Category: Stock Market News

Gold futures slid for a third day Monday as U.S. stocks and the dollar rallied. Gold for August delivery settled down $1.80, or 0.1%, at $1,356.60 an ounce. Meanwhile, silver for September delivery advanced 20.5 cents, or 1%, to settle at $20.304 an ounce. The S&P 500 Index was last up 0.6% at 2,142, and the U.S. Dollar Index rose 0.3% to 96.59.

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Amazon.com Inc.’s stock ran up 1.3% to a record high ahead of the online retail giant’s Prime Day sales event, again. The stock has surged 27% over the past three months, while the First Trust Dow Jones Internet Index ETF gained 11%, the SPDR S&P Retail ETF has edged up 0.9% and the S&P 500 has tacked on 4.9%. A year ago, Amazon’s stock shot up 2.2% to close at a record high on July 14, the day before Amazon launched its inaugural sales event. Some analyst believe sales at this year’s event could be double what they were last year.

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Oil production from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries rose by 300,000 barrels a day in June from a month earlier, to 32.73 million barrels a day, according to a S&P Global Platts survey released Monday. Platts said that its survey of OPEC and oil-industry officials showed that output was at a nearly eight-year high as output in Nigeria and Libya “tentatively recovered along with steady increases for Saudi Arabia and Iran.” Saudi Arabia raised its production to an average of 10.33 million barrels a day in June, from as much as 10.45 million barrels a day last summer, Platts said. August West Texas Intermediate crude fell 10 cents, or 0.2%, to $45.31 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. September Brent crude traded at $46.68 a barrel, down 8 cents, or 0.2%.

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The U.S.-listed shares of Nintendo Co. Ltd. soared 35% to a five-year high in very active trade Monday, as fervor over the Japanese gaming company’s “Pokemon Go” app launched last week continues to grow. That would be the biggest one-day percentage gain since the shares started trading in the U.S. in June 1989, and would put them on course to close at the highest level since June 7, 2011. Volume in the stock, which trades on the OTC Pink marketplace, reached 2.7 million shares as of 11:30 a.m. ET, was nearly 27 times the full-day average, according to FactSet. The stock has run up 57% year to date, while Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 Index has tumbled 17% and the S&P 500 index has gained 4.7%.

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U.K.’s Prime Minister David Cameron said Monday he plans to exit from his post by Wednesday evening. That makes way for U.K. Home Secretary Theresa May to succeed Cameron as the country’s new leader, as well as the head of the ruling Conservative Party. Earlier Monday, the path was cleared for May to succeed Cameron after British lawmaker Andrea Leadsom dropped her bid to takeover the reins at 10 Downing Street. Cameron on June 24 said he’d resign his job, a move that came after he unsuccessfully campaigned for the U.K. to remain a member of the European Union in the June 23 Brexit referendum.

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Starbucks Corp. said Monday it will give raises of at least 5% to all partners and store managers in U.S. company stores, starting Oct. 3, in response to what Chief Executive Howard Schultz called a “tragic week of violence” in the U.S. In a letter to employees posted on Starbucks’ website, Schultz said it will double the “bean stock” award for employees who have reached two years of continuous service with the company. Coupled with the pay rise, the new bean stock program will result in total compensation for employees increasing between 5% to 15%. The coffee seller is also revising its benefits program to allow employees to shop for personalized health care plans. Schultz said the company will also attempt to be more accommodative with scheduling and its dress code. The stock, which rose 0.3% in morning trade, has lost 5.7% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 4.5%.

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The flat yield curve is likely to weigh on net interest margins at the big U.S. banks and will slow revenue growth, Fitch Ratings said Monday. Banks benefited in the first quarter from the Federal Reserve’s rate hike in December, but that effect was short lived. “Banks may experience a boost in non-interest income as demand for residential refinance ticks up in the low rate environment; however, that will not be enough to offset pressure from the flattening yield curve,” said Bain Rumohr, a Fitch Director. The yield curve has flattened as expectations for further rate hikes were tamed, first by market turmoil in January and later, by the fallout from the Brexit vote. Banks are gearing up for a longer period of low interest rates by extending balance sheet duration, said Fitch. Loans and securities maturing or repricing more than five years out now represent 30% of total loan portfolios, it said. “Even with gradual rate rises in the near term, if the yield curve remains on a flat trajectory, history suggests that banks will continue to see NIM compression unless there is a steep yield curve,” said Julie Solar, a Fitch senior director. The agency will be watching for any significant changes to balance sheet management strategies by individual banks to boost short-term earnings and could take negative actions on ratings.

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U.S. stocks opened higher Monday, on track to close at fresh 2016 highs, as the market continued to build on Friday’s gains after June’s official jobs report came in significantly above expectations. The S&P traded above its previous all-time closing high, set in May 2015. A rise in oil prices also helped boost risk appetite. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 50 points, or 0.3%, to 18,200, the S&P 500 index gained 6 points, or 0.3%, to 2,137, while the Nasdaq Composite Index added 25 points, or 0.5%, to 4,983.

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Ontario-based Pet Valu and Florida-based Pet Supermarket announced Monday that they have merged, creating the third largest pet specialty retailer in North America. The new business is named Pet Retail Brands and has more than 930 stores and generate about $1 billion in retail sales across the U.S. and Canada, according to a statement. Details about the agreement weren’t disclosed. Pet Value was taken private by Roark Capital Group, whose other brands include Arby’s and Focus Brands, the owner of Cinnabon, Moe’s Southwest Grill, and Carvel Ice Cream, among other brands. Pet Supermarket was acquired by a Roark Capital affiliate in April 2015. Both companies will remain headquartered in their current locations. Thomas McNeely, chief executive of Pet Valu, will become president and chief executive of Pet Retail Brands. Diane Holtz, chief executive of Pet Supermarket, has announced her retirement. The top two pet retailers in North America are PetSmart and Petco, according to the publication Pet Business.

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Twitter Inc. and CBS News are teaming up to stream coverage of the Republican and Democratic National Conventions on Twitter, the companies announced Monday. Twitter will stream CBSN’s coverage. The two companies have previously partnered on the Democratic presidential debate in November 2015 and the Republican presidential debat in February 2016.

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