CHICAGO (Reuters) - Many U.S. retailers reported better-than-expected May sales on Thursday, with discounters and dollar stores attracting customers looking to save money in the weak economy, but department stores continued to struggle.
AP - Consumers stepped up their shopping in May after tax rebate checks hit mailboxes, giving many of the nation's retailers stronger than expected sales for the month. Still, there were signs that many people are still focusing on necessities such as food and gas. Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:45 pm
Severn Trent, the UK's second biggest water company, today reported a fall in
profits as it counted the cost of a record fine from Ofwat and the impact of
last summer’s flooding. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:43 pm
Reuters - Home Depot Inc said on Thursday
that it expects to deliver double-digit per-share profit growth
annually and sales growth of 3 percent to 5 percent a year --
after current market conditions stabilize. Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:43 pm
ATLANTA (Reuters) - Home Depot Inc said on Thursday that it expects to deliver double-digit per-share profit growth annually and sales growth of 3 percent to 5 percent a year -- after current market conditions stabilize.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on Thursday reported May same-store sales beat Wall Street estimates with a 3.9% increase excluding fuel, as the world’s largest retailer recorded the first uptick in home products in more than two years.
Stock-market futures posted solid gains Thursday after Wal-Mart Stores topped sales forecasts and jobless claims unexpectedly fell, with Continental Airlines also in focus after it said it will cut jobs and capacity.
Continental Airlines is eliminating about 3,000 jobs and retiring 67 mainline aircraft in an attempt to cut costs amid record oil and fuel prices, the carrier announced Thursday.
AP - The number of laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits showed an unexpected improvement last week although a key indicator of unemployment hit a four-year high. Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:41 pm
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock futures extended gains on Thursday after the government said the number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits fell unexpectedly last week.
Reuters - Many U.S. retailers reported
better-than-expected May sales on Thursday, with discounters
and dollar stores attracting customers looking to save money in
the weak economy, but department stores continued to struggle.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Continental Airlines Inc said on Thursday it would cut 3,000 jobs, or about 6.5 percent of its work force, and retire 67 older planes as it scales down in the face of soaring fuel prices.
Continental Airlines becomes the latest carrier to scale back because of its soaring fuel bill, cutting 3,000 jobs. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:28 pm
Britannia Bulk Holdings Inc. filed to come public via IPO last night, although the range has already been set for the British shipping company. It plans to sell 8,333,333 shares in a price range of $17.00 to $19.00 per share. It has also proposed to take the ticker "DWT" on the New York Stock Exchange. Underwriters are listed as Goldman Sachs, Banc of America, Dahlman Rose & Co., and Oppenheimer. The underwriting has also been given an over-allotment option of up to 1.25 million shares. The company is an international drybulk shipping and maritime logistics company in transporting drybulk commodities...
Continental Airlines Inc said it would cut 3,000 jobs, or about 6.5% of its work force, and retire 67 older aircraft as it scales down in the face of soaring fuel prices Source: FT.com - US homepage | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:22 pm
Verizon Wireless is in advanced talks to acquire closely held Alltel Corp., a deal that could create the biggest U.S. wireless operator, Vodafone Group said Thursday.
Reuters - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc
has sufficient capital and funding to survive, but has seen
derivatives trading results hurt by clients worried about the
credit strength of certain units, analyst Brad Hintz told
clients Thursday.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc has sufficient capital and funding to survive, but has seen derivatives trading results hurt by clients worried about the credit strength of certain units, analyst Brad Hintz told clients Thursday.
Continental Airlines Inc. (NYSE: CAL) announced that it plans to cut 3,000 jobs and that CEO and President will lower their salaries for the remainder of the year. As far as addressing capacity, Continental plans to reduce its capacity by furloughing 67 of its mainline aircraft from the fleet. UAL Corp. (NASDAQ: UAUA) made a similar move just yesterday, and other airlines have made numerous cuts to capacity or have increased fees. Fuel costs are much more of the issue, even much more than a slowing economy. Interestingly enough, there were at least two airline stocks that were upgrades by...
Currency markets post little lasting reaction Thursday to widely expected decisions by the Bank of England and the European Central Bank to leave key interest rates unchanged.
Wal-Mart Stores, the leading U.S. retailer, reported a jump in May sales Thursday that beat analyst expectations, crediting the U.S. government's stimulus payments for the increase.
