Economic news

European shares slipped on Friday as market fears were reignited following a disappointing report over the unsuccessful development of a potential COVID-19 treatment. The pan-European STOXX 600 index slipped by 1.1% at 0719 GMT, while London’s FTSE lost 1.3% after data showed U.K. retail sales plunging in March. Global equity markets’ outlook remained gloomy after […]

L Brands Inc. (BRBY.L) sued Sycamore Partners on Thursday after cancelling the purchase of a $525 Million deal of controlling stake in lingerie retailer Victoria’s Secret.  It is the first major U.S. legal fight over an agreement termination because of the virus outbreak. Sycamore said in the filing that L Brands violated the agreement when […]

Burberry (BRBY.L), a British luxury fashion brand, said on Friday that it will keep on paying its employees who can’t work because of store closures amid the virus outbreak. The company also added that it won’t depend on government support. Burberry was already warned a month ago that its final quarter sales would be 30% […]

The dollar was headed for its best week as low oil prices weighed on commodity currencies.  The dollar index is nearing more than a two-week high after gaining 0.8% this week. It is up almost 3% on the oil-sensitive Norweigan Krone and 1% on the euro. The Australian and New Zealand dollars each lost 0.2%, […]

Oil prices gained on Friday as Kuwaiti oil producers said they will slash output to compensate for low demand. Brent crude rose 2.8%, or 60 cents, at $21.93 per barrel. U.S. oil was up 4%, or 66 cents, at $17.16 per barrel.  As the West Texas Intermediate fell into negative territory and the Brent in […]

A Reuter’s study reported on Friday that the pandemic-driven global economic downturn will record its sharpest fall this year. Meanwhile, a U-shaped economic recovery is also seen to take place based on the analysis of economists across the globe. A group of over 500 economists who took part in Reuter’s poll said that most of […]

Streaming service giant Netflix Inc (NFLX.O) will raise a $1 billion debt on Thursday to fund original shows and potential acquisitions. The American media-services provider and production company revealed that they have more than doubled its own projections for new customers and admitted that it was all because of the virus outbreak. The company’s shares […]

On Wednesday, a leading financial industry trade group told regulators, “U.S. brokers should not be forced to sign an agreement that could make them liable for breaches of a massive new industry trading database that they have no control over.” Together with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) exchange operators […]

Asian stock markets advanced on Thursday. The upbeat performance followed after crude prices recovered from underperformance and as the U.S. government pledged to provide more stimulus to nurse the virus-beaten economy. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan soared by 0.5% at 460.43 points, regaining momentum after a two-week low. Australian S&P/ASX increased […]

The United Auto Works (UAW) said on Wednesday night that discussions with Detroit’s major automakers are still inching towards safely reopening U.S. production plants. Collectively known as Detroit’s Big Three, Ford Motors Co, General Motors Co, and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV had previously halted operations in March due to the COVID-19 outbreak reaching the United […]