Tag: Markets

Major Banks Beat Earnings Forecasts, but Recession Fears Increase

Major American banks beat their earnings forecasts, but recession fears are beginning to mount. JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, and asset management giant BlackRock reported positive forecasts on Jan. 13, but many investors were still left disappointed. The banks managed to beat Wall Street’s reduced expectations for their fourth-quarter results, as higher interest rates boosted…


Tech Investor Cathie Wood and Misplaced Criticism

Commentary Growth investor Cathie Wood, CEO of ARK Investment Management, has endured a lot of criticism for the investment performance of her funds in 2022 and her unbridled evangelism of technology firms. Wood’s biggest fund, the ARK Innovation exchange-traded fund (ARKK), declined 67 percent during 2022. Comparatively, that’s twice the negative 33 percent return of…


Treasury Secretary Warns Congress US Will Hit Debt Ceiling Within a Week

Treasury Security Janet Yellen warned the United States is projected to hit its $31.4 trillion debt borrowing limit by next week, according to a letter she sent to congressional leaders on Friday. In a letter (pdf) to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), Yellen wrote that according to projections, the country will hit the debt ceiling…


Citigroup Misses Profit Estimates on Provision Hike, Dealmaking Slowdown

Citigroup Inc. reported a 21 percent fall in quarterly profit on Friday, missing forecasts, as the bank increased provisions to prepare for a worsening economy and investment banking revenue declined due to a sharp drop in dealmaking activity. Fears of a potential recession prompted Citi to add $640 million to its reserves in the fourth…


Prominent Exchange and Token Issuer Crypto.com Slashing 20 Percent of Workforce

Crypto.com will be laying off about a fifth of its workforce in a second round of layoffs within six months, citing industry-wide issues, including FTX bankruptcy, in what looks like a trying period for the once-booming sector. Although the company “grew ambitiously at the start of 2022,” the “trajectory changed rapidly with a confluence of…


Wells Fargo Misses Profit Estimate on Higher Reserves, Scandal Costs

Wells Fargo & Co. on Friday reported a 50 percent decline in profit for the fourth quarter, missing analysts’ estimates, as the bank racked up more than $3 billion in costs related to a fake accounts scandal and boosted loan loss reserves for a potential economic slowdown. The bank’s shares were down nearly 4 percent…


JPMorgan Beats Profit Estimates, Sees Mild Recession

JPMorgan Chase & Co., the biggest lender in the United States, said on Friday it set aside $1.4 billion in anticipation of a mild recession, even as it beat forecasts for quarterly profit on the back of a strong performance at its trading unit. Shares in JPMorgan fell about 3 percent in premarket trading as…


Bank of America Profit Tops Estimates as Higher Rates Boost Income

Bank of America Corp. reported a bigger-than-expected fourth-quarter profit on Friday, helped by a surge in net interest income as the U.S. Federal Reserve raised rates through most of last year. The ‘higher-for-longer’ rate environment to battle decades-high inflation has underpinned profits at consumer banks, with analysts expecting those gains to peak in 2023 and…


Reps. Roy, Spanberger Reintroduce Bill Banning Members of Congress From Trading Stocks While in Office

Reps. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) and Chip Roy (R-Texas) have reintroduced legislation effectively banning members of Congress—as well as their spouses and dependent children—from trading stocks while they are in office. The bipartisan duo of lawmakers introduced the new bill, titled the “Transparent Representation Upholding Service and Trust (TRUST) in Congress Act,” on Jan. 12. Originally proposed in June 2020…


Wall Street Opens Lower After Bank Results

Wall Street’s main indexes opened lower on Friday as remarks from executives of major U.S. banks deepened concerns about a slowdown in economic growth, while a slump in Tesla’s shares also pressured the Nasdaq. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 257.18 points, or 0.75 percent, at the open to 33932.79. The S&P 500 opened…