Stephen F. Austin forward Nathan Bain (23) and guard David Kachelries (4) celebrate Bain’s game winning basket against Duke in overtime of an NCAA college basketball game in Durham, N.C., Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019. With a breakaway layup at the overtime buzzer, Stephen F. Austin pulled off a shocker for the ages and did what no team outside the ACC had done in almost 20 years — topple mighty Duke at home. 1 Duke lost its grip on everything: The ball, the game, its prized home-court winning streak a

Continued low mortgage rates are keeping bankers busy, as refinance applications continue to rise. Refinance volume helped push total mortgage application volume up 1.5% last week compared with the previous week. This week’s annual comparisons are skewed, however, because last year the Thanksgiving holiday fell one week earlier, so these results are being measured against a holiday week. Annual comparisons are also widening because mortgage rates are so much lower now than they were a year ago.

U.S. stock index futures were slightly higher Wednesday morning. ET, Dow futures dipped 3 points but indicated a positive open of more than 30 points. Futures on the S&P and Nasdaq were both marginally higher. Trump’s upbeat comments on trade followed a phone call between officials from the U.S. and China on Tuesday. The positive market sentiment helped to push major averages on Wall Street to record highs in the previous session.

U.S. government debt prices were slightly lower Wednesday morning as traders monitored fresh economic data and developments in the U.S.-China trade war. At 02:00 a.m. ET, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves inversely to price, was higher at around 1.7414%, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was also higher at around 2.1782%. Market players have been monitoring trade developments between the U.S. and China with mixed messages about the prospect of the two count

Cloud of smoke from an explosion on the footbridge on the drive way in front of Hong Kong Coliseum and Hong Kong harbour during the protests. A major tunnel in Hong Kong reopened on Wednesday as a week-long police siege of a nearby university appeared to be winding down, closing one of the more violent chapters in the city’s anti-government protests. “Let me just stress that after these five-six months, Hong Kong people have realized very clearly that Hong Kong could no longer tolerate this chao

A Chinese flag floats in the middle of traditional lanterns on February 17, 2018 in Beijing, China. China raised $6 billion in its biggest ever international sovereign bond sale on Tuesday, as it pounced on the year’s sharp dive in borrowing costs. A 3-year issue priced 35 basis points above benchmark U.S. Treasuries, a source at one of the managing banks said. A 5-year bond priced at 40 bps above Treasuries, a 10-year at 50 bps above Treasuries and a 20-year tranche at 70 bps above Treasuries,

A pedestrian holding an umbrella walks past the Tokyo Stock Exchange, operated by Japan Exchange Group, in Tokyo, Japan, on Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2017. An expected recovery in Japanese corporate earnings will drive their stock prices higher, predicted Morgan Stanley, UBS and Nomura. Such anticipation has resulted in a recent rally in Japanese stocks. Nomura predicted the two indexes will climb to 25,000 and 1,850, respectively, by the end of 2020. “Japanese stocks have been shown to have a strong

Manchester City’s Spanish midfielder David Silva (R) celebrates during the English Premier League football match in England on April 13, 2014. The owner of English Premier League champions Manchester City is selling a $500 million stake to private equity firm Silver Lake, valuing the soccer club’s owner at $4.8 billion, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing people with knowledge of the deal. The deal was signed on Saturday by CFG Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak and Silver Lake managing

Even in modern Japan, crowds still flock to see the biggest and best in the sport, with sumo wrestlers like Hakuho and Kakuryu established as household names. JIJI PRESS | AFP | Getty ImagesElite sumo is focused on six annual 15-day grand sumo tournaments. A sumo wrestler’s chignon is secured before a summer special event in Tokyo, Japan. A sumo wrestler picks up a handful of salt to throw into the ring before his bout. It opens at 9:30 a.m and is an especially good option for killing time after

Profits at China’s industrial firms shrank at their fastest pace in eight months in October, tracking sustained drops in producer prices and exports and underscoring slowing momentum in the world’s second-largest economy. Industrial profits fell 9.9% in October year-on-year to 427.56 billion yuan ($60.74 billion), data released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Wednesday, marking the biggest drop since January-February period and compared with a 5.3% decline in September. China’s in

