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TOP STORIES
Yen's best week since 2008 crisis hits stocks and dollar
LONDON - The yen hit an 18-month high as investors wager the Bank of Japan might be done adding fresh stimulus to the economy, culminating in a sharp rise on the week that dragged stocks around the world lower. (GLOBAL-MARKETS/ (WRAPUP 5), moved, by Jamie McGeever, 710 words)
Euro zone economy above pre-crisis peak as growth surges past U.S., Britain
BRUSSELS/BERLIN - Overcoming years of poor health and crisis, the euro zone economy grew at its fastest pace in five years in the first quarter, driven by unlikely stars such as France and Spain. (EUROZONE-ECONOMY/ (WRAPUP 1, PICTURE), moved, by Jan Strupczewski and Balazs Koranyi, 690 words)
RBS's loss more than doubles, dividend prospects darken
LONDON - Royal Bank of Scotland report a sharp rise in losses in the first quarter and caution on the timing of a return to dividend payouts as lower income, restructuring costs and sluggish asset sales underscored the challenges still facing the lender. (RBS-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 2), moved, by Andrew MacAskill and Lawrence White, 525 words)
BA-owner IAG slows expansion plans after Brussels attacks
LONDON - British Airways-owner International Airlines Group says it will slow the plans it had to fly more routes in the short term, in response to weaker demand from high-margin business-travellers and a general slowdown after the Brussels attacks. (IAG-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 2), moved, 365 words)
MARKETS
Brent crude set for biggest monthly gain in seven years despite glut
LONDON - Brent crude is heading for its biggest monthly rise in seven years, touching fresh 2016 highs as a weak dollar and falling U.S. production temper concerns about a lingering excess of physical oil. (GLOBAL-OIL/ (UPDATE 4), moving shortly, by Libby George and Karolin Schaps, 450 words)
+ See also:
- OIL-PRICES/POLL (UPDATE 1), moved, by Apeksha Nair and Arpan Varghese, 440 words
Gold hits 7-week high, silver shines as dollar slides
LONDON - Gold hit a seven-week peak and silver its highest since January last year as the Bank of Japan's decision the previous day to hold off expanding monetary stimulus weighed on stock markets and the dollar. (GLOBAL-PRECIOUS/ (UPDATE 4), moved, by Jan Harvey, 430 words)
Yen heads for best week since 2008 as dollar bulls sag
LONDON - The yen built further on strong gains since a shocking Bank of Japan policy meeting, moving to an 18-month high against the dollar and on course for its biggest weekly gain since the 2008 financial crisis. (GLOBAL-FOREX/ (UPDATE 4), moved, by Patrick Graham, 475 words)
+ See also:
- BOJ-YEN/INVESTORS, moved, by Wayne Cole, 720 words
Ahead of ratings review, old banking fears shake Portugal's bonds
LONDON - Portugal's borrowing costs rise after a court decision revived concerns about Lisbon's banks, and the country faced a ratings review that could edge it closer to junk territory and exclusion from the ECB's asset purchase scheme. (EUROZONE-BONDS/ (UPDATE 1), moved, by John Geddie, 480 words)
+ See also:
- EMERGING-MARKETS/, moved, by Marc Jones, 750 words
INSIGHT
How Barclays turned a $10 bln profit into a tax loss
LONDON - When Barclays Plc sold a fund management business to U.S. financial group Blackrock Inc. in 2009, the larger-than-expected $15.2 billion price tag was not the only good news for the British bank's investors. (BARCLAYS-TAX/ (INSIGHT, PICTURE), moved, by Tom Bergin, 1,260 words)
ECONOMY
U.S. inflation retreats on soft consumer spending
WASHINGTON - U.S. inflation barely rose in March as consumer spending remained tepid, making it less likely that the Federal Reserve will be able to hike interest rates twice this year. (USA-ECONOMY/ (WRAPUP 1), moving shortly, 355 words)
+ See also:
- USA-FED/KAPLAN, moved, 390 words
German retail sales post biggest monthly fall in 1-1/2 years
