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Fears drag down European marketsEuropean stock markets remain jittery as fears of a global recession and further economic woe return to haunt investors.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:34 am Hungary in three-point rate riseHungary's central bank raises interest rates by three points to 11.5% amid fears over its plunging currency.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:32 am Philip Morris third-quarter profit beats estimatesCHICAGO (Reuters) - Marlboro cigarette maker Philip Morris International Inc posted higher-than-expected quarterly profit on Wednesday, helped by price increases and a weak U.S. dollar.Source: Reuters: Business News | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:30 am Samsung won't acquire SanDiskRead full story for latest details.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:28 am Stock futures tumble as recession, profit worries weigh (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:28 am Stock futures tumble as recession, profit worries weighNEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures fell on Wednesday, following declines in Europe and Asia on mountingSource: Reuters: Business News | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:28 am Wall Street frets the bottom lineU.S. stock futures fell early Wednesday as a grim outlook for corporate profits pummeled markets worldwide, Wachovia reported an unexpected huge loss, and oil prices plunged below $70 a barrel.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:27 am Wachovia reports $23.9 billion lossNEW YORK (Reuters) - Wachovia Corp on Wednesday posted a $23.9 billion third-quarter loss, a record for any U.S. lender in the global credit crisis, underscoring the challenges Wells Fargo & Co will face after it acquires the big lender.Source: Reuters: Business News | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:27 am Movers & Shakers: Wednesday's biggest gaining and declining stocksAmong the companies whose shares are expected to see active trade in Wednesday’s session are Air Products, Apple, Baker Hughes, Boston Scientific, E-Trade, Elbit Systems, Norfolk Southern, Philip Morris, SanDisk, Tupperware, Wachovia and Yahoo.Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:24 am Australia's CPI rise at 13-year high in third quarterHONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Australia's inflation rate surged to a 13-year high in the three-months ending in September, although economists downplayed the data, saying it failed to capture the recent market turmoil and a paradigm shift towards a stalling economy as a bigger worry.Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:22 am Wachovia (WB): Being In Banking Gets Worse
Wachovia reported a net loss in the third quarter of 2008 of $23.89 billion, representing a net loss per share of $11.18, including a provision for credit losses of $6.63 billion to cover $1.87 billion in net charge-offs and to build reserves by $4.76 billion. The third quarter 2008 net loss compared with earnings of $1.62 billion or 85 cents per share in the third quarter of 2007 The $18.8 billion in noncash goodwill impairment reflecting declining market valuations and the terms of the merger with Wells Fargo (WFC); the recognition of the impairment affected the retail and small business, commercial, wealth management and asset management subsegments. Wachovia's general bank which includes retail, small business and commercial customers, is the only unit which did well. It has segment earnings of $857 million down from $1.5 billion a year ago. But, at least it did not lose money Douglas A. McIntyre Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:21 am Wachovia suffers nearly $24 billion lossWachovia reported arguably its most painful loss to date Wednesday, in what might be the bank's last quarterly results before it becomes a part of Wells Fargo.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:17 am Pound tumbles to a five-year lowThe pound drops by almost 3% against the US dollar, falling to its lowest level in five years, on recession fears.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:12 am Mortgage application volume lowest in almost 8 years: MBAMortgage applications filed last week decrease a seasonally adjusted 16.6% compared with the week before, caused mainly by a sharp drop in refinancing activity, Mortgage Bankers Association data show.Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:02 am Wal-Mart sets new rules for China suppliers (AP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:01 am Earnings Watch: Updates, advisories and surprisesA roundup of the latest corporate earnings reports and what companies are saying about future quarters.Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 22 Oct 2008 | 11:01 am FSA extends City ban on short-sellingThe Financial Services Authority (FSA), the City watchdog, has extended its crackdown on short-selling following a 30-day review of the new measures.Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:56 am Gloomy forecasts for UK economyThe Bank of England governor and an influential think tank predict the UK is likely to slide into recession in 2009.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:56 am Currencies: Euro, U.K. pound plunge on repatriation, rate-cut expectationsThe euro and the British pound plunge against the U.S. dollar and the Japanese yen Wednesday, pressured by further fund repatriation and expectations the European Central Bank and the Bank of England will move to aggressively cut interest rates in coming months.Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:54 am Oil falls below $70 on recession fearsRead full story for latest details.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:52 am Poll: Low marks for Paulson, bailoutA majority of Americans aren't happy with the way Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is handling his job or with the financial rescue package he and Congress created, according to a poll released Wednesday.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:44 am VMWare (VMW): The Stock The Market Underestimated
What Wall St. missed is that VMWare builds what is likley to be the single most important software available to cut IT costs over the next decade. Yesterday, VMW reported a quarter in which sales rose 32% to $472 million. The company beat consensus EPS numbers. The stock then moved up 22% from where it had been trading, near its 52-week low. Analysts should have seen the rise of VMW coming all along. Virtualization software allows one server to do what it took several to do until recently. The products will allow large companies to eliminate hundreds of servers and the related hardware costs. As many computer functions run on the server-side of applications instead of using PC CPU, virtualiztion will only become more important. VMWare is sitting at the toll booth of the future of computing. The stock should never have been beaten down as much as it was. Douglas A. McIntyre Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:32 am Recession fears swamp signs of bank crisis easingLONDON (Reuters) - Fears of global recession and a flight from emerging markets overshadowed signs on Wednesday that government attempts to end the gravest financial crisis in 80 years may be bearing fruit.Source: Reuters: Business News | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:32 am Asia Markets: Nikkei skids 6.8%, snapping three-day rallyBroad-based losses are seen from Tokyo to Mumbai, as investors show little appetite for equities against a backdrop suggesting improving odds of a global recession.Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:32 am Global stocks slide anew, dollar sets 2-year highLONDON (Reuters) - Stock markets around the world fell sharply again on Wednesday after concerns about economic recession and falling commodity prices were fueled by a fresh spate of gloomy corporate earnings.Source: Reuters: Business News | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:31 am WellPoint profit falls as investments weighNEW YORK (Reuters) - WellPoint Inc posted a 5.4 percent drop in third-quarter profit on Wednesday as the health insurer recorded major investment losses that overshadowed a gain from a taxSource: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:23 am SEC Asks For More Compensation Regulation (AAPL)(TM)
