Finance news

• S&P 500, U.S. crude prices end at 2016 highs

  11-03-2016 23:53 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 ended at its highest level of the year on Friday as oil prices climbed further and investors reassessed this week's stimulus measures by the European Central Bank.
  
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• North Ireland deputy leader calls for unity vote if Britain leaves EU

  11-03-2016 23:39 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Britain should commit to holding a vote to unite Ireland if its citizens choose to leave the European Union in a referendum in June, Northern Ireland's nationalist deputy first minister said on Friday.  A so-called "Brexit" would represent a "political and economic game changer" for the island of Ireland, Martin McGuinness of the Sinn Fein party said, calling for an immediate border poll if Britain voted to leave. Sinn Fein, which is predominantly supported by Catholic Nationalists who rema
  
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• Stock market extends rally to a 4th week as energy recovers

  11-03-2016 23:35 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — A jump in crude oil and a rise in European markets set off a rally in U.S. stocks to cap a four-week winning streak for major indexes.
  
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• Charges, threat of jail cast Brazil's Lula in familiar role: martyr

  11-03-2016 23:10 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Paulo Prada RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Criminal charges and a request by prosecutors to jail Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva are putting the former Brazilian president and leftist icon back in a role he has long relished: that of the martyr. Last week, after federal police took him into custody briefly for questions about a far-reaching graft probe around Brazil's state-run oil company, Lula said he "felt like a prisoner" and urged leftist organizations, from landless peasants to labor union
  
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• ECB stimulus, firmer oil push S&P 500 to 2016 high

  11-03-2016 23:03 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Investors shook off skepticism over the ECB's stimulus package disclosed on Thursday, which was overshadowed by signals of an end to rate cuts, said Eric Kuby, chief investment officer at North Star Investment Management Corp in Chicago. Friday's bullish session was also strengthened by steadying oil prices, which have remained closely correlated with equities throughout the year. U.S. crude was up almost 2 percent and Brent was above $40 per barrel after the International Energy Agency said oil
  
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• Washington, D.C. agency cannot agree to Pepco, Exelon proposals on merger

  11-03-2016 22:44
  
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Washington, D.C. agency that advocates for utility customers rejected on Friday a possible compromise that would allow power company Exelon Corpto merge with Pepco Holdings...
  
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• MF Global bondholders reach $29.8 mln settlement with banks

  11-03-2016 22:32
  
  NEW YORK, March 11 (Reuters) - Investors who lost money when
  Jon Corzine's MF Global Holdings Ltd collapsed reached a $29.83
  million settlement with five underwriters that helped the
  futures...
  
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• Vivendi ups Telecom Italia stake to just below bid threshold

  11-03-2016 22:28
  
  MILAN (Reuters) - French media group Vivendihas raised its stake in Telecom Italiato 24.9 percent, just below the 25 percent threshold that would force it to launch a takeover bid, according to a...
  
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• GM buys Cruise Automation to speed self-driving car strategy

  11-03-2016 22:00
  
  (Reuters) - General Motors Coannounced Friday it is buying Cruise Automation, a San Francisco self-driving vehicle startup, the latest move by the auto company as it competes with Silicon Valley to...
  
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• Oil, stocks rise; IEA sees bottom for oil market

  11-03-2016 21:56 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Caroline Valetkevitch NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Friday, boosting world stock markets, after an energy organization said the oil market may have found a floor. Brent crude oil registered a third straight week of gains after the report by the International Energy Agency, which also said production declines were picking up in the United States and other non-OPEC producers, and an increase in supply from Iran was less dramatic than expected. Partly offsetting the bullish comments, G
  
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• Intel plans to sell part of venture capital unit: Bloomberg

  11-03-2016 20:37
  
  (Reuters) - Intel Corp is looking to sell part of its venture capital portfolio, assets that could be worth as much as $1 billion, Bloomberg reported.
  
