Antivirus software symantec fires its ceo. And happy birthday, twitter. Turkey threatens to ruin the party with widespread outages as the Prime Minister vows to wipe out the site. Announcer youre watching worldwide exchange, bringing you Business News from around the globe. Welcome to the show. Ross westgate is out today. Julia chatterley of course is covering the story in brussels. And lets get back to the top story. Nobody is afraid of rush i cants reaction to sanctions. That is the message this morning as eu leaders gather for the second day of their in brussels. This after the white house in brussels extended sanctions on russia to target close allies of Vladimir Putin. Although the Russian Foreign minister has slammed the measures as irrational. Barack obama warns the threat of further military action by moscow could lead to its isolation from the International Community. Weve been working closely with our European Partners to develop more severe actions that could be taken if russia continues to escalate the situation. As part of that process, i signed a new executive order today that gives us the authority to impose sanctions not just on individuals, but on key sectors of the russian economy. This is not our preferred outcome. And these sanctions would not only have a Significant Impact on the russian economy, but could also be disruptive to the global economy. However, russia must know that further escalation will only isolate it further from the International Community. Lets have a look at how the russian market is faring this morning in response to the ramp up of sanctions from the west. The micex is currently down by 2 this morning. Keep in mind, overnight, s p lowering its outlook on russia and many people would argue that russia now is a risky frontier market. Its no longer a very attractive emerging markets. Once again, were seeing some modest decline for the mice ex, down 2. 16 . Lets have a look at how u. S. Futures are shachg ping up this morning a couple of hours before we head into the last trading day of the week. The dow, nasdaq and s p 500 are seen marginally higher. After yesterdays trading session, better than expected activity in the midatlantic region, weekly jobless claims slowing by more than expected. The s p up 0. 6 yesterday, recouping all of wednesdays yellenrelated losses. Nasdaq up 0. 3 and the dow up 0. 7 , as well. Lets get back up to the brussels story. Julia is standing by in the belgium capital. Julia. Thanks so much, carolin. Its been a really long night. The eu leaders here wrapping up in the small hours of the morning. What we saw was 12 new names added to the sanctions list. Not as stringent as perhaps what we saw from the u. S. Yesterday, but it is progress. I managed to speak to david cameron, the uk Prime Minister as he left the meeting this morning and i asked him what message was he sending to russia right now . We are sending a clear, strong and consistent message. Thats what i said we needed to do this morning. It has been hard work, but weve made some real progress. I said we needed to expand the list of people who are subject to travel bans and asset freezes. Weve done that. I said we needed some specific measures in respect to what has happened in crimea, which is unacceptable, and weve agreed that. And i also said it was important to send a very clear message that if as further destabilization in ukraine, then there should be further wide ranging measures taken. And weve agreed tonight that we will pass the European Commission to draw up those possible measures. That is progress and the world will be able to see that. Because what we need to see now is just who is on the list of those 12 additional names. Are we going to get laughed at by the russians again or are we starting to approach some of putins inner circle that will have more influence. And the other question is, will there be retaliation from the russians in the way that weve seen as far as the u. S. Sanctions are concerned . Remember, it cuts both ways. Its tough for the russia as it is in europe to impose sanctions back on them. So its a case of watching this space. For now, were going to work on a blueprint, a further sanctions list if we see further aggression from russia. For now, though, back to you. Lets continue with our look at the markets. No real conviction in the markets right now. However, the dax in germany is up 0. 5 . The ftse 100 after declines of around 1 yesterday is trending higher to the tune of around 0. 3 . The cac 40 getting a boost from vivendis sfr. Again, lets revisit, the miex ex down by 2 . Down by as much as 3 earlier this morning. Quick look at the bond market, big week for yields this week. We saw the biggest rise in yiel yields, this is on the back of a surprise coming from yellen. Yesterday, the yield for the tenyear steady at 2. 76 . But we did see continued rise for the twoyear treasury yields now at 42 basis points. This is, of course, on expectations of a substantially high fed funds rate earlier than expected. The tenyear yields seeing its biggest rise, oneday rise on wednesday in three months, 2. 75 . Last but not least, lets check in on the for ex markets. The japanese market is close to trading today. It is down by 0. 3 . Overall, the dollar, which has seen a shot in the arm on the back of the yellen comments on wednesday is hovering just around the threeweek high. But this story is huge. That is the yuan story and the yuan is down from 1. 2 against the dollar this week. This is the biggest ever fall on record since records began some 20 years ago. This is after the pboc doubling that trading bet against the u. S. Dollar last weekend and the pound against the dollar is down by around 0. 