DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ I couldn't afford to buy a home in the US — so I invested in 5 in Europe instead
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-10 | by ( Jordan Pandy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

In the fall, I'm going on a trip with some of my girlfriends from college. Really, really good. I don't have 7 million euros to buy five properties across Europe. AdvertisementWould I move to more suburban New Jersey so I could buy a house? I would not make the calculus to move — whether that's another city, or another state, or a suburb — to buy a house.

Persons: —, Amy Beihl, I've, they're, I'm, There's, Homeownership Organizations: Service, Business, Colgate University, Mallorca Locations: York, New York, Mallorca, Spain, Italy, France, Tuscany, England, Stockholm, Europe, Swedish, I'm, New York City, New Jersey, that's, America

“The people of Maui have shown strength in the face of adversity," said Green, a Democrat. Green aims for all 5,000 to move into long-term housing by March 1 in part by encouraging owners of vacation rentals to make their units available to wildfire evacuees. More broadly and longer-term, Green proposed a two-year “tax amnesty” to encourage owners of vacation rentals around the state to sell to owner-occupants or long-term rental landlords. Democratic House leaders identified common priorities with the governor, particularly on affordable housing, mental health care and climate change. “We need to solve problems in our state, and we need to find solutions that are going to be workable,” Saiki said.

Persons: Josh Green, Keahi Ho, Koa Bonnell —, Dee Morikawa, ” Morikawa, Green, ”, ” Green, Kyle Yamashita, ” Yamashita, Scott Saiki, Saiki Organizations: —, Democrat, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Democratic, Finance Locations: HONOLULU, — Hawaii, Maui, Lahaina, Kauai, Niihau, Hawaii

☆ Trump is selling $35 Christmas wrapping paper emblazoned with his mug shot
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Donald Trump is selling Christmas wrapping paper featuring his mug shot — for $35. A single purchase will give fans three sheets of wrapping paper filled with Trump's mug shot. Fans of Trump will need to spend $35 to clinch the "Never Surrender" wrapping paper, which is filled with black-and-white images of Trump's mug shot photoshopped with a Santa hat. According to Trump's team, the $35 wrapping paper is the only one "authorized by President Trump himself!" The former president is also selling a "limited edition" Christmas stocking featuring his mug shot with the words "Never Surrender!"

Persons: Donald Trump, Trump, —, Trump fends, Trump's, Joe Biden Organizations: Service, Trump, Democrats, Politico, GOP Locations: August's Georgia, Fulton County , Georgia

☆ US homebuyers are waiting for the Fed to start cutting interest rates. Here's when 10 experts say it's going to happen.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Jacob Zinkula | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Mortgage rates could decline if the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates next year. Here are 10 projections from experts on when the Fed's first rate cut will come. While these factors serve as deterrents for prospective buyers, interest rates may not stay this high forever. AdvertisementWhile declining interest rates wouldn't directly cause mortgage rates to fall, the two tend to move in the same direction. FebruaryIn August, Preston Caldwell, a Morningstar senior US economist, wrote in a note that he expected the Fed to start cutting interest rates in February.

Persons: —, Preston Caldwell, Arend Kapteyn, Bhanu Baweja, David Einhorn, Diane Swonk, Andrew Hollenhorst, Goldman Sachs, David Mericle, we'll, Simona Mocuta, Jeff Morton Organizations: Federal Reserve, Service, Federal, Morningstar, UBS, KPMG, Citi, Reuters, State Street Global Advisors, DWS Locations: North America's

☆ Here's when market experts think inflation will get back to normal
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Madison Hoff | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

While many experts don't see inflation getting back to normal just yet, it could in a year or two. Consumer price inflation has been mostly slowing this year. Some experts see inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index being around 2% — the Fed's target year-over-year rate of price growth — by some time in 2024. Advertisement"We foresee headline and core CPI inflation around 2.2% y/y in Q4 2024," Daco said in his commentary. Goldman Sachs forecasts that measure is expected to cool off and see a 2.4% year-over-year increase in December 2024.

Persons: J.P, David Kelly, —, Gregory Daco, Daco, Kelly, ING's James Knightley, Sarah Foster's, Goldman Sachs, Jerome Powell, Powell, Mark Hamrick, Hamrick Organizations: Morgan, Service, Consumer, CPI, Morgan Asset Management, Bankrate, Federal Reserve, Federal, Business

NEW YORK (AP) — ESPN Bet, a rebranded sports-gambling app owned by Penn Entertainment, is set to launch Tuesday. Under the agreement, Penn will operate ESPN Bet while ESPN promotes the app across its online and broadcast platforms. It's unclear when ESPN Bet will officially be available to download. In addition to the $1.5 billion licensing deal, Penn also said it would grant ESPN rights worth about $500 million to purchase shares in Penn. The upcoming launch of ESPN Bet could take Walt Disney Co.-owned ESPN into uncharted waters.

