Asian stocks tread water on U.S., commodities concerns

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Asian stocks are set for a third straight day of losses on Friday as a retreat in crude oil and other commodities prices knocked global sentiment, although receding concerns about France's presidential election kept the euro near six-month highs.

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Warren Buffett says he sold a third of stake in IBM: CNBC

(Reuters) - Berkshire Hathaway's Warren Buffet has sold about a third of his stake in IBM Corp during the first and second quarter of 2017, CNBC reported.

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Greenlight says documents show GM tried to undermine dual-share plan

(Reuters) - Greenlight Capital escalated its battle against General Motors Co on Thursday, posting credit ratings documents that it said the automaker inappropriately changed to undermine the hedge fund's proposal to create two classes of GM stock.

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U.S. Senate passes bill to fund government through September

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Thursday gave final legislative approval to a $1.2 trillion spending bill to keep the government open through September, a measure President Donald Trump is expected to sign before Friday's deadline.

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Wall Street drops with oil prices, health bill vote awaited

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks were lower in early afternoon trading on Thursday as a steep fall in crude oil prices weighed on energy shares and with healthcare stocks in focus ahead of a cliffhanger vote on repealing Obamacare.

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Kraft Heinz to cut jobs, shutter factories under integration plan

(Reuters) - Kraft Heinz Co said on Thursday it would cut about 13 percent of its workforce, close factories and consolidate its distribution network as part of its efforts to merge Kraft Foods and H.J. Heinz.

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OPEC likely to extend output pact, bigger oil cut unlikely: delegates

LONDON/DUBAI (Reuters) - OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers look likely to extend their agreement to limit supplies beyond its June expiry to help clear a glut, three OPEC delegates said on Thursday, downplaying the chance of additional steps such as a bigger cut.

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U.S. labor market tightening; productivity weakens in first quarter

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New applications for U.S. jobless benefits fell sharply last week and the number of Americans on unemployment rolls hit a 17-year low, pointing to a tightening labor market that could allow the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates next month.

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U.S. trade deficit improves slightly in March

WASHINGTON - The U.S. trade deficit improved slightly in March amid broad declines in both imports

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Viacom's profit, revenue beat estimates

(Reuters) - Viacom Inc , the owner of MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon, reported quarterly profit and revenue that handily beat estimates, helped in part by the success of its latest movie "xXx: The Return of Xander Cage".

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S&P 500 tech index edges toward $5 trillion while Apple steals spotlight

NEW YORK/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - While some investors have been waiting for Apple's market capitalization to reach $1 trillion, those looking for big round numbers might be better off looking to the S&P 500 technology index as a whole, which is approaching the $5 trillion mark.

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Apple to create $1 billion U.S. advanced manufacturing fund, CEO says

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple Inc Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said the iPhone maker plans to create a $1 billion fund to invest in advanced manufacturing companies in the United States.

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Facebook profit surges 76.6 percent as ad sales jump

(Reuters) - Facebook Inc reported a 76.6 percent surge in quarterly profit on Wednesday, fueled by robust growth in its mobile ad business.

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Wall Street lower as Fed holds on rates; financials gain

(Reuters) - Wall Street kept losses on Wednesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve held interest rates unchanged following its two-day policy meeting, and as investors digested another heavy round of earnings reports.

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Milken's big money investors 'grind it out' as bull market ages

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Top investment fund managers at the Milken Institute Global Conference this week said they had little choice but to focus on unusual and complicated corners of the financial markets as stock markets have risen and interest rates remain low.

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U.S. private hiring slows, services growth speeds up in April

(Reuters) - U.S. companies hired workers at a slower but still-solid pace in April, while the domestic services sector grew more than expected, supporting the notion the economic expansion remains on track despite a weak first quarter, private data released on Wednesday showed.

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'Kong', 'LEGO Batman' power Time Warner's profit beat

(Reuters) - Time Warner Inc , which is being bought by AT&T , reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit, helped by the success of its movies "Kong: Skull Island" and "The LEGO Batman Movie" in the first quarter.

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Strong demand at Taco Bell drives Yum Brands' profit beat

(Reuters) - Yum Brands Inc reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit due to strong global same-store sales growth, driven by robust demand at its Taco Bell restaurants and lower costs at its KFC chain.

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Apple posts surprise dip in iPhone sales, shares fall

(Reuters) - Apple Inc reported a surprise fall in iPhone sales for its second quarter on Tuesday, indicating that customers may have held back purchases in anticipation of the 10th-anniversary edition of the company's most important product later this year.

