Business Briefs – July 20, 2016

Abu Dhabi’s Powerful Wealth Fund Sticks to Long-Term Plan

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority says it is committed to a long-term investment strategy despite a slump in oil prices and concerns about slower economic growth worldwide.

ADIA is based in the United Arab Emirates and is one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds.

ADIA does not disclose the size of its holdings, but said its annualized rate of return in dollar terms over the past 20 years fell to 6.5 percent in 2015, compared with 7.4 percent in 2014.

American Express 2Q Earnings Jump, Helped by Costco Sale

NEW YORK (AP) – American Express said Wednesday that its second-quarter profit jumped 37 percent, helped by the sale of its Costco credit card portfolio and increased spending on its namesake cards.

AmEx sold the Costco portfolio to Citigroup, providing one-time after-tax gain of $677 million for the April-June quarter.

The credit card company said it earned $2.02 billion in the period, or $2.10 per share. The results topped estimates from Wall Street analysts, who were looking for AmEx to earn $1.96 per share.

Morgan Stanley’s Earnings Fall But Still Beat Forecasts

NEW YORK (AP) – Morgan Stanley’s profits fell 14 percent in the second quarter, the bank said Wednesday, reflecting difficulties investment banks have had due to market volatility before and after Britain’s vote last month to leave the European Union.

The investment bank reported a second-quarter profit of $1.42 billion before dividends to preferred shareholders, or 75 cents per share, down from $1.67 billion, or 79 cents a share, from the same period a year ago. That was well above the 59 cents per share analysts were looking for, according to FactSet. Revenue fell 9 percent to $8.91 billion from $9.74 billion.

This article appeared in print on page 9 of the July 21st, 2016 edition of Hamodia.