Persons: Penn, Dave Portnoy Organizations: ESPN Bet, Penn Entertainment, ESPN, Penn, Sports, Walt Disney Co Locations: — Arizona, Colorado , Illinois , Indiana , Iowa , Kansas , Kentucky, Louisiana , Maryland , Massachusetts, Michigan , New Jersey , Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Penn

☆ Argentina retail prices seen slipping under double digits in October
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Hernan Nessi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Matias Baglietto/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBUENOS AIRES, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Argentina's consumer prices likely rose by less than double digits in October, a Reuters poll showed on Friday, slowing down after hitting a three-decade high in September. The poll, which surveyed 19 analysts, showed consumer prices increasing by 9.9% in the month, slowing from the 12.4% rise in August and 12.7% climb in September, though they warned the slowdown would be temporary. "However, consumer prices are still going up quickly, especially considering the official exchange rate and government controls." The tightly controlled official exchange rate was devalued to 350 pesos per greenback in August, though it currently trades for nearly three times that on the informal parallel market. "The effect of August's peso devaluation was diluted, but it seems more inertia is building now than from before the previous exchange rate shock."

Persons: Matias Baglietto, Sergio Massa, Javier Milei, Lucio Garay Mendez, Massa, Garay Mendez, Jeronimo Montalvo, Hernan Nessi, Kylie Madry, Chizu Organizations: Mercado Central, REUTERS, Economy, U.S, Thomson Locations: Buenos Aires, Argentina, BUENOS AIRES, Empiria

LAUNCESTON, Australia, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia made two recent decisions that on the surface seem to indicate a steady crude oil market outlook but may point to a ticking up in concern over the state of demand. It's also likely that softer demand for refined products in Asia amid economic uncertainty led to Aramco's decision to keep the Arab Light OSP unchanged. The extension of the additional 1 million bpd cut is perhaps a tacit admission that crude oil demand isn't as strong as OPEC has been expecting. Asia's crude imports showed some resilience in October, rising to 27.36 million bpd from 26.60 million bpd in September, according to data compiled by LSEG. China, the world's biggest importer, saw arrivals of 11.90 million bpd in October, up from September's 11.18 million bpd, but both these months were down on August's 12.49 million bpd.

Persons: It's, Brent, Robert Birsel Organizations: Saudi Aramco, refiners, Aramco, Brent, West Texas Intermediate, OPEC, LSEG, world's, Saudi, Reuters, Thomson Locations: LAUNCESTON, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Oman, Dubai, Asia, Singapore, Israel, Gaza, Atlantic, refiners, China, Russia

OTTAWA, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Canada's trade surplus with the world increased twice as much as forecast in September, as higher crude prices helped exports gain for a third straight month, data showed on Tuesday. September's trade surplus gained to C$2.04 billion ($1.48 billion), Statistics Canada said, compared with a Reuters poll pointing toward a C$1.00 billion surplus. Energy products led the gains, mainly due to higher crude oil prices that coincided with the extension of voluntary production cuts by OPEC+. Partly offsetting the gains, exports of metal and non- metallic mineral products fell 10.7% in September from an all-time high in August. Overall, motor vehicles and parts recorded its sixth consecutive monthly rise, despite strike disruptions in the United States - Canada's biggest trade partner.

Persons: Stuart Bergman, Bergman, Shelly Kaushik, Ismail Shakil, Steve Scherer, Fergal Smith, Dale Smith, Ed Osmond, Chizu Organizations: OTTAWA, Statistics, Export Development Canada, Energy, ., Canadian, greenback, Bank of Canada's, BMO Capital Markets, Thomson Locations: Statistics Canada, United States, Toronto, Ottawa

☆ Job growth slowed in October as the economy settled into a new normal
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Madison Hoff | Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

AdvertisementAdvertisementThe US economy added 150,000 jobs in October, based on nonfarm payroll employment growth from the Bureau of Labor Statistics or BLS. That's less than September's revised job growth of 297,000. After two straight months of an unemployment rate at 3.8%, the unemployment rate rose slightly to 3.9%. Some of the industries that saw job growth from September to October included healthcare, construction, and leisure and hospitality. "The labor market remains tight, but supply and demand conditions continue to come into better balance," Powell said.

