Finance news

• Brazil opposition lawmakers demand Rousseff resignation during session

  16-03-2016 23:49 via news.yahoo.com
  
  BRASILIA (Reuters) - Dozens of lawmakers opposed to Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff chanted "resign" at a Congressional session late on Wednesday, in a sign of rising political tensions in Latin America's largest economy. The lawmakers gathered around a microphone interrupted the session to demand Rousseff's resignation, according to images broadcast live by news channel GloboNews. Rousseff's administration is struggling with fallout from a sweeping corruption probe, known as "Operation Car W
  
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• FedEx rides online shopping to beat Wall Street forecasts

  16-03-2016 23:32 via news.yahoo.com
  
  DALLAS (AP) — FedEx rode the growth in online shopping to beat Wall Street expectations for the holiday season, although profit fell 19 percent because of legal bills and acquisition costs.
  
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• Wells Fargo CEO's pay unchanged at $19.3 million

  16-03-2016 23:05
  
  (Reuters) - Wells Fargo & Co Chairman and Chief Executive John Stumpf's 2015 compensation was unchanged from a year earlier.
  
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• Fed holds steady, eyes two rate hikes this year

  16-03-2016 22:52 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday and indicated that moderate U.S. economic growth and "strong job gains" would allow it to tighten policy this year, with fresh projections showing policymakers expected two quarter-point hikes by the year's end, half the number seen in December. Inflation picked up in recent months," the Fed said in a policy statement in which it kept the target range for its overnight lending rate at 0.25 percent to 0.50 percent. Fed policymakers proje
  
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• US stocks rise, dollar falls on cautious Fed outlook

  16-03-2016 22:48 via news.yahoo.com
  
  New York (AFP) - US stocks gained and the dollar fell Wednesday after the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged and offered an economic outlook more dovish than many expected.
  
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• Wall Street closes at 2016 high as Fed signals fewer rate hikes

  16-03-2016 22:20 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Laila Kearney NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 closed at its highest level of the year on Wednesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve left interest rates untouched and signalled fewer rate hikes in coming months. The Fed indicated moderate U.S. economic growth and "strong job gains" would allow it to tighten policy this year with fresh projections showing policymakers expected two quarter-point hikes by the year's end, half the number seen in December. The decision to keep rates steady was i
  
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• Wall St. closes at 2016 high as Fed signals fewer rate hikes

  16-03-2016 22:11 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The S&P 500 closed at its highest level of the year on Wednesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve left interest rates untouched and signaled fewer rate hikes in coming months. The Fed indicated moderate U.S. economic growth and "strong job gains" would allow it to tighten policy this year with fresh projections showing policymakers expected two quarter-point hikes by the year's end, half the number seen in December. The decision to keep rates steady was in line with analyst predictions, but th
  
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• Dollar hits one-month low after Fed revises rate hike outlook

  16-03-2016 21:31 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Dion Rabouin NEW YORK (Reuters) - The dollar fell sharply on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged, but reduced its expectations for interest rate hikes in 2016 to two from four. In a statement many investors regarded as more accommodating for looser policy than expected, the Fed noted that moderate U.S. economic growth and "strong job gains" would allow it to resume tightening monetary policy this year, but also said the economy continues to face risks from an unc
  
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• BlackRock's Obsidian fund extends losses this year

  16-03-2016 21:22
  
  (Reuters) - BlackRock Inc's $1.9 billion Obsidian hedge fund posted a negative 7.5 percent year-to-date return through March 4, HSBC data showed.
  
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• Euro rallies, stocks rise after dovish Fed statement

  16-03-2016 21:19 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks in major markets rose on Wednesday, led by Wall Street, and the U.S. dollar weakened after the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady while lowering expectations for the number of rate hikes this year.
  
