Reuters

(Reuters) - Lowe's Cos reported a lower-than-expected drop in quarterly sales on Tuesday, helped by more small-scale repairs undertaken by inflation-hit Americans, who have otherwise cut back on big-ticket discretionary home improvement projects.

The North Carolina-based company's shares, which have risen 3% this year, rose about 2% in premarket trading.

Despite higher prices and interest rates making customers wary about undertaking... (continue reading...)

(Reuters) - British manufacturing orders contracted this month at the fastest rate since November and expectations for future price hikes abated, a survey showed on Tuesday.

The Confederation of British Industry's monthly gauge of industrial orders sank to -33 from -23 in April, despite the biggest rise in output since November 2022. A Reuters poll had pointed to a reading of -20.

The survey's reading of future selling price expectations... (continue reading...)

By Scott Murdoch

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Chinese online retailer JD.com is raising $1.5 billion via a convertible bond sale, according to the company's regulatory filings on Tuesday.

The five-year put-three deal was launched after the Hong Kong trading session closed, and ahead of the stock's open in New York.

The deal is being marketed with a zero to 0.25% coupon paid semi-annually, according to a term sheet seen by Reuters.... (continue reading...)

By Nivedita Balu

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canadian banks are expected to set aside money for challenging days, which will hurt quarterly earnings, as investors await commentary on how the lenders will navigate a prolonged high interest-rate environment that has dented credit growth.

The big six banks, which control about 90% of the total banking assets in the country, are expected to report this month a quarterly profit decline between 1% and... (continue reading...)

By Daniel Wiessner

(Reuters) - California's top state court on Tuesday will consider a labor union's challenge to a ballot measure allowing app-based services such as Uber and Lyft to classify drivers in the state as independent contractors rather than as employees with more benefits.

The seven-member California Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in San Francisco in a lawsuit by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and... (continue reading...)