Economy / 3

Protesters rally outside White House against Turkey’s actions in Syria

October 13, 2019

SDF forces currently hold some 12,000 ISIS militants in their prisons following years of helping the U.S.in quashing the group's influence, but now that the US has effectively withdrawn its support and allowed a Turkish incursion into their territory, the Kurdish-led group must focus its efforts on protecting its people and borders, head spokesman Mustafa Bali told Rudaw .

Labour vows to do ‘whatever it takes’ to prevent no-deal Brexit

October 12, 2019

The prime minister put forward revised proposals for a deal last week, created to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland after Brexit . Barnier on Friday met his British opposite number, Brexit minister Stephen Barclay, for talks that both sides described as "constructive" - without giving details.

Fed's Kaplan says buying Treasury bills is not QE

October 12, 2019

The central bank is making the moves now to prevent the recurrence of pressures that built up in the short-term lending among banks in mid-September, which pushed the federal funds rate above the Fed's 1.75%-2.00% target range. The Committee directs the Desk to continue rolling over at auction all principal payments from the Federal Reserve's holdings of Treasury securities and to continue reinvesting all principal payments from the Federal Reserve's holdings of agency debt and agency ...

Oil Perks on Reports of U.S.-China Tensions Easing

October 12, 2019

Oil prices were steady on Thursday as the U.S. Brent crude settled at $58.32 a barrel, up 8 cents, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude settled at $52.59 a barrel, down 4 cents. The Financial Times also reported that China was offering to increase annual purchases of USA agricultural products as part of efforts to secure an interim trade agreement with Washington.

Unemployment rate declines in September

October 12, 2019

For a third consecutive month, the London area's jobless rate rose slightly in September - the result of more people looking for work, new Statistics Canada figures show. While the gains were all full-time, they were entirely public-sector positions and self-employed. "Unemployment is low, wages are starting to pick up".

Hays Travel to take over 555 Thomas Cook stores

October 12, 2019

The independent travel company, with 555 locations, said the move gives it shops in areas where it had little or no presence, including Scotland and Wales. In a move that could save up to 2,500 jobs, Hays Travel announced on Wednesday that it is to acquire 555 Thomas Cook stores from the Official Receiver.

Apple stock surges to record on US-China deal and iPhone gains

October 12, 2019

Syntal Cap Prtn Ltd has invested 0.56% in Apple Inc. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.63% of the company's stock. (NASDAQ: AAPL ) to report earnings on November, 7. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock.

Beer in a paper bottle? One brewer thinks it will work

October 12, 2019

Drinking beer might not be the best for your health, but Carlsberg is out to prove it can be better for the environment. One prototype uses a thin recycled PET polymer film barrier, and the other a 100% bio-based PEF polymer film barrier.

Visa, EBay, Stripe and Mastercard Abandon Facebook’s Libra Project

October 12, 2019

The companies join PayPal Holdings Inc which exited the Libra Association just a week ago, as global regulators continue to air concerns about the project. The news comes just days after PayPal backed out of the project and follows months of scrutiny from regulators worldwide. Facebook announced plans to launch the digital currency in June 2020 in partnership with other Libra Association members.

India's Industrial Production shrinks to minus 1.1% in August

October 12, 2019

Earlier this month, the RBI revised downwards its GDP growth forecast for the current fiscal to 6.1% from the previous estimate of 6.9% after the first-quarter economic growth slipped to over six-year low of 5%. The negative growth number may prompt yet another policy rate cut in December, when the Monetary Policy Committee meets next. Consumer durables output too declined by 9.1 percent in August 2019 as against 5.5 percent growth in the same month of 2018.

Renault removes Thierry Bolloré as CEO

October 12, 2019

The role of president goes for the moment to Jean-Dominique Senard, the chairman of the board. PARIS (AP) - French carmaker Renault dismissed its CEO on Friday, an attempt to revitalize its alliance with Nissan, which was shaken by the jailing of the companies' previous chief, Carlos Ghosn.

Porsche, Boeing teaming up to make electric flying vehicle

October 12, 2019

It what may seem like a shocking move, Porsche announced on Thursday (October 10) it is working on a fully electric flying vehicle . "In the longer term, this could mean moving into the third dimension of travel", Detlev von Platen, member of the executive board for sales and marketing at Porsche AG in Germany, said today in a news release .

Chicken recall due to Listeria contamination expands

October 12, 2019

The frozen, cooked, diced, or shredded, RTE chicken products were produced between January 21, 2019, and September 24, 2019. Any chicken product that falls under the recall should be thrown away or returned to the place where it was purchased.

