Alpha Newsroom

Click the chart for more stock market data. Stocks remained in the red in choppy trading after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged and said it would continue with its current bond buying program for the foreseeable future. The Dow Jones industrial average and SP 500 dropped 0.6%, and the Nasdaq slid 0.4%. Earlier, the indexes were only about 0.2% lower. Bond prices fell, sending yields higher. The yield…

Men’s Wearhouse executive chairman George Zimmer has been terminated, the clothing retailer said on Wednesday. Men’s Wearhouse executive chairman George Zimmer has been “terminated,” the clothing retailer said on Wednesday. Zimmer opened the company’s first store in Houston in 1973. He’s been the bearded face of Men’s Wearhouse (MW) in television ads for years, famously promising men, “You’re going to like the way you look. I guarantee it.” The company’s…

Both HBO Go and WatchESPN require Apple TV users to have paid for the channels through a cable or satellite subscription. Apple TV’s catalog got a double boost Wednesday with the addition of two popular and long-awaited apps: HBO Go and WatchESPN. HBO Go includes on-demand access to all of the premium channel’s shows, movies, comedy specials and other content. The WatchESPN app features live sports events as well as…

Collectables like this Union Jack pacifier and guardsman onesies are expected to contribue to $380 million in royal baby-related sales. The future heir to the British throne is still weeks away, but the U.K. economy is already bracing for a royal baby bump. When Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge welcome their baby in July, sales of Union Jack pacifiers, “I heart my Uncle Harry” bibs and, of course,…

Tea Party conservatives hold a rally against the IRS in Washington, DC on Wednesday. Tea Partiers are demanding Congress “audit” the IRS. The Internal Revenue Service is expected to dole out $70 million in bonuses to employees, according to a senator. Sen. Charles Grassley, fired off a letter on Tuesday to IRS’ acting chief Daniel Werfel to explain why the agency plans to give out the bonuses. He pointed out…

The Obama administration is running out of time to get its state-based health insurance exchanges ready for enrollment in October, according to a government watchdog group. The Centers for Medicare Medicaid Services, which is overseeing the exchanges’ launch, still has many key tasks ahead to create the federally run exchanges for individuals and small businesses, the Government Accountability Office said in a review released Wednesday. Some of those tasks are…

The Fed plans to keep its $85 billion a month stimulus plan in place. The Federal Reserve gave no indication in its written statement Wednesday that it plans to soon scale back its purchases of bonds and other assets, as it continues its efforts to boost the U.S. economy. In a policy statement, the central bank said it would continue purchasing $40 billion worth of mortgage-backed securities each month, plus…

Click on chart to track premarkets It’s B-Day. Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke takes center stage Wednesday. At a highly anticipated afternoon press conference, he’s expected to discuss when the central bank could begin tapering the pace of its bond purchases. The Fed’s bond-buying program has been a boon to equity markets, supporting U.S. and global stock indexes and driving them to recent record highs. Any comments from Bernanke suggesting…

Oil workers on a rig in Midland County, Texas. Growth in U.S. oil production is putting pressure on OPEC. Surging U.S. oil production and greater energy conservation are helping keep a lid on oil prices worldwide and may be limiting the sway OPEC holds over world markets. U.S. oil output rose by 14% in 2012, BP reported last week in its annual statistical review. The million barrel-per-day jump in output…

At Pixel Academy in Brooklyn, kids design video games, build apps and learn computer programming. Sarah Broach’s son Marlon would rather stick a fork in his eye than play soccer, but he can design one heck of a video game. The Broachs are part of a number of families eager to give their kids an edge, and maybe even a shot at being tech’s new kid millionaire, by having them…