Ecuador will increase tariffs on Colombian imports to 50% from the current 30% from March 1, the government said in a statement on Thursday. A 30% tariff on Colombian imports had been in effect since early February, which Ecuador imposed citing a trade deficit with the neighboring country and a lack of cooperation in combating drug trafficking along their shared border.
US stocks looked set to open little changed Thursday as investors digested major earnings reports as well as the latest initial jobless claims report. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.2%, S&P 500 futures were off 0.1%, and Nasdaq futures were marginally lower.
* Norwegian had been WEF president since 2017. * Brende has said he was unaware of Epstein's criminal past. * WEF's Alois Zwinggi will serve as interim president and CEO. By Dave Graham.
Canada's current account deficit on a seasonally adjusted basis narrowed by $4.6 billion to $0.7 billion in Q4 2025, said the country's statistical agency on Thursday. Q4 marked the 14th consecutive quarter in which the current account balance was in a deficit position, noted Statistics Canada in a statement.
The number of Americans filing new applications for jobless benefits increased slightly last week and the unemployment rate appeared to hold steady in February amid a stable labor market.
US initial jobless claims rose to a level of 212,000 in the week ended Feb. 21 from an upwardly revised 208,000 level in the previous week, compared with expectations for a larger increase to 216,000 in survey of analysts compiled by Bloomberg. The four-week moving average rose by 750 to 220,250 after decreasing by 500 to a level of 219,500 in the previous week.
The number of Americans filing new applications for jobless benefits increased marginally last week and the unemployment rate appeared to hold steady in February amid a stable labor market. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 4,000 to a seasonally 212,000 for the week ended February 21, the Labor Department said on Thursday.
Launch of State Street? MyIncome High Yield Corporate Bond ETFs Enhances Bond Laddering Toolkit for Investors State Street Investment Management announced today the launch of five actively managed target maturity high yield corporate bond ETFs.
TD Securities raised its price target on National Bank of Canada (NTIOF) to $182 from $175 on Thursday. Analyst Mario Mendonca maintained a Hold rating on shares of the Canadian bank following its quarterly results on Wednesday. "NA beat our estimate on strong trading revenue & lower PCLs," Mendonca said in a note to clients.
The Republican governor and GOP leaders of the state House and Senate will negotiate over three budget visions and a plan to cut local property tax revenue.
Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta announced today that it will allocate $120 million in 2026 to fund its affordable housing programs, which distribute grant funding for homebuyer downpayment assistance, housing development and rehabilitation, and legal assistance for property owners to protect their equity and build generational wealth.
Fitch Ratings released a draft of climate vulnerability in rating criteria for public finance issuers that earned a thumbs-up from Municipal Market Analytics.
Canada will release the current account deficit for Q4 at 8:30 a.m. ET, said Bank of Montreal. The bank looks for the Q4 current account deficit to narrow to $3.8 billion, or $15.0 billion a.r., in Q4. Meantime, the smaller services account is expected to deteriorate on a recovery in imports of travel services.
The US dollar rose against its major trading partners early Thursday, except for a decline versus the yen, ahead of the release of weekly jobless claims data at 8:30 am ET. Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman is due to speak at 10:00 am ET, followed by weekly natural gas stocks inventory data at 10:30 am ET.
Matador Resources Company (MTDR) today announced that it has commenced a cash tender offer to purchase any and all of the $500 million outstanding aggregate principal amount of its 6.875% senior notes due 2028 with a portion of the net proceeds from Matador?s concurrent private placement of $750 million in aggregate principal amount of senior unsecured notes due 2034, which was also announced today by...
Matador Resources Company (MTDR) today announced that, subject to market conditions, it intends to offer $750 million of senior unsecured notes due 2034 in a private placement to eligible purchasers.
* Election in Gorton and Denton in spotlight. * Labour loss could increase pressure on Starmer. * Investors weigh rate outlook. By Niket Nishant. The British pound edged lower on Thursday ahead of a local election in Manchester that could offer an early read on Prime Minister Keir Starmer's political standing.
* Merz highlights overcapacity issues with Chinese exporters. * Germany plans regular consultations with China by next year. * German firms concerned over China's trade surplus and market access. By Andreas Rinke.
Copper dipped on Thursday after touching a two-week high in the previous session as rising inventories and a firmer dollar tempered optimism about a revival in demand from China, the world's top consumer of the metal. Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was down 0.1% to $13,304 per metric ton as of 1036 GMT.
The president and CEO of the World Economic Forum, Borge Brende, said on Thursday he was stepping down, a few weeks after the forum launched an independent investigation into his relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Sterling has strengthened at the start of this week, resulting in EUR/GBP falling back towards the 0.8700 level, after hitting a high last week of 0.8752, noted MUFG.
Royal Bank of Canada (RY) reported fiscal Q1 adjusted earnings Thursday of 4.08 Canadian dollars per diluted share, up from CA$3.62 a year earlier. Analysts polled by FactSet expected CA$3.85. Revenue for the quarter ended Jan. 31 was CA$17.96 billion, compared with CA$16.74 billion a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected CA$17.52 billion. MT Newswires does not provide investment advice.
The European Central Bank sold some of its dollar assets early last year and reduced the weight of the dollar in its foreign exchange reserves in what it said was a standard rebalancing of its portfolio. The bank played down the significance of the move, which came before the market turbulence generated by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff announcement last April.
* * ECB plays down significance of 'standard rebalancing' * Invested all proceeds into Japanese yen assets. The European Central Bank sold some of its dollar assets early last year and reduced the weight of the dollar in its foreign exchange reserves in what it said was a standard rebalancing of its portfolio.
