Fortis Merchant Banking has successfully closed syndication of a $280 million senior secured financing for Sherbino I Wind Farm LLC. This west-Texas wind farm is a joint venture owned by BP plc's (NYSE: BP) BP Alternative Energy North America Inc. and NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NRG). Interestingly enough, this syndication was oversubscribed with nine banks joining the deal. Fortis Merchant Banking structured and underwrote the financing, which is comprised of a construction loan of some $280 million, which will then convert into a 15-year term loan in the amount of $140 million at the commercial operation date. Fortis acted as...
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. employers cut back their hiring in March for the third straight month, confirming widespread pessimism about the near-term economic outlook, government data released on Friday showed.
The U.S. dollar plunged but then quickly recouped losses Friday after the economy lost more jobs than economists had forecast, putting a renewed spotlight on worries about the depth of the U.S. economic downturn.
Apple's online music store, iTunes, has eclipsed Wal-Mart as the biggest music retailer in the US, in a further sign that CD sales are being savaged by the growth of music downloads. Source: Telegraph Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 1:10 pm
Gold futures edged lower Friday as the precious metal and the U.S. dollar zig-zagged following a report that March employment declined more than expected, another sign that the U.S. economy is already in a recession.
European shares wobbled after some weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs data highlighted ongoing problems in the U.S. economy on Friday afternoon but gains from drug makers and miners helped stocks to hold onto early gains.
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. employers cut back their hiring in March for the third straight month, a clear sign that pessimism about the near-term economic outlook was justified, government data released on Friday showed.
Towergate has confirmed insurance entrepreneur Peter Cullum has sold a slice of his company to US hedge fund Och-Ziff - in a deal which will see him and other directors gain £100m. Source: Telegraph Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 1:00 pm
American employers cut 80,000 jobs in March, the steepest decline since March 2003, the Labor Departments reported.
The job loss was greater than expected and the cuts in February and January proved to be deeper as well. Over the last three months, 232,000 jobs have been shed from the nation's payrolls.
The unemployment rate rose to 5.1 percent, the highest since September 2005, from 4.8 percent in February.
Manufacturing erased 48,000 jobs, while construction lost 51,000. The service sector, which has buoyed the economy in recent months, showed additional signs of weakening. Service jobs over all grew by 13,000, but professional and business service jobs, like those on Wall Street, fell 35,000.
Health care, food services, and mining added jobs. Average hourly earnings rose by 5 cents, or 0.3 percent, over the month.
While the March number was larger than expected, the weakness in the job market is no surprise. The slump in housing prices, the tightness in the credit markets, and high energy costs have dampened consumers' willingness to spend. Businesses are retrenching.
A number of economists have said that labor data and retail sales reports have indicated that a recession has already started.
In testimony before the Joint Economic Committee on Wednesday, Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, acknowledged what no other government official has so far been willing to do, saying that "a recession is possible."
And the job market appears to be weakening further. In a report that is more current that the March employment data, the number of Americans filing initial claims for state unemployment benefits shot up 38,000 last week, to 407,000, the highest level since September 2005.
Federal Reserve policy makers are expected to cut interest rates again when they meet later this month.
Towergate has confirmed insurance entrepreneur Peter Cullum has sold a slice of his company to US hedge fund Och-Ziff - in a deal which will see him and other directors gain 100m. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 1:00 pm
U.S. stock futures turned lower on Friday after more jobs were shed in March than economists had predicted, setting the stage for further worries about the health of the world’s largest economy.
US employers shed 80,000 jobs in March, figures have show, the latest sign that recession is a real risk. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 12:39 pm
AP - Employers buffeted by talk of a recession slashed 80,000 payroll jobs in March, the most in five years and the third straight month of losses. The unemployment rate jumped to 5.1 percent. Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 12:36 pm
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. employers cut payrolls for a third month in a row in March, slashing 80,000 jobs for the biggest monthly job decline in five years as the economy headed into a downturn, government data on Friday showed.
Reuters - Crop nutrient producer Mosaic Co
said on Friday its fiscal third-quarter earnings
soared, driven by increased worldwide demand and prices for
fertilizers. Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 12:13 pm
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Crop nutrient producer Mosaic Co said on Friday its fiscal third-quarter earnings soared, driven by increased worldwide demand and prices for fertilizers.
Swiss financial services giant UBS has come under growing pressure to break up after its former president, Luqman Arnold, called for urgent steps to prevent further damage from the credit crisis.
An influential member of the Federal Reserve said that the U.S. economy "has has all but stalled" and could shrink over the first half of the year, the latest warning sign of a recession from a central bank official.
Amid all the hooplah over MySpace's new digital-music joint venture with three major record companies, there is one loud, sour note: MySpace's parent, Fox Interactive Media, is likely to miss its fiscal-year revenue target, according to several reports today. TechCrunch first reported the shortfall Thursday night.
Rupert Murdoch, chairman of Fox's parent, News Corp., said during an earnings conference call last year that he would be surprised if Fox Interactive Media revenues did not surpass $1 billion.
Apparently as a result, the division is reorganizing, which will mean the departure of its chief revenue officer, Michael Barret.
It is unclear whether the shortfall is a sign of trouble at MySpace or a reflection of a weakening advertising market in general. Adding to the uncertainty is confusion over how a hard a target it was. As Staci Kramer notes on paidcontent.org: "It's not clear that it was an actual internal target-or the bluest-sky possibility raising expectations and pressure."
Michael Arrington on TechCrunch says that revenue for the year that ends in June is likely to come in around $900 with the division—which in addition to MySpace, has Photobucket, Fox Sports, AmericanIdol.com, and other properties—coming close to breaking even.
