May 27th, 2015

Daily Market Commentary

 

ECONOMIC NEWS

  • MBA Mortgage Applications in the U.S. were down 1.6%.
  • Consumer Confidence in Germany was reported at 10.2, slightly above estimates.
  • Consumer Confidence in France was reported at 93, slightly below estimates.

Commodities:

  • Oil recovered from its biggest two-day drop in more than a month ahead of U.S. government data forecast to show crude stockpiles shrank for a fourth week.
  • Gold traded near a two-week low as better-than-expected U.S. data backed the case for policy makers to raise interest rates this year.

Canada:

  • Crescent Point Energy Corp., the most acquisitive company in Canada’s oil and gas industry in past years, plans to buy Legacy Oil + Gas Inc. for C$563 million ($453 million) in shares.
  • Air Canada opted out of a pension agreement with the federal government, a potential savings of about C$310 million ($248 million) in the next two years, and announced plans to repurchase as many as 10 million shares.
  • General Electric Co., working to reduce dependence on its finance unit, is in advanced talks to sell assets in the $9 billion vehicle fleet-management business to Element Financial Corp., people familiar with the matter said.

United States

  • U.S. stock-index futures were little changed after the worst decline in three weeks for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.
  • U.S. prosecutors unveiled charges detailing “rampant” corruption in international soccer, charging 18 people with crimes that included bribes and kickbacks to market and televise tournaments, including the World Cup.

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International:

  • European stocks rose for the first time in four days as some shares gained on deals activity.
  • Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, Britain’s largest taxpayer-owned lender, could pay as much as $4.5 billion to resolve claims of misconduct in its handling of U.S. mortgage securities, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.
  • Airbus Group NV is looking beyond the big three Gulf airlines to capture growth in the Middle East and North Africa as it predicts other carriers will account for about two-thirds of total sales in the region by 2032.
  • Asia’s benchmark stock index dropped for a second day, following a decline in global equities after better-than-estimated U.S. economic data bolstered the case for higher interest rates.
  • Record profits at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and at least 26 Japanese banks mask vanishing returns on lending in Japan that’s spurring them to venture overseas.
  • After years of losses and painful restructuring, Sony Corp. Chief Executive Officer Kazuo Hirai said the company is now entering a growth stage.
  • Fewer people are undernourished than any time in the past 25 years as the rise of developing countries such as China and Brazil ushers in economic prosperity and improved food production.

 

 

*All information is taken from Bloomberg, unless otherwise noted.