Persons: Jerome Powell, —, payrolls, Biden, Labor Julie Su, Aaron Terrazas, Nick Bunker, that's, Bunker, might've, Terrazas, Powell Organizations: Service, Bureau of Labor Statistics, BLS, Labor, That's, North America, Gross, Bureau, Board, Conference Board

☆ The sell-off in Humana is overdone after strong earnings. Jim Cramer says buy the stock
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | In Kevinstankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

"The story is on track, and I think you buy the stock," Jim Cramer said during Wednesday's Morning Meeting . Since its 2023 lows on July 13, Humana stock rallied more than 23% compared with a roughly 7% slide in the S & P 500 over the same stretch. Management's initial commentary on 2024 earnings and Medicare Advantage membership growth — discussed in more detail below — may also have left investors wanting. Humana also expects EPS growth in 2024 to fall on the lower end of its historical long-range 11%-to-15% target. Capital allocation Humana still expects to buy back about $1.5 billion worth of stock in 2023, finance chief Diamond said on the earnings call.

Persons: —, Jim Cramer, they've, UnitedHealth, Humana, Susan Diamond, Diamond, Bruce Broussard, Jim Rechtin, Broussard, Jim Cramer's, Jim Organizations: Medicare, Revenue, Humana, UnitedHealth, CNBC, Inc

☆ Get ready for more US debt sticker shock as Wall Street sees a bigger wave of Treasurys flooding the bond market
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-28 | by ( Filip De Mott | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Some Wall Street banks have raised their forecasts for the amount of Treasurys to be auctioned. AdvertisementAdvertisementInvestors are focused on the Treasury Department's upcoming quarterly refunding statement as Wall Street braces for another dose of sticker shock on US debt. After raising auction estimates in August, the department has already hinted that the Treasury supply will need to keep increasing. It's an outlook shared by Wall Street, and institutions are raising their expectations on the size of US debt issuance. AdvertisementAdvertisementJPMorgan also projected higher Treasury issuance ahead, noting that fiscal 2023's deficit surpassed its estimates by $100 billion.

Persons: —, Josh Frost, Morgan Stanley Organizations: Treasury Department, Service, Treasury, Treasurys, Wall, Bank of America, JPMorgan

☆ US consumer spending exits third quarter on strong note; monthly core inflation rises
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Lucia Mutikani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the PCE price index rose 0.3%, after edging up 0.1% in August. The so-called core PCE price index rose 3.7% on a year-on-year basis in September, the smallest gain since May 2021, after increasing 3.8% in August. Stripping out housing, the core PCE price index rose by a mild 0.2%. The super core PCE price index advanced 4.3% year-on-year in September. Policymakers are watching the super core PCE price index to try and gauge their progress in combating inflation.

Persons: Bing Guan, Sal Guatieri, James Knightley, Chris Low, Pooja Sriram, Lucia Mutikani, Chizu Organizations: REUTERS, Commerce Department, Federal, BMO Capital Markets, Commerce Department's, Economic, Reuters, Consumer, ING, FHN, Treasury, Fed, Barclays, Thomson Locations: SoHo, New York City, U.S, WASHINGTON, Toronto, New York

☆ US new home sales jump to 19-month high; median price falls
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Lucia Mutikani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The larger-than-expected increase in sales last month reported by the Commerce Department on Wednesday showed that the new housing market continued to be supported by a chronic shortage of previously owned houses. That is leading to very different dynamics in different parts of the housing market." New home sales are counted at the signing of a contract, making them a leading indicator of the housing market. The National Association of Home Builders reported last week that about a third of builders reported cutting home prices in October, a 10-month high, with the average price discount at 6%. The housing market likely stabilized in the third quarter, thanks to strong homebuilding and new home sales.

Persons: Sarah Silbiger, Bill Adams, resales, Freddie Mac, Dan Hnatkovskyy, Lucia Mutikani, Chizu Nomiyama, Andrea Ricci Organizations: REUTERS, U.S, Commerce Department, Comerica Bank, Reuters, Midwest ., National Association of Home Builders, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, WASHINGTON, Dallas, Northeast, West, Midwest

☆ Earnings will 'make or break' European stocks — here's what to watch, according to analysts
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Investors will look to the upcoming earnings season to see whether stocks can recover from recent losses or if more declines are ahead. "All year, we've seen the steady weakening in European soft data and, more recently, hard data. In a note titled "Q3 Earnings - Make or break," Barclays analysts echoed that sentiment, suggesting that despite resilient earnings thus far, more mixed third-quarter economic indicators hint at equally varied results. UBS analysts have identified stocks that could surprise, both positively and negatively, when their earnings results are released in the coming weeks. Fowler said UBS analysts have historically been pretty accurate at predicting surprises, especially when combined with a value investing bias, which has tended to outperform.