Gaming and Leisure Properties (GLPI) said late Wednesday it priced an $800 million public offering of 5.625% senior unsecured notes due March 1, 2036, at 99.857% of par value. The company expects the offering to close March 4 and plans to use the net proceeds to repay borrowings outstanding under its operating partnership's term loan credit facility, among other things.
Targa Resources (TRGP) said Wednesday it priced an underwritten public offering of $750 million total principal amount of its 4.350% senior notes due 2031 and $750 million total principal amount of its 6.050% senior notes due 2056. The company intends to close the offering on Monday, the midstream services provider said, adding that it plans to use the net proceeds for general corporate purposes.
Ryman Hospitality Properties (RHP) said late Wednesday its RHP Hotel Properties and RHP Finance units priced a $700 million private placement of 5.75% senior unsecured notes due 2034, for about $687 million in expected net proceeds.
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde hinted again at serving out her term to complete projects including the digital euro, in a fresh pushback on Thursday against speculation about an early exit.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's choice of two like-minded monetary doves to the central bank's board sends a not-so-subtle message about her distaste for higher interest rates, casting doubt on how much further policy can be tightened.
* Yen recovers after comments from BOJ Governor. * Fed hold in March still seen as certain. * Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings parsed for AI demand hints. By Niket Nishant and Gregor Stuart Hunter. The yen bounced off lows on Thursday as investors assessed the latest signals from the Bank of Japan for clues on the rate outlook, while taking stock of Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings for insights into demand for AI.
Artificial intelligence is boosting productivity in the euro zone but it is not yet causing a wave of layoffs due to greater automation of labour, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said on Thursday. "What we are seeing for the moment is that it's increasing productivity," Lagarde told a committee of the European Parliament.
* US, Iran to hold talks in Geneva later in the day. * U.S. tariff rate for some countries will rise to 15%, says Greer. * US weekly jobless claims data due later in the day. By Noel John. Gold prices edged up on Thursday as uncertainty over U.S. tariff policy boosted the metal's safe-haven appeal, while investors awaited further details on U.S.-Iran talks later in the day.
Copper was steady on Thursday after touching a two-week high in the previous session as a lack of fresh catalysts and concerns over rising inventories kept the red metal range-bound. The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed daytime trading, nudging 0.14% higher to 102,260 yuan a metric ton.
Japan's shorter-dated bond yields rose on Thursday, reversing the previous session's declines, as hawkish comments from the Bank of Japan officials stoked bets of early interest rate hikes.
AstraZeneca PLC (AZN): * AstraZeneca PLC (AZN) - ASTRAZENECA PRICES A $2BN BOND OFFERING. * AstraZeneca PLC (AZN) - ASTRAZENECA PRICES A $2BN BOND OFFERING. * ASTRAZENECA (AZN): EXPECTS TO USE NET PROCEEDS OF OFFERING FOR GENERAL CORPORATE PURPOSES, WHICH MAY INCLUDE REFINANCING OF EXISTING INDEBTEDNESS Source text: Further company coverage:
CFRA, an independent research provider, has provided MT Newswires with the following research alert. We increase our 12-month target price by CAD35 to CAD250, which is 17.9x our FY 27 EPS view, a premium to its five-year forward P/E of 10.7x given expected efficiency gains and improving revenue diversity. MT Newswires does not provide investment advice.
Abu Dhabi set an initial price guidance for its two-tranche U.S. dollar-denominated bonds sale, according to an arranging bank document. The indicative price for 5-year bond was set at 50 basis point over U.S. Treasuries, while 10-year debt carried an initial price of 55 bps over the same benchmark, the document, seen by Reuters on Thursday, showed.
* Trade policy uncertainty weighs on dollar as tech sector earnings boost optimism. * Yen recovers as BOJ Governor Ueda flags March and April for possible hike. * Fed hold in March still seen as a lock. By Gregor Stuart Hunter.
The University of California sold about $2 billion worth of general revenue bonds in the municipal market on Wednesday while U.S. President Donald Trump attempts a crackdown on the educational institution and other top schools. "The Regents continue to monitor the federal government's actions with respect to the higher education sector and, in particular, the university," a bond document said.
Copper eased on Thursday after touching a two-week high in the previous session, with a lack of fresh catalysts and concerns over rising inventories keeping the red metal range-bound. The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange dipped 0.02% to 102,100 yuan a metric ton as of 0330 GMT.
* BOK keeps policy rate unchanged at 2.50% as expected. * BOK adopted Fed style dot plot charting rate path. * Dot plot signals rates on pause for next six months. * BOK raised South Korea's GDP forecast to 2.0% in 2026. By Cynthia Kim and Jihoon Lee.
Gold prices edged higher on Thursday,
buoyed by a softer dollar and safe-haven demand fuelled by
uncertainty surrounding U.S. tariff policy and U.S.-Iran talks.
Japanese government bond yields climbed across the curve on Thursday after comments in local media from Bank of Japan Governor ?Kazuo Ueda fanned expectations of an early ?interest rate hike.
In general the bond market is volatile, and fixed income securities carry interest rate risk. (As interest rates rise, bond prices usually fall, and vice versa. This effect is usually more pronounced for longer-term securities.) Fixed income securities also carry inflation risk and credit and default risks for both issuers and counterparties. Unlike individual bonds, most bond funds do not have a maturity date, so avoiding losses caused by price volatility by holding them until maturity is not possible.
Lower-quality debt securities generally offer higher yields, but also involve greater risk of default or price changes due to potential changes in the credit quality of the issuer. Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to loss.
Before investing, consider the funds' investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus or, if available, a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully.
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