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☆ Wall Street ends down, investors step back after Fitch US rating cut
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( David French | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Fitch was the second major agency to cut the country's rating. Reaction to the news pushed major indexes lower, with the S&P 500 (.SPX) recording its biggest daily percentage drop since April 25. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File PhotoThe technology index (.SPLRCT), dropping 2.6%, was also the worst performer of the 11 major S&P sectors, with nine in total ending the day lower. With around two-thirds of the S&P 500 having already reported, 79.9% have posted earnings above analysts' expectations, per Refinitiv I/B/E/S. The S&P 500 posted 12 new 52-week highs and five new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 49 new highs and 111 new lows.

Persons: Fitch, brokerages, Quincy Krosby, Brendan McDermid, LPL's Krosby, Krosby, Emerson, Johann M Cherian, David French, Lewis Krauskopf, Saumyadeb Chakrabarty, Vinay Dwivedi, David Gregorio Our Organizations: Dow, Nasdaq, Wall, AAA, LPL Financial, Fitch, AA, Nvidia, Apple, Tech, New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Amazon.com Inc, Dow Jones, ADP, CVS Health Corp, Devices, Thomson Locations: States, U.S, Charlotte , North Carolina, New York City, America, Bengaluru, New York

Microsoft is set to shed about $100 billion from its market capitalization if the loses hold until close of trading. "The tech earnings season has started on a mixed note," said Mark Haefele, global wealth management chief investment officer at UBS in a client note. "The tone set by quarterly results over the next week will be crucial to the performance of tech stocks through the rest of the third quarter." Large tech companies, which rely heavily on borrowed money, have been pressured since the Fed started its tightening cycle to tame inflation. However, optimism over AI and hopes that the Fed is nearing the end of its rate hiking cycle have supported tech stocks in recent months.

Persons: Lucy Nicholson, Paul Nolte, Murphy, Sylvest, Mark Haefele, Wall, Stuart Cole, Bernstein, Mark Shmulik, Meta, enviously, Shmulik, Shreyashi Sanyal, Amruta, Lucy Raitano, Johann M Cherian, Amanda Cooper, Saumyadeb Organizations: Los Angeles , California U.S, REUTERS, Microsoft, Google, UBS, Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Fed, Equiti, Federal Trade Commission, Amazon, Inc, Facebook, Thomson Locations: Los Angeles , California, U.S, HK, Bengaluru, London

☆ US says Amazon agrees to penalty for Alexa's alleged violations of children’s privacy law
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Companies Amazon.com Inc FollowWASHINGTON, July 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department said on Wednesday that Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and a subsidiary agreed to a permanent injunction and to pay a $25 million civil penalty as part of a settlement to resolve alleged violations of a children's privacy law relating to its Alexa voice assistant. Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Kanishka Singh, Leslie Adler Organizations: WASHINGTON, U.S . Justice, Inc, Thomson Locations: Washington

☆ Global shares rise, US shares mixed as Fed seen on target for rate hike
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Herbert Lash | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/3] Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., July 7, 2023. Headline data for May also was revised higher to show sales gaining 0.5% instead of 0.3% as previously reported. Deutsche Bank said it was lowering its forecast for China's economic growth this year, following similar moves on Monday by J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup. Besides the Fed, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan also hold policy meetings next week. Expectations that the Fed and the ECB will diverge on rate hikes have caused the dollar to weaken recently.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Dow Industrials, Thomas Hayes, Dow, Morgan Stanley, J.P, Morgan, Fiona Cincotta, DAX, Brent, Elizabeth Howcroft, Selina Li, Chizu Nomiyama, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Reserve, U.S . Commerce Department, Treasury, Dow, Nasdaq, Microsoft Corp, Amazon.com Inc, Apple Inc, Great, Great Hill Capital, Bank of America, Dow Jones, Deutsche Bank, Citigroup, Fed, European Central Bank, Bank of, ECB, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Great Hill, New York, Europe, China, Germany, Bank of Japan, Hong Kong

