A handful of toss-up U.S. Senate races next week could hold the key to whether the stock market glides through the year-end in a typical post-midterm election rally or gets hit with a fresh bout of volatility.
Industry
Factory growth ebbs in Europe & Asia, making case for more stimulus
Factories across Asia and the euro zone reported a general loss of momentum last month that speaks volumes about the need for more policy stimulus on top of Japan's latest efforts to ignite growth.
Publicis to buy U.S.-based Sapient for $3.7 billion
Publicis (PUBP.PA), the world's third-largest advertising holding company, has agreed to buy digital ad specialist Sapient for $3.7 billion in cash as it seeks to accelerate growth after a botched merger earlier this year.
Thai drink maker Carabao sets IPO price range at 26-28 baht
Thai energy drink maker Carabao Group PCL has set the price range of an initial public offering (IPO) at 26 to 28 baht a share, to raise up to 7 billion baht ($214.72 million), people with knowledge of the sale said.
Yen extends slide, Aussie eases on weak China PMI
The yen fell to a fresh seven-year low against the dollar early on Monday, extending a massive selloff sparked by the Bank of Japan's surprise decision to boost its already huge bond-buying stimulus.
Latest News
South Korean exports rose slightly faster than expected in October but imports saw their sharpest drop in 13 months, dragged down by softer demand for raw materials and capital goods, data showed on Saturday.
U.S. consumer spending fell for the first time in eight months in September, suggesting the economy lost some momentum heading into the fourth quarter.
U.S. consumer sentiment rose in October to its highest level since in more than seven years on growing optimism about the economy and more favorable personal financial expectations, a survey released on Friday showed.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc said it will expand its offering of discounted products during the holiday season and may broaden a price-matching scheme to include online rivals, in the latest sign of an escalating price war among big U.S. retailers.
A robust pace of business spending likely buoyed U.S. economic growth in the third quarter, a sign corporate chieftains have confidence in the sustainability of the recovery.
Tajikistan made the greatest strides in business-friendly reforms in the past year, part of an overall trend of improving business regulations across Eastern Europe and Central Asia, the World Bank said in a report released on Tuesday.
Japan's industrial output rose in September at the fastest pace in eight months in a tentative sign of recovery in factory activity, offering some relief for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as he moves closer to making a decision on a second sales tax hike.
Japanese retail sales rose 2.3 percent in September from a year earlier, government data showed on Tuesday, suggesting consumer spending is gradually picking up.
Roughly one in five of the euro zone's top lenders failed landmark health checks at the end of last year but most have since repaired their finances, the European Central Bank said on Sunday.
