By Lucia Mutikani | WASHINGTON WASHINGTON U.S. consumer spending rose less than expected in January as the largest monthly increase in inflation in four years eroded households’ purchasing power, pointing to moderate economic growth in the first quarter. The surge in inflation raises the possibility of an interest rate increase from the Federal Reserve this month. While still below the U.S. central bank’s 2 percent target, inflation […]
The galaxy needs saving again. Good thing the Guardians are back. Again. Marvel Studios has released the latest trailer for the much-anticipated movie Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. True to its form, the trailer featured action scenes of galactic proportions. There are giant tentacle monsters, swarm of spaceships, a golden villainess, a new cast of misfits (Mantis, Nebula), and lots of explosions. And oh, Star-Lord’s dad. Guardians […]
Embedded in a sweatband, a network of sensors devised by Ali Javey can monitor moment-by-moment changes in electrolytes and metabolites, a potential boon to weekend athletes, diabetics and people exposed to heavy metal concentrations. Credit: Roxanne Makasdjian and Stephen McNally Sweating it out on a treadmill, or racing to finish a half marathon, a runner might risk a potentially dangerous buildup of electrolytes in her blood. In […]
This was originally published in our weekly newsletter, Local Edition, which is a product of the Knight-Lenfest Newsroom Initiative. Subscribe here. Have you ever had a party and looked around the room at some point and thought, Wow, there are a lot of cool people here? Well, that’s how my inbox felt this week. Thanks to everyone who contributed last week by answering our first question in […]
As if Uber’s woes couldn’t get any more taxing than it currently is. The company is dealing with extremely controversial sexual harassment allegations, being sued by Google over allegedly stolen designs, and now it has to deal with another controversy altogether, this time of its CEO, Travis Kalanick, arguing — with harsh words, no less — with an Uber driver in a video caught by the car’s dashcam. Travis […]
Australia’s corporate world has been warned that executives must disclose workplace romances or risk censure and financial penalties, following a decision by QBE Insurance to slash the pay of its chief executive over an affair. This week the insurer’s board cut A$550,000 (US$420,000) from the short-term bonus awarded to John Neal because he failed to notify them in a timely manner of a relationship he was having […]
UK government The UK government has outlined plans for a post-Brexit digital strategy to move technology to the heart of the country. On Wednesday, the government announced the launch of the Digital Strategy, which promises to place “skills, infrastructure and innovation” at the forefront to support “Britain’s world-leading digital economy.” The government claims over four million free digital skills training courses will be created through the scheme. […]
YouTube is trying to carve a space in the broad spectrum of video streaming services currently occupied by formidables Netflix, Hulu, and other streaming services offering on-demand programming. It’s launching a $35-a-month TV service that could possibly further disrupt traditional cable providers. YouTube TV Takes On Cable Services YouTube officially unveiled YouTube TV on Feb. 28, its response to similar setups by Dish’s SlingTV, AT&T’s DirecTV Now, and even Sony’s […]
Stocks pared gains and the US dollar initially eased as President Donald Trump’s first address to Congress failed to provide the policy details that markets wanted — and analysts let rip with their disappointment. “We needed him to be a leader. We needed him to give us direction. That is where he let investors down this evening,” said Paul Christopher, head global market strategist for Wells Fargo […]
In recent years the idea that no person or fund can consistently outperform the wider stock market by skill alone has been fashionable. Emboldened by traditional investment houses haemorrhaging market share to automated passive funds, the once-maligned advocates of the efficient market hypothesis have revised their mantra: you can’t beat the market, so buy an exchange traded fund instead. Outsiders listening in to this debate may conclude […]
By Aye Win Myint | NAYPYITAW NAYPYITAW Myanmar’s military defended its crackdown on the Rohingya Muslim minority as a lawful counterinsurgency operation at a rare news conference on Tuesday, adding it was necessary to defend the country. It was the first time the top generals directly addressed the mounting accusations of human rights abuses which, according to U.N. experts, may amount to crimes against humanity and ethnic […]
By Steve Holland | WASHINGTON WASHINGTON After a turbulent start to his presidency, Donald Trump goes before the U.S. Congress on Tuesday night to give a speech that will be closely watched for details of his plans for the economy and whether he can strike a more conciliatory tone. World financial markets will be scrutinizing the 9 p.m. (0200 GMT Wednesday) address in the House of Representatives […]