India has become the latest Asian government to admit defeat in its battle to
shield its population from rising oil prices, a move that economists say
could derail economic growth across the region, stoke inflation and
influence upcoming general elections. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:02 pm
Losses from the mining sector weighed on the top London share index on Thursday, offsetting strong gains in the banking sector, as investors showed little reaction to news that the Bank of England decided to keep interest rates on hold at 5%.
The European Central Bank has decided to leave its main interest rate unchanged at 4 percent. The ECB decision on Thursday came less than an hour after the Bank of England left its... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:55 am
Lower Saxony stuck to its guns Thursday after the European Commission launched legal action against Germany over a new "Volkswagen law" that retains the state's de facto veto over strategic Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:55 am
These are ten of the analyst calls we are focusing on this Thursday morning: Adobe Systems (NASDAQ: ADBE) cut to Neutral at Cowen & Co. Allegheny Tech (NYSE: ATI) Cut to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan. Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) cut to Sell at UBS. Hot Topic (NASDAQ: HOTT) Raised to Outperform from Market Perform at FBR. Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Cut to Underperform from Perform at Oppenheimer. Northwest Airlines (NASDAQ: NWAC) Raised to Overweight from Equalweight at Lehman. UAL Corp. (NASDAQ: UAUA) raised to Overweight at Lehman Brothers United Rentals (NYSE: URI) cut to Neutral at UBS. VeriSign (NASDAQ: VRSN) Cut...
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Bookstore operator Borders Group Inc , which put itself up for sale in March, on Thursday said it agreed to sell its 30 bookstores in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore to A&R Whitcoulis in a deal valued at up to $110 million.
The European Central Bank leaves eurozone interest rates on hold at 4% after its latest meeting. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:45 am
Reuters - Continental Airlines Inc said
on Thursday it would cut 3,000 jobs, or about 6.5 percent of
its work force, and retire 67 older planes as it scales down in
the face of soaring fuel prices.
The stories about the death of Wal-Mart (WMT) have been disappearing over the last few months as the world's largest retailer posted remarkable sales. Now, there is nothing left to argue. During May, same-store sales rose 3.9% over the year-ago period. For a business the size of Wal-Mart that figure is remarkable. Worldwide revenue was up almost 10% in May, with international rising well over 16%. The theory has emerged recently that, as a recession takes hold, shoppers will move from other chains to Wal-Mart to get lower prices. If that is right, it is going to be one hell...
France Telecom said Thursday it had opened talks on a $42 billion takeover bid for TeliaSonera that would create the world's fourth- largest telecommunications operator. The Swedish... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:42 am
FLINT, Mich., June 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Citizens Republic Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq: CRBC) announced today that it has commenced concurrent offerings of common stock... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:34 am
There was a time when deals were hailed as "win-win" events for all sides. In the current market, "don't lose too much" may be the new rallying cry.
Fueling a possible sale of wireless provider Alltel to Verizon Wireless is the desire of the banks that financed last year's buyout of Alltel to get that debt off their books.
The market for deal debt froze up when the credit crisis took hold last August. In recent months, there have been some signs of life as private equity giants have begun buying these leveraged loans—essentially buying back their own debt. Such buying gained traction after a $12.5 billion loan sale by Citigroup.
Felix Salmon has noted that there may be questionable tax issues with private equity firms buying the debt of their own deals, but the momentum has not stopped.
Banks are willing to take a haircut on these loans to improve their balance sheets, and private equity firms smell a profitable opportunity in the long run.
Alltel was bought out by TPG and the private equity arm of Goldman Sachs. The lending banks, which include Citigroup, Barclays, and the Royal Bank of Scotland, have not been able to sell some $23 billion in loans, which are recorded on their books as a loss.
So, report Andrew Ross Sorkin and Laura Holson of the New York Times, Verizon is in talks to pay TPG and Goldman a small premium, while "some debt holders will sell at a discount, albeit at a higher price than the debt would fetch on the market."
A successful sale could prompt banks to push for similar deals. Citigroup, for example, would love to sell the $5 billion in loans it made to finance the buyout of EMI last year. But unlike Alltel, EMI has no obvious strategic buyer.
Lauren Silva on Breakingviews.com says that a discounted debt sale by the banks is better than the alternative.
In the case of Alltel, "when the underwriters gauged market interest for a bond deal a few weeks ago, investors were willing to pay only 89 cents on the dollar."
