The US Federal Reserve will conduct a stress test for 6 of the largest banks in the country, with the aim to assess the relative health of the banks as well as for the entire financial system in the event of a possible global market shock in the future.
The six banks that have been targeted for the test include the Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo.
Brazil has imposed a hefty $28 million fine on Chevron for an offshore oil spill, punishing the oil company of being ill-prepared in managing the crisis.
The hefty fine comes a day after the local branch of Chevron took responsibility for the spill. Ibama, or the Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources called the incident which began on the 7th of November an “environmental crime”.
After a year of “drama”, new HP CEO Meg Whitman told investors to lower their expectations as the tech company reported a 91 percent fall in profits.
Just two months after taking over the helm of the ailing company, Whitman announced the grim fourth quarter fiscal results but insisted that the “company has been through a lot.”
In defence, Whitman said “what this company has been through would have felled lesser companies,” and rebuilding needs to be done for the world’s largest technology company by revenue.
Growth in Asian economies may be slowing due to weakening external demand, but the World Bank says Asian economies have the room to use fiscal stimulus to protect their economies from an escalation in the European debt crisis that may have substantial spillovers in the region.
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett is looking to make “a big investment” in Japan, after claiming earlier in the year that the March 11 earthquake and tsunami disaster had created a “buying opportunity” for long-term value investments in the country.
A quick preview of the key economic events for the upcoming week:
Some progress has been made in Europe: New governments are in place in Italy and Greece, and though it might be painful, the technocratic leaders will be looking at difficult but important structural economic reforms. In Spain too, voters kicked out the Socialist government Sunday, in what many saw as a referendum on the handling of the European debt crisis. The historic result makes it the fifth European government to fall in the past year because of the debt crisis.
The banking industry may have a reputation for its generous bonuses, but as we all know, money does not always bring happiness. In London, psychologists are reporting a higher rate of depression, insomnia and stress-related problems among bankers.
Top German automaker Volkswagen AG has set its eyes on becoming the market leader in automobile sales in South China, as the company closes in on the 2 million sales mark of vehicles sold in China this year, said its China chief on Monday.
Volkswagen, which operates car-manufacturing ventures with SAIC Motor Corp and FAW Group, has sold almost 1.9 million vehicles from January to October this year, 14.8 percent more than during the same period in 2010.
The US deficit-cutting congressional super committee, formed in the aftermath of the August debt ceiling debates, is expected to announce today that it has failed to reach an agreement over a deficit-cutting plan that would have saved taxpayers at least $1.2 trillion over the coming decade.
On Sunday, panel members from both the Republican and Democratic parties appeared on separate talk shows to express their doubt over a possible compromise, blaming each other for a political gridlock stemming from different ideologies over taxes and spending.
Major credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s is set to update the credit ratings status for the world’s 30 largest banks within the next 3 weeks, with numerous high-profile banks believed to be extremely susceptible to a potential downgrade, said a report by Reuters on Friday.
