Finance news

• Massachusetts senator's office raided amid ethics probe

  17-02-2016 23:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Federal agents on Wednesday raided the private office of a Massachusetts state senator who is the subject of an ethics inquiry after reports that he received free dry cleaning, an FBI spokeswoman said, but it was not known if the two were related. Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service agents conducted a court-authorized raid of the law office of state Senator Brian Joyce, a Democrat, FBI spokeswoman Kristen Setera said in an e-mail. Joyce came under fire after the Boston G
  
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• Venezuela announces first gasoline hike in 20 years

  17-02-2016 23:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Caracas (AFP) - Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro said Wednesday he would raise the price of gasoline for the first time in 20 years, as he faces growing pressure to ease an economic crisis.
  
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• Jack in the Box loses diners to rivals; shares sink

  17-02-2016 23:34
  
  Feb 17 (Reuters) - Hamburger chain Jack in the Box Inc reported a lower-than-expected profit as fewer customers visited its restaurants, making it the latest chain to be hit by a price war sparked by...
  
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• Marvell Technology to pay Carnegie Mellon $750 mln over patents

  17-02-2016 23:29
  
  Feb 17 (Reuters) - Marvell Technology Group Ltd on Wednesday said it will pay Carnegie Mellon University $750 million to settle a nearly seven-year-old lawsuit accusing it of infringing two hard disk...
  
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• Politics nothing to do with curbing big banks: Fed's Kashkari

  17-02-2016 23:03 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The newest Federal Reserve policymaker dismissed concerns that his call for radical action to rein in "too big to fail" banks was a partisan move, and instead said it highlighted the U.S. central bank's independence from politics. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari, a Republican and former Treasury official under the Bush and Obama administrations, said on Tuesday existing rules to protect taxpayers and the economy from a bank failure fall short, and he urged Congress to consider breaking u
  
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• Wall Street rallies for third session, led by energy shares

  17-02-2016 22:50 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. stocks tallied their third straight session of gains on Wednesday, led by energy shares as oil prices jumped, while better-than-expected economic data helped allay growth fears. Oil prices rose 7 percent on Wednesday after Iran voiced support for a Russia-Saudi-led move to freeze production. "Oil continues to directionally trade with equities and oil prices are higher, and more important, economic data recently has been better than feared," said Jason Ware, chief investment officer at Albio
  
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• Venezuela cautiously hopeful for rise in oil price

  17-02-2016 22:48 via news.yahoo.com
  
  President Nicolas Maduro said Wednesday he hoped a pledge by big oil producers to freeze output would boost the falling crude prices that have stricken Venezuela's economy. Saudi Arabia, Russia and Qatar joined Venezuela on Tuesday in saying they were prepared to freeze output if other major producers do the same. Venezuela has the biggest known oil reserves in the world.
  
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• Wall St. rallies for third session, led by energy shares

  17-02-2016 22:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Oil prices rose 7 percent on Wednesday after Iran voiced support for a Russia-Saudi-led move to freeze production. "Oil continues to directionally trade with equities and oil prices are higher, and more important, economic data recently has been better than feared," said Jason Ware, chief investment officer at Albion Financial Group in Salt Lake City.
  
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• Global downturn spurred Fed to consider changing rate path: minutes

  17-02-2016 22:30 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Jason Lange and Lindsay Dunsmuir WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal Reserve policymakers worried last month that a global slowdown and financial market selloff could hurt the U.S. economy and considered changing the central bank's planned interest rate hike path for 2016. Although most of the policymakers still expected to raise rates this year and even discussed a hike at the Jan. 26-27 policy meeting, they were divided over how to interpret the financial market volatility, according to the minu
  
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• Crude, data trigger third straight Wall Street rally

  17-02-2016 22:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks tallied their third straight session of gains on Wednesday, led by energy shares as oil prices jumped while better than expected economic data helped allay growth concerns. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 255.37 points, or 1.58 percent, to 16,451.78, the S&P 500 had gained 31.04 points, or 1.64 percent, to 1,926.62 and the Nasdaq Composite had added 98.11 points, or 2.21 percent, to 4,534.07. (Reporting by Lewis Krauskopf; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
  
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• Crude, data trigger third straight Wall St. rally

  17-02-2016 22:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks tallied their third straight session of gains on Wednesday, led by energy shares as oil prices jumped while better than expected economic data helped allay growth concerns.
  