"So a 4 percent haircut isn't a sacrifice at all. In fact, some lenders may even be able to book a profit. Some of the loans may have been syndicated to distressed debt investors at discounted prices."
Today, Vodafone, which has a 45 percent stake in Verizon Wireless—and which had reportedly opposed previous attempts to buy Alltel because of concerns that its stake would be diluted as a result—confirmed that Verizon is in "advanced talks."
An acquisition would allow Verizon Wireless to leap over AT&T as the biggest wireless provider, with 80 million subscribers.
NEW YORK, June 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - BMO Capital Markets, the investment and corporate banking arm of BMO Financial Group (TSX, NYSE: BMO), will hold its third... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:30 am
CLEVELAND, June 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- PolyOne Corporation (NYSE: POL), a leading global provider of specialized polymer materials, services and solutions, announced Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:30 am
The Bank of England kept its key interest rate steady Thursday and the European Central Bank was expected to do the same as concerns over inflation preoccupy bank officials. The Bank... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:29 am
Continental Airlines is cutting 3,000 jobs and reducing capacity in the fourth quarter by 11 percent, citing record fuel costs and an industry in "crisis." Also, the company's chief... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:28 am
Vodafone Group PLC confirmed Thursday that Verizon Wireless is in advanced talks about acquiring U.S. carrier Alltel Communications LLC. News reports have suggested the possible deal... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:24 am
JACKSONVILLE, Fla., June 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Fidelity National Financial, Inc. (NYSE: FNF), a leading provider of title insurance, specialty insurance, claims... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:24 am
UK interest rates are kept at 5% following a meeting of Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:19 am
London equity markets were back into the red by midday on Thursday after losses for miners outweighed financial sector gains as Royal Bank of Scotland was lifted by an upgrade.The Bank of England's decision... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:14 am
The pound lost ground on Thursday after the Bank of England left interest rates on hold after its policy meeting.The decision to leave interest rates at 5 per cent came as little surprise to investors... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:07 am
The Bank of England today spurned pleas for a new cut in interest rates to
shore up the faltering economy and slumping housing market and held them at
5 per cent. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:00 am
European equities trimmed early gains on Thursday as unexpectedly weak Germany manufacturing data cancelled out bid speculation in the telecoms sector. Stocks pared earlier gains after a report showed... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 11:00 am
Oil prices steadied on Thursday after coming under selling pressure in the previous two sessions while gold softened but US agricultural commodities rose. Nymex July West Texas crude oil rose 20 cents... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 10:57 am
Bellway on Thursday highlighted the challenges facing the construction industry, saying net reservations in the last four months had fallen by a third compared with the same period a year ago as the traditional... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 10:32 am
The rising cost of fuel prompts Australian airline Qantas to scrap or reduce several Asian services. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Jun 2008 | 10:24 am
Word from Vodafone (VOD), which owns part of Verizon Wireless, and other sources is that Verizon is looking at a purchase of Alltel, another cellular carrier. TPG Capital and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners own Alltel now. According to the FT, "Adding Alltel’s 13.2m subscribers to Verizon Wireless’s 67.2m would create the largest wireless carrier in the country." The Justice Department, which spends its time vetting things like the Sirius (SIRI) merger and Microsoft's (MSFT) antitrust activity, probably won't look at the Verizon deal at all. But, maybe it should. The wireless industry in the US is down to two companies--Verizon...
The rate of decline in average house prices is accelerating. According to the Halifax, house prices fell 6.3pc in the three months to May. They rose by 1pc in the three months to February. With problems in the mortgage markets looking set to drag on and the economy beginning to falter we expect significant further falls Source: Telegraph Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 10:15 am
The board of TeliaSonera on Thursday rejected a cash and share offer by France Telecom which would give the Nordic telecoms company an equity value of around SKr282bn ($47bn).France Telecom had earlier... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 10:15 am
TeliaSonera said its board unanimously decided not to support France Telecom's takeover offer, which gave the Nordic group an equity value of around $47bn, and bankers expected Norway's Telenor to consider a rival bid Source: FT.com - US homepage | 5 Jun 2008 | 10:15 am
Rail regulators have told Network Rail it should be more efficient and operate on less money than it has asked for. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Jun 2008 | 10:06 am
Asia-Pacific equities were mostly lower on Thursday, with the general mood cautious after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's inflation remarks, and Moodys put Ambac on ratings review for a possible downgrade... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 10:01 am
Everyone in the car industry waits for the once-a-year JD Power Initial Quality Study to come out. The poll looks at how many defects a car has in the first 90 days after the buyer picks it up at the dealership. If the vehicle loses a wheel going of the lot, the vehicle gets a bad grade. Most of the headlines about the survey this year are that GM (GM) and Ford (F) moved up in the study and Toyota (TM) and Honda (HMC) moved down. The fact of the matter is that most cars and trucks are extremely well...