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• The Latest: Fed still expects benefits of cheaper gas

  16-03-2016 21:18 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The latest on the U.S. Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting, which ended Wednesday. The central bank kept interest rates steady amid uncertainty about the global economy and financial markets. (All times local)
  
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• Ukraine PM scrapes through crisis but uncertainty remains

  16-03-2016 21:14 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Pavel Polityuk and Matthias Williams KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk has scraped through the biggest challenge to his leadership so far, lawmakers said on Wednesday, but still faces an uphill battle to achieve reforms that Western backers demand. The United States and other Western powers have urged Kiev's leaders to stay united in order to pass reforms needed to secure a further $1.7 billion in aid from the International Monetary Fund and keep its war-torn economy
  
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• S&P 500 closes at 2016 high after Fed statement

  16-03-2016 21:06 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 closed at its highest level of the year on Wednesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged and signaled fewer rate hikes in coming months.
  
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• The Latest: Yellen: 'Negative' interest rates not discussed

  16-03-2016 20:57 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The latest on the U.S. Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting, which ended Wednesday. The central bank kept interest rates steady amid uncertainty about the global economy and financial markets. (All times local)
  
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• Al Qaeda attack will not derail Ivory Coast revival: president

  16-03-2016 20:45 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Loucoumane Coulibaly GRAND BASSAM, Ivory Coast (Reuters) - President Alassane Ouattara vowed on Wednesday that an al Qaeda-claimed attack on an Ivory Coast beach resort that killed 19 people would not derail the nation's post-war revival. Ouattara won re-election by a landslide in October, pledging to attract foreign investment to the largest economy in French-speaking West Africa, also the world's top cocoa producer. The progress we've made in the past four years must be further reinforced,"
  
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• Feeling global slowdown, Fed keeps interest rate unchanged

  16-03-2016 20:40 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The Federal Reserve cut its outlook for the US economy and kept its interest rate policy unchanged Wednesday, citing the impact of the global slowdown and turmoil in world markets. Giving a picture of the US economy that was less bullish than many had expected, the Fed still forecast continuing hikes to the benchmark federal funds rate this year, but at a slower pace than foreseen in December. Fed Chair Janet Yellen said the Federal Open Market Committee, the Fed's policy body, opted for "a slig
  
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• Finmeccanica calls on 'Leonardo' to mark turnaround

  16-03-2016 20:36
  
  MILAN (Reuters) - Italy's defense company Finmeccanica expects to generate more cash this year to help cut debt and fund new investments as it presses ahead with its turnaround plans under a new name...
  
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• Wall St. gains as Fed signals fewer rate hikes for year

  16-03-2016 20:32 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Laila Kearney NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street gained on Wednesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged and signaled fewer rate hikes for the year. The Fed indicated moderate U.S. economic growth and "strong job gains" would allow it to tighten policy this year with fresh projections showing policymakers expected two quarter-point hikes by the year's end, half the number seen in December. Because of that uncertainty, "the committee judged it prudent to maintain the cur
  
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• Traders see fewer U.S. rate hikes after Fed forecast

  16-03-2016 20:09 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Traders quickly pared expectations for a rate hike in June, but kept their view that the Fed was likely to raise rates just once this year, as early as July but more likely in September. The Fed kept rates unchanged, as had been expected, and said moderate U.S. economic growth and "strong job gains" would allow it to raise rates gradually this year, albeit more slowly than it had earlier thought. Traders now see about a 59 percent chance of a rate hike in September, based on futures contracts tr
  
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• Dollar falls broadly after Fed cuts rate hike projections

  16-03-2016 19:55 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Dion Rabouin NEW YORK (Reuters) - The dollar fell sharply against major currencies after the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged but reduced its expectations for interest rate hikes in 2016 to two from four on Wednesday. In a statement many investors regarded as more accommodating for looser policy than expected, the Fed noted that moderate U.S. economic growth and "strong job gains" would allow it to resume tightening monetary policy this year but also said the country continues to
  
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• Pop stars to the rescue of Turkey's battered tourism industry?

