Today's Reuters Business News Headlines - Yahoo! News:
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Rwanda's biggest bank net profit up 55 pct in first half
Thu,30 Aug 2012 10:40 PM PDT
Reuters - KIGALI (Reuters) - Bank of Kigali, Rwanda's biggest bank by assets, reported a 55 percent rise in first-half net profit, driven by higher net interest earnings, and forecast similar results through the rest of the year. Net income rose to 6 billion francs after net interest income rose by 32 percent to 10.3 billion francs, driven by an increase in the loan book. The bank's Chief Executive James Gatera said it would be safe to assume earnings at a similar level in the second half. ... Full Story | Top |
Asian shares hit 4-week low before Bernanke speech
Thu,30 Aug 2012 10:33 PM PDT
Reuters -  TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares fell to four-week lows on Friday as investors cooled expectations that U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will offer any signal of more monetary stimulus at a speech before fellow central bankers later in the day. European equities were expected to be marginally higher, with financial spreadbetters calling London's FTSE 100, Paris's CAC-40 and Frankfurt's DAX to open up as much as 0.2 percent. ...
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Bernanke may hint at stimulus without boxing Fed in
Thu,30 Aug 2012 10:31 PM PDT
Reuters -  JACKSON HOLE, Wyoming (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will likely acknowledge the U.S. central bank is actively considering another round of monetary easing in his keynote Jackson Hole speech on Friday. But the Fed chief could disappoint fidgety financial markets if he stops short of signaling another bond-buying program is imminent, which many analysts say is a strong possibility. "We have had low expectations for significant news," said Vincent Reinhart, an economist at Morgan Stanley and a former top staffer at the Fed. ...
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Economic uncertainty growing massively: ECB's Nowotny
Thu,30 Aug 2012 10:11 PM PDT
Reuters -  ALPBACH, Austria (Reuters) - Economic uncertainty in Europe is rising "massively" as growth prospects worsen, especially for debt-strapped southern euro zone members, European Central Bank Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny said. Nowotny told reporters late on Thursday he could not reveal the latest ECB forecasts for growth in the euro zone before their official release. "But I can say this much: there will not be an improvement, but rather a deterioration in expectations," he said, noting the divergence in growth rates between northern and southern members was widening. ...
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Brent edges up ahead of Bernanke speech, set for 2nd monthly gain
Thu,30 Aug 2012 10:10 PM PDT
Reuters - SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Brent crude futures climbed above $112 per barrel on Friday, on track for a second monthly gain as investors awaited a speech by U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke for hints of more monetary easing that could stoke oil demand. Investors will look for any sign of a third round of quantitative easing from Bernanke's speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, due later Friday, with more stimulus expected to weigh on the U.S. dollar and boost dollar-denominated oil. Brent crude futures had climbed 14 cents to $112. ... Full Story | Top |
U.S. Senator Reid, son combine for China firm's desert plant
Thu,30 Aug 2012 10:08 PM PDT
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senator Harry Reid recognized nine years ago that connections between his official duties and the lobbying activities of his relatives could lead to ethical questions. In 2003, the Nevada Democrat publicly banned relatives from lobbying him or his staff after newspaper reports showed that Nevada industries and institutions routinely turned to Reid's sons or son-in-law for representation. Now, questions surrounding family ties are flaring again in Nevada around the Senate majority leader. ... Full Story | Top |
Analysis: JPMorgan faces sea of trouble resolving "Whale" probe
Thu,30 Aug 2012 10:02 PM PDT
Reuters -  NEW YORK (Reuters) - The fallout from a nearly $6 billion trading loss at JPMorgan Chase & Co looks like it will haunt the big U.S. bank and its high-profile chief executive, Jamie Dimon, for months to come. U.S. authorities are interviewing witnesses in both the United States and Europe to determine if three former London-based traders and others who worked with them at JPMorgan tried to hide some of the mounting losses during the first quarter of this year, said people familiar with the situation. The situation presents several challenges to U.S. ...
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U.S. to allow Shell to begin prep work for drilling in Arctic
Thu,30 Aug 2012 08:32 PM PDT
Reuters -  ANCHORAGE, Alaska/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell will be allowed to begin some "limited" drilling in Alaska's Chukchi Sea, the U.S. government said on Thursday, a move the company hailed as a step forward in its long-delayed effort to tap Arctic oil. The U.S. Interior Department said Shell will be permitted to begin preparatory work in the Chukchi, but cannot drill to areas containing oil until the government certifies its oil spill containment system. Without that containment system, the department has said it will not allow Shell to drill for oil in the Arctic. ...