GM tells workers it’s time for the strike to end

October 11, 2019

The union says GM has tried to "undermine" its efforts before and during the strike. On Sunday, the UAW said the talks took a "turn for the worse" and on Tuesday the union urged GM to boost US vehicle production. 'Your members and our employees lives are being disrupted and they deserve our commitment to getting any remaining issues resolved as quickly as possible, ' Sandefur added.

Divided UN fails to agree on Turkey's offensive in Syria

October 11, 2019

U.S. Ambassador Kelly Craft said Trump "has made abundantly clear" that the United States "has not in any way" endorsed Turkey's decision to mount a military incursion in northeast Syria . forces on the ground in the battle against Islamic State since 2014. The military source said he believes numerous captured Islamic State prisoners "will be free in the coming days and weeks".

Supreme Court declines to set online ADA standard

October 11, 2019

Domino's defended its position by stating that the ADA does not apply to online platforms that were not envisioned when the law was passed in 1990. The case stems back to a 2016 lawsuit against Domino's by Guillermo Robles, who is blind, and who claims he could not order a pizza using the company's website or mobile site because it is not accessible.

Social Security benefits to rise by $24 a month

October 11, 2019

Seniors and advocates complain that the inflation yardstick used to determine the annual adjustment doesn't adequately reflect their costs, mainly for health care. "When a retiree's actual costs climb faster than their [cost-of-living adjustment], the buying power of Social Security erodes", The Senior Citizens League wrote in September.

Deutsche Bank tells court it doesn't hold Trump's tax returns

October 11, 2019

The records are part of the bank's response to a subpoena asking the bank for a host of documents related to Trump and his family. "The identity of the two taxpayers whose tax returns Deutsche Financial institution has, is not connected to any arena now we salvage got to address", the court docket added.

PMC bank scam, Kerala 'serial killings' and former Ranbaxy promoter arrested

October 11, 2019

She said a group has been formed to look into the matter. Last month, the RBI restricted the activities of the PMC Bank for six months and asked it to not grant or renew any loans and advances, make any investment or incur any liability, including borrowing of funds and acceptance of fresh deposits.

China willing to reach agreement with US - Vice Premier Liu He

October 11, 2019

Donald Trump will meet China's negotiating team at the White House on Friday for the latest round of talks aimed at ending a 15-month trade battle that is weighing on the global economy. Earlier in the week, firebrand White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told NPR that Trump was uninterested in half measures, showing "steely resolve" instead.

Trump to meet with top Chinese trade negotiator Friday

October 10, 2019

As trade talks between the U.S. and China unfold in Washington, a series of conflicting news reports have thrown markets into confusion, with U.S. and Asian futures indexes briefly dropping upon news the talks had ended in failure. Mr. Trump said there were some tremendous deals under negotiation. "The transparency of these negotiations are overwhelming for markets but, I remain optimistic about the outcome".

Several Asian refiners to get full Saudi oil supplies in November

October 10, 2019

Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said Wednesday the drone attacks to Saudi oil facilities didn't affect plans for an initial public offering (IPO), but inaction on an global level to deal with the attacker may feed further threats, Kallanish Energy reports.

China wants to make a deal, but do I?

October 10, 2019

A dive in the dollar catapulted the euro higher and flattened stocks on Thursday as the first US-China trade talks since July and a report accusing the European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi of going rogue jostled for attention. Earlier this year, the White House had banned sales to the Chinese tech giant, citing national security concerns. Bringing back the agreement could be an early sign US-China relations are warming up after over a year of tariff wars.

Zuckerberg to testify in US Congress on Facebook digital currency plan

October 10, 2019

In a statement, Brown, the senior Democrat on the Banking Committee, and Schatz, a panel member, said they pointed out in the letter that "Congress, financial regulators, and potential Libra Association member companies have struggled to get sufficient details from Facebook about risks that Libra may pose, including facilitating criminal and terrorist financing, destabilizing the global financial system, interfering with monetary policy, or exposing consumers to risks now limited to ...

Cincy breweries win gold in Great American Beer Festival

October 10, 2019

Three Pennsylvania breweries won gold medals including 2SP Brewing in Aston in the Imperial Stout category for The Russian; New Trail Brewing Co.in Williamsport in the Contemporary American-Style Pilsner category for Lazy River Pils; and Church Brew Works Brewery in Pittsburgh in the German-style dark lager category for Pious Monk Dunkel.

