
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• U.S. brokerages consider revamping procedures to prevent bad trades

  01-02-2016 21:56
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. brokerages are taking steps to change the way their agents trade in an attempt to protect clients from the next big selloff.
  
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• Dollar weakens on views of dovish Fed after BoJ move, weak data

  01-02-2016 21:27 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Sam Forgione NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar fell against a basket of major currencies on Monday on the view that the Federal Reserve would not be able to hike interest rates as quickly as forecast this year given weak U.S. economic data and continued easing from the Bank of Japan. The dollar edged lower against the yen, hitting a session low of 120.670 yen after shooting 2 percent higher against the Japanese currency on Friday to a six-week high of 121.700 after the BoJ's surprise shift
  
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• U.S. fund Elliott says Hitachi offer for Ansaldo shares is too low

  01-02-2016 21:23
  
  MILAN (Reuters) - U.S. investment fund Elliott said on Monday that it considered Hitachi's offer to buy out minority shareholders in Italian train signaling group Ansaldo STS as too low and does not...
  
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• U.S. vulnerable to global slowdown, volatility: Fed's Fischer

  01-02-2016 20:59 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The U.S. economy could suffer, with inflation remaining too low, if recent volatility in financial markets persists and signals a slowdown in the global economy, the Federal Reserve's second-in-command said on Monday. Fed Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer, however, warned about jumping to conclusions given that some past bouts of financial market turbulence have not harmed the world's largest economy.
  
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• Shareholder asks Axiall to restart deal talks with Westlake Chemical

  01-02-2016 20:35
  
  Feb 1 (Reuters) - Axiall Corp shareholder Brigade Capital Management LP urged the chemicals company to consider selling itself and to restart discussions with Westlake Chemical Corp to negotiate a...
  
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• France calls on US to lift economic embargo on Cuba

  01-02-2016 20:18 via news.yahoo.com
  
  France called on the U.S. to lift the economic embargo against Cuba during a historic state visit Monday by the Caribbean island's president aimed at boosting economic relations between Havana and Paris. ...
  
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• Yahoo to cut 15 percent jobs, close several units: WSJ

  01-02-2016 20:12 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc Chief Executive Marissa Mayer is set to reveal cost-cutting plans that include slashing 15 percent of its workforce, or roughly 1,600 jobs, and closing several business units, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday. The plans are expected to be announced after Yahoo's fourth-quarter results on Tuesday, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. It did not specify which business units might be closed.
  
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• UPDATE 4-Abbott says to buy diagnostic test maker Alere for $5.8 bln

  01-02-2016 20:05
  
  Feb 1 (Reuters) - Abbott Laboratories said it would buy Alere Inc for $5.8 billion and become the leader in point-of-care diagnostic testing, a market that is growing as physicians increasingly adopt...
  
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• Tumbling oil prices hurt U.S. inflation bonds

  01-02-2016 20:05
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors who bet on U.S. inflation bonds making a comeback in 2016 were caught wrong-footed in January as oil prices tumbled to 12-year lows and fears about China and emerging...
  
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• UPDATE 2-Lumber Liquidators to pay $13.2 mln in fines to settle DoJ probe

  01-02-2016 19:55
  
  Feb 1 (Reuters) - Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc will pay about $13.2 million in fines and forfeitures to resolve a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the import of certain flooring...
  
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• Fed's Fischer: unclear if volatility reflects something 'real'

  01-02-2016 19:50 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The Federal Reserve's second-in-command said on Monday he is keen to figure out whether recent financial instability reflects something real, or merely the "animal spirits" of investors and markets. Fed Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer, speaking in New York, said the central bank needs to wait and see whether the market volatility and uncertainty that kicked in around the turn of the year will hurt the U.S. economy. The U.S. labor market is remarkably strong, he said, and inflation, while low, is n
  
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• REFILE-UPDATE 1-Lumber Liquidators to pay $13.2 mln in fines to settle DoJ probe

  01-02-2016 19:45
  
  Feb 1 (Reuters) - Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc will pay $13.2 million in fines and forfeitures to resolve a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the import of certain flooring products in...
  
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• REFILE-Lumber Liquidators to pay $13.2 mln in fines to settle DoJ probe

  01-02-2016 19:44
  
  Feb 1 (Reuters) - Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc will pay $13.2 million in fines and forfeitures to resolve a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the import of certain flooring products in...
  
