US stock markets opened lower this morning and gradually lost ground throughout the day. A fractionally lower opening bell has translated to around a -0.6% loss on each of the major indexes about half…
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has just released its economic survey on Germany. On one hand, the report lauds the country’s resourcefulness in getting through the economic downturn of the past…
Video rental and streaming company Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) is reported to be near a deal to produce a second original series in its continuing battle for primacy in the streaming video world. The…
Discussions among Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO), Japan’s Softbank, China’s Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. over a possible sale of Yahoo’s 40% stake in the Chinese internet company have broken down. The two companies were trying…
Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Plosser said today that the US economy is recovering and that he expects GDP growth to continue through this year and next, albeit at a modest pace of…
Mining giant Xstrata plc (OTC: XSRAY) wants to sell 20% of its $6.44 billion Wandoan coal mine project to a strategic partner in exchange for an equal percentage of the coal that would be…
Germany’s finance minister, Wolfgang Schaeuble, ratcheted up the pressure on Greece to agree to stricter austerity measures in return for a $172 billion bailout package. Schaeuble said: What we’re experiencing at the moment is…
Apparel maker Perry Ellis International Inc. (NASDAQ: PERY) released preliminary fourth-quarter and full-year results today that are weaker than expected. The company expects to post EPS of $0.35-$0.38 for the quarter, well below the…
At about noon today, the three major equity indexes are all trading lower following a weak report on US retail sales and a smaller-than-expected rise in business inventories. The DJIA is down about 23…
Diversified manufacturer Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE: EMR) plans to acquire $5-$6 billion in assets by 2015, primarily in the areas of industrial automation and process management. At the same time, the company plans to…
Shares in solar panel makers are getting a thrashing this morning on the expectation that cuts to Germany’s feed-in tariff will be more severe than previously expected. First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR), LDK Solar…
Natural gas prices are up 4.3% today, at $2.54/thousand cubic feet, after falling to near $2.45 yesterday. The market for natural gas hasn’t changed that much, with warm weather still prevailing across much of…
The three major US equities indexes opened lower this morning following debt rating downgrades to six European countries last night and a somewhat lighter than expected bump in US retail sales. In the first…
Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) has agreed to acquire privately-held Stromedix Inc. for a total price that could reach $562.5 million. Stromedix is developing “innovative therapies for fibrosis and organ failure.” Under the terms…
The US Census Bureau reported that total seasonally adjusted retail sales in January rose 0.4%, considerably weaker than the 1% gain expected by economists polled by MarketWatch. Excluding auto sales, the increase was 0.7%,…
US index futures can’t find much to get excited about one way or the other this morning. Debt downgrades to six European countries were no surprise last night, and a big jump in investor…
The Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) said today at the Singapore Air Show that the company has finalized an order with Indonesia’s Lion Air for up to 380 of the company’s Boeing 737 aircraft. At…
The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) reported that its small-business optimism index for the month of January rose to 93.9, up just 0.1 from December’s reading. That’s slightly lower than the index reading…
Members of the Eurozone are required to keep budget deficits at no more than 3% of GDP. The government of Spain has been out of alignment with that policy since 2009, and the European…
Beginning January 1st, all airline flights to Europe were required to pay a carbon emissions fee for the full distance of any flight to or from the continent. The fee is based on mileage…