BLOOMBERG

Saudis' Oil Price War Is Paying Off

(Bloomberg) -- Three months after Saudi Arabia made clear it was going to let oil prices keep tumbling, the strategy is showing signs of working.

U.S. drillers are idling rigs at a record pace, gutting investment plans and laying off thousands of workers.

Those steps highlight how the Saudi-led OPEC decision on Nov. 27 to maintain output levels and protect its market share is having the desired effect -- pushing prices down so far that they threaten to curb output in the U.S. and other non-OPEC countries. Saudi Arabia, the most powerful member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, will maintain that tack when the group next meets in June, according to some of the world's biggest banks.

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-27/saudis-bold-gambit-paying-off-just-three-months-later-energy

REUTERS

FOREX-Dollar on track for eighth month of gains on US data, Fed outlook

LONDON, Feb 27 (Reuters) - The dollar index slipped on Friday, pegged back by month-end selling, but was still on track for its eighth straight month of gains on better data and comments from Federal Reserve officials that bolstered bets for a rate rise this year.

The index, which measures the dollar's performance against major currencies, was set to mark its longest streak of monthly gains since the greenback was floated as a fiat currency in 1971.

On the day however, the index was off 0.2 percent at 95.124, having hit a one-month high of 95.357 on Thursday. The index had rallied 1.1 percent on Thursday, bringing it close to the more than 11-year high of 95.481 struck on Jan. 23.

Data released on Thursday showed U.S. core consumer price index, which excludes food and energy costs, rose 0.2 percent in January, more than the 0.1 percent increase economists had expected.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/27/markets-forex-idUSL5N0W11OD20150227

REUTERS
Apple faces second suit from victorious patent firm

(Reuters) - Fresh off a $532.9 million jury win against Apple Inc, a Texas company is again suing the tech giant, this time over the same patents' use in devices introduced after the original case was underway.

Smartflash LLC aims to make Apple pay for using the patent licensing firm's technology without permission in devices not be included in the previous case, such as the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus and the iPad Air 2. The trial covered older Apple devices.

On Tuesday, a jury in federal court in Tyler, Texas found that Apple willfully violated three Smartflash patents with devices that use its iTunes software. The patents relate to accessing and storing downloaded songs, videos and games.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/27/us-ip-apple-lawsuit-idUSKBN0LU27X20150227