Finance news

• Dow, S&P 500 rally with energy; Alphabet drops

  03-02-2016 23:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - U.S. stocks staged a late-day rally on Wednesday as an 8-percent jump in oil prices lifted beaten-down energy shares and financials rebounded.
  
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• Morgan Stanley shuffles fixed income leadership: memo

  03-02-2016 23:25
  
  (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley has made a number of management changes within its fixed income division after promoting Sam Kellie-Smith to run the division in January.
  
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• Ukraine economy minister quits in blow to reform hopes

  03-02-2016 23:24 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Natalia Zinets KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian Economy Minister Aivaras Abromavicius quit on Wednesday saying his ministry was being hijacked by corrupt vested interests, dealing another blow to Western hopes that the country can reform itself. In his statement, Abromavicius singled out a close ally of President Petro Poroshenko, accusing him of blocking the ministry's work and pressing for powerful jobs for placemen, with the support of the president's office. Poroshenko later responded by urging
  
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• Contrarian hedge funds earn keep; momentum mutual funds, not so much: James Saft

  03-02-2016 23:21
  
  (Reuters) - Two thirds of hedge funds create genuine value through contrarian strategies, choosing well among cheap and beaten-down stocks, according to a new study of their holdings.
  
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• Venezuela black-market dollar breaks four-digit barrier

  03-02-2016 23:00 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Venezuela's bolivar currency fell below 1,000 to the dollar Wednesday, breaking the four-digit barrier for the first time amid a deepening economic crisis, according to a banned foreign exchange website. The dollar was trading at 1,003.23 bolivars, according to US-based website dolartoday.com, which President Nicolas Maduro accuses of being part of an "economic war" by right-wing interests on the nation's recession-hit economy. Venezuela uses exchange controls to ensure affordable prices for imp
  
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• Dow, S&P 500 rally with energy; Nasdaq dips

  03-02-2016 22:53 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - U.S. stocks staged a late-day rally on Wednesday as an 8-percent jump in oil prices lifted beaten-down energy shares and financials rebounded. The Nasdaq stayed weaker but ended well off the day's lows. Oil prices snapped a two-day rout as after investors took advantage of a weaker U.S. dollar.
  
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• U.S.-focused stock funds post biggest outflows in 6 weeks: ICI

  03-02-2016 22:31
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors in U.S.-based mutual funds pulled $6.2 billion out of funds that specialize in U.S. shares in the latest week, the biggest outflow in six weeks.
  
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• Dollar dives, helping boost oil; Dow, S&P gain

  03-02-2016 22:28 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Lewis Krauskopf NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar tumbled on Wednesday after comments from a Federal Reserve official and a soft services sector report suggested a slowing pace of rate hikes, sparking a rally in oil prices that also boosted U.S. equities. U.S. crude settled up 8 percent as the weakness in the dollar helped oil and other commodities priced in the currency. The Dow Jones industrials closed up 1.1 percent, helped by oil stocks, in a volatile day which saw the key index sway i
  
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• NYSE's July 8 halt pushed trading to other exchanges: U.S. SEC

  03-02-2016 22:18 via news.yahoo.com
  
  When the New York Stock Exchange came to a surprise standstill of more than three hours on July 8, trading simply migrated to other exchanges, according to an analysis released by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday. Trading halted at 11:32 a.m., raising fears that one of the world's largest stock exchanges had fallen prey to a cyber attack. "While the NYSE’s share of trading volume declined, other market centers - especially other exchanges - experienced unusually lar
  
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• Wall Street closes higher after late-day rally

  03-02-2016 22:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks staged a late-day rally to end higher on Wednesday as an 8-percent jump in oil drove up beaten-down energy shares and financials rebounded. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 182.98 points, or 1.13 percent, to 16,336.52, the S&P 500 gained 9.53 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,912.56 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 12.71 points, or 0.28 percent, to 4,504.24. (Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Nick Zieminski)
  
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• House lawmakers propose $1 billion in aid for struggling coal country

  03-02-2016 21:53 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The chair of the House of Representatives appropriations committee introduced a bill on Wednesday that would channel $1 billion to revitalize battered coal-producing communities. House Appropriations Chair Hal Rogers, a long-serving Kentucky Republican, said the RECLAIM Act would provide support to coal-producing communities hit by the decline of the industry to redevelop their economies. Under the bill, which he introduced with both Democrats and Republicans from Virginia, West Virginia and Pen
  
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• UPDATE 1-Creditors seek to put Abengoa's U.S. bioethanol unit into bankruptcy

  03-02-2016 21:23
  
  CHICAGO, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Creditors of Abengoa Bioenergy of
  Nebraska LLC asked a federal judge to put the U.S. affiliate of
  troubled Spanish renewable energy group Abengoa into
  bankruptcy because it...
  
