Ally Dips After Year's Largest IPO
The New York Stock Exchange welcomes Ally Financial today. Shares of the former financing arm of General Motors that was bailed out during the financial crisis have started trading after an IPO that raised about $2.4 billion -- the biggest offering this year. The shares are off slightly in early trade.
In the meantime, stocks rallied in a big way Wednesday after the Federal Reserve released minutes from its meeting last month. The minutes showed policymakers want to be absolutely sure the economy is strong enough before they start hiking interest rates. That was music to Wall Street's ears, sending the Dow up 181 points, the Nasdaq up 71, and the S&P 500 higher by 20.
Thanks to decriminalization laws in Washington state and Colorado, marijuana could become an $8.2 billion retail business by 2018, according to Marijuana Business Daily. And the publication says -- that's being conservative.
Families are finally spending less to send junior to prom, on average shelling out $978 for prom dresses, tuxedos, limos, and dinners -- down from just over $1,100 last year, according to Visa.
And, could workers be on the verge of a nervous breakdown? A new study says 8 in ten are stressed out. Two big reasons: low pay and long commutes.