Greece and its international lenders reached an 85 billion-euro bailout agreement on Tuesday after talking through the night, officials said, saving the country from financial ruin and raising hopes it can make a major debt repayment next week.

After a 23-hour session that began Monday morning, exhausted Greek officials emerged in a central Athens hotel to announce the two sides had agreed on terms of the three-year agreement barring a couple of minor issues that were being ironed out.

"Finally, we have white smoke," a finance ministry official said. "An agreement has been reached."

Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos confirmed only "two or three small issues" were pending. Greek shares rose, with the banking index surging 6 percent, while two-year bond yields fell more than 4 percentage points.

The deal reached by creditor institutions still needs political approval from euro zone member countries.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker would hold talks later on Tuesday with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande, commission spokeswoman Annika Breidhardt said in Brussels.

"The institutions and the Greek authorities achieved an agreement in principle on a technical basis. Now as a next step, a political assessment will be made."

An agreement would close a painful chapter of aid talks for Greece, which fought against austerity terms demanded by creditors for much of the year before relenting under the threat of being bounced out of the euro zone.

After a deal in principle last month on keeping Greece in the euro, the latest round of talks began in Athens three weeks ago to craft an agreement covering details of reform measures, the timeline for their implementation and the amount of aid needed.

A Greek Finance Ministry official said the pact would be worth up to 85 billion euros $94 billion) in fresh loans over three years. Greek banks would get 10 billion euros immediately and would be recapitalized by the end of the year. (Reuters).

 

 

 

Ask us about our FREE financial advice program: ChatButton

 

Other Top Stories:

Will Twitter's Share Crash?

Technical Analysis Lesson 1 - Introduction

How I Made Over $30,000 a Year by Investing in Binary Options

 

Follow us and SHARE this story on Facebook:   

 

 

 

 

Google announced a corporate restructuring on Monday, forming an umbrella company called Alphabet and naming a new CEO to the core business of Google.

Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin will run Alphabet -- Page as CEO and Brin as president.

The company, which was founded in 1998 and went public in 2004, announced its new operating structure in a blog post on Monday called "G is for Google."

They also said that Sundar Pichai is taking over as CEO of Google. Pichai has worked at Google since 2004, most recently as the senior vice president of product. Pichai has also been the most visible Google executive of late, giving the keynote at Google's annual developers conference earlier this year.

Alphabet will operate as the parent company for a number of smaller companies, including Google, which will continue to focus on Internet products. Android, YouTube, search and ads will remain part of Google Inc.

Other departments spinning off into their own sub-companies including research focused Life Sciences (Google contact lenses), the Google X lab (driverless cars, Google Glass, drone delivery), Calico (increasing longevity), and the company's robotics division. Google Ventures and Google Capital will also become independent Alphabet companies.

The Alphabet companies will retain their current leadership. Nest will be led by Tony Fadell, Sidewalk Labs by Dan Doctoroff, and Calico by Arthur Levinson. YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki will now report to Pichai.

Brin will continue to head up Google X in addition to his role as president of Alphabet. Eric Schmidt will become Alphabet's executive chairman.

"We are not intending for this to be a big consumer brand with related products -- the whole point is that Alphabet companies should have independence and develop their own brands," said Page in the announcement.

Page said the companies would all retain a great deal of independence and be run by strong CEOs.

The new stand-alone companies will have more freedom to take risks. They can continue to invest in experimental projects like driverless cars without interference from other units at the company, or investors worrying about the company wasting too much time and energy.

 

 

 

 

 

Ask us about our FREE financial advice program: ChatButton

 

Other Top Stories:

Will Twitter's Share Crash?

Technical Analysis Lesson 1 - Introduction

How I Made Over $30,000 a Year by Investing in Binary Options

 

Follow us and SHARE this story on Facebook:   

 

 

 

 

This is a big deal, even in Warren Buffett terms.

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway said Monday it agreed to spend $37.2 billion for Precision Castparts -- the most it has ever paid for a company.

Precision Castparts (PCP) makes parts for aircraft makers, power companies and other industrial companies. Among its notable customers are General Electric, Boeing and Airbus.

"I've admired [Precision Castparts'] operation for a long time. For good reasons, it is the supplier of choice for the world's aerospace industry, one of the largest sources of American exports," Buffett said in a statement.

Berkshire already held a 3% stake in the company, valued at more than $880 million. The $37 billion price tag includes assumption of Precision Castparts' debt. Berkshire's $235 a share price represents a 21% premium over its Friday closing price.

But shares of Precision had been down nearly 20% for the year, making it attractive to a value investor such as Buffett. Shares of Precision Castparts soared 19% in premarket trading on the news Monday.

Buffett has not been shy about making big acquisitions in recent years.

"Berkshire is now a sprawling conglomerate, constantly trying to sprawl further," Buffett wrote in a February letter to shareholders.

In 2013, it teamed up with hedge fund 3G Capital to acquire H.J. Heinz. This year, Heinz merged with Kraft to form Kraft Heinz. Berkshire's stake in the combined company is worth nearly $26 billion.

The acquisition would add to the list of brands Berkshire already owns and operates, including Fruit of the Loom, Dairy Queen and Geico. Berkshire Hathaway also invests in well-known names like Wells Fargo, Coca-Cola and IBM.

  

 

 

 

 

Ask us about our FREE financial advice program: ChatButton

 

Other Top Stories:

Will Twitter's Share Crash?

Technical Analysis Lesson 1 - Introduction

How I Made Over $30,000 a Year by Investing in Binary Options

 

Follow us and SHARE this story on Facebook:   

 

 

 

 

Apple will most likely debut its new generation of iPhones on Wednesday, September 9.

The new phone is expected to feature enhancements including the force touch display, a better camera and a faster processor.

Apple may also unveil a new version of the iPad -- a 12.9-inch "Pro" model, according to a report by John Paczkowski of BuzzFeed.

A company spokesman declined to comment.

Apple unveiled the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus a year ago on the same date, and for the past three years, Apple has made phone announcements in early to mid-September.

Analysts will be watching to see if the new models will help reboot Apple's biggest revenue driver.

The company recently reported that iPhone sales have been lower than expected. It also released a less bullish outlook on future sales than what analysts had been predicting.

One big concern about the phone's continued success is Apple (AAPL, Tech30)'s position in China, where it's been losing ground. The country has become an increasingly important market for Apple over the past few years -- accounting for more than 25% of the company's total sales in its most recent quarter.

Tech research firm Canalys reported earlier this week that Apple, which had the smartphone market share lead in China during the first quarter, slipped to third in the second quarter.

It's now trailing Chinese tech companies Xiaomi and Huawei.

 

 

 

Ask us about our FREE financial advice program: ChatButton

 

Other Top Stories:

Will Twitter's Share Crash?

Technical Analysis Lesson 1 - Introduction

How I Made Over $30,000 a Year by Investing in Binary Options

 

Follow us and SHARE this story on Facebook:   

 

 

 

Subcategories

Please publish modules in offcanvas position.