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JPMorgan seeks to reduce clearing and settlement risks: WSJ
Thu,30 Aug 2012 08:12 PM PDT
Reuters -  (Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase , a major player in providing clearing and settlement services to other financial firms, plans to reduce some services to clients and sever ties with others as it seeks to reduce risks involved in the business, the Wall Street Journal said. JPMorgan is looking to assess the profits clients generate for the bank versus risks they pose after the collapse of broker-dealer MF Global Holdings Ltd and the computer glitch at market maker Knight Capital Group Inc highlighted dangers, the paper said, citing people familiar with the bank. ...
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Japan's surprisingly weak industrial output darkens economic outlook
Thu,30 Aug 2012 07:10 PM PDT
Reuters -  TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's industrial output unexpectedly fell as factories cut output to key Chinese and European markets while a leading indicator for manufacturing hovered at its lowest in 16 months, in a troubling sign that Japan's broad economy is weakening. Industrial output dropped 1.2 percent in July compared with a median estimate for a 1.7 percent increase in a Reuters poll and followed a 0.4 percent gain in June. ...
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Top central banks should consider more stimulus: BOE's Posen
Thu,30 Aug 2012 06:00 PM PDT
Reuters - JACKSON HOLE, Wyoming (Reuters) - The world's top central banks have room to ease monetary policy further, outgoing Bank of England member Adam Posen said on Thursday. Posen, who completes his term on the BoE's Monetary Policy Committee on Friday, told reporters on the sidelines of the Federal Reserve's annual monetary policy symposium that the UK central bank should consider buying assets other than government bonds if it chooses to ease monetary policy further. He also said the Fed has room to pursue further bond buys. ... Full Story | Top |
World Bank chief heads to Africa in first overseas visit
Thu,30 Aug 2012 05:01 PM PDT
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New World Bank President Jim Yong Kim heads to the Ivory Coast and South Africa next week on his first trip to Africa since taking the reins of the global development lender two months ago. The visit comes at a time when African economies are among the fastest growing in the world although their development is constrained by shortages of roads, ports, power supply, water and sanitation. Despite high rates of growth, rising youth unemployment and inequality are a growing concern. ... Full Story | Top |
Japan to meet fiscal 2015 deficit targets, longer-term goals in doubt
Thu,30 Aug 2012 04:37 PM PDT
Reuters - TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan will meet its target of halving the primary budget deficit in fiscal 2015 due to a spending cap and a sales tax increase but will have to tighten fiscal policy further to eliminate the deficit in fiscal 2020, the Cabinet Office said on Friday. The ratio of the primary budget deficit to gross domestic product will reach 3.2 percent in fiscal 2015, which is half of the level estimated for fiscal 2010, according to the Cabinet Office. Unless the government takes new policy steps, this ratio will fall to 2.8 percent in fiscal 2020, short of the goal of a primary surplus. ... Full Story | Top |
Battle over pension debt looms in San Bernardino bankruptcy
Thu,30 Aug 2012 03:46 PM PDT
Reuters -  (Reuters) - A high-stakes showdown pitting California's public employee pension fund against Wall Street bond firms in bankrupt San Bernardino, California, could be further complicated by wildly disparate estimates of how much the city owes for its retirees. San Bernardino, a city of about 210,000 near Los Angeles that filed for bankruptcy on August 1, has listed the California Public Employees' Retirement System (Calpers) as its largest creditor, with unfunded pension obligations totaling $143.3 million. But Calpers, in response to an inquiry from Reuters, pegged the debt at $319.5 million. ...
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Barclays capital ratios to be hurt by new capital rules
Thu,30 Aug 2012 03:41 PM PDT
Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - British bank Barclays Plc said its trading in August was ahead of a year ago, but estimated its core capital ratio would dip by more than 2 percentage points under tougher capital rules coming into force next year. Chris Lucas, finance director, said on Thursday the bank's core Tier One capital ratio should be about 11.3 percent at the end of this year, but would drop to about 9.2 percent after factoring in the impact of Basel III rules on its risk-weighted assets (RWA). The ratio would improve to 10. ... Full Story | Top |
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