MIDLAND, Texas (Reuters) - In West Texas, rising oil prices are fueling a sharp economic upswing, lifting employment and pay to records, driving up spending at hotels, restaurants, and car dealerships, and raising the cost of housing and other essentials.This parched patch of land, under which lie the largest oil-producing rock formations in the United States, is used to growth binges as well as t...Read More
SEOUL (Reuters) - North and South Korea began dismantling loudspeakers that blared propaganda across their heavily fortified border on Tuesday, South Korea’s defense ministry said, fulfilling a promise made at last week’s historic summit.The moves are the first practical, if small, steps toward reconciliation after Friday’s meeting between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and t...Read More
(Kitco News)- Gold prices continue to hover near a four-month low even asmomentum in the manufacturing sector continues to fade, according to the latestdata from the Institute for Supply management (ISM)Tuesday, the ISM said its manufacturing index showed a reading of 57.3% forApril, down from March's reading of 59.3%. The data was weaker than expected asconsensus forecasts were calling for a read...Read More
(Kitco News) - Gold pricesare solidly lower and at a four-month low in late-morningaction Tuesday. June gold futures have dropped below the important 200-daymoving average on the daily chart, which is emboldening the bears and invitingmore technical selling interest. A very strong U.S. dollar index that hit anearly four-month high today is working hard against the precious metals marketbulls. Jun...Read More
KeyBanc said it's "buying Roku"Roku Inc (NASDAQ:ROKU) is poised to buck today's bearish bias after KeyBanc started the stock with an "overweight" rating and $42 price target -- a 29% premium to last night's close at $32.54, and territory not charted since late February. The brokerage firm said it recommends "buying ROKU" because it's poised for "long-term creation value as streaming video continue...Read More
LONDON (Reuters) - A speech by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in which he unveiled what he said was evidence of a secret Iranian nuclear weapons program underlines the importance of keeping the 2015 Iran nuclear deal’s constraints on Tehran’s nuclear ambitions, Britain said on Tuesday.“The Iran nuclear deal is not based on trust about Iran’s intentions; rather it...Read More
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed U.S. President Donald Trump about evidence of a past secret Iranian nuclear arms program in March, a senior Israeli official said, a move apparently aimed at killing an international deal with Tehran that both leaders oppose.Trump agreed Israel would publish the information before May 12, the date by which he is due to decide...Read More
(Reuters) - U.S. stocks opened lower on Tuesday after disappointing results from Pfizer, while concerns about inflation, rising costs and protectionist policies remained.The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 45.86 points, or 0.19 percent, at the open to 24,117.29. The S&P 500 opened lower by 4.41 points, or 0.17 percent, at 2,643.64. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 12.62 points, or 0.18 percent,...Read More
AT&T's sector peers Sprint and T-Mobile finalized a merger plan yesterdayTelecom stock AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) ishigher in early trading, despite receiving a price-target cut to $36 from $41 at Deutsche Bank. Of course, this comes just a day aftersector peers T-Mobile (TMUS) and Sprint (S) finalized a merger deal. At last check, the equity was trading up 0.6% at $32.88. Digging deeper, AT&T has long d...Read More
TPR had been a big winner in 2018Luxury fashion stock Tapestry Inc (NYSE:TPR) is getting rocked in pre-market trading, last seen down 12.5%. Even though the company topped earnings estimates on an adjusted basis in the third quarter and executives highlighted growth in the Coach business, same-store sales for its Kate Spade unit fell more than expected, while margins also declined during the perio...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump has postponed the imposition of steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada, the European Union and Mexico until June 1, and has reached agreements for permanent exemptions for Argentina, Australia and Brazil, the White House said on Monday.The decisions came just hours before temporary exemptions from the tariffs on these countries were set to expire at...Read More
Larry KudlowPhotographer: Al Drago/BloombergCredit where credit is due.Just after it was revealed that Larry Kudlow would take a position in the Trump administration, he couldn’t resist offering some commentary more suited to his role as CNBC pundit -- buy the dollar and sell gold, Kudlow advised on March 14.“Well, that trade was not working well in the year leading up to that point,...Read More
Big-cap earnings have stock futures trading below fair value this morningDow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures appear headed for a lower start to the the new month, amid negative earnings reactions for blue-chips Pfizer (PFE) and Merck (MRK). This pre-market downside is muted, however, as Apple (AAPL) stock trades higher ahead of the iPhone parent's quarterly report, due after the close. Al...Read More
Today is the first day of May andthe new month is not helping the metals, which struggled through the month ofApril. Gold has lost about 4% from the highs in early April, with threeconsecutive ugly down weeks. The recent action brings a possible ugly run intothe mix.Gold is now breaking down throughmajor support and failure here brings the possibility of much lower prices.This week brings a ton of...Read More
LONDON (Reuters) - BP held out the prospect of a first dividend increase since 2014 on Tuesday, after first-quarter profits beat forecasts thanks to rising oil and gas prices and production.Chief Financial Officer Brian Gilvary said the London-listed company might consider raising the dividend later this year if oil prices remain near current levels and debt declines.In the first three months of 2...Read More
(Reuters) - Health insurer Aetna Inc (AET.N), which has agreed to be bought by CVS Health Inc (CVS.N), reported a better-than-expected first-quarter profit on Tuesday, largely due to lower medical costs.U.S. drugstore operator CVS agreed in December to acquire Aetna for $69 billion seeking to tackle soaring healthcare spending through lower-cost medical services in pharmacies.Aetna’s net inc...Read More
May 1 (Reuters) - Drugmaker Merck & Co posted a 52.5 percent fall in first-quarter profit on Tuesday, hurt by hefty charge related to its collaboration with Eisai Co Ltd.Net income fell to $736 million, or 27 cents per share, in the first quarter from $1.55 billion, or 56 cents per share, a year earlier.Net revenue rose to $10.04 billion from $9.43 billion. (Reporting by Tamara Mathias in Beng...Read More
(Reuters) - Pfizer Inc’s (PFE.N) quarterly revenue missed analysts’ estimates on Tuesday, hurt by lower-than-expected sales of blockbuster breast cancer drug Ibrance and arthritis drug Xeljanz.Ibrance raked in sales of $933 million in the first quarter, up 37.4 percent from a year earlier, but missed analysts’ estimates of $956.6 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.The...Read More
(Reuters) - Plane maker Boeing Co (BA.N) said on Tuesday it will buy aerospace parts company KLX Inc (KLXI.O) for about $3.2 billion in cash to expand its aircraft services business.The $63-per-share deal gives KLX an enterprise value of $4.25 billion, including about $1 billion of net debt.The acquisition is contingent upon the successful divestment and separation of KLX’s Energy Services G...Read More
LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices slid on Tuesday as the dollar remained near a four-month high, but worries that U.S. President Donald Trump will pull out of the Iran nuclear deal underpinned the market.Brent crude LCOc1 for July delivery was trading 58 cents lower at $74.11 by 1157 GMT. The June contract expired on Monday, settling up 53 cents at $75.17.U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude for June de...Read More