☆ White House partners with Amazon, Google, Best Buy to secure devices from cyberattacks
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, July 18 (Reuters) - The White House on Tuesday along with companies such as Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.O) and Best Buy (BBY.N) will announce an initiative that allows Americans to identify devices that are less vulnerable to cyberattacks. A new certification and labeling program would raise the bar for cybersecurity across smart devices such as refrigerators, microwaves, televisions, climate control systems and fitness trackers, the White House said in a statement. Retailers and manufacturers will apply a "U.S. Cyber Trust Mark" logo to their devices and the program will be up and running in 2024. The Federal Communications Commission will seek public comment before rolling out the labeling program and register a national trademark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the White House said. In March, the White House launched its national cyber strategy that called on software makers and companies to take far greater responsibility to ensure that their systems cannot be hacked.

Persons: Nandita Bose, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: Amazon.com Inc, Google, Cyber, Federal Communications Commission, U.S . Patent, LG Electronics, Logitech, Cisco Systems, Samsung, White House, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Defense Department, Microsoft, Thomson Locations: U.S, Washington

☆ Hollywood actors' strike: How would it hit TV shows and movies?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LOS ANGELES, July 13 (Reuters) - Thousands of Hollywood film and television actors may go on strike from Thursday, joining writers who walked off the job 11 weeks ago. How would a walkout by the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) affect viewers' favorite shows and movies? Which films and television shows would be hit? Broadcast networks including Fox (FOXA.O) and Walt Disney Co's (DIS.N) ABC have announced fall lineups heavy with reality shows, which are not affected by the strikes. The same is true for unscripted reality shows such as "Big Brother" and "The Bachelor."

Persons: Walt Disney, Abbott, Fox, Inc's, Lisa Richwine, Dawn Chmielewski, Andrew Heavens Organizations: Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television, Radio Artists, Fox, Walt Disney Co's, ABC, Netflix, Thomson Locations: ANGELES, United States, Los Angeles, Korea, India

☆ Amazon partners with travel site Priceline in a first for Prime Day
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Doyinsola Oladipo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, July 10 (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) is partnering with travel booking site Priceline to offer discounts during Tuesday's Prime Day, the first time an online travel agency has participated in the shopping event. Priceline is the first travel brand to offer an exclusive U.S. Prime Day deal, Amazon said. We know travelers are shopping on Amazon and booking travel with Priceline," said Lesley Klein, senior vice president of marketing at Priceline. Booking Holdings has several sites, so this isn't the first time the company has worked with Amazon on Prime deals. Amazon several years ago attempted to build a hotel booking service called Amazon Destinations but it closed a few months after launching.

Persons: Priceline, Lesley Klein, Booking.com, Doyinsola Oladipo, Jeffrey Dastin, David Gregorio Our Organizations: YORK, Amazon.com Inc, Tuesday's, Priceline's, Express, Booking Holdings, Prime, Amazon, Tourism, U.S . Travel Association, Thomson Locations: U.S, Germany, Austria, New York, San Francisco

MediaNews Group | The Riverside Press-Enterprise via Getty ImagesOf the many acts that can get an Amazon merchant kicked off the site, few are as devastating as selling stolen goods. But suspended sellers, who spent years building their businesses on Amazon, told CNBC they had no idea they were selling stolen products. In an email to CNBC, Amazon said it's working with authorities and doesn't comment "on matters that are the subject of active law enforcement investigations." Tracing the stolen goods supply chainIn tracing the supply chain for suspended sellers, some patterns started to emerge. "Chances are stolen goods or similar ASINs/serial numbers are being bled in to every supply line," the employee wrote.