BERLIN - German retail sales dropped by 1.1 percent in March, their biggest monthly fall in 1-1/2 years, casting a shadow over expectations that consumer spending will propel growth in Europe's largest economy as foreign trade weakens. (GERMANY-ECONOMY/RETAIL, moved, 125 words)
UK mortgage approvals fall ahead of new tax, but lending surges
LONDON - British mortgage approvals fell for the first time in six months in March shortly before a new tax took effect, but consumers borrowed at the fastest rate in over a decade, Bank of England data showed. (BRITAIN-LENDING/, moved, 355 words)
+ See also:
- BRITAIN-ECONOMY/, moved, by Andy Bruce 285 words
Global funds raise equity holdings as rally continues
LONDON - Investors raise their equity holdings in April from March's five-year lows, taking the view that the global stock market rally will continue as long as central banks maintain their loose monetary policies, a Reuters poll shows. (FUNDS-POLL/GLOBAL (WRAPUP 1, POLL), moved, by Claire Milhench, 782 words)
+ See also:
- BOE-POLICY/POLL, moved, by Jonathan Cable, 500 words
COMPANIES
Exxon Mobil first-quarter profit drops 63 percent
HOUSTON - Exxon Mobil Corp, the world's largest publicly traded oil producer, reported a 63 percent drop in first-quarter profit, citing plunging crude prices and weak refining margins. (EXXON MOBIL-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 1), moving shortly, 350 words)
Credit Suisse's Thiam asks investors for patience over new strategy
ZURICH - Credit Suisse's CEO and chairman ask for patience from investors disgruntled by a share slide amid a major restructuring of Switzerland's second-biggest bank. (CREDIT SUISSE GP-AGM/ (UPDATE 1, PICTURE), moved, by Joshua Franklin, 360 words)
Deutsche Bank faces heated AGM as board squabble escalates
FRANKFURT - Deutsche Bank appears headed for another stormy shareholder meeting in three weeks' time following public squabbling in its supervisory board and the ejection of the board's member tasked with clearing up past scandals. (DEUTSCHE BANK-SUPERVISORYBOARD/ (UPDATE 1), moved, 380 words)
Rovi to buy DVR maker TiVo for $1.1 bln
Rovi Corp, a provider of digital entertainment guides, says it will buy digital-video recorder pioneer TiVo Inc in a deal valued at about $1.1 billion. (TIVO-M&A/ROVI (UPDATE 1), moved, 160 words)
Delta orders 37 Airbus A321s worth $4.25 billion
ATLANTA - Delta Air Lines Inc says it has ordered 37 current-generation A321 aircraft from Airbus Group SE worth $4.25 billion at list prices, a move that will help it replace aging aircraft. (DELTA AIR LINES-AIRBUS GROUP/ (UPDATE 1), moved, by Jeffrey Dastin, 205 words)
Spanish mid-sized banks see slump in lending income
MADRID - Spanish mid-sized lenders Bankia and Banco Popular both report falls in lending income, as they face the challenge of increasing profits at a time of historically low interest rates. (SPAIN-BANKS/ (UPDATE 2), moving shortly, by Jesús Aguado and Angus Berwick, 540 words)
Industrial chemicals unit helps limit BASF's Q1 profit fall
MANNHEIM, Germany - Chemical company BASF's adjusted operating profit fell a less than expected 8 percent in the first quarter as cost cuts and rising orders in March in its industrial chemicals business helped offset a slump in oil and gas. (BASF SE-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 2), moved, 335 words)
Telefonica's profits hit by currency changes, focus on O2
MADRID - Spain's Telefonica reports a 6.7 percent drop in first-quarter core profits to 3.376 billion euros ($3.85 billion), broadly in line with forecasts as lower currencies in key overseas markets more than offset slight growth in underlying revenue. (TELEFONICA-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 1), moved, 340 words)
+ See also:
- KPN-RESULTS/, moved, 140 words
AB InBev offers more SAB Europe assets to win EU deal approval
