MONEY (MSM)

Google overhaul "shareholder friendly", though details scarce

Analysts and investors have long sought more granular detail on Google’s capital spending and cash flow, as well the financial performance of YouTube and the Android operating system. Google said on Monday it would split into two reporting companies under a new holding company called Alphabet. Google shares were up 5.7 percent at $701 in premarket trading as investors looked forward to a new era of transparency.

US charges 9 in hacking/insider trading case

US officials charged nine people in an international hacking and insider trading conspiracy that yielded more than $30 million in illegal trading on stocks based on non-public information, officials announced Tuesday. The scheme was engineered by a team of hackers and securities traders from Ukraine and the US states of Georgia, Pennsylvania and New York, according to an indictment released by the US Attorney’s office in New Jersey. Defendants then

Oil prices fall on China demand, OPEC supply outlook

Oil fell on Tuesday on concerns of weaker demand from China after the world’s top energy consumer devalued its currency and as OPEC signalled supplies from rivals were proving more resilient than expected to low prices. China’s central bank made a “one-off depreciation” of nearly 2 percent in the yuan after a run of poor economic data, guiding the currency to its lowest point in almost three years. A slowdown

U.S. small business confidence bounces back in July

U.S. small business confidence rebounded in July from a 15-month low as owners anticipated solid sales and inventory growth, providing another boost to the economic outlook for the third quarter. Tuesday its Small Business Optimism Index increased 1.3 points to 95.4. About 1,495 businesses took part in the survey.

Tata Steel says import pressures may increase after yuan devaluation

Tata Steel Ltd said on Tuesday import pressures on the Indian and European steel industries could intensify following the devaluation of the yuan, as a flood of cheap imports from China continues to impact profitability. Tata Steel, which said net profit in the June quarter more than doubled on the back of a one-time gain, has been hit by a combination of a slowdown in China and a devaluation of

Adobe joins tech industry push in increasing maternity, parental leave

Software company Adobe Systems Inc. said on Monday it is doubling the maternity leave it grants, making it the third company in the U.S. technology industry in a week to give new parents more paid time off. New mothers at the California-based firm will receive 26 weeks of paid leave, up from 12 weeks, and primary caregivers and new parents will get 16 weeks of paid parental leave. “We join