2 . Lets check in on how markets are faring in asia. Li sixuan is standing by. Thank you for that, carolin. China markets are higher, especially the shanghai composite made a strong technical rebound with banks and property stocks leading the gains. Further easing in terms of fundraising for property developers. The yuan hit a 13month low today. In the meantime, the nikkei reported that operating profits will likely jump 80 for the fiscal year for march 31st beating forecasts. Elsewhere, seoul shares bounced back 0. 8 as the u. S. Data triggered some bargain hunting. Australia recovered 0. 8 . This also thanks to news of funds being secured for one of the countrys largest mining projects. In terms of earnings, Hong Kong ListedGlobal Sourcing firm over 20 today as investors cheered 2013 earnings and shares were boosted by a surprising plan to spin off part of this distribution business. Chinas gome electric businesses by ge capital returned to profit in 2013 thanks to its cost control efforts and shares rallied over 4 today. That is a look out of asian markets. Back to you. Sixuan, thank you so much for that. Lets give you a look at whats on todays agenda in the United States. Theres no Economic Data today. A pair of fed officials Narayana Kocherlakota is and jeremy stein speak after the closing bell. A pair of earnings, Darden Restaurants and tiffany, of course. We are now joined by jason oh connell. Good morning to you. Has the market now lost its sensitivity to the fed . Because it only took a day for markets to stabilize. Its an interesting point you make. I think initially the market didnt know what to make of Janet Yellens comments. We had bond yields increasing at the same time stocks were decreasing. We havent made up much of that ground. But i think what it speaks to is investors will need to be much more discerning Going Forward determining who were going to be. Again, i think were in a position where we dont want to measure the whole market and active management is going to play a much larger role in the trajectory in which investors see their equity gain this year. In terms of the market, we see Home Builders lacking, utilities, is it all an end to the dividend trade . No. I would say decidedly not. That is a common misconception up there. Dividend growers is not a trade at all, but rather an allweather equity strategy that has proven very good at delivering what we would call a superior risk adjusted returns. Now, the threat of a high dividend yield play, im thinking more the ten year, which hasnt been impacted from the fomc comments, id say the twoyear curve, when the ten year starts to approach the neighborhood of 4 , were going to have a difficult time adjusting valuations. Well leave it there with a moment. Meantime, futures are firming the u. S. s aaa Credit Rating with a stable outlook. They say this resolves the negative watch put on the companys ratings in october. The move comes after congress struck a deal to suspend the u. S. Debt ceiling for a year, lifting the cloud of uncertainty over the countrys full faith and credit, unlike similar crises in 2011 and 2013. Risks in the Financial Sector are currently judged to be low. Michelle obama is on a threecity tour of china. Well have more on her weeklong visit after the break. [ male announcer ] first the cookie at checkin. Then a little time to kick back. Earn double Hilton Honors points with the 2x points package and be one step closer to a weekend break. Doubletree by hilton. Where the Little Things mean everything. Welcome back to the show. These are your headlines. Banks stress tests are expected to perform well. And the turkish Prime Minister vow toes wipe out twitter as the social network is blocked across the country. We want to bring you the latest flashes on russia. Russias upper house has approved the annexation of crimea. It doesnt come as a surprise after the lower house of the duma has passed it. This clears the way for Vladimir Putin to sign the annexation of crimea into law. Meantime, the leaders have signed the political sanction of the Association Agreement with ukraine. This is the trade part of the eu Association Agreement with ukraine that is on hold for now. But the political hype that has now been signed. Julia has been talking about this, this is the deal that fell through back in november and that is trying to be revived now. Lets move on. Chinas yuan posted a 13month low today. And more market speculation that peoples bank of china will keep the currency weak as the economy slows. Eunice yoon is standing by in beijing. How the yuan found a bottom now . That is vary difficult question to answer. I think there are a lot of people who want to know that answer. For the most part, what were seeing is the biggest weekly loss for the chinese yuan. Its down 2. 8 yeartodate. As you had said, theres a lot of talk about how its now at a 13month low. People dont know exactly where its going to go. There are a lot of people who are thinking its going to weaken, mainly because even though we saw a reform in the currency regime and the policy because now the yuan has wiggle room, ultimately, the Chinese Central Bank still has control over how the yuan is valued. It sets a mid point. What weve been noticing is that the mid point is set weaker and weaker. So there are a lot of people who have been talking about is this some type of stimulus, kind of a back door stimulus that the government is trying to do in order to prop up the export sector. Also, there have been a lot of people who have been discussing whether or not the Chinese Central Bank is trying to find a way to really ward off a lot of speculative money that has been coming to china. And its actually having some success because there havent been as many there hasnt been as much money rushing through the country because of the fact that the yuan has been weakening more. One other thought, though, is that on the other side of the coin, there are many people who are saying there could still be a floor, maybe were going to see some stabilization in the chinese yuan because at the end of the day, the chinese have a large trade surplus. And that that would just ultimately allow the yuan to appreciate and put a floor in there. Now, one of the things that people are concerned about is the fact that a lot of Chinese Companies do have money thats really hedged in these products where they are where they set it at 6. 