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| U.S. jobs report to signal stronger economic growth momentum Thursday, May 01, 2014 09:03 PM PDT  By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. hiring likely increased at its quickest pace in five months in April, which would bolster hopes of a strong rebound in economic activity in the second quarter. Employers probably added 210,000 jobs last month after increasing headcount by 192,000 in March, according to a Reuters poll. That would also top the pace of payrolls gains in the first quarter of 177,667 jobs per month. The unemployment rate is forecast falling one-tenth of a percentage point to 6.6 percent in April, matching a five-year low previously touched in January. Full Story | Top |
| SEC probing hedge funds' bets on Herbalife Thursday, May 01, 2014 09:01 PM PDT  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is probing whether a number of hedge funds many have acted improperly when they made bets on nutrition and weight loss company Herbalife Ltd last year, a source said. The regulator is reviewing whether investors may have engaged in market manipulation or failed to properly disclose that they were working as a group when they lined up against billionaire investor William Ackman's short bet against the company, said the person, who is familiar with the investigation put not permitted to discuss it publicly. A spokesman for the SEC was not immediately available to comment. An official at Herbalife also declined to comment. Full Story | Top |
| North Korea seen testing engine for intercontinental ballistic missile Thursday, May 01, 2014 08:59 PM PDT By Jack Kim SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea has recently conducted engine tests for an intercontinental ballistic missile that could potentially deliver a nuclear warhead to the United States, a U.S. think tank said on Friday. North Korea conducted at least one engine test for the KN-08 missile in late March or early April, the think tank 38 North said, marking the latest in a series of tests for a missile believed to have a range of more than 10,000 km (6,000 miles). Following the engine tests, the next stage for North Korea would be a test launch of the missile, according to 38 North, which is affiliated with Johns Hopkins University's U.S.-Korea Institute. Commercial satellite imagery indicates movement and removal of missile stages and fuel tanks as well as changes in the flame trench that point to North Korea having conducted one or more tests in the two-week period from March 22, the report said. Full Story | Top |
| Google faces antitrust lawsuit on U.S. mobile internet search Thursday, May 01, 2014 08:57 PM PDT  (Reuters) - Consumer rights law firm Hagens Berman said it filed a nationwide antitrust class-action lawsuit against Google Inc alleging the company "illegally monopolized" the Internet and mobile search market in the United States. The lawsuit alleges that Google has expanded its monopoly of the internet search market by pre-loading its applications onto Android mobile devices through its Mobile Application Distribution Agreements. According to the lawsuit, Google's role in placing this suite of apps, including Google Play and YouTube, has hampered the market and kept the price of devices made by competing manufactures like Samsung Electronics and HTC Corp artificially high. "It's clear that Google has not achieved this monopoly through offering a better search engine, but through its strategic, anti-competitive placement, and it doesn't take a forensic economist to see that this is evidence of market manipulation," said Steve Berman, the attorney representing consumers. Full Story | Top |
| Pfizer enters takeover discussions with AstraZeneca: WSJ Thursday, May 01, 2014 08:40 PM PDT  (Reuters) - Pfizer Inc and AstraZeneca Plc have resumed talks about a trans-Atlantic merger of the two drug giants after Pfizer sweetened the terms of an earlier takeover offer for its British rival, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The renewed discussions suggest that the two sides might be getting closer to striking a friendly deal, but there is no guarantee the talks will go anywhere, the Journal said, adding that the terms of the informal offer from Pfizer couldn't be learned. Citing people with knowledge of the matter, the Bloomberg report said a new bid may value AstraZeneca at more than 50 pounds ($84.47) per share and could come as early as next week. Full Story | Top |
| After bombing in west, China angered by U.S. criticism in terror report Thursday, May 01, 2014 08:19 PM PDT  By Michael Martina URUMQI, China (Reuters) - China's foreign ministry has reacted angrily to U.S. criticism of the level of cooperation from Beijing on fighting terrorism, after an apparent suicide bombing in the country's far west pointed to a possible escalation of unrest there. The Chinese government has blamed religious extremists for carrying out a bomb and knife attack at a train station in Urumqi, regional capital of Xinjiang, on Wednesday evening that killed one bystander and wounded 79. Security was heavy on Friday in Urumqi, scene of deadly riots five years ago between Muslim Uighurs and ethnic Han Chinese in which almost 200 were killed. Full Story | Top |
| Asian shares edge up amid expectations for upbeat U.S. jobs report Thursday, May 01, 2014 07:53 PM PDT  By Shinichi Saoshiro TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares edged up and the dollar held slim gains amid expectations for an upbeat U.S. payrolls report later in the session, which could show the economy shaking off a severe winter. The Asian markets drew scant impetus from Wall Street, which closed little changed ahead of the jobs report. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.4 percent. Full Story | Top |
