U.S. Oil Output To Decline in 2016, OPEC Says

OPEC’s strategy of pumping oil at high levels to squeeze out U.S. production is apparently working as the 12-nation producer group is forecasting that U.S. oil output will decline in 2016 for the first time in eight years.In its monthly October report released Monday, OPEC predicted that U.S. oil...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Oct. 12, 2015

Fed Official Sees Rate Hike This Year as ‘Appropriate’

Recent economic data “give rise to some ambiguity,” but it may still be “appropriate” for the U.S. Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by the end of this year, a top Fed official said in a  speech Friday.Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart compared the speculation about the timing of a rate...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Oct. 9, 2015

Explore the Trendline➔

Tax policy shifts: What CFOs need to know to stay ahead

Discover how evolving tax policies are creating new opportunities and challenges for CFOs.

By CFO.com staff

Criteo and the Cost per Click

“You should never forget that we are a tech company,” insists Benoît Fouilland, the CFO of Criteo, an online advertising company that tries to help its clients get clicks from potential customers.Benoît Fouilland True, he acknowledges, the Paris-based firm’s business is digital “performance marke...

By David Katz • Oct. 2, 2015

U.S. Adds Only 142,000 Jobs in September

The U.S. economy added only 142,000 jobs in September, well below experts’ predictions and possibly pushing an interest-rate hike into next year.Economists surveyed by CNN had forecast a gain of 204,000 jobs. In a report released Friday, the Labor Department also revised down the number of jobs c...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Oct. 2, 2015

U.S. Private Sector Shows Solid Job Growth

The U.S. private sector added 200,000 jobs in September, slightly above consensus expectations and broadly in line with recent trends, according to payroll processor ADP.In its September employment report, ADP said Wednesday that the largest companies fueled most of the growth, adding 109,000 job...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 30, 2015

WTO Slashes 2015 Growth Forecast to 2.8%

The World Trade Organization has forecast world trade will grow 2.8% this year, a downward revision that reflects declining import demand in China, Brazil, and other emerging economies and falling commodities prices.If the WTO’s latest forecast is realized, 2015 will mark the fourth consecutive y...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 30, 2015

Second-Quarter GDP Revised Upward to 3.9%

The U.S. economy grew at an annualized rate of 3.9% in the second quarter, rebounding from a sluggish first quarter amid increased consumer and construction spending.The Commerce Department’s GDP estimate, released Friday, was an upward revision from the 3.7% reported last month. Analysts polled ...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Sept. 25, 2015

2015 Retail Holiday Sales to Increase Moderately

Retail holiday sales this year should increase moderately, but the growth will be slower than the year before due to the “lingering effects” of stagnant wages, according to Deloitte.In its annual sales forecast released Wednesday, Deloitte said total holiday sales are expected to climb to between...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Sept. 23, 2015

Class Action Filings, Market Cap Losses Stay Low

Filings of federal class-action securities lawsuits fell 8% in the first half of 2015, while alleged market capitalization losses remained at historically low levels, according to a recent report.The number of new filings totaled 85, seven fewer than in the last six months of 2014 and 10% below t...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 21, 2015

U.S. Home Resales Fall 4.8% in August

Following three straight months of gains, existing-home sales dipped in August despite slowing price growth and a positive turnaround in the share of sales to first–time buyers, the National Association of Realtors said Monday.Total existing–home sales fell 4.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual ra...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Sept. 21, 2015

Consumer Prices Signal Disinflation Trend

As a critical U.S. Federal Reserve meeting got underway, the Labor Department reported Wednesday that consumer prices fell unexpectedly in August, possibly complicating the central bank’s decision whether to raise interest rates.The Consumer Price Index slipped 0.1% as gasoline prices resumed the...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 16, 2015

Wearable Device Market to Double This Year

The worldwide market for wearable devices will more than double this year, with consumer demand in particular being fueled by smart watches and bands, according to a new survey from IDC.The research firm predicts in its latest Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker that wearable device shipm...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Sept. 14, 2015

Taxi Cab Lenders Lose Suit Over Ride-Sharing

Four credit unions that provide financing to New York City’s iconic yellow cabs have lost a legal challenge to city regulations that allow ride-sharing services such as Uber to pick up passengers who “hail” them.The unions argued that medallions issued by the city give taxi drivers the exclusive ...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Sept. 11, 2015

