The three major U.S. stock indexes opened higher this morning following a report that economic sentiment in Germany came in better than expected (more coverage here) and that U.K. inflation was lower than expected…
The number of oil and gas drilling rigs in the U.S. is down by 188 at last count, with gas drilling rigs down by 514 and oil rigs up by 331. The overall decline…
At a natural gas conference in Pittsburgh, natural gas exploration and production company executives said that consistent price between $4 and $5 per thousand cubic feet will re-start drilling in the country’s dry gas…
In remarks at a housing conference in Maryland today, U.S. Treasury Under Secretary for Domestic Finance Mary Miller told the audience that Treasury is working with the Federal Housing Finance Authority (FHFA) “to explore…
Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) announced this morning that its new Surface tablets would be available for a “special limited-quantity pre-order” today at 9 a.m. Pacific Time. Three versions of the tablet are available: the…
After filing a “going concern” letter earlier today with the SEC, U.S. battery maker A123 Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: AONE) later announced that it had sold its automotive business assets to Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE:…
The National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo housing market index rose 1 point in October, to 41, the highest index reading since June 2006. An index reading below 50 indicates that more builders view…
U.S. consumers are more upbeat about the economy right now than they have been at any time since May, according to the latest survey from Gallup. The economic confidence index for the week ending…
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) will hire more than 50,000 seasonal workers to staff up its 40 U.S. fulfillment centers for the coming holiday shopping season. Amazon joins the ranks of other large retailers with…
The writing has been on the wall for a couple of weeks, ever since Third Point, the hedge fund managed by Daniel Loeb, announced that it had put together a “significant” stake in Murphy…
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported last night that the harvest of this year’s U.S. corn crop is 79% complete and the soybean harvest is 71% complete. These numbers are significantly higher than the…
The Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) reported fiscal third-quarter results before markets opened this morning. The soft-drink maker posted adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.51 on revenues of $12.34 billion. In the same…
UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH) reported fiscal third-quarter results before markets opened this morning. The health insurer posted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.50 on revenues of $27.3 billion. In the same period…
Priceline.com Inc. (NASDAQ: PCLN) today announced that president and CEO Jeffery H. Boyd will assume the additional role of chairman of the company’s board beginning January 1, 2013. The current chairman, Ralph M. Bahna,…
The three major U.S. stock indexes opened higher this morning, aided by a better-than-expected report on U.S. retail sales and a smaller-than-expected rise in the Empire State manufacturing survey (more coverage here). European markets…
Analysts at Fitch Ratings have released their latest “Risk Radar” report today with a mixed message on the impact of the looming U.S. fiscal cliff. While the agency says “the urgency” of the risk…
It appears that the left hand at Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is finally figuring out what the right hand is doing. For the past year or so, Apple has taken every opportunity it could…
The housing market recovery has been one of the U.S. economy’s brighter stories this year. Now, Fitch Ratings says that the recovery is even better than we thought. In its latest research on the…
U.S. home prices rose for the sixth consecutive month in August, to a 20-month high according to real estate information provider FNC Inc. In the country’s 100 largest metropolitan areas, home prices rose at…
In the first official comments since the revised merger agreement between Glencore International and Xstrata, the prime minister of Qatar has said, “e are looking in favor of doing something between the two companies,”…