Consumer sentiment slipped modestly in early April as higher gasoline prices hit household budgets, but optimism over the economic outlook lifted consumers' expectations, a survey released on Friday showed.
The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's preliminary reading on the overall index on consumer sentiment dipped to 75.7 in April from 76.2 in March. Economists had expected the index to
forexsq.com - Some Americans spend their tax refunds on high-tech gadgets and long-awaited vacations. Others use the cash to file for bankruptcy. More than 200,000 money-strapped households will use their tax refunds this year to pay for bankruptcy filing and legal fees, says a new study by the National Bureau of Economic Research. The NBER research confirms what bankruptcy lawyers have long know
forexsq.com - For the second time in five months, Bank of America is tapping the red-hot market for repossessed homes in the US by seeking bids on a bulk offering of several hundred single-family homes.
Over the past several weeks, the nation's second-largest bank by assets has solicited bids for a bulk deal that includes up to 500 largely vacant single-family homes, some of which it acquired
forexsq.com - Read Full Story at federalreserve.gov I would like to thank the conference organizers for the opportunity to offer a few remarks on the causes of the 2007-09 financial crisis as well as on the Federal Reserve's policy response. The topic is a large one, and today I will be able only to lay out some basic themes. In doing so, I will draw from talks and testimonies that I gave during
forexsq.com - For the past two days this market was willing to apply risk. Investors were encouraged by the “highly accommodative rhetoric” from Fed Yellen and the BoJ’s Shirakawa pursuit of “powerful easing” to overcome deflation. Throw into the mix stronger Aussie employment, higher demand for Chinese loans and even better than expected industrial production expansion from the Euro-zone had man
The yen remained lower after a two- day decline against the dollar and the euro before Japanese ministers discuss measures against deflation today amid speculation the Bank of Japan will add to monetary easing.
Australia’s dollar dropped after data showed China’s economy expanded less than forecast, hurting the outlook for the South Pacific nation’s exports. Singapore’s currency climbed after a
forexsq.com - China’s first-quarter economic growth cooled to its slowest pace in 11 quarters amid weak export growth and sluggish construction activity, though analysts viewed the figures as pointing to a gradual slowing rather than a replay of downturn during the global crisis.
Gross domestic product grew 8.1% in the January to March period, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, be
forexsq.com - JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) reported a 3.1 percent drop in earnings, a smaller decline than analysts estimated as mortgage revenue surged and trading almost doubled from the fourth quarter.
First-quarter net income fell to $5.38 billion, or $1.31 a share, from a record $5.56 billion, or $1.28, in the same period a year earlier when there were more shares outstanding, the New York-
forexsq.com - The cost of living in the U.S. increased at a slower pace in March as the run-up in energy prices eased, supporting the view of some Federal Reserve policy makers that inflation will ebb.
The consumer-price index climbed 0.3 percent, matching the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, after increasing 0.4 percent the prior month, Labor Department data showed to
forexsq.com - There is no mess quite so bad that official intervention won’t make it even worse. Nowhere is this old saw more applicable than in the eurozone, where only a month or so back, leaders were warmly congratulating themselves on having seen off the worst of the debt crisis. As is apparent from the events of the past week, these hopes were not just premature, but naive. The crisis is onc
Defying warnings from the international community, North Korea launched a long-range rocket on Friday, but it broke apart before escaping the earth's atmosphere and fell into the sea, officials said.
"It flew about a minute, and it flew into the ocean," said Noriyuki Shikata, a spokesman for Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda.
He added that Japanese authorities "have not identified any
forexsq.com - It’s had almost eight years to enjoy the spotlight as one of the great initial public offering investments in Silicon Valley history. Now Google Inc., like everybody else, waits for next month’s Facebook IPO to see if history will repeat itself.
But Google GOOG +1.45% didn’t get where it is without being hypercompetitive. It has one more chance to steal the spotlight Thursday, w
forexsq.com - The Australian dollar gained Thursday against the U.S. unit, which declined against most major rivals in Asian trading hours.
The Australian dollar AUDUSD +0.92% traded at $1.0377, from $1.0306 just before the release of data that showed the country’s unemployment rate unchanged from February at 5.2%. forex
forexsq.com - The yen weakened for a second day against the dollar and euro after Bank of Japan (8301) Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said policy makers will “pursue powerful easing” to help overcome deflation.
Japan’s currency declined against all of its 16 major counterparts after Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Janet Yellen said U.S. borrowing costs will stay low, spurring demand for higher-yield
forexsq.com - Rising fears about the region’s fourth largest economy will send a fresh flood of investment towards the “safe haven” metal, according to the annual report from Thomson Reuters GFMS. Philip Klapwijk, global head of metals analytics at the consultancy, said: “We could easily see last September’s record high [a closing high of $1,900.23 on September 5] being taken out. “A push on towa