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• Alberta unveils C$500 million plan to boost petrochemical industry

  01-02-2016 19:19 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Nia Williams CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - The Canadian oil-producing province of Alberta will offer C$500 million ($357 million) in royalty credits in a bid to attract investment in new petrochemical facilities and help diversify its ailing economy, the government said on Monday. It said the Petrochemicals Diversification Program is expected to support the construction of two or three new facilities that use propane or methane, components of natural gas, as feedstock to produce materials for
  
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• Global market turmoil could hit US growth: Fed's Fischer

  01-02-2016 19:06 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Washington (AFP) - Global market turmoil has the potential to weaken US economic growth and inflation, Federal Reserve Vice Chair Stanley Fischer said Monday.
  
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• Fed's Fischer says persistent volatility could harm U.S.

  01-02-2016 19:05 via news.yahoo.com
  
  If recent market volatility persists it could signal a slowdown in the global economy that hurts U.S. growth and inflation, the Federal Reserve's second-in-command said on Monday. Fed Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer, however, warned about jumping to conclusions given that some past bouts of financial market turbulence have not harmed the world's largest economy. "At this point, it is difficult to judge the likely implications of this volatility," Fischer said in a speech less than a week after the
  
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• ECB chief highlights risks to economy

  01-02-2016 19:03 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The European Central Bank is prepared to play its part in helping the economic recovery, president Mario Draghi said on Monday, but warned of risks to growth. "Growth prospects are slowly improving in advanced economies, but the outlook in emerging markets is more subdued. Overall, growth is low by historical standards," Draghi told lawmakers in the European Parliament in a debate broadcast live online.
  
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• BNP Paribas to simplify its wealth management structure

  01-02-2016 19:02
  
  PARIS (Reuters) - BNP Paribas, France's largest bank, plans to simplify the legal structure of its wealth management operations within the group in some of its branches in France and Asia, according...
  
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• Vice chair: Global concerns led Fed to keep rates unchanged

  01-02-2016 19:00 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — A top Federal Reserve official says increased concerns about the global economic outlook led the central bank to leave a key interest rate unchanged last week.
  
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• Wall Street lower on weak China data, fall in oil prices

  01-02-2016 18:47 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The data from China showed that the world's second-largest economy's manufacturing sector contracted in January at the fastest pace since 2012. Oil prices fell about 6 percent after the China data added to worries about demand and an OPEC source played down talk of an emergency meeting to stem the decline. Oil prices have fallen more than 70 percent since mid-2014.
  
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• ECB's Draghi: Risks from emerging markets have increased

  01-02-2016 18:45 via news.yahoo.com
  
  FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — European Central Bank head Mario Draghi has warned that the "downside risks" facing Europe's economy have increased due to the recent turmoil in emerging markets.
  
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• Major US airlines bring back the free in-flight-snack

  01-02-2016 18:34 via news.yahoo.com
  
  One after the other, United and American Airlines announced plans to bring back the in-flight snack for economy class passengers Monday, in a move that points to an industry-wide recovery following the brutal years of post 9/11 aviation. Beginning Monday, flyers on United Airlines morning flights will be offered Dutch waffle cookies, also known as stroopwafels, to go with their coffee or tea. American Airlines also announced plans to provide complimentary cookies or pretzels over the next few mo
  
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• Oil drops 6 percent on China data, slim chances of OPEC deal

  01-02-2016 18:27 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Devika Krishna Kumar NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil prices fell 6 percent on Monday as weak economic data from China, the world's largest energy consumer, reversed a four-day rally from last week and an OPEC source undermined chances of an emergency meeting to stem the decline. China's manufacturing sector contracted at the fastest pace since 2012 in January, adding to worries about demand from the world's second-biggest economy at a time when the market is already weighed down by a larg
  
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• ECB's Draghi says risks from emerging markets have increased

  01-02-2016 18:21 via news.yahoo.com
  
  FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — European Central Bank head Mario Draghi has warned that the "downside risks" facing Europe's economy have increased over the past couple of months in the wake of the turmoil in emerging markets.
  
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• European, US equities dip on Chinese economic gloom

  01-02-2016 18:19 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Europe's main stock markets and US stocks fell Monday after losses across most of Asia on poor Chinese data and a drop in oil prices.
  
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• Raul Castro visits France on historic trip as Cuba opens up

  01-02-2016 18:10 via news.yahoo.com
  
  PARIS (AP) — Cuban President Raul Castro is paying an historic state visit to France, seeking to develop business and tourism ties as the Caribbean island opens up its economy.
  
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• Energy shares drag FTSE down from 3-week highs

  01-02-2016 18:01
  
  LONDON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Britain's top equity index retreated from three-week highs on Monday, with commodity shares falling after a factory survey in China, a major consumer of metals and oils in...
  
