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).

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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.

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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.

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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.

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America's job gains in July reinforced that the 2015 economy is good but not great.

The U.S. economy added 215,000 jobs in July. Anything above 200,000 is considered to be good.

The unemployment rate stayed the same at 5.3%, which is its lowest point since April 2008. That's considered near full employment.

Wage growth -- the missing piece to America's economic progress -- remained sluggish in July. Average hourly earnings only rose 2.1% compared to the prior year. Wage growth is the reason many Americans haven't felt the benefits of the economy's recovery. The Federal Reserve wants to see annual wage growth closer to 3.5%.

The jobs report is extra important now because the Fed is close to raising its key interest rate for the first time in over nine years. A rate hike would be a good sign for the economy's health, and how far it's come since the recession ended.

Economic growth has been okay this year -- solid but nothing to get excited about. Last year, the economy added 240,000 jobs a month on average between January and July. This year that figure is 178,000 -- a sign that job growth in isn't as stellar.

Still, the economy is still making strides in the right direction.  

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As in every first Friday of the month, today is the NFP announcement.

What is it? It checks the change in the number of employed people during the previous month, excluding the farming industry. Job creation is an important leading indicator of consumer spending, which accounts for a majority of overall economic activity.

When? August 7th at 8:30am Eastern Time.

Trading Tip: If the actual number is higher than the forecast, you can expect the USD to rise.

Don't miss the chance to maximize your results, talk to one of our representatives and start trading now.

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Tomorrow (Friday) the Non-Farm Payrolls will be announced. Here is what you need to know:

Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP) Employment Change - is a vital economic data released shortly after the month ends. The combination of importance and earliness makes for hefty market impacts. Job creation is an important leading indicator of consumer spending, which accounts for a majority of overall economic activity. Change in the number of employed people during the previous month, excluding the farming industry.

The Announcement is set to make big impact on trading markets, especially on USD/EURO in FOREX market, and Gold and Silver in the Commodities market. Be prepared to invest early in order to get the best results on your trades. Make sure to speak with one of our representatives to get the help you need.

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On Wall Street, there's skittishness about the Happiest Place on Earth.

Disney shares fell nearly 9% when the market opened on Wednesday morning amid deep concerns about the company's most profitable enterprise, ESPN.

Before the drop, Disney had been the best performer in the Dow this year. And the stock is still up 20% in 2015.

But when the company posted mixed second quarter results on Tuesday, the focus was on ESPN, which is being pinched by changes in consumer habits.

Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed that there have been "some subscriber losses" at ESPN because some households have opted for smaller cable packages that don't include the pricey cable channel.

But he said that Nielsen's estimate of the decline -- 3.2 million subscribers in a little more than 12 months -- was overstated. The flagship channel has more than 90 million subscribers overall.

On a conference call with investors on Tuesday, Iger forcefully expressed confidence in ESPN's future, and he reiterated that view in interviews on Wednesday morning.

On CNBC, he said "we are very bullish" about the cable business.

But investors appear spooked about the possible impact from "cord-cutting" (a term for households dropping cable TV altogether) and "cord-shaving" (households choosing smaller bundles of cable).

ESPN continues to make huge amounts of money through its $6-a-month subscriber fee, but Disney said Tuesday that its year-over-year profits won't be quite as high as it had forecast earlier.

The expectation was for high-single-digit operating profit growth from Disney's cable channels (led by ESPN) and now the forecast is for mid-single-digit growth.

At 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, Disney (DIS) shares were down about 7%. Analysts at Jefferies and BMO Capital downgraded Disney stock.

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BlackBerry has updated the "Passport," their oddball, square smartphone.

Announced Tuesday, the BlackBerry (BBRY, Tech30) Passport Silver Edition is an upgraded version of the BlackBerry Passport, released in late 2014. 

The Silver Edition has a 4.5" square screen, 13 MP camera and the latest BlackBerry operating system -- the same as the original Passport. But a closer look tells you why this BlackBerry isn't going to make you yawn and move on.

The Waterloo, Ontario-based firm has been listening to its customers and implementing subtle but necessary changes.

"We strive to deliver products that combine cutting-edge technology with purposeful, globally recognized design, and the BlackBerry Passport Silver Edition is the latest manifestation of this vision," Scott Wenger, Global Head of Design at BlackBerry, said in the press release.

BlackBerry claims that the design improvements make communication easier.

