US mortgage group Ocwen has lost more than half its market value after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau sued it over “systemic” misconduct, a reminder of the power wielded by the Washington regulator that Republicans have vowed to rein in. Several states are also taking action as they prepare to revoke operating licenses for the New York-listed company, which was founded in 1988 and employs more than […]
Even special dispensation from Pope Francis probably won’t save Bill O’Reilly. O’Reilly was in a VIP line at the Vatican on Wednesday as a holy war over his employment status was apparently climaxing in New York. He’s apparently a goner from his mega-successful Fox News show, “The O’Reilly Factor,” in a turn of events that will further spotlight the precarious nature of finding winning TV personalities. Indeed, […]
Here is how the markets are reacting to UK prime minister Theresa May’s announcement that there will be a snap general election on June 8. Sterling The pound has rebounded strongly off session lows and is now up 1.6 per cent to $1.2755, its highest since December, as dealers reckon that the ruling Conservative government is likely to increase its parliamentary majority. This could strengthen Mrs May’s […]
Last summer Betsy O’Donovan, the incoming Executive Director of The Daily Tar Heel, wrote an essay on Medium charting the dire financial situation of UNC-Chapel Hill’s student newspaper. It started pretty bluntly: “The Daily Tar Heel is a news organization, and we don’t dodge the facts: This 123-year-old institution has two years to figure out its finances.” The Daily Tar Heel, like many news organizations these days, […]
South Africa’s rand tumbled in late trading on Monday after a rating agency cut the country’s coveted investment grade status, leaving President Jacob Zuma’s decision to fire his finance minister responsible for wiping out almost all the currency’s gains for the year. The rand slid to R13.7 against the dollar, taking its drop in the past five days to almost 9 per cent. Having recorded a gain […]
By Nichola Saminather | SINGAPORE SINGAPORE Asian shares inched lower on Tuesday as caution reigned ahead of a potentially tense meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping later this week. The dollar lost ground after investors sold stocks overnight and looked to safe havens as political uncertainty overshadowed positive U.S. economic data and solid growth in global manufacturing. European markets were also […]
Despite continued heavy incentive spending, every auto OEM, with the exception of Nissan, missed their sales forecasts for the month of March. The “D3” were the biggest losers of the month with GM sales up 1.6% YoY vs. estimates of +7.0% while Ford sales dropped -7.2% and Fiat Chrysler declined -5.0%. Car sales were even worse with industry volumes down 10.6% overall versus light truck sales that […]
Monday 09:35 BST What you need to know ● Equities starting second quarter on the front foot● S&P 500 futures just 1.5 per cent off record and Euro Stoxx up 0.4 per cent ● Investors keeping a watch on national manufacturing surveys● Dollar little changed against peers and South African rand continues to slide● Brent and WTI crude hold above $50 a barrel, while gold soft——————- Hot […]
By Alexandra Ulmer | QUITO, Ecuador QUITO, Ecuador The Venezuelan Supreme Court may have amended part of its explosive decision to take over the opposition-led congress, but it still gives embattled leftist President Nicolas Maduro broad new powers over the OPEC nation’s vast oil wealth. The reversal on Saturday came after political leaders worldwide and street protestors at home accused the pro-government court of effectively making Maduro […]
By Rodrigo Campos | NEW YORK NEW YORK Forget the jobs report. The most interesting bit of U.S. economic data next week is Monday’s auto sales release, which will offer a measure of the middle-class consumer and a sector of the stock market that has had a rough ride so far in 2017. Economists are looking for another solid month of sales north of 17 million new […]
“Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground,” said Teddy Roosevelt. If the Washington Post is to be believed, Rex Tillerson believes you should keep your eyes on the stars. Or the nearest water fountain. Or a family photo on your desk. Maybe just on your iPhone, a passing squad car, anything but him. In a less than solicitous profile, The Washington Post […]
President Jacob Zuma has sacked Pravin Gordhan, his finance minister, and eight other cabinet members, threatening turmoil for South Africa’s fragile economy and setting the stage for the biggest crisis yet for the ruling African National Congress under his leadership. Mr Zuma’s decision to fire Mr Gordhan as part of a late-night cabinet reshuffle sent the rand down 2 per cent on Friday, taking the currency’s decline […]