Persons: Gerry Fowler, we've, Fowler, CNBC's, Fowler isn't, Emmanuel Cau, Stocks Organizations: UBS, Barclays, Santander, Ryanair, Siemens Energy, Nordic, Universal Music, AstraZeneca Locations: Europe

Refiners also called on stockpiles in July, though, when refinery processing exceeded the total volume of available crude by 510,000 bpd. The inventory draws in September and July came as China's refiners boosted throughput to meet rising domestic demand and higher fuel exports. As well, a strong rally in global oil prices has lowered the incentive to keep crude imports at elevated levels. China total available crude vs refinery throughputIMPORTS DROPPING? China's crude imports were 11.13 million bpd in September, down 10.5% from August's 12.4 million bpd, according to customs data.

Persons: Refiners, China's, China doesn't, It's, LSEG, Tom Hogue Organizations: National Bureau of Statistics, Benchmark Brent, United, United Arab Emirates, Diesel, Reuters, Thomson Locations: LAUNCESTON, Australia, China, It's, OPEC, Saudi Arabia, United Arab, Asia

☆ European markets lower as Middle East and data weigh on sentiment
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

European markets were lower Thursday as investors assess the impact of the crisis in the Middle East as well as earnings and economic data. Asia-Pacific markets saw a wide selloff, with Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong markets seeing losses of about 2% each. Regional markets closed lower Wednesday as traders digested inflation figures from the U.K. and the euro zone. Euro zone inflation came in at an annual 4.3% in September, confirming earlier estimates and slowing markedly from August's 5.2% annual increase. U.K. inflation came in at 6.7% in September, slightly ahead of expectations and unchanged from the previous month.

Organizations: Treasury Locations: Asia, Pacific, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong

These showed that a rise in fuel prices between August and September put upward pressure on the annual CPI rate, which economists had expected to drop to 6.6%. "Progress in bringing inflation down is proving slow, with the UK generating higher levels of inflation than any other major industrialised nation," said Ian Stewart, chief economist at accountancy firm Deloitte. "The persistence of underlying inflation, and service price pressures, suggests that interest rates are likely to stay close to current levels for much of the next year," he added. Services price inflation - another CPI component the BoE studies - rose to 6.9% in September from 6.8%. British consumer price inflation remains the highest in the Group of Seven advanced nations, with France and Italy the nearest with rates of 5.7% and 5.6% respectively for September.

Persons: Ian Stewart, BoE, Rishi Sunak, Jeremy Hunt, Bernadette Baum, Toby Chopra Organizations: Bank of England, Office, National Statistics, Deloitte, Seven, Thomson Locations: British, August's, Ukraine, France, Italy

The exception among major commodities was copper, where imports of the unwrought metal were up in September from August, but down from the year earlier month. Copper imports were 480,426 metric tons in September, up from August's 473,330, but down 5.8% from 509,954 in September last year. For the first nine months of 2023, unwrought copper imports were down 9.5% to 3.99 million metric tons. Crude oil imports were 11.13 million barrels per day (bpd) in September, down from August's 12.4 million bpd, although it's worth noting that August was third strongest month on record. IRON ORE, COALIron ore imports dropped to 101.18 million metric tons in October, down 4.9% from August's 106.42 million, but it's worth noting that August was the strongest month since October 2020.

Persons: Aly, China's, Lincoln Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Port, Shanghai, China, Rights LAUNCESTON, Australia, August's

☆ Surging rents lift US consumer prices; underlying inflation grinding lower
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Lucia Mutikani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The so-called core CPI was also lifted by a 3.7% rise in the cost of lodging away from home, which ended three straight monthly declines. The core CPI gained 4.1% on a year-on-year basis in September, the smallest rise since September 2021, after advancing 4.3% in August. Over the last three months, the core CPI increased 3.1%. Still-strong demand in the economy, marked by labor market tightness, which is driving core services inflation excluding rents, imply that the higher rates could last for some time. Reuters GraphicsThere is no sign yet that the United Auto Workers (UAW)strike, now in its fourth week, is having a major impact on the labor market.

