All the news you need to stay informed about what’s currently driving the market – courtesy of Raffa Wealth Management, LLC.
US stocks rose over the week on positive news from the energy, heath care and industrial sectors. The S&P 500 and Dow gained 1.7% for the week. Internationally, Japan jumped 2.4% and Europe soared 3.8% over the week. The 10 year Treasury yield rose to 1.95% to end the week. Oil rose 5.1% for the week, ending at $51.64 a barrel. Article
The Fed’s minutes from their March meeting showed that they were split over whether to raise rates in June. Article
Switzerland issued 10 year bonds at a negative yield, a first for any country.
FedEx agreed to buy TNT, a Dutch package delivery company for $4.8 billion in order to expand its European presence.
Shell has agreed to buy BG Group, a British natural gas firm, for $70 billion.
GE sold $26 billion of its real estate portfolio to Blackstone and Wells Fargo. They also announced they would get out of the banking business by spinning off GE Capital, the finance arm of the conglomerate which accounted for 42% of GE’s profit in 2014. The firm will focus more on its industrial operations. Article
M&A activity is surging driven by increased confidence in the economy, large cash stockpiles, low interest rates and rising stock markets. The total combined value of all merger activity in 2015 is over $1 trillion. The current pace would make it the second biggest year in M&A activity.
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