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• Record Canadian household debt ratio fuels concern, warnings

  11-03-2016 20:34 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Leah Schnurr and Matt Scuffham OTTAWA/TORONTO (Reuters) - Canadian household debt compared to income rose to another record high in the fourth quarter, reinforcing fears that borrowers and the broader economy will suffer a painful reckoning when interest rates eventually rise. Years of low borrowing costs and rising home prices have contributed to Canadians taking on more debt since the financial crisis, with the central bank keeping interest rates low to support growth. The ratio of househol
  
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• Mexico's Carstens says 'implicitly' weighing risks of Trump victory

  11-03-2016 20:10 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Mexico central bank Governor Agustin Carstens is "implicitly" factoring in the chances of U.S. Republican candidate Donald Trump becoming president as the bank analyzes risk to the Mexican economy, Bloomberg reported on Friday. In a local TV interview due to be shown at 8.30 pm Mexico City time (9:30 p.m. ET/0230 GMT), Carstens was asked whether the chances of Trump, a persistent critic of the North American Free Trade Agreement, becoming the next president of the United States was seen in the b
  
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• Wall Street rally boosted by higher oil prices

  11-03-2016 19:37 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Wall Street rallied on Friday as steadying oil drove energy shares, putting the three major indexes on track for their fourth straight weekly gains for the first time in more than four months. U.S. crude pared some of their gains, but were up more than 2 percent after the International Energy Agency said oil prices might have bottomed as output in the United States and other non-OPEC countries was beginning to fall quickly. Investors took a positive view of European Central Bank's new stimulus p
  
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• Treasury names Cameron's Europe advisor as permanent secretary

  11-03-2016 19:03 via news.yahoo.com
  
  A top advisor to Prime Minister David Cameron was named as the most senior civil servant at the finance ministry on Friday, a few weeks after helping to secure Cameron's deal for changes to Britain's status in the European Union Tom Scholar, who has also acted as a senior British envoy to the Group of Seven and Group of 20 countries, will replace Nick Macpherson as the Treasury's permanent secretary, one of the most influential positions within Britain's public sector. Chancellor George Osborne
  
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• Wall St rally boosted by higher oil prices

  11-03-2016 18:58 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Wall Street rallied on Friday as steadying oil drove energy shares, putting the three major indexes on track for their fourth straight weekly gains in more than four months. U.S. crude pared some of their gains, but were up more than 2 percent after the International Energy Agency said oil prices might have bottomed as output in the United States and other non-OPEC countries was beginning to fall quickly. Investors took a positive view of European Central Bank's new stimulus package unveiled on
  
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• Brazil's Rousseff says not resigning in political crisis

  11-03-2016 18:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff rejected calls for her resignation on Friday midst a political storm deepened by a massive corruption scandal and blamed her opponents for causing a crisis that has damaged the Brazilian economy. "No one has the right to ask for the resignation of a legitimately elected president," Rousseff told reporters, indicating she has no intention of quitting despite Brazil's worst economic recession in 25 years. Rousseff said Finance Minister Nelson Barbosa's position in
  
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• EU pact to establish full ties as Cuba's thaw with West progresses

  11-03-2016 18:38 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Nelson Acosta HAVANA (Reuters) - The European Union and Cuba signed an agreement in Havana on Friday to establish normal relations, bringing the Communist-run island further into the international fold and paving the way for full economic cooperation with the 28-member bloc. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez and EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini witnessed the signing of the pact, which will replace a policy imposed by Europe 20 years ago that pushed for changes to Cuba's one-par
  
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• Britain's FTSE recovers from two-week low as banking stocks rally

  11-03-2016 17:48
  
  * Resources stocks up, tracking commodities prices (Adds closing prices)
  
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• Russian accused by U.S. of spy ring role pleads guilty

  11-03-2016 16:38 via news.yahoo.com
  
  A Russian citizen whom U.S. authorities accused of posing as a banker while participating in a New York City spy ring that sought to collect economic and other intelligence pleaded guilty to a criminal conspiracy charge on Friday. Evgeny Buryakov, 41, admitted guilt in federal court in Manhattan less than a month before he was set to face trial for failing to register as an agent of the Russian government and conspiring to act as an agent without notifying U.S. authorities. Buryakov, who worked
  
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• Bulgaria markets Black Sea resorts as tourists seek safe haven

  11-03-2016 16:32 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Maria Sheahan BERLIN (Reuters) - Bulgaria is showing off its Black Sea resorts and lush nature at this year's ITB travel trade fair in hopes of attracting tourists scared away from formerly popular destinations such as Egypt and Tunisia following militant Islamist attacks. "Expectations are so great that many hotel operators are concerned about whether they'll have enough beds," Plamen Bakalov, Consul for Economic Affairs at Bulgaria's consulate in Frankfurt, told Reuters at ITB, the world's
  
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• European Union and Cuba sign agreement to normalize relations

  11-03-2016 16:26 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The European Union and Cuba inked an agreement on Friday to normalize relations, paving the way for the 28-member bloc to establish full economic cooperation and aid with the Communist-run Caribbean island. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez witnessed the signing of the pact at a ceremony in Havana along with EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini. "This is a historic day for bilateral relations," Mogherini said.
  