  16-03-2016 19:54 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Tina Bellon BERLIN (Reuters) - Turkish tourism officials hit by plummeting Russian bookings and grim urban bombings are hoping that Madonna, Justin Bieber or Jennifer Lopez can help revive business along their sunny Mediterranean coast. Tourism revenue in Turkey fell 14.3 percent in the final quarter of last year and 2016 bookings point to an even more challenging year for the country's tourism industry, which accounts for about 4.5 percent of the $800 billion economy. The "Turkish Riviera" a
  
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• Fed holds steady, rate-setters now see two hikes this year

  16-03-2016 19:53 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday and indicated that moderate U.S. economic growth and "strong job gains" would allow it to tighten policy this year, with fresh projections showing policymakers expected two quarter-point hikes by the year's end, half the number seen in December. Inflation picked up in recent months," the Fed said in a policy statement in which it kept the target range for its overnight lending rate at 0.25 percent to 0.50 percent. Fed policymakers proje
  
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• UPDATE 3-Shareholders approve Delta Lloyd rights issue

  16-03-2016 19:38
  
  AMSTERDAM, March 16 (Reuters) - Delta Lloyd won approval on Wednesday for a 650 million euro ($719 million) rights issue, against the wishes of its largest shareholder and putting an end to...
  
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• Atlanta Fed keeps U.S. first quarter growth view at 1.9 percent

  16-03-2016 19:37 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The U.S. economy is on track to grow 1.9 percent in the first quarter following data on domestic consumer prices and housing starts in February, the Atlanta Federal Reserve's GDPNow forecast model showed on Wednesday. Earlier Wednesday, the government said its Consumer Price Index, excluding the volatile food and energy components, rose 0.3 percent, bringing its year-over-year increase to 2.3 percent which was the largest gain since May 2012. It also said housing starts increased 5.2 percent to
  
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• Fed keeps key rates unchanged; foresees fewer hikes in 2016

  16-03-2016 19:30 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve is keeping a key interest rate unchanged in light of global pressures that risk slowing the U.S. economy.
  
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• The Latest: Fed officials see lower unemployment rate

  16-03-2016 19:11 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The latest on the U.S. Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting, which ended Wednesday. The central bank kept interest rates steady amid uncertainty about the global economy and financial markets. (All times local)
  
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• Text: FOMC statement from March 15-16 meeting

  16-03-2016 19:10 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in January suggests that economic activity has been expanding at a moderate pace despite the global economic and financial developments of recent months.
  
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• Peabody short sellers paying 100 percent to borrow shares

  16-03-2016 19:08
  
  SAN FRANCISCO, March 16 (Reuters) - The interest rate short sellers must pay to borrow shares of Peabody Energy has jumped to 100 percent after the largest U.S. coal producer said on Wednesday it may...
  
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• U.S.-based mutual funds get most new cash in 37 weeks: ICI

  16-03-2016 18:49
  
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S.-based mutual funds raked in the most cash since June in the latest week, Investment Company Institute (ICI) data showed on Wednesday, as the outlook for U.S. bonds improved.
  
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• Factbox - Key announcements in UK budget

  16-03-2016 18:48 via news.yahoo.com
  
  (Reuters) - Chancellor George Osborne's annual budget handed some tax incentives to voters and small businesses ahead of an in-out June referendum on European Union membership, but he warned of slower economic growth. Here are some of the main announcements from his speech: GROWTH The independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) cut its forecast for economic growth to 2 percent this year, 2.2 percent in 2017 and 2.1 percent in 2018. DEBT Public debt forecasts were raised across the board w
  
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• Brazil's Lula takes Cabinet post in bid to save Rousseff

  16-03-2016 18:43 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Lisandra Paraguassu and Patricia Duarte BRASILIA/SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will take over as chief of staff for his successor Dilma Rousseff in a bid to save her from impeachment, raising the prospect of a shift away from austerity to revive a moribund economy. The move, announced after a Wednesday meeting of Rousseff's closest advisors, offers Lula protection from prosecutors who charged him with money laundering. The government hopes that the
  
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• Osborne offers voters sweeteners ahead of EU referendum, says growth to slow