Peter Kafka on Silicon Alley Insider says "the miss could be even bigger" but that Fox Interactive executives say that they have a comfortable earning margin.
Arrington contends that the miss could have a big corporate impact, noting that "all employee stock options are tied to profits" including those for the chief executive of MySpace, Chris DeWolfe, and MySpace co-founder Tom Anderson.
ZURICH (Reuters) - Pressure on beleaguered Swiss bank UBS AG to break up intensified as activist investor and former chief executive Luqman Arnold demanded to shake up its governance and structure.
Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO) was started as an Outperform rating this morning at FBR. The assigned target price was $31.00 per share. This follows the UBS downgrade from yesterday morning, which helped send Cisco shares down almost 3% yesterday. In a separate company call in networking, FBR initiated coverage on Juniper Networks (NASDAQ: JNPR). The assigned price target was listed as $27.00 per share. In pre-market trading, Cisco shares are indicated up marginally by 1% this morning. Jon C. Ogg April 4, 2008
Disruptions at London Heathrow’s new Terminal 5 could continue until the summer and will likely cost tenant British Airways Plc much more than the 16 million-pound ($32 million) hit it disclosed this week, an analyst said Friday.
Moody's cut the credit rating of Countrywide (CFC) to "D" for default, over worries about liquidty. According to Reuters "The downgrade does not reflect Countrywide's planned acquisition by Bank of America (BAC)." It does raise, once again, the issue of what BAC is getting. "However, the downgrade of the bank financial strength rating provides insight into the severity of the Countrywide ratings transition that would likely take place if the proposed Bank of America acquisition would be terminated," Moody's said according to the Reuters report. Douglas A. McIntyre
Drug makers helped London shares to move higher on Friday, with GlaxoSmithKline and AstraZeneca performing strongly amid a combination of pipeline news and analyst comment ahead of some key U.S. employment data.
Reuters - Stock index futures were slightly
higher on Friday before a key employment indicator that may
shed light on the extent of the economic slowdown.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures were slightly higher on Friday before a key employment indicator that may shed light on the extent of the economic slowdown.
Reuters - Family Dollar Stores Inc
posted a lower quarterly profit on Friday as cash-strapped
shoppers limited discretionary spending, and the discount
retailer once again cut its full-year earnings forecast, saying
economic conditions have continued to deteriorate. Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:46 am
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Family Dollar Stores Inc posted a lower quarterly profit on Friday as cash-strapped shoppers limited discretionary spending, and the discount retailer once again cut its full-year earnings forecast, saying economic conditions have continued to deteriorate.
British Energy, the UK nuclear power company, has seen its shares jump 6pc following reports that the board of French energy giant EDF had backed plans to make an offer for the company. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:45 am
British Energy, the nuclear group, is in discussions with five European energy companies about a possible bid or other form of collaboration.The potential suitors include EDF, the French state-controlled... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:45 am
British Energy, the UK nuclear power company, has seen its shares jump 6pc following reports that the board of French energy giant EDF had backed plans to make an offer for the company. Source: Telegraph Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:45 am
These are not the only analyst calls impacting stocks, but these are the top analyst calls that 247WallSt.com is focusing on this Friday in pre-market trading: Allegheny Tech (NYSE: ATI) cut to Neutral from Outperform at Cowen & Co. Apartment Investment (NYSE: AIV) Cut to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse. Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) Cut to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs. Gap Inc (NYSE: GPS) Cut to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse. Jackson Hewitt (NYSE: JTX) Raised to Buy from Neutral at Goldman Sachs. Kansas City Southern (NYSE: KSU) Cut to Neutral from Buy at UBS. NASDAQ...
JC Flowers and China Investment Corp, which holds about $200 billion in assets, will start a new private equity fund, according to Bloomberg. Eighty percent of the capital will come from China. At least someone still have money. Douglas A. McIntyre
Luqman Arnold, who was ousted as president of UBS in 2001, is putting new pressure on the Swiss bank giant, which has repeatedly stumbled during the credit crunch.
Arnold's London-based investment firm, Olivant, has built up a 0.7 percent stake in the bank and is urging UBS to split off its investment banking unit and remove its recently appointed chairman
Arnold sent a letter on Thursday to Sergio Marchionne, UBS' vice chairman as well as chief executive of Fiat, urging the board to consider a shake-up.
Two days earlier, UBS announced a $19 billion write-down on U.S. real estate and "related structured credit positions." With that write-down, the bank has marked down some $37 billion worth of assets since just October.
As a result, UBS' longtime chairman, Marcel Ospel, is being forced out, to be replaced by Peter Kurer, once the bank's general counsel.
But Arnold says that Kurer's appointment "perpetuates UBS'sineffective corporate governance and insular culture."
Arnold is also questioning the structure of UBS, echoing criticisms of another huge bank, Citigroup, by investors and former executives who have argued that the "financial services supermarket" model does not work.
"We are not convinced that the ‘one bank' integrated business model that has served UBS well in the past will survive the damage inflicted by the proprietary trading losses and write-downs," Arnold wrote.
In an interview with CNBC today, Arnold clarified that he was not necessarily calling for the bank to be broken up, but that it could improve through a restructuring.
The move by Olivant will step up the pressure already on UBS by disappointed investors.
The Financial Times' Lex column says that Arnold's experience at UBS and his reputation "raises Olivant's campaign above the usual humdrum activism. Not only will the board have to take Mr. Arnold seriously, exasperated shareholders will have somebody to rally around."
Patrick Hosking of the Times of London agrees that the Arnold will have to be taken seriously by UBS.
