Ratings agencies say no default if Greece misses ECB, IMF payments
LONDON (Reuters) – Most top credit rating agencies say they would not cut Greece’s rating to default if it misses a payment to the International Monetary Fund or European Central Bank, a stance that could keep vital ECB funding flowing into the financi…
China’s struggles argue for stimulus all round
SYDNEY (Reuters) – China’s factories stayed stuck in the slow lane in April while Japanese output went into reverse and South Korea suffered its worst export performance in two years, adding urgency to calls for more state stimulus in all three economi…
Dollar dips, trade thins on May Day after stormy week
LONDON (Reuters) – A holiday in most of Europe on Friday thinned trade after a tumultuous week which has seen the dollar collapse in value, bond yields soar and stock markets in Europe and the United States weaken.
Shrinking liquidity exposes markets to crunch
LONDON (Reuters) – The calm on global financial markets masks a growing threat to their smooth functioning should shrinking liquidity morph into an outright crunch in response to a U.S. interest rate rise or some other shock.
Lloyds upbeat on UK growth as profits lifted by drop in bad debts
LONDON (Reuters) – Lloyds Banking Group is confident next week’s British national election will not derail healthy UK economic growth, it said on Friday after posting first-quarter profit up by a fifth thanks to sharply lower losses on bad loans and wi…
China April official PMI shows factories struggling to grow
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s factories struggled to grow in April as domestic and export demand remained weak, reinforcing expectations that Beijing will roll out more measures to support the slowing economy.
Saudi Arabia to restructure Aramco, separates it from oil ministry: Arabiya TV
DUBAI (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Economic Council has approved a restructure of state oil giant Aramco, which includes separating it from the oil ministry, Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television channel reported on Friday, citing sources.
Visa forecasts current-quarter profit below Street
(Reuters) – Visa Inc , the world’s largest credit and debit card company, forecast profit below Wall Street expectations for the current quarter, hurt by continued pressure from lower crude prices and a strong dollar.
U.S. data suggest economy picking up steam after weak first quarter
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits tumbled to a 15-year low last week and consumer spending rose in March, signs the economy was regaining momentum after stumbling badly in the first quarter.
Stock market hammered despite upbeat data
(Reuters) – U.S. stocks, led by the Nasdaq, sold off on Thursday as Apple shares declined, and tech and biotech quarterly results disappointed.