US Mulls Currency Accord With China in Partial Trade Deal

October 10, 2019

Meanwhile, US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said on Thursday that tariffs on Chinese goods and services are working as they are forcing China to pay attention to US concerns. But Chinese officials, surprised and upset by the US blacklisting of Chinese companies, including video surveillance gear maker Hikvision, 002415.SZ along with the suspension of USA visas for some Chinese officials, told Reuters that Beijing had lowered expectations for significant progress from the talks.

China made no progress in deputy-level trade talks: Chinese state newspaper

October 10, 2019

Dow futures fell by 300 points nearly immediately, with futures on the S&P and the Nasdaq Composite each taking a 1 percent hit. Tariffs that are due to increase next week could also be suspended as part of this deal, it reported. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in Sydney on Thursday that the tariffs were working, forcing Beijing to pay attention to US concerns about its trade practices.

HSBC to cut up to 10000 jobs to trim costs

October 10, 2019

Any job cuts implemented in this new round would come on top of the redundancies announced by the bank earlier in the year, when it said it will lay off about 4,000 people. During Mr Flint's short tenure as chief executive, the bank grappled with a declining stock price, a high-profile sexual harassment case at its investment bank and a failure to hit cost targets.

Major US-China trade deal remains unlikely as talks resume

October 10, 2019

President Xi Jinping's government is under pressure to stem the broadening conflict as the trade war adds to the downward forces on China's slowing economy. The Nasdaq gained 1%. China is unlikely to be willing to make an easy compromise with a United States president who seems increasingly vulnerable to domestic political pressure as opposition Democrats seek to impeach him, Mitsubishi's Fujito added.

Hays Travel To Buy 555 Thomas Cook Stores

October 10, 2019

The Altrincham branch of Thomas Cook looks set for an unlikely reprieve after a rival confirmed it would be buying all 555 of the collapsed travel company's high street stores. Jim Tucker, partner at KPMG, added: "This is an extremely positive outcome, and we are delighted to have secured this agreement". The company said that in the immediate aftermath of the collapse of Thomas Cook, Britain's oldest travel firm, it offered to help all Thomas Cook apprentices to complete their training at ...

OECD proposes giving countries right to tax multinationals' global profits

October 10, 2019

The OECD said in a statement that its proposal would help the talks to "ensure large and highly profitable multinational enterprises, including digital companies, pay tax wherever they have significant consumer-facing activities and generate their profits".

Time is now for Fed to boost security holdings, Powell says

October 09, 2019

The Fed has shifted its stance since late past year, cutting the federal funds rate by 50 basis points at its last two meetings. According to an Associated Press report , Powell used a Salt Lake City appearance at the premiere of a documentary about former Federal Reserve Chairman Marriner Eccles.

United Kingdom to publish no-deal plans as gloom surrounds Brexit talks

October 09, 2019

But a row broke out on Tuesday after a No 10 source said a call between Mr Johnson and the German chancellor, Angela Merkel , had made a deal "essentially impossible", claiming she made clear a deal based on his proposals was "overwhelmingly unlikely".

Singapore, United States lead world's most competitive economies

October 09, 2019

Japan fell one spot to sixth. It is less competitive in areas of information and technology (ICT) adoption at 8th place, infrastructure, also at 8th, and health at 7th. With an overall ranking of 110, Pakistan was at 110 for institutions; 105 for infrastructure; 131 for ICT adoption; 116 for macroeconomic stability; 115 for health; 125 for skills; 126 for product market; 120 for labour market; 89 for financial system; 29 for market size; 52 for business dynamism; and 79 for innovation capacity.

Not abandoning the Kurds, says Trump

October 09, 2019

Their victory against IS in the battle of Kobane stopped the group's terrifying advance across Syria . Eventually, it was the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces - supported by USA air power - who overran the last part of Islamic State's "caliphate" in March this year.

Oil falls on concerns over U.S.-China talks, weak economic data

October 09, 2019

U.S. and Chinese officials meet in Washington on October 10-11 in a fresh effort to work out a deal, which U.S. President Donald Trump said his administration had a "very good chance" of achieving. "Growing recession risks have capped the upside of oil prices ". "The market's focus remains on trade tensions and oil demand concerns, ignoring the elevated geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and lower OPEC production in September", said UBS oil analyst Giovanni Staunovo.

Lottery player lands £170m EuroMillions jackpot in biggest United Kingdom win

October 09, 2019

It took a record-breaking run of 18 rollovers, when nobody wins the top prize, to push the booty up to its maximum amount, and it then went another four draws before finally being won. National Lottery operator Camelot said there have been four United Kingdom jackpot winners in 2019, who between them won £350 million. The massive prize still pales in comparison to the $1.537bn Mega Millions US lottery jackpot won a year ago by a lucky punter in SC.

