Category: Stock Market News

The Treasury Department said it’s taking new steps to increase economic pressure on North Korea. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network announced a finding that Bank of Dandong, a Chinese bank that allegedly acts as a conduit for illicit North Korean financial activity, is a foreign bank of primary money laundering concern, and FinCEN has proposed to sever the bank from the U.S. financial system. In addition, Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated two Chinese individuals and one Chinese company in response to North Korea’s ongoing WMD development and continued violations of UN Security Council resolutions. The step comes ahead of President Trump’s visit with South Korean President Moon Jae-in.

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The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Wednesday invited its largest class of new members in a continued push to age down the academy pool while also achieving a more diverse representation. The academy opened the gates to 774 Hollywood professionals, including names such as Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot, Kristen Stewart, Elle Fanning, Jordan Peele and academy award winner Barry Jenkins. That number tops last year’s record class of 683 invitees, which had dwarfed the size of the class from the previous year. If everyone in this year’s class accept their invitation, the academy’s membership will increase to 8,427, which some in the industry, according to the Los Angeles Times, fear might be cumbersome and devalue its exclusivity. Following two straight years of public outcry surrounding the lack of diverse representation at the Oscars and in the industry at large, the academy vowed to double the number of women and minority members. The 2017 class has 298 women, upping representation from 27% to 28%, and 232 people of color, which brings their representation to 13% from 11%. In 2012 the LA Times reported that the academy Oscar voters were 94% white and 77% male, shifting only a few percentage points in the last couple of years.

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St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said the current level of interest rates is appropriate for a low-growth, low-inflation regime. In London, he said the Fed doesn’t need to act preemptively to respond to future developments. “Even if the U.S. unemployment rate declines substantially further, current estimates suggest the effects on U.S. inflation are likely to be small,” Bullard said. He also said the Fed has time to wait if the U.S. adopts new fiscal and regulatory policies.

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Shares of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. slid 3.5% in midday trade Thursday, on track for a fifth-straight loss, amid a broad selloff in chip and other technology stocks. AMD’s stock has now lost 11% since it last closed up, at a 2 1/2-month high of $14.38 on June 22. On Thursday, the stock shed 1.3% amid growing concerns that upcoming chip offerings from Nvidia Corp. could threaten AMD’s dominance in the cryptocurrency market. Nvidia’s stock slumped 3.3%. Meanwhile, the PHLX Semiconductor Index shed 2.4% to a six-week low and shares of industry leader Intel Corp. dropped 1.4%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 lost 1.8% and the S&P 500 gave up 0.8%.

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Societe Generale cut its price forecasts for both Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude on Thursday, citing higher-than-expected supply growth from the U.S., Libya and Nigeria. “Despite OPEC cuts of 1.3 [million barrels a day], with consistent overall compliance near
100% for the countries that are cutting, the stockdraws that were expected earlier in the year have failed to materialize,” Michael Wittner, head of oil market research at Societe Generale, said in a note. The company lowered its 2017 Brent forecast by $4.40 to $52 a barrel. It sees $54 for 2018, down by $6 from its previous forecast. WTI , meanwhile, is forecast at $49.45 this year, down $4.35 from the previous forecast. The 2018 outlook was down $6 at $51.50 a barrel.

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Twitter Inc. and IGN Entertainment are partnering to live stream San Diego Comic-Con, the U.S.’s pre-eminent gaming and entertainment conference. The news of the partnership comes just after the two worked together to stream the video game-centric Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3. The live-stream coverage garnered an average of 2.6 million unique viewers per day. While Twitter has been able to increase its active user base, the social media platform has struggled to capitalize on that and turn activity into cash. Twitter has been parading its user base to organizations looking for eyeballs for live events. Coverage of Sand Diego Comic-Con, which centers on film, TV and the comic book industry, begins July 19, with 13 hours of live coverage hosted and produced by IGN. Shares of Twitter have gained 8% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 index is up more than 8% in the year.

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Marijuana sales in Nevada’s newly minted legal recreational market will begin on Saturday. Starting at 12:01 a.m. July 1, adults age 21 and older will be able to buy up to an ounce of marijuana, or one-eighth of an ounce in marijuana-infused edibles and concentrates. Retail sales will be subject to a 10% sales tax, which Nevada officials expect to generate more than $60 million in the first two years. Last year in Colorado, one of the country’s first test markets for recreational marijuana laws, the marijuana market pulled in $1.3 billion in revenue and nearly $200 million in tax revenue. “Adults will now be able to purchase marijuana similarly to how they purchase alcohol, from regulated businesses rather than criminals in the illegal market,” said Mason Tvert, communications director for the Marijuana Policy Project, in a statement. “Tens of millions of visitors per year from all over the U.S. and around the world will see firsthand that regulating marijuana works.” Legalizing marijuana was approved by about 55% of Nevada voters back in November. The Marijuana Policy Project backed that initiative, which required the state to initiate sales by 2018. The tax commission, however, adopted temporary regulations to allow sales six months early. Nevada joins Alaska, Colorado, Oregon and Washington in regulating legal marijuana sales, and California, Maine and Massachusetts are expected to join next year.

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Health insurer Aetna Inc. said Thursday it will move its corporate headquarters to New York City from Hartford, Connecticut in late 2018. “New York City is a knowledge economy hub, and a driver of the innovations that will play a significant part in our ongoing transformation,” Aetna Chairman and CEO Mark T. Bertolini said in a statement. The company will bring 250 new jobs to the state, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in the statement. Aetna said the move will have minimal impact on its Connecticut associates, who will continue to be based there. However, “Aetna’s long-term commitment to Connecticut will be based on the state’s economic health,” it said, adding it is hopeful that lawmakers can reach an agreement to restore the state’s economic health. Hartford is currently teetering on the edge of a rare municipal bankruptcy as it struggles to close a roughly $50 million budget gap, as The Wall Street Journal has reported. . Aetna shares have gained 22.3% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained about 9%.

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Nike Inc. options are pricing in a bigger-than-average one-day move for the stock after the athletic apparel and accessories maker reports fiscal fourth-quarter results after Thursday’s close. An options strategy known as a “straddle,” which involves the simultaneous buying of at-the-money bullish call and bearish put options for Friday expiry are pricing in a 5.1% move in either direction on Friday. Straddles are pure volatility plays, and aren’t bets on a direction. The average one-day post-earnings move for the stock after the past 20 quarterly reports is 4.8%, while the mean move is 3.8%. The stock had dropped 7.1% on March 22 after fiscal third-quarter results, and rose 1.0% on Dec. 21 after second-quarter results. Nike’s stock was little changed in morning trade, and has gained 5% year to date, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has climbed 8.4%.

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Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration Thursday showed that domestic supplies of natural gas rose by 46 billion cubic feet for the week ended June 23. Analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts forecast a larger build of 52 billion cubic feet. Total stocks now stand at 2.816 trillion cubic feet, down 319 billion cubic feet from a year ago, but 181 billion cubic feet above the five-year average, the government said. August natural gas rose 2.3 cents, or 0.7%, from Wednesday’s settlement to $3.117 per million British thermal units. It traded at $3.077 before the data.

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