(Reuters) – The spate of regulatory investigations into wealth managers’ cash sweep programs could hurt their credit ratings, Moody’s warned on Thursday, underscoring the threat to the high-margin business for firms like Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo. WHY IT’S IMPORTANT A potential ratings downgrade would increase the costs for wealth managers at a time when worries about the economy are growing, with some forecasting a downturn due to the tight monetary policy. CONTEXT Cash sweep … Read more…

(Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Friday after the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq logged six-session winning streaks, as a spate of encouraging economic data fueled a broad rebound led by heavyweight tech and growth stocks. The benchmark index has recovered from a pullback earlier this month caused by a dour U.S. jobs report and the yen carry trade as better-than-expected data calmed nerves over a sharp slowdown in the world’s largest … Read more…

By Nandita Bose and Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris’s economic agenda will focus on lowering the cost of groceries, housing and healthcare, bolstering the child tax credit and drawing a contrast with Republican Donald Trump on tariffs and taxes, aides and advisers said. Harris, the U.S. vice president, plans to lay out some details of her economic plan in a speech in North Carolina on Friday that will touch on … Read more…

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Investors are watching quarterly filings on Wednesday to get a glimpse at how some of the world’s biggest money managers were positioned at the end of the second quarter, a period marked by a series of record highs in the S&P 500 that preceded a more recent bout of turmoil in U.S. stocks. Filed at the end of each quarter, the 13-F filings are one of the few ways to get … Read more…

By Harshita Mary Varghese (Reuters) – Shares of former U.S. President Donald Trump’s media company dipped and neared record lows on Wednesday, following weak quarterly results and the Republican presidential candidate’s return to social media platform X. Trump’s dwindling lead in polls and election betting markets in recent weeks has also hit the stock, which has been seen by some retail traders as a bet on whether Trump would win a second term. Trump majority … Read more…

By Mike Spector NEW YORK (Reuters) – Johnson & Johnson is preparing to unveil widespread support in coming days for a $6.48 billion offer to settle tens of thousands of legal actions alleging its Baby Powder and other talc products caused cancer, two people familiar with the matter said.  The healthcare giant plans as soon as Friday to disclose that 75% or more of claimants alleging J&J talc sickened them have voted in favor of … Read more…

By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. consumer prices rose moderately in July and the annual increase in inflation slowed to below 3% for the first time in nearly 3-1/2 years, opening the door wider for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates next month. The report from the Labor Department on Wednesday marked the third straight month of tame consumer price readings and added to a mild rise in producer prices last month in … Read more…