"It brings together BlackBerry's latest OS platform, enhanced productivity features, and a refined industrial design based on customer and user feedback to deliver an unmatched experience for professionals who value precision and focus," Wenger said.

A new stainless steel body adds strength and durability. A textured back and rounded bottom edges that don't jab you when you type will go a long way with BlackBerry fans.

And if you feel as strongly about a physical keyboard as Kim Kardashian does, you're still in luck. The physical tap-tap-tap is here to stay. The trackpad capability across the improved keyboard is ideal for those who resent touchscreens.

Makers of this business-phone have made smart changes. With every enhancement, BlackBerry hit two birds with one stone: aesthetics and functionality.

Don’t write off BlackBerry yet, this new smartphone could help them compete with the big players in the market.

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Instagram has switched on its advertising API (application programming interface). It's a major move for the Facebook-owned photo-sharing app that will almost immediately help transform it into a major mobile advertising business to rival Google and Twitter.

The third-party partners now plugging their software into the API made a coordinated announcement about their involvement on Tuesday morning.

By opening up an API to partners, marketers can now — for the first time — start buying Instagram ads and planning their Instagram marketing in a more automated fashion, alongside their other digital ad buys on Facebook or Twitter.

Before, buying Instagram ads was an exceptional case in the media plan that required contacting an Instagram sales representative directly. That meant Instagram advertising was mostly limited to those willing to make big investments in both budget and time. Starting soon all advertisers can plan Instagram campaigns alongside their other digital ads and cross-promote, schedule, and monitor their Instagram marketing activity — including photos that aren't paid-for ads — across other social networks, all in a self-serve fashion, using third-party platforms.

The Instagram Ads API is the latest in a series of moves the platform has made to start opening up the money jets. Back in June, alongside announcing the API test, Instagram announced that all of Facebook's ad-targeting tools will be opened up to Instagram advertisers. In the same month it also launched "Shop Now" buttons and other messages for advertisers to link outside the app. And earlier this year Instagram introduced "carousel ads," allowing marketers to fit more images into one single ad.

Analysts and researchers are extremely bullish about the potential for Instagram to become a major advertising business. EMarketer predicts Instagram is on track to generate $595 million in advertising revenue this year, and by 2017 it will be on track to surpass Google and Twitter in terms of US mobile display ad revenues.

In a research note published last month, analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch predicted Instagram's ad revenues could reach near $1 billion in 2017, rising to as much as $3.86 billion by 2020.

An Instagram representative said: "The Instagram Ads API will help us make ads more relevant to the community, serve more diverse business objectives, and make buying on the platform easier for advertisers. We started working with a group of Facebook Marketing Partners a few weeks ago and they've brought great experience and technological savvy onto the platform. We'll continue to build upon the Instagram Ads API in the coming weeks and months."

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Puerto Rico doesn't have enough money to pay its bills. It went into default for the first time in its history on Monday. Now it's running out of water too. Literally.

A drought has forced the island's government to ration water. It's become so bad that the government is actually turning off tap water in people's homes, sometimes for days at a time. The main tourist areas, however, are exempt for now.

It's easy to blame this problem on the hot, dry weather, but Puerto Ricans say that isn't the only culprit. They believe the government has mismanaged the island's water supply and pipes for years.

Juan Camacho's home will have running water for a day and then no water at all for the following two days. He lives in Trujillo Alto, a town that is a mere 13 miles from downtown San Juan, the capital.

When the water comes back on, many Puerto Ricans like Camacho keep the faucets running for hours, filling up cans, bowls and bins with water.

Camacho, a social activist, says the government has poorly maintained the local reservoir in his area, causing dirt to get in the reservoir, thus making the water undrinkable.

"We have a big drought problem," says Camacho, 68. "We are saving water -- not just for drinking -- but for bathing and other fundamental things."

In 1994, the island went through a similar water crisis. Puerto Ricans hoarded water then like they are now. Buckets of water sitting in a hot, tropical climate gave birth to mosquitoes, which sparked a Dengue fever outbreak.

Maritza Stanchich remembers it well. She got Dengue fever in 1994. It was one of the worst experiences of her life. The government imposed water rations today make her concerned that another Dengue outbreak could ensue.

A professor at the University of Puerto Rico, Stanchich isn't affected by the water rations since her San Juan neighborhood is a tourist hot spot. Still, she's helping out friends who get their water turned off.

