- EU Adds 15 Names to Sanctions List Over Russia’s Ukraine Moves. European Union governments added 15 names to the list of people sanctioned to protest the Kremlin’s backing of separatists in eastern Ukraine and its refusal to pull troops away from the border. The EU “has imposed sanctions on 15 additional persons responsible for actions undermining Ukraine’s territorial integrity,” EU spokeswoman Susanne Kiefer said in a posting on Twitter. The identities of the individuals weren’t disclosed.
- Wimpy Sanctions Will Embolden Putin. The U.S. government has unveiled a new set of sanctions allegedly aimed at punishing Russian President Vladimir Putin for his country's actions in Ukraine. In contrast to the West's tough-sounding rhetoric, the sanctions -- which include such targets as a mineral water company -- seem carefully designed to have little impact.
- Panasonic Forecast Misses Estimates as Tax Weakens Demand. Panasonic Corp. (6752) forecast full-year profit 14 percent below analysts’ estimates as Japanese consumers reduce purchases of electronics and housing-related products after a sales-tax increase. Japanese consumers flocked to make purchases ahead of the sales tax increase in April, shifting revenue into the fourth quarter and crimping the start of the new financial year.
- China Vanke’s Profit Drops as Revenue Slumps Amid Property Curbs. China Vanke Co. (000002), the nation’s biggest developer by market value traded on mainland exchanges, said first-quarter profit dropped 5 percent as revenue slumped after it completed fewer new projects than planned.
- China’s Stocks Decline Most in Seven Weeks on IPO Concern. The Shanghai Composite Index (SHCOMP) fell for a fourth day, losing 1.6 percent to 2,003.49 at the close, the most since March 10.
- European Stocks Rise Amid Deals, U.S. Sanctions on Russia. European stocks advanced as companies from AstraZeneca (AZN) Plc to Bayer AG rose amid an increase in mergers-and-acquisitions activity, offsetting new U.S. sanctions against Russian individuals and companies. AstraZeneca jumped 14 percent to a record after Pfizer Inc. confirmed its interest in taking over the U.K. drugmaker for almost $99 billion. Bayer climbed 3.3 percent after it posted first-quarter profit that beat estimates and as it was said to explore a sale of its plastics unit. BP Plc, which holds a stake in OAO Rosneft, fell 1 percent as the Russian company’s chief executive officer came under U.S. sanctions. Siemens AG slipped 2.5 percent after it was said to have made an offer for Alstom SA to beat a bid from General Electric Co. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.2 percent to 334.13 at the close.
- Iron Ore Drops in China Amid Reports of Financing Curbs. Iron ore futures in China, the biggest buyer of the steel-making commodity, fell the most in more than a month after a report that banks will raise the cost of financing for purchasing the raw material. The contract for September delivery on Dalian Commodity Exchange retreated 4.4 percent to 760 yuan ($122) per metric ton, the largest loss since March 10 and lowest close since March 27. Steel reinforcement-bar and hot-rolled coil futures also declined. Banks will increase the size of deposits required “by large measure” from May 1 for letters of credit used to finance purchasing iron ore, the Guangzhou-based Southern Metropolis Daily reported, citing sources it didn’t identify. Iron ore stockpiles at Chinese ports jumped to a record amid demand to use the ingredient as collateral to get credit while spot ore prices declined 17 percent this year.
- Fear Muted in Nasdaq Amid Biggest Swings in Two Years: Options. The fear gauge for technology stocks shows little panic among investors even after the Nasdaq 100 Index’s wildest swings in two years. The Chicago Board Options Exchange’s measure of expectations for future volatility on the Nasdaq 100 fell 4.1 percent to 18.59 last week, the lowest level since 2012 compared with a gauge tracking the magnitude of recent share-price moves. That shows traders aren’t too worried that declines will dramatically worsen after stocks from Amazon (AMZN:US).com Inc. to Netflix Inc. slid more than 5 percent last week.
- Junk-Bond Skeptics Squeezed as JPMorgan Sees Tears in 2015. It may seem inevitable that the riskiest corporate debt will lose value, since investors are getting paid about the least ever to own such bonds. Yet after bearish wagers on the biggest junk-bond exchange-traded funds surged to a record last month, the market just keeps on rallying. “Will the search for yield come to tears?” JPMorgan Chase & Co. strategists led by Jan Loeys wrote in an April 25 report. “Eventually, yes.”
- Ukraine Mayor Gennady Kernes Shot in Attack, Kharkiv City Council Says. Attack Comes Amid Rising Tensions as Pro-Russian Separatists Sought to Extend Control to Another City.
ZeroHedge:
Business Insider:
The Interpreter:
Reuters:
- BofA suspends buyback, dividend increase after capital error. Bank of America Corp said on Monday it will suspend a planned increase in its quarterly dividend as well as its latest stock buyback program because it miscalculated a measure of the capital on its books. The second-largest U.S. bank said because of the mistake it had to reduce by $4 billion the capital level that regulators watch. The figure equals about three-quarters of the extra money that regulators had approved for returning to shareholders over the next four quarters.
AP:
- AP Survey: China's Lending Bubble a Global Threat. Just as the global economy has all but recovered from debt-fueled crises in the United States and Europe, economists have a new worry: China. They see a lending bubble there that threatens global growth unless Beijing defuses it. That's the view that emerges from an Associated Press survey this month of 30 economists.
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