Business
Gold, silver hit records as oil falls – SUCH TV
Wall Street stock indices pulled back from records on Wednesday ahead of key US labor data, while oil prices fell further after US President Donald Trump said Venezuela would turn over millions of barrels to the United States.
Both the Dow and S&P 500 retreated from Tuesday’s all-time records as markets digested reports showing a fall in US job openings in November and a lower-than-expected rise in private-sector hiring in December.
More upbeat was a services sector survey by the Institute for Supply Management that showed healthier growth in December compared with November.
The jobs data was not great, but did not “trigger changes to perceptions about future Fed rate cuts,” said Steve Sosnick of Interactive Brokers.
“We attempted to follow through from the rallies of the last couple of days, and so far we haven’t been able to,” Sosnick said.
The Dow finished down 0.9 percent, while the S&P 500 dropped 0.3 percent after both indices surged to new peaks amid bullish investor sentiment to start the 2026 trading year. The tech-focused Nasdaq edged up 0.2 percent.
Futures markets expect the Fed to hold interest rates steady later this month, but concerns of a sharp slowdown in hiring could prompt a rethink.
Analysts say Friday’s Labor Department report for December will be a critical input to the US central bank.
In Europe, Frankfurt hit a record high above 25,000 points.
Paris traded flat and London slid from a record high set on Tuesday as lower oil prices dragged on British heavyweights BP and Shell, which both fell more than three percent.
Both main oil contracts dropped on Wednesday, having already lost ground a day earlier, after Trump’s latest statement on Venezuela.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Wednesday that Washington will control sales of Venezuelan oil “indefinitely”.
Venezuela’s state petroleum firm said only that it was negotiating the sale of crude oil to the United States.
Analysts said the shipments lowered the risk that Caracas would have to cut output owing to its limited storage capacity, easing supply concerns.
But they added that the outlook for the commodity pointed to lower prices, as the market remains well stocked after OPEC+ agreed to boost output.
Elsewhere, US defense stocks tumbled after Trump threatened to cap executive pay at major US defense contractors and ban shareholder dividends and stock buybacks.
Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics and RTX all lost 2.5 percent or more.
Shares in Warner Bros. Discovery edged higher after its board urged shareholders to reject an improved hostile takeover bid by rival Paramount, saying it was still inferior to Netflix’s offer.
Shares in Netflix rose a scant 0.1 percent while Paramount fell 0.9 percent.
Key figures at around 2130 GMT
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 2.0 percent at $55.99 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.2 percent at $59.96 per barrel
New York – Dow: DOWN 0.9 percent at 48,996.08 (close)
New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.3 percent at 6,920.93 (close)
New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 23,584.28 (close)
London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.7 percent at 10,048.21 (close)
Paris – CAC 40: FLAT at 8,233.92 (close)
Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.9 percent at 25,122.26 (close)
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.1 percent at 51,961.98 (close)
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.9 percent at 26,458.95 (close)
Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 4,085.77 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1682 from $1.1689 on Tuesday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3463 from $1.3501
Dollar/yen: UP at 156.77 yen from 156.65 yen
Euro/pound: UP at 86.76 pence from 86.57 pence
A student aged about 13 opened fire at random in a Turkish school Wednesday killing four people and wounding 20, just one day after a shooter wounded 16 people and then killed himself in another school, officials said.
Kahramanmaras province governor Mukerrem Unluer said a teacher and three students were killed in the latest attack. The attacker was also dead.
“A student came to school with guns that we believe belonged to his father in his backpack. He entered two classrooms and opened fire randomly, causing injuries and deaths,” Unluer told reporters.
Four of the wounded were in serious condition and undergoing surgery, he said.
The attacker, an eighth-grade student, was the son of a former police officer, Unluer said, adding that the suspect was carrying five guns and seven magazines.
“We suspect he may have taken his father’s weapons,” the governor said.
Unluer said the attacker was also dead.
“He shot himself. It is not yet clear whether this was suicide or happened amid the chaos,” he said.
Footage released by IHA private news agency showed a person, body and face covered, being evacuated in an ambulance, as well as tearful parents who had rushed to the school in the southern province’s main city, Kahramanmaras.
Witnesses quoted by media said intense gunfire was heard.
Police increased security around the building, and television footage showed ambulances in the area.
‘Will be held accountable’
Justice Minister Akin Gurlek said prosecutors had launched an immediate investigation into the shooting.
On Tuesday, an ex-student opened fire with a shotgun at his former high school in Siverek district of Sanliurfa province, wounding 16 people before killing himself in a showdown with police. Ten students were among the casualties.
Speaking to the ruling AKP party in parliament, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan promised that those found to have been negligent or at fault “will certainly be held accountable” over the school shootings.