"I've offered showers to some of my friends in the area," says Stanchich.

It's another major problem in a summer of sad news for Puerto Rico. Add on the default, an economy spiraling out of control and concerns about Congress lowering Medicare funding to the island, and it's easy to understand why Puerto Ricans are leaving in a mass exodus.

"This is a perfect storm in the worst sense of the word," says Stanchich.

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Shares in Greek banks crashed 30% Monday as trading resumed on the Athens stock exchange for the first time since the country was nearly forced to abandon the euro last month.

The benchmark index in Athens opened nearly 23% lower, with banking stocks the biggest losers. The country's four biggest lenders -- Piraeus (BPIRF), Alpha Bank (ALBKF), the National Bank of Greece (NBG) and Eurobank all plunged 30% -- the daily limit -- immediately after the open.

Stocks in other sectors recovered slightly during the morning but the index was still down by more than 16% by early afternoon.

Greece suspended all trading at the end of June when the country fell into default on its debt. Capital controls were introduced, including the closure of banks and financial markets, to prevent billions of euros from flooding out of the country. ATM withdrawals were limited to 60 euros ($66) per day.

The banks reopened on July 20 -- with some restrictions -- after Europe agreed in principle to a new bailout. But the shutdown caused large parts of the economy to seize up.

The extended closure had a devastating effect on Greek factories, where activity slumped to its lowest level on record in July. There was a huge drop in new orders, and many companies were forced to limit operations because they didn't have the cash to pay for supplies abroad.

The European Commission expects Greece's economy to shrink by 4% this year. Latest available data show unemployment was 25.6% in June. Massive cash withdrawals by account holders in the first half of the year, and the economy's collapse back into recession has left Greek banks in a dire state.

They are relying on emergency cash from the European Central Bank to stay afloat. Europe's new $96 billion bailout plan includes 25 billion euros ($26.7 billion) to repair the banks' finances.

But even with the bailout, investors are bracing themselves for huge losses as they may have to contribute to the rescue of the banks.

That's because Greece was required to adopt European Union rules on restructuring banks as part of the new bailout agreement. These rules are designed to place more of the burden of bank rescues on investors and major depositors rather than taxpayers.

Greece urgently needs money before August 20, when it must make a payment to the ECB if it wants to stay in the euro. Europe has already provided Greece with 7.16 billion euros in a bridging loan. Some analysts say Greece might need another emergency loan if details of the bailout deal are not agreed on time.

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03

Aug

How Uber fought City Hall...and won

The company has closed a new round of funding of nearly $1 billion and is now the most valuable startup in the world.

Congratulations, people of Beijing! You have just won the 2022 Winter Olympics bid. Now, prepare to be disappointed: The costs will be higher and the benefits lower than you think.

The prospect of hosting the Olympics, winter or summer has lost its appeal in recent years as budgets skyrocketed and economic windfalls failed to materialize.

Two events in particular have spooked potential host cities. Russia is thought to have spent an incredible $50 billion on the Sochi Olympics - the most expensive in history. China dropped at least $40 billion on the 2008 Beijing Summer Games.

Concerns over runaway spending wreaked havoc on bidding for 2022, forcing the International Olympic Committee to make changes to the process. Never again, analysts say, does the committee want to be faced with a choice between just two cities, both with major drawbacks.

Beijing suffers from a lack of snow, and air pollution could pose a problem. China will also host some events at Zhangjiakou, about 125 miles from the capital. But it should be able to save some money because it invested so heavily in infrastructure for the 2008 Olympics.

Almaty offered a more compact competition area, and its people have a genuine affinity for winter sports -- but the city is not well known. Both countries are ruled by autocratic governments, and frequently criticized by human rights groups.

It was a final pairing Olympics officials were surely hoping to avoid. In addition to Beijing and Almaty, the initial field consisted of Krakow, Poland; Stockholm, Sweden; Lviv, Ukraine; and Oslo, Norway.

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Facebook just built a gigantic solar-powered drone that will stay in the stratosphere for months at a time, beaming broadband Internet to rural and hard-to-reach areas.

The drone, called Aquila, is the baby of Facebook's (FB, Tech30) year-old Connectivity Lab. The lab has been developing new technology as part of the social network's mission to "connect everybody in the world."

Four billion people don't have access to the Internet, and 10% of the world's population lacks the necessary infrastructure to get online. To reach these people, Facebook is working on drones, satellites, lasers and terrestrial Internet technology.

