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 for the day will be.
On Monday, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 13.01 points, or 0.1%, to close at 17,647.75. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 1.50 points, or 0.1%, to end at 2,041.32. The NASDAQ composite fell 17.54 points, or 0.4%, to 4,671.
Benchmark U.S. crude slipped 18 cents to $75.64. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils used by many U.S. refineries, fell 10 cents to $79.31. Wholesale gasoline lost 1.6 cents to $2.026 a gallon. Heating oil dropped 1.2 cents to $2.404 a gallon. Natural gas rose 32 cents, or 8 per cent, to $4.341 per 1,000 cubic feet.
US FACTORY OUTPUT INCREASES 0.2 % IN OCTOBER
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. manufacturing output grew modestly in October, as autoworkers churned out fewer cars and trucks. Output at manufacturing plants rose 0.2% in October, the Federal Reserve said Monday. Gains came from the rising demand for machinery, plastics, clothing and furniture. But in October, the automotive sector tapped the brakes for the third straight month. Auto production fell 1.2% in October, after declines of 1.9% in September and 7.2% in August. Manufacturing has steadily helped fuel economic growth for much of 2014.
DILLARD’S POSTS INCREASED PROFIT IN 3Q, SALES DWINDLE
Little Rock, Ark. -- Dillard's Inc. reported Thursday a profit of $55.2 million in its fiscal third quarter, up 8.4% over the $50.9 million profit in the same period last year. Sales, however, dipped to $1.460 billion, from $1.469 billion, and same-stores sales declined 1%. Still, said CEO William T. Dillard II, "We believe we are positioned very well for the holiday season.” During the quarter, Dillard's opened two new locations: a 200,000-sq.-ft. store at The Shops at Summerlin in Las Vegas, Nevada, and a 180,000-sq.-ft. location at The Mall at University Town Center in Sarasota, Florida.
NORDSTROM BOOSTS PROFITS, REVENUE 3Q
Seattle -- Nordstrom has surpassed Wall Street estimates with an unexpected jump in profit and sales for the quarter ended Nov. 1. The department store retailer reported a profit of $142 million for the third quarter, up from $137 million in the year-ago period. Sales jumped 9% to $3.14 billion, beating the expected $3.11 billion in revenue. Same-store sales rose 3.9%. Nordstrom tempered its full-year profit forecast to reflect the impact of its recent acquisition of Trunk Club, a personalized clothing service for men. It lifted its revenue forecast to a 7.5% increase for the year, versus prior guidance of a 6.5% to 7.5% rise. During the third quarter, Nordstrom opened three full-line stores, including its first store in Canada, and 16 Nordstrom Rack stores.
US PENSION INSURER RAN RECORD $62B DEFICIT IN 2014
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal agency that insures pensions for about 41 million Americans saw its deficit nearly double in the latest fiscal year. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. said Monday that its deficit stands at about $62 billion for the budget year — its widest deficit in the 40-year history. That compares with a $36 billion shortfall the previous year. The agency said the worsening finances of some multi-employer pension plans mainly caused the increased deficit.
‘RED WARNING LIGHTS’ FLASHING FOR GLOBAL ECONOMY
LONDON (AP) — The global economy’s problems seem to be multiplying. Hours after the leaders of the world’s 20 most developed economies sought to boost confidence by promising to increase global output by $2 trillion over five years, Japan said it had fallen into recession. That leaves the country — the world’s third-largest economy — on a long and growing list of troubled economies. China is slowing as well, and Europe can’t seem to take off. Among major economies, only the United States and Britain are growing at decent rates, and how long that lasts depends on how much trouble their trading partners are in.
ACTAVIS TO SPEND $66 BILLION ON ALLERGAN
Actavis said Monday that it is buying Botox-maker Allergan for $66 billion in one of the biggest acquisitions announced so far this year. The company is offering about $219 in cash and stock for each Allergan share. The deal has the support of both companies involved. Allergan spent months fending off overtures from Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc., which was working with Pershing Square Capital Management. But the company felt its $53 billion bid was too low and it worried the Canadian drugmaker would gut its research funding.