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• Connecticut's governor says no return to pre-recession prosperity

  03-02-2016 21:05 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Edward Krudy NEW YORK (Reuters) - Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy delivered a downbeat address on Wednesday, outlining plans to slash government spending and admitting to "a visceral feeling" that there was no going back to the prosperity of pre-recession years. The short and somber address came on the heels of a presentation by Malloy's top budget official, who called for $570 million of reductions next year on top of millions in cuts and tax hikes in previous years. "Our national economy
  
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• US stocks languish on weak earnings; Chipotle, Yahoo down

  03-02-2016 20:15 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market is heading for its second loss in a row Wednesday, led by banks and retailers, which would stand to lose the most if the economy slows down.
  
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• Preliminary U.S. January truck orders down 48 percent: FTR

  03-02-2016 19:57 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. January Class 8 truck orders fell 48 percent on the year, preliminary data from freight transportation forecaster FTR showed, indicating that 2016 could be another weak year for truck makers. Amid uncertainty over U.S. economic growth and a lackluster performance for retailers in the fourth quarter, trucking companies have been holding back on buying new models.
  
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• Global business activity starts 2016 on weak note

  03-02-2016 19:26 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Global economic growth began 2016 on a weak note, surveys of business activity suggested on Wednesday, and with inflation remaining low central banks are seen under pressure to keep monetary policies easy. U.S. service sector activity slowed in January, suggesting economic growth weakened at the start of the first quarter even though the labor market remained resilient. The U.S. service sector purchasing managers' index (PMI) from data vendor Markit for Jan fell to 53.2, the lowest since October
  
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• U.S. services sector cooling; jobs market resilient

  03-02-2016 19:17 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Activity in the vast U.S. services sector slowed to a near two-year low in January, suggesting that economic growth weakened further at the start of the first quarter even as the labor market remains resilient. Spending cuts by energy firms, reeling from a collapse in oil prices, have also dragged on growth. Until recently, services sector strength had offered hope that the economy would weather both the domestic and global headwinds, which held gross domestic product growth to a 0.7 percent ann
  
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• Connecticut's governor says no going back to pre-recession prosperity

  03-02-2016 19:05 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy delivered a downbeat address on Wednesday, outlining plans to slash government spending and admitting to "a visceral feeling" that there was no going back to the prosperity of pre-recession years. The remarkably somber address came on the heels of a presentation by Malloy's top budget official, who called for $570 million of reductions next year on top of millions in cuts and tax hikes in previous years. "Our national economy, while making progress from the Gre
  
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• Wall Street pares losses as oil rally boosts energy stocks

  03-02-2016 18:39 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. stocks pared some of their losses in early afternoon trading on Wednesday as energy and materials stocks rose, driven by a 6 percent rally in crude oil prices. Earlier in the day, stocks fell after U.S. data showed that the economy's service sector expanded at a slower-than-expected rate, raising concerns that weakness in manufacturing was spreading to other areas of the economy. Tepid U.S. growth, falling oil prices, and fears regarding a China-led global slowdown have been major factors f
  
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• Europe stocks slump on rising oil stocks

  03-02-2016 18:39 via news.yahoo.com
  
  London (AFP) - Higher than expected oil stocks topping levels not seen since the 1930s and suggesting weak global economic demand helped push stock markets down Wednesday.
  
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• Wall St. pares losses as oil rally boosts energy stocks

  03-02-2016 18:38 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Earlier in the day, stocks fell after U.S. data showed that the economy's service sector expanded at a slower-than-expected rate, raising concerns that weakness in manufacturing was spreading to other areas of the economy. Tepid U.S. growth, falling oil prices, and fears regarding a China-led global slowdown have been major factors for a torrid start to the year for stocks.
  
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• European shares end lower on disappointing U.S data, weak earnings

  03-02-2016 18:23 via news.yahoo.com
  
  European shares fell sharply on Wednesday as disappointing economic data from the United States further undermined sentiment already hurt by weak earnings updates. Data showed the service sector in the ...
  
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• Asset manager Apollo unveils buyback as earnings disappoint

  03-02-2016 18:14
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Alternative asset manager Apollo Global Management LLCon Wednesday unveiled a $250 million share buyback after posting a disappointing 69 percent slide in fourth-quarter...
  
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• Goldman to create new credit finance group

  03-02-2016 18:07
  
  (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Incwill create a new credit finance group that combines its structured and leveraged finance divisions, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters on Wednesday.
  
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• Oil posts strong rebound as dollar falls back

  03-02-2016 17:55 via news.yahoo.com
  
  A top Federal Reserve official said the weakening outlook for the global economy and any further strengthening of the dollar could have "significant consequences" for the U.S. economy. The greenback fell 1.3 percent against a basket of currencies, while the euro gained 1.2 percent against the dollar.
  