On Thursday, Facebook announced it had finished construction on its first full-sized drone and announced other project milestones. The team's researchers say they've found a way to use lasers to deliver data speeds from the drones ten times faster than the industry standard.

Facebook has been working on the Aquila for a year, building off of technology it acquired when it bought UK drone company Ascenta in 2014. The solar-powered unmanned aircraft is designed to fly far above commercial airspace and weather, and to stay in the air for three months at a time. It could give Internet access to people located in a 50-mile radius on the ground.

"It's sort of like a backbone of Internet using lasers in the sky, that's the dream we have," said Yael Maguire, the engineering director of Facebook's Connectivity Lab.

Aquila hasn't taken flight yet, but the UK-based team has done flight testing on a number of scale models. Over the next six months, the group will run structural and other tests and eventually take it for its first test flight. The technology is years away from being used in the field -- Facebook doesn't yet have an exact timeline.

The Aquila drone looks like a giant v-shaped boomerang. It's 140-feet in diameter -- about the same wingspan as a Boeing 737 -- and covered in solar cells. It is made of light carbon fiber that is two to three times stronger than steel when cured. It will weigh around 880 pounds when fully outfitted with motors, batteries and communications equipment. The Aquila will be launched by tethering it to a helium balloon and floating it straight past the weather and commercial airspace.

During the day, it will cruise in circles at 90,000 feet, soaking up solar power. At night, it will save energy by drifting down to 60,000 feet. Though current regulations require one pilot on the ground for each drone, Facebook hopes to design the Aquila so it can fly without a dedicated pilot.

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Facebook is keeping its good form.

At the end of June, nearly 1.5 billion people used Facebook (FB, Tech30) at least once a month, the company reported on Wednesday. That's more than any other technology product in the world, including Microsoft's notorious Windows operating system.

This tremendous size has allowed Facebook to build a ton of new features that capitalize on all the data it has on its users -- primarily by selling targeted ads. During the second quarter, Facebook's ad sales topped $3.8 billion, 43% growth from a year ago.

The success story was even bigger for Facebook's mobile ad business, where revenue rose 62% to $2.9 billion. That is an impressive number considering none of its sales came from phones as recently as three years ago.

Facebook's continued and steady growth comes as rival Twitter (TWTR, Tech30) has hit a wall. On Tuesday, Twitter's interim CEO Jack Dorsey explained that user growth was slowing because people remain clueless about why they need Twitter.

Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook's founder and CEO, credited the success to an easy to understand mission, and features that support the mission.

On the earnings call, he told investors that Facebook is all about letting people communicate with their friends and family, which is "very fundamental."

Investors have been bullish about the company because they see so much untapped potential in the massive user base and the platform's messaging tools. Facebook did not disappoint them with its second quarter performance, as it beat earnings and growth expectations. In addition, profit was up 28% to $1.4 billion.  

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Windows 10 marks a "new era" for personal computing, Microsoft's chief executive has said.

The software, launched globally on Wednesday, is the company's attempt to reverse its fortunes in the mobile industry. Windows 10 will be offered as a free upgrade to most consumers.

However, companies will have to pay for their version, as will PC-makers to pre-install it. Analysts say the strategy is designed to speed adoption.

Speaking exclusively to BBC News, Satya Nadella said: "Windows 10 is a huge milestone for us as a company, and quite frankly the industry."

Microsoft is staggering the release over several weeks, so not everyone will be able to get the upgrade on the launch day.

Microsoft has until now released a new version of Windows every few years. Windows 10 will be the last launch of this kind, the company said - from here on it will gradually update the software for free over months and years.

Mr Nadella said he hoped features like digital personal assistant Cortana - comparable to Apple's Siri, and Google Now - would set Windows 10 apart.

"If you think about our history in technology, we've had concepts that have changed how people have interacted with their computing resources.

"One of them was a graphical user interface, the second was the browser and the web. I think of Cortana as the third platform."

Speaking about possible privacy concerns, Mr Nadella took aim at companies like Google who use data to sell advertising.

"One of the foundational pieces of making anything more personal is trust," he said.

"We're not trying to sell you advertising, we're trying to in fact sell you software or devices so you as a user can trust it, that it's working on your behalf.

"I as a consumer may want to sometimes trade off my data to get a free service, and that's ok. But it's the other users of that same data - that is where trust matters.

