Wells Fargo Misses Lending Estimate, Sending Shares Plunging
Wells Fargo & Co. fell short across its primary income streams in the first quarter, pushing shares down as the bank reworks its business mix in a bid to accelerate growth. Net interest income, the difference between what the company makes from lending and pays...
China’s Petrochemical Producers Idle Capacity as Margins Crumble
China’s petrochemical producers, which supply textile and plastics factories, have cut operations to their lowest seasonal level in three years as rising feedstock costs and soft export demand squeezes margins. Several major makers of purified terephthalic acid —...
Banks Tally $100 Billion of Private-Credit Loans as Calm Urged
Wall Street banks reported at least $100 billion of exposure to private-credit firms, offering a glimpse at what has become a closely watched industry with many investors on edge over credit quality and the growing impact of artificial intelligence. Wells Fargo &...
Investors Brace for Economic Growth Shock, BofA Survey Shows
Global investors grappling with the fallout from the Iran war have slashed their expectations for economic growth by the most in four years, according to the latest Bank of America Corp. survey of fund managers. Expectations for inflation, meanwhile are at an almost...
BlackRock’s Asia Private Credit Fund Sees China Borrower Default
A BlackRock Inc. private credit fund in Asia has suffered the first default by a borrower in its portfolio after a Chinese company failed to repay a loan, according to people familiar with the matter. The delinquency occurred on April 1, after Metcold Holdings Ltd., a...
Ukraine Says It Hit Fertilizer Plant in Northwestern Russia
Ukraine said it hit a fertilizer plant in northwestern Russia, as the military steps up strikes on industrial facilities to curb revenue for commodity exporters. The Apatit JSC plant, situated in Russia’s Vologda region, was attacked as it produces raw materials for...
Goldman CEO Sees Noise Persisting on Retail Private-Credit Funds
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Chief Executive Officer David Solomon said that while retail investors have been worried about private credit — and the sector will continue to cause some concern — his bank has few issues in the space and continues to see it as attractive....
Trump Suit Over Wall Street Journal Epstein Story Dismissed
A judge threw out Donald Trump’s $10 billion libel suit against the Wall Street Journal and parent company News Corp., dealing a blow to the president’s ongoing campaign of litigation against the media. The decision Monday in federal court in Miami largely vindicates...
Private Credit Is Canary in the Coal Mine, Dutch Watchdog Warns
The Netherlands’ financial markets regulator warned of further turmoil in the $1.8 trillion private credit market after turmoil at some direct lenders. There have been “incorrect assessments in lending,” Laura van Geest, who leads the Authority for the Financial...
Gold Eases as US Plan to Blockade Hormuz Raises Inflation Risks
Gold edged down amid mounting inflation concerns after US President Donald Trump’s order to blockade the Strait of Hormuz deepened the global energy-supply shock. Bullion fell as much as 2.2% to trade below $4,650 an ounce before retracing much of the loss. Trump said...
Fuel Shortages From Iran War Threaten Asia’s Biggest Food Staple
Harvest-ready rice fields are lying idle and farmers are deciding whether to skip planting for the coming season, as spiking fuel and fertilizer costs from the war in the Middle East hit one of the world’s biggest rice-growing regions. Across Southeast Asia, tens of...
Oil Posts Biggest Weekly Loss Since 2020 Ahead of Iran-US Talks
Oil edged lower in relatively light trading before highly-anticipated talks between Iran and the US, negotiations that will dictate the path ahead for their fragile truce. West Texas Intermediate fell 1.3% to settle below $97 a barrel, with futures down about 13.4%...
US CPI Surges 0.9% in Largest Monthly Jump Since 2022 on Gas
US inflation surged in March by the most in nearly four years as the war with Iran sent gasoline prices skyrocketing. The consumer price index rose 0.9% from February, according to data out Friday. From a year ago, it was up 3.3%, the strongest pace since 2024. A...
US Consumer Sentiment Hits Record Low as Iran War Drives Inflation Fears, CPI Jumps 0.9%
U.S. consumer sentiment fell to a record low in early April as inflation concerns tied to the Iran conflict intensified, while new data showed a sharp rise in consumer prices driven largely by gasoline costs. The University of Michigan’s preliminary sentiment index...