Shell's removal from the oil fields in Nigeria's volatile Ogoniland is welcomed by the son of executed activist Ken Saro-Wiwa. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Jun 2008 | 9:54 am
The pound lost ground on Thursday after sliding UK house prices added to recent evidence of a sharp slowdown in the economy ahead of the Bank of England's decision on interest rates.Figures from the Halifax... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 9:51 am
Wm Morrison’s efforts at rebranding, and the competitive price of its shopping
basket, has boosted customer numbers at the supermarket group, leading to a
rise in first-quarter sales of 7 per cent on a like-for-like basis. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 5 Jun 2008 | 9:50 am
The world will face high food prices 'in the years to come,' the UN food summit was set to agree, but countries watered-down a declaration on how to resolve the crisis as they failed to agree on the critical issues of biofuels and trade Source: FT.com - US homepage | 5 Jun 2008 | 9:46 am
It is almost impossible to understand why business people could not use their RIM (RIMM) Blackberry devices to trade stocks until now. The Blackberry can run e-mail applications and the new versions can be used to browse the internet. Other similar devices from Apple (AAPL), Samsung, and Nokia (NOK) can be used as little TVs and GPS devices. Google's (GOOG) mapping feature works on most of them Today, E*Trade (ETFC) announced that people with a Blackberry can trade stocks while they are walking around town, having lunch, or riding in a car. The AP writes that the new application "will...
The top story at WSJ.com today is that Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, heads of Microsoft (MSFT), had a series of fights over control of the company. That was eight years ago. It may be a nice human interest story. But, Ballmer is CEO and Gates is "retiring" to give his money away to worthy causes. The financial paper writes that "Things became so bitter that, on one occasion, Mr. Gates stormed out of a meeting in a huff after a shouting match in which Mr. Ballmer jumped to the defense of several colleagues." That must have been an Aha!...
European equities were propped up by bid speculation on Thursday after France Telecom made a move on Nordic operator TeliaSonera.In mid morning trade, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.3 per cent to 1,316... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 9:21 am
Most of the descendants of Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart (WMT) have often been a quart low. That may be why none of them has run the company. One of his daughters raises llamas. Another died flying a poorly-built ultra-light airplane. Now, the family has decided to put an in-law on the board, He has done work at the company. And, his parents are sex therapists, which does not disqualify him altogether. The fact that he was CFO of the Wal-Mart operation in Japan, which has lost hundreds of millions of dollars, probably should. According to The Wall Street...
UK house prices dropped by 2.4% in May, according to a survey by the Halifax, Britain's biggest mortgage lender. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Jun 2008 | 9:06 am
London equity markets rebounded from early losses on Thursday after financial stocks were lifted by an upgrade of Royal Bank of Scotland.In mid morning trade, the FTSE 100 turned around as banking gains... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 5 Jun 2008 | 9:02 am
Halifax, the country’s largest mortgage lender, said that house prices fell 2.4pc in May as a squeeze on household incomes contributes to a falling number of new buyers. Source: Telegraph Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 9:00 am
Following intense pressure from senior supporters, Hillary Clinton's campaign confirmed she would concede the Democratic nomination to Barack Obama on Saturday Source: FT.com - US homepage | 5 Jun 2008 | 8:59 am
Lloyds TSB agrees a deal whereby Northern Rock mortgage customers will be encouraged to switch to it. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Jun 2008 | 8:42 am
Lloyds TSB will offer mortgages to Northern Rock customers when their deal
with the nationalised lender runs out, in a three-year agreement signed
between the two banks today. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 5 Jun 2008 | 8:26 am
Halifax, the country’s largest mortgage lender, said that house prices fell 2.4pc in May as a squeeze on household incomes contributes to a falling number of new buyers. Source: Telegraph Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 8:10 am
According to Reuters, nuclear energy is beginning to make a comeback Reuters reports that Vodafone (VOD) said Verizon Wireless is in talks to buy Alltel. Reuters writes that Corporate Express will open its books to potential buyer Staples (SPLS). Reuters writes that Bernanke said US inflation is too high. The Wall Street Journal writes that a clash between Steve Ballmber and BIll Gates eight years ago lead tothe company's current management structure. The Wall Street Journal writes that a Walton will join the Wal-Mart (WMT) board in what could be the early stages of a management change. The Wall Street...
