US FINANCIAL MARKET
- MasterCard doubled its quarterly cash dividend to 60 cents per share and said it would buy back up to $2 billion of its Class A shares.
- Kellogg reported a narrower quarterly loss on Tuesday helped by improvements in Latin America and stood by its full-year forecast.
- Boeing has asked the FAA for permission to conduct test flights of its 787 Dreamliner, suggesting the company is making progress in finding a solution to the battery problems.
- Revlon’s fourth-quarter net income climbed 28%, helped by an acquisition and stronger sales of Revlon makeup and hair color in the U.S. and Latin America.
- The U.S. government has launched a civil lawsuit against Standard & Poor’s and parent The McGraw-Hill Companies over mortgage bond ratings.
- Yum Brands warned Monday that it expects its profit for the year to decline as the parent company of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell continues to reel from a controversy over its chicken suppliers in China.
- Walt Disney’s quarterly earnings are expected to fall slightly, a rare stumble for the owner of some of the most successful TV networks, movie studios and theme parks in the world.
- Toyota Motor raised its profit forecast for the fiscal year ending March 31 as it reported a third-quarter profit up 23% from a year ago.
- BP Deepwater bill rises by $4.1bn. Total charge for 2010 oil spill stands at $42.4bn, as company races to prevent civil trials reaching court.
US ECONOMY & POLITICS
- Home prices post biggest jump in over six years. Home prices rose for a tenth consecutive month on a year-over-year basis in December. CoreLogic’s home price index rose 0.4% from the previous month and added 8.3% compared to December a year ago.
EUROPE & WORLD
- Markit’s Eurozone Composite PMI, based on business activity across thousands of companies, and a good gauge of economic growth, rose in January to a 10-month high of 48.6 from 47.2 in December – an improvement on the preliminary reading of 48.2.
- Russia’s inflation rate was 7.1%, jumping from 6.6% the previous month.
- Indonesia’s economy grew at the slowest pace in more than two years. GDP increased 6.11% in the in the fourth quarter.
TODAY in HISTORY
- FDR proposed increasing the number of Supreme Court justices—”packing” the court (1937)
Sources: Reuters, Yahoo Finance, Google Finance, Bloomberg, CNN Money.
This information has been prepared from sources believed to be reliable, but no representation is being made as to its accuracy or completeness. The information provided should be used only as general information and is not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. The economic forecasts set forth in the material may not develop as predicted. All indices, such as the S & P 500, are unmanaged and may not be invested into directly.
