U.S. Economy

Bernanke upbeat on innovation outlook in commencement address

Sat, 18 May 2013 16:14:07 +0000

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke painted an upbeat picture on Saturday for the potential of innovation to lift living standards, delivering a sweeping look at the last 100 years that included memories of his 1963 South Carolina home. Bernanke made no reference to monetary policy or the immediate outlook for the U.S. economy in prepared remarks to graduates of Bard College at Simon's Rock, Massachusetts. But the die-hard baseball fan did manage to work in a reference to one of the sport's greats. …

Original post by Reuters and software by Elliott Back

Germany’s Merkel visits Pope, urges tougher market controls

Sat, 18 May 2013 13:41:20 +0000

By James Mackenzie VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel met Pope Francis on Saturday and, apparently responding to his criticism of a heartless "dictatorship of the economy", called for stronger regulation of financial markets. On Thursday, Francis appealed in a speech for world financial reform, saying the global economic crisis had made life worse for millions in rich and poor countries. Merkel visited Rome for a few hours specifically to meet the pontiff and spoke with him privately in his library for 45 minutes, unusually long for a private papal audience. …

Original post by Reuters and software by Elliott Back

Polish conservative opposition leads opinion poll

Sat, 18 May 2013 09:59:09 +0000

WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland's opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party has overtaken the ruling Civic Platform in an opinion poll released on Saturday, showing the government may be increasingly vulnerable to the economic downturn. The center-right Civic Platform, led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk won 40 percent of the vote at the 2011 election, but its support was down to 23 percent in the survey carried out by CBOS, one of Poland's biggest polling organizations. …

Original post by Reuters and software by Elliott Back

China April housing inflation quickens to two year high

Sat, 18 May 2013 09:28:02 +0000

By Xiaoyi Shao and Michael Martina BEIJING (Reuters) - China's housing inflation accelerated to its fastest pace in April in two years, driven by a jump in prices in Beijing and Shanghai, complicating the task of policymakers trying to cool the property sector while supporting economic expansion. Average new home prices rose 4.9 percent last month from a year ago, after a year-on-year increase of 3.6 percent in March, according to Reuters calculations from data released by the National Bureau of Statistics(NBS) on Saturday. The rise was the sharpest since April 2011. …

Original post by Reuters and software by Elliott Back

Exclusive: EU cites Chinese telecoms Huawei and ZTE for trade violations

Sat, 18 May 2013 05:58:27 +0000

By Daniel Bases NEW YORK (Reuters) - Europe's top trade official for the first time late on Friday officially cited Chinese mobile telecommunications equipment makers Huawei and ZTE Corp for violating anti-dumping and anti-subsidy guidelines. European Union Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said he was prepared to launch a formal investigation into anti-competitive behavior by these Chinese companies in order to protect a "strategic" sector of Europe's economy. …

Original post by Reuters and software by Elliott Back

Dow, S&P end at records, stocks mark fourth week of gains

Fri, 17 May 2013 23:00:57 +0000

By Leah Schnurr NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks continued their climb into uncharted territory on Friday, racking up the fourth week of gains in a row as encouraging economic data prompted investors to pick up shares of growth companies. The Dow and the S&P 500 finished at fresh record highs, driven by gains in energy and industrial shares. The indexes have pushed to a series of never-before-seen levels as part of the rally that has lifted equities more than 16 percent for the year so far. …

Original post by Reuters and software by Elliott Back

Kerry to attend Syria talks on May 22, visit Mideast, Africa

Fri, 17 May 2013 22:16:46 +0000

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will attend talks on Syria in Amman on Wednesday, the State Department said, as major powers try to bring the Syrian government and opposition to peace talks in June. Kerry’s visit is part of a one-week trip that begins in Oman on Tuesday and includes talks about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in Jerusalem and Ramallah on Thursday and Friday as well as an African Union summit in Addis Ababa over the weekend. He then is scheduled to return to Jordan on Sunday to attend the World Economic Forum. …

Original post by Reuters and software by Elliott Back

Dow, S&P end at records as indexes score fourth week of gains

Fri, 17 May 2013 22:08:22 +0000

Original post by Reuters and software by Elliott Back

TSX rises as gold miners lone sore spot

Fri, 17 May 2013 21:49:21 +0000

By Alastair Sharp TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index rose on Friday as robust economic data helped drive gains in energy stocks and financial shares, offsetting weakness in gold producers. The materials sector, a major component of the S&P/TSX composite which includes gold miners, was the lone sector to finish in the red of ten main sectors, as the price of gold fell for a seventh straight session. That weakness in gold came after some Federal Reserve officials said the U.S. …

Original post by Reuters and software by Elliott Back

Dow, S&P end at records in Wall Street’s fourth week of gains

Fri, 17 May 2013 21:12:41 +0000

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks continued their climb into uncharted territory on Friday, racking up the fourth week of gains in a row as encouraging economic data prompted investors to pick up shares of growth companies. Both the Dow and the S&P 500 finished Friday's session at record highs. Based on the latest available data, the Dow Jones industrial average shot up 121.18 points, or 0.80 percent, to end unofficially at 15,354.40. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 15.65 points, or 0.95 percent, to finish unofficially at 1,666.12. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 33.72 points, or 0. …

Original post by Reuters and software by Elliott Back