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FINANCIAL MARKETS
Stocks rally for a second day
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are climbing in midday trading on Wall Street as investors cheer confirmation from China that its top trade official will head to Washington next week to sign a preliminary trade deal.
Relief that the United States and Iran appear to be stepping away from the edge of war is also fueling a two-day rally. Money is flowing into riskier investments, such as technology stocks, and out of hiding spots for investors when they’re nervous, such as gold and Treasurys. A measure of fear in the stock market dropped to its lowest level in nearly two weeks.
Retail stocks are sliding, though. Bed Bath & Beyond plunged 19.6 % after withdrawing its annual profit guidance. The housewares retailer made the decision following a disappointing third quarter where both earnings and revenue missed Wall Street forecasts. Kohl’s fell 9.4 % and J.C. Penney shed 11.5 % after reporting sales declines during the holiday season. The weak results underscore the continued challenges ahead from online rivals.
CHINA-US-TRADE
China's economy czar going to Washington to sign trade deal
BEIJING (AP) — China’s economy czar will visit Washington next week for the signing of an interim trade deal, the government said Thursday.
Vice Premier Liu He, Beijing’s chief envoy in talks with Washington over their tariff war, had been expected to attend the signing but the Commerce Ministry’s statement was the first official confirmation.
Washington postponed planned tariff increases following the announcement of the “Phase 1” deal in October. But earlier punitive duties imposed by both sides on billions of dollars of each other’s goods stayed in place, dampening global trade and threatening to chill economic growth.
Liu will lead a delegation to Washington from Monday through Wednesday, said ministry spokesman Gao Feng.
President Donald Trump announced last month he would sign the “Phase 1” agreement Jan. 15 and travel to Beijing after that to start the second stage of talks. Trump hailed the interim agreement as a step toward ending the tariff war, but Beijing has been more measured in its public statements.
Economists say concluding a final settlement could take years.
RETAILERS-HOLIDAY SALES
Kohl's, Penney report holiday sales declines
NEW YORK (AP) — Mall-based retailers J.C. Penney, Kohl's and Victoria's Secret parent reported sales declines for the holiday season, underscoring continued challenges ahead from online rivals and other low-price competitors.
The sales releases, issued Thursday, come one day after Macy's reported a small decline in holiday sales, though it was better than what investors feared. J.C. Penney says sales at stores opened at least a year dropped 7.5% for the November and December period. Adjusted results, including the impact of the chain's exit from major appliances and furniture at its stores, decreased 5.3%. Kohl's posted a 0.2% decline.
At L Brands, which operates Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works, the figure dropped 3%. The company also cut its fourth-quarter profit outlook, saying that it expects to report earnings per share of $1.85. It had previously said that it would earn $2 per share in the quarter.
The weak results come as overall retail sales are expected to have increased for the holidays, boosted by a strong economy. However, the divide between the winners and losers is widening. Discounters, feeling pressure from online behemoth Amazon, have been speeding up their deliveries and sprucing up their assortments. Stores like T.J. Maxx, which offer deep discounts on coveted brands, also have been resonating with shoppers. But mall-based retailers have been too slow to react to the increasing competition.
MORTGAGE RATES
US long-term mortgage rates fall; 30-year loan at 3.64%
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. long-term mortgage rates fell this week to their lowest level in 13 weeks, as financial markets roiled by U.S.-Iran conflict pushed investors toward the safety of Treasury bonds.
The yield on Treasury bonds, especially the 10-year note, tends to influence mortgage rates. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dropped to 3.64% from 3.72% last week. The benchmark rate was 4.45% a year ago.
The average rate on a 15-year mortgage declined to 3.07% from 3.16% last week. The historically low levels of borrowing rates are continuing to propel demand from prospective homebuyers.
MICROSOFT-DETECTING PREDATORS
Microsoft looks to detect sex predators in video game chats
REDMOND, Wash. (AP) — Microsoft says it has developed a technique to detect online predators who try to groom children for sexual purposes using the chat function in multiplayer video games.
The tech company, which makes the Xbox gaming system, announced Thursday that it's sharing the tool with nonprofit organizations and other gaming and messaging service developers.