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• S&P cuts Brazil deeper into junk territory in blow to Rousseff

  17-02-2016 22:04 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Alonso Soto BRASILIA (Reuters) - Standard & Poor's downgraded Brazil's credit rating deeper into junk territory on Wednesday, citing its failure to curb its fiscal deficit, in a surprise blow to President Dilma Rousseff`s bid to haul the economy out of its worst recession in decades. S&P cut Brazil's sovereign credit rating to BB from BB+ with a negative outlook, just five months after becoming the first agency to strip the country of its coveted investment grade. Standard & Poor'
  
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• Mexico cuts budget, interest rate

  17-02-2016 21:43 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Mexico's government announced budget cuts of nearly $7.3 billion Wednesday, with most of the savings at state-oil firm Pemex due to falling oil prices and global worries over China's economy. In a coordinated move, the central bank cut its key interest rate by 50 basis points to 3.75 percent to counter the peso's depreciation against the dollar.
  
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• S&P sends Brazil deeper into junk territory

  17-02-2016 21:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Standard and Poor's cut Brazil's already dire junk credit rating a further notch from BB+ to BB Wednesday, warning the world's seventh biggest economy faces worse to come. The new downgrade reflected the South American country's steep recession, rising inflation and vulnerability to a big drop in prices for iron ore, oil and agricultural products that form the backbone of its economy. In addition, Brazil has been crippled politically by gridlock in Congress and a protracted battle to impeach Pre
  
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• Bahrain says talking with lead managers after S&P downgrade

  17-02-2016 20:58 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Recasts with reaction to S&P downgrade) DUBAI, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Bahrain said on Wednesday that it was talking with the lead managers of its latest sovereign debt offer after Standard & Poor's downgraded its credit rating. S%P cut Bahrain to 'BB/B' with a stable outlook on Wednesday, citing lower oil price assumptions. Late on Tuesday, Bahrain upsized and launched a $750 million, two-part bond reopening, at the tighter end of its previous guidance.
  
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• Energy infrastructure companies, MLPs rally after new investments

  17-02-2016 20:44
  
  NEW YORK, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Shares of energy infrastructure-related companies rallied on Wednesday following news of Warren Buffett's sizable position in Kinder Morgan and other new investments in...
  
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• Williams shares pop as hedge funds pile in, ETE offer spread narrows

  17-02-2016 20:21
  
  Feb 17 (Reuters) - William Cos Inc's shares continued their surge on Wednesday, having jumped by nearly a fifth this week, narrowing the spread of its takeover offer by rival pipeline company Energy...
  
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• Minutes show Fed worried by global turmoil

  17-02-2016 20:19 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve policymakers expressed growing concerns at their meeting last month about potential threats to the U.S. economy, including turbulence in financial markets, plunging oil prices and slowing growth in China and other emerging markets.
  
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• Four in 10 German economists see migrants as drag on economy: poll

  17-02-2016 20:12 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Four in ten German economists believe the record number of migrants coming to the country are a drag on the economy, while only 23 percent view them as beneficial, a poll to be published on Thursday showed. Some 1.1 million migrants entered Germany last year, straining Chancellor Angela Merkel's right-left coalition government and overwhelming many local authorities. Studies published in late 2015 by Deutsche Bank and the German Institute for Economic Research predicted that, if they were integr
  
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• Fed policymakers discussed changing interest rate path: minutes

  17-02-2016 20:07 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Federal Reserve policymakers worried last month that tighter global financial conditions could hit the U.S. economy and considered changing their planned path of interest rate hikes in 2016. "If the recent tightening of global financial conditions was sustained, it could be a factor amplifying downside risks" to the economy, according to the minutes of the U.S. central bank's Jan. 26-27 policy meeting released on Wednesday. Most policymakers still expected to lift rates and even discussed whethe
  
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• UPDATE 2-China's Zoomlion bids for Terex, stokes U.S. national security fears

  17-02-2016 19:52
  
  Feb 17 (Reuters) - China's Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science and Technology Co Ltd confirmed on Wednesday it had made an offer for U.S. crane maker Terex Corp , a proposal that was opposed by at least...
  