"I absolutely want Microsoft to be trustworthy. How consumers make choices between companies, I'll leave it to them."

It's mandatory to keep a close eye on Microsoft stock following the release of their new software update. 

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Move over Toyota! Volkswagen winning global sales race

Volkswagen has stolen Toyota's crown to become the world's top carmaker by sales, at least for the year so far.

Data on vehicles sold by the companies during the first six months of 2015 show the German automaker nudged out its Japanese rival to claim the top spot.

Volkswagen (VLKAF) sold 5.04 million vehicles from January to June, a slight dip from a year earlier. That compares to 5.02 million sold by Toyota (TM) over the same period. Group sales dropped 1.5% due to a weaker performance by its Toyota and Daihatsu brands.

Automakers are being challenged by softening conditions in markets like China and Russia, and Volkswagen is cautious about the outlook.

The carmaker, which also owns the Audi (AUDVF) and Porsche (POAHY) brands, described its performance so far this year as "satisfactory" in a difficult environment.

Sales in China -- Volkswagen's largest single market -- dropped nearly 4% in the first half of the year. North America was brighter, where sales climbed 6%.

Toyota also increased production in the U.S. But it's faced other challenges in recent months.

Toyota is among a number of auto firms swept up in a massive recall over possibly faulty airbags. The automaker has recalled millions of vehicles globally on fears Takata airbags installed may explode and send shrapnel flying at drivers and passengers.

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Another massive blow for China's stock market.

China's Shanghai Composite index shed 8.5% on Monday, a bone-rattling decline that raises questions about the government's ability to prevent a crash.

Beijing managed to stabilize markets with a dramatic rescue in late June and early July, intervening in a number of ways to limit losses for investors. But the crisis has now resumed: Monday's fall was the biggest daily percentage decline since 2007.

The vast majority of companies listed in Shanghai, including many large state-owned firms, fell by the maximum daily limit of 10%. Losses in Shanghai, and on the smaller Shenzhen Composite index, accelerated into the close. Shenzhen, which is heavy on tech stocks, closed down 7%.

China's stock markets have been extremely volatile this year. The first signs of trouble came in June, after the Shanghai Composite peaked at more than 5,100 points, a gain of roughly 150% over the previous 12 months. When the bubble burst, the index lost 32% of its value in just 18 trading sessions.

Beijing reacted forcefully. The People's Bank of China cut interest rates to a record low, regulators suspended new market listings, and threatened to throw short sellers in jail.

The country's market regulator, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, organized the purchase of shares using cash supplied by the central bank. Companies were allowed to suspend their own shares -- at one point 50% of all listed stocks were frozen.

Following the intervention, markets enjoyed two weeks of relative calm before Monday's trading session.

Yating Xu, an economist at IHS Global Insight, said the severe stock market decline could pile more pressure on company profits in the months ahead, requiring further intervention by the government to support growth:

"Poor profit growth indicates persistent weak domestic demand in China, and adds pressure in reaching some kind of stabilization in the second half [of 2015]."

"More targeted stimulus, especially fiscal policy, may still be expected to support China's infrastructure investments in the coming months." 

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Ferrari's better, faster supercar!

Ferrari is revving its engine ahead of its planned New York stock market debut.

Parent company Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCAM) announced Thursday it will spin-off the luxury car manufacturer and list shares on the New York Stock Exchange.

An IPO is expected by early 2016, according to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The sportscar maker is reportedly aiming for a market value of "at least" 10 billion euros ($11 billion).

Fiat Chrysler said as much as 10% of Ferrari's shares will be up for grabs, but it hasn't released details about the number of shares that will be offered or the price range.

Ferrari makes some of the most exclusive cars in the world and has historically capped production at 7,000 vehicles per year to ensure demand always outstrips supply. Some customers wait years for the delivery of their new vehicle.

This strategy has made the Ferrari brand one of the most valuable in the world.

However, Ferrari has begun expanding its production a tad -- delivering 7,255 cars last year -- to ensure its waiting list doesn't get out of control.

Ferrari reported 2.8 billion euros ($3 billion) in sales last year, resulting in a profit of 265 million euros ($290 million).

The plan is to completely split Ferrari from Fiat Chrysler within the next year.

The son of Ferrari's founder -- Piero Ferrari -- is expected to maintain his 10% stake in the firm.

Fiat Chrysler also owns the Maserati, Jeep and Dodge brands.

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