2 or so. But now were seeing that the yuan has weakened, two below 6. 2, which is a psychologically important level. There is concern that we could see losses not only here, but overseas, as well. We want to bring you more flashes coming from russia. Mr. Medvedev says russia should ask ukraine for 11 billion due to denunsation of the 2010 deal. This deal is tied to a gas discount. Also, the foesh minister saying the deal to send osce monitors to ukraine is practically agreed. So this is a step in the right direction from as viewed from the west. Were talking to eunice about china before. Its jittery about the Ukraine Russia fallout, but the debt default and Economic Data points coming out of china. Has that now been priced in . Will it reek havoc for the u. S. Markets . I think as it relates to the u. S. Markets, carolin, were going to see 2014 mark the return of volatility. So i expect whether its china or Commodity Prices or any other geopolitical event, i think at the stage were at regarding valuations, following a significant run up in the market, absent any revenue growth, all eyes are going to be not only on china, but also on u. S. MacroEconomic Data to get some sense on whether or not there is sustainability Going Forward and will be able to drive not only confidence levels, but actual real fundamental revenue growth. Absolutely. And we get plenty of u. S. MacroEconomic Data this next week. Jason, thank you so much for your time this morning. Jason oh connell, Research Direct director, boston private bank. Thank you. Still to come on this show, happy birthday twitter. The social networking site turns eight, but has turkey ruined the party . Details later on in the show. R. Ill just press this, and youll save on both. Ding ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, llllets get ready to bundlllllle. [ holding final syllable ] oh, yeah, sorry lets get ready to bundle and save. Now, thats progressive. Oh, i think i broke my spleen Home Insurance provided and serviced by third party insurers. Iwe dont back down. We only know one direction up so were up early. Up late. Thinking up gamechanging ideas, like this dozens of tax free zones across new york state. Move here. Expand here. Or start a new business here. And pay no taxes for 10 years. With new jobs, new opportunities and a new tax free plan. Theres only one way for your business to go. Up. Find out if your business can qualify at startupny. Com welcome back to the show. Lets have a look at u. S. Futures. The s p 500, the dow jones and the nasdaq seem modestly higher with fair value is taken into account. This is after rallying yesterday and the s p 500 up 1. 6 , recouping all of wednesdays yellenrelated losses. Keep in mind we have quadruple witching later on today. We may be seeing volatility going into the close. Meantime, the fed finds most u. S. Banks are Strong Enough to with stand a major shock. A sign many of them will soon get the green light to return money to investors through on dividends and buybacks. Kayla tausche has the details of the latest stress tests. Good morning. 29 out of 30 banks passed the socalled stress test where the Federal Reserve simulates a severe fm crisis, measures the capital that remains on banks balance sheets. Community bank zion is the only one not to complete the hurdle. Zions could each more stock to meet the guidelines. Discovery financial, a credit card company, made an early announcement that if the fed doesnt object, it will hike its dividend and aim for a 1. 6 million buyback. Wells fargo bested its peers with a tier one common ratio of 8. 1 . This years exercise saw even stricter hypotheticals, where equities were halved, housing prices fell 25 , unemployment topped 11 . Asia saw sharp slowdowns, but treasury yields spiked and litigation costs multiplied. Even with the added difficulty, though, Bank Balance Sheets performed better than in years past with fewer bad loans that would potentially default. If i fed officials said thats one of the biggest signs of confidence the tests are working. For now, well send it back to you. Jason oh connell is still with us. Jason, what do you make of this trust . We know the six major banks have a past, not all of them with flying colors, but we still dont know how much theyre allowed to pay out dividends in shares and return money to shareholders in terms of share buybacks until next week. Carolin, thats an excellent point. I think the dodd frank stress tests results were an important precursor to the much more relevant ccarr results that come out next week. And i say more relevant because that will give us specific insight as to increasing share buybacks and dividends. I think at this point the fomc commentary certainly spurred another bank rally on the idea that the short end of the curve starts to regulate. But i think the valuations for many bank stocks, perhaps excludeing the Largest Global banks really are already starting to discount the next rate move. So i think the results and the extent to which the banks are allowed to accelerate the return of capital to shareholders, i think thats going to be critical to any further valuation. Jason, thank you so much for your time this morning. Jason oh connell, Research Director boston private bank. And still to come on t