Oracle rebounds Friday, after getting dumped by the Oracle of Omaha's company on Valentine Day. On Thursday February 14, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway disclosed that it had divested its entire stake in software company Oracle – leading to Oracle shares tumbling that day.But the very next day, the stock price increased almost +1%. According to Berkshire’s regulatory filing, the conglomerate dumped all of the 41.4 million Oracle shares worth around $2.13 billion that it had held as of the end of the third quarter.

Q: I read your answer about annuities and wondered about something.Is that true? READ MORE...

(Bloomberg) -- Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is doubling down on its bullish outlook for oil. The bank still forecasts that global benchmark Brent crude will hit $67.50 a barrel next quarter, driven by healthy demand and supply curbs by OPEC and its allies such as Russia, analysts including Damien Courvalin said in a Feb. 12 report.Goldman’s estimate is about 7 percent higher than current price levels. READ MORE...

General Motors (GM) just unveiled its electric bicycle in a bid to arm itself against an uncertain future for cars. The largest U.S. automaker on Thursday released the name of its bike, Ariv, and said it will start taking orders in select countries in Europe. READ MORE...  

XPO Logistics Inc. missed fourth-quarter earnings & sales expectations, causing its stock to plummet around -17% Friday. The transportation and warehousing company reported adjusted earnings of 72 cents a share, lower than analysts' expectations of 84 cents. Quarterly revenue came in at $4.39 billion, missing analysts’ estimate of $4.56 billion.XPO indicated that reduction of business from its largest customer pulled back revenue by $46 million in the fourth quarter. For full year 2019, XPO is predicting revenue growth in the range of 3% to 5%, with organic revenue growth of 4% to 6%.

Following a crowd-sourcing campaign, American automaker giant General Motors has finalized the brand name for its newly produced electric bicycles: Ariv.Riders will need to charge their battery approximately once every 3.5 hours enabling 64km (40 miles) of ride time on a single charge.

In a high voltage negotiation between the presidents of the world’s two largest economies — U.S. and China — the leaders reached a temporary truce to address the trade imbalance. US President Donald Trump agreed to maintain a 10% tariff on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods and to not raise them to 25%, for now.In return, China confirmed its intentions to buy a substantial quantity of various categories of goods, like agriculture or energy, from the U.S to help reduce trade disputes between the two countries. In light of this agreement, China’s economic-planning agency proposed to make large purchases of U.S. semiconductors with a target set at $200 billion over the next six years – a five-fold increase over current exports.

Up until that time, the company will produce 17 more A380s, including 14 for Emirates and 3 for Japanese airline ANA. This decision came after Emirates cut back orders of the iconic aircraft in favor of 70 smaller A350 and A330neo models.The decision is not without consequences, as 3,000-3,500 jobs may be jeopardized. However, being a favorite among flyers and also a key differentiator, Emirates CEO and Chairman has assured that they will continue using Airbus’ flagship aircraft well into 2030s. Airbus’ president has expressed regret over Emirates’ decision, but he understands the changing and competitive nature of the industry that now sees A330neo and A350 crucial for future growth.

The company apparently faced headwinds from tariffs, inflation and currency exchange rates. For the full year 2018, Newell incurred a net loss of -$6.9 billion for the year, compared to net income of $2.7 billion in 2017.Its net sales for the year declined by -9.6% to $8.6 billion, from $9.6 billion in 2017.  As for the company’s projections for 2019, it expects adjusted earnings per share in the range of $1.50 to $1.65 – compared with FactSet consensus expectation of $1.91.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are expected to pay a combined $4.7 billion in dividends to the U.S. Treasury Department by March, as the housing finance agencies posted stronger annual 2018 net incomes than a year earlier. In September 2008, the federal government took control of the two enterprises in a $187 billion bailout during the global credit crisis, after they were exposed to failed subprime mortgages.The two agencies have handed over their profit to the U.S. Treasury under the terms of the conservatorship. Fannie and Freddie make money by charging fees to guarantee home loans made by banks and other lenders.

The outlook for Wall Street earnings has deteriorated significantly in recent months, data shows, raising the risk that companies in the United States may slip into recession before its economy does - with Europe close behind.   Read more...

Amazon has decided it won't build its so-called HQ2 in New York.The company abruptly pulled out of the deal that would have brought approximately 25,000 jobs to the city. Local politicians and activists objected to the nearly $3 billion in incentives promised to what is already one of the world's richest, most powerful companies. "We are disappointed to have reached this conclusion — we love New York," the online giant retailer said in a blog post announcing its withdrawal. Amazon announced in November that it had chosen the Long Island City section of Queens for one of two new headquarters, with the other in Arlington, Virginia.

The company’s snack business  registered +4% organic revenue growth in North America for the quarter.  PepsiCo.’s fiscal fourth-quarter net income came in at $6.85 billion (or $4.83 per share), compared to a loss of -$710 million, (or -50 cents per share) of the year-ago quarter.  However, Pepsi has apparently lowered its hopes for full-year 2019 earnings, owing to currency exchange rates headwinds, increased advertising/marketing expenses, and an expected hike in the effective tax rate to 21 percent from 18.8 percent.

Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing is planning to lay off about 2,000 people, or 15 percent of its workforce, this year, a source familiar with the situation said Friday. Read More...

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. took advantage of a plunge in bank stocks to pile even further into his bet on financials, while trimming a giant stake in Apple Inc. Read More...

The first cryptocurrency created by a major U.S. bank is here — and it's from J.P. Morgan Chase. Read More...

The Social Security Administration is now paying benefits to more than half a million Americans living outside the United States—a number that has been steadily rising.One big reason for that rise is that many Americans have not saved enough money to live in retirement the way they would want to in the United States once they are on Social Security.   READ MORE...

The U.S. Federal Reserve’s new “wait and see” policy approach will still probably lead to one interest-rate hike before year end, and another in 2020, a top Fed official said on Wednesday. Offering a clearer picture of his policy expectations than most other U.S. central bankers, Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker said the U.S. economy is generally in good shape and risks are only very slightly tilted to the downside.READ MORE...

job openings surged to a record high in December, led by vacancies in the construction and accommodation and food services sectors, strengthening analysts’ views that the economy was running out of workers.READ MORE...

Barclays and J.P. Morgan on Thursday reduced their estimates on U.S. economic growth in the final quarter of 2018 following data that showed domestic retail sales took a 1.2 percent spill in December, which was its steepest monthly drop in nine years.READ MORE...