Hot Economic News Releases

The plan to support the U.S. economy contributed 4.5% in real gross domestic product in the second quarter of 2010 and allowed to deliver up to 3.3 million people in employment, said Tuesday Budget Office Congress (OBC).

The CBO estimates, a bipartisan agency, believes the support plan, whose effects are challenged by the Republican Party, has prevented the economy contracted between April and June

Economists polled by Reuters expect the revised figures, which will be released Friday, show that GDP grew at an anemic pace of 1.4% in the second quarter, less than the 1.7% increase announced in the first estimate.

The CBO also estimates that support plan has put between 1.4 and 3.3 million jobs in the second quarter.

The total cost of the plan to support the U.S. economy should come out to 814 billion dollars while the CBO anticipated amount of around 862 billion dollars from a previous estimate.

U.S. stocks opened lower after the announcement of a sharper than expected slowdown in economic growth in the U.S. in the second quarter.

In the first exchanges, the Dow Jones lost 0.8% or 80.53 points to 10,386 points while the Standard & Poor's 500 index yielded 0.9% or 10.25 points to 1090 points and the composite index the Nasdaq fell by 1.2% or 27.41 points to 2224.54 points.

The U.S. economy slowed sharply in the second quarter at an annualized rate of 2.4% against 3.7% in the first quarter, according to figures published Friday in the first estimate by the Commerce Department. The market was expecting growth of 2.5%.

On the values front, Merck was down 1.6%.The pharmaceutical company has yet reported Friday in quarterly earnings above expectations.

Chevron was down 0.8% despite a profit tripled in the second quarter.

The Nikkei closed up 0.52% Friday, and closed the week on a 4% gain, its largest weekly increase in seven months.

The Nikkei index closed at 9585.32 points and the broader TOPIX, took 0.02% to 861.21 points.

Japanese stocks have benefited from renewed investor confidence, new optimism for the resumption of the U.S. economy and the euro area.

The courses have been particularly supported by the exporters, thus earning the title Canon 1.02% to 3,480 yen on expectations of a tripling of operating income to about 182 billion yen (1.62 billion euros) .

The title however Inpex has weighed on prices, registering losses of up to 14% on the session to finally close down 12.82% after announcing an equity issue of 6.7 billion dollars threatening to dilute the value of shares already issued more than 50%.

U.S. stocks finished higher on Thursday for the third consecutive session after the publication of employment data found reassuring.

The Dow Jones gained 1.2% or 120.71 points to 10,138.99 points, while the Standard & Poor's 500 took 9.98 or 0.94% points to 1070.25 points.

The Nasdaq Composite Index has advanced by 0.74% or 15.93 points to 2175.40 points.

The weekly claims for unemployment benefits fell 21,000 last week to the United States, more than expected, which has momentarily quieted concerns about a possible slowdown in U.S. economy.

Prices were also supported by the major U.S. retail chains that have posted good sales in the month of June JC Penney Co. and Abercrombie & Fitch were awarded 6.7% to 23.24% and 7.75 dollars to 35.45 dollars.

Costco Wholesale has gained 2.62% to 55.71 dollars. The number one warehouse stores reported an increase of 4% of its turnover store, which has been slightly below market expectations.

Side decreases, the values of semiconductors have been some profit taking.

"It is a context of nervousness.The investors are not eager to jump feet first into the market, "said Scott Marcouiller specialist at Wells Fargo shares Advisors in St. Louis.

Micron Technology has come a decline of 2.3% to $ 8.69. Index PHLX Semiconductor sold 0.1% after gaining over 5% Wednesday.

Apple has sold 0.2% to $ 258.09 and Intel 0.2% to 258.09 dollars also.

Technip has been awarded two contracts with BP, the British North Sea, worth a total of about 100 million pounds (120 million euros).

The first is a contract under diving, repair and maintenance for a period of three years with two additional options of one year each, said the French specialist in oil and gas equipment in a statement.

The second is a contract engineering and installation for the development of Devenick field, located 234 km north-east of Aberdeen. It covers project management, engineering, manufacturing, installation and commissioning of several lines.

