(Reuters) -Morgan Stanley's profit more than doubled in the fourth quarter, fueled by a wave of dealmaking and stock sales that drove its revenue to a full-year record. The earnings rounded out a robust quarter for Wall Street banks, which benefited from a surge in mergers and acquisitions due to a strong U.S. economy, interest-rate cuts and expectations of lighter regulation under incoming President Donald Trump. It also wraps up a strong first year for CEO Ted Pick, who had won a three-man contest for the top job.

Investors have been hoping Donald Trump's return to the White House next week will boost the U.S. stock market, while Goldman Sachs sees stocks benefiting from the biggest expected company buybacks in at least five years. A corporate repurchase window, when companies can buy their own stock, begins Jan 24. Goldman strategist Scott Rubner told clients in a note sent on Wednesday and seen by Reuters on Thursday that companies that make up 45% of the value of the entire S&P 500 could be allowed to buy back their shares.

The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits increased more than expected last week, but remained at levels consistent with a healthy labor market. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 14,000 to a seasonally adjusted 217,000 for the week ended Jan. 11, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Claims data tend to be volatile at the start of the year, but have continued to signal low layoffs that are underpinning the labor market and broader economy.

Chips that are powerful enough to run AI servers are in high demand, helping propel Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing’s stellar financial results.

XRP's price rise is accompanied by record perpetual futures open interest and surge in trading volumes.

Within the atopic dermatitis (AD) field, Sanofi has been developing the IRAK4 degrader SAR444656 (KT-474) in collaboration with Kymera Therapeutics.

Fourth-quarter profits at Bank of America and Morgan Stanley more than doubled as both benefitted from a Wall Street dealmaking revival that also lifted results at their rivals.

News of the day for Jan. 16, 2025

OCC prices are down from recent highs in 2024. This plays into packaging producers’ bottom lines as they try to balance economic factors such as input costs and new capacity.

On Thursday, UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) reported the fourth-quarter 2024 earnings and reaffirmed 2025 guidance. The company reported adjusted EPS of $6.81, up from $6.16 a year ago, beating the consensus of $6.72. Revenues increased 6.8% year over year to $100.8 billion, missing the consensus of $101.76 billion. Fourth-quarter adjusted earnings from operations of $8.3 billion exclude the cyberattack direct response costs and South American impacts. The full-year medical care ratio was 85.5% c