NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Dow Jones industrial average rose above the 25,000 level for the first time on Thursday and other major indexes scaled new records, propelled by strong economic data both in the United States and abroad.The 30-member blue-chip index crossed five 1,000-point marks in 2017 on the back of President Donald Trump’s pro-growth agenda and solid corporate earnings.It took le...Read More

Israel may ban from trading on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange companies whose main business revolves around bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, the Israel Securities Authority (ISA), the country's markets regulator, said on Thursday.Read full newsRead More

Online supermarket Ocado Group PLC (LON:OCDO) was helping the FTSE 250 to reach new highs on Thursday afternoon.The ?2.8bn company was the subject of a double whammy of City chatter about a potential new European contract as well as renewed takeover speculation.On the back of Ocado's tie-up with French grocer Casino back in November, reports in Sweden have suggested a deal with Swedish retailer I...Read More

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said President Donald Trump believes in enforcing U.S. marijuana laws after the Department of Justice moved on Thursday to ease enforcement of federal drug laws in states that have legalized pot.“The president believes in enforcing federal law -- that’s his top priority -- regardless of what the topic is, whether it’s marijuana or immigratio...Read More

BOSTON (Reuters) - A handful of hedge funds ended 2017 with double digit returns, their investors said, at a time the $3 trillion industry took in fresh money and posted its best returns in years, industry data show.Activist hedge fund Marcato Capital Management, which waged proxy fights at Buffalo Wild Wings and Deckers Outdoor Corp. last year, ended 2017 with a 25.6 percent gain at its flagship...Read More

Qataris allege they were prevented from performing the Umrah pilgrimage by Saudi authorities.Read full newsRead More

Cobalt prices went ballistic in 2017 with the metal quoted on the LME ending the year at $75,500, a 129% annual surge sparked by intensifying supply fears and an expected demand spike from battery markets. Measured from its record low hit in February 2016, the metal is more than $50,000 more expensive.Given these lofty levels - and considering that the volatile commodity topped $100,000 a tonne a...Read More

Norway beat back an unprecedented lawsuit by environmental groups that sought to curb oil drilling in the country's Arctic waters.Read full newsRead More

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said on Thursday that President Donald Trump would hold a bipartisan meeting on U.S. immigration reform next week.“Next week the president is inviting a bipartisan group of senators to the White House to discuss the next steps on responsible immigration reform,” White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters.Reporting by Jeff Mason; Writing...Read More

OTTAWA (Reuters) - The Canadian government is sending three cabinet ministers to the United States to stress the merits of NAFTA, officials said on Thursday, paving the way for key talks that could either sink or save the trade pact.Canada and Mexico object to major changes that Washington wants to make to the North American Free Trade Agreement, and time is running out to settle differences befor...Read More

The stock market rally is showing little signs of slowing down today, with the major benchmarks hitting record highs and the Dow toppling 25,000 for the first time ever. Among specific names making big moves are chip stock Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), stem cell specialist Cellect Biotechnology Ltd. (NASDAQ:APOP), and Chinese internet advertising stock ChinaNet Online Holdings, Inc. (...Read More

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he was working with lawmakers to create an immigration system that will serve American workers and improve security, adding he thinks Congress has a good shot at passing an immigration reform bill.Speaking at the start of immigration talks with Republican lawmakers, Trump said he thought the bill would address the problem of undoc...Read More

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Global shares shattered records and European stocks closed higher on Thursday, bolstered by upbeat data from the world’s largest economies, while the euro hovered near a three-year high and the U.S. dollar fell against major currencies.MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe broke a new record, .MIWD00000PUS last gaining 0.83 percent.The ADP National Employment Rep...Read More

Private sector employment in the U.S. increases 250K in December. Wall Street opens higher on Thursday. USD struggles to find demand. Following yesterday's technical slide, the XAU/USD pair gained traction on Thursday and recently rose above the $1315 mark as the broad-based selling pressure on the greenback remained unchanged despite the upbeat employment figures from the United States...Read More

Shares of Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) have been under pressure in recent days, after researchers found security flaws in many of the company's microprocessors. INTC stock fell 3.4% yesterday on the news -- while AMD stock rallied -- and is down another 2.4% today to trade at $44.17, even though the company said it is "rapidly issuing updates" that will be "mitigated over time." But while put o...Read More

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Representative Gregg Harper, chairman of the House Administration Committee, said on Thursday he would not seek re-election in November, becoming the latest Republican to announce plans to leave Congress after 2018.Harper, 61, took office in 2009 as congressman from Mississippi’s 3rd Congressional District and is serving his fifth term. He said in a statement he h...Read More

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. derivatives regulator will hold two meetings to discuss the procedure and operational controls for listing and trading digital currency futures, it said on Thursday, amid rising concerns over the risks bitcoin poses to the financial system.The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said it would convene its technology and risk advisory committees this month to...Read More

HAVANA (Reuters) - The European Union’s top diplomat met with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez on Thursday, saying a landmark accord ratified in November had opened the door to broader economic ties between the Communist-ruled island and 28-nation bloc.Rodriguez and the EU’s Federica Mogherini called the provisional Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement a new chapter in th...Read More

Two tankers can turn off their transmitters, rendezvous in secret and transfer the cargo.Read full newsRead More

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Emboldened by his victory in the passage of the biggest U.S. tax overhaul in decades, President Donald Trump now wants to rein in social welfare programs even though some Republicans are wary of tackling the volatile issue in a congressional election year.A White House-led drive to downsize government aid programs such as food stamps and housing subsidies would energize cons...Read More