Stocks Fall, Dollar Weakens as U.S. GDP Growth Slows; Gold Reaches Record

Bloomberg

U.S. stock-index futures fell and the Dollar Index dropped to a three-year low as reports showed the economy slowed more than forecast and jobless claims unexpectedly rose. Gold climbed to a record.

Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures declined 0.2 percent at 8:45 a.m. in New York, and the Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained less than 0.1 percent. The Dollar Index retreated for an eighth day, the longest losing streak since March 2009, slipping 0.4 percent to 73.193. Gold jumped to $1,534.05 an ounce and copper rose 0.7 percent...[Full Article]

BP Chief Hayward Sold Shares Weeks Before Oil Spill

Tony Hayward cashed in about a third of his holding in the company one month before a well on the Deepwater Horizon rig burst, causing an environmental disaster.

Mr Hayward, whose pay package is £4 million a year, then paid off the mortgage on his family’s mansion in Kent, which is estimated to be valued at more than £1.2 million.

There is no suggestion that he acted improperly or had prior knowledge that the company was to face the biggest setback in its history.

His decision, however, means he avoided losing more than £423,000 when BP’s share price plunged after the oil spill began six weeks ago.

Since he disposed of 223,288 shares on March 17, the company’s share price has fallen by 30 per cent. About £40 billion has been wiped off its total value. The fall has caused pain not just for BP shareholders, but also for millions of company pension funds and small investors who have money held in tracker funds...

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