Noting that the full details of Arnold's ouster in 2001 have not come out, he says that "Luqman Arnold will emphatically not want his assault on UBS to be seen as revenge. But there is something more than just coincidental about his appearance on the UBS shareholder register just as his nemesis, the outgoing UBS chairman Marcel Ospel, clears his desk."
UBS acknowledged today that it had received the letter and would make a response at a later time Shares of UBS rose more 3 percent in trading in Switzerland.
The City of London's oldest stockbroker, Hichens, Harrison & Co, has been bought by two Indian billionaire brothers in a deal symbolic of Asia's growing influence in British business. Source: Telegraph Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:28 am
The City of London's oldest stockbroker, Hichens, Harrison & Co, has been bought by two Indian billionaire brothers in a deal symbolic of Asia's growing influence in British business. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:28 am
Gold traded above the $900 level while oil prices rose ahead of vital US employment data due for release later in Friday's session. In its latest update on the global economy, the International Monetary... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:19 am
Reuters - Pressure on beleaguered Swiss bank UBS
AG to break up intensified as activist investor and
former chief executive Luqman Arnold demanded to shake up its
governance and structure.
Santander, the Spanish bank, has agreed to buy the continental European consumer finance operations of Royal Bank of Scotland for an undisclosed sum.The UK bank is selling the consumer finance operations... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:10 am
Standard Life has agreed to pay more than £1.3 million to settle a legal
dispute with Alison Reed, its former finance director, who sued the insurer
last year in the wake of their acrimonious parting following its flotation,
it emerged today. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:05 am
European equity markets moved cautiously higher on Friday, with gains for miners and drugs companies offsetting losses for banks and carmakers.By midday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.2 per cent to 1,315... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:58 am
A decade ago, when there were big problems in the financial markets a very small group of people came in for the fix. E. Gerald Corrigan, a man of massive girth and intellect, ran the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Sandy Weill was at the newly formed Citigroup (C), Hank Greenberg ran the world's most successful insurance company, AIG (AIG). And, at The New York Stock Exchange sat Dick Grasso, who had worked there for almost three decades. Grasso was so powerful that he could shut down trading with just a few phone calls. He had been through 1987...
The world's major donor nations are falling behind on commitments to boost aid budgets, a report says. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:48 am
The Japanese Government is set to spend the weekend desperately concocting a
nomination for Governor of the Bank of Japan (BoJ) or face the prospect of
international humiliation before the G7 meeting of the world’s richest
nations in just six days time. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:48 am
Britain's BT Group, BSkyB and Carphone Warehouse are mulling bids for the British arm of Italian telecoms company Tiscali, the Financial Times reported on Friday without citing its sources. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:45 am
British Energy surged at the open on Friday after a report in a French newspaper suggested that EDF was considering a bid for the UK energy group.The report, which appeared in La Tribune, indicated that... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:45 am
The dollar fell against the euro on Friday before the release of key US jobs data as the market assesses the strength of the ailing American economy, dealers said. The euro... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:43 am
Europe's main stock markets climbed on Friday as market rumours swirled about a possible takeover bid for British Energy by French power giant EDF, dealers said. In London,... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:29 am
Fuel isn't getting any cheaper, so Northwest Airlines Corp. is going to make flying a little more expensive. Northwest has raised prices on international flights, plans to freeze new... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:29 am
The beatings will continue until morale improves. Motorola (MOT) cut another 2,600 jobs bringing the total since the beginning of last year to 10,000. According to The Wall Street Journal "Motorola, which is struggling to cope with a sharp plunge in cellphone sales, said it expects to take a first-quarter pretax charge of $104 million resulting from severance costs related to the latest job cuts." The move is another example of the short-sighted MOT management. It has been clear for some time that the company will sell fewer handsets each quarter until it comes up with products which are more...
President Hugo Chavez says the country's cement industry will be nationalised with immediate effect. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:20 am
John Lewis Partnership reported a dip in sales for the week ended March 29 as comparisons were affected by the early timing of Easter and poor weather. The department stores and supermarkets group, which... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:20 am
Japanese stocks fell Friday, ending a three-day winning streak, as traders sold steel and auto issues ahead of key U.S. job figures to be announced later in the day. The benchmark... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:18 am
A former president of UBS AG urged the Swiss bank to change its business strategy and split off the investment banking unit as a result of massive losses resulting from the subprime... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:16 am
News Corp (NWS) is likely to miss revenue targets at its internet division, Fox Interactive. According to TechCruch, the company may be short as much as $100 million on its $1 billion forecast for the current fiscal year. The unit may only break-even. News Corp will re-organize the operation and push out a number of the executives who handle revenue. But, that does very little for the company. What they have discovered is that social networks like their MySpace operation, have very, very limited revenue potential. Social networks, especially the larger ones like Facebook and MySpace, have tens of millions...
DUBLIN (Reuters) - Financial market turbulence and fears of a U.S. recession are expected to lead to a subdued performance by the world economy this year, posing risks for euro zone growth, the Central Bank of Ireland said on Friday.
The dollar was little changed in quiet trade on Friday as traders awaited the US employment report for clues as to the future path of US monetary policy. Economists were expecting the widely-watched US... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:09 am
DUBLIN (Reuters) - Financial market turbulence and fears of a U.S. recession are expected to lead to a subdued performance by the world economy this year, posing risks for euro zone growth, Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:08 am
The government plans to propose that the Bank of Japan's interim governor, Masaaki Shirakawa, be named central bank head to ensure attendance at a key international finance meeting next... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 10:07 am
Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) is one of the ubiquitous brands of today's world. As long as it keeps doing what it is doing now and as long as it keeps its endorsements strong, it's in a great place. Frankly, I love the brand Nike from knowing that a certain size has always fit in shoes to knowing that a certain size always works in the shirts to knowing that its quality is high and it won't embarrass you at a country club or out on Main Street. An article in this week's "Inside Wall Street" in Business Week accounted for...