Persons: Levoit humidifiers, Frank —, Frank, Kenzo Sobrie, Dyson, blenders, they'd, Joe Quinlivan, Sellers, they've, Chris McCabe, Ricky Sala, what's, Sala, he'd, Tien Ngo, Ngo, Stride, Daniel Acker, ASINs, Armen Babayan, illicitly, Babayan, KZ, Juniper, couldn't, Cameron Webb, Kevin Cole, didn't, He's, Sobrie Organizations: MediaNews, Riverside Press, Enterprise, Getty, Amazon, CNBC, Retailers, LG, KZ International, California, Patrol, KZ, CHP, Amazon.com Inc, Amazon Robotics, Bloomberg, Oregon Prep Center, Facebook, FBI, Washington State Office, Ngo Wholesale Distributors, Ngo, Co, Wholesale, Los, Juniper Holdings, Telegram Locations: Eastvale , California, KZ's, Huntington Beach , California, Westborough , Massachusetts, Los Angeles, Miami, The Miami, New York, Washington, Santa Fe Springs, Los Angeles County, Garden Grove, Orange County, California, Huntington Beach, California , Florida, New Jersey

June 30 (Reuters) - Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) stock market value ended a trading session above $3 trillion for the first time on Friday, lifted by signs of improving inflation and bets that the iPhone maker will successfully expand into new markets. Shares of the world's most valuable company jumped 2.3% to $193.97, giving it a market capitalization of $3.05 trillion, Refinitiv data showed. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsThe Cupertino, California company's market capitalization briefly peaked above $3 trillion in intraday trading on Jan. 3, 2022 before closing the session just below that mark. Apple's $3 trillion milestone follows the June 5 launch of a pricey augmented-reality headset, its riskiest bet since the introduction of the iPhone more than a decade ago. Four other U.S. companies have valuations of more than $1 trillion - Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O), Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), Nvidia and Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O), which follows Apple with a market value of $2.5 trillion.

Persons: Hogan, Riley, Tiyashi Datta, Noel Randewich, Anil D'Silva, Richard Chang Organizations: Apple, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Nvidia Corp, Tesla Inc, Commerce Department, Amazon.com Inc, Nvidia, Microsoft Corp, Tesla, Inc, Thomson Locations: Cupertino , California, Apple's, Bengaluru, Oakland, Calif

☆ Apple's market value breaches $3 trillion mark again
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Tiyashi Datta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Shares of Apple, which is also the world's most valuable- listed company, were up 1.6% at $192.6, after touching a record high of $193.15 during the day. They have jumped nearly 46% this year and, at the current price, the company's market value stands at around $3.02 trillion. Apple's market value briefly peaked at above $3 trillion in intra-day trading on Jan. 3, 2022, before closing the session just below that mark. Apple's 12-month forward price-to-earnings multiple (P/E), a common benchmark for valuing stocks, is 29.49, well above the sector median of 13.14, according to Refinitiv data. Currently, four other U.S. companies have a valuation of more than $1 trillion - Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O), Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), Nvidia Corp (NVDA.O) and Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O), which is a close second with a market value of $2.49 trillion.

Persons: Atif Malik, Microsoft's, Tiyashi Datta, Anil D'Silva Organizations: Apple, Citigroup, Federal, Amazon.com Inc, Nvidia Corp, Microsoft Corp, Tesla, Nvidia, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

☆ AutoStore to appeal London high court loss to Ocado in patent feud
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, June 29 (Reuters) - Norwegian robotics firm AutoStore (AUTO.OL) said on Thursday it will appeal a London high court judgement in March which dismissed its patent infringement claims against British online supermarket and technology group Ocado (OCDO.L). Ocado, like AutoStore, licences its technology to retailers around the world and uses it for its British grocery delivery service. He issued his formal order on Thursday, but allowed AutoStore to appeal. "We can confirm AutoStore has today been granted permission to appeal the High Court decision in March 2023 regarding our UK case against Ocado for patent infringement and we will now pursue that appeal," an AutoStore spokesperson said. Judge Hacon also ordered AutoStore to pay Ocado 6.7 million pounds ($8.5 million) in costs in relation to the high court trial.