  16-03-2016 18:27 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By William Schomberg and David Milliken LONDON (Reuters) - Chancellor George Osborne handed tax sweeteners to voters and small businesses ahead of a June referendum on European Union membership but warned the economy would grow more slowly than previously forecast. Cuts in corporation and capital gains taxes and moves to ease income tax for many households were also aimed at pleasing MPs from his own Conservative Party, many of whom are angry that Osborne and Prime Minister David Cameron are pus
  
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• Britain's FTSE boosted by oil stocks and housebuilders after UK budget

  16-03-2016 18:02
  
  * Tate & Lyle, Britvic slip on sugar tax (Adds detail, updates prices at close)
  
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• British budget extends austerity, cuts growth outlook

  16-03-2016 17:55 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Britain unleashed more austerity on Wednesday in its latest annual budget and cut its growth outlook, blaming the impact of global markets turbulence rooted in China. Finance minister George Osborne also warned that a potential 'Brexit', or departure from the European Union, would risk damaging the nation's economic recovery, ahead of a key referendum in June. Chancellor of the Exchequer Osborne said the government would seek additional spending cuts totalling £3.5 billion ($5.0 billion, 4
  
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• Americans Are Saving More Than Ever for College – and the Numbers May Surprise You

  16-03-2016 17:31 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Assets in 529 college savings plans increased by more than $5 billion in 2015 to hit a record $253.2 billion. While more Americans saved money for college, the average amount saved dipped slightly thanks to the turbulent stock market in the second half of the year. The average 529 college savings account balance fell 1.4 percent for the year, to $20,190 from $20,474, according to a new report from the College Savings Plan Network.
  
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• Kenya's Kakuzi 2015 pretax profit up 228 pct

  16-03-2016 17:24 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Kenyan agricultural firm Kakuzi said on Wednesday its 2015 pretax profit rose 228 percent to 764.45 million Kenyan shillings ($7.54 million), helped by increased sales and a weaker shilling. Kakuzi, which produces tea, pineapples, avocados and macadamia nuts, said in a statement total revenue jumped 47 percent to 2.48 billion shillings. "The weakening Kenyan shilling also worked in our favour as well as the fact that we could take advantage of high interest rates with our strong cash position."
  
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• Stocks tick higher on economic data before Fed statement

  16-03-2016 17:02 via news.yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. market is quiet for a third day in a row but mostly higher following a raft of generally positive economic reports.
  
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• Rothschild, bucking trend, contemplates new hires in Russia

  16-03-2016 16:59 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The Rothschild Group is looking at taking on new hires for its Russian operation later this year, bucking the trend for big Western money advisers to scale back, partly because it feels it can make money out of the struggling economy. Giovanni Salvetti, head of Rothschild operations in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), told Reuters he believed the firm could perform well advising on debt restructuring, asset swaps, and distressed sales - all activities that can see an uptu
  
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• UPDATE 2-Britain to cut taxes for North Sea oil producers by $1.4 bln

  16-03-2016 16:30
  
  * BP, Shell shares rise, outperform index (Updates with company, analyst comments, share price, details)
  
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• Fed meeting: no rate hike expected, but will FOMC turn bullish?

  16-03-2016 16:09 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Almost no one expects the Federal Reserve to announce another interest rate hike on Wednesday, but all eyes are focused on whether the US central bank turns more bullish in its outlook. Long-awaited signs of strengthening inflation have appeared in US economic data that would support the Fed signaling more tightening ahead, even as the global economic outlook has weakened. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), led by Fed Chair Janet Yellen, will release its updated policy statement at 2:00 p
  
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• Canada January factory sales jump, boding well for Q1 growth

  16-03-2016 15:35 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Leah Schnurr OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian manufacturing sales rose at a surprisingly strong clip at the start of the year, raising expectations that the economy will see stronger growth in the first quarter than the Bank of Canada has forecast. Factory sales rose 2.3 percent in January, Statistics Canada said on Wednesday, topping analysts' forecasts for a gain of 0.5 percent and pushing sales up to a record C$53.13 billion ($39.8 billion). While some of January's increase was due to the depre
  
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• MIDEAST STOCKS-Oil rise boosts Saudi, Egypt continues post-devaluation rally