No matter how easy people would like to go on the agency, it appears to be late again. Yesterday, senior SEC officials said that want companies to look more carefully at compensation. This would apply to all public companies, not just banks. According to The Wall Street Journal, the agency thinks "all U.S. companies, not just those in finance, should consider limiting compensation packages that reward excessive risk-taking by executives." The SEC's request is a sticky wicket. One of the goals of management at most companies is to take risk. Progress requires a certain dose of the stuff. Steve Jobs probably took excessive risks when he bet the future of Apple (AAPL) on a stupid music player back when the digital song business was still young. Toyota (TM) spending hundreds of millions of dollars creating the hybrid was risky as well. The SEC wants to be seen as having caught up on the big issues of the day instead of being years behind judging what is important in overseeing public companies. There may be a smattering of applause for that. But, there is something perverse in trying to regulate risk, at least to the extent that risk is dangerous in some cases and critical to success in others. It is risk because it sometimes has catastrophic outcomes. The current banking and credit crisis could be attributed to boards not reigning in management risk. It could be attributed to stupidity. Executives may have had too superficial an understanding of what their egg heads were doing with all of those derivatives which they kept down in the basement. The SEC is right on one count. If it had spent more time peaking into the danger of the financial instruments banks where using to pump up earnings, they might have been early to see the causes of the impending disaster. Risk is ruinous, part of the time. It is also the foundation of progress. It is risk because its chances cannot be seen ahead of time. If the economy and the stock market want the good, they are bound to get a taste of the bad. Douglas A. McIntyre Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:22 am Bank of England panel unanimously backed coordinated rate cutFears of a potentially sharp “monetary contraction" led the Bank of England’s rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee to put aside worries about inflation pressures to unanimously back a coordinated set of rate cuts earlier this month by the world’s top central banks.Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:11 am Nissan seeks about 20 percent of Chrysler: paperTOKYO (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co is proposing to buy about 20 percent of Chrysler and bring the troubled U.S. automaker into the Franco-Japanese alliance with Renault SA , the Detroit News reported on Wednesday, citing sources familiar with the situation.Source: Reuters: Business News | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:07 am Nissan seeks about 20 percent of Chrysler: paper (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:07 am Recession fears hit stocks, currency markets (AFP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:01 am Aetna to offer records in Microsoft HealthVaultHealth insurer Aetna Inc. is becoming the first health insurer to team with Microsoft Corp. to give its customers an Internet-based vault for storing medical records they can access even ifSource: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:00 am Downey Announces Third Quarter 2008 ResultsNEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Oct. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Downey Financial Corp. (NYSE: DSL) reported a net loss for third quarter 2008 of $81.1 million or $2.89 per shareSource: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:00 am New iGoogle Gadget and Shipping Calculator Save Money on ShippingShipGooder.com search engine for shipping rates announces new tools to save money on shipping. TORONTO, Oct. 22 /PRNewswire/ - ShipGooder.com, the...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:00 am Brookstone Announces Third Quarter and Year-to-Date 2008 Financial ResultsMERRIMACK, N.H., Oct. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Innovative product development company and specialty lifestyle retailer Brookstone, Inc. today announced financial results for...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:00 am Knight Capital Group Announces Earnings of $0.40 Per Diluted Share for the Third Quarter 2008Global Markets more than doubled pre-tax income to $88.3 million in the third quarter 2008, up from $32.2 million in the third quarter 2007, in one of the strongest quarterly...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:00 am Air Products Reports Fiscal Q4 EPS from Continuing Operations of $1.26Access the Q4 earnings teleconference scheduled for 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time on October 22 by calling (719) 325-4747 and entering passcode 1462434, or listen on the Web at:...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:00 am Dover Corporation Reports Record Third Quarter 2008 ResultsNEW YORK, Oct. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Dover Corporation (NYSE: DOV) announced today that for the third quarter ended September 30, 2008, it had earnings from continuing...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 10:00 am Indications: U.S. stock futures point to second drop in a row; Apple climbsU.S. stock futures pointed to a second straight drop on Wednesday on concerns for earnings in a rocky economy, though Apple looked set to buck the trend after the consumer electronics giant was able to sell far more iPhones than expected.Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:53 am Low Energy Prices Remain Key To Recession's Strength
Economists argue that the value of houses in the US could drop another 10% to 15%. That would put a lot more mortgages "underwater," making many home impossible to sell. If the person owning a home is swamped by other expenses or loses a job, the loan almost certainly goes into default. Paulson and Congress say that there will eventually be direct aid to the mortgage market, but government is slow and that day may be many months off. It will also be many months, or perhaps a year, before the relatively normal process of lending will be a part of the economy. Banks still face write-offs. Goldman Sachs just said that Citigroup (C) may not make money until the end of 2009. The large financial supermarket's credit and write-off troubles are that grim. Banks without capital are not going to be lenders no matter how much Paulson bullies them. The head of Wal-Mart (WMT) is in Beijing this week beating on suppliers. He wants safer products and he wants goods made by companies who do not pollute the environment. He may have to travel around China for a decade to get his wish. But, the chief of the world's largest retailer made another telling comment. If energy prices rise, the recovery is cooked. That is the same recovery which is probably a year away. Wal-Mart does rely on energy costs more than many businesses. Most people cannot walk to its stores and carry all the junk they buy there back home. Heating those big box retail outlets has to be expensive. But, oil and gas prices figure in a recovery at a level much greater than what Wal-Mart cares about. OPEC is likely to cut output, perhaps by a great deal. It needs more money from the West and China. Crude at $70 a barrel does not get that done. Even if OPEC tries the squeeze play, a deep recession could keep prices fairly low. That helps people who have to heat their homes and drive to work. But, when the economy begins even the smallest effort to recover, a tight supply of crude will be waiting around the corner to mug it. Oil prices may not be an issue at the trough. They become a very big issue when the time comes to mount a charge back in the direction of positive GDP growth. Oil prices are still a big deal. It is just hard to see that now. Douglas A. McIntyre Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:52 am Wal-Mart cracks down on China suppliersBEIJING/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wal-Mart Stores Inc said it will enforce stricter quality and environmental standards for its army of Chinese suppliers, a step likely to shrink margins and raise prices as the world nears recession.Source: Reuters: Business News | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:43 am Yahoo cuts 10% of workforceYahoo! announced Tuesday that it plans to cut at least 10% of its workforce, or more than 1,500 employees, in the fourth quarter in an effort reduce costs.