LONDON (Reuters) - OPEC oil output fell in April to a one-year low due to declining production in Venezuela and lower shipments from African producers, a Reuters survey found, sending compliance with a supply-cutting deal to another record.The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries pumped 32.12 million barrels per day this month, the survey found, down 70,000 bpd from March. The April t...Read More
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The U.S.-led coalition signaled on Monday the end of major combat operations against Islamic State in Iraq, announcing the “deactivation” of the command headquarters of its land component.The nature of the coalition’s support for Iraqi Security Forces will evolve “from supporting and enabling combat operations to the training and development of self-suff...Read More
The options market is pricing in stronger-than-usual post-earnings movesMcDonald's (MCD) kicked off a busy week of big-cap earnings bright and early this morning, with the shares last seen trading up 5.2%. Dow stocks Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) and Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) could also be poised for potentially volatile trading, with both pharmaceutical firms scheduled to report first-quarter earning...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. consumer prices accelerated in the year to March, with a measure of underlying inflation surging to near the Federal Reserve’s 2 percent target as weak readings from last year dropped out of the calculation.The rise in the annual inflation gauges reported by the Commerce Department on Monday was anticipated by economists and Fed officials and is not expected to al...Read More
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Andra Capital, a U.S. technology fund, has raised $500 million in funding for a new digital currency that investors can use to back a group of late-stage venture capital (VC) firms, the firm’s managing partner Haydar Haba told Reuters.The new token is called Silicon Valley Coin (SVC), built on the Ethereum blockchain, representing investments in U.S. technology companies...Read More
(Kitco News)- Hedge funds are liquidating their gold investments as the market struggles in an environment of rising bond yields, a stronger U.S. dollar and easing geopolitical tensions, according to analysts, quoting the latest data from the Commodities Futures Trading Commission.The increased selling pressure pushed gold prices to the bottom of its well-established trading range to a one-month l...Read More
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Global stock indexes were flat to slightly higher after upbeat earnings and deal news on Monday, while the U.S. Treasury yield curve flattened for a third straight session after U.S. economic data missed expectations.MSCI’s all-country index of global equities .MIWD00000PUS was up 0.02 percent on the day, on track for a gain for April, its first positive month since Janu...Read More
(Reuters) - Morgan Stanley (MS.N) is planning to raise salaries for junior bankers by as much as 25 percent, and offer them quicker promotions, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.The 20 percent to 25 percent pay raise for investment-banking associates will be the first in almost four years, and may differ by region, Bloomberg reported.Analysts will be promoted to associate...Read More
Apple shares are gaining a day before earningsThe Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is trading higher this afternoon, as Wall Street reacts to a raft of M&A and earnings news. McDonald's (MCD) is still the best performing blue chip today, though Apple (AAPL) stock is also rallying ahead of the iPhone maker's earnings release tomorrow. This morning's inflation data is being heavily scrutinized, as...Read More
The U.S. dollar has been on the rise in April - could it be breaking out? Mike Matousek, head trader at U.S. Global Investors, explains the dollar's recent positive price action and how investors might participate. He also explains how the dollar and gold have historically had an inverse relationship, with one generally rising when the other slumps.For Mike's full explanation, watch the video belo...Read More
(Reuters) - McDonald’s Corp (MCD.N) blew past analysts’ forecasts for profit and sales on Monday, helped by strength in overseas markets and U.S. consumers on average spending more in its restaurants.Shares in the world’s biggest fast food chain by revenue rose nearly 5 percent as global same-restaurant sales topped Wall Street forecasts, helped by strength in mature markets in t...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury officials are meeting with about 10 industry groups on Monday to discuss the latest draft of legislation that would tighten scrutiny of foreign investment in order to limit Chinese efforts to acquire sophisticated U.S. technology, three sources familiar with the meeting said.The Treasury Department supports the bill, which is now in the Senate and a companion m...Read More
ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece has made an “enormous” reform effort since its debt crisis broke out and its international lenders must now grant the country debt relief, OECD chief Angel Gurria said on Monday.Gurria, who met Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in Athens, urged Greece to continue with reforms after its third international bailout expires in August.“I want to congratula...Read More
LONDON (Reuters) - Sainsbury’s purchase of Walmart’s Asda can be beneficial for the economy and consumers but it is important that suppliers are treated fairly in the deal, a junior British business minister said on Monday.Sainsbury’s has agreed to buy Walmart’s Asda for about 7.3 billion pounds ($10 billion) to create Britain’s biggest supermarket group by market sha...Read More
LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Theresa May appointed a former banker of South Asian origin as interior minister on Monday, trying to draw a line under an immigration scandal threatening her authority as she negotiates Brexit.Sajid Javid, the son of immigrants from Pakistan, replaces Amber Rudd, who quit as Home Secretary after acknowledging she had “inadvertently misled” par...Read More
(Reuters) - Marathon Petroleum Corp said on Monday it would buy rival Andeavor for more than $23 billion, forming a company that will leapfrog Valero Energy Corp as the largest independent U.S. refiner by capacity.The cash-and-stock deal marries operations that are broadly complementary in terms of geography as well as giving Marathon extra capacity in the U.S. light crude produced by a booming sh...Read More
LONDON (Reuters) - Oil steadied on Monday, paring early losses after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would make an announcement later in the day about the nuclear deal with Iran.Brent prices have gained around 6 percent this month, buoyed by expectations the United States will renew sanctions against Iran, which is the third-largest producer within OPEC.U.S. President Donald Trum...Read More
The FAANG stock is doing battle with a key trendlineApple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) will report first-quarter earnings after the close tomorrow. Amid recent concerns about smartphone demand, it looks like options traders have been betting bearishly on the iPhone maker ahead of earnings. In addition, Barclays this morning cut its price target on AAPL stock to $157 from $168 -- representing a discount to t...Read More
(Kitco News)- Rising U.S. inflation could prompt contrasting reactionsamong gold-market participants, Mitsubishi pointed out in a report Monday.Rising costs tend to mean higher Treasury yields that inturn underpin the U.S. dollar, thereby hurting gold. Yet, Mitsubishi alsopointed out, there is also potential for some market participants to buy gold as an inflation hedge.“The week ahead shoul...Read More
Getty ImagesThe Chicago PMI usually tracks the path of orders for Boeing aircraft with a lag of a few months, says Ian Shepherson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. The airline manufacturer is based in Chicago. The numbers: Chicago PMI inched up in April to a reading of 57.6. The increase only slightly retraced the big drop in March, when the index fell to 57.4 from 61.9 in February. Ec...Read More