Now that AT&T (T) and Verizon Wireless have picked up oodles of spectrum at the FCC auctions, investors want to know what all that money went for. The answer is that both companies plan to build ultra-fast wireless networks, known as 4G. That is bad for the cable companies and firms like Sprint (S) and Clearwire (CLWR) who hope to build their own over-the-air national broadband system. The two largest cellular providers in the US, AT&T and Verizon, have a huge advantage in deploying 4G. Each has over 60 million customers. Sprint is having customer service problems which is making...
The parent of a Japanese health care company linked to fraud alleged by Lehman Brothers said Friday about $1 million of its money has vanished, adding to a growing list of companies... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 4 Apr 2008 | 9:56 am
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Verizon Wireless will use the airwaves it acquired in a recent government auction to build faster wireless broadband networks to deliver high-speed services, the Wall Street Journal said on its Web site.
India's inflation rate accelerates to a three-year high because of rising food and fuel costs, officials say. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 9:48 am
A US watchdog accuses a UK hedge fund of planning to defraud mutual funds and shareholders in the US. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 9:45 am
Charles Dunstone, the chief executive of Carphone Warehouse, has said that he
would refuse to disconnect internet users caught illegally downloading
copyright music and other items. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 4 Apr 2008 | 9:41 am
Swiss bank UBS comes under new pressure as a former chief executive demands a break-up of the group. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 9:28 am
The Italian government has stepped in to keep Alitalia's planes flying, despite the prospect of bankruptcy looming over the airline. Source: Telegraph Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 9:15 am
Non farm payroll day is upon us once more, which generally means an incredibly dull morning followed by a graphic impersonation of a headless chicken this afternoon! Source: Telegraph Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 9:05 am
Alitalia has named lawyer and professor, Aristide Police, as its fourth
chairman in just over a year as the Italian Government battled to save the
ailing flag carrier from bankruptcy after the collapse of takeover talks
with Air France-KLM. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 4 Apr 2008 | 8:51 am
More Americans have fallen behind on consumer loans than at any time in almost 16 years, a study warns. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 8:50 am
Concert promoter Live Nation is close to signing a $150m (£75m) deal with hip-hop star Jay-Z in the clearest sign yet that the age of the traditional record deal is over. Source: Telegraph Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 8:40 am
UBS, the embattled Swiss bank that has been Europe's main casualty of the credit crunch, was facing a fresh assault after former chief executive Luqman Arnold launched an activist campaign to break it up and overhaul its board Source: FT.com - US homepage | 4 Apr 2008 | 8:30 am
MILAN (Reuters) - The chairman of HSBC Holdings Plc , one of the world's biggest banks, said common rules among regulators would help them deal better with crises like the one that had struck banks in recent months.
Apple's iTunes has overtaken Wal-Mart to become the largest music retailer in the US, a study says. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 8:12 am
PALO ALTO, California (Reuters) - For the second time this week, a senior Federal Reserve official conceded the United States economy could slip into recession, but suggested the central bank should wait to see if more rate cuts are needed.
Online advertising at Fox Interactive, the News Corp division that controls social networking website MySpace, has failed to grow as quickly as expected, leaving the unit likely to miss a $1bn revenue target Source: FT.com - US homepage | 4 Apr 2008 | 7:50 am
Google is axing 300 US jobs from its online advertising business DoubleClick, which it acquired in March for $3.1bn. Source: Telegraph Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 7:50 am
SEOUL, South Korea — Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee denied Friday that he ordered the creation of a slush fund at the center of a high-profile probe into alleged bribery by South Korea's largest business conglomerate.
UBS, the beleaguered Swiss bank, has come under renewed pressure for a
break-up and overhaul of its board as rebel shareholder Luqman Arnold began
meeting Swiss shareholders and media this morning to rally support for his
cause. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 4 Apr 2008 | 7:25 am
NEW YORK — News Corp.'s Fox Interactive Media Internet division could fall short of its fiscal 2008 revenue target of $1 billion, as it reorganizes its divisions to better exploit the online advertising market.
Testifying at a congressional hearing, witnesses describe a potentially disastrous lack of oversight.
FAA safety inspector Bobby Boutris was conducting night surveillance of maintenance at Midway Airport in Chicago in March 2007 when he observed a Southwest Airlines plane being repaired for a crack on the fuselage.
The network is making the NCAA tournament available on its website as well as others, such as Facebook and ESPN.
When Final Four action begins Saturday, fans who want to watch the games live online will have to head to CBSSports .com, which owns exclusive online rights to the NCAA men's basketball tournament.
Star power of George Clooney and Renee Zellweger should give the film an edge over 'Nim's Island.'
Universal Pictures' "Leatherheads," the George Clooney-Renee Zellweger movie about the nascent days of professional football, tries to re-create the madcap flair of 1930s-era screwball comedies.
The carrier is the second this week to end service. Travelers to Hawaii from LAX are left scrambling.
Travelers with visions of Waikiki, sandy beaches and island cruises were stranded Thursday at Los Angeles International Airport and across the nation as low-fare carrier ATA Airlines Inc. abruptly grounded all flights and ceased operations.
The digital download store overtakes Wal-Mart as the biggest U.S. music seller.
Apple Inc. has surpassed Wal-Mart to become America's No. 1 music store, the first time that a seller of digital downloads has ever beaten the big CD retailers.
Shares in British Energy climbed more than 6 per cent on Friday morning in
expectation of a £9 billion bid for the nuclear generator from EDF, the
French electricity giant which is Europe's biggest energy company. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 4 Apr 2008 | 6:58 am
The company will take a $104 million charge in the first quarter for severance costs.