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• Electronic dance promoter SFX Entertainment's CEO to resign

  03-02-2016 17:55
  
  WILMINGTON, Del, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Robert Sillerman will
  resign in the next 60 days from SFX Entertainment, the bankrupt
  electronic dance music promoter and concert organizer he
  founded, a company...
  
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• Bombardier plans reverse stock split as shares dive: sources

  03-02-2016 17:52
  
  MONTREAL (Reuters) - Canadian plane and train maker Bombardier Inc , whose stock has hit its lowest level in 25 years, will soon announce plans for a reverse stock split, two sources familiar with...
  
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• Caesars Entertainment unit proposes bankruptcy mediator

  03-02-2016 17:47
  
  Feb 3 (Reuters) - The bankrupt operating unit of Caesars
  Entertainment Corp on Wednesday proposed mediation in
  its Chapter 11 case in bankruptcy court in the Northern District
  of Illinois,...
  
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• Fed's Dudley to MNI: Tightening financial conditions a concern

  03-02-2016 17:31 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Financial conditions have tightened considerably in the weeks since the U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates and monetary policy makers will have to take that into consideration should that phenomenon persist, a top Fed official said on Wednesday. In addition, the weakening outlook for the global economy and any further strengthening of the dollar could have "significant consequences" for the health of the U.S. economy, William Dudley, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, tol
  
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• Autodesk to cut jobs by 10 percent as it transitions to cloud

  03-02-2016 17:13
  
  (Reuters) - AutoCAD design software maker Autodesk Incsaid it would cut about 10 percent of its workforce in the near term as part of a restructuring plan to accelerate its transition to the...
  
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• Dollar tumbles as Dudley comments, U.S. data suggest dovish Fed

  03-02-2016 17:10 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Sam Forgione NEW YORK (Reuters) - The dollar hit its lowest level against the euro since last October and wiped out recent gains against the Japanese yen on Wednesday amid growing skepticism that the Federal Reserve would be able to hike U.S. interest rates again this year. Analysts said comments from New York Fed President William Dudley, who told MNSI that financial conditions have tightened considerably in the weeks since the U.S. central bank raised interest rates and monetary policymaker
  
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• Lowe's wins over Canada's Rona with renewed takeover offer

  03-02-2016 17:00
  
  (Reuters) - U.S. home improvement retailer Lowe's Cos Incagreed to buy Canada's Rona Incin a deal valued at C$3.2 billion ($2.28 billion), winning over Rona's board with a far higher offer than...
  
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• Credit Suisse shares fall after Wells Fargo denies deal talks

  03-02-2016 16:55
  
  ZURICH (Reuters) - Credit Suisse'sshares dropped on Wednesday after Wells Fargodenied it was in talks to buy assets from the Swiss lender.
  
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• Steelmakers face another year of pain even as prices steady

  03-02-2016 16:54
  
  LONDON, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Global steelmakers face another
  year of pain with more capacity closures and job losses
  expected, even as steel prices start to stabilise thanks to
  painful production cuts,...
  
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• European shares hurt by weak earnings, disappointing U.S. data

  03-02-2016 16:42 via news.yahoo.com
  European shares fell on Wednesday as weak earnings from some leading companies weighed on markets, although Syngenta surged after ChemChina agreed a bid for the Swiss seeds and pesticides group. Markets ...
  
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• Activist fund urges Sharp to be more open on bailout choice

  03-02-2016 16:42
  
  TOKYO (Reuters) - A Singapore-based activist fund has urged struggling Japanese electronics maker Sharp Corpto better explain how it will decide between a bailout by a state-backed fund or a buyout...
  
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• Blow to Ukraine's reform hopes as economy minister quits

  03-02-2016 16:41 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Natalia Zinets KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian Economy Minister Aivaras Abromavicius quit on Wednesday saying his ministry was being hijacked by corrupt vested interests, dealing another blow to Western hopes that the country can reform itself. In his statement, Abromavicius singled out a close ally of President Petro Poroshenko, accusing him of blocking the ministry's work and pressing for powerful jobs for placemen, with the support of the president's office. There has been mounting public anger
  
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• Ukrainian official resigns, says reform efforts blocked

  03-02-2016 16:38 via news.yahoo.com
  
  MOSCOW (AP) — Ukraine's government, already under strain from political infighting, a frozen conflict in the country's east and a sagging economy, fell under scrutiny again on Wednesday when its economy minister handed in his resignation, saying the leadership routinely blocked his reform efforts.
  
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• US stocks give up an early gain and move lower; Yahoo down

  03-02-2016 16:12 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market has given up an early gain and is trading lower at mid-morning Wednesday as investors give a thumbs-down to a number of corporate earnings reports, including steep cutbacks at Yahoo. Chipotle Mexican Grill also plunged after saying an E. coli outbreak at its restaurants hurt sales more than anticipated.
  
