The Traderszone Network

The main European indices were expected to open higher, though foul weather in the United States will curb activity on Wall Street. The Federal Reserve also starts its first policy meeting of the year, in what is a busy week for earnings. Japan’s Nikkei gained 1.4 percent, while Australia’s main index added 0.8 percent.

Brent crude oil prices held above $48 on Tuesday following comments from OPEC that prices may have found a floor. OPEC Secretary-General Abdullah al-Badri said oil prices may have bottomed out and he warned of a risk of a future jump to $200 a barrel if investment in new supplies was too low. “OPEC’s Secretary General commented yesterday that prices may have bottomed, but there was no imminent prospect of OPEC producers sitting down to discuss cutbacks until mid-year,” ANZ said.

read more

Collapsing crude prices are confronting scores of smaller U.S. oil producers with the grim choice of either shutting older high-cost wells or burning through cash in the hope of riding out the downturn. As oil prices fell by more than half over the last six months from more than $100 per barrel, the U.S. oil industry responded by slowing its blistering growth and dialing back expansion plans. Now, with U.S. crude around $46 a barrel, operators are already closing some small old wells, known as strippers, and tens of thousands of similar wells are on the verge of losing money.

read more

Microsoft Corp said on Monday fiscal second-quarter profit fell, in line with Wall Street’s forecasts, as sluggish personal computer sales dampened demand for Windows software and the company struggled with unfavorable currency moves against the strong U.S. dollar. “While currency is a headwind for Microsoft and other large international companies, we would characterize the headline numbers as good enough, although some bulls may have been hoping for a bigger beat,” said Daniel Ives, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets.

read more

The U.S. budget deficit will decline slightly to $468 billion this fiscal year, the lowest level since President Barack Obama took office, congressional forecasters said on Monday in a report heralding the end of a brief period of dramatically shrinking red ink. The deficit, down from the $1 trillion-plus levels of Obama’s first four years and a $483 billion gap in fiscal 2014, will stay largely flat in 2016, then begin to march upward due to rising costs for debt and caring for fast-retiring Baby Boomers.

read more

China’s Premier Li Keqiang pledged to create at least 10 million new jobs in 2015, the state run China Daily newspaper said on Tuesday, despite economic growth that slowed to its weakest pace in nearly a quarter of a century last year. China’s economy grew at its slowest pace in 24 years in 2014 as property prices cooled and companies and local governments struggled under heavy debt burdens, pressuring Beijing to take aggressive steps to avoid a sharper downturn.

read more

Former PepsiCo Inc (PEP.N) executive Christopher Sinclair, 64, was appointed chairman and interim CEO. Mattel bought Canadian toymaker Mega Brands for about $460 million last year in an attempt to better compete with Denmark’s Lego, which has overtaken the U.S. company as the world’s biggest toymaker by sales.