When Chris Moran took over the internal venture fund of Lockheed Martin in June 2016, the nation’s largest defense contractor had already been investing in start-up technology companies for nine years. More than $100 million had been invested in 22 separate companies since the fund launched in 2007. But Moran, as the new executive director […]
Read moreTelecommunications corporation Orange has launched its own bank, it was announced Thursday. Orange said its mobile-based retail bank is available in France and offers customers current accounts, bank cards, overdraft lending, a free insurance package and a savings account. “With Orange Bank, this is an important new chapter in our history: Orange is now also […]
Read moreWomen in Saudi Arabia have scorned the government’s decision to grant citizenship to a female robot who, unlike them, does not need a male guardian or have to cover her head in public. Social media was abuzz with questions about whether the robot, Sophia, who was unveiled at a technology conference in the capital Riyadh […]
Read moreWall Street largely gushed over Facebook’s comfortable earnings beat, but analysts are keeping a wary eye on the social network’s growing investments in security and content. Shares of Facebook fell 0.5 percent in premarket trading Thursday, despite its much better-than-expected results Wednesday after the bell. The stock closed at a record Wednesday, up 59 percent […]
Read moreTraditional retailers are struggling to predict their own fortunes. The percentage of retailers that beat their earnings estimates dropped roughly 20 percent since 2010 on a rolling 12-month basis, according to Bespoke Investment. They reached a 15-year low in 2015 and are seeing miss rates last seen at the beginning of the Great Recession. Retailers’ […]
Read moreAmazon has been mulling getting into the prescription drug business. Amazon is already in a range of businesses that touch on the multi-trillion medical sector, including selling surgical equipment and supplies, as well as its cloud software services which many big health care companies use. But if it wants to get into selling prescriptions, it […]
Read moreFed Governor Jerome Powell delivered a speech Thursday morning but dropped no hints about his impending appointment to lead the central bank. Powell spoke at a roundtable in New York just hours before he likely will be nominated by President Donald Trump to lead the central bank. The remarks were videotaped and in fact got […]
Read moreCurrency, United States Finance
Sterling tanks as BOE hikes rates but signals only gradual easing in future
Sterling dropped sharply against the U.S. dollar Thursday after the Bank of England announced the first rate hike since the financial crisis, but said any subsequent rises would be gradual. The pound was trading at $1.3113 shortly after midday London time, but was close to $1.322 just before the rate decision. It was down nearly […]
Read moreCheck out which companies are making headlines before the bell: Alibaba – The China-based e-commerce beat estimates on both the top and bottom lines, and reported a 3.8 percent increase in mobile monthly active users to a total of 549 million. Yum Brands – The restaurant chain operator earned an adjusted 68 cents per share […]
Read moreHong Kong’s richest man has just sold his 73-storey office tower to a Chinese consortium for a reported world record fee. CK Asset Holdings, owned by billionaire Li Ka-Shing, sold the “The Center” for HK$40.2 billion ($5.2 billion), the highest transaction ever recorded for a single office building. Li, who turns 90 next July, has […]
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