  16-03-2016 15:18 via news.yahoo.com
  
  * Zain Saudi surges on hopes for tower sale * Saudi banks underperform after Moody's lowers outlook * Dubai Investments falls after dividend proposal * Kuwait's Agility rises on privatisation hopes * Egypt confirms technical breakout By Andrew Torchia DUBAI, March 16 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's stock market rose on Wednesday in response to a surge in oil prices but most of the Gulf was sluggish because of profit-taking. Egypt rallied for a third straight day after the central bank devalued the cu
  
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• Banks face slump in trading revenue as 'bad' volatility bites

  16-03-2016 15:06 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Investment banks are suffering after a steep decline in oil prices and worries about China's economy triggered a wave of volatility that swept through financial markets in the first six weeks of the year. Investment banks, especially those in Europe, will fail to meet their cost of capital over the next two years, prompting further restructuring that could put up to 5 percent of market share up for grabs, similar in size to the wave of restructuring in 2012, according to Morgan Stanley analysts.
  
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• U.S. Federal Reserve keeps benchmark interest rate steady

  16-03-2016 15:05 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The U.S. central bank kept its benchmark interest rate steady in a range between 0.25 and half a per cent on Wednesday, but cut its forecast for how the U.S. economy will perform in the near term. In December, the Fed decided to hike interest rates off their emergency lows, deeming at the time the economy was almost ready to stand on its own two feet. Since then, however, the stock market and other economic indicators have fallen sharply, casting doubt on the Fed's confidence.
  
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• Argentina's lower house clears debt settlement package

  16-03-2016 14:59 via news.yahoo.com
  
  By Richard Lough BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Argentina's President, Mauricio Macri, won the support of the lower house of Congress for a settlement with bondholders on Wednesday, leaving Argentina one Senate vote away from ending a 14-year battle with creditors. Macri needs to close the festering dispute to tap global credit markets and lure back investors, and had warned Argentina faced a return to hyperinflation or aggressive spending cuts if the chamber had knocked down the proposal. Legislators
  
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• Investors to weigh Fed words for clues to future rate hikes

  16-03-2016 14:56 via news.yahoo.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve has taken a wait-and-see stance since raising interest rates from record lows in December — waiting and seeing whether the U.S. economic picture warrants another rate hike.
  
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• UK debt ratio to rise this year, breaks Osborne target

  16-03-2016 14:54 via news.yahoo.com
  
  British net public debt will rise this year as a share of economic output, Chancellor George Osborne said as he missed his commitment for the ratio to fall each year until at least 2020. Osborne told parliament that debt, as a percentage of gross domestic product, would stand at 82.6 percent in the 2016/17 financial year, falling to 77.2 percent by 2019/20. Osborne also said the government was still on track to achieve a goal of reaching an outright budget surplus by 2019/20 and that borrowing f
  
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• Osborne to cut tax and rates for British businesses

  16-03-2016 14:54 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Britain will cut corporation tax and raise the threshold at which small businesses pay rates, Chancellor George Osborne said on Wednesday in a boost to firms as Britain's economy grows by less than previously forecast. Corporation tax has been progressively cut by both Osborne and his Labour predecessors, with the rate currently at 20 percent with plans already in place to cut it to 18 percent. Changes to business rates will help hundreds of thousands of small companies, he added.
  
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• US home building rebounds in February

  16-03-2016 14:12 via news.yahoo.com
  
  New construction of US homes picked up in February to the fastest pace in five months in a fresh sign of strength in the economy, Commerce Department data showed Wednesday. Housing starts rose to an annual rate of 1.178 million units from 1.120 million in January. For the first two months of the year, new construction was up 15.2 percent over a year ago, according to the data.
  
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• Chancellor Osborne delivers annual budget to parliament

  16-03-2016 14:09 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Chancellor George Osborne delivered his annual budget statement to parliament on Wednesday. Productivity growth across the west is too low. It makes for a dangerous cocktail of risks." ON OBR FORECASTS "The OBR (Office of Budget Responsibility) tell us today that in every year of the forecast our economy grows and so too does our productivity.
  
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