CFTC fines Cargill, Inc $10 million for allegedly hiding true markup on swaps deals

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission ordered Cargill, Inc. of Minnesota, a registered swaps dealer, on Monday to pay a $10 million penalty for allegedly providing counterparties and its swap data repository inaccurate marks from 2013 to the present that effectively concealed up to 90% of Cargill’s mark-up. The CFTC order contends Cargill concealed its full mark-up because providing accurate marks might reduce Cargill’s revenue. The CFTC also alleged that Cargill failed to diligently supervise its officers, employees, and agents relating to its business as a swap dealer. The regulator filed and simultaneously settled charges on Monday alleging Cargill had violated the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations but Cargill neither admitted nor denied the allegations.

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From:: Stock Market News

U.S. oil logs best daily gain in nearly a year as unrest in Middle East rattles

U.S. oil futures on Monday marked the best single-session rally in nearly a year–on a dollar basis–as the crude market was rattled by political disruptions over the weekend in Saudi Arabia that saw officials and members of the royal family detained. December West Texas Intermediate crude-oil futures closed up $1.71, or 3.1%, at $57.35 a barrel, marking the sharpest move on a dollar basis for a most-active contract since Nov. 30, when prices jumped $4.21, or 9.3%, in a single session after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries struck an agreement to cap output and stabilize oil prices, according to FactSet data. On a percentage basis, the rally for U.S. listed oil was the biggest one-day rise since Sept. 25.

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From:: Stock Market News

Gold ends up 1% to book best gain in 6 weeks as dollar slumps

Gold futures settled sharply higher Monday, along with broader gains in the commodity complex, as a surge in prices of crude oil offered some signs of a potential increase in inflation, bullish for precious metals’ prices. December gold finished up $12.40, or 1%, at $1,281.60 an ounce., marking the best single session gain since late Sept., according to FactSet data. U.S. crude prices jumped more than 2% on Monday, while the U.S. dollar, as measured by the ICE U.S. Dollar Index , retreated. Higher oil prices can be seen as precursor to a rise in inflation and gold is often bought as a hedge against a pickup in prices. Weakness in the U.S. dollar can make assets priced in the currency, including metals, more attractive to buyers using weaker monetary units. The dollar index was down 0.2% at 94.77 on Monday.

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From:: Stock Market News

21st Century Fox in talks to sell most of company to Disney: report

Shares of 21st Century Fox Inc. were up more than 5% during intraday trade on Monday after a report that the company has been in talks to sell most of the company to Walt Disney Co. . Disney shares were up a little more than 1%. CNBC, citing sources, said that Fox management believes a tighter group of assets focused around news and sports would better compete in the marketplace, suggesting that the talks have centered on Fox’s entertainment properties, such as its film arm 20th Century Fox. Shares of 21st Century Fox are down more than 6% in the year to date, and Disney shares are down more than 4%. By comparison the S&P 500 index is up nearly 16% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up more than 19%.

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From:: Stock Market News

FHA’s Endorsements Solidly Higher

Residential endorsements jumped to the highest level in seven months at the Federal Housing Administration, while commercial real estate activity was the highest in at least four years. Delinquency worsened, however.

FHA insurance was in force on 8,571,759 residential loans for $1.2995 trillion as of Aug. 31, growing from from 8,563,549 loans for $1.2946 trillion a month earlier and 8,460,309 loans for $1.2497 trillion a year earlier.

Most recently, the book of business was comprised of $1.1553 trillion in single-family loans, $0.1433 trillion in home-equity conversion mortgages and $0.9880 trillion in Title I loans.


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From:: Financing

Richard Berner to leave Treasury research office at end of year

Richard Berner will step down from his position as director of the Office of Financial Research at the Treasury Department at the end of this year, Treasury said Monday. Berner was confirmed by the Senate for the position in January 2013. In a statement, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Berner was “instrumental” in the launch of the office, which was designed to serve the Financial Stability Oversight Council.

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From:: Stock Market News

Alibaba’s stock rallies toward record close after analyst boosts price target

Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. ran up 2.3% in morning trade Monday, on track for a record close, after Oppenheimer raised its price target on the back of “another strong quarter.” Last Thursday, the stock had hit an all-time intraday high of $191.22 after earnings and profit beat expectations, but the stock turned lower to close 0.7% below its Nov. 1 record close of $186.08, amid margin concerns. Oppenheimer analyst Jason Helfstein raised his stock price target to $220 from $200, as Alibaba’s results have made him more bullish on valuations for the company’s AliCloud and Ant Financial businesses, which offsets any concerns over lower retail margins. He reiterated the outperform rating he’s had on the stock since he started covering it three years ago. “Overall, we believe [Alibaba] is uniquely positioned to benefit from the rise of Chinese middle-class consumption,” Helfstein wrote in a note to clients. The stock has more than doubled year to date, while U.S.-based rival Amazon.com Inc. shares have rallied 50% and the S&P 500 has gained 16%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Apple is tapping the bond market with deal that may raise $7 billion: CreditSights

Apple Inc. is again tapping the bond market with a six-part deal of fixed-rate notes that could raise about $7 billion, CreditSights said Monday. The company is planning to issue 2-year, 3-year, five-year, seven-year, 10-year and 30-year notes, said the research firm. “The timing is good for Apple given its excellent fourth-quarter results and strong initial indications for iPhone X demand,” analyst Jordan Chalfin wrote in commentary. “However, it’s unusual for Apple to be so active in the debt markets in the second half of the calendar year. Apple is clearly not waiting on tax reform which the GOP is hoping to be effective for January 1, 2018.” CreditSights is sticking with a market perform recommendation on Apple’s bonds, and remains cautious on the longer maturities, he said. On the equity side, Apple shares were up 1.2% Monday, while the S&P 500 was up 0.1% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.02%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Mixed Results at Ocwen as Servicing Diminishes

Ocwen Financial Corp. reported growth in mortgage assets and improvement in delinquency. Servicing, however, declined, while losses continued, and originations were mixed.

From July 1 until Sept. 30 of this year, the West Palm Beach, Florida-based firm suffered a pre-tax loss of $27 million, according to its third-quarter earnings report.

Earnings swung from a $2 million profit in the same-three months during 2016. But losses at Ocwen subsided compared to $42 million in the prior three-month period.


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From:: Financing

Nutanix’s stock jumps after Raymond James turns bullish, citing competitive positioning

Shares of Nutanix Inc. ran up 5.2% in morning trade Monday, putting it on track to close at an eight-month high, after Raymond James analyst Simon Leopold turned bullish on the enterprise-computing company for the first time, citing favorable checks that suggest continued sales momentum and competitive position. Leopold raised his rating to outperform, after being at market perform since he started covering the company in October 2016, about a month after the IPO. He initiated a stock price target of $32, which is 11% above current levels. Leopold said recent checks into its current business were “favorable,” and said the company appears to benefit from a “conflicting pitch” by competitors. “Dell, EMC and VMware do not present a unified pitch, and customers are gravitating to Nutanix (iroincally, often promoted by Dell),” Leopold wrote in a note to clients. He expects Nutanix to beat revenue expectations when it reports fiscal first-quarter results on Nov. 28. The stock has rallied 34% over the past three months, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 has climbed 7.0% and the S&P 500 has gained 4.6%.

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From:: Stock Market News