The head of BP's oil venture in Russia is to be quizzed by Moscow as part of a tax evasion probe, reports say. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Jun 2008 | 7:17 am
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Vodafone confirmed on Thursday that Verizon Wireless, in which it has a 45 percent stake, is in advanced talks about buying U.S. rural mobile service provider Alltel Corp.
Much needed improvements to the rail network, including schemes to reduce
overcrowding on trains, have been thrown into doubt today by a £3 billion
shortfall in the funding proposed for Network Rail. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 5 Jun 2008 | 7:12 am
TeliaSonera has rejected out of hand a 282.9 billion kronor (£24 billion)
offer from France Telecom, saying the cash-and-shares bid was “significantly
below” the company’s value. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 5 Jun 2008 | 7:03 am
Consumers pay more than £1.4 billion a year too much for payment protection
insurance (PPI) because finance providers in the £5.4 billion PPI market
fail to compete properly, according to a damning report released this
morning by the Competition Commission. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 5 Jun 2008 | 6:57 am
Interest rates are expected to be left unchanged at 5pc for the second consecutive month tomorrow as the Bank of England's concerns over rising inflation pressures outweigh fears that the economy is slowing rapidly. Source: Telegraph Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 6:15 am
Intel is fined 26bn won by South Korea's competition regulator after being accused of anti-competitive behaviour. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Jun 2008 | 5:55 am
(Reuters) - Bear Stearns Cos' private-equity arm Bear Stearns Merchant Banking is expected to announce on Thursday it will spin off into an independent company with JPMorgan Chase & Co as its largest investor, the Wall Street Journal said.
Yahoo said activist investor Icahn's reference to its employee retention plan as a poison pill 'could not be further from the truth' Source: FT.com - US homepage | 5 Jun 2008 | 4:42 am
Westpac and ASB Bank cut fixed home lending rates today after the Reserve Bank signalled an interest rate cut by the end of the year.
Westpac mortgage rate cuts ranged from 0.1 percentage point to 0.4 points, with the two-year... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 4:13 am
The Official Cash Rate (OCR) could be down to 6 per cent by the end of next year, says one bank economist.
But it won't come down in a rush, with the Reserve Bank likely to take its time cutting rates, wary of the impact on the... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 3:00 am
Today's bleak outlook for the economy is proof the Reserve Bank focus on fighting inflation is a failed experiment, says one economist.
BERL Senior Economist Ganesh Nana said targeting inflation has "failed the needs of the New... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 2:45 am
United Airlines, the second largest carrier in the US, is to ground planes, slash flights from its schedules and cut up to 1,600 jobs as it struggles to cope with the economic downturn and the soaring cost of jet fuel.
The moves... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 2:30 am
Auckland house sale figures show the number of homes sold in May fell by more than a half, but prices rose slightly.
Auckland real estate company Barfoot & Thompson says the number of residential properties it sold last month fell... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 2:00 am
US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said today he does not believe the United States will experience the out-of-control prices seen with 1970s oil shocks.
His assessment came in a speech delivered to graduating students at... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 1:30 am
Wholesale trade sales eased ahead in the March quarter, pushed up by unprocessed primary products but pulled back by food and groceries and motor vehicles.
Figures from Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) today put seasonally adjusted... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:15 am
Orange is cutting 450 management and administrative jobs, opening more shops and reducing its reliance on Indian call centres in a major shake-up by its new UK chief executive Tom Alexander. Source: Telegraph Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:01 am
Britain strengthened its position as the favoured European destination for foreign investment last year, a study shows, but faces a significant fall in future investments as the international credit crisis forces foreign companies to rethink their plans. Source: Telegraph Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:01 am
Cadbury has received a blow to its ambitions in India after the country's biggest listed retailer refused to sell the UK company's products amid allegations of discrimination. Source: Telegraph Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:01 am
UTV, owner of the Ulster ITV franchise and TalkSPORT radio, is calling on shareholders for £50m with a deeply discounted rights issue, in a move to slash debt by about a third. Source: Telegraph Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:01 am
Britain is uniquely vulnerable to the deepest economic slump since the recession of the 1990s because the Government has left itself no room to cut taxes, a report warned yesterday. Source: Telegraph Business | 5 Jun 2008 | 12:01 am
Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) is preparing to make further investments in
American financial institutions such as Merrill Lynch and Citigroup to
profit from fears that banks are still short of cash despite collectively
raising nearly $300 billion ($£153 billion) worldwide recently. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 4 Jun 2008 | 11:00 pm
Verizon Wireless is in talks to purchase rival Alltel Corp., according to a report Wednesday, in a deal that could create the largest mobile carrier in the United States.
