Reuters Business News

Oil prices ended little changed on Thursday after OPEC's lowering of its global demand forecast for 2020 was offset by some European countries saying they would relax coronavirus restrictions, pointing to a potential rebound in consumption.

U.S. stock index futures jumped in late trading on Thursday after a report of promising early data related to a potential COVID-19 treatment from Gilead Sciences and as guidelines for re-opening the U.S. economy came from the White House.

Carnival Corp Chief Executive Officer Arnold Donald defended the company’s safety record on Thursday, telling reporters in a media call that Carnival followed protocols from international authorities while handling high-profile coronavirus outbreaks aboard two of its ships.

The U.S. Transportation Department said on Thursday it had rejected most requests by JetBlue Airways Corp and Spirit Airlines to halt additional flights in the wake of the pandemic that has sent passenger traffic down by 95%.

U.S. President Donald Trump laid out guidelines on Thursday for reopening the coronavirus-ravaged U.S. economy, saying states should take a phased approach to let Americans return to work as conditions allow.

Uber Technologies Inc said on Thursday it expects an impairment charge of up to $2.2 billion in the first quarter due to the coronavirus outbreak and revenue to decline by $17 million to $22 million in the quarter.

The French government may call on banks to contribute to a bailout of Air France KLM if it offers state support to the struggling airline, the finance minister said on Thursday.

Uber Technologies Inc said on Thursday it expected an impairment charge of about $1.9 billion to $2.2 billion against some of its minority equity investments, due to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the value of those entities.

World stock markets edged higher on Thursday on surging shares of Netflix and Amazon.com as investors anticipated big earnings from the coronavirus-induced slowdowns keeping people at home, while bond yields fell as data reflected record U.S. joblessness.

U.S. small businesses may need up to $500 billion a month to ensure their survival through the coronavirus crisis, the head of the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank said on Thursday as Fed officials voiced concern over the speed and breadth of the country's fiscal response to an unprecedented economic slowdown.

U.S. stocks rose on Thursday as Amazon.com Inc and Netflix Inc surged to record highs, although trading was choppy as investors worried about the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on first-quarter earnings.

The dollar hit a one-week high on Thursday as investors fled to safe-haven assets following the release of weekly U.S. jobless data which showed a record 22 million Americans have sought unemployment benefits in the last month, erasing nearly all job gains since the Great Recession.

L'Oreal is counting on consumers rushing back to hair salons to help its business recover quickly once European and U.S. coronavirus lockdowns are lifted, it said on Thursday, adding that beauty sales were bouncing back already in China.

Applications to start new U.S. businesses tumbled last week, the latest indication that stringent measures to control the spread of the novel coronavirus had brought the economy to its knees.

Lagardere gained almost 13% on Thursday after Les Echos reported the French multimedia conglomerate could get help from French tycoon Vincent Bollore and Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière, who heads finance group Fimalac, in its fight with Amber Capital.

World stock markets seesawed while bond yields retreated on Thursday as dire U.S. jobless data underscored a deepening downturn amid the coronavirus outbreak and tamped down investor hopes a listless economy would soon be back on its feet.

The Nasdaq rose in afternoon trading on Thursday as Amazon.com and Netflix surged to record highs, while worries about first-quarter earnings weighed on the Dow and limited gains in the S&P 500.

Activist shareholders are likely to scale back campaigns in the coming weeks as target companies brace for a deep recession and their favorite calls for change - ranging from mergers to returning cash - are ignored during the coronavirus pandemic.

Activist investor Starboard on Thursday ended its proxy fight at eBay by withdrawing its four director nominees four days after the ecommerce company named a new chief executive.

U.S. small businesses may need as much as $500 billion a month to fully ensure their survival through the widespread closures and disruptions slamming their revenue during the coronavirus crisis, Atlanta Federal Reserve bank President Raphael Bostic said Thursday.