By Nichola Saminather | SINGAPORE SINGAPORE The dollar extended its overnight gains in early Asian trade on Friday on signs of strong U.S. economic growth, while the euro inched up after sliding overnight on data suggesting slowing growth in Europe. Stock markets in Asia were off a bit despite solid gains on Wall Street as investors awaited China’s official manufacturing purchasing managers index data for March. The […]
Authored by Brandon Smith via Alt-Market.com, The general public truly lives in two separate worlds. We have the world of the mainstream media, popular culture and political rhetoric; a world which constantly and desperately seeks to twist or destroy any legitimate measure of reality, leading people into a frenzied fog. Then, we have the world of concrete facts; an ugly, brutal world that upsets many people […]
By Caroline Valetkevitch | NEW YORK NEW YORK A U.S. stock rally fueled by optimism President Donald Trump will boost the economy may be near its peak, according to a Reuters poll of strategists who forecast U.S. shares will gain less than 3 percent between now and year-end. The run up since the Nov. 8 U.S. election has left the S&P 500 .SPX at levels many consider […]
The triggering this week of Article 50 of the Lisbon treaty to facilitate Britain’s exit from the EU is undoubtedly a momentous event. At issue in the forthcoming talks will be whether Britain can win back control over immigration and lawmaking without wrecking trade relations in its biggest market and damaging London’s status as the pre-eminent international financial centre. A minimum of two years of difficult and […]
U.S. stocks opened little changed on Tuesday as investors assessed President Donald Trump’s first major policy stumble, while awaiting comments from several Federal Reserve policymakers including Fed Chair Janet Yellen. The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was down 16.24 points, or 0.08 percent, at 20,534.74, the S&P 500 .SPX was down 1.8 points, or 0.07 percent, at 2,339.79 and the Nasdaq composite .IXIC was down 2.92 points, […]
Dawn is the time to see Angkor Wat. Waiting in the dark as the exquisite 11th-century temple is conjured out of the Cambodian jungle feels ridiculously thrilling. As the sun rises above the tall, minutely carved, lotus-like towers, and the ornate magnificence of the buildings is reflected in the great ornamental lakes, you get a sense of how 19th-century French explorer Henri Mouhot must have felt when […]
JOHANNESBURG Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan is set to return to South Africa early on Tuesday after being ordered home from London by President Jacob Zuma, hours before a court hearing over the closure of accounts belonging to friends of the president. Zuma’s order on Monday that Gordhan return “immediately” from a roadshow for investors in Britain and the United States has revived talk of a cabinet reshuffle […]
By Mfuneko Toyana and Sujata Rao | JOHANNESBURG/LONDON JOHANNESBURG/LONDON South African President Jacob Zuma asked Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan on Monday to return home “immediately” from an investor roadshow abroad, reviving talk of a cabinet reshuffle and unnerving investors who see Gordhan as an emblem of stability. The rand fell more than 3 percent against the dollar, its biggest one day fall since Nov. 10, South African […]
By Jessica Toonkel and Jennifer Ablan U.S. equity index futures fell to a six-week low on Sunday in a sign Wall Street would start the week defensively after Republicans pulled legislation to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system in a stunning setback for President Donald Trump. S&P 500 e-mini futures ESv1 were down over 0.65 percent, shortly after electronic trading resumed on Sunday evening. Volume of more than […]
HONG KONG Carrie Lam, who won an election to become Hong Kong’s first female chief executive on Sunday, is a former student activist who climbed the rungs of the civil service over 36 years, and a tough, capable and possibly divisive Beijing-backed leader. Lam, 59, most recently Hong Kong’s number two official, has to unify the Chinese-ruled city as public resentment swells at Beijing’s growing interference in […]
Shares in one of China’s largest dairy groups plunged more than 90 per cent on the Hong Kong stock exchange on Friday, knocking $4.1bn from its market capitalisation. China Huishan Dairy Holdings was granted a trading suspension after its shares saw one of the biggest drops in the exchange’s history, cutting its market capitalisation from $4.85bn to $750m and likely causing paper losses for investors including BlackRock and Vanguard. Hong Kong’s bourse […]
Last year, Donald Trump won the election for president by bemoaning the disappearance of the American factory and pledging to bring back manufacturing from other countries. Now in power, he might have to start worrying about the decline of another traditional pillar of the US economy — the American shopping mall. Fears that the rise of online shopping will lead to substantial dislocation in the retail sector […]