U.S. Producers to ‘Bear Brunt’ of Oil Price Rout

Non-OPEC oil supply will shrink next year by nearly 500,000 barrels a day — the biggest decline in more than two decades — with U.S. producers “bearing the brunt” of the oil price rout, the International Energy Agency said Friday.U.S. crude prices have rebounded since crashing last month to less ...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Sept. 11, 2015

Haggen Sues Albertsons Over Supermarket Deal

Only seven months after acquiring 146 grocery stores from Albertsons, Haggen has accused the grocery chain of attempting to eliminate it as a competitor by hamstringing its ability to successfully operate the stores.Albertsons divested the stores in January after regulators raised antitrust conce...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 2, 2015

Private Sector Adds 190,000 Jobs in August

Private-sector job growth in the U.S. continues to be strong across the board — except within the energy sector, according to a report released Wednesday by ADP and Moody’s Analytics.Private payrolls rose by 190,000 jobs last month, falling short of the 200,000 increase predicted by economists su...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Sept. 2, 2015

U.S. Oil Output Lower Than Previous Estimate

Using new survey methodology, the U.S. Energy Information Administration on Monday lowered its previous estimate of U.S. oil output.The EIA now estimates that 9.3 million barrels of U.S. crude oil was produced per day in June, a decrease of about 100,000 barrels per day from the revised May 2015 ...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Aug. 31, 2015

Core Capital Goods Orders Up Again In July

A closely watched proxy for business spending plans rose 2.2% in July, its biggest increase since June 2014, the U.S. Commerce Department said Wednesday, bolstering analysts’ expectations that the U.S. economy can withstand global strains.The increase last month in non-defense capital goods order...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Aug. 26, 2015

Ex-JPMorgan Analyst Charged With Insider Trading

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has charged a former JPMorgan Securities investment bank analyst with tipping a college friend to two impending tech mergers as part of an insider trading scheme that netted more than $672,000 in profits.Ashish Aggarwal, 27, learned of the mergers from ...

By Matthew Heller • Aug. 26, 2015

The Sparsely Populated Path from Medical Degree to CFO

Leland Gershell is a doctor twice over, having earned both a medical degree and a PhD in organic chemistry from Columbia University.He’s also a CFO.But Gershell didn’t decide at some point after his scientific training to simply drop what he’d learned and go into finance instead. His career path ...

By David McCann • Aug. 21, 2015

Consumer Prices Rise Slightly in July

While U.S. consumer prices were only slightly up in July, but economists don’t expect low inflation to deter the Federal Reserve from raising interest rates later this year.The Consumer Price Index in July rose 0.1% from the previous month and 0.2% from a year ago, the Labor Department said Wedne...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Aug. 19, 2015

Auto Industry Boosts Manufacturing Output

Improved automotive production fueled a 0.6% increase in industrial output in July, but production elsewhere in the manufacturing sector edged up only 0.1%, according to the U.S. Federal Reserve.The increase in industrial output was the largest gain since November and the second straight increase...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Aug. 14, 2015

Hackers Accused in $100M Insider Trading Scheme

U.S. authorities said Tuesday they had broken up an “unprecedented” cybercrime ring that used information stolen from corporate news services to generate more than $100 million in insider trading profits.A complaint filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission said two Ukrainian men hacked int...

By Matthew Heller • Aug. 12, 2015

Oil Glut to Continue Through 2016

With supplies still growing at “breakneck speed,” the global oil glut will continue though 2016 despite the strongest demand growth in five years, the International Energy Agency predicted Wednesday.While output growth from countries outside OPEC has shrunk from 2014 highs and contributed to the ...

By Katie Kuehner-Hebert • Aug. 12, 2015

How to Get More Value from Mobile Service Workers

To some employees of its customers, Fleetmatics may be viewed as something like Big Brother (that is, the societal-control regime in the Aldous Huxley novel Brave New World, not the current reality television show).The $230 million, publicly held company is in the fleet-management business. It ma...

By David McCann • Aug. 12, 2015