Nicknamed “Project Artemis,” the tool automatically scans text-based conversations and rates them on the probability that a user might be trying sexually exploit children. Human moderators are then able to review flagged conversations to determine if they should report them to law enforcement.
An engineering team led by Dartmouth College digital forensics expert Hany Farid developed the technique. Microsoft worked with Farid and the makers of messaging services like Kik and the popular game Roblox. It will be distributed for free starting Friday through the anti-trafficking group Thorn.
BREXIT
UK lawmakers approve Brexit bill
LONDON (AP) — Britain passed a major milestone on the road to Brexit when the House of Commons on Thursday approved a bill authorizing the country’s departure from the European Union at the end of the month.
Lawmakers voted by 330-231 to pass the Withdrawal Agreement Bill, which sets the terms of Britain’s departure from the 28-nation bloc. The comfortable majority won by Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservatives in an election last month secured the bill's passage despite the opposition of smaller parties.
The bill was approved after three days of debate that brought none of the frayed tempers, late-night sessions and knife-edge votes that marked previous rounds of Brexit wrangling over the past year.
After passing through Parliament’s unelected House of Lords -- which can delay but not overturn the result in the Commons -- the bill should become law in time for the U.K. to leave the EU on the scheduled date of Jan. 31 and become the first nation ever to quit the bloc.
FRANCE-STRIKES
Nationwide protest in France over pensions as talks continue
PARIS (AP) — French rail workers, teachers, doctors, lawyers and others joined the fourth nationwide day of protests and strikes on Thursday to denounce President Emmanuel Macron's plans to overhaul the pension system.
As the government and unions pushed on with crucial negotiations about the changes, street protests were staged in Paris and other French cities, and the railway strikes that began Dec. 5 entered their 36th day.
The Paris march, which unions said comprised 370,000 demonstrators, started from the Republique square in the city center and was accompanied by a large police presence. The Elysee presidential palace was barricaded as protesters were due to head toward the area. Police said by late afternoon that they had made over a dozen arrests.
The Eiffel Tower was shut as employees joined the protest movement. Paris metro traffic was severely disrupted, except for one automatic line running normally.
The national rail company, SNCF, said about a third of its workers were on strike Thursday. Three high-speed trains out of five were running. Regional trains were also affected and many schools were closed.
LEBANON-CARLOS GHOSN
Lebanon issues travel ban for fugitive ex-Nissan chief Ghosn
BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanese prosecutors issued a travel ban for fugitive ex-Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn and asked him to hand in his French passport on Thursday, following an Interpol-issued notice against him, a judicial official said.
The travel ban comes after Ghosn was interrogated by prosecutors for nearly two hours over the notice about the charges he faces in Japan over financial misconduct.
The prosecutors also formally asked Japanese authorities for their file on the charges against Ghosn in order to review the case, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters.
Ghosn said he wanted to stay in Lebanon and has no issues with handng in his passport. He was speaking on LBC TV after his questioning by prosecutors.
VILLAGE VS. FACEBOOK
Facebook riles tiny Oregon town with plan for undersea cable
TIERRA DEL MAR, Ore. (AP) — A battle playing out in Oregon is pitting residents of a tiny coastal town with no stoplights or cellphone service against one of the world's biggest tech companies.
Locals in Tierra del Mar, 65 miles southwest of Portland, are trying to stop Facebook from using property in their quiet community to build a landing spot for an undersea cable connecting America with Asia.
Representatives of the social media giant say Tierra del Mar is one of the few places on the U.S. West Coast suitable for the ultra high-speed cable. It will link multiple U.S. locations, including Facebook's huge data center in the central Oregon town of Prineville, with Japan and the Philippines, and will help meet an increasing demand for internet services worldwide.
But locals say vibrations from drilling to bring the submarine cable ashore might damage home foundations and septic systems. They also point out that Tierra del Mar, arrayed along a pristine beach, is zoned residential. If the county and state allow the project, they say, more commercial ventures will come calling.
The three-member Tillamook County Board of Commissioners began hearing final testimony on the application Thursday.
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