Town Hall News

By Melanie Burton and Scott Murdoch MELBOURNE (Reuters) – As automakers and chemicals suppliers scramble to secure raw materials, resource-rich Australia has become a rare global bright spot with $37 billion worth of M&A deals in the first quarter, with the trend expected to continue in the near term. The increased dealmaking activity is forecast to be mainly supported by cash-rich miners looking to expand quickly via acquisitions to tap […]

By Saqib Iqbal Ahmed NEW YORK (Reuters) – As U.S. stocks test the top of a range that has held for months, two widely used analytical styles appear to be painting conflicting scenarios for where they might go next. Technical indicators such as equity price movement largely show stocks are poised to continue a rally that has seen the S&P 500 climb 8% year-to-date, analysts who track them said. Many […]

By Danilo Masoni and Joice Alves MILAN/LONDON (Reuters) – Short-sellers who bet against European banks are set to lose a substantial amount of money in April after the sector bounced back from the shock downfall of Credit Suisse in anticipation of strong quarterly earnings. Investors who set up bearish trades believing the sector’s stock prices would fall further have lost an estimated $1 billion so far this month, according to […]

By Andrew Hay TAOS, New Mexico (Reuters) -New Mexico prosecutors on Thursday said they would drop involuntary manslaughter charges against actor Alec Baldwin in the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during filming of the Western movie “Rust” in 2021. The decision came after new evidence surfaced on the gun Baldwin was using that fired the live round that killed Hutchins, according to a person familiar with the investigation. The […]

(Reuters) -Tesla Inc raised the U.S. prices for its Model S and X premium electric vehicles, according to its website on Thursday, although they are still 20% lower than the start of the year after a slew of price cuts to drum up demand. Tesla has been slashing prices globally since January, including as many six times in the United States until as recently as Tuesday, to drive volume, especially […]

By Alexander Villegas and Ernest Scheyder SANTIAGO (Reuters) -Chile’s President Gabriel Boric said on Thursday he would nationalize the country’s lithium industry, the world’s second largest producer of the metal essential in electric vehicle batteries, to boost its economy and protect its environment. The shock move in the country with the world’s largest lithium reserves would in time transfer control of Chile’s vast lithium operations from industry giants SQM and […]

WASHINGTON/MANILA (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden will meet his Philippine counterpart Ferdinand Marcos Jr at the White House on May 1 to discuss deepening economic cooperation and the Indo-Pacific region, Manila and Washington said on Friday. The treaty allies have enjoyed warmer ties since Marcos took office last June, reversing his predecessor’s anti-U.S. stance and overtures towards China, Washington’s rival in the region. The two leaders will also discuss […]

By Valerie Insinna and Brenda Goh WASHINGTON/SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s aviation regulator has published a report that Boeing views as a key step for the U.S. planemaker to resume deliveries of its 737 MAX to Chinese airlines more than four years after they were halted following two deadly crashes. Boeing has more than 130 completed MAX jets in inventory for Chinese customers worth more than $15 billion at list prices, […]

ZURICH (Reuters) – Holcim raised its full-year guidance on Friday after the world’s biggest cement maker reported better than expected sales and profit during the first three months of 2023. The Swiss company now expects its full-year sales to increase by 6%, up from its previous outlook for an increase of 3-5%, and said it expected its organic recurring operating profit to increase by more than 10%. (Reporting by John […]