Tim Cook has signalled that Apple would look to broaden its $50bn US manufacturing and supplier base, as the iPhone maker faces looming pressure on domestic job creation from the Trump administration. Apple would also step in to defend net neutrality, its chief executive said, if the principle protecting even-handed management of internet traffic was threatened by the new head of the Federal Communications Commission, the US telecoms regulator. “We […]
Just because… The Record Winning Streak Is Over… They desperately tried to ramp it but failed NOTE: Today was the worst day for Small Caps since October * * * Banks, Bonds, Bullion, and Broad equity indices were all up in February… So was VIX…a massive divergence for a month Dow led the way this month with a 4th monthly gain in a […]
Europe 17:03 28.02.2017Get short URL The European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs and Civil Liberties committees passed the EU Anti-Money Laundering Directive, February 27, by 89 votes to 1, with 4 abstentions. It allows for EU citizens to access registers of beneficial owners of companies and trusts — effectively revealing the identity of the ultimate owner. With full public beneficial ownership information law enforcement agencies, journalists, and citizens will be able to better detect and deter the […]
This piece was originally published by the Reynolds Journalism Institute at the Missouri School of Journalism. It has been republished with permission. You can join the author for a free Webinar about building trust on Facebook at 2 p.m. Thursday, March 2. Relationships take work. You don’t get intimacy without putting in some time. You don’t ask for favors without offering the equivalent yourself. You earn trust […]
By Richa Naidu and Nandita Bose Target Corp (TGT.N) shares plunged on Tuesday after executives issued a full-year profit forecast that fell well below analyst estimates and said the retailer would lower prices to compete with deep-discounting rivals. Target at its investor day conference vowed aggressive promotions and said new brands and investments in technology and small stores will allow it to eventually win back market share. […]
ABU DHABI // The number of Emiratis working in the private sector will need to increase tenfold over the next 5 years, members of the Federal National Council say. Naama Al Sharhan said private sector firms – in particular those that are foreign-owned – need to be encouraged to hire more UAE nationals. The FNC debate came after recruiters were deployed in every emirate to find jobs […]
Barely a year ago, Vale, the Brazilian mining company, was reeling. Prices of iron ore, its principal export, were at an all-time low, investors were ditching its shares and China — the market on which it most depends — looked as if it was heading for a rapid and uncontrolled slowdown. Fast forward 13 months and iron ore is back in fashion. Vale is producing record amounts […]
By Stephanie Nebehay and Joseph Sipalan | GENEVA/KUALA LUMPUR GENEVA/KUALA LUMPUR South Korea called for “collective measures” to punish North Korea for using chemical weapons to kill the estranged half-brother of its leader Kim Jong Un, as Malaysia said on Tuesday it would charge two women with murder over the airport attack. Police have said the women smeared VX nerve agent, a chemical on a United Nations […]
Continuing the trend of ‘soft’ survey data strong performance and expectation beats, The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence surged above the highest analyst’s expectation to 114.8 – the best print since July 2001. Consumers’ assessment of current conditions held relatively steady in February. Those saying business conditions are “good” declined slightly from 29.0 percent to 28.7 percent, while those saying business conditions are “bad” also decreased, from […]
The shift from film to digital technology appears to have improved cancer detection rates for diagnostic mammography, but also has increased the abnormal interpretation rate, which may lead to more women undergoing biopsies for benign conditions, according to a new study that appears online in the journal Radiology. The major new study comes from the National Cancer Institute-funded Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium (BCSC), a large, diverse set […]
In a 2011 biography of Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson wrote that the Apple co-founder “very much wanted to do for television sets what he had done for computers, music players, and phones: make them simple and elegant.” Jobs told Isaacson that he had “finally cracked” the key to creating an easy-to-use smart TV that synced with all your devices and the cloud; “the simplest user […]
WASHINGTON Feb 28 U.S. economic growth slowed in the fourth quarter as previously reported, with robust consumer spending offset by downward revisions to business and government investment. Gross domestic product increased at a 1.9 percent annual rate, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday in its second estimate for the fourth quarter, confirming the estimate published last month. Output increased at a 3.5 percent rate in the third […]
