A group called the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), composed of representatives from national financial regulators, had proposed changing the way commodities benchmarks, including the price of Brent crude oil, are compiled. Opposition…
Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) has been struggling with losses for the past four years and the ripple effects of those losses now include another downgrade to Sony’s corporate credit rating from Standard & Poor’s…
Paychex Inc. (NASDAQ: PAYX) reported fiscal first quarter 2013 earnings per share (EPS) of $0.42 on revenue of $578.2 million. In the same period a year ago, the homebuilder reported EPS of $0.41 on…
The three major U.S. stock indexes opened lower this morning following weak economic data from Germany (more coverage here). The weekend meetings between Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande highlighted the gulf…
Shares of Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) posted an all time high near $750 per share today, while shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) have pulled back even further from an all-time high set last…
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is about to join the parade of individuals and institutions adopting a dimmer view of the 2012 global economy. In a speech today in Washington, the IMF’s managing director,…
After hitting annual highs last week, the three major U.S. stock indexes could be in for a fall. Not a stumble, but a fall. In an email, Stanley J.G. Crouch, CIO at Aegis Capital,…
From October through December last year, U.S. retail payrolls added 660,200 workers according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. That was barely more than the 647,600 seasonal workers added in 2010. For 2012,…
Just over two weeks ago Peregrine Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: PPHM) reported a statistically significant improvement in the company’s bavituximab lung-cancer treatment. Shares jumped nearly 50% and eventually posted at more than two-year high. It’s…
The trailing 12-month default rate on high-yield bonds in August rose to 2.2% from 2% in July, according to Fitch Ratings. The ratings firm expects the default rate to end the year with a…
The $6.8 billion merger between United Parcel Service Inc. (NYSE: UPS) and TNT Express is still expected to be completed by early 2013, despite the announcement today that the CEO of the Dutch-based delivery…
AppleApple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) announced this morning that the company sold more than 5 million iPhone 5 units over the three days since the product was released. The phone was available to customers in…
Admitting that it had overestimated both the market for all-electric vehicles (EVs) and the ability of battery makers to meet consumer requirements, Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) announced this morning that it has killed…
Digital video recorder maker TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO) announced this morning that it had settled a pending patent suit against Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) and that the two companies have entered into a…
Independent oil and gas exploration and production company Goodrich Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: GDP) said this morning that it has received notice from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that the agency has completed…
Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) this morning reported fiscal third-quarter 2012 earnings per share (EPS) of $0.40 on revenue of $1.1 billion. In the same period a year ago, the homebuilder reported EPS of $0.11…
The three major U.S. stock indexes opened higher this morning, encouraged by a report from Europe that Spain was close to unveiling a rescue plan for the country’s banks that it would release next…
Dennis Lockhart, President of the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank, spoke to a Georgia audience today and explained some of his thinking leading to the recent FOMC decision to begin purchasing agency mortgage-backed securities. Lockhart…
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) today released its data on state and regional unemployment for August. Compared with July 2012 data, unemployment rates rose in 26 states, with 12 states and the…
Breaking with its past practice, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) said today that it plans to hire about 50,000 seasonal workers and to boost hours for its regular employees during the 2012 holiday season.…