Reuters: Stocks & Shares News

Young Europeans' thoughts on fall of Berlin Wall

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:59:58 GMT

(Reuters) - For generations old enough to have lived through it, the opening of the Berlin Wall will be the iconic image of our time -- an enduring memory that marked the beginning of the end of the Cold War.

Dollar losing its lustre but still reigns globally

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:22:39 GMT

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Until a few years ago, most Brazilians able to hoard cash would rush to buy U.S. dollars to prevent runaway inflation or another economic meltdown from wiping out their hard-earned savings.

Oil futures market opens up to black box trade

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:20:52 GMT

LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Black boxes control only a small share of oil futures, but their reach is growing, driven by an influx of cross-asset dealers.

Resource nationalism ups political risk premiums

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:36:50 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Political risk insurance premiums have risen across emerging markets in the last year, fuelled by rising resource nationalism and unrest linked to the financial crisis as well as a renewed concern over risk amongst investors.

Flush companies set to exchange new debt for old

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:07:27 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - European companies have sold record volumes of debt this year but the market is currently so attractive that those with no pressing need for cash are using the opportunity to improve their debt profiles.

Emerging debt restructuring finds favour

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:23:28 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - A global economic recovery and extensive support for emerging markets from multilateral lenders have driven up distressed debt prices, making the market more attractive for emerging sovereign borrowers to restructure debt.

Earnings may boost China stocks 15 percent

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:37:11 GMT

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Unexpectedly strong earnings at listed Chinese companies have spurred analysts to raise their profit forecasts, creating room for about a 15 percent rise in Shanghai's benchmark stock index over the next three months.

After Opel reversal, GM CEO in spotlight

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:36:10 GMT

DETROIT (Reuters) - At the new GM, the buck now stops with the board.

Winners and wastelands: the Wall's economic legacy

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:34:35 GMT

WEIMAR, Germany (Reuters) - Businessman Ulrich Weitz leans forward and produces a graph showing a 10-fold increase in his company's turnover in the last 15 years.

Sukuk: safe Islamic investments or risky business?

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:28:06 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - For years, sukuk have been structured and sold as Islamic bonds, but a high-profile default is renewing debate about whether they are in fact equity-like instruments that expose investors to greater risk.

Demand for fast networks forces telcos to team up

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:26:34 GMT

AMSTERDAM/FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Telecom operators, once bitter rivals for customers, are finding that they need to team up to pay for expensive networks as demand for better and faster mobile connections goes through the roof.

China in no mood to be whipping boy at G20

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:02:42 GMT

BEIJING (Reuters) - With its external surplus melting like a snowman in the sun, China is likely to give short shrift to any attempts to blame it for the woes of the world economy when finance ministers meet in Scotland at the end of the week.

Central banks lead subtle shift away from dollar

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 08:26:30 GMT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Central banks with trillions of dollars in reserves that are already stepping up euro and yen purchases will likely continue doing so in coming years, driven by worries over the stability of the greenback.

Bank faces tough call on QE expansion

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:38:11 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Bank of England policymakers face an unusually tough decision this week: whether to expand the 175 billion pound asset purchase programme at a time when Britain is showing signs of recovery but remains stuck in recession.

Czech ruling is pivotal for EU reforms

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:37:15 GMT

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The Czech constitutional court's ruling on Tuesday against a legal challenge to the European Union's Lisbon reform treaty cleared one of the final hurdles to the charter's ratification.

Advertising should benefit from looser budgets

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:02:30 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Advertising, information technology and outsourcing are among the sectors likely to benefit first from a cautious uptick in corporate spending as firms jostle for position coming out of the recession.

Investors relatively optimistic on equities

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:00:09 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Leading investors believed a month ago that prospects for global equity markets are neutral to positive heading into 2010, a survey showed on Monday.

Mexico faces possible downgrade after tax bill

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:44:25 GMT

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico is running a high risk of getting a downgrade on its debt rating after lawmakers watered down President Felipe Calderon's proposal to raise taxes and reduce a reliance on falling oil output.

Bank break-ups leave Netherlands short of big names

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:41:49 GMT

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The dramatic downsizing of top Dutch banks, which had proudly flown the nation's flag globally for the past two decades, has the left the Netherlands bruised and in search of a national champion.

Debt mountain looms but euro zone can climb it

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:35:31 GMT

PARIS (Reuters) - Europe faces a massive bill as grapples with the aftermath of recession and the cost of economic stimulus steps, but the surge in government debt looks manageable for the 16 countries that enjoy the protection of euro zone membership.

M&S and Next fight back while Primark shines

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:36:29 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Updates from three of Britain's biggest clothing retailers should shed a little more light this week on whether consumers are starting to spend more freely ahead of the key Christmas trading period.

M&S and Next fight back while Primark shines

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:32:50 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Updates from three of Britain's biggest clothing retailers should shed a little more light next week on whether consumers are starting to spend more freely ahead of the key Christmas trading period.

Fourth-quarter U.S. profits estimates on the rise

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:15:45 GMT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A year that started in gloom and doom could end in cheers for U.S. corporate profits and leave the stock market positioned for a strong start to 2010.

Fund managers rebuild equity in volatile October

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:41:57 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Top investors around the world rebuilt equity holdings during a shaky October for stock markets, boosting allocations from September's seven-month low and cutting bond positions to their lowest since December 2008, a Reuters poll showed on Thursday.

Swiss Re rally raises allure of early Buffett buyout

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:54:27 GMT

ZURICH (Reuters) - Swiss Re's share price rebound gives Chief Executive Stefan Lippe a chance to raise capital, then use it to buy back a costly convertible investment from Warren Buffett and write new business.