Persons: Olu Sonola, Stephen Juneau, Bing Guan, Seema Shah, Lucia Mutikani, Paul Simao Organizations: Federal Reserve, Labor Department, Higher U.S, Treasury, Fitch, CPI, Reuters, Bank of America Securities, Mobil, REUTERS, Fed, Financial, United Auto Workers, UAW, Ford, General Motors, Chrysler, Asset Management, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, U.S, New York, Beverly Boulevard, West Hollywood , California

☆ US consumer prices rise on surge in rents; underlying inflation cools
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Lucia Mutikani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Gasoline prices rose 2.1% after accelerating 10.6% in August. Year-on-year consumer prices have come down from a peak of 9.1% in June 2022. Reuters GraphicsExcluding the volatile food and energy components, the CPI rose 0.3%, matching August's gain. Still-strong demand in the economy, marked by labor market resilience, suggests borrowing costs could remain elevated for some time. Reuters GraphicsThere is no sign yet that the United Auto Workers (UAW)strike, now in its fourth week, is having a major impact on the labor market.

Persons: Bing Guan, Olu Sonola, Seema Shah, Lucia Mutikani, Paul Simao Organizations: Mobil, REUTERS, Federal Reserve, Labor Department, Higher U.S, Treasury, Fitch, CPI, Reuters, United Auto Workers, UAW, Ford, General Motors, Chrysler, Asset Management, Thomson Locations: Beverly Boulevard, West Hollywood , California, U.S, WASHINGTON, New York

☆ Inflation held steady in September as housing and gas prices keep going up
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Madison Hoff | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

That's the same as the year-over-year increase of 3.7% in August. Core CPI increased 4.1% from September 2022 to September this year. AdvertisementAdvertisementInflation is still elevated and held steady in September, based on Consumer Price Index or CPI data out Thursday. The year-over-year increase in this index had been falling, based on data before Thursday's data release. AdvertisementAdvertisementCore CPI index increased 0.3% from August to September.

Persons: —, Julia Pollak, ZipRecruiter, Pollak, Price, Gregory Daco Organizations: Service, Consumer, Index, CPI, Bureau of Labor Statistics, BLS, payrolls

☆ UK economy grew 0.2% in August, propped up by services sector
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

U.K. gross domestic product grew by 0.2% in August, the Office for National Statistics estimated Thursday, partially recovering from a downwardly revised 0.6% contraction in July. "It does not change the outlook for the Bank of England and confirms that the Bank Rate does not have much upside from here, but will remain at current levels for an extended period." The Bank of England last month ended a run of 14 consecutive interest rate hikes after data showed inflation was running below expectations. "The UK has grown faster than France and Germany since the pandemic and today's data shows the economy is more resilient than expected," U.K. Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt said Thursday. U.K. headline inflation dipped to an annual 6.7% in August, below expectations but still well above the Bank's 2% target.

Persons: Mathieu Savary, Jeremy Hunt, Thiru Organizations: Citibank, HSBC, National Statistics, BCA Research, Bank of England, of England, Bank, Finance, Institute of Chartered Accountants, Wales, Bank of England's Locations: Wharf, London, United Kingdom, U.K, European, France, Germany, England

A stacker unloads iron ore onto a pile at a mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia December 2, 2013. China iron ore imports vs SGX priceIMPORTS SLIPThere are also signs that China's iron ore imports may soften in October, although that is most likely related to the week-long holidays at the start of the month. The last official reading on iron ore imports was August's customs figure of 106.42 million metric tons, which was the highest monthly total since October 2020. A further possible concern for iron ore imports is what policy China will adopt regarding steel production for the coming winter period. One possible bullish factor for iron ore is the continuing retreat of China's port inventories, which suggests scope to import more to boost stockpiles.

Persons: David Gray, doesn't, SteelHome, Sonali Paul Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, China, HK, Garden, JPMorgan, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Pilbara, Western Australia, Rights LAUNCESTON, Australia, Beijing, Singapore, China's, China

☆ Treasury yields spike as markets worry about the impact of sticky inflation on Fed policy
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The 10-year Treasury yield spiked about 12 basis points Thursday. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . The 10-year Treasury yield jumped 12 basis points to hover at 4.714%, near the 16-year highs reached the week prior. Earlier in the week on Tuesday, the 10-year Treasury yield dropped 15 basis points in the steepest single-day decline since the implosion of Silicon Valley Bank in March. September CPI showed prices rose 3.7% on an annualized basis in September, above the expected 3.6%, and the same level as August's reading.

Persons: —, recalibrate, Charlie Ripley Organizations: Treasury, Service, Valley Bank, Fed, Allianz Investment Management, Wall Street

Search resuls for: "August's"

25 mentions found