Daily Scan: SEC says Goldman Sachs employee stole secrets; stocks close largely unchanged

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Updated throughout the day

November 25, 2015

U.S. markets barely changed Wednesday. The Nasdaq added 0.26%. The Dow and S&P 500 were largely unchanged. It was data dump Wednesday: Weekly jobless claims came in much better than expected at 260,000, under the 270,000 estimate. Durable good orders surprised, rising 3% in October after declines in August and September. October U.S. personal spending rose a disappointing 0.1% and personal income rose 0.4%. New home sales were mildly disappointing in October with downward revisions in the previous months.

Don’t forget — the U.S. markets are closed Thursday for Thanksgiving. They will reopen Friday for a short day, closing at 1 p.m. ET.

Here’s what else you need to know:

SEC says Goldman Sachs employee stole secrets. The SEC filed a civil complaint against former Goldman employee Yue Han, accusing him of taking nonpublic information to trade ahead of client mergers, garnering $450,000 in profit. Wall Street Journal (paywall)

Pimco sues Citigroup over mortgage debt losses. Pimco and other investors claim Citigroup failed to properly monitor toxic securities, resulting in a loss of $2.3 billion. Reuters

Hewlett-Packard stock falls more than 13%. The computer maker announced fourth quarter earnings of 93 cents per share and revenue of $25.7 billion, down 9% from last year and falling short of the expected 97 cents a share on $26.36 billion. CNBC

President Obama comforts Americans. Obama tried to reassure Americans preparing for one of the biggest travel days of the year that U.S. security services are ready for anything terrorists may want to try. Obama also said that there are no credible reports of “a plot on the homeland.” NBC

Brazilian bank CEO arrested. Andres Esteves, CEO of BTG Pactual, was arrested Wednesday in connection to the Petrobras oil company corruption scandal. Sen. Delcidio do Amaral of the ruling Workers’ Party was also arrested. Wall Street Journal (paywall)

Ethan Allen rejects hedge fund take over. The furniture company rejected Sandell Asset Management’s bid to take control of the board of directors. Sandell’s founder Thomas Sandell has been pushing for the company to spin off its real estate into an investment trust and lease the space back for the tax advantages. Sandell owns about 5% of Ethan Allen’s shares. Hartford Courant

Costco chicken salad causes E. coli breakout. At least 19 people in seven states may have gotten E. coli after eating rotisserie chicken salad from Costco. Five people have been hospitalized but no deaths have been reported. Reuters

ISIS claims responsibility for Tunisian attack. The attack on a bus carrying members of the Tunisian presidential guard killed 12 people Tuesday. Wall Street Journal (paywall)

Chicago officials urge calm after police-shooting video released.  A city police officer was charged with first-degree murder Tuesday in the fatal shooting in 2014 of a black teenager, and hours later officials released a graphic video showing the white officer repeatedly firing at the 17-year-old. Wall Street Journal (paywall)

Calpers coughs up $3.4 billion in private equity fees. The largest U.S. pension fund revealed the payments — which date back to 1990 — as part of its most significant disclosure to date. Wall Street Journal (paywall)

Europe shrugs off geopolitical tensions. European stocks are firm following a mostly soft Asia-Pacific session as traders shrug off heightened geopolitical tensions following the downing of a Russian jet fighter by Turkey. Financial Times (paywall)

Hello, it’s a record. Adele’s new record, “25,” looks like it will sell more than 2.5 million albums in the first week. The record is currently held by ‘N Sync for its 2000 sale of “No Strings Attached,” which hit 2.42 million in a single sales week. Forbes

You won’t believe this:

Frank Gifford had brain disease. The former NFL running back and t.v. commentator passed away at 84 in August. His family had his brain studied, confirming that he had “the debilitating effects of head trauma” common in football players. CNN

Rescue hens get knitted sweaters. Hens that have spent their lives in cages to maximize egg laying have trouble adjusting to normal outdoor weather. Nicola Congdon of England has solved the problem. She’s knitting sweaters for the rescue hens. Mashable

Photo: gigi_nyc