February 15, 2024

US stocks climbed for a second day Thursday, helped by lower Treasury yields, as Wall Street clawed back the steep losses suffered earlier in the week. The benchmark 10-year Treasury slipped 3 basis points to 4.24 per cent. The 2-year Treasury yield fell 2 basis points to 4.56 per cent. Investors have spent the week […]

The $9.1 billion bid for Altium from Japanese giant Renesas Electronics sent the ASX’s tiny tech sector sharply higher on Thursday. The agreed bid helped push fellow mega-caps WiseTech (up 4.7% – valued at more than $26 billion), Xero (up 5.7% to nearly $18 billion), NEXTDC (up 3.4% to more than $7 billion), and TechnologyOne

In the final quarter of 2023, Britain joined Japan and Germany in recession, marking a downturn for three of the world’s top eight economies. China, the second-largest economy globally, faced deflation and weak growth, exacerbated by a worsening property crisis as it emerged from its week-long Lunar New Year break. Data released in London revealed

Now here’s something requiring a bit of counterintuitive thinking: Did US retail sales really fall as much as reported by the government, or were there factors that added to a bit of weakness after solid rises in the closing months of 2023? US retail sales fell 0.8% in January from December — the biggest monthly

The technology sector saw a notable surge in stock prices following the announcement of a $9.1 billion takeover bid for Altium, propelling the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index to a 0.8% increase, with technology shares specifically soaring by 6.8%. Conversely, the resources sector witnessed a decline of 0.7% as BHP Group disclosed a $US200 million loss

Albemarle, the world’s largest lithium producer, showcased a mixed performance in the final quarter of 2023, revealing a $2.3 billion slide in earnings over the six-month period ending in December. This substantial loss marked a stark contrast to the profits seen in the same period of 2022, painting a somber picture for the company’s financial

In the face of industry-wide concerns and cutbacks, Wesfarmers (ASX:WES) has demonstrated unwavering confidence in its lithium venture, as evidenced by its recent interim results announcement. Despite cautioning investors that spodumene concentrate sales in 2024 may not bolster earnings due to low prices and high startup costs, the conglomerate remains resolute in its lithium ambitions.

In defiance of prevailing market trends characterized by sluggish retail sales and dwindling profits, Wesfarmers (ASX:WES), propelled by the stellar performance of its Kmart retail group comprising Kmart and Target, has announced a commendable uptick in its interim dividend. The retail conglomerate reported a commendable 3% surge in statutory net profit after tax to a

In a move reflective of the challenges facing the global mining sector, South32 (ASX:S32), a prominent player in the industry, has announced a substantial reduction in its interim dividend. The company has cut its interim dividend by a staggering 92%, with shareholders now set to receive a mere 0.4 of a US cent per share.

The recent uptick in Australia’s unemployment rate to above 4% in January, the first such increase in nearly two years, might seem like cause for concern. Economists, alongside the Reserve Bank and Federal Treasury, have been warning of a softening job market for months. With a mere 500 jobs created last month and 22,300 individuals