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:42 am CNinsure to Announce Third Quarter 2008 Financial Results and Host Conference Call on November 24, 2008GUANGZHOU, China, Oct. 22 /Xinhua-PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CNinsure Inc. (Nasdaq: CISG), a leading independent insurance intermediary company operating in China, today...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:40 am Barnsley Building Society rescuedThe Barnsley Building Society is being taken over by the Yorkshire Building Society because of a possible £10m loss in Iceland.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:36 am Gazprom enjoys strong profit riseRussian gas producer Gazprom reports better-than-expected first-quarter results.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:34 am Barnsley seeks rescue merger with YorkshireBarnsley Building Society has been forced to seek a rescue merger with Yorkshire Building Society after facing up to £10 million in losses on cash it saved with Icelandic banksSource: Latest Business News from Times Online | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:34 am Apple (AAPL) Has Not Seen Its 52-Week Low
The Apple shares did get a big lift after Steve Jobs joined the earnings call, which is something he never does. The faithful hit the "buy" buttoms on their PCs and shares moved up and up. The real danger to investors is that this time, Apple may not be kidding in its forecast. The next quarter is the first of the year in Apple's fiscal and it is the holiday quarter, the one that is supposed to trump everything else. Looking ahead to that period, Jobs' people gave numbers well below what Wall St expected. For the first fiscal quarter, the company forecast EPS of $1.06 to $1.35, well below the analysts' $1.65 consensus, and sales of $9 billion to $10 billion, also well below the Street’s $10.57 billion. Looking at those figures though the lens of what is realistic, the holiday quarter would still be well up from the $7.9 billion Apple reported for the period which just ended. iPod sales barely moved, at least by the standards of the last few years. The iPod has probably had its run. There have been close to 200 million of them sold since Apple first brought the digital music player out Apple's Mac sales growth rate dropped by a modest amount in the last three months. Mac units shipped hit 2.61 million. If the economy drives off a cliff in the quarter ending in December, it is not hard to imagine that all personal computer sales could be undermined. That leaves the iPhone which had a remarkable run, selling almost seven million handsets. The product is so hot that even a recession may only slow sales of the product by a bit. The trouble is that the iPhone cannot carry the whole company. It has become a substantial part of the product line, but it cannot offset a fall-off in the growth rate for sales of the Mac and iPod. Wall St. is so obsessed with Apple that analysts send people to stores to see how its products are selling. By the end of November experts should have an good idea of how the quarter is going. If Apple's forecasts of a modest quarter appear to be right, the stock will face another sell-off like the one that has hit it over the last two months. In late August, Apple traded at $177. Less than three weeks ago, it was under $90. That is a strong indication that the market is already skeptical about the company's prospects in a bad economy. If there is a signal that Apple is not going to be perfect again, the shares could easily make another 52-week low. Douglas A. McIntyre Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:32 am Bank voted 9-0 to cut UK's ratesThe Bank of England's rate-setting committee voted by 9-0 to cut UK interest rates to 4.5%, minutes show.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:27 am Danone affirms outlook after third-quarter sales increaseGroupe Danone SA, the world’s largest yogurt maker, on Wednesday says third-quarter sales rose 31%, boosted by price increases on some of its dairy products and the acquisition of the Numico baby-food business.Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:23 am Wal-Mart acts over Chinese goodsWal-Mart tells its Chinese suppliers they will have to adhere to new quality standards and pay more attention to their sub-contractors.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:21 am Vietnam PV Drilling '09 net unchanged at $51 mlnHANOI, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Petrovietnam's PV Drilling forecast on Wednesday its net earnings next year would stay stable compared to 2008 at about 850 billion dong ($51 million) as its tax break ends in...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:17 am U.S. probe to ask analysts if Lehman misled: report(Reuters) - U.S. federal prosecutors probing the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc have subpoenaed other securities firms, asking whether their analysts were misled by Lehman about its financial health, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.Source: Reuters: Business News | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:17 am Oil below $70 as demand worries trump OPEC (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:15 am Oil below $70 as demand worries trump OPECLONDON (Reuters) - Oil fell below $70 a barrel on Wednesday, pressured by a gloomy outlook for the global economy that could limit the impact of any supply cuts OPEC might agree at a meeting on Friday.Source: Reuters: Business News | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:15 am Global stocks slide anew, dollar sets 2-year high (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:13 am Disney calls for Lehman inquiryWalt Disney becomes the latest company calling for an investigation into the dealings of Lehman Bros.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 22 Oct 2008 | 9:12 am Homebase and Argos profits plungeHome Retail Group reports a £542m write-down and falling profits at both its Homebase and Argos chains.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:57 am Pound plunges as King warns on recessionSterling hit a five-year low against the dollar after Mervyn King, governor of the Bank of England, gave his gloomiest assessment of Britain's economic prospects since taking office in 2003Source: FT.com - US homepage | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:53 am London Markets: Miners drop in lower London, BoE's King says likely in recessionMiners and other stocks sensitive to economic trends fall in London on Wednesday after giant mineral extractor BHP Billiton and the governor of the Bank of England comments on deteriorating economic growth trends.Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:49 am GM looks for capital from outside investors: reportNEW YORK (Reuters) - General Motors is looking for a large investment from outside investors as a possible alternative to a deal with Chrysler LLC, the Financial Times reported on its website on Tuesday.Source: Reuters: Business News | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:48 am GM looks for capital from outside investors: report (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:48 am Why stock picking is a losing gameImagine that the Man Upstairs is really, really pleased with you and has decided to make you fabulously wealthy. How would He do it? The simplest way would be to give you a bunch of no-brainer opportunities to make a killing on stocks and bonds. Then He'd put on this earth a host of suckers willing to take the opposite side of your bets.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:44 am Dollar rises sharply against euro, poundRead full story for latest details.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:36 am Bank voted unanimously for emergency rate cutThe emergency half-point cut in interest rates by the Bank of England a fortnight ago was unanimously backed by all nine members of its rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), it emerged today.Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:36 am Why Would Wal-Mart (WMT) Push China Suppliers To "Go Green"?
