BUSINESS NEWS MARCH 8TH, 2016
OIL DROP, CHINA DATA DRAG WALL STREET LOWER
U.S. stocks ended near the lows of the day on Tuesday as energy shares tumbled alongside the price of oil and soft Chinese trade data rekindled fears that the global economy is weaker than anticipated. U.S. crude futures CLc1 fell more than 4 percent in post-settlement trading, in their largest daily decline since bottoming so far for the year on Feb. 11. Since that low, the U.S. barrel of crude rose as much as 45.5 percent. Despite the rebound in crude prices, oversupply and expectations of weak demand from China have weighed on investor sentiment.
WALL STREET WISHES THE BULLISH STOCK MARKET A HAPPY BIRTHDAY
TWednesday marks the seven-year anniversary of the start of the current bull market for U.S. stocks, one that has shaped up to be more notable for its duration than its intensity. The current bull run of 84 months is the third-longest on record, with the average lasting slightly less than 59 months, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices. Though also above average, the gains are somewhat less impressive, with the S&P 500 stock index .SPX up 193 percent, fifth among 13 bull markets since the Great Depression.
EX-JPMORGAN ADVISER GETS FIVE YEARS IN PRISON FOR EMBEZZLING $20 MILLION
A former JPMorgan Chase & Co investment adviser was sentenced to five years in prison on Tuesday after admitting that he stole at least $20 million from client accounts to fund a gambling addiction and to trade in stock options. Michael Oppenheim, 49, was also ordered by U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres to forfeit almost $20.2 million and pay restitution to JPMorgan after pleading guilty in November to charges of embezzlement and securities fraud. According to U.S. prosecutors and securities regulators, Oppenheim worked with about 500 wealthy clients as a vice president and private client adviser in JPMorgan's midtown Manhattan offices.
2015 PRESCRIPTION DRUG SPEND ACROSS THE US ROSE TO $457 BILLION
Spending on prescription drugs is projected to have risen to $457 billion in 2015 and will likely continue to grow as a percentage of overall healthcare spending, a U.S. government health agency said on Tuesday. The agency also proposed a test program that would change the way that Medicare compensates doctors who administer drugs in their offices as a way to try to cut drug spending. It said that Medicare Part B generally pays physicians the average sales price of a drug, plus 6 percent. The new model would test a payment of 2.5 percent plus a flat fee payment of $16.80 per drug per day.