STR | AFP | Getty ImagesAsia is “unable to feed itself” — and needs to invest another $800 billion in the next 10 years to produce more food and meet the region’s needs, according to a report. The population in Asia is growing, and consumers are demanding safer, healthier, and more sustainable food. Food spending will more than double — from $4 trillion in 2019 to over $8 trillion by 2030, said the Asia Food Challenge Report which was released last week. Richard Skinner PwCThat means Asia relies

Hong Kong-listed shares of Chinese tech giant Alibaba saw yet another stellar trading day following a blockbuster Tuesday listing in the city. Alibaba stock in Hong Kong rose 2.99% on Wednesday, adding to its first day gains of 6.6% on Tuesday. That puts the current stock price around 9.6% above the initial listing price of 176 Hong Kong dollars (approx. “Investors are jumping all over it in Hong Kong,” James Gerrish, portfolio manager at Shaw and Partners, told CNBC’s “Capital Connection” on We

President Donald Trump (L) shakes hand with China’s President Xi Jinping at the end of a press conference at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on November 9, 2017. Chinese President Xi Jinping has had a “horrible couple weeks” politically — and he’s not likely to sign a “phase one” trade deal with U.S. President Donald Trump without any roll back in existing tariffs, one expert said. Any trade deal between the two countries “needs to be a win-win,” Okun said, and delaying new tariffs may n

The pan-European Stoxx 600 added just over 0.1% in early trade, basic resources leading the way with 0.8% gains while travel and leisure stocks slid 0.4% lower. The European blue chip index notched a four-year high at the start of the session. In Asia, markets climbed on the back of optimism around trade, with the MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan up 0.2%. In corporate news, Reuters reports that Lufthansa is in final talks to complete the sale of its European catering op

Still, its rivals made no delay in using the company’s misfortune as an opportunity. “London needs ride-hailing, but we don’t need Uber,” declared French ride-hailing app Kapten, which launched in the city earlier this year. “We believe it is the duty of a responsible ride-hailing operator to work cooperatively with regulators,” said Bolt, another newcomer in London. Some of Uber’s younger competitors say that a key edge they have over the company is their lower prices. Both Bolt and Kapten came

Tesla co-founder and CEO Elon Musk stands in front of the shattered windows of the newly unveiled all-electric battery-powered Tesla’s Cybertruck at Tesla Design Center in Hawthorne, California on November 21, 2019. Tesla CEO Elon Musk suggested late Tuesday that his company had now received 250,000 pre-orders for the Cybertruck, its “Blade Runner”-inspired electric pickup. However, what Musk meant by orders and what most people would think he means are two different things. Tesla is only taking

Voters stand in line outside a polling station during the District Council election in the Lam Tin district of Hong Kong, China, on Sunday, Nov. 24, 2019. Hong Kong — a former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997 — has been plagued by months of anti-government protests. The Chinese territory operates under the “one country, two systems” framework which grants Hong Kong self-governing power and various freedoms, including limited election rights. The Chinese Communist Party’s Pe

Shares in Asia were set to trade higher at the open following fresh record highs touched on Wall Street overnight. Futures pointed to a higher open for Japanese stocks. The Nikkei futures contract in Chicago was at 23,450 while its counterpart in Osaka was at 23,410 — both indicated a higher open for the Nikkei 225 which last closed at 23,373.32. Meanwhile, shares in Australia rose in early trade, with the S&P/ASX 200 up about 0.12%. The markets have gotten a lift in recent days amid positive rh

Arpaia, along with Geoffrey Zakarian, and Junior’s Cheesecake owner Alan Rosen, have all managed thrive in a business that is not for the faint of heart. ‘Go where you’re uncomfortable’Alan Rosen is the third-generation owner of Junior’s Cheesecake, an iconic New York City family restaurant chain. “Any business you’re in where you need a skill set that maybe you’re not so great at, go get that skill set. Any business you’re in where you need a skill set that maybe you’re not so great at, go get

Asian central banks will continue to be dovish in 2020: KapstreamRaymond Lee of Kapstream says growth in Asia is slowing and central banks such as the Reserve Bank of Australia, Reserve Bank of India and Bank of Korea are likely to remain dovish and cut rates.