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• BP escapes U.S. lawsuits over post-Gulf spill drilling ban

  11-03-2016 16:21 via news.yahoo.com
  
  U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans agreed with BP that federal law absolved the British oil company from liability for the Obama administration's decision to halt drilling and impose a moratorium on permits for new wells. The decision issued late on Thursday removes one of BP's last legal overhangs from the April 20, 2010 blowout of its Macondo well and the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, a disaster that killed 11 workers. Barbier agreed with BP that the company's lia
  
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• ECB will act until inflation target is reached: Liikanen

  11-03-2016 16:12 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The European Central Bank has not run out of tools to boost the economy and will continue to support it until it reaches its inflation target of almost 2 percent, ECB Governing Council member Erkki Liikanen said on Friday. Liikanen, who is also the Finnish central bank governor, joined a chorus of policymakers defending the ECB and its latest stimulus package after President Mario stunned investors on Thursday by appearing to rule out further rate reductions. "We did what was essential in this s
  
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• Energy stocks lead Wall St higher as oil rises

  11-03-2016 16:03 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Wall Street rose on Friday, propelled by energy stocks as oil held on to gains. Crude prices rose more than 2 percent, after the International Energy Agency said oil prices might have bottomed as output in the United States and other non-OPEC countries was beginning to fall quickly. "It looks like we're going to close the week on a high note as people are rethinking Draghi's powerful stimulus program," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at First Standard Financial in New York.
  
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• Finnish labor deal could be clinched next week: Rehn

  11-03-2016 15:57 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Finland's government sees good prospects for unions and employers' representatives to reach a comprehensive labor reform deal next week, Economic Affairs minister Olli Rehn said on Friday. A handful of Finnish unions have opposed a proposed labor pact, a centerpiece of government efforts to haul the economy decisively out of recession by making exports more competitive. Rehn, in an interview with Reuters Global Markets Forum, said: "We have a good chance of concluding the comprehensive deal next
  
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• London Mayor Johnson says sterling would flourish if Britain leaves EU

  11-03-2016 15:43 via news.yahoo.com
  
  London Mayor Boris Johnson, who opposes British membership of the European Union, said on Friday that sterling would benefit if Britain voted to leave the bloc in a June 23 referendum. Sterling fell more than five cents against the U.S. dollar in the week following Johnson's Feb. 21 announcement that he was opposing Prime Minister David Cameron and would campaign to leave the European Union. Speaking at an "Out" campaign event, Johnson said sterling would continue to fluctuate but that if Britai
  
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• Europe rights body accuses Poland of threatening democracy

  11-03-2016 15:43 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Ilaria Polleschi and Wiktor Szary VENICE/WARSAW (Reuters) - A pan-European rights body accused Poland's conservative government on Friday of undermining democracy in east Europe's largest economy by crippling its top court, a move that could put Poland on a collision course with the European Union. Since sweeping to power last October, the eurosceptic Law and Justice (PiS) party has enacted a law increasing the number of judges at the constitutional court required to make rulings and changing
  
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• UPDATE 2-SunEdison names successor to CFO

  11-03-2016 15:34
  
  March 11 (Reuters) - Troubled U.S. solar company SunEdison Inc named a successor to Chief Financial Officer Brian Wuebbels, who will take over as chief executive of its two units.
  
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• Hotel industry set for more M&A deals after busy 2015

  11-03-2016 15:25
  
  BERLIN (Reuters) - A fragmented hotel industry is set for more consolidation this year by owners seeking scale to better resist shocks to the economy and to improve their bargaining position with...
  
