BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Italy’s prime minister on Thursday denied any division between the two parties in his governing coalition, after reports of a spat over tax revenues, and insisted Rome will move ahead with planned expansionary budgetary measures.His remarks came as European Union leaders raised concerns about Rome’s extravagant budgetary plans that could further increase Italy&rsqu...Read More
Bloomberg News/LandovA welder works on assembly of a new container ship being built in Philadelphia. The numbers: The Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index fell slightly to 22.2 in October from 22.9 in September, the regional district of the central bank said Thursday. That's better than expected. Economists has expected a slight pullback to 20.5 after the factory index had jumped 11 points in Sep...Read More
GettyThe surging U.S. economy shows little sign of calming down. The numbers: The U.S. rolled into the fall on a "strong growth trajectory," though the economy could slow in 2019 if weakness in the housing and stock markets persist, according to an index that measures the nation's economic health. The leading economic index rose 0.5% in September after 0.4% and 0.7% gains in the prior two months,...Read More
BofA-Merrill Lynch analysts think there's a chance housing recovers, thoughThe housing sector keeps disappointing, most recently evidenced by weak housing starts data yesterday. Meanwhile, shares of U.S. homebuilders continue to struggle, and this morning Toll Brothers Inc (NYSE:TOL) and PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) are both in the red once again. Below is a quick look at how shares of TOL and PHM...Read More
TIANJIN, China (Reuters) - A rebound in mining mergers and acquisitions is set to continue into 2019, led by companies from top metals consumer China, as a dearth of exploration spending leaves the industry in need of fresh investment, delegates told a conference on Thursday.Sector M&A in mining powerhouse Canada had its best quarter in more than seven years in July-September, spurred by Barri...Read More
LONDON, Oct 18 (Reuters) - The European Union defended proposed new derivatives clearing rules on Thursday after criticism from the United States, saying the bloc has every right to supervise foreign financial firms that serve EU customers.The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) chair Christopher Giancarlo threatened retaliation on Wednesday unless the EU watered down the draft rules,...Read More
This is the second major announcement for SIRI within the past monthShares of streaming name Sirius XM Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:SIRI) are popping in early trading, after the company announced a new partnership with Amazon (AMZN) that includes offering a three-month trial of its products to consumers who purchase Amazon's Echo Dot smart speaker. In response, SIRI is up 1.3% at $6.33, at last check.It'...Read More
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve’s most recent interest rate increase put monetary policy about where it should be, with no further hikes required in an economy where inflation remains weak, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said on Thursday, pressing an argument he has made over the past two years.“The current level of the policy rate is about right,” Bullard s...Read More
LONDON (Reuters) - Oil fell $1 a barrel to below $80 on Thursday as the fourth weekly increase in U.S. crude inventories suggested ample supply, while Saudi-U.S. tension and falling Iranian exports lent support.U.S. crude inventories rose 6.5 million barrels last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday, the fourth straight weekly increase and almost three times what analysts...Read More
Iamgold Corp. (TSX: IMG; NYSE: IAG) is upbeat about results from a 2018 drilling program at theDiakha deposit on the Siribaya project in western Mali. Officials report assayresults for 100 drill holes totaling 14,634 meters. Among the highlights arefive infill drill holes with gold grading anywhere from 1.61 grams per tonne to10.15, as well as three expansion holes ranging from 1.39 to 12.46 g/t.&...Read More
VIENNA (Reuters) - Germany should push Bundesbank chief Jens Weidmann as a successor to European Central Bank President Mario Draghi and the government is making a grave mistake in not pushing harder, ECB policymaker Ewald Nowotny said on Thursday.Draghi’s job will become available at the end of next October. By that time Nowotny - the head of the Austrian National Bank and a moderate policy...Read More
TIANJIN, Oct 18 (Reuters) -* Zijin Mining Group Co Ltd, one of China's biggest gold miners, will produce around 37 tonnes of the precious metal in 2018, its chairman said on Thursday.* The company's gold output will be flat or a little lower than last year, Zijin Chairman Chen Jinghe told Reuters on the sidelines of a conference in Tianjin.* Zijin is "paying attention" to Tanzania but "not yet neg...Read More
Following the 2016 "Tumeremo Massacre" where 17 miners were killed and another violent episode last August that left 13 people dead, a new massive killing took place this week in Venezuela's so-called Mining Arc.According to information made public by opposition MP Am?(C)rico De Grazia, 16 people died and six were injured after two criminal bands clashed in their quest for controlling the Los Cand...Read More
Uncertainty still hangs over the market following the Fed minutes releaseI stopped by CNBC's Squawk Box this morning, where the discussion centered around the aftermath of Wednesday's freshly released September Fed meeting minutes. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) last met ahead of the equity market's wild October sell-off, and the minutes revealed that some members are now in favor of a r...Read More
The latest Fed meeting minutes will remain in focusDow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are trading below fair value this morning, with focus staying on yesterday's release of the Fed meeting minutes. Earnings also continue to roll through, as blue chip Travelers (TRV) released numbers this morning, and the post-close schedule is highlighted by American Express (AXP). For economic data, 210...Read More
Upbeat trial results prompted an upgrade from RBCPenny stock Proteostasis Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:PTI) is up a whopping 184% ahead of the bell, set to open as the best stock on the Nasdaq this morning. The biotech name yesterday reported positive trial data for its combination therapy for cystic fibrosis (CF), and in response, RBC upgraded PTI to "outperform" from "sector perform," while boosti...Read More
TOKYO (Reuters) - Many Japanese companies have avoided a direct hit from escalating trade frictions so far, but they increasingly worry their business will be impacted, central bank officials said on Thursday.The comments are a sign the rising tide of protectionism and warnings about global growth slowing are casting a shadow over Japan’s otherwise healthy economic recovery.In a report scrut...Read More
Scotland is one step closer to having its first commercial gold and silver mine as Scotgold Resources (LON: SGZ) said Thursday it had submitted the last application to secure planning permits for its Cononish project, near Tyndrum.The company, which has decided to liquidate its French subsidiary, said that it had worked with the Trossachs National Park Planning Authority (NPA) to secure all the ne...Read More
Scotland is one step closer to having its first commercial gold and silver mine as Scotgold Resources (LON: SGZ) said Thursday it had submitted the last application to secure planning permits for its Cononish project, near Tyndrum.The company, which has decided to liquidate its French subsidiary, said that it had worked with the Trossachs National Park Planning Authority (NPA) to secure all the ne...Read More
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union leaders will discuss on Thursday how to make the euro zone more resilient to crises, with the bloc’s third biggest economy, Italy, putting new urgency into the talks by challenging EU budget rules that underpin the single currency.Leaders of all EU countries except Britain are to take stock of progress in completing the euro zone’s banking union and...Read More