Many investors are continuing to bet heavily against Lehman Brothers, lifting the percentage of the bank's shares sold short to a record level Source: FT.com - US homepage | 4 Jun 2008 | 10:50 pm
The New Zealand sharemarket rose in early trading, despite a bleak picture of the economy painted by Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard.
Leaving the Official Cash Rate at 8.25 per cent in its 9am announcement, the Reserve Bank... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 4 Jun 2008 | 10:47 pm
Robert Dudley, the chief of BP's TNK-BP Russian oil venture, was summoned for questioning by the interior ministry as part of a criminal investigation into possible large-scale tax evasion Source: FT.com - US homepage | 4 Jun 2008 | 10:33 pm
Verizon Communications, the second largest US telecommunications group, is in talks to acquire Alltel, the fifth largest US mobile network operator, in a deal valued at about $27bn Source: FT.com - US homepage | 4 Jun 2008 | 10:13 pm
Bear Stearns sought rescue financing from Temasek of Singapore in the days before its sale to JPMorgan Chase but was rebuffed, underscoring the growing reluctance of sovereign wealth funds to make high-profile investments Source: FT.com - US homepage | 4 Jun 2008 | 10:02 pm
Reserve Bank governor Alan Bollard has given the clearest possible signal that he is more worried by the fact economic growth is virtually at a standstill than by demoralising effects of high - and rising - inflation in the short... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 4 Jun 2008 | 9:00 pm
The standards of leveraged loans used to fund private equity buy-outs have loosened in Europe this year in spite of the credit crisis, sharply raising the risk of corporate defaults, Standard & Poor's warned Source: FT.com - US homepage | 4 Jun 2008 | 8:33 pm
The Reserve Bank today said it expects the annual inflation rate to leap to 4.7 per cent this year, the highest level in 18 years, but bank governor Alan Bollard still signalled a cut in interest rates.
Dr Bollard, as expected,... Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 4 Jun 2008 | 8:00 pm
Attention bondholders! Moody's would like you to know that it's thinking about its ratings on the bond insurers MBIA and Ambac, and it thinks it's probably going to conclude that a downgrade is in order when it completes its review.
Maybe. Also, maybe not.
But probably.
Moody's "Maybe" announcement sent shares of Ambac down 17 percent and MBIA's down 15 percent. It put the chief executives of the battered monolines on the defensive. And it soured an otherwise pleasant mood on Wall Street as the Dow reversed its gains.
Just when the credit-rating agencies are coming under increasing scrutiny, Moody's fired off a warning that simultaneously affirmed its credibility with investors and raised more questions among the companies it rates.
Moody's said it will "most likely" downgrade the bond insurers' debt from triple-A to double-A and may even drop it to the A level. The bond insurers were downgraded by Fitch earlier this year, but maintained their high rating from Moody's and Standard & Poor's.
MBIA chief executive Jay Brown disagreed with Moody's assertion. In February, the agency indicated that MBIA had six to 12 months before its rating would come under more scrutiny. Brown said the environment hasn't changed since then, and that its capital position has actually improved.
"Thus we are surprised by both the timing and direction of this action and can only conclude that the requirements for a triple-A rating continue to change," he said in a statement.
Of course, many investors believe the ratings firms should have downgraded the firms' debt many months ago. Hedge fund managers like Bill Ackman and David Einhorn have been outspoken bears about MBIA and Ambac for a long while.
A downgrade would negatively impact the $1 trillion worth of debt that the two insurers have guaranteed. In preparation for this, Moody's placed a banner at the top of its website today that states:
"On June 4, 2008, Moody's placed MBIA and Ambac on review for possible downgrade. Because of the large volume of rating and watchlist changes resulting from these actions, ratings appearing on this website may not yet reflect current information."
