PARIS (Reuters) - President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel meet in Paris to discuss euro zone reform on Friday, their first encounter since her new coalition took office, but they may struggle to find common ground on further change in Europe.Merkel, narrowly re-elected to a fourth term as chancellor, wants to fulfill her incoming government’s pledge to deliver a “...Read More
The gold miners' stocks remain deeply out of favor, trading at prices seen when gold was half or even a quarter of current levels. So many traders assume this small contrarian sector must be really struggling fundamentally. But nothing could be farther from the truth! The major gold miners' recently-released Q4'17 results prove they are thriving. Their languishing stock prices are the resu...Read More
UBS is predicting a big increase in U.S. solar installations in upcoming yearsBrokerage firm UBS initiated coverage on several solar stocks this morning, including First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR), Solaredge Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:SEDG), and JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. (NYSE:JKS). The firm estimated U.S. solar installations will rise to 14.7 gigawatts in 2020, and gave FSLR, SEDG, and JKS "buy"...Read More
Temperatures near negative 24 degrees celsius in Yakutia, the coldest region in Russia, are not putting off would-be treasure hunters who literally saw gold fall from the sky on Thursday. A nine-ton treasure of gold and silver alloy called dor?(C) bars fell from the back of an AN-12 cargo plane flying from Yakutsk to Krasnoyarsk in an area largely at and around the airport, the Siberian Times repo...Read More
OSTK is spiraling, while KODK is soaringShares of Overstock.com Inc (NASDAQ:OSTK) have plunged 11.6% to trade at $42.55, after the company said fourth-quarter revenue fell 13.3% to $456.3 million -- well below the consensus forecast for $526.2 million in revenue. What's more, the company failed to give an update on plans to sell its e-commerce division in order to shift its focus to digital curren...Read More
Credit Suisse's Golub Says Better Economic Data, Less Inflation Fueling MarketsConsumer sentiment in March unexpectedly jumped to a 14-year high after tax cuts boosted disposable incomes, while new tariffs raised inflation expectations and dimmed the outlook, a University of Michigan survey showed Friday.Highlights of Michigan Sentiment (March, Preliminary)Sentiment index rose to 102 (est. 99.3) f...Read More
The shares are exploring record highs after earningsAdobe Systems Incorporated (NASDAQ:ADBE stock is surging today, up 3.8% to trade at $227.25 -- and just off a new record high of $228 -- after the software company reported fiscal first-quarter earnings and revenue above expectations. In response, analysts have heaped praise on ADBE, with no fewer than 11 brokerages upping their price targets, i...Read More
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission called for industry views on Friday on a list of U.S. products it will subject to import tariffs if the United States taxes European steel and aluminum.The Commission asked “private stakeholders” affected by the U.S. tariffs and the EU’s possible response by March 26.The Commission plans to set duties of 25 percent on a range of U.S. p...Read More
WASHINGTON, (Reuters) - U.S. industrial production jumped 1.1 percent in February, the largest increase in four months, due to a weather-related rebound in construction and a rise in output from the nation's oil and gas fields and mines.Manufacturing output rose 1.2 percent, the biggest gain since October, the Federal Reserve said in its monthly report.Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a 0...Read More
(Kitco News) - Goldpriceshave lost modest early gains and are trading moderatelylower and hit a two-week low in late-morning action Friday. The gold marketstarted to slip when the U.S. dollar index pushed above unchanged and moved toits daily high. The gold market is now poised to close at a technically bearishweekly low close today, which would also then suggest more selling pressureearly next we...Read More
LONDON (Reuters) - Appetite for equities came back with a vengeance this week, driving record inflows as concerns around trade dissipated and billions more were plowed into tech stocks, Bank of America Merrill-Lynch strategists said on Friday.Alongside the resurgence of a “wall of money” going into stocks, BAML however noted that equities are not yielding as much as these flows would s...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. homebuilding fell more than expected in February as a plunge in the construction of multi-family housing units offset a second straight monthly increase in single-family projects.Housing starts declined 7.0 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.236 million units, the Commerce Department said on Friday. Data for January was revised up slightly to show groundb...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As another U.S. government funding deadline looms, a huge spending bill is ground zero in the latest battle between Republicans and Democrats in Congress over President Donald Trump’s push to toughen immigration policy.Lawmakers have until March 23 to work out how to fund government agencies for the next six months. But their behind-the-scenes negotiations are caught u...Read More
(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures pointed to a flat opening for Wall Street on Friday as continuing turmoil in the Trump administration kept investors on edge.The three main indexes were set to record losses for the week that was dominated by concerns of global trade war and political drama that began with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s exit.The Washington Post reported on Thursday th...Read More
All three major U.S. benchmarks are set for weekly lossesU.S. stock futures are signaling a cautious open, as traders watch mixed reports surrounding the White House. In the same week he fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, President Donald Trump is supposedly considering removing National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster -- though a tweet from Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders suggested tha...Read More
GENEVA (Reuters) - President Donald Trump’s announcement last week of a 25 percent tariff on U.S. imports of steel and 10 percent on aluminum caused a global outcry.The following sets out how Washington might try to justify the tariffs at the World Trade Organization, which is supposed to police agreed free trade rules, and how the WTO might address the issue.NO WORD TO THE WTOThe tariffs an...Read More
(Kitco News)- The gold market is seeing little reaction to weaker thanexpected housing construction data. Friday, the Commerce Department said housing starts dropped 7% in Februaryto a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.236 million units. Economists wereexpecting new home construction to be mostly weaker falling to a rate of 1.29million units.For the year, new home construction is up 2.9% from F...Read More
* Indian discounts unchanged at $3 an ounce* China premiums at about $8/oz; 60 cents-$1.20/oz in Hong Kong* Spot gold range-bound at $1,313.56/oz and $1,330.02/ozBy Rajendra Jadhav and Nithin ThomasPrasadMUMBAI/BENGALURU, March 16 (Reuters) - Weaker demand in India prompted gold dealers to offer discounts for a second week straight, as a drop in local prices to 2-week lows and a festival failed to...Read More
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Euro zone consumer prices grew less than expected in February because of a fall in unprocessed food prices and reduced energy inflation, data from the European Union’s statistics office Eurostat showed on Friday.Inflation in the 19 countries sharing the euro was 0.2 percent month-on-month and 1.1 percent year-on-year. Economists polled by Reuters had expected that monthl...Read More
Redfin's Nela Richardson Says Housing Starts Are DisappointingU.S. new-home construction cooled by more than expected in February on a reversal in the volatile multifamily category, while building remained on pace to contribute to economic growth this quarter, government figures showed Friday.Highlights of Housing Starts (February)Residential starts fell 7% to a 1.24m annualized rate (est. 1.29m)...Read More