The company is issuing the mandates this week, plans to establish energy efficiency standards for suppliers, and requirements for third-party certification that all of its providers are in compliance with energy and labor laws in their areas. The company will also request more detailed information about where raw materials are being sourced from. This is certainly a well-intentioned plan and, given Wal-Mart's history, it's admirable. But the timing is awkward. With a global recession of uncertain duration taking hold, many suppliers will struggle to come up to par. Passing on costs to American consumers is more difficult now than it has been at any time in recent history and, while most of us like to think we're environmentally friendly, few of Wal-Mart's core customers are positioned to absorb price hikes -- and the world's largest retailer's margins are already under pressure. One apparel manufacturer told the Journal that "could not have come at a worst time. What [Wal-Mart] needs to make clear is, who's paying? Us or them?" Of course the one paying will be Wal-Mart's customers. Wal-Mart spokesman David Tovar postulated somewhat ludicrously that suppliers could compensate for the increased expense by "taking waste out of the system." But Wal-Mart's ruthless negotiations and the razor-thin margins it imposes on suppliers might make that tough -- not to mention the logistical nightmare for suppliers that will have to improve environmental efficiency while simultaneously cutting costs. That could lead to some Faded Glory t-shirts with three legs and a zipper. Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:24 am Stocks Drop Sharply in Europe and AsiaStocks fell sharply in Europe and Asia, and the euro and British pound fell to their lowest points against the dollar in years. Oil prices dropped below $70 a barrel.Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:22 am DTCC and LCH.Clearnet plan mergerDepository Trust and Clearing Corporation of the US and Europe's LCH.Clearnet unveiled a merger that would create the world's largest clearing houseSource: FT.com - US homepage | 22 Oct 2008 | 8:16 am Media Digest 10/22/2008
Reuters reports that Yahoo! (YHOO) profits dropped and the company will cut jobs. Reuters writes that Kirk Kerkorian sold part of his Ford (F) shares at a loss. Reuters reports that Apple (AAPL) earnings jumped on iPhone sales. Reuters writes that Toyota (TM) sales may drop for the first time in a decade. Reuters reports that Rio Tinto (RTP) moved up on a rumor of a bid from BHP Billiton (BHP). Reuters reports that US aid to banks may top $700 billion. Reuterrs writes that Samsung dropped its bid for Sandisk (SNDK). Reuters reports that Wal-Mart (WMT) has toughened it standards on Chinese suppliers. Reuters reports that the head of Barclays (BCS) M&A sees a credit thaw and more hostile bids for companies. Reuters writes that "underwater" mortgages are becoming a bigger threat in the US The Wall Street Journal reports that Latin American companies have suffered huge losses due to foreign-exchange gambles. The Wall Street Journal reports that Apple (AAPL) gave a conservative forecast based on a weak economy. The Wall Street Journal writes that The Fed said it will lend as much as $540 billion to the money-market mutual-fund industry. The Wall Street Journal reports that Wal-Mart (WMT) is giving suppliers standards on environmental practices. The Wall Street Journal writes that the SEC has asked all companies to review executive comp, especially for risk-taking behavior. The Wall Street Journal reports that Caterpillar (CAT) issued a weak outlook. The Wall Street Journal reports that the net at VMWare (VMW) rose sharply. The Wall Street Journal reports that biotech stocks have outperformed the Dow recently. The Wall Street Journal reports that the ad drop at McClatchy (MNI) is getting worse. The New York Times reports that OPEC may have a tough time keeping oil prices higher in a recession. The New York Times reports that Argentina will nationalize $30 billion in pension funds. The New York Times reports that profits at Blackrock fell as investors pulled back from funds. The New York Times reports that Pfizer (PFE) profits rose even with a drop-off in Lipitor. The New York Times reports that United (UAUA) lost money on fuel hedges. The FT reports that GM (GM) is looking for a "Buffett style" investment. The FT reports that investors are suffering because of the bust in the ethanol business. The FT reports that higher loan losses hurt US regional banks. Bloomberg reports that oil prices are falling as drops in demand offset the chance of less supply. Douglas A. McIntyre Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:49 am Homebase and Argos loss hits £437mShares in Home Retail Group (HRG) slumped in early trading today after the owner of Homebase and Argos plunged into the red with a £437 million pre-tax loss over six months of trading.Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:46 am Australian Stocks: Market falls over three per centMELBOURNE - Australian stocks have backtracked into negative territory following a weak Wall Street lead and falling Australian dollar. At 1615 AEDT, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 was down 146.4 points, or 3.4 per cent, at 4156.1, while...Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:39 am Asia Markets And Europe Open 10/22/2008
The Nikkei fell 6.9% to 8,675. Sony Corp (SNE) and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial dropped. The Hang Seng fell 6.3% to 14,093. The Shanghai Composite fell 3.2% to 1,897. In Europe, the FTSE opened off 1.5% to 4,165. The Dax fell 1% to 4,753, and the CAC 40 was down 2.9% to 3,376. Data from Reuters Douglas A. McIntyre Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:11 am Pound tumbles on King recession warningThe pound plunged against the dollar in early trading today as global markets took fright over a stark warning by Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, that the UK economy was on the brink of a prolonged recession.Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:08 am Apple profit climbs 26% on strong iPhone and Macintosh salesThe company defies Wall Street's concerns that slowing consumer spending had already hurt it. Its shares soar in after-hours trading.Apple Inc. said Tuesday that strong iPhone and Macintosh sales boosted its quarterly revenue and profit, defying Wall Street's concerns that slowing consumer spending had already hurt the company. Source: L.A. Times - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Public likely to pay for rising personal bankruptciesMatthew Shelbourn knows money. The 27-year-old Cerritos resident studied accounting as an undergrad at USC and kicked around various jobs in the financial sector before settling into his current gig as controller at an Anaheim pipe-manufacturing company.Source: L.A. Times - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am FDIC seeking office space in Southern CaliforniaThe agency needs office space while it liquidates the assets of failed banks and thrifts. The search is focused on Orange County, a source says.The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. plans soon to sign a major lease of office space in Orange County, probably in Irvine, where as many as 600 people would liquidate the assets of troubled banks and thrifts based in California and other Western states. Source: L.A. Times - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am EBay to halt ivory sales on websitesThe ban, set to take effect Jan. 1, comes after an animal welfare group's investigation.EBay Inc. will halt the sale of ivory on its websites, a company spokeswoman said Tuesday, after an investigation by an animal welfare group found the online auction giant was listing thousands of animal products taken from endangered species. Source: L.A. Times - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Health insurers reinvent themselves as money managersMany rush to open banks as more Americans open health savings accounts, a tax-sheltered way to pay medical bills. Managing that money is more profitable than offering health insurance.Second of three parts Source: L.A. Times - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Market downturn shatters faith in stocksAmericans who've learned to count on rising equity values to secure their retirement are seeing the possibility that the markets could fail them.For two decades, Danny Lockwood believed that investing in the stock market was essential for a comfortable retirement. Source: L.A. Times - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Apple's profit up 26% on iPhone boomApple Inc. said its profit jumped 26 percent in its fiscal fourth quarter as the newest iPhone 3G outsold the market-leading BlackBerry from Research in Motion Ltd.Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Stocks retreat on word of poor profit outlookThe Dow Jones industrial average falls about 2.5%, or 231 points. The Dow has risen or fallen by triple digits in 27 of the last 32 trading sessions. ...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am China charges into credit cardsBanks are stepping up their marketing of plastic, but the penalties are harsh on delinquent payers.Imagine there was a law that said if you missed two credit card payments in a row, you had to pay the full balance immediately, with heavy penalties. And if you didn't, your bank would take out an ad in your local newspaper, calling you a deadbeat. Or worse, thugs in suits might show up at your office, haul you down to the bank and keep you there for hours until you signed a promise to pay. Source: L.A. Times - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am EBay to halt ivory sales on websitesThe ban, set to take effect Jan. 1, comes after an animal welfare group's investigation. EBay Inc. will halt the...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Sumner Redstone files for divorceThe chairman of Viacom and CBS cites irreconcilable differences with his wife of five years, Paula Fortunato.Media magnate Sumner Redstone has filed for divorce from his wife of five years, Paula Fortunato, citing irreconcilable differences. Source: L.A. Times - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Public likely to pay for rising personal bankruptciesMatthew Shelbourn knows money. The 27-year-old Cerritos resident studied accounting as an undergrad at USC and kicked around various jobs in the financial sector before settling into his current gig as...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Apple profit climbs 26% on strong iPhone and Macintosh salesThe company defies Wall Street's concerns that slowing consumer spending had already hurt it. Its shares soar in after-hours trading. ...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Yahoo to cut 10% of workforce as profit declinesAbout 1,500 employees will lose their jobs as part of the company's plan to slash costs.Yahoo Inc. said Tuesday that it would lay off at least 10% of its workforce over the next few months as it grapples with the deepening economic crisis, continuing the Internet pioneer's tough run since it spurned a buyout offer from Microsoft Corp. this year. Source: L.A. Times - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Market downturn shatters faith in stocksAmericans who've learned to count on rising equity values to secure their retirement are seeing the possibility that the markets could fail them. ...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Jury in Boeing case awards ICO at least $371 million in damagesThe award could reach $462 million. The satellite firm had accused Boeing of breach of contract and fraud, among other claims. ...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Jury in Boeing case awards ICO at least $371 million in damagesThe award could reach $462 million. The satellite firm had accused Boeing of breach of contract and fraud, among other claims.A Los Angeles jury Tuesday awarded at least $371 million in damages to a satellite company in a dispute against Boeing Co. over canceled plans for a satellite network that could beam television programming and other services to mobile-device users around the globe. Source: L.A. Times - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am FDIC seeking office space in Southern CaliforniaThe agency needs office space while it liquidates the assets of failed banks and thrifts. The search is focused on Orange County, a source says. ...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Yahoo to cut 10% of workforce as profit declinesAbout 1,500 employees will lose their jobs as part of the company's plan to slash costs. Yahoo Inc. said Tuesday...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 22 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am NZ shares: Market slides following US leadThe New Zealand sharemarket slid again today after falls in United States equities on fears of a global recession and a rash of disappointing earnings. Brokers said trading here was light with offshore accounts again selling while...Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 6:15 am Currency: Dollar falls against greenbackThe New Zealand dollar fell today as the US dollar raced ahead and as investors prepared for tomorrow's interest rate decision by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. The central bank is expected to cut the official cash rate by 100...Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 5:21 am Trouble to last for months - but rebound coming, says PaulsonWASHINGTON - US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson says the current financial challenges facing America will persist for a number of months, but he said the economy will rebound. Paulson, speaking to an audience in New York, said...Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 2:00 am Paulson: Global cooperation is crucialRead full story for latest details.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 22 Oct 2008 | 1:35 am At Yahoo, job cuts are the good newsYahoo is bracing itself for a bleak fourth quarter.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 22 Oct 2008 | 1:34 am iPhone-mania pushes Apple profits upSEATTLE - Apple said its profit jumped 26 per cent in its fiscal fourth quarter as the newest iPhone 3G outsold the market-leading BlackBerry from Research in Motion. For the three months ended Sept. 27, Apple's profit climbed...Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 1:30 am GM in hunt for Buffett-style capital injectionGeneral Motors is seeking a sizeable capital injection from outside investors as a possible alternative to a deal with Chrysler, the carmaker's smaller Detroit-based rivalSource: FT.com - US homepage | 22 Oct 2008 | 1:11 am Trends & Innovations - TuesdayPace of pay raises for execs slowSource: Investor's Business Daily: BUSINESS | 22 Oct 2008 | 12:33 am In Brief - TuesdayMSC Industrial Direct (MSM), a provider of tools and industrial services, said Q4 EPS rose 13% to 80 cents, 5 cents over views. Sales were flat at...Source: Investor's Business Daily: BUSINESS | 22 Oct 2008 | 12:33 am Business Briefs - TuesdayUnited soars, loss less than feared. The airline surged nearly 9% to 13.80 after it posted a Q3 loss of $1.99 ex items, better than views of a...Source: Investor's Business Daily: BUSINESS | 22 Oct 2008 | 12:33 am Metal Bender Moves Up The Aerospace Food Chain With AcquisitionAn acquisition can do wonders for a company. Just ask LMI Aerospace. The sheet-metal bender, which makes components for the aerospace industry,...Source: Investor's Business Daily: BUSINESS | 22 Oct 2008 | 12:33 am After The Close - TuesdayEDWARDS LIFESCIENCES (EW), a medical device maker, said Q3 EPS rose 22% to 56 cents, meeting views. Sales grew 16% to $304 mil, above forecasts....Source: Investor's Business Daily: BUSINESS | 22 Oct 2008 | 12:33 am Minor parties lash Labour over bank deposit guaranteesThe leaders of three minor parties have attacked the Government's response to the financial crisis. Green's co-leader Russel Norman, Act leader Rodney Hide and United Future's Peter Dunne all told University of Auckland students...Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 22 Oct 2008 | 12:30 am Yahoo to axe 10 per cent of workforceYahoo announced a cut of at least 10 per cent in its workforce by the end of the year as it reported a disappointing third quarter caused by weakening display advertising salesSource: FT.com - US homepage | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:48 pm Aussie exodus highest level for 30 yearsThe population drift to Australia reached its highest level in at least 30 years last month. Figures published today by Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) showed about 47,200 people left New Zealand for Australia on a permanent or long...Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:30 pm Wyplosz Says Banking Transparency Is Hard to AchieveSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:18 pm Sir Philip Green puts Iceland on hold and eyes 'new concepts'Sir Philip Green is preparing for a shopping spree after forecasting that consolidation is almost inevitable in the retail sector over the coming year.Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:00 pm Need to know: £3bn Icesave plan ... Nissan applies brakes ... Xstrata fallsEconomicsSource: Latest Business News from Times Online | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:00 pm Chancellor Alistair Darling to press bank chiefs on small businessesAlistair Darling, the Chancellor, and Lord Mandelson, the Business Secretary, will meet chief executives of Britain's leading banks on Wednesday to urge them to increase small business lending to last year's levels of £53 billion.Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:00 pm Russia's rich forced to sell assets to repay loansSome of Russia's richest men have been forced into a firesale of assets as tough market conditions make it difficult for them to repay Western and local lenders.Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:00 pm Sumner Redstone faces a battle to hold on to ViacomSumner Redstone is no stranger to drama and crises. The media mogul behind MTV, Paramount Pictures and CBS has shrugged off disputes with film stars, family members and chief executives and survived, albeit only narrowly, a hotel blaze in Boston in 1979. Now, however, the octogenarian is facing a battle with his bankers in which he may be forced into selling Viacom, MTV's owner, or CBS.Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:00 pm Global banking catastrophe now less likely, says Aussie bank bossThe threat of a "global catastrophe" has declined in recent weeks, said Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn Stevens in a speech delivered yesterday. "At moments like this, it is hazardous to make predictions," Stevens said...Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:00 pm Signs of oil in East Coast prospects - explorerCanadian oil explorer Trans-Orient Petroleum Ltd says it has found rock with the potential to contain billions of barrels of oil on the East Coast but warns it could take years to extract. The company said in Vancouver today that...Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:00 pm Fran O'Sullivan : Key should stick to guns on crisisNational leader John Key took a calculated risk by going public on Sunday over behind-the-scenes moves to negotiate a wholesale banking guarantee. A successful resolution to the issue is critical for offshore confidence in New...Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 21 Oct 2008 | 11:00 pm Harry Clark Recommends `Start Buying' Stocks With ETFsSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 21 Oct 2008 | 10:49 pm Airbus prepares to double vendor financingAirbus is preparing to double the amount of vendor financing it offers to about €2bn ($2.62bn) next year to support commercial aircraft sales and maintain deliveries as its customers struggle to obtain funding from traditional sourcesSource: FT.com - US homepage | 21 Oct 2008 | 10:37 pm Investors suffer as US ethanol boom dries upThe likes of Microsoft's Bill Gates are sitting on billions of dollars in losses after buying into the corn-based ethanol industry that George W. Bush embraced as the answer to US energy woesSource: FT.com - US homepage | 21 Oct 2008 | 10:22 pm Apple cautious in spite of profit riseApple cited the souring economy as it cut its forecast for the current quarter, even as profits rose by more than expected following a big jump in sales of its iPhone mobile handsetSource: FT.com - US homepage | 21 Oct 2008 | 10:09 pm Broadcom Coming Ahead of Peers (BRCM, QCOM, TXN, INTC)