Domino's sticking to growth plan despite sales pressures

October 09, 2019

Global same-store sales growth also slowed, rising 1.7%, the 103rd-straight quarter of same-store sales growth. Argus dropped their price target on shares of Domino's Pizza from $310.00 to $280.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th.

Twitter misused security information for advertising purposes

October 09, 2019

The social network has learned that phone numbers and email addresses provided for safety and security (including two-factor authentication) might have "inadvertently" been used for ad purposes, Engadget observed. " This was an error and we apologize ", the company said. Feels like someone's trying to distance themselves from the situation. Twitter assures users that no "personal" information was shared, though we're not sure what Twitter would consider "personal information" if your phone ...

Weak U.S. producer prices support another Fed interest rate cut

October 09, 2019

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the Producer Price Index (PPI ) for final demand actually fell by 0.3% on a seasonally adjusted basis during September. The producer-price index typically tracks the same broad trends as other inflation measures, though it does not always translate into what consumers pay.

United Kingdom prepares for breakdown in talks with EU

October 09, 2019

He said: "In my mind it is completely improbable that the phone call between Merkel and Johnson took place in the way it has been reported in the British media". The source said: "It was a very clarifying moment in all sorts of ways". "If this represents a new established position, then it means a deal is essentially impossible, not just now but ever ".

Turkey dismisses USA threats, amasses troops on Syrian border

October 09, 2019

Zarif's tweeted his condemnation of the US role in Syria nearly immediately after news of a possible USA troop withdrawal came out. Turkey has demanded USA -allied Syrian Kurds leave the area. President Bashar Assad's government abandoned the predominantly Kurdish area in northern Syria at the height of Syria's civil war to focus on more key areas where the military was being challenged by the rebels.

Dick's Sporting Goods says it destroyed $5 million worth of rifles

October 09, 2019

Longtime chief executive officer Ed Stack said the company turned $5 million worth of their guns into scrap metal. That decision came after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida that left 17 dead and 15 injured in a brutal attack by a former student with an AR-15 rifle on February 14, 2018.

Johnson accuses European Union of making it impossible to leave with a deal

October 08, 2019

Sterling fell to a three-week low against the euro on Tuesday as concerns lingered that sizeable differences between Britain and the European Union remained with less than a month left to strike a Brexit withdrawal deal before the October 31 deadline.

Lorry import tariffs to be cut in no-deal Brexit

October 08, 2019

The Treasury said any decisions would be made "with a view to the long-term sustainability of the public finances". "Given the extraordinary level of uncertainty and risks facing the economy and public finances, it should not be looking to offer further permanent overall tax giveaways".

Samsung predicts profit decline as chip market swoons：The Asahi Shimbun

October 08, 2019

The vice chairman agreed that memory chip prices have fallen steeply, as the company's third-quarter earnings turned out better than market expectations. "Consequently, the overall trend of contract prices also shifted from decline to stability during the third quarter". The Korean technology giant has endured a number of hard quarters in which operating profits have fallen significantly.

Gold rises as dollar, stocks ease ahead of US-China talks

October 08, 2019

In tonnage terms, the latest inflow totals 5.9 tonnes, and follows the addition of about 99.8 tonnes over the prior nine months. Last Friday, it was all about the US jobs data which disappointed and while the data disappointed on the whole, the unemployment rate hit a cyclical low of 3.5% in September, from 3.7% in August, and is now at a level not seen since December 1969 which was the US Dollar's savour on the day.

Massachusetts health officials report first death linked to vaping-related lung injury

October 08, 2019

If you are an adult using vaping devices with medical cannabis products, consider changing to another form of medical cannabis. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health confirmed a Hampshire County woman in her 60s died from a lung injury related to vaping.

HKEX drops takeover bid for London peer

October 08, 2019

Today's announcement follows on from a rather hostile response from LSEG regarding the takeover. Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) made the shock proposal for LSEG on September 11, but LSEG formally rejected the offer the following day citing "fundamental" flaws and concerns over its ties to the city's government.

CAA Concludes Thomas Cook Repatriation

October 08, 2019

Those customers were stranded when tour operator Thomas Cook collapsed under a £1.7 billion debt pile last month. The CAA blamed "unprecedented demand" and urged users to try later. In addition, over 24,000 direct debit repayments are already in process, with all automatic direct debit refunds on track to be returned to customers from Monday, 14 October .

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