BRUSSELS - Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world's largest brewer, intends to sell the Eastern European brewing assets of SABMiller to secure regulatory approval for its $100 billion-plus takeover of its rival. (SABMILLER-M&A/ (UPDATE 3), moving shortly, by Philip Blenkinsop, 400 words)
Vestas has record Q1 order intake, shares rise 4 pct
COPENHAGEN - The world's largest wind turbine maker Vestas received record orders and posted forecast-beating operating profit in the first quarter, lifting the Danish company's share price by as much as 4 percent. (VESTAS-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 1), moved, 320 words)
Shire beats forecasts as $32 bln Baxalta deal set to close
LONDON - Strong demand for its top-selling Vyvanse drug helped lift first-quarter earnings a better-than-expected 12 percent at Shire, the London-listed group that is buying U.S. rare diseases firm Baxalta for $32 billion. (SHIRE-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 1), moving shortly, by Ben Hirschler, 360 words)
+ See also:
- SANOFI-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 2), moved, by Matthias Blamont, 545 words
- HEALTHCARE-TITAN PHARMA/ (PICTURE), expect by 1500 GMT/11 AM ET, by Natalie Grover, 795 words
- GSK-UMBILICAL/, moved, by Ben Hirschler, 270 words
- ASTRAZENECA-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 2), moved, by Ben Hirschler, 570 words
- NOVO NORDISK-RESULTS/, moved, 100 words
Restaurant Group warns on full-year profit outlook, shares plummet
Britain's Restaurant Group Plc warns on full-year profit outlook as it does not expect any improvement in trading conditions in the short term and says its finance chief will leave with immediate effect. (RESTAURANT GRP-OUTLOOK/ (UPDATE 3), moved, by Aastha Agnihotri, 425 words)
Swiss Re sees challenging 2016 environment after Q1 earnings beat
ZURICH - The world's second-largest reinsurer Swiss Re says it expects challenging market conditions to continue throughout 2016 as it posts a smaller-than-expected drop in first-quarter net income. (SWISS RE-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 1), moved, by Joshua Franklin, 325 words)
Eni swings to net loss but operating profit beats expectations
MILAN - Italian oil and gas group Eni beat operating profit expectations in the first quarter despite swinging to a net loss because of weak oil prices and a charge on its Saipem holding. (ENI-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 1), moved, 270 words)
Puma sees Rihanna helping catch resurgent Adidas
BERLIN - The chief of Puma admits that arch rival Adidas is on a roll due to the popularity of its retro sneakers, but he believed a deal with singer Rihanna would help the smaller German sportswear firm get back in the game. (PUMA DE-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 2), moved, by Emma Thomasson, 420 words)
U.S. contract losses hit education firm Pearson's first quarter
LONDON - Pearson, the British education company struggling to cope with a downturn in its biggest markets, reported a further fall in sales as the loss of high-profile testing contracts in the United States hit first-quarter results. (PEARSON-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 2), moved, by Kate Holton, 490 words)
Linde beats forecasts as engineering decline slows
FRANKFURT - Linde, the world's biggest industrial gases company, beat expectations for sales and profit in the first quarter as a decline at its engineering division slowed. (LINDE-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 1), moved, 300 words)
+ See also:
- ENGIE-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 2), moved, 345 words
French retailer Casino to sell Vietnam unit for $1.1 bln
PARIS/SINGAPORE/BANGKOK - Casino has agreed to sell its Vietnam unit to Thai conglomerate Central Group for 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) including debt, giving the French retailer further respite from a debt pile that pushed its credit rating to junk. (CASINO-M&A/CENTRAL (UPDATE 3, PICTURE), moving shortly, by Anshuman Daga and Manunphattr Dhanananphorn, 485 words)