Scott A. McGregor, Broadcom's President & CEO commented on the caution ahead: "As in prior economic slowdowns, we expect to enhance our competitive positioning and drive the next wave of communications convergence. The widespread acceptance of our combination solutions validates our strategy, and together with our rapid transition to 65nm process technology, should enable us to emerge in a much stronger position when the economy recovers." But all in all, that is far more confident than others. $38 million of the revenue numbers were from royalties, which some will consider part of operations and some will not. The company's guidance for revenues was $1.17 billion to $1.235 billion and it seems from the tone of the conference call that this was being more conservative in a cautious time for the economy and for the sector. First Call had estimates at $1.28+ billion. Again, this isn't a win but it isn't a disaster considering what we saw yesterday. Another issue is that Broadcom seems to be on the winning end of the courtroom cases against Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM). Its comments of a "likely drop in margins" are not showing some of the gloom that we just saw yesterday from Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN). Broadcom even seems on better footing from a trader's perspective than processor giant Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) did last week. A drop of 0.50% to 0.75% off of margins for the coming quarter report in today's climate might even be considered a win by some. Traders were bracing for worse news, or at least with a 4% drop to $13.80 today before the report. Shares are up almost 8% at $14.90 in after-hours trading, and its 52-week trading range is $12.98 to $43.00. It might be a lay-up to at least call this the best earnings report including guidance of the large leading chip companies this earnings season. Considering that shares were north of $25.00 in mid-August, we'd label this chip stock earnings report as "King of the Prom... even if they are mostly dogs at the school."
Jon C. Ogg Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 21 Oct 2008 | 9:56 pm Unicredit's Annunziata Watching for Interbank Lending to ResumeSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 21 Oct 2008 | 9:29 pm Apple (AAPL): Market Gods Angered By Guidance
For the Q4, the Street expected $1.11 per share in earnings on sales of $8.05 billion. For the fiscal first quarter ending December, analysts looked for Apple to forecast $1.65 on sales of $10.57 billion. For all of fiscal 2009 ending next September, the average estimate was for $5.73 on sales of $38.79 billion, according to Barron's As it turns out, Apple posted revenue of $7.9 billion and net quarterly profit of $1.14 billion, or $1.26 per diluted share. This compares with revenue of $6.22 billion and net quarterly profit of $904 million, or $1.01 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Apple shipped 2,611,000 Macintosh computers during the quarter, representing 21% unit growth and 17% growth over the year-ago quarter. It sold 11,052,000 iPods during the quarter, representing 8% growth and 8% revenue growth over the year-ago quarter. Quarterly iPhone units sold were 6,892,000 compared to 1,119,000 in the year-ago-quarter. In other words, operating margins were squeezed. For the last quarter of the year, Apple said it did not have a precise idea of how things looked. It provided a wide range of guidance, targeting revenue of $9.0 to $10.0 billion and earnings per share between $1.06 and $1.35. Those forecasts were extremely light. Douglas A. McIntyre Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 21 Oct 2008 | 9:14 pm Higher loan losses hit US regional banksHigher loan losses weighed on quarterly results at a clutch of US regional banks amid continued consumer weakness and turbulence in financial marketsSource: FT.com - US homepage | 21 Oct 2008 | 9:04 pm VIX Index of U.S. Stock Option Prices Advances 0.3% to 53.11Source: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 21 Oct 2008 | 8:57 pm Toyota to post first sales drop in a decade: Nikkei (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 21 Oct 2008 | 8:52 pm Levy Sees `Deep' Recession, `More Than Enough Liquidity'Source: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 21 Oct 2008 | 8:04 pm Fed offers $540bn to prop up money fundsThe US Federal Reserve said it would finance up to $540bn in purchases of short-term debt from money market mutual funds to shore up a key pillar of the US financial systemSource: FT.com - US homepage | 21 Oct 2008 | 7:57 pm Voting Machines Switch VotesVoters using touch-screen voting machines for early voting in two West Virginia counties have complained that when they tried to vote for Democratic candidates, the machine registered their vote for other Republican candidates instead. At least three voters in Jackson County, West Virginia, complained that when they tried to cast a vote for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, the machine recorded a check in the box for Republican presidential candidate John McCain. One of the voters reported the same problem in the governor and state senate races. In each case, the voter tried to cast a vote for a Democratic candidate, but the machine marked his vote for the Republican challenger instead. Another voter who tried to cast votes for two state Supreme Court candidates said the machine cancelled one of her choices twice before it finally accepted her selection. Three other voters in Putnam County say they had the same problem. Jackson County Clerk Jeff Waybright blamed voters for not touching the screen properly and said that 400 other voters had cast ballots on the machine with no problem. But he agreed to recalibrate the machine's screen after the Secretary of State's office contacted him. Putnam County's election director complained to the Charleston Gazette that there are "so many negative stories out there and not enough positive ones. We want people to vote. People need to know the facts." Jackson County uses a touch-screen machine made by Election Systems & Software for early voting. The county uses touch-screen machines with a voter-verified paper trail at polling places on election day. Putnam County also uses