HALLIBURTON POUNCES ON BAKER HUGHES
NEW YORK (AP) — In a deal that shows just how quickly falling prices can upend the energy industry, Halliburton is buying rival oilfield services company Baker Hughes for cash and stock worth $34.6 billion. Global oil prices have tumbled 31 per cent over the past 5 months to levels not seen in four years. That has forced the industry to cut costs by delaying or scaling back drilling — which means less work for Halliburton and Baker Hughes, companies that manage oil and gas fields for energy companies. Even when prices were high, oil and gas companies had begun to slow capital spending and new drilling as rising costs cut into profit margins. Energy companies now have even less to spend. Halliburton Chairman and CEO Dave Lesar said Monday that the combined company will be able to reduce costs by $2 billion a year.
WHY AIRFARE KEEPS RISING DESPITE LOWER OIL PRICES
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. airlines are saving tens of millions of dollars every week because of lower prices for jet fuel, their largest expense. So why don’t they share some of the savings with passengers? Simply put: Airlines have no compelling reason to offer any breaks. Planes are full. Investors want a payout. And new planes are on order. In fact, fares are going higher. And those bag fees that airlines instituted in 2008 when fuel prices spiked aren’t going away either. In the 12 months ended in September, U.S. airlines saved $1.6 billion on jet fuel. That helped them post a 5.7% profit margin in the first three quarters of this year, robust for the industry but lagging behind the 10% average for the Standard & Poor’s 500.
HONG KONG – SHANGHAI STOCK LINK MAKES LOPSIDED DEBUT
HONG KONG (AP) — International investors plowed money into Shanghai’s stock market Monday, maxing out their daily limit, in the debut of a landmark trading link that gives outsiders wider access to mainland China’s main stock market through brokers in Hong Kong. The stock connect gives all sorts of investors access to the stock market in the world’s No. 2 economy for the first time. The trading link also gives wealthy Chinese investors access to a market outside of the mainland for the first time.
GM COMPENSATION EXPERT EXTENDS CLAIMS DEADLINE
DETROIT (AP) — The deadline for victims of crashes caused by faulty General Motors ignition switches has been extended for a month as the death toll rose to 33. The head of GM’s compensation fund said the deadline has been extended until Jan. 31 and that 33 death claims are eligible for compensation by the fund. That’s up from 32 last week. GM came under fire last week because the family of a Connecticut woman who died in a 2003 crash had not been notified that her crash had been linked to a faulty switch, even though GM knew for years. The family’s lawyer and a U.S. senator called on GM to extend the deadline beyond Dec. 31.
SYNGENTA FACES DOZENS OF LAWSUITS OVER GMO SEED
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — More farmers are filing lawsuits against agrochemicals giant Syngenta in a legal battle tied to the sale of a genetically modified corn seed. Agrisure Viptera is genetically altered to kill corn-eating bugs and is approved by the United States. But China, a major corn market that refuses to buy genetically modified crops it hasn’t tested, had not agreed to import it. More than 50 lawsuits have been filed and hundreds more are being prepared. The lawsuits say losing China as a buyer has cost corn farmers more than $1 billion. Syngenta says the lawsuits are without merit and upholds the right of farmers to use approved new technologies.
HUGE US SOLAR PLANT LAGS IN EARLY PRODUCTION
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The largest solar power plant of its type in the world isn’t producing as much energy as planned because the sun isn’t shining as much as expected. The Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System opened in February near the California-Nevada border. Operators said it would produce enough electricity to power a city of 140,000 home. So far, the plant is producing about half of its expected annual output for 2014, according to calculations by the California Energy Commission. It could take until 2018 for the plant backed by $1.6 billion in federal loan guarantees to hit its annual peak target, said NRG Energy Inc., which operates the plant and co-owns it with Google Inc. and BrightSource Energy.