SCHAUMBURG, Ill. -- Beleaguered cell phone maker Motorola Inc. said Thursday that it is laying off another 2,600 workers, bringing the company's total employee cuts to more than 10,000 since last year.
Reuters - Senior executives at Microsoft Corp
and Yahoo Inc met this week to discuss their
proposed merger but did not get anywhere with the talks, the
Wall Street Journal said on its Web site, citing people
familiar with the matter.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Senior executives at Microsoft Corp and Yahoo Inc met this week to discuss their proposed merger but did not get anywhere with the talks, the Wall Street Journal said on its Web site, citing people familiar with the matter.
Reuters - For the second time this
week, a senior Federal Reserve official conceded the United
States economy could slip into recession, but suggested the
central bank should wait to see if more rate cuts are needed.
The boss of South Korea's Samsung Group is questioned by prosecutors over corruption allegations. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 5:32 am
Trade Minister Phil Goff leaves for China tomorrow to play his part in the signing of the free trade deal between New Zealand and China.
Mr Goff will sign the agreement with his Chinese counterpart Commerce Minister Chen Deming.
The... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 2:40 am
The body that manages the bulk of China's $1,650bn in foreign exchange reserves has bought a 1.6 per cent stake in France's Total Source: FT.com - US homepage | 4 Apr 2008 | 2:35 am
Auckland's biggest real estate agency group, Barfoot and Thompson, has reported sales volumes fell 56.2 per cent in March from a year ago.
For those sales that did go through, however, prices were holding firm. The average sale... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 1:00 am
US securities regulators are trying to determine whether illegal trading and rumour mongering took place in the days leading up to the emergency sale of Bear Stearns to JPMorgan Chase Source: FT.com - US homepage | 4 Apr 2008 | 12:45 am
CANBERRA - Consumer spending growth in Australia has fallen for a second straight month in an indication rising interest rates are taking a toll on households' budgets.
Retail trade fell by a seasonally-adjusted 0.1 per cent in... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 12:30 am
Central banks should pay greater attention to housing markets when setting interest rates, the International Monetary Fund said Source: FT.com - US homepage | 4 Apr 2008 | 12:17 am
Auto parts and leisure retailer Halfords has defied the consumer downturn to report a 4.2pc increase in like-for-like sales over the 2007/08 financial year, driven by car maintenance and cycling. Source: Telegraph Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 12:01 am
Governments and central banks could do more to prevent tearaway housing market bubbles, the International Monetary Fund has warned. Source: Telegraph Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 12:01 am
NEW YORK - JPMorgan Chase & Co says it has bought 11.5 million shares of Bear Stearns Cos Inc on the open market, in an effort to gain enough voting power to essentially guarantee its acquisition of the investment bank.
JPMorgan... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 4 Apr 2008 | 12:00 am
Bank borrowing from the Federal Reserve's discount window surged in recent days, as primary dealers continued to draw still larger amounts of cash from their new emergency finance facility Source: FT.com - US homepage | 3 Apr 2008 | 11:48 pm
The landmark merger that created Citigroup was a "mistake" that failed to benefit the financial services conglomerate's investors, customers and employees, says John Reed, who masterminded the $166bn deal with Sandy Weill in 1998 Source: FT.com - US homepage | 3 Apr 2008 | 11:23 pm
AP - Borrowers fell behind on their car, home equity and home improvement loans in last three months of 2007 at a delinquency rate not hit since the early 1990s. Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 3 Apr 2008 | 11:05 pm
British Airways’s problems mounted yesterday after it disclosed a 5 per cent
fall in business-class passengers last month and a £16 million bill so far
for the chaotic opening of Terminal 5 (T5). Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 3 Apr 2008 | 11:00 pm
Where commercial property goes, so goes housing. If that old relationship
holds true in this cycle, house prices could be in for a very nasty fall
indeed. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 3 Apr 2008 | 11:00 pm
Marks & Spencer urged shareholders yesterday to back a controversial decision
to elevate Sir Stuart Rose to the role of executive chairman as the retailer
published a full explanation of the move and insisted that it had no
alternative. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 3 Apr 2008 | 11:00 pm
HSBC bowed to shareholder pressure on a key element of its executive pay plan
yesterday, although it refused to back down on contentious proposals to
reward top bosses with cash bonuses of up to four times their salaries. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 3 Apr 2008 | 11:00 pm
The New Zealand government's operating financial balance improved in February but was still well below forecast, the Treasury reported today.
The balance for the eight months to February 29 was a surplus of $1.43 billion, $3.34... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 3 Apr 2008 | 11:00 pm
Officers broke into an MDC office and arrested two western journalists ahead of a meeting of President Robert Mugabe's politburo, where hardliners are expected to oppose doves seeking to persuade him to concede a poll defeat Source: FT.com - US homepage | 3 Apr 2008 | 10:33 pm
New Zealand is outperforming the United States when it comes to commercialising university science, according to WaikatoLink chief executive Mark Stuart.
Benchmarking data shows New Zealand universities spend $35 million in research... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 3 Apr 2008 | 10:30 pm
The local sharemarket was flat soon after opening following the lead of US stocks which edged up overnight.
The benchmark NZSX-50 index was down 1 point to 3628.97 at 10.15am today after closing up yesterday for the fifth consecutive... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 3 Apr 2008 | 10:00 pm
ANZ financial advisers who marketed two now-paralysed ING funds were given incentives to do so as part of an internal scheme.