Police detained one suspect after Tuesday’s attack and suspended four officials from duty, Erdogan said. The school was ordered closed for four days.
School shootings in Turkiye had been rare until this week. In May 2024, a former student killed a private high school principal in Istanbul with a firearm five months after he was expelled.
Turkiye has strict gun laws that require licensing, registration, mental and criminal background checks, and severe penalties for illegal possession.
Business
Donald Trump targets Fed chief Jerome Powell again, threatens to fire him if he is ‘not leaving on time’ – The Times of India
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday renewed his attack on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, saying he would fire him if he continues in the role beyond the end of his mandate.Powell’s term as Fed chair ends in mid-May, and Trump has repeatedly criticised him for not cutting interest rates more aggressively, AFP reported.
“I’ll have to fire him,” Trump told Fox Business, if Powell “is not leaving on time.”The president added: “I’ve wanted to fire him.”The remarks come as the Trump administration steps up pressure on the independent central bank, including initiating a Department of Justice probe into Powell over alleged renovation cost overruns and seeking to remove Fed governor Lisa Cook.Asked if he would drop the DOJ investigation, Trump said: “I’m not playing. I have to find out.”Trump has nominated former central banker Kevin Warsh to succeed Powell, but his appointment requires confirmation by the US Senate.Warsh is scheduled to appear before the Senate Banking Committee next Tuesday, though his confirmation faces resistance.Senator Thom Tillis, a Republican member of the committee, has said he would hold up the nomination while the probe into Powell remains unresolved.As long as the nomination process is delayed, Powell can legally continue as Fed chair.While uncommon, it is possible for a Fed chair to remain on the board even after their term as chief expires.Powell first became Fed chair in 2018 during Trump’s earlier presidency and was reappointed in 2022 under then president Joe Biden.
Morgan Stanley on Wednesday posted results that topped analyst estimates as the firm’s trading operations generated almost $1 billion more in revenue than expected.
Here’s what the company reported:
- Earnings: $3.43 a share vs. $3 LSEG estimate
- Revenue: $20.58 billion vs. $19.72 billion estimate
The bank said profit jumped 29% to $5.57 billion, or $3.43 a share. Revenue rose 16% to $20.58 billion, fueled by gains in the firm’s trading, investment banking and wealth management businesses.
Equities trading revenue jumped 25% to a record $5.15 billion, or about $450 million above the StreetAccount estimate. The firm cited strong volumes across its global equities franchise, especially in its prime brokerage business catering to hedge funds and its derivatives unit.
Fixed income revenue rose 29% to $3.36 billion, or about $540 million more than expected, helped by commodities trading that benefited from volatility in energy markets in the period.
Morgan Stanley, led by CEO Ted Pick since 2024, appears to have capably navigated the tumult of the first quarter, which saw rolling corrections in software stocks and the upheaval caused by the Iran war. Of note, the bank edged out rival Goldman Sachs in the key arena of fixed income trading, where Goldman posted an unusually large miss of $910 million versus the StreetAccount estimate.
Morgan Stanley’s investment banking revenue surged 36% to $2.12 billion, essentially matching the StreetAccount estimate, on rising fees from completed mergers, as well as stock and bond underwriting.
Wealth management revenue climbed 16% to a record $8.52 billion as the firm cited rising asset values and fee-generating transactions.
The firm’s smallest division, its investment management business, saw revenue drop 4.2% to $1.54 billion, or about $110 million below expectations. Morgan Stanley cited lower carried interest on private funds for the drop in performance.
Analysts will want to know what Pick has to say on the business outlook for the rest of the year as geopolitical tensions remain high.
This story is developing. Please check back for updates.
Is Claude down? Here’s why users are seeing errors
Can Jordan Chiles end her career with an NCAA team title?
Raymond unveils luxury Chairman’s Collection Store in Mumbai
-
Fashion1 week agoIndia’s exports face reset as EU links trade to carbon metrics: EY
-
Entertainment1 week agoQueen Elizabeth II emotional message for Archie, Lilibet sparks speculation
-
Entertainment1 week agoLamar Odom shocking response to Khloé Kardashian account of his overdose
-
Tech1 week agoAzure customers up in arms over ‘full’ UK South region | Computer Weekly
-
Tech7 days agoAs the Strait of Hormuz Reopens, Global Shipping Will Take Months to Recover
-
Fashion1 week agoCII submits 20-pt agenda to Indian govt to back firms hit by Iran war
-
Tech6 days agoThis AI Button Wearable From Ex-Apple Engineers Looks Like an iPod Shuffle
-
Politics5 days agoIndian airlines hit hardest after Dubai limits foreign flights until May 31