Persons: Judge Richard Hacon, AutoStore, Ocado, Judge Hacon, James Davey, Richard Chang Organizations: British, Times, Amazon.com Inc, Thomson Locations: Norwegian, London, Oslo

Companies Amazon.com Inc FollowJune 28 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) brought by the parents of two teenagers who committed suicide by consuming sodium nitrite they bought on the online retailer's platform. "Kristine and Ethan's fates were undisputedly tragic, but the court can only conclude that they necessarily knew the dangers of bodily injury and death associated with ingesting sodium nitrite," Robart wrote. "There are no household uses for sodium nitrite and no consumer, let alone children, could reasonably know how lethal it was," she said. "In Washington State it is against the law to aid in suicide and that's exactly what Amazon did." The case is McCarthy et al v Amazon.com Inc, U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington, No.

Persons: James Robart, Ethan McCarthy, Kristine Jónsson, McCarthy, Robart, Kristine, Carrie Goldberg, Jonathan Stempel, Deepa Babington Organizations: Amazon.com Inc, District, Amazon, Police, Western District of Washington, Thomson Locations: U.S, Seattle, Washington, Hilliard , Ohio, Milton , West Virginia, Washington State, Western District, New York

June 27 (Reuters) - U.S. stock indexes rebounded on Tuesday from a recent losing streak as upbeat economic data soothed investor worries about an imminent recession triggered by the Federal Reserve's aggressive interest rate hikes. While the economic data was encouraging, Rhys Williams, chief strategist at Spouting Rock Asset Management, said the market also rose on seasonal factors. "You'd a bad week in the stock market last week and a bad day on Monday. According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 (.SPX) gained 49.25 points, or 1.14%, to end at 4,378.07 points, while the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) gained 219.71 points, or 1.65%, to 13,555.49. Signs of U.S. economic resilience also boosted the Dow Transports index (.DJT) and small-cap Russell 2000 index (.RUT).

Persons: Rhys Williams, It's, Williams, Russell, Jerome Powell's, hawkish, Dow, Sinéad Carew, Sruthi Shankar, Johann M, Terence Gabriel, Shinjini Ganguli, Richard Chang Organizations: Federal, Management, Dow, Nasdaq, Dow Jones, Dow Transports, Traders, bps, European Central Bank, Microsoft Corp, Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Tesla Inc, Nvidia Corp, Inc, Citigroup, Nvidia, Walgreens Boots Alliance, CVS Health Corp, Rite Aid Corp, Lordstown Motors Corp, U.S, Thomson Locations: Sintra , Portugal, U.S, New York, Bengaluru

☆ Zoox headcount grows as Amazon's self-driving unit expands testing in Vegas
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Abhirup Roy | Akash Sriram | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

FILE PHOTO: The assembly line for Zoox, a self-driving vehicle owned by Amazon, is seen at the company's factory in Fremont, California, U.S. July 19, 2022. REUTERS/Carlos Barria(Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc’s self-driving vehicle unit, Zoox, is hiring more employees to expand its testing in Las Vegas at a time when the regulatory implications have taken a front seat in the development of autonomous vehicle technology. Levinson said that Zoox autonomous vehicle will not be driving on the Vegas strip yet but is being tested for handling traffic lights, intersections and drive at speeds of up to 35 miles per hour. Ford Motor Co and Volkswagen AG last fall announced that they would shut down their Argo AI self-driving unit and focus on driver-assistance technology that provided more immediate returns. Alphabet’s self-driving technology project Waymo laid off 137 employees in a second round of job cuts this year.