The scheme did not target any one fund, however - ANZ says its advisers earn "points" for every product... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 3 Apr 2008 | 10:00 pm
Ailing airline Alitalia announces a new chairman, after takeover talks with Air France-KLM collapse. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 3 Apr 2008 | 9:50 pm
In Dubai, traditional Arabian cargo ships called dhows carry goods throughout the Persian Gulf. Kelly McEvers profiles a dhow captain who, despite warnings and fears, keeps going back out to sea. Source: Marketplace | 3 Apr 2008 | 9:26 pm
Investor and philanthropist George Soros says the financial system as we know it is broken. He talks with Kai Ryssdal about his new book in which he offers what he calls a new paradigm for the financial markets. Source: Marketplace | 3 Apr 2008 | 9:26 pm
Speedo's new LZR Racer swimsuit is going to be the hottest thing in the Olympic pool this summer. Some are crediting it for the world records that have been falling during qualifying trials this spring. Diana Nyad tells Kai Ryssal more about it. Source: Marketplace | 3 Apr 2008 | 9:26 pm
The IRS says tax rebates will start going out on May 2. Commentator and behavioral economist Dan Ariely says the government might not realize it, but the way we get our cash will affect the way we spend it. Source: Marketplace | 3 Apr 2008 | 9:25 pm
The money on Wall Street is again flowing into home building. Marketplace's Jill Barshay reports on why investors are betting against the housing bust. Source: Marketplace | 3 Apr 2008 | 9:25 pm
Head of government agencies and investment banks went before a Senate committee to defend the Fed rescue of Bear Stearns, saying greater economic harm would have resulted if action weren't taken. Bob Moon reports. Source: Marketplace | 3 Apr 2008 | 9:19 pm
AFP - Wall Street shares chalked up modest gains Thursday as markets rebounded after a report that troubled investment giant Merrill Lynch has no need for fresh capital.
When there are no banks left in a town anymore, what do the locals do for cash?
The central North Island town of Raetihi lost its banking services several years ago and locals have had to travel to Ohakune, Taumarunui or Wanganui... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 3 Apr 2008 | 8:00 pm
In a direct assault on Apple's iTunes music store, MySpace today launched a new digital-music joint venture with three of the four major record companies that will allow users to stream songs from the labels' catalogs for free.
The deal marks a truce between the major labels and the giant social-networking site, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., as well as showcases the music industry's apparently newfound willingness to explore emerging business models.
With the imprimatur of Sony BMG, Universal Music Group, and Warner Music Group, which will own minority stakes in the venture, MySpace's new service poses a direct threat to Apple's iTunes music store. MySpace has more than 100 million unique monthly visitors worldwide, many of them in the music industry's demographic sweet spot: teenagers.
Having a distribution channel as vast as MySpace gives the labels a major leg up in negotiating with Apple in the future and makes it more likely that Steve Jobs & Co. will have to accept some of their demands, including variable pricing, which has long been a sore point.
"CD sales have been going down for several years, and those revenues need to be replaced," MySpace C.E.O. Chris DeWolfe said in an interview with Portfolio.com. "We went to the music companies and said, 'Here's what we want to provide. Let's collaboratively build a business model that works for you guys and that works for us.'"
MySpace and the labels agreed on a model that will offer users free, ad-supported streaming music from the labels' catalogs, as well as MP3 downloads for purchase. Sony BMG, Universal Music Group, and Warner Music Group will have a joint stake along with News Corp. in the venture, to be called MySpace Music.
DeWolfe said that MySpace Music differs from iTunes because users "can listen to any song in the catalog for free on MySpace" on a streaming basis, supported by advertising.
Users can also pay to download DRM-free tracks, but the company is still working out the cost per track. DeWolfe said that MySpace is considering variable pricing, as well as charging users a flat monthly fee in exchange for an all-you- can-eat monthly download option, "but it's not in the product pipeline right now."
The service will be rolled out during the next several months, first in the U.S., then globally.
As part of the deal, Universal Music Group—the largest record company in the world—has agreed to settle its 2006 lawsuit against MySpace, which accused the company of infringing upon the label's copyrights.
DeWolfe declined to comment on the specifics of the settlement, but Silicon Alley Insider reported that Universal will receive a "huge" cash payment in return for settling the lawsuit, "perhaps in the $100 million range."
DeWolfe said that the service will also offer music-related items for sale, including concert tickets, ringtones, and T-shirts, creating what he called a "360-degree revenue stream and experience for the user."
"In the past, the music industry has done a great job of finding new artists and turning them into big brands, but they've only really capitalized on CD sales," DeWolfe said. "What we're doing is monetizing that brand in five or six different ways."
Although EMI has yet to sign on to the plan, DeWolfe said, "We hope to have everyone on board."
After years of taking a litigious approach to the growth of online music distribution, including filing thousands of lawsuits against individuals and companies, the recording giants are starting a radical and likely painful transformation.
Ideas once considered anathema to the industry are now on the table, including Warner Music's nascent, but instantly controversial, plan to bundle a monthly fee into internet-access charges, creating a pool of money to be distributed to artists and rights’ holders.
Shares in Australia's debt-laden Centro Properties Group were put on a trading halt yesterday, pending the company's response to a stock exchange query about big price moves.
Before the halt, Centro shares were up 71 per cent... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 3 Apr 2008 | 6:30 pm
A federal appeals court has thrown out a huge class-action lawsuit against cigarette makers, saying that the class was not properly certified.
A 2004 lawsuit was brought on behalf of tens of millions of smokers, accusing the tobacco companies of duping them into believing that cigarettes sold as "light" were less harmful than other cigarettes. A judge in the Federal District Court in Brooklyn certified the class of smokers in 2006.
Plaintiff lawyers have been seeking $280 billion in damages, which, if racketeering claims are granted, could be tripled to $800 billion.