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• Top U.S. hedge funds bet on Morgan Stanley and AIG

  17-02-2016 19:40
  
  NEW YORK/BOSTON (Reuters) - Top U.S. hedge fund management firms, including Dan Loeb's Third Point LLC, took new positions in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter, ahead of the bank's...
  
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• UPDATE 1-Argentine peso hits 15 per dollar, a record low -market sources

  17-02-2016 19:38
  
  BUENOS AIRES, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Argentina's official peso rate weakened 1 percent to close at a record low of 15 per U.S. dollar on Wednesday, market sources told Reuters.
  
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• U.S. DOJ is asking Apple for access to one device: White House

  17-02-2016 19:37
  
  WASHINGTON, Feb 17 (Reuters) - The court ruling ordering Apple Inc. to help unlock an iPhone belonging to one of the San Bernardino attackers represents just one case, the White House said on...
  
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• U.S. Fed awards $52.1 bln reverse repos

  17-02-2016 19:28
  
  NEW YORK, Feb 17 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday awarded $52.1 billion of one-day fixed-rate reverse repurchase agreements to 35 bidders at an interest rate of 0.25 percent, the New York...
  
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• GLOBAL MARKETS-Oil deal optimism fuels rally in crude, stocks

  17-02-2016 19:27
  
  * Peso firms after Mexican central bank move (Adds close of European markets, Mexican central bank intervention)
  
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• UPDATE 1-Gas company to be arraigned over Los Angeles area methane leak

  17-02-2016 19:22
  
  Feb 17 (Reuters) - Southern California Gas Co is to be arraigned on criminal charges on Wednesday over a huge methane leak near Los Angeles that forced thousands of residents from their homes,...
  
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• Standard and Poor's cuts Saudi Arabia's rating by two notches to A-

  17-02-2016 19:16 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Standard and Poor's cut Saudi Arabia's credit rating by two notches on Wednesday, saying low oil prices would have a considerable impact on the country's finances and economy. "In our view, the decline in oil prices will have a marked and lasting impact on Saudi Arabia's fiscal and economic indicators given its high dependence on oil," said the ratings agency in a statement. Global oil prices have crashed by some 70 percent from peaks above $100 per barrel in mid-2014, hurting the finances of oi
  
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• Illinois governor seeks power to balance state budget

  17-02-2016 19:13
  
  SPRINGFIELD, Ill., Feb 17 (Reuters) - Illinois Republican Governor Bruce Rauner on Wednesday called on Democrats who control the legislature to give him the power to balance the state's chronically...
  
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• MOVES-Jonathan Kennedy joins Standard Life Investments as director

  17-02-2016 19:11
  
  Feb 17 (Reuters) - Investment management firm Standard Life Investments, a part of Standard Life Plc, said it appointed Jonathan Kennedy director of change and technology.
  
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• WRAPUP 3-Strong U.S. industrial output bolsters growth picture

  17-02-2016 19:08
  
  WASHINGTON, Feb 17 (Reuters) - U.S. industrial production in January rose by the most in 14 months as manufacturing and utilities output increased, the latest sign the economy regained some ground...
  
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• UPDATE 2-Regulus hep C combo drug effective in mid-stage study

  17-02-2016 19:08
  
  * Drug combination shows effective response in hep c patients
  
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• Argentine peso hits 15 per dollar, new all time low -market sources

  17-02-2016 19:08
  
  BUENOS AIRES, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Argentina's official peso rate weakened to a new all-time low of 15 per U.S. dollar on Wednesday, market sources told Reuters.
  
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• US STOCKS-Wall St up as energy stocks gain from oil price rally

  17-02-2016 19:07
  
  * Indexes up: Dow 1.66 pct, S&P 1.51 pct, Nasdaq 2.11 pct (Updates to early afternoon)
  
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• UPDATE 3-Mexico hikes key rate, peso surges after surprise fx intervention

  17-02-2016 19:04
  
  MEXICO CITY, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Mexico's central bank unexpectedly raised its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points to 3.75 percent on Wednesday, sparking a rally in the long-battered peso...
  
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• Apple phone ruling reignites privacy vs law enforcement debate

  17-02-2016 19:02
  
  * Legal, political and technological fight over iPhone encryption
  
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• Shares of Brazil's Oi jump on report of possible capital injection

  17-02-2016 18:57
  
  SAO PAULO, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Shares of Brazilian telecommunications company Oi SA jumped as much as 19 percent on Wednesday following a report in newspaper Valor Economico of a possible capital...
  