Persons: Carlos Barria, Zoox, Zoox’s headcount, Jesse Levinson, Levinson, ” Levinson Organizations: Amazon, REUTERS, Reuters, Ford Motor Co, Volkswagen AG, Argo Locations: Fremont , California, U.S, Las Vegas, California

☆ Amazon raises investment in India to $26 bln by 2030
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A man walks past a logo of Amazon Prime Video during a launch event in Mumbai, India, April 28, 2022. Earlier, Amazon had announced a $6.5 billion investment plan, largely to boost its e-commerce business where it competes with Walmart's Flipkart and billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Retail. The new investment amount committed now comes to around an additional $6.5 billion. The e-commerce giant's announced investment during Modi's trip adds to other companies, including U.S. semiconductor toolmaker Applied Materials and memory chip firm Micron Technology, which have made commitments during the Indian prime minister's state visit. Modi and Jassy spoke about supporting Indian startups, creating jobs, enabling exports, digitisation, and empowering individuals and small businesses to compete globally, an Amazon blog post said.

Persons: Francis Mascarenhas, Andy Jassy, Narendra Modi, Jassy, Walmart's Flipkart, Mukesh Ambani's, Modi, Sundar Pichai, Tim Cook, Google's, Satya Nadella, Aditya Kalra, William Mallard, Jacqueline Wong, Toby Chopra Organizations: Amazon Prime, REUTERS, Amazon.com Inc, Web Services, Amazon, giant's, Micron Technology, Google, Reuters, Twitter, U.S, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India, DELHI, United States, U.S, City, India's, Gujarat, Washington

☆ Amazon commits to $15 billion India investment, CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

June 23 (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) will invest an additional $15 billion in India, the company's Chief Executive Andy Jassy told Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his meeting on Friday. The investment will take the e-commerce giant's total India investment across all businesses to $26 billion by 2030, he said. Modi and Jassy spoke about supporting Indian startups, creating jobs, enabling exports, digitization, and empowering individuals and small businesses to compete globally, an Amazon blog post said. "We shared Google is investing $10 billion in the India digitization fund, and we are continuing to invest through that," Pichai said. ($1 = 81.9800 Indian rupees)Reporting by Jahnavi Nidumolu in Bengaluru; Editing by William MallardOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Andy Jassy, Narendra Modi, Modi, Jassy, Sundar Pichai, Pichai, Tim Cook, Google's, Satya Nadella, Jahnavi, William Mallard Organizations: Amazon.com Inc, Web Services, Google, Twitter, U.S, Thomson Locations: India, City, India's, Gujarat, Washington, Bengaluru

From big-box chains Walmart (WMT.N) and Best Buy (BBY.N) to specialty retailers like Savage X Fenty and Adore Me, retailers' subscription programs are facing growing scrutiny. Amazon is under fire from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, which filed a lawsuit against it in Seattle. Amazon "substantially revamped its Prime cancellation process" to some customers before the lawsuit was filed, according to the complaint. He withdrew the lawsuit, according to the court docket. Best Buy in 2021 launched a subscription program offering tech support and discounts on products.

Persons: Amazon, William Kovacic, Kathleen Benway, SAVAGE, Savage X, Savage, Ranjan Roy, Me's, Morgan Stanley, Spencer Sheehan, Arriana McLymore, Kate Masters, Siddharth Cavale, Muralikumar Organizations: YORK, Amazon.com Inc, Euromonitor Inc, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Amazon, George Washington University Law School, FTC's, Consumer, WALMART, BEST, Walmart, Thomson Locations: Seattle, United States, U.S, Europe, California, Michigan, New York City

June 21 (Reuters) - Generative AI-related job postings in the United States jumped about 20% last month as companies look to harness a technology that has been widely touted as the next big growth driver, according to data from job portal Indeed. The May figure, at 204 per million job postings, was also more than double the 2021 level and underscored the buzz around AI, sparked by the runaway success of OpenAI's ChatGPT. Data scientist roles made up 5% of the AI job postings on Indeed's U.S. platform, while roles such as software engineer, machine learning engineer and data engineer were also in demand. Indeed's data showed that searches for generative AI jobs jumped to 147 per million total jobs searched in May from virtually zero a year earlier. Its U.S. website showed generative AI job listings from companies such as Meta Platforms (META.O), Apple (AAPL.O), Tiktok, Pinterest (PINS.N) and Amazon.com (AMZN.O).