But a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed the class certification, saying that plaintiffs must bring lawsuits individually.
"Because individual issues outweigh issues susceptible to common proof, the class is not maintainable" under federal rules, the judges ruled.
"We are certainly pleased with the court's ruling and agree with its reasoning," said Martin Holton III, general counsel for R. J. Reynolds Tobacco. "Numerous courts across the country have held that claims such as these simply cannot be tried as class actions."
A recession can even put the brakes on the spending habits of rock royalty.
"Of course it does," Mick Jagger said at the red carpet premiere of Shine a Light, at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York, Sunday evening. "You invest in different things, and you have to watch out, and you don't spend too much on, you know, on drinks. And you only go out twice a week."
With a major movie opening tomorrow, you wouldn’t think the Stones would be pinching pennies. Then again, Jagger might be feeling the pressure to generate more cash than—or at least as much as—Tween Queen Miley Cyrus.
The Stones’ rockumentary, which hits theaters nationwide on April 4, is a collaboration with filmmaker Martin Scorsese and captures two concerts in New York at the end of the Rolling Stones' Bigger Bang tour, a record-breaking $558 million, 144-date global romp that sold a whopping 4.6 million tickets. Shine a Light comes in the wake of Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert, which grossed $31 million its first week (over Super Bowl weekend) on only 683 screens, making it the largest per-screen average of any nationwide release in film history.
Scorsese's film is armed with 18 cameras and includes duets with the White Stripes' Jack White, Christina Aguilera, and blues star Buddy Guy, along with a cameo from former President Bill Clinton. And Keith Richards says he isn't sweating it.
"The competition is nothing. This is why I'm in this game," said the pirate-like rhythm guitarist, as he slowly made his way down the red carpet, smoking his cigarette down to the filter. "It's just about moving around. Work on the road is work on the road. You get used to it."
Concertgoers aren’t the only folks not feeling, ahem, sympathy for the devil’s high-priced tickets. Asked how touring today differs from 30 years ago, Richards remarked: "Well, the ticket prices are higher." Of course, the Stones pioneered charging a higher premium for better seats back in 1994, says Gary Bongiovanni, editor in chief of concert-industry publication Pollstar. But with Shine a Light pricing at roughly seven dollars—a bargain compared with the $60 to $450 ticket prices to see them live in 2006—they’ve got excellent recessionary timing. Related Links Time's List of 100 People Who Shape Our...Zzzzzz Facing the Music Chart of the Day: Why Didn't People Watch the Oscars?
WASHINGTON—Jamie Dimon got right to the heart of Congress's concern yesterday when he told a Senate Banking Committee hearing that his bank, J.P. Morgan Chase, "did not cherry pick the assets in the collateral pool."
He fielded—as did others testifying in the banking committee's crowded, but cold and cavernous hearing room—repeated questions from senators trying to delve into the details of the collateral the federal government received for helping the emergency takeover of Bear Stearns - and just how that was valued.
Unsurprisingly, there were a lot of defensive statements by both bankers and federal regulators who insisted they were bailing out the American economy, not just one financial institution. But no specific details—let alone an actual price tag—of just what the federal government got for sticking its neck out were disclosed during the five plus hours of testimony.
Dimon, who noted that J.P. Morgan was taking on $300 billion of Bear Stearns debt, testified that the "process of designating what collateral would be pledged was overseen by the New York Fed's adviser, BlackRock, a recognized expert in the field."
He warned, however, that "no one can predict how that portfolio will ultimately perform—and, of course, it could actually increase in value—if the portfolio declines in value, the first $1 billion of that loss will be borne solely by J.P. Morgan."
Under questioning, Dimon said there was a confidentiality agreement with the Federal Reserve preventing him from disclosing any more, but noted that the collateral was "investment grade." When Robert Menendez, Democrat of New Jersey, tried to zero in further on the contents of the government's newly acquired portfolio, Dimon said that the collateral was not the risky mortgage-backed securities and hedge fund assets, and that it was Bear Stearns' valuation —backed by BlackRock— that established its value.
"Why did Bear fall on a series of rumors if it was not a question of valuation at the end of the day?" Menendez said.
Earlier, Ben Bernanke, the Federal Reserve chairman, insisted that American taxpayers' risk was "not remotely close" to the $29 billion ($30 billion minus the $1 billion J.P. Morgan took on), and most, if not all, of it would be recouped when the investments were sold - which can happen over a period of 10 years.
Dimon and Bear's chief executive, Alan Schwartz, gave their testimony after waiting out four hours of senatorial grilling of Bernanke and others. A full complement of Senate banking committee members were on hand to hear the first extended explanation of how Bear went from a top Wall Street investment firm to near-collapse in a matter of a few days.
Timothy Geithner, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, described the round-the-clock negotiations to save Bear Stearns from what those testifying frequently called a "run on the bank."
A chastened Schwartz insisted that Bear had strong liquidity that met required guidelines, but said it was felled by an avalanche of unsubstantiated rumors that thoroughly undermined market confidence.
Senators pressed Christopher Cox, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to say whether investigators were looking into whether the rumors were from sellers shorting the stock. Bear stock plummeted from about $60 to $5 within a few days in mid-March—and the amount of trading soared.
Cox said he was constrained from disclosing investigations and potential litigation, but but about the third time he was asked, he hinted that the enforcement division was busy looking into exactly what took place in the lead-up to the Bear Stearns mess.
The Big Apple has a new logo, and Apple says: Drop dead.
At issue is the emblem for New York City's GreeNYC campaign, which has started to appear around the city on bus shelters, hybrid gasoline-electric taxicabs and even Whole Foods shopping bags.