ES&S machines but offers early voters the option of voting on a touch-screen machine or an optical scan machine, which uses a full-size paper ballot. On election day, the county uses optical-scan machines at polling places. Earlier this year during primaries, Faulkner County, Arkansas reported a different kind of vote-flipping problem involving ES&S touch-screen machines. Two touch-screen machines allocated votes for one race to another race entirely -- a race that wasn't even on the ballot. ES&S's tabulation software was blamed for another vote-flipping problem in Lawrence County, Ohio last year. In that case, tallies printed from ES&S machines allocated 374 votes to Bill Robinson and 170 votes to Allan Blankenship in a race for Hamilton Township trustee. But the tabulation program at county headquarters flipped the numbers and gave 170 to Robinson and 374 to Blankenship. UPDATE: More voters in Putnam County have come forward to say they had the same problem with touch-screen machines during early voting. And a third county, Ohio County, has also experienced the problem with its touch-screen machines during early voting. The Ohio County story notes that the touch-screen machines are outfitted with voter-verified paper audit trails that print out a voter's choices as he makes them and re-prints the choices if a voter changes his mind. I don't know if that's true for every county in West Virginia. Election officials haven't responded to my call yet, but I found a page on West Virginia's state election site that seems to indicate that all touch-screen machines used in the state for early voting do produce a paper trail. On election day, all counties in West Virginia use ES&S voting machines—either touch-screen machines with paper trails or optical-scan machines—except two counties that use regular paper ballots instead of voting machines. Counties across the state are now being instructed to re-calibrate their touch-screen machines. (Hat tip: John Gideon) Related LinksMcCain to YouTube: Don't Tread On Me Idle Chatter: Debate Ratings; 'Star-Ledger' Saved The Keating Connection Source: Portfolio.com: Top 5 | 21 Oct 2008 | 7:30 pm Whalen Sees `Old-Fashioned Loan Losses' (Correct)Source: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 21 Oct 2008 | 5:23 pm 'Greening' up homes for saleEverything seems to be going "green" these days, and now real estate brokers are joining the trend. Sustainability reporter Sarah Gardner takes an inside look at the growing group of "EcoBrokers."Source: Marketplace | 21 Oct 2008 | 4:20 pm Hearings on corporate shenanigansKai Ryssdal catches up with Congressman Henry Waxman to discuss regulation. Waxman chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which has been holding hearings on corporate misbehavior.Source: Marketplace | 21 Oct 2008 | 4:20 pm Letters: Poverty, food fraud and oilFrom the Marketplace mailbox, Kai Ryssdal pulls out some of the letters sent in by listeners. In the selection: comments on calculating the poverty line, food fraud, the financial crisis and the dropping price of oil.Source: Marketplace | 21 Oct 2008 | 4:20 pm Lehman settles credit default messWhen Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, sellers of its credit default swaps found themselves on the hook for billions of dollars. New York Bureau Chief Amy Scott reports on the settlement and how much is expected to change hands.Source: Marketplace | 21 Oct 2008 | 4:19 pm A cautionary tale from the 1790sA speculator named William Duer borrowed like crazy in the 1790s to build a fortune. When he went bust, lenders said he was too big to fail. Sound familiar? Author David Liss recounts the story that led to the founding of the NYSE.Source: Marketplace | 21 Oct 2008 | 4:19 pm Q3 earnings reflect economic slowdownIndustrial giant Caterpillar is one of a number of companies with lower-than-expected third-quarter earnings. Higher raw-material costs and the global economic slowdown are blamed. Ashley Milne-Tyte reports on earnings reports to come.Source: Marketplace | 21 Oct 2008 | 4:19 pm Should rescue money fund takeovers?Is the Fed encouraging a shakeout in the regional bank sector? Word is the government might allow mid-sized banks to buy weaker rivals with bailout money, instead of issuing loans. Jeremy Hobson checks it out.Source: Marketplace | 21 Oct 2008 | 4:19 pm Fed jumps in for money-market fundsJittery investors pulled half a trillion dollars out of money-market funds in the past few months, tightening up another source of credit. So, it's Fed to the rescue again. Senior Business Correspondent Bob Moon reports.Source: Marketplace | 21 Oct 2008 | 4:19 pm Evergreen's Patel Sees Financials `Worst in Fourth Quarter'Source: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 21 Oct 2008 | 4:03 pm Ford: He's Just Not That Into YouKirk Kerkorian, serial dater of automakers. The latest company to catch the 91-year-old investor's eager eye only to be abandoned months later is Ford Motor. As Kerkorian well knows, market conditions are abysmal, but that didn't stop him from starting to sell his Ford shares for a small fraction of what he paid for them just six months ago. On paper, he's lost about two-thirds of the $1 billion or so that he's invested in Ford this year, much of the loss coming from money borrowed from Bank of America using the rest of Tracinda's holdings as collateral.
Related Links Chrysler Sale Talks May Not Include Kerkorian Driving an Auto Merger Then There Were None Source: Portfolio.com: Top 5 | 21 Oct 2008 | 4:00 pm Deutsche Bank Cuts Texas Instruments on Slow Phone SalesSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 21 Oct 2008 | 3:52 pm John Haynes Says Risk in Stocks, Corporate Bonds Is `Cheap'Source: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 21 Oct 2008 | 2:40 pm Standard Bank's Barrow Sees Dollar `Fairly Strong' Against EuroSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 21 Oct 2008 | 2:15 pm A.I.G. vs. Cramer SmackdownYeah, booyah to you, pal! On Monday night's show, Cramer apologized, more or less, the Business Sheet reports: "Last week, I was talking about the old management at A.I.G. and how they should be hounded," Cramer said. "It made it sound like I want to hound everybody at AIG. No. Thousands—99.9 percent of people who work at AIG are fabulous, including most of my neighbors. It was the old guys who did this stuff." On last week's show, Cramer was indeed sharply critical of the old guyss, and the way A.I.G. doled out money for retreats and executive bonuses even as it sought nearly $123 billion in federal loans. The Humbling of Jim Cramer Banning Terrorism AIG: The Cramer Conspiracy Theory Source: Portfolio.com: Top 5 | 21 Oct 2008 | 12:00 pm
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