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• Wall Street set to open higher as oil gains

  11-03-2016 14:57 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Markets initially gave a rousing reception to the ECB's program, which included expanding its asset-buying plan to 80 billion euros a month, but the mood turned sour after President Mario Draghi said further cut rates were unlikely. Wall Street swung between gains and losses on Thursday and closed little changed as investors digested the mixed message. "It looks like we're going to close the week on a high note as people are rethinking Draghi's powerful stimulus program," said Peter Cardillo, ch
  
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• Jessica Alba's Honest Co rejects report on detergent ingredients

  11-03-2016 14:16 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - Honest Co, the shopping startup co-founded by actress Jessica Alba, rejected a Wall Street Journal report that the company used ingredients in its laundry detergent it had pledged to avoid.
  
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• South Africa's debt already priced for junk as growth slows

  11-03-2016 13:43 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - An expected cut in South Africa's credit ratings to "junk" grade is already being priced in by investors who are increasingly shunning the country's financial assets. Africa's most industrialised economy is seen at risk of losing its investment-grade status because of persistently weak growth and large deficits. Many investors are also unhappy with President Jacob Zuma's handling of the economy.
  
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• Shares bounce, euro fades after savage ECB reaction

  11-03-2016 13:43 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The euro steadied and European shares and bonds rebounded on Friday after being savaged on Thursday when the European Central Bank signaled it was unlikely to cut its negative interest rates further in the wake of a huge new stimulus plan. Markets were starting to focus on what they saw as the positive features of the ECB policy package, with surges to 2016 highs for both U.S. oil prices and China's yuan also boosting confidence. Wall Street was expected to open around 1 percent higher while Eur
  
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• Global shares bounce, euro fades after savage ECB reaction

  11-03-2016 13:43 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Marc Jones LONDON (Reuters) - The euro steadied and European shares and bonds rebounded on Friday after being savaged on Thursday when the European Central Bank signalled it was unlikely to cut its negative interest rates further in the wake of a huge new stimulus plan. Markets were starting to focus on what they saw as the positive features of the ECB policy package, with surges to 2016 highs for both U.S. oil prices and China's yuan also boosting confidence. Wall Street was expected to open
  
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• Germany has 'great trust' in VW to clear up all affairs

  11-03-2016 12:53 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Germany's Economy Ministry has "great trust" that carmaker Volkswagen will clear up all allegations and achieve a solution with U.S. authorities in the car emissions probe. "We see that VW is a very strong, important company and have greatest trust that it will handle the whole informing process in the best manner and that it will yield good results in the USA," a spokesman of the Economy Ministry told a regular news conference on Friday. Volkswagen faces an ongoing U.S. criminal investigation.
  
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• Kia eyes steady sales, increased market share in Russia

  11-03-2016 12:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Kia Motors plans to maintain sales in Russia this year and build on its position as the country's third-largest carmaker by increasing share of the ailing market, the company's Russian managing director told Reuters. As Russia's car market has crumbled, hit by a steep economic downturn fueled by lower oil prices and Western sanctions, Kia has used lower prices to fend off competition and increase its market share to 10.2 percent. The Korean carmaker now plans to sell 160,000 vehicles in Russia t
  
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• Exclusive: Shell names Lazard to advise on $30 billion asset sales

  11-03-2016 12:33
  
  LONDON (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell has appointed investment bank Lazard to advise it on a $30 billion asset sale program following its acquisition of BG Group last month, several banking and...
  
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• As hard times hit, Egyptians at last find fault with Sisi

  11-03-2016 12:28 via news.yahoo.com
  
  "Not one single issue has been solved since you took over." After years of hearing little but enthusiastic applause for Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and vilification of his enemies, the tens of millions of Egyptians who watch the country's pugnacious talk shows are suddenly being presented with the president's faults. The former military chief who overthrew the Muslim Brotherhood to take power in 2013 is facing the first sustained public criticism of his rule. After years of publicly lionizing Sisi as t
  
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• European stock markets surge on renewed ECB hopes

  11-03-2016 12:00 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Europe's main stock markets rebounded with sharp gains on Friday, extending the volatility seen since the European Central Bank unveiled fresh stimulus measures the day before. Frankfurt's DAX 30 index rose by 2.5 percent and the Paris CAC 40 index briefly went above 3.0 percent in late morning deals, while Madrid's IBEX 35 won almost 3.0 percent and the Milan FTSE MIB surged nearly 4.0 percent. Outside the eurozone, London's benchmark FTSE 100 index gained 1.6 percent compared with Thursday's c
  
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• Deutsche Bank says first quarter challenging for entire sector

  11-03-2016 10:29 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Deutsche Bank has warned that volatile financial markets in the first quarter, normally a strong season for banks, posed a challenge for the entire sector. "Deutsche Bank is no exception to this. Deutsche Bank's comments chime with those of other investment banks, which have cautioned investors to expect lower results for the first three months as customers issued less debt and equity on fears about the state of the global economy.
  