Persons: OpenAI's, Nick Bunker, Chavi Mehta, Anil D'Silva Organizations: U.S, Amazon.com Inc, Apple, Reuters, Thomson Locations: United States, Bengaluru

The FTC sued in Amazon in federal court in Seattle, alleging that "Amazon has knowingly duped millions of consumers into unknowingly enrolling in Amazon Prime." The FTC said Amazon used "manipulative, coercive or deceptive user-interface designs known as 'dark patterns' to trick consumers into enrolling in automatically renewing Prime subscriptions." The FTC said Amazon Prime is the world's largest subscription program, generating $25 billion in revenue annually. Consumers who attempted to cancel Prime were faced with multiple labyrinthine steps to accomplish the task of cancelling, according to the complaint. The FTC complaint said Amazon used the term "Iliad Flow" to describe the process it began in 2016, referencing Homer's epic poem about the lengthy Trojan war.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Lina Khan, Amazon, David Shepardson, Will Dunham, Doina Organizations: WASHINGTON, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Amazon, FTC, Amazon Prime, Big Tech, Amazon.com, Thomson Locations: Amazon, Seattle, United States

☆ Here are Tuesday's biggest analyst calls: Nvidia, Apple, Tesla, Amazon, Delta, Rivian, Disney & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Here are Tuesday's biggest calls on Wall Street: Evercore ISI reiterates Apple as outperform Evercore said it's bullish on Apple's venture into augmented and virtual reality. " Morgan Stanley upgrades U.S. Foods to overweight from equal weight Morgan Stanley said in its upgrade of the stock that it sees "optionality." Morgan Stanley initiates Everest Re Group as overweight Morgan Stanley said it's bullish on shares of the insurer. Morgan Stanley initiates Arch Capital as overweight Morgan Stanley said the insurance company is "best positioned for secular growth opportunities." Morgan Stanley upgrades Avis Budget to overweight from equal weight Morgan Stanley said it likes the company's profitability potential.

Persons: Evercore, it's, it's bullish, Piper Sandler, Tesla, Piper, we've, Morgan Stanley, Baidu, Read, Philip Morris, Raymond James downgrades Palantir, Raymond James, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Canaccord, Bud, Chipotle Organizations: Apple, Pro, Credit Suisse, Citi, Delta Citi, Bank of America, Inc, Foods, Everest, Arch, Avis, OW, Nvidia, Data Center, BMO, Securities, Disney, ESPN, Anheuser Busch InBev Locations: 1H23, 2Q23, China, combustibles, Hulu

A 1.7% decline in Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) and a 1.3% dip in Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) weighed on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq. S&P 500 fell 0.36% to end the session at 4,409.77 points. Of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes, eight declined, led by communication services (.SPLRCL), down 1%, followed by a 0.83% loss in information technology (.SPLRCT). Declining stocks outnumbered rising ones within the S&P 500 (.AD.SPX) by a 1.4-to-one ratio. The S&P 500 posted 24 new highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 112 new highs and 67 new lows.

Persons: Christopher Waller, Thomas Barkin, Sam Stovall, Morgan Stanley, Sruthi Shankar, Shristi, Noel Randewich, Vinay Dwivedi, Richard Chang Organizations: Microsoft, Nasdaq Adobe, Nasdaq, Dow, Federal, Richmond Fed, CFRA, University of Michigan's, Microsoft Corp, Inc, Nvidia Corp, Dow Jones, Nvidia, Adobe Inc, iRobot Corp, Micron Technology, Thomson Locations: U.S, Bengaluru, Oakland , California

☆ UK clears Amazon's $1.7 billion deal for Roomba-maker iRobot
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

June 16 (Reuters) - Britain's competition regulator on Friday cleared Amazon.com Inc's (AMZN.O) planned $1.7 billion acquisition of iRobot Corp (IRBT.O), maker of the Roomba vacuum cleaner. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it had concluded that the deal would not lead to competition concerns in the UK. "We're pleased with the UK Competition and Markets Authority's decision and are committed to supporting regulatory bodies in their work," a spokesperson for Amazon said. The news sent shares in U.S-listed iRobot up 12% in pre-market trade, while Amazon's stock was marginally down. EU antitrust regulators will decide by July 6 whether to clear the deal, while the U.S. Federal Trade Commission is also examining the acquisition.