The death of U.S. Sen. Robert Byrd could lead to a postponement until mid-July of the final adoption of the draft law reforming financial regulation in the United States, forcing the Democrats to seek further support.

The future of the bill now depends on the decision of a handful of senators after the death Monday of Robert Byrd, at the age of 92 years, denying the Democrats a voice in favor of the 60 needed to deprive Republicans delayed by a battle of adopting the text amendments.

The Democrats could expect that the governor of West Virginia named interim successor to Robert Byrd, but the appointment could take several weeks.

To ensure some additional support, the Democrats may have to change the text.

"If they need to review the bill and make concessions to secure additional votes (…), the text will emerge strengthened, not weakened," warns Barbara Roper, who heads an advocacy organization of consumers.

This bill, which President Barack Obama made one of his priorities, would launch a reform of financial regulation unprecedented since the 1930s.

The text aims to cut without a ban, the risky activities of banks, to establish a new process of liquidation for companies in financial difficulty, or to impose a tax credit on the largest financial groups, on larger groups to finance reform.

The House of Representatives should adopt the text Tuesday or Wednesday. But before being submitted to the presidential signature, originally scheduled on July 4, the text must also be approved by the Senate.However, due to the death of Robert Byrd, the Senate could defer their decision on July 12, after a week of leave, said a legislative assistant.

"We expect that this overhaul of banking legislation wins approval in U.S. House of Representatives, but the situation is complicated in the Senate," admits Brian Gardner, a political analyst for investment firm Keefe Bruyette & Woods.

THE MARKETS IN WAITING

If the vote of the law should dispel the uncertainties surrounding the bank stocks, the implementation of the text still has many question marks, analysts said Goldman Sachs.

Among outstanding issues is the appointments that the U.S. president should proceed, including the new head of the agency responsible for regulating mortgages, credit cards and other financial products.

Some clauses of the text should weigh on profits and growth of the largest banks, but have been relaxed during negotiations between representatives and senators, after a marathon negotiating session last 21 hours that ended Friday in the dawn.

For now, Democrats are thus seeking to support their cause some moderate Republicans like Olympia Snowe, and Senators Scott Brown, supported the text but rather reluctant to introduce a tax credit.

It aims to prevent the bill strikes the U.S. public finance more.However, according to the Congressional Budget Office, an independent monitoring and evaluation of public accounts, expenses related to the reform in ten years, estimated at $ 26.9 billion, should be offset by as much revenue.

The vote Democratic senators Russ Feingold and Maria Cantwell, who voted against it last month, claiming it was not sufficiently binding, should also be courted.

Russ Feingold, however, already assured Monday that he would not change his opinion. Maria Cantwell for studying the issue and it still has not yet decided, said a spokesman.

U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron agreed Saturday to say that nothing positive would come out for the damage to the oil company BP reported a member of the British delegation.

The two leaders met in Toronto on the sidelines of the meeting of the G20 countries.

On Friday, the head of the new British government had requested more clarity on the costs that the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico exposed the British oil company.

Action BP fell Friday to its lowest level in fourteen years since the accident last April 20 on the platform Deepwater Horizon, the company's market capitalization has shrunk by $ 100 billion.

The British employers as well as pension funds and other shareholder groups have called for Cameron to take BP's defense against criticism of Obama as being too severe.

The subject has been discussed by Cameron during a bilateral meeting Saturday, the first of the two men since the leader of the Conservative Party succeeded last month in Gordon Brown at 10 Downing Street.

"Both agreed that nothing good would come out of the damage to BP, reported a member of the UK delegation."Both agreed that BP would meet its obligations to plug the leak, clean it and pay the costs of legitimate compensation," he added.

BP said they paid $ 2.35 billion since the beginning of this oil spill is unprecedented in the history of the United States.

The company also announced the creation of a special fund of 20 billion dollars expected to cover the costs of the environmental and economic disaster.

BP, formerly British company essentially is now a company whose capital is split into two main groups: 40% of its shareholders are based in Britain and 40% also in the United States.