Weekend Economists Piece for Peace April 3-5, 2015

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41. 10 biggest financial-market events this week

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/10-biggest-financial-market-events-this-week-2015-04-03?siteid=YAHOOB

MarketWatch rounded up the 10 most important news events of the past week. We focused on market-related issues, but we’ve included other subjects of interest to readers.

1. A framework with Iran

The United States, Iran and four other companies said in a joint announcement on Thursday that they had taken “decisive steps” toward a settlement that would end Western sanctions against Iran, in return for constraints on that country’s nuclear program, meant to keep it from developing nuclear weapons...

2. Indiana’s ‘freedom’

After Indiana Gov. Mike Pence signed a “religious freedom restoration” bill into law, which requires the state to prove that there’s a “compelling interest” in forcing a person to do something, or not do something, that the person claims would violate their religious beliefs. The passing of the law caused a tremendous outcry by people concerned that it would enable people to discriminate against any group of people they like...

3. Warren Buffett and oil prices

After falling 50% from its peak in June through the end of 2014, crude oil for May delivery CLK5, -1.12% on the New York Mercantile Exchange was down 10% year-to-date through Thursday’s close at $49.53. Berkshire Hathaway Inc. CEO Warren Buffett BRK.B, +0.03% reduced his holdings of oil stocks during the fourth quarter, and there was a tremendous reaction by MarketWatch readers to Barbara Kollmeyer’s discussion on why Buffett may have made the wrong move.

4. Buffett wants you to buy Coke

Berkshire Hathaway has a 9.2% interest in Coca-Cola Co.’s KO, +0.20% common stock. The shares are down 3% this year, as soda sales have softened. But Michael Brush suggested that “recent insider purchases of Coke shares are a cue to add this stock to your portfolio.”

5. It’s earnings season. Again.

Investors can expect plenty of disappointment this earnings season, as S&P Capital IQ said on Thursday that the S&P 500’s first-quarter earnings are expected to decline 3% from a year earlier, with five out of 10 broad sectors showing declines. What may surprise many people is that the biggest silver lining this earnings season could be in the Financial sector, which is expected by analysts to show an 11% increase in earnings...

6. A market ‘enigma’

You’ve probably seen the endless warnings of a “bubble” for U.S. stocks, six years into a bull market. But Yale economics professor Robert Shiller calls the current market “a great enigma,” and discussed his views in detail with Anora Mahmudova.

7. How workers’ pay gets stolen

There are differences in opinion over how bad the problem of the widening pay gap. One cause of stagnant wage growth has been the overall weakness of the job market, despite the continual improvement in the U.S. unemployment rate...

8. Employment growth slows

The Department of Labor said on Friday that the U.S. economy added 126,000 jobs during March, which was the slowest growth of the workforce in 15 months. The national unemployment rate remained 5.5%. One bright spot in the report was a 0.3% increase in average hourly wages, with a year-over-year increase of 2.1%.

9. Four health-care takeout deals

Health care has had, by far, the strongest performance among the 10 S&P 500 SPX, +0.35% sectors over the past 10 years. The sector is this year’s strongest, with a 5.1% gain, compared with a gain of just 0.4% for the entire S&P 500 Index. There were four health-care merger deals announced on Monday, including three cash deals and one tender offer. The cash deals included an agreement by Horizon Pharma PLC HZNP, -0.15% to buy Hyperion Therapeutics Inc. HPTX, -0.04% Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.’s TEVA, +0.02% deal to purchase buy Auspex Pharmaceuticals Inc. ASPX, -0.03% and UnitedHealth Group Inc.’s UNH, -0.30% deal to acquire Catarmaran Corp. CTRX, +0.03%...

10. Retirement

In case you’re wondering if the United States is really headed toward a retirement crisis, or if you need help convincing friends or family members to save for retirement, read Elizabeth O’Brien’s discussion on why half of Americans will see their standard of living fall in retirement...

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