Author: Press Room

ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Iraq has petitioned a U.S. federal court to enforce an arbitration award against Turkey related to Iraqi oil exports through a pipeline to a Turkish port, according to documents filed with the court. Under last month’s International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) arbitration ruling, Iraq was awarded damages in a case in which Baghdad accused Ankara of allowing the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) to export oil without Baghdad’s consent between 2014-2018. The petition, filed with the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia, requested from the court, “Recognizing, Confirming, and Enforcing the Final Award issued by the…

By Jamie McGeever ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) – Hedge funds started the second quarter positioning for a steeper U.S. yield curve by offloading 10-year U.S. Treasuries futures at one of the fastest rates on record. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) data for the week ending April 4 offer the first insight into how funds are emerging from the historic volatility in March sparked by U.S. and Swiss bank collapses earlier in the month. In one way, betting on a steeper 2s/10s yield curve indicates funds are hoping the trend of recent weeks continues – the curve steepened around 33 basis points…

Recap from February’s Picks On a price return basis, the Dividend Growth Stocks Model Portfolio (-4.7%) underperformed the S&P 500 (+0.1%) by 4.8% from February 28, 2023 through March 27, 2023. On a total return basis, the Model Portfolio (-4.5%) underperformed the S&P 500 (+0.4%) by 4.9% over the same time. The best performing stock was up 5%. Overall, nine out of 30 Dividend Growth stocks outperformed their respective benchmarks (S&P 500 and Russell 2000) from February 28, 2023 through March 27, 2023. The methodology for this model portfolio mimics an “All Cap Blend” style with a focus on dividend…

Topline Bacon, gas and health insurance are some of the biggest driving factors behind slowing inflation in the U.S., according to Labor Department inflation data released Wednesday morning. Key Facts Consumer prices rose 5% in the 12-month period ending in March, cooling to its lowest annualized increase since May 2021 and coming in below economist projections. Declining energy prices were the greatest contributor to the inflation slowdown, as energy prices slipped 6.4% as a whole from March 2022 to last month and gas dropped some 17.4% during the period. Consumers also benefited from a decline in the cost of other…

With tax season here and taxes due April 18th, what is the best plan of attack for last-minute tax filers? I reached out to Best Selling Author, Rich Dad Advisor® & International Authority on Tax Tom Wheelwright,CPA to share his best advice for last-minute tax filing. 1. Don’t rush. Yes, the April 18 deadline is approaching fast, and for those who have waited until the last minute, it can be a stressful time. Resist the urge to rush through the process. A hurried approach often leads to costly errors. Instead, follow the steps below carefully. If you feel yourself getting…

“Risk” is a something of a loaded word, having a somewhat negative implication. Most people only focus on the downside risk, and when we hear about “risky” investments it is typically in reference to penny stocks, cryptocurrencies, and other speculative instruments. The accepted meaning of “risk” in financial jargon, however, is typically to convey standard deviation, which encompasses both potential underperformance and outperformance relative to a mean expectation for investment return. After all, risk can lead to both losses and gains, otherwise no reasonable investor would ever take on any risk. If you are even casually familiar with the Capital…

Inflation showed welcome signs of cooling in March as the cost of gasoline declined, but core prices pointed to strong underlying price pressures that are still bubbling beneath the surface. The Labor Department said Wednesday that the consumer price index, a broad measure of the price for everyday goods including gasoline, groceries and rents, rose 0.1% in March from the previous month, down from 0.4% in February. Prices climbed 5% on an annual basis, down sharply from February’s 6% increase and the smallest rise in nearly two years.Those figures were both lower than forecasts by Refinitiv economists.  Still, inflation remains…

Most U.S. adults in a survey say they have little confidence that Chinese President Xi Jinping will “do the right thing regarding world affairs,” according to the poll by the Pew Research Center released Wednesday.Despite that pessimism, more than half of people in the U.S. said the two countries can work together on trade and economic policy, the survey found.The study, covering more than 3,500 U.S. adults between March 20 and 26, comes as U.S.-China tensions escalate to the point of limited bilateral interaction. Exerting pressure on Beijing is one of the few topics with strong bipartisan support in the…

Juul will pay $462 million to settle claims by six states and Washington D.C. that the vaping company marketed its addictive e-cigarettes to underage teens, five Democratic attorneys general announced Wednesday.The agreement is the largest multi-state settlement the company has reached to date, the attorneys general said during a press conference. It means Juul has now settled in suits with 45 states for more then $1 billion. The deal will impose strict limits on Juul’s sales and marketing abilities, and will force Juul to secure its products behind retail store counters and verify the age of purchasers, the officials added.The states…

Amazon is attempting new measures to get customers to return fewer of their online orders, including charging a fee to return items to UPS stores. For decades, Amazon built its business by creating shopping that was fast, ridiculously easy and, seemingly, error-proof. You don’t like it, just return it. But not anymore: so many customers have buyers’ regret, or simply bigger feet than they thought they had, that handling returns has become an expensive problem for the company. So, Amazon will start charging customers a $1 fee if they return items to a UPS store when there is a Whole…