Late Friday, a federal judge reversed a jury order requiring Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) to pay Merck (MRK) $2.54 billion in a hepatitis C patent infringement case. In response, RBC hiked its GILD price target to $94 from $92, and the stock is up 0.8% to trade at $81.36. RBC's lofty new price-target represents territory GILD stock has not seen since April 2016. Nevertheless, the equity boa...Read More
(Kitco News) - Gold prices have dropped to sharply lower levels on the day at middayTuesday. Solid gains in the U.S. dollar index, which is trading near its dailyhigh, and a move in U.S. stock indexes up from their daily lows are puttingdownside price pressure on the gold and silver markets. The gold futures marketis also seeing some fresh selling interest from the shorter-term traders, assell sto...Read More
The end is nearThe doomsayers have been calling for recession for years. Mainstream economists laughed at them, painting a rosy picture. However, the recent plunge in the stock market strengthened the pessimists' hand. They interpret the dive as a signal of a coming recession. Is the end of the stock market boom really near?What lies ahead?The recent stock market turmoil brought traders to their k...Read More
* Walmart drops after holiday-qtr profit misses estimates* Consumer staples biggest drag on S&P* S&P 500 comes off best week in 5 years* Dow off 0.53 pct, S&P down 0.19 pct, Nasdaq up 0.39 pct (Changes comment, adds details, updates prices)By Sruthi ShankarFeb 20 (Reuters) - A steep fall in Walmart's shares put the skids on the S&P 500 and the Dow's six-day winning streak, but gain...Read More
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is in danger of snapping its six-session win streak, pressured by a negative earnings reaction for big-cap retailer Walmart (WMT). Stocks are also reacting surging bond yields and a strengthening U.S. dollar ahead of a Treasury Department auction of short-term notes. Nevertheless, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) are clinging to a modest ga...Read More
(Adds details, background)By Chijioke OhuochaLAGOS, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Nigerian short-term treasury bill yields fell 50 basis points on Tuesday on expectations the government will sell less debt at auction in the second quarter after raising $2.5 billion from a Eurobond.The government has been working to lower its borrowing costs, particularly as inflation fell for the 12th time in a row in Janua...Read More
NEW YORK, Feb 20 (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday sold record amounts of three-month and six-month bills at the highest interest rates for these maturities at auctions in more than nine years, Treasury data showed.The Treasury sold $51 billion of three-month bills at an interest rate of 1.63 percent and $45 billion of six-month bills at an interest rate of 1.82 percent.<^^^^^...Read More
* Draghi may be succeeded by more "hawkish" ECB chief* Euro zone yields edge back towards multi-year highs* U.S. auctions put upward pressure on yields* Euro zone periphery govt bond yields (Updates prices)By Abhinav RamnarayanLONDON, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Euro zone government bond yields edged up on Tuesday as market speculation swirled over the next European Central Bank chief at a time w...Read More
FRANKFURT, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Stefan Quandt has become BMW's largest single shareholder, giving him a big enough stake to block any potential takeover of the Bavarian carmaker, a regulatory filing showed on Tuesday.The 51-year-old German entrepreneur's direct ownership increased with shares inherited from his mother, giving him a so-called "blocking stake" of 25.83 percent, worth 13.4 bi...Read More
* Under pressure from ECB, PTSB kicks off bad loan sale* Analysts say political opposition could lower sale price By Padraic HalpinDUBLIN, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Ireland could consider boosting protection for borrowers whose loans are sold to unregulated funds, Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Tuesday, amid political opposition to a planned sale by majority state-owned permanent tsb (PTSB) .Irish...Read More
* U.S. to sell record amounts of 3-month, 6-month bills* U.S. to auction $55 bln 1-month bills, $28 bln 2-year notes By Richard LeongNEW YORK, Feb 20 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury yields rose on Tuesday with the benchmark 10-year yield hovering near a four-year peak as investors made room for this week's deluge of $258 billion of government debt supply.The Treasury Department has ramped up its borrow...Read More
DAR ES SALAAM, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Foreign-owned banks, insurance companies and law firms could be locked out of Tanzania's mining sector as part of tough new regulations that aim to limit foreign ownership of mining-related activity.Africa's fourth-largest gold producer is seeking to take more of the profits from its vast mineral resources by overhauling the fiscal and regulatory regime of its min...Read More
* Rand weakens 0.4 percent* Retailers feature in decliners' list on bourse* Government bonds flat (Adds detail, fresh quotes, updates figures)JOHANNESBURG, Feb 20 (Reuters) - The South African rand slipped on Tuesday, retreating from last week's three-year high as investors bagged profits ahead of the government's budget speech. Investors are also focusing on an expected cabinet shake-up under new...Read More
LAGOS, Feb 20 (Reuters) - The Nigerian short-term treasury bill yield fell 50 basis points on Tuesday as traders expect a drop in second quarter auction volumes after the government raised $2.5 billion from a Eurobond last week to payoff some maturities.The government has been working to lower its borrowing costs, particularly as inflation fell for the 12th time in a row in January. It sold Eurobo...Read More
DAR ES SALAAM, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Foreign-owned banks, insurance companies and law firms could be locked out of Tanzania's mining sector as part of tough new regulations that aim to limit foreign ownership of mining-related activity.Africa's fourth-largest gold producer is seeking to take more of the profits from its vast mineral resources by overhauling the fiscal and regulatory regime of its min...Read More
Tech stock Ubiquiti Networks Inc (NASDAQ:UBNT) is tanking today, after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued subpoenas to several officers, and requested accounting and trade documents. Last September, notable short-selling firm Citron Research called Ubiquiti a "total fraud," and compared its CEO to Bernie Madoff. Meanwhile, biotech MiMedx Group Inc (NASDAQ:MDXG) is also in hot wa...Read More
Aimmune Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:AIMT) stock is in focus this morning, after the company's peanut allergy drug AR101 met its late-stage study goals. Aimmune will now seek U.S. approval by the end of 2018. After being halted in pre-market trading, AIMT stock is up 1.3% to trade at $37.30, and touched a fresh record high of $42 out of the gate this morning.Thestock has been climbing since October,...Read More
LONDON (Reuters) - African miner Randgold Resources (RRS.L) is looking to make its first acquisition outside its home continent in North and South America to diversify its portfolio of assets, its chief executive Mark Bristow told Reuters.The London-listed miner has invested throughout the commodity price downturn, generated cash and steadily increased dividends while rivals have been struggling w...Read More
BELGRADE, Feb 20 (Reuters) - The Serbian central bank bought euros on the local interbank market on Tuesday to stem gains of the dinar which has been bolstered by auctions of treasury bonds, dealers and traders said.The bank, which a day earlier purchased 30 million euros,stepped in as the dinar traded at 118.05 to the euro or 0.11 percent stronger than the previous close. (Reporting by Aleksandar...Read More
Shares of Wayfair Inc (NYSE:W) and Etsy Inc (NASDAQ:ETSY) have outperformed over the past year, and analysts are expecting more upside ahead as both companies prepare to report earnings over the next week. Let's take a quick look at W and ETSY stocks today, and how Wall Street is gearing up for the upcoming quarterly updates. Wayfair Hits New High After Price-Target HikesWayfair this morning saw i...Read More