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Buffett to face big crowd as Berkshire grows bigger

(Reuters) - As the United States adapts to the presidency of Donald Trump and faces rising tensions abroad, Berkshire Hathaway Inc shareholders will descend on Omaha, Nebraska this weekend seeking reassurance, from Warren Buffett.

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Asia stocks ride global momentum, dollar up on June Fed rate hike bets

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Asian stocks followed global indexes higher on Wednesday, as strong earnings and manufacturing data boosted risk appetite, while expectations that the Federal Reserve will signal a June rate increase later in the session lifted the dollar.

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Tesla is most painful stock for short sellers in 2017

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Traders short selling Tesla's soaring stock have lost $3.7 billion this year, eclipsing the combined losses of traders shorting Apple , Amazon.com and Netflix .

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Wall St. modestly higher as Apple leads tech stocks' gains

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks were modestly higher in early afternoon trading on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq Composite eking out another record high, helped by an Apple-led rise in technology stocks.

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Wall St. eyes Apple and Facebook to fuel new leg of tech rally

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple and Facebook may expand their already outsized share of U.S. technology revenue when they report their earnings this week, as investors look for evidence to justify this year's U.S. stock market rally.

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Despite record highs, fund managers globally remain underweight Apple

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Active stock fund managers around the world are holding the lowest percentage of Apple Inc shares in their portfolios when compared to the iPhone maker's overall weighting in indexes, even as the shares hit record highs, according to a research note by investment bank UBS late Monday.

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United CEO takes responsibility for passenger incident

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - United Airlines Chief Executive Oscar Munoz will tell the U.S. Congress on Tuesday he is taking responsibility for a series of failures that led to the April 9 forced removal of a passenger from a Chicago airplane that prompted worldwide condemnation.

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Merck profit tops estimates as margins rise; Co raises 2017 forecast

(Reuters) - Merck & Co Inc reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit, helped by higher gross margins, and the drugmaker also raised its revenue and profit forecasts for 2017.

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Pfizer beats first-quarter profit estimates

(Reuters) - Pfizer Inc , the largest U.S. drugmaker, reported a bigger-than-expected quarterly profit, helped by higher sales of breast cancer drug Ibrance and pain relief drug Lyrica.

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Hilton's revenue jumps 25 percent

(Reuters) - Hotel operator Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc reported a 25.2 percent rise in quarterly revenue on Tuesday, as more people booked its rooms at higher prices.

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Trump administration set to replace top banking regulator Thomas Curry: WSJ

(Reuters) - The Trump administration plans to replace Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry as chief overseer of federally chartered banks, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

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Fed set to leave interest rates unchanged, may hint at June hike

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to hold interest rates steady at its meeting this week as it pauses to parse more economic data but may hint it is on track for an increase in June.

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Hi-tech leads Asia share rally, dollar at one-month high vs yen

TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares advanced on Tuesday, helped by rising optimism on the technology industry and easing concerns over North Korea, while the dollar edged up to one-month high versus the yen.

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Public investments in Trump-operated hotel set dangerous precedent – U.S. senators

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump is flirting with unparalleled violations of the Constitution by not divesting himself from a hotel management company that benefits financially from public pension fund investments, according to two Democratic U.S. senators.

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Budget deal may map U.S. Congress road ahead, via Trump bypass

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress, bitterly divided for years along party lines, may be mapping a bipartisan path forward that skirts around President Donald Trump when he refuses to engage constructively with lawmakers, Democrats and some lobbyists said on Monday.

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U.S. factory activity slows; inflation pressures subside

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. factory activity slowed in April while consumer spending was unchanged in March and a key inflation measure recorded its first monthly drop since 2001, but economists still expect an interest rate increase in June as the labor market tightens.

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Trump says actively considering breaking up big banks: Bloomberg TV

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said he was actively considering breaking up big banks, Bloomberg Television reported on Monday.

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Mnuchin sees U.S. growth reaching 3 percent in time, tax cuts to help

BEVERLY HILLS (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Steve Mnuchin said on Monday that it could take up to two years to have economic growth reach three percent and that tax cuts and regulatory relief will help get there.

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Wall St. opens higher as government shutdown averted

(Reuters) - Wall Street opened higher on Monday after U.S. Congress negotiators averted a government shutdown later this week by hammering out a federal funding deal late on Sunday.

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Dish reports 6 percent fall in quarterly profit

(Reuters) - Dish Network Corp reported a 6 percent drop in quarterly profit on Monday as the U.S. satellite TV provider added fewer-than-expected pay-TV subscribers.

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