The GreeNYC logo shows a stylized apple with a stalk and a leaf. It bears a resemblance to Apple's famous logo -- a resemblance Apple says infringes on its trademark.
The city has applied for a trademark on the logo, but Apple has filed a formal opposition (.pdf) obtained by Wired.com.
The Cupertino, California, company calls for the trademark to be denied, claiming the city's logo will confuse people and "seriously injure the reputation which [Apple] has established for its goods and services."
New York says: Getdafugoutaheya.
"The city believes that Apple's claims have no merit and that no consumer is likely to be confused," says Gerald Singleton, the intellectual-property lawyer representing the Big Apple. "This well-known city is using its new design in a variety of contexts that have absolutely nothing to do with Apple Inc."
Apple, of course, is no stranger to trademark disputes, but has typically been on the receiving end of infringement claims. Apple Corps, holder of the Beatles' business interests, battled the company for years over its trademark. That legal spat was finally resolved last year, with Apple walking away with the entire brand and an apparent agreement to license certain trademarks back to Apple Corps.
Cisco Systems also filed suit over Apple's use of the iPhone trademark last year, and both companies finally agreed to share the iPhone name.
"When you talk about trademark infringement, the key issue is likelihood of confusion," says Beth Goldman, an attorney at Heller Ehrman and head of the firm's San Francisco trademark group.
Trademark protection extends to sight, sound and meaning, Goldman says, and if a company can prove there's confusion over such matters, it may very well have a case.
In the case of very famous marks or logos, there's also the issue of dilution, she says, when someone else uses it in a manner that blurs or tarnishes the trademark.
Dilution is harder to prove with a logo, Goldman says, as it's not usually descriptive of a product. Nevertheless, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office will consider such arguments.
Apple did not immediately respond to Wired.com's requests for comment.
The GreeNYC campaign is intended to promote "environmentally friendly policies and practices" and "economically sustainable growth."
The next step in the Apple-New York City trademark scuffle, according to trademark lawyers, will be to commission a series of independent surveys -- what are known as mall-stop surveys -- to gauge people's reaction to the new logo, in order to see whether Apple's complaint holds any merit.
"The ultimate arbiter is the consumer," Goldman says.
A compromise bill on housing goes to the floor of the Senate today.
The Foreclosure Prevention Act includes, as expected, $10 billion in tax-exempt bonds to be made available for local housing agencies to help refinance subprime mortgages and $100 million (down from $200 million) to expand counseling for homeowners.
The bill would raise the size of loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration to $550,000 but would not give the F.H.A. the ability to insure as much as $400 billion in mortgages.
It will also provide a new standard property-tax deduction of $1,000 for couples and $500 for individuals.
The compromise was hammered out with remarkable speed given that Republicans and Democrats seemed miles apart on the issue, amid much public bickering, just a few weeks ago. But political pressure to be seen as doing something to help homeowners is growing, especially after the federal government organized a rescue of Bear Stearns.
But Politico.com reports that "housing advocates are feeling steamrolled" because the Senate bill does not include a Democratic proposal to give bankruptcy-court judges the power to modify mortgages.
Does Live Nation have an answer for the troubled music industry?
It certainly appears to be confident that it does, betting the house in signing mammoth deals with artists like Madonna and U2 in recent months. Now, Jeff Leeds of the New York Timesreports that the company is about to embark on its biggest gamble yet, a $150 million deal with rapper Jay-Z.
Live Nation will be providing financing for a Jay-Z entertainment venture as well as for recordings and tours for the next 10 years (when Jay-Z will be 48!), Leeds says.
"I've turned into the Rolling Stones of hip-hop," Jay-Z told the Times.
Live Nation's bet is on rising touring revenue, as well as getting a share of merchandise, publishing, and related businesses. CD sales, for Jay-Z and other artists, have fallen off a cliff—and there's no safety net in sight.
And Live Nation will be backing the most entrepreneurial player in the hip-hop nation. Jay-Z sold his Rocawear line last year for $204 million, and he has had success with a chain of nightclubs. He was president of Def Jam Records before stepping down last year. Live Nation will get a piece of any new ventures.
Douglas A. McIntyre of the 24/7 Wall St. blog is skeptical, saying that "if he is no longer a popular rapper, he has lost the coin of the realm which makes new enterprises more easy to open."
Jay-Z, he says, should be paid in Live Nation stock. "At least then he could lose money too."
Indeed, investors have been lukewarm about Live Nation, a spinoff of Clear Channel Communications, over the past year. Live Nation had revenue last year of just $4.2 billion, and the margins in the concert business are very thin. A year ago, its shares were trading above $21, rising to $24 in October. Now they are trading just above $12.
But Martin Schaedel, a former venture capitalist, admires Live Nation for its boldness. "The price for acquiring real unique talent is almost never too high," he says on his blog.
Reuters - Stock index futures were slightly
higher on Friday before a key employment indicator that may
shed light on the extent of the economic slowdown.
Reuters - Pressure on beleaguered Swiss bank UBS
AG to break up intensified as activist investor and
former chief executive Luqman Arnold demanded to shake up its
governance and structure.
Reuters - Senior executives at Microsoft Corp
and Yahoo Inc met this week to discuss their
proposed merger but did not get anywhere with the talks, the
Wall Street Journal said on its Web site, citing people
familiar with the matter.
Reuters - For the second time this
week, a senior Federal Reserve official conceded the United
States economy could slip into recession, but suggested the
central bank should wait to see if more rate cuts are needed.
AFP - Wall Street shares chalked up modest gains Thursday as markets rebounded after a report that troubled investment giant Merrill Lynch has no need for fresh capital.