Record gas prices are driving commuters to buses and trains in mass. Commentator Robert Reich says unless we're willing to upgrade our transit systems, those drivers won't find anything on public transit but more frustration. Source: Marketplace | 4 Jun 2008 | 6:29 pm
7 of the 10 fastest-growing jobs are in health care, but as demographics change, doctors and nurses will need new cultural skills to go along with their medical training. Alyssa Wagner has the story. Source: Marketplace | 4 Jun 2008 | 6:29 pm
A climate change bill making its way through Congress would place a tariff on some foreign-made goods. Host Kai Ryssdal talks to Marketplace's Sam Eaton about the controversial provision. Source: Marketplace | 4 Jun 2008 | 6:29 pm
Monsanto announced plans to create new seeds with higher yields and lower energy and water demands in response to the global food crisis. Sarah Gardner has more. Source: Marketplace | 4 Jun 2008 | 6:29 pm
Bad news in the housing market means a bad quarter for the sale of home accessories at Williams-Sonoma and even the summer wedding season may fail to stop the bleeding. Stacey Vanek-Smith reports. Source: Marketplace | 4 Jun 2008 | 6:29 pm
Oil is down more than $10 from a week ago. John Dimsdale says more and more signs point to a drop in demand, both in the U.S. and abroad. Source: Marketplace | 4 Jun 2008 | 6:29 pm
High fuel prices have driven United to cut 1,500 jobs and ground 100 of its planes. Jill Barshay explains the lengths airlines have been forced to go to in order to cut costs. Source: Marketplace | 4 Jun 2008 | 6:28 pm
The credit-ratings agencies are many people's prime suspects for the credit crisis. The agencies put their stamp of approval on hundreds of billions of dollars worth of securities tied to mortgages, giving wildly optimistic assessments on debt whose underlying assets soon plunged in value.
A large part of the problem, as Jesse Eisinger detailed in August, is that the Big Three ratings agencies—Moody's, Standard & Poor's, and Fitch—have become a very profitable business, and their ties to the firms whose debt they are rating has not always been clear.
Andrew Cuomo, the New York attorney general, is taking a big step toward shaking up the way the ratings agencies do business, according to several reports today.
The agencies and the attorney general's office are near a settlement that would create greater disclosure over the fees the agencies receive.
Jenny Anderson and Vikas Bajaj of the New York Timessay the most important element of the agreement is the change to how the ratings agencies collect fees. The overhaul will "make it harder for investment banks to play the firms against one another to obtain a better rating," they say.
Aaron Lucchetti of the Wall Street Journalnotes that, "If a deal is reached, it could change the $5-billion-a-year bond-rating industry as fundamentally as Mr. Cuomo's predecessor Eliot Spitzer did six years ago with his settlement with Wall Street firms over stock-research analysts whose recommendations were compromised by investment-banking ties."
Lynn Turner, a former chief accountant for the Securities and Exchange Commission, told Bloomberg News that the changes would not eliminate the core conflict of interest.
"It aids transparency but it doesn't solve the problem, because the same people—the issuers—are paying for the services, as opposed to the old model where the investors paid for the services," he said. "The old model was a better model."
The old model, selling subscriptions to receive ratings, changed in the 1970s, and companies began paying to be rated.
So this is a business that could change again, but does anyone other than Cuomo have the will to force an overhaul?
The Financial Times last week suggested the creation of "an independent body to commission credit ratings using issuers' money" to resolve the conflict of interest and called on the agencies to adopt new labels after "triple-A" became something of a joke.
Reuters - The number of U.S. workers filing
new claims for jobless benefits fell unexpectedly last week,
the government said on Thursday.
Reuters - Many U.S. retailers reported
better-than-expected May sales on Thursday, with discounters
and dollar stores attracting customers looking to save money in
the weak economy, but department stores continued to struggle.
Reuters - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc
has sufficient capital and funding to survive, but has seen
derivatives trading results hurt by clients worried about the
credit strength of certain units, analyst Brad Hintz told
clients Thursday.
Reuters - Continental Airlines Inc said
on Thursday it would cut 3,000 jobs, or about 6.5 percent of
its work force, and retire 67 older planes as it scales down in
the face of soaring fuel prices.
AFP - British house prices tumbled 3.8 percent in May for the largest annual drop since April 1993, home loans provider Halifax said on Thursday.