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• Optimism over oil output deal powers European shares rally

  17-02-2016 18:55
  
  * RWE slumps after dividend scrapped (Adds details, updates prices)
  
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• Romanian government kicks off anti-poverty drive

  17-02-2016 18:50 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Romania's government kicked off a public debate on Wednesday on a plan to lift at least 580,000 people out of poverty over the next four years, targeting education and healthcare for underprivileged communities in an initial phase. Romania has made massive economic strides since it joined the European Union in 2007, but it remains one of the bloc's poorest states, with a tenth of its 20 million people living in poverty and more than 40 percent at risk of tipping into it. The cabinet of technocra
  
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• UPDATE 1-India antitrust body suspects Monsanto JV abused dominant position

  17-02-2016 18:46
  
  NEW DELHI, Feb 17 (Reuters) - India's antitrust regulator has ordered an investigation into a Monsanto joint venture, saying it suspected the company had abused its dominant position as a supplier of...
  
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• S&P lowers Saudi Arabia's rating to 'A minus/A-2'

  17-02-2016 18:43
  
  Feb 17 (Reuters) - Standard & Poor's cut its rating on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit to 'A minus/A-2' from 'A plus/A-1,' citing a fall in oil...
  
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• Twitter users back Apple in fight with U.S. over iPhone access

  17-02-2016 18:39
  
  Feb 17 (Reuters) - Edward Snowden and others on Twitter rallied on Wednesday in support of Apple Inc's opposition to a U.S. court order to help federal investigators by unlocking an iPhone used by...
  
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• U.S.-based taxable-bond funds mark 14th straight week of withdrawals -ICI

  17-02-2016 18:35
  
  By Trevor Hunnicutt NEW YORK, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Investors in U.S.-based mutual funds pulled $729 million from taxable-bond funds in the latest week, adding a 14th consecutive week to the...
  
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• Oil and China hopes fuel stocks rally

  17-02-2016 18:33 via news.yahoo.com
  
  London (AFP) - European stock markets and Wall Street swept higher Wednesday on higher oil prices and hopes of new Chinese economic stimulus measures, dealers said.
  
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• UPDATE 3-Noble Energy says looking to "monetize" assets amid crude slump

  17-02-2016 18:30
  
  * Says could look at monetizing midstream assets, stake in Tamar
  
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• Strong U.S. industrial output bolsters growth picture

  17-02-2016 18:26 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. industrial production in January rose by the most in 14 months as manufacturing and utilities output increased, the latest sign the economy regained some ground early in the year. While other data on Wednesday showed a surprise decline in housing starts last month, that was probably because of bad weather, especially in the Northeast and Midwest regions of the country. The first increase in industrial output in five months should help allay the fears of a recession that have roiled the stoc
  
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• Mexico cbank ups key rate in surprise move, gov't to cut spending

  17-02-2016 18:24
  
  MEXICO CITY, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Mexico's central bank is raising its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points to 3.75 percent following a sharp slide in the local peso, Governor Agustin Carstens...
  
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• Britain's FTSE lifted by recovery in Glencore

  17-02-2016 18:09
  
  * AstraZeneca sees new drug designated by FDA (Updates prices at close)
  
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• Iranian banks reconnected to SWIFT network after four-year hiatus

  17-02-2016 18:03 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Global transaction network SWIFT has reconnected a number of Iranian banks to its system, allowing them to resume cross-border transactions with foreign banks after the lifting of sanctions on Tehran, a SWIFT official said. Iran's re-entry on to the SWIFT system, four years after banks were cut off from the network, had became a political issue in the Islamic Republic in recent weeks. Some conservative parliamentary critics of President Hassan Rouhani had complained the reconnection was not occu
  
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• Head ruling heart - UK's pro-Europe chief plots hardest sale yet

  17-02-2016 16:54 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Sarah Young, James Davey and Kate Holton LONDON (Reuters) - Declaring "I'm a eurosceptic" may not be an obvious way to persuade Britons to stay in the European Union but as the leader of the 'In' campaign businessman Stuart Rose believes it is this pragmatism that will help him win the day. Tasked with combating the sound and fury of the 'out' campaign, Rose is putting his faith in the quiet common sense of the British people - statistics over sentiment, economics over emotion. Much is at sta
  
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