Reuters reports New claims for unemployment benefits were unchanged last week, holding at the lowest level since the early days of the 2007-2009 recession and giving a fresh sign the battered labor market is healing. With weekly claims approaching levels last seen before the recession that began in December 2007, economists say employers might be close to ending a long cycle of heavy layoffs, laying the ground for more hiring.
The Wall Street Journal reports U.S. stock futures extended gains after first-time jobless claims held steady, as the smaller-than-expected total signalled continued, if sluggish, economic improvement.
The Wall Street Journal also reports, Investigators probing the collapse of MF Global Holdings Ltd., are scrutinizing two money transfers made during the securities firm’s final days, in an effort to uncover what happened to $1.6 billion in missing customer funds. Federal regulators at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the U.S. bankruptcy trustee for MF Global’s brokerage unit are examining two separate transfers from customer accounts, including a previously undisclosed $165 million transaction, said people familiar with the matter. MF Global collapsed into bankruptcy on Oct. 31, hurt by repercussions from an outsize bet its chief executive, Jon S. Corzine, made on bonds of troubled European countries.
Finally Bloomberg reports Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, Commerzbank AG (CBK) of Germany and France’s Credit Agricole SA booked losses on their Greek government debt, two days after creditors agreed to the biggest sovereign restructuring in history. RBS, Britain’s biggest government-owned lender, posted a wider-than-expected full-year loss after taking a sovereign-debt impairment of 1.1 billion pounds. Commerzbank, Germany’s second-biggest lender, booked a 700 million-euro writedown on Greek debt in the fourth quarter. Credit Agricole, France’s third-largest bank, reported a quarterly loss after 220 million euros in impairments on Greek debt.
Reuters reports New claims for unemployment benefits were unchanged last week, holding at the lowest level since the early days of the 2007-2009 recession and giving a fresh sign the battered labor market is healing. With weekly claims approaching levels last seen before the recession that began in December 2007, economists say employers might be close to ending a long cycle of heavy layoffs, laying the ground for more hiring.
The Wall Street Journal reports U.S. stock futures extended gains after first-time jobless claims held steady, as the smaller-than-expected total signalled continued, if sluggish, economic improvement.
The Wall Street Journal also reports, Investigators probing the collapse of MF Global Holdings Ltd., are scrutinizing two money transfers made during the securities firm’s final days, in an effort to uncover what happened to $1.6 billion in missing customer funds. Federal regulators at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the U.S. bankruptcy trustee for MF Global’s brokerage unit are examining two separate transfers from customer accounts, including a previously undisclosed $165 million transaction, said people familiar with the matter. MF Global collapsed into bankruptcy on Oct. 31, hurt by repercussions from an outsize bet its chief executive, Jon S. Corzine, made on bonds of troubled European countries.
Finally Bloomberg reports Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, Commerzbank AG (CBK) of Germany and France’s Credit Agricole SA booked losses on their Greek government debt, two days after creditors agreed to the biggest sovereign restructuring in history. RBS, Britain’s biggest government-owned lender, posted a wider-than-expected full-year loss after taking a sovereign-debt impairment of 1.1 billion pounds. Commerzbank, Germany’s second-biggest lender, booked a 700 million-euro writedown on Greek debt in the fourth quarter. Credit Agricole, France’s third-largest bank, reported a quarterly loss after 220 million euros in impairments on Greek debt.