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• Global factories parched for demand, need stimulus

  01-02-2016 17:54 via news.yahoo.com
  
  JPMorgan's Global Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), produced with Markit, came in at 50.9 last month, just above December's 50.7. The index has been above the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction since late 2012."The January PMI data signal that the upturn in global manufacturing remained lackluster at the start of 2016," said David Hensley, director of global economic coordination at JPMorgan. ASIAN WOES China was again the epicenter of disappointment.
  
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• Lumber Liquidators to pay $13.2 mln in fines to settle DoJ probe

  01-02-2016 17:39
  
  Feb 1 (Reuters) - Lumber Liquidators Inc will pay $13.2 million in fines and forfeitures to resolve a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the import of certain flooring products in 2013,...
  
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• Wall Street drops as weak Chinese data points to slowdown

  01-02-2016 17:35 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. stocks pulled back on Monday as weak Chinese economic data exacerbated concerns about a global slowdown and oil prices resumed their slide. Oil prices fell about 4 percent after the China data added to worries about demand and an OPEC source played down talk of an emergency meeting to stem the decline. Oil prices have fallen more than 70 percent since mid-2014.
  
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• UPDATE 2-Gol shares jump on news Brazil may lift foreign stake limit

  01-02-2016 17:35
  
  SAO PAULO/BRASILIA, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Shares of Brazilian airline Gol soared nearly 30 percent on Monday on higher ticket prices and a newspaper report that the government could scrap limits on...
  
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• Stocks retreat after grim China data, oil plummets

  01-02-2016 17:22 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By David Gaffen NEW YORK (Reuters) - Global markets got February off to a cautious start on Monday following a rocky January, with stocks and oil falling in the wake of weak manufacturing reports around the world. "My main question is will the U.S. economy be able to continue to grow just through the services sector when the manufacturing sector is having such a tough time?" asked Rabobank U.S.-focused economist Philip Marey. Oil prices, the other major factor influencing markets this year, also
  
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• Contest picks brains of technologists to fight forced labor

  01-02-2016 17:04 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Sebastien Malo NEW YORK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - A cell phone tool to survey working conditions of Ghanaian fishermen and a mobile system to collect forced labor data are among the finalists in a global competition to harness technology to identify enslaved workers in supply chains, organizers said on Monday. The contest, Rethink Supply Chains, aims to send a message that efforts to make supply chains transparent and slave-free create market opportunities, said Catherine Chen, director
  
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• US manufacturing weakens in line with China factory slowdown

  01-02-2016 16:37 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Factory activity in the world's two biggest economies — the United States and China — slowed in January, a discouraging trend for the global economy.
  
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• TSX down as oil prices fall, dour data weigh

  01-02-2016 16:27 via news.yahoo.com
  
  TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell on Monday as oil prices resumed their downward spiral and weak economic data out of Europe and China exacerbated concerns about a global slowdown. Oil fell as weak economic data from China, the world's largest energy consumer, weighed on prices and an OPEC source played down talk of an emergency meeting to stem the decline. The index's energy group retreated 3.9 percent, with pipeline operator Enbridge Inc off 3.4 percent at C$47, Suncor Energy
  
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• Clydesdale Bank prices London flotation, valued at 1.6 billion pound - bookrunner

  01-02-2016 16:09 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Clydesdale Bank [IPO-CLBP.L] has priced its London stock market listing at 180 pence a share, a bookrunner on the deal said on Monday, valuing the British lender at 1.6 billion pounds. The price for Clydesdale, currently owned by National Australia Bank , values the business towards the lower end of the original range of 175 pence to 235 pence a share.
  
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• FTSE retreats from 3-week high, commodities weigh

  01-02-2016 16:04
  
  LONDON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Britain's top equity index retreated from three-week highs on Monday, with commodity shares falling sharply after a factory survey in China, a major consumer of metals and...
  
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• Aetna tops 4Q expectations, but 2016 outlook falls short

  01-02-2016 16:00 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Aetna wrapped up 2015 with a 38-percent surge in fourth quarter earnings but chased its better-than-expected performance with 2016 guidance that misses Wall Street forecasts.
  
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• Wall Street starts Feb in the red after weak Chinese data

  01-02-2016 15:47 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. stocks opened lower on Monday, starting February on a dour note as weak economic data out of China exacerbated concerns about a global slowdown and oil prices resumed their downward spiral. The data from China showed that the world's second-largest economy's manufacturing sector contracted in January at the fastest pace since 2012. Oil prices fell after the China data added to worries about demand and an OPEC source played down talk of an emergency meeting to stem the decline.
  
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