US Realtors’ Association Invests In Blockchain Startups Propy, ReConsortia

National Association of Realtors or NAR, the largest trade association in the U.S., made investments in two blockchain startups.

Propy, a real estate startup, has announced a strategic investment from NAR’s real estate technology VC fund Second Century Ventures. Further, Forbes reported that Second Century has invested in reConsortia, which tracks referrals using a blockchain.

The investment in Propy’s proptech platform will help leverage the NAR’s network of 1.3 million realtors or its members.

Propy CEO Natalia Karayaneva noted that the record on the blockchain provides an additional level of security of home ownership for the future. The technology also provides transparency to the entire process.

Forbes reported that Propy, which claims to be the first real estate company to take blockchain technology global, projects to record $4 million in annual recurring revenue by the end of 2019 in sales of SaaS products. The company raised most of its money through a $10 million initial coin offering in 2017.

reConsortia, which helps log and organize referrals more cleanly, is also part of the first group of companies in Second Century’s 2019 REACH accelerator program.

U.S. Treasury to sell $75 bln in 4-, 8-week bills

NEW YORK, June 18 (Reuters) – For details of the U.S. Treasury’s auction of 4-week and 8-week bills on Thursday, see:

4-week bills: here

8-week bills: here (Reporting by Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss)

Consumer group warns of dangers of classic summer toys

A consumer advocacy group is reminding parents of the dangers of classic summertime toys like baby pools, high-powered water guns and inflatable pool rings.

Boston-based World Against Toys Causing Harm issued its annual list of 10 "summer safety traps" Tuesday.

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Other toys on the list include water balloon slingshots, on-ground water slides such as the Slip 'N Slide, and projectile-firing toy guns.

Nonmotorized scooters also earned a spot because the organization says they're responsible for most toy-related injuries.

Trampoline parks, all-terrain vehicles, pool covers and defective pool drain covers were other child safety risks included on the list.

The organization says July and August account for more preventable, accidental deaths than any other two-month period of the year.

Continues 25 June: The hunt for the Brink’s-Mat gold – Part Two

The untold story from inside the investigation into Britain’s biggest ever gold heist continues.

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AMD’s stock surges toward first gain in 6 days amid broad chip-sector rally

Shares of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. AMD, +5.49% shot up 5.6% in very active trading Tuesday morning, putting them on track for their first gain in six days amid a broad rally in chip stocks. Volume of 37.4 million shares made AMD’s stock the most actively traded on major U.S. exchanges. The stock had tumbled 12% over a five-session losing streak through Monday. AMD’s rally comes as the PHLX Semiconductor Index SOX, +4.75% climbed 4.6%, with all 30 components gaining ground, led by the 6.5% jump in Micron Technology Inc. MU, +6.57% shares. Meanwhile, chipmaker Intel Corp.’s stock INTC, +3.87% rallied 3.7% to pace the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s DJIA, +1.38% gainers.

How to cancel Dominican Republic flights without penalty

Several airlines are responding to growing concerns from customers about travel to the Dominican Republic after at least eight American tourists died in the Caribbean island nation under mysterious circumstances this year.

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United Airlines and Delta Air Lines tell FOX Business they will work with customers who want to cancel their flights on a case-by-case basis. This comes as the U.S. State Department confirms the death of a New Jersey man in a Dominican Republic resort last week. This also follows the news that dozens of tourists reported getting violently ill in April while traveling to the vacation hot spot.

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) Americas CEO Elie Maalouf told FOX Business’ Liz Claman on Monday that the company’s resorts in the Dominican Republic are operating safely on the island.

Officials in the Dominican Republic say they are working closely with the FBI and U.S. agenices to ensure the safety of all Americans on the island. The Dominican Ministry of Tourism has denounced what it sees as an overreaction to what it characterizes as coincidental, according to Fox News.

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An estimated two million Americans visited the Dominican Republic in 2018.

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Could Facebook Crypto Boost Stock Even More?

This article was originally published on ETFTrends.com.

Shares of Facebook is benefiting from the news release that the social media pioneer is likely to have its own cryptocurrency soon. The stock rallied 3% higher on Monday, and is trading around $187. However, FB would have to jump more than 16% to break its all-time high of more than $218 in late-July 2018. Still […]

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European Economics Preview: Germany ZEW Economic Confidence Data Due

Economic sentiment data from Germany is due on Tuesday, headlining a light day for the European economic news.

At 2.00 am ET, the European Automobile Manufacturers Association publishes Europe’s new car registrations data for May. Sales had dropped 0.4 percent annually in April.

Also, Destatis is scheduled to release producer prices for May. Economists forecast Germany’s producer prices to rise 0.1 percent on month, following a 0.5 percent increase in April.

At 3.00 am ET, industrial production data is due from Turkey. Industrial production is expected to gain 0.1 percent on month in April, following a 2.1 percent rise in March.

At 4.00 am ET, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi is set to speak at an event in Sintra, Portugal.

At 5.00 am ET, Germany’s ZEW economic confidence survey results are due. The economic confidence index is seen falling to -5.6 in June from -2.1 in May.

In the meantime, Eurostat releases Eurozone final inflation and foreign trade data. Inflation is seen at 1.2 percent in May versus 1.7 percent in April. The rate is expected to match the flash estimate released on June 4.

The euro area trade surplus is forecast to fall to EUR 17 billion in April from EUR 17.9 billion in March.