Real Estate Daily News Buzz – May 26, 2015
Real Estate Daily News Buzz is designed to give news snippets to readers that our (yet to be award winning) editors thought you could use to start your day. They come from various business perspectives, real estate, government, the Fed, local news, and the stock markets to save you time. Here you will find the headlines and what the news buzz of the day will be.
Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 53.72 points, or 0.3%, to 18,232.02. The S&P 500 index lost 4.76 points, or 0.2%, to 2,126.06. The NASDAQ composite edged down 1.43 points to 5,089.
Benchmark U.S. crude fell $1 to close at $59.72 a barrel in New York. U.S. oil finished the week between $59 and $60 for the fourth straight week. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oil used by many U.S. refineries, fell $1.17 to close at $65.37 in London. time. Wholesale gasoline fell 2.8 cents to close at $2.054 a gallon. Heating oil fell 3.3 cents to close at $1.953 a gallon. Natural gas fell 6.2 cents to close at $2.887 per 1,000 cubic feet.
US consumer prices ticking up as Fed weighs first rate hike — Core consumer prices outside of food and energy posted the biggest increase in April in more than a year, suggesting that an improving U.S. economy is finally starting to lift prices. That could prompt the Federal Reserve to start raising interest rates later this year. Overall consumer prices edged up 0.1 per cent for the third straight rise, the Labor Department said Friday. Overall gains were held back by a 1.3 per cent drop in energy costs. (Cortez Journal)
Yellen says Fed on Track for 1st rate hike this year — Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said Friday she expects to begin raising interest rates later this year — if the job market improves and the Fed is confident inflation will climb closer toward its target rate. She described the U.S. economy as “well positioned for continued growth,” but at the same time highlighted a number of headwinds that threaten progress. Wages have been disappointing and too many people who want full-time jobs and instead working part-time, she said. She also noted a lacklustre housing recovery and modest business investment. The Fed has kept its key benchmark rate at a record low near zero since December 2008. (USA Today)
Is the Party Over for Real Estate Investing? “Prepare for the REIT market to get ugly for awhile. This year is already shaping up to be a tough one. Check out the S&P Global REIT return chart. It’s bounced all around and is currently flat — 0% return. Many of the biggest REITs — Simon Property Group (SPG), Ventas (VTR) and Health Care REIT (HCN) — are flat to down for the year.” (CNN Money)
Ontario Teacher’s Looking at Infrastructure, Real Estate “Ronald Mock, chief executive officer for Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, talks about investment strategy. He speaks with Erik Schatzker on Bloomberg Television’s ‘Bloomberg Markets.’” (Bloomberg)
Bank of China Finances Beijing Insurance Company’s 717 Fifth Avenue Buy – “Anbang Insurance Group, the Beijing-based insurance company that bought the Waldorf Astoria for $1.95 billion, closed on its purchase of 717 Fifth Avenue’s office space with a $260 million acquisition loan from Bank of China, Commercial Observer has learned.” (Commercial Observer)
Dollar Tree Expects Divestitures ‘in Coming Days’ – Dollar Tree said Thursday it expects to reach agreements with buyers ‘in the coming days’ to sell approximately 330 of the 8,000 Family Dollar stores it is acquiring.” (Supermarket News)
China Inc. is Coming to America “Japan led a wave of investment into America in the 1980s. Now it’s China’s turn. A new report described as the first of its kind has broken down how much Chinese money is flowing into America, where it’s going and its economic impact.” (Bloomberg)
Google Tries Again with Headquarters Expansion Plan – “Google might get to build more of its dream campus after all. Disappointed that most of its ambitious plan for a headquarters expansion was shot down by the Mountain View City Council earlier this month, Google is trying again to pitch one of the rejected buildings.” (San Jose Mercury News)
Wanting for Real Estate, Apple May Undertake ‘Major Expansion’ in San Jose—Report – “Apple is currently considering two sites in San Jose and could be looking for as much as 1.5 million square feet of space, according to the Silicon Valley Business Journal. Apple already has a modest presence in the city, with a relatively small office adjacent to the headquarters of Hewlett-Packard spinoff Agilent.” (Apple Insider)
