Reuters Business News

Wall Street jumped at the open on Thursday, after the Federal Reserve rolled out a $2.3 trillion program to bolster local governments and businesses, while the initial jobless claims slipped to 6.6 million last week from an upwardly revised 6.87 million the prior week.

The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits in the last three weeks has blown past 15 million, with weekly new claims topping 6 million for the second straight time last week amid tough measures to control the novel coronavirus outbreak that have abruptly ground the country to halt.

U.S. stock index futures turned higher on Thursday after data showed jobless claims fell last week and the Federal Reserve rolled out a broad $2.3 trillion effort to bolster local governments and small and mid-sized businesses.

The U.S. Federal Reserve on Thursday rolled out a broad, $2.3 trillion effort to bolster local governments and small and mid-sized businesses in its latest move to keep the U.S. economy intact as the country battles the coronavirus pandemic.

Bloomin' Brands Inc and Jana Partners said on Thursday they have agreed to add two new independent directors to the Outback Steakhouse owner's board, months after the activist hedge fund pushed for changes due to struggling restaurant sales.

The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits in the last three weeks has topped 15 million, as weekly new claims topped 6 million for the second straight time last week as tough measures to control the novel coronavirus outbreak abruptly ground the country to halt.

Hyundai Motor Co's Czech plant plans to restart on April 14 after a three-week production outage as part of efforts to fight the coronavirus, becoming the first of the three major carmakers in the central European country to resume work.

JPMorgan is seeking to sell at a discount loans raised by the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, according to two sources and a document, as banks brace for a borrowing spree in the Gulf due to low oil prices.

Venture capital firm Index Ventures said on Thursday it had raised $2 billion for early-stage and growth investments, backing entrepreneurs it reckons will lead the way out of the economic slump caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. stock index futures edged lower on Thursday as investors braced for another staggering weekly jobless claims number, while oil prices rose on hopes of sweeping production cuts.

Venture capital firm Index Ventures said on Thursday it had raised $2 billion for growth investments, backing entrepreneurs it reckons will lead the way out of the economic slump caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. retail giant Costco will open a new store in China's eastern city of Suzhou, near Shanghai, state media reported on Thursday.

Russian President Putin has no plans as of Thursday to discuss oil markets with U.S. President Donald Trump and Saudi Arabia's leadership, a Kremlin spokesman told Reuters.

Global shares rose on Thursday on hopes the COVID-19 pandemic was nearing a peak and that governments would roll out more stimulus to support their economies, while expectations of a deal to cut oil production bolstered crude prices.

Rosneft believes a cut in oil production of 10 million barrels per day (bpd) by OPEC+ would be sufficient to rebalance oil markets, Renaissance Capital (RenCap) said late on Wednesday following a call with the Russian energy giant.

OPEC and its allies hold talks on Thursday to discuss plans for the biggest coordinated oil output cut in history but two hurdles remain: reaching a deal on the levels from which to make reductions and securing the participation of the United States.

Credit rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) delivered downgrades on Thursday to France's top car companies Renault and PSA , cutting Renault's bonds to 'junk' status due to the impact of the new coronavirus.

The dollar held firm on Thursday, but selling pressure may be in store later with U.S. jobless data due at 1230 GMT expected to show claims near record highs.

How much money will U.S. banks lose on loans because of the coronavirus recession?

Officials in Prague are using the coronavirus crisis to get a firmer grip on short-term rentals like Airbnb, which they say have squeezed locals out of the Czech capital's centre.