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• Small country, big Universe - Luxembourg aims for space business

  03-02-2016 16:01 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Meredith McGrath BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Luxembourg, the tiny European Union state nestled between France, Germany and Belgium, has a big new goal - it wants to be a center for space mining. Primarily known for its fund management and private banking industry, the duchy is promoting a law that would make it the first in Europe to give legal clarity to the commercial exploitation of asteroids. "In the long-term, space resources could lead to a thriving new space economy and human expansion into t
  
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• Fed's Dudley to MNSI: Tightening financial conditions a concern

  03-02-2016 15:54 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Financial conditions have tightened considerably in the weeks since the U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates and monetary policy makers will have to take that into consideration should that phenomenon persist, a top Fed official said on Wednesday. In addition, the weakening outlook for the global economy and any further strengthening of the dollar could have "significant consequences" for the health of the U.S. economy, William Dudley, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, tol
  
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• Wall Street opens higher as oil recovers some losses

  03-02-2016 15:53 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. stocks opened higher on Wednesday as oil prices rose after two straight days of losses and data showed that the private sector added more jobs than expected in the United States. Oil prices pared some losses after Russia reiterated its openness to talking with OPEC about output cuts, which helped revive hope among investors that the world's largest producers could act to boost prices. Shares of oil majors Exxon and Chevron were up about 1 percent.
  
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• Zimbabwe's growth to remain flat, deflation to persist in 2016: World Bank

  03-02-2016 15:45 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Zimbabwe's economy will grow at 1.5 percent in 2016 and consumer prices would remain deflationary as global and local constraints limited a recovery, the World Bank said on Wednesday. The global lender said growth this year would be slower than the government's estimate of 2.7 percent, while inflation in the same year would average -1.7 percent. "We expect deflation to continue this year," World Bank senior economist for Zimbabwe Johannes Herderschee said during a presentation of the bank's outl
  
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• Strong company earnings, oil recovery send stocks higher

  03-02-2016 15:41 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are gaining ground in early trading as investors were encouraged by some strong company earnings reports and a pickup in the price of crude oil.
  
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• GM posts record profit in 2015, driven by North American sales

  03-02-2016 15:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Bernie Woodall and Joseph White DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Co rode sales of SUVs and pickup trucks in North America to a record profit in 2015, and reaffirmed its forecast to do better this year despite signs that vehicle sales are hitting a peak. Wall Street expected $1.21 per share, according to analysts polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Revenues were flat at $39.6 billion, it said on Wednesday. GM affirmed an earlier forecast that it will increase earnings per share, excluding one
  
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• Merck beats 4Q profit forecast, misses Street view on sales

  03-02-2016 14:23 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Merck & Co. posted an 87 percent drop in fourth-quarter profit compared with last year when the drugmaker had a huge gain from the sale of consumer health business. It beat Wall Street profit forecasts, but came up short of revenue.
  
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• China sets 2016 growth target at 6.5-7%

  03-02-2016 14:23 via news.yahoo.com
  
  China has set its growth target for this year at between 6.5 and 7 percent, the country's top economic planner said Wednesday, an acknowledgement that expansion will continue to weaken. In 2016 "downward pressure on economic growth still exists and will expand to some extent", Xu Shaoshi, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, told a press briefing. Xu said China would move to tackle chronic problems with overcapacity and underperforming "zombie" companies.
  
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• Zimbabwe's GDP growth to remain at 1.5 pct in 2016: World Bank

  03-02-2016 14:20 via news.yahoo.com
  
  HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's economy will grow at 1.5 percent in 2016, the World Bank said on Wednesday, much slower than the government's estimate of 2.7 percent. "The fundamentals for recovery are still strong but the headwinds are increasing. These headwinds and the brunt of economic corrections, both domestic and global will likely be most deeply felt by the poor," the World Bank said in a report. (Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe; Writing by Mfuneko Toyana; Editing by James Macharia)
  
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• South Africa's Barloworld Q1 earnings hurt by low equipment demand

  03-02-2016 14:08 via news.yahoo.com
  
  South Africa's Barloworld said a decline in mining equipment demand has affected its business negatively, sending its shares down 7 percent. Barloworld, the biggest dealer of Caterpillar mining trucks in Southern Africa, said trade in equipment over the first quarter had declined compared with the previous year due to continued weakness in commodity markets. "Reductions in capital expenditure and production cutbacks have negatively affected equipment demand from mining companies and contract min
  
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• Global stocks having another lackluster day on economy fears

  03-02-2016 14:06 via news.yahoo.com
  
  LONDON (AP) — Global stock markets were having another lackluster day Wednesday amid ongoing worries over the state of the world economy, which has piled the pressure on oil prices in particular.
  
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