Bill Ackman and Georgetown Close on 787 11th Avenue, Plan for Rooftop Tennis “A partnership between The Georgetown Company and Bill Ackman has closed on 787 11th Avenue, Commercial Observer has learned, and plans to build a tennis court atop the building.” (Commercial Observer)
Verizon’s Record-Breaking Deal – “In the largest sale-leaseback deal in suburban New Jersey, Verizon has sold its 1.4 million-square-foot operations center in Basking Ridge, N.J., to Mesirow Realty Sale-Leaseback, Inc. for $650 million.” (Commercial Property Executive)
What Could Gary Do? Analyzing Extell’s $4.4B Sellout at the Nordstrom Tower – “Developer Gary Barnett has sky-high ambitions for the Nordstrom Tower: Whether or not his condo tower at 217 West 57th Street becomes the tallest building in New York City, Barnett could break records if he comes close to his projected $4.4 billion sellout.” (The Real Deal)
Walmart’s push on animal welfare hailed as game changer — Walmart’s push to get its suppliers to give farm animals fewer antibiotics and more room to roam is expected to have a big impact on the food industry, experts say. Though the steps are voluntary, Walmart, which sells more food than any other store, has a history of using its retail muscle to change the way products are made and sold across the retail industry. Walmart told The Associated Press that it’s asking meat producers, eggs suppliers and others to use antibiotics only for disease prevention or treatment, not to fatten their animals, a common industry practice. (AP)
Toyota vowed to help pinpoint the cause of a defect in air bags used in more than 50 million vehicles worldwide, saying the auto industry risks losing the trust of car buyers if the problem drags on unresolved. The air bags, made by Takata Corp. of Japan, can deploy with too much force, potentially causing injury or even death. Takata this week agreed to a broader recall that doubled the number of air bags needing repair in the U.S. to 34 million. Toyota is one of 11 automakers recalling their vehicles. (US News)
Tuk-tuk taxi maker aims to make inroads in US — They’re ubiquitous in Asia, swarming the bustling streets of Bangkok, New Delhi and Beijing. Now, a company that manufactures tuk-tuks — the three-wheeled motorized rickshaws that have moved the masses for more than a century and go by many other names in Asia, Africa and Latin America — aims to make inroads in the United States. The Tuk Tuk Factory, based in Amsterdam, has signed a licensing agreement with Denver-based eTuk USA to allow the company to manufacture and sell an electric version of the vehicle. (AP)
Currency tumbles as Venezuelans look to unload bolivars — A staggering plunge in the free-market value of Venezuelan currency sent people scrambling to sell off their depreciating bolivars Friday. DolarToday, a widely followed website that tracks exchanges made near the Colombian border, reported that the bolivar had lost a quarter of its value over the last seven days. Everyone in smartphone-obsessed Caracas seemed to learn of the crash at the same time as the DolarToday app, a ubiquitous tool in the South American country, sent out a series of messages announcing the new rates under the headline “hyperinflation!” (Business Insider)
Deere boosts guidance as construction offsets Ag swoon — Solid sales of its construction equipment offset a global agricultural slowdown for Deere, the company said Friday. It also raised its outlook for the year and its shares rose nearly 4 per cent Friday. Deere’s most profitable business is making and selling its green tractors and other farming equipment, but with less demand for large farm equipment, Deere is relying more on its backhoes, excavators and other construction equipment to grow sales. A surge in home construction in the U.S. is likely helping. In April, builders broke ground on homes at the fastest pace in more than seven years, according to the Commerce Department. (New York Times)
Target settlement with MasterCard fails to get bank support — A $19 million deal between Target and MasterCard to settle lawsuits stemming from the retailer’s massive pre-Christmas 2013 data breach has been scrapped, because it failed to get enough support from the affected banks and credit unions. While the rejection sends the companies back to the drawing board, advocates for the financial institutions said they were pleased, claiming that the settlement would have provided compensation for just a fraction of the losses. (News Tribune)