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• Three years on, pope leaves Catholic conservatives feeling marginalized

  11-03-2016 10:14 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Philip Pullella and Tom Heneghan VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Three years after the election of Pope Francis, Roman Catholic conservatives are growing increasingly worried that he is quietly unraveling the legacy of his predecessors. Francis' popularity with most Catholics, and legions of non-Catholics, has given him the image of a grandfatherly parish priest who understands how difficult it sometimes is to follow Church teachings, particularly those on sexual morality. Conservatives worry that b
  
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• Asian markets see afternoon rebound after ECB move

  11-03-2016 08:45 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Asian markets ended the week on a high Friday, with an afternoon rally erasing morning losses as investors changed tack on their view of comments from the European Central Bank head hinting its latest rate cut could be its last. Regional markets sank into the red soon after opening as ECB boss Mario Draghi's statement was seen an indication of the limitations on finance chiefs to drag the global economy out of its long-running torpor. The bank on Thursday announced a cut in its deposit rate furt
  
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• China outdoing developed nations in controlling pollution: minister

  11-03-2016 07:59 via news.yahoo.com
  
  China, often hit by choking smog that blankets the populous east and north, is doing a better job at controlling pollution than developed countries at similar stages of development, the environment minister said on Friday. China has been under increasing pressure to halt pollution of its air, soil and water caused by more than three decades of economic growth, and at this year's full session of parliament it promised to cap energy use and draft new laws to decontaminate its soil. Beijing frequen
  
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• Russia's Rostec sees 2016 govt defence orders cut by around 10 pct - WSJ interview

  11-03-2016 07:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Russia's government will cut its defence orders by about 10 percent this year, Sergei Chemezov, the head of Russia's industrial conglomerate Rostec, said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal published on Friday.
  
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• China steelmaker to cut up to 50,000 jobs

  11-03-2016 06:52 via news.yahoo.com
  
  One of China's largest steelmakers plans to shed up to 50,000 jobs, its chairman said, as the country struggles to reduce overcapacity while growth in the world's second-largest economy slows.
  
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• PRESS DIGEST - Wall Street Journal - March 11

  11-03-2016 06:38 via news.yahoo.com
  
  March 11 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories inthe Wall Street Journal. Reuters has not verified these storiesand does not vouch for their accuracy. - Two independent lab tests commissioned by the Wall StreetJournal determines use of sodium lauryl sulfate, or SLS, inlaundry detergent produced by Jessica Alba's Honest Co, aningredient it pledged to avoid. (http://on.wsj.com/1Rap44A) - TransCanada Corp, the company behind thecontroversial Keystone XL oil pipeline project, is in takeovert
  
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• China says slowing economy won't stop anti-pollution efforts

  11-03-2016 05:23 via news.yahoo.com
  
  BEIJING (AP) — China will not go back to its era of pursuing economic growth at the expense of the environment despite its slowing economy, the country's environment minister said Friday.
  
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• 'You won't get rid of me!' Venezuela's Maduro tells foes

  11-03-2016 02:25 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Andrew Cawthorne CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro insisted on Thursday his opponents would fail in a new push to oust him this year and end 17 years of socialist rule in the OPEC nation. Having won control of the National Assembly in a vote at the end of 2015, the energized opposition alliance has launched a multi-pronged campaign to remove Maduro via street rallies, a recall referendum and a constitutional amendment. Speaking on state TV, the 53-year-old president moc
  
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• Barclays Africa scaling back not linked to economic woes: CEO

  11-03-2016 01:30 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Barclays's plan to scale back its Africa operations is linked to global regulatory challenges, not unfavourable economic conditions on the continent, the bank's Africa chief executive has told AFP. "We did not make this decision because of the economic cycle," Maria Ramos said in an interview in Johannesburg late Thursday. The British lender early this month announced that it will sell down its 62.3 percent interest in Barclays Africa to just 20 percent over the next two to three years, fuelling
  
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