Persons: We're, Colin Angle, Eva Mathews, Devika Syamnath, Jason Neely Organizations: Amazon.com, iRobot Corp, Markets Authority, Competition, Amazon, CMA, Regulators, Big Tech, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Thomson Locations: U.S, Bengaluru

☆ Wall Street futures rise as economic data fuels hopes of Fed policy shift
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures up: Dow 0.01%, S&P 0.06%, Nasdaq 0.09%June 16 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures inched up on Friday as signs of easing price pressures and slowing economic growth raised hopes the Federal Reserve could end its monetary tightening campaign soon. ET, is expected to show the index rose to 60 in June from 59.2 in May. Meanwhile, a simultaneous expiration of stock options, stock index futures and index options contracts on Friday, known as triple witching, could cause a spike in market volatility. ET, Dow e-minis were up 5 points, or 0.01%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 2.75 points, or 0.06%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 14.5 points, or 0.09%. Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru Editing by Vinay DwivediOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Sruthi Shankar, Vinay Dwivedi Organizations: Dow, Nasdaq, Microsoft, Nvidia, University, Dow e, Adobe Inc, iRobot, Amazon.com, Thomson Locations: U.S, Bengaluru

☆ Wall Street Week Ahead: Investors rethink recession plays, boosting U.S. stock market laggards
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"There's reason to believe that the pessimism we saw at the start of the year is giving way to a stronger-than-expected market." Murray has increased his allocation to small-cap stocks, which tend to be among the most direct beneficiaries of economic growth. Other rebounding segments in June include the S&P 500 energy sector, which has gained 6% this month and S&P 500 industrials, up 5.7%. Ten of the 11 S&P 500 sectors are firmer for the month to date, compared to only six for the year. Stronger-than-expected jobs growth and robust consumer spending have been among the data points that have bolstered investors' economic outlook.

Persons: Tim Murray, T Rowe Price's, Murray, Russell, Dow, Howard Silverblatt, Goldman Sachs, Saira Malik, Max Wasserman, David Randall, Saqib Iqbal Ahmed, Lewis Krauskopf, Ira Iosebashvili, Richard Chang Organizations: YORK, Energy, Reuters, Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp, Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Nvidia Corp, Tesla Inc, Dow Jones, Capital Economics, Miramar Capital, Starbucks Corp, Target Corp, Thomson Locations: U.S

☆ Futures dip after Wall St rally, focus on Fed
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The S&P 500 (.SPX) has risen 20% from its Oct. 12 closing low, heralding the start of a new bull market, as defined by some market participants. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 have notched new year-to-date highs in recent sessions, boosted by an AI-driven rally in megacap stocks, a better-than-expected earnings season and expectations that the Fed is nearing the end of its rate-hiking cycle. Fed fund futures are pricing in a 76% chance that the U.S. central bank will hold interest rates at the current 5%-5.25% range at its June 13-14 policy meeting, according to CMEGroup's Fedwatch tool. Signs of a resilient U.S. economy and hopes of the Fed pausing its aggressive monetary tightening have pushed volatility gauges tumbling. ET, Dow e-minis were down 75 points, or 0.22%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 6.25 points, or 0.15%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 5.75 points, or 0.04%.

Persons: Jerome Powell, Sruthi Shankar, Vinay Dwivedi Organizations: Dow, Nasdaq, BNP Paribas, Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Microsoft Corp, Tesla Inc, General Motors, Tesla, GM, Dow e, Target Corp, Citi, Thomson Locations: megacap, U.S, Bengaluru

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