Post by huh on May 2, 2016 7:00:54 GMT -5
10 things you need to know before the opening bell
Puerto Rico will default on Monday. During a televised address, Puerto Rican Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla said the island's Government Development Bank would not make a $422 million payment due on Monday. The default was expected by the market, as Zero Hedge noted on Sunday that the bonds were trading at about 20 cents on the dollar. Monday's default will put pressure on Congress to find a resolution for Puerto Rico, which owes "another $1.9 billion of debt on July 1, including about $777 million in general obligation debt backed by its constitution," according to Reuters.
Gold crossed $1,300 an ounce. An early bid ran gold above the $1,300-an-ounce mark for the first time since January 2015. The yellow metal hit a high of $1,302.20 an ounce before sliding back below the psychological hurdle. The precious metal is now higher by 0.4% near $1,299 an ounce. Silver's gains are more muted, up 0.1% at $17.87 an ounce.
A guy claiming to be the creator of bitcoin has come forward, again. Australian IT executive Craig Wright says he is the inventor of bitcoin. According to the BBC, Wright proved he was the creator of the digital currency by signing "messages using cryptographic keys created during the early days of bitcoin's development." The BBC continued: "The keys are inextricably linked to blocks of bitcoins known to have been created or 'mined' by Satoshi Nakamoto," the alias used by bitcoin's creator. Wright has previously claimed to be the digital currency's creator.
Baker Hughes and Halliburton are calling off their megamerger. Opposition from both US and European regulators has caused the two energy giants to call off their $28 billion deal. The deal's cancellation means Halliburton must pay Baker Hughes a $3.5 billion termination fee by Wednesday. "While both companies expected the proposed merger to result in compelling benefits to shareholders, customers, and other stakeholders, challenges in obtaining remaining regulatory approvals and general industry conditions that severely damaged deal economics led to the conclusion that termination is the best course of action," Halliburton CEO Dave Lesar said in a statement.
Another oil name files for bankruptcy. Ultra Petroleum has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Ultra is the latest energy company to fall victim to the crash in oil prices. In a court filing, the oil and gas producer listed both assets and liabilities of $1 billion to $10 billion. Reuters reports that the consulting firm Deloitte says up to one-third of all oil producers could end up filing for bankruptcy this year if oil prices are unable to stage a meaningful rebound.
AIG sold a big portion of its stake in Chinese insurer PICC. AIG sold 740 million shares of China's PICC Property and Casualty, raising a total of 9.68 billion Hong Kong dollars ($1.25 billion). The sale occurred at the lower end of the company's marketing range, with most of the interest coming from institutional investors, reports Reuters reports, citing IFR. AIG had given a range of 13.06 to 13.35 Hong Kong dollars per share, and the block deal went down at about 13.08 Hong Kong dollars a share.
Berkshire Hathaway profit probably fell. A preliminary look at Berkshire Hathaway's first-quarter results showed that net profit most likely fell 12% to $3.73 billion. According to Reuters, Berkshire cited weaker performance in its railroad and insurance business as reasons for the decline. The final results will be reported May 6.
Global stock markets trade mixed. Japan's Nikkei (-3.1%) was hit hard overnight as markets in both China and Hong Kong were closed. Germany's DAX (+0.8%) leads the advance in Europe. S&P 500 futures are higher by 2.25 points at 2,061.25 per dollar.
Earnings reports continue to flow. Sysco highlights the names reporting ahead of the opening bell. AIG, Anadarko Petroleum, General Growth Properties, and Tenet Healthcare are among the companies releasing their quarterly results after markets close.
US economic data is light. ISM Index and construction spending will be released at 10 a.m. ET. The US 10-year yield is down 2 basis points at 1.81%.
www.businessinsider.com/opening-bell-may-2-2016-2016-5
Puerto Rico will default on Monday. During a televised address, Puerto Rican Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla said the island's Government Development Bank would not make a $422 million payment due on Monday. The default was expected by the market, as Zero Hedge noted on Sunday that the bonds were trading at about 20 cents on the dollar. Monday's default will put pressure on Congress to find a resolution for Puerto Rico, which owes "another $1.9 billion of debt on July 1, including about $777 million in general obligation debt backed by its constitution," according to Reuters.
Gold crossed $1,300 an ounce. An early bid ran gold above the $1,300-an-ounce mark for the first time since January 2015. The yellow metal hit a high of $1,302.20 an ounce before sliding back below the psychological hurdle. The precious metal is now higher by 0.4% near $1,299 an ounce. Silver's gains are more muted, up 0.1% at $17.87 an ounce.
A guy claiming to be the creator of bitcoin has come forward, again. Australian IT executive Craig Wright says he is the inventor of bitcoin. According to the BBC, Wright proved he was the creator of the digital currency by signing "messages using cryptographic keys created during the early days of bitcoin's development." The BBC continued: "The keys are inextricably linked to blocks of bitcoins known to have been created or 'mined' by Satoshi Nakamoto," the alias used by bitcoin's creator. Wright has previously claimed to be the digital currency's creator.
Baker Hughes and Halliburton are calling off their megamerger. Opposition from both US and European regulators has caused the two energy giants to call off their $28 billion deal. The deal's cancellation means Halliburton must pay Baker Hughes a $3.5 billion termination fee by Wednesday. "While both companies expected the proposed merger to result in compelling benefits to shareholders, customers, and other stakeholders, challenges in obtaining remaining regulatory approvals and general industry conditions that severely damaged deal economics led to the conclusion that termination is the best course of action," Halliburton CEO Dave Lesar said in a statement.
Another oil name files for bankruptcy. Ultra Petroleum has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Ultra is the latest energy company to fall victim to the crash in oil prices. In a court filing, the oil and gas producer listed both assets and liabilities of $1 billion to $10 billion. Reuters reports that the consulting firm Deloitte says up to one-third of all oil producers could end up filing for bankruptcy this year if oil prices are unable to stage a meaningful rebound.
AIG sold a big portion of its stake in Chinese insurer PICC. AIG sold 740 million shares of China's PICC Property and Casualty, raising a total of 9.68 billion Hong Kong dollars ($1.25 billion). The sale occurred at the lower end of the company's marketing range, with most of the interest coming from institutional investors, reports Reuters reports, citing IFR. AIG had given a range of 13.06 to 13.35 Hong Kong dollars per share, and the block deal went down at about 13.08 Hong Kong dollars a share.
Berkshire Hathaway profit probably fell. A preliminary look at Berkshire Hathaway's first-quarter results showed that net profit most likely fell 12% to $3.73 billion. According to Reuters, Berkshire cited weaker performance in its railroad and insurance business as reasons for the decline. The final results will be reported May 6.
Global stock markets trade mixed. Japan's Nikkei (-3.1%) was hit hard overnight as markets in both China and Hong Kong were closed. Germany's DAX (+0.8%) leads the advance in Europe. S&P 500 futures are higher by 2.25 points at 2,061.25 per dollar.
Earnings reports continue to flow. Sysco highlights the names reporting ahead of the opening bell. AIG, Anadarko Petroleum, General Growth Properties, and Tenet Healthcare are among the companies releasing their quarterly results after markets close.
US economic data is light. ISM Index and construction spending will be released at 10 a.m. ET. The US 10-year yield is down 2 basis points at 1.81%.
www.businessinsider.com/opening-bell-may-2-2016-2016-5