| GM's fate in hands of bankruptcy judge - again Thursday, May 01, 2014 06:08 PM PDT  By Nick Brown and Jessica Dye NEW YORK (Reuters) - Five years ago, New York bankruptcy Judge Robert Gerber oversaw the historic bankruptcy of General Motors, establishing a new company that is shielded from liability for the actions of its precursor. Now, with thousands of drivers suing "New GM" for the alleged loss of value in their cars after an ignition defect sparked a massive recall, the same judge must decide whether to lift the shield he put in place. While evidence has already emerged that at least some GM employees were aware of problems with the switch, GM is asking for a clear-cut ruling declaring that it did not intentionally hide anything from the bankruptcy court. But plaintiffs' lawyers have prepared a multi-pronged attack, raising questions of bankruptcy law and constitutional rights. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive - New York attorney general eyes exchanges in high frequency probe: sources Thursday, May 01, 2014 06:03 PM PDT  By Karen Freifeld and Nadia Damouni NEW YORK (Reuters) - The New York Attorney General's office is seeking information from exchanges and alternative trading platforms about their relationships with high frequency trading firms, as part of its probe into allegedly unfair trading practices on Wall Street, according to sources familiar with the situation. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's office is expected to send subpoenas within days to exchanges, one of the sources said on Thursday. The major U.S. exchange operators include IntercontinentalExchange Group , Nasdaq OMX Group Inc and BATS Global Markets. NYSE, a unit of ICE, has already been cooperating with the attorney general by sharing data, while BATS has also had conversations with the prosecutor, two of the sources said. Full Story | Top |
| S&P ends flat ahead of jobs report; Internet names gain Thursday, May 01, 2014 05:59 PM PDT  By Caroline Valetkevitch NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 ended nearly flat on Thursday as investors paused ahead of Friday's jobs report, though gains in Internet shares helped lift the Nasdaq. Facebook , up 2.3 percent at $61.15, and other Internet shares were among the day's best performers, helped by strong results from Yelp , whose shares gained 9.8 percent to $64.02. They've been really kind of beaten down mercilessly, and I think (the bounce) has to do with the fact that earnings are being perceived as OK in some of those sectors," said Bruce Zaro, chief technical strategist at Delta Global Asset Management in Boston. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 21.97 points or 0.13 percent, to 16,558.87, the S&P 500 lost 0.27 points or 0.01 percent, to 1,883.68 and the Nasdaq Composite added 12.896 points or 0.31 percent, to 4,127.451. Full Story | Top |
| New Michael Jackson song to debut at iHeartRadio awards Thursday, May 01, 2014 05:56 PM PDT  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The first single from late singer Michael Jackson's posthumous album will premiere at the iHeartRadio Awards on Thursday, ahead of the record release later this month. "Love Never Felt So Good," originally written and recorded by Jackson in 1983, is the debut single for "Xscape," released on May 13 by Epic Records in partnership with Jackson's estate. The song will be available for purchase starting at midnight Friday. The album will feature eight previously unreleased songs from Jackson that were recorded between 1983 and 1999. ... Full Story | Top |
| NBA panel agrees to act swiftly on bid to oust Clippers owner Thursday, May 01, 2014 05:50 PM PDT  By Larry Fine NEW YORK (Reuters) - The National Basketball Association on Thursday launched its bid to oust Donald Sterling as owner of the Los Angeles Clippers for racist comments as a panel of 10 fellow team owners or their proxies unanimously agreed to proceed "as expeditiously as possible," the NBA said. The decision, reached during a telephone conference call of the NBA Board of Governors' advisory-finance committee, seemed to indicate a strong base of support among Sterling's fellow owners for his removal, as urged by league Commissioner Adam Silver. Silver on Tuesday declared Sterling banned from the NBA for life, fined him $2.5 million - the league maximum - and called on the 29 other club owners who make up the governing board to exercise their authority to force Sterling to sell the Clippers. Full Story | Top |
| Worker found dead in dough machine at Texas fortune cookie factory Thursday, May 01, 2014 05:39 PM PDT A 26-year-old worker at a fortune cookie factor died of multiple blunt trauma injuries after falling into a dough-mixing machine at a factory in Houston over the weekend, a medical examiner's office said on Thursday. The victim, Elmer Oscar Barrera, worked at the Houston branch of the Wonton Food company, and his death has been ruled an accident, the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences said. Police had said the victim was found dead in the machine by a fellow worker on Sunday afternoon. Wonton Food is one of the biggest makers of fortune cookies in the United States. Full Story | Top |
| California, most populous U.S. state, gains 356,000 residents Thursday, May 01, 2014 05:37 PM PDT By Alex Dobuzinskis LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - California gained 356,000 people in 2013, many attracted to the San Francisco Bay area and its prospering technology industry, a state demographer said on Thursday. California, the most populous U.S. state since 1963, ended the year with 38.3 million residents following its largest population increase since 2003. The state's recovering economy has drawn immigrants from abroad and Americans from other states, said Bill Schooling, chief of demographic research for the state Department of Finance. The biggest increases were in large urban centers, led by the San Francisco Bay area, while some rural counties home to older residents saw population decreases. Full Story | Top |
| Customs and Border Protection announces a hiring surge of 2,000 Thursday, May 01, 2014 05:17 PM PDT  By Joseph J. Kolb ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico (Reuters) - The U.S. Customs and Border Protection plans to hire 2,000 new agents over the next two years to step up security at ports of entry and to decrease wait times for travelers at airports and border crossings, the agency said in a statement on Thursday. The new officers will bring the staffing level at the Office of Field Operations to 23,775 officers, an increase of over 9 percent from current levels, according to Customs and Border Protection spokeswoman Erlinda Byrd. Brandon Judd, president of the U.S. Border Patrol union, expressed concern how this hiring surge will affect border posts in places considered less desirable for quality of life, such as in Ajo, Arizona. "Over 100 Border Patrol agents from the Ajo station alone, a station that only has about 400 agents, have applied for many of these jobs and my brother is one," Judd said, describing the Ajo station as one of the busiest for illegal entries of both drugs and unauthorized immigrants. Full Story | Top |
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