Career News 24/7: Before the Bell: Jobless claims fall to near four-month low

Thursday, March 27, 2014

Before the Bell: Jobless claims fall to near four-month low

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03/27/2014

Reuters Election 2012 Daily round-up of the day's top news from the campaign trail, the White House and all the politics in between

Jobless claims fall to near four-month low

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week and touched its lowest level in nearly four months, suggesting the labor market was strengthening.

U.S. fourth-quarter growth raised to 2.6 percent

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. economic growth was a bit faster than previously estimated in the fourth quarter, displaying underlying strength that could bolster views that the slowdown in activity early in the year would be temporary.

Stock futures turn negative after data

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures turned negative on Thursday after data showed economic growth was a bit faster than previously estimates in the fourth quarter and weekly initial jobless claims fell to their lowest level in nearly four months.

U.S. jobs market dropouts increasingly likely to stay out

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A growing number of Americans quitting the labor force are likely gone for good, offering a cautionary note to the Federal Reserve as it tries to gauge how tight the jobs market is and how quickly to raise interest rates.

Yahoo Japan to buy eAccess from SoftBank for $3.2 billion

TOKYO (Reuters) - Yahoo Japan Corp said on Thursday that it would buy mobile and broadband provider eAccess Ltd from its parent SoftBank Corp for 324 billion yen ($3.17 billion) in a bid to expand its services for tablets and smartphones.

U.S. government to sell most of Ally Financial stake

(Reuters) - The U.S. government plans to sell the bulk of its stake in bailed-out auto lender Ally Financial Inc, to raise up to $2.66 billion.

UK lawmakers to quiz Osborne over Lloyds branches sale

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's parliamentary treasury committee has asked finance minister George Osborne if he or colleagues put undue pressure on Co-operative Group or Lloyds Banking Group over the sale of more than 600 Lloyds branches.

Bank of America to pay $9.3 billion to settle mortgage bond claims

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Bank of America agreed to pay $9.3 billion to settle claims that it sold Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac faulty mortgage bonds, helping the bank to end one of the largest legal headaches it still faced from the financial crisis.

Accenture raises full-year profit forecast

(Reuters) - Accenture Plc, recently chosen as the lead contractor for the Obamacare enrollment website, raised its full-year profit forecast and the lower end of its revenue forecast.

Fed's Bullard sees potential risk of bubble as easy policy unwinds

HONG KONG (Reuters) - A bubble could form in the U.S. economy even as the Federal Reserve unwinds its accommodative policy, a top U.S. central banker said on Thursday, adding policymakers' ability to spot them had improved substantially.