How one family's mortgage is linked to meltdown (Reuters)

Reuters - Cynthia Goldrick's daughter is in and out of the hospital for brain surgery, her mother has Stage 4 lung cancer and her father has moved into a home for the elderly.

Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:19 pm

Weekend Edition: Ten investment ideas that will make you money in 2009

Here are 10 ways -- combining defensive and proactive strategies -- to position your portfolio for the next 12 months:

Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:17 pm

Canadian Markets: Canadian stocks rise, led by mining and energy shares

Canadian stocks post strong gains with energy and mining shares leading the market higher as oil prices rallied on continuing Israeli air raids against Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip.

Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:15 pm

CORRECTED: How one family's mortgage is linked to meltdown

(Corrects profit figures in 32nd paragraph to $8.75 million to $9.45 million)
Source: Reuters: Business News | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:14 pm

Stocks narrowly mixed as oil prices rise (AP)

AP - Wall Street was little changed Monday as crude prices rose on concerns that Israel's attack on Gaza might disrupt oil production and shipments from the Middle East.

Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:13 pm

Satyam's board nearly halved by three resignations

Nearly half the board of Satyam, one of India’s largest IT groups, has resigned in the wake of a controversial attempt to buy two struggling construction companies controlled by the outsourcer’s founder and chairman.
Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:10 pm

Kuwait cancels Dow Chemical deal

Kuwait pulled the plug on a $17.4bn deal with Dow Chemical, the US's largest chemicals group, just days before it was due to come into effect
Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:09 pm

Tech Stocks: Amazon, Oracle pace early tech losses

Technology stocks dip Monday morning, paced by Amazon.com shares, but chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices Inc. saw its stock on the rise.

Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:08 pm

Futures Movers: Oil futures rise as Israeli raids in Gaza raise supply fears

Crude-oil futures rally above $40 a barrel in electronic trading Monday, as Israeli air raids continued in the Gaza Strip, heightening geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:05 pm

Currencies: Dollar falls as Middle East tension sparks crude rally

The U.S. dollar declines Monday, with crude oil prices advancing as Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip continue.

Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:05 pm

Market Snapshot: U.S. stocks open higher lifted by oil shares

U.S. stocks open mostly higher in light trade as rising oil prices lifted energy shares, offsetting news that Kuwait scrapped plans for a $17.4 billion joint venture with Dow Chemical.

Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:56 pm

Retail Stocks: Flat to down open for retail sector

With the worst holiday shopping season in decades finally winding down, retail stocks are flat to down after the opening bell Monday.

Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:55 pm

Citi injects $800M into S. Korea unit

Read full story for latest details.
Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:54 pm

Stocks wobble at the open

Stocks were mixed Monday morning as investors returned for the final few trading days of 2008.
Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:50 pm

Corporate Profits: Six Quarter Decline With Worst To Come (AAPL)(C)(XOM)(TWX)

A Bloomberg review of the S&P 500 stocks shows that the fourth quarter of 2008 will probably be the sixth quarter of declining earnings. According to the news service, "Fourth-quarter profit at companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index may have dropped an average of 11.9 percent from a year earlier."

That may be a useful look at the past, but the movement of the stock market is going to be based on expectations for the first quarter of 2009.

It is unlikely that profits at retail, financial, and automotive shares will recover. That leaves energy, tech, media, and defense earnings to help the market higher. Numbers at places like Citigroup (C), AIG (AIG), and Fannie Mae (FNM) are not going to get better

Energy numbers are going to be dependent to a large extent on oil and gas prices. If geopolitical conflicts move crude higher or OPEC makes more sharp productions cuts, earnings could improve, but those things can't be counted on. Don't look for better figures from Exxon Mobil (XOM) or Valero (VLO)

Technology earnings depends on a recovery in consumer spending and an upswing in business IT investments. With unemployment growing and credit hard to come by, not likely. Microsoft (MSFT), Cisco (CSCO), Intel (INTC), Google (GOOG), and Apple (AAPL) are in for rough times.

Media earnings will continue to be hampered by falling advertising demand. Don't watch for better earnings out of Time Warner (TWX), CBS (CBS), of Viacom (VIA).

That leave defense. Military conflicts overseas could help here, but the new Administration and Congress do not appear to be the hawkish types.

In other words, look for several more quarters of falling S&P 500 earnings.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:49 pm

Fashion chain jobs under threat

Up to 300 jobs are under threat after Scottish-based fashion retailer USC went into administration.
Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:45 pm

Stocks narrowly mixed as investors watch Mideast

Wall Street is narrowly mixed in early trading as investors warily watch events in the Middle East. Israel has continued its attack on Gaza for a third day. Oil rose near $40 a barrel in
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:45 pm

Stocks narrowly mixed as oil prices rise

NEW YORK -- Wall Street is narrowly mixed in early trading as investors warily watch events in the Middle East. Israel has continued its attack on Gaza for a third day.
Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:45 pm

Insurers' natural disaster losses rise in 2008

Insurers' losses from natural disasters rose by about 50 percent in 2008, with Caribbean hurricanes Ike and Gustav powering the increase and climate change increasingly a factor, a leading...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:44 pm

Markets open flat as Dow news overshadows crude oil (Reuters)

Reuters - Stocks opened flat on Monday after higher oil prices offset a move by Kuwait to end a proposed $17.4 billion petrochemical joint venture with Dow Chemical , a move that could hurt the company's plans to buy Rohm & Haas .

Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:41 pm

Markets open flat as Dow news overshadows crude oil (Reuters)

Reuters - Stocks opened flat on Monday after higher oil prices offset a move by Kuwait to end a proposed $17.4 billion petrochemical joint venture with Dow Chemical , a move that could hurt the company's plans to buy Rohm & Haas .

Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:41 pm

Markets open flat as Dow news overshadows crude oil

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks opened flat on Monday after higher oil prices offset a move by Kuwait to end a proposed $17.4 billion petrochemical joint venture with Dow Chemical , a move that could hurt the company's plans to buy Rohm & Haas .
Source: Reuters: Business News | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:41 pm

Stocks narrowly mixed as oil prices rise

Wall Street is narrowly mixed in early trading as investors warily watch events in the Middle East. Israel has continued its attack on Gaza for a third day. Oil rose near $40 a barrel in
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:38 pm

Oil on the rise after Gaza attacks

Oil prices rose Monday, surging above $40 a barrel before easing, after Israeli airstrikes hammered the Gaza Strip for a third day in response to mortar and rocket attacks.
Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:37 pm

21 Dumbest Moments in Business

We don't know whether to laugh or cry. Fortune's annual list of the year's most laughable moves proves that, even in moments of crisis, stupidity lives on.
Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:36 pm

Lehman bankruptcy filing wiped out billions: report

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc's emergency bankruptcy filing wiped out as much as $75 billion of potential value for creditors, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing an analysis by the bank's restructuring advisers.
Source: Reuters: Business News | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:35 pm

Lehman bankruptcy filing wiped out billions: report (Reuters)

Reuters - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc's emergency bankruptcy filing wiped out as much as $75 billion of potential value for creditors, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing an analysis by the bank's restructuring advisers.

Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:35 pm

Refund issues for Zavvi vouchers

Customers with gift vouchers and cards for stricken music chain Zavvi will have to apply to the administrator for a refund.
Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:32 pm

Seven Summits Research Releases Comments on WMT, AMZN, JNY, NAV and CALM

CHICAGO, Dec. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Seven Summits Strategic Investments releases its Stocks To Watch Guide. The Seven Summits Strategic Investments Stocks To...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:31 pm

Israeli air forces strike more Hamas targets in Gaza

For a third day, Israeli air forces strike targets linked to militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip Monday, bringing the death toll to more than 300, according to a BBC report.

Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:31 pm

Seven Summits Research Releases Alerts on MSFT, NEM, KSS, BBT, and PCLN

CHICAGO, Dec. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Seven Summits Research issues PriceWatch Alerts for key stocks. Seven Summits Strategic Investments' PriceWatch Alerts...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:31 pm

FTI Consulting Leads Bankruptcy and Crisis League Tables for Fifth Consecutive Quarter

The Deal confirms the most active creditor crisis management consultants are from FTI WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Dec. 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- FTI Consulting, Inc.
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:30 pm

Bond Report: Treasurys up as flight to safety resumes

Treasurys are up in early trading as investors seek safety of U.S. government debt amid worsening tensions in the Middle East.

Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:29 pm

Rohm and Dow shares fall on investor concern over deal

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Shares of Rohm & Haas plunged more than 17 percent in Monday pre-market trade a day after Kuwait decided to scrap a $17.4 billion joint venture deal with Dow Chemical, potentially upsetting the company's plans to buy rival Rohm & Haas.
Source: Reuters: Business News | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:26 pm

'Stagnation' hits property market

One in five properties in some areas of the UK have been on the market for the whole of 2008, data suggests.
Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:23 pm

Lehman chiefs destroyed $75bn of bank's value in hours$

The bosses of Lehman Brothers destroyed as much as $75 billion ($£51.3 billion) of the company's value by rushing the stricken investment bank into a surprise bankruptcy filing, an analysis by Lehman's liquidators has found.
Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:21 pm

High And Dry

My goodness, we're back and the news is all still here. I'll keep this short. Drop more news/blog links in the comments, please.

Cancel that bet: Kuwait punts joint venture with Dow Chemical, citing the financial crisis.

The Washington Post opens a three-part series on the crash. Up first, a look at the drive to master risk: The Beautiful Machine.

Fun you can use: Skateboarders in California take to pools of foreclosed homes.

NPR's Mike Pesca was just talking about this very conundrum, now in Paul Krugman's column -- federal government goes to stimulus spending as states cut back.

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Source: NPR Blogs: Planet Money | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:21 pm

Beacon Equity Issues Technical Trade Alerts on Silver Stocks: SIL, SSRI, SLW, HL, CDE, MGN

DALLAS, Dec. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- BeaconEquity.com announces the availability of Trade Alerts on stocks making news today. Investors can view all of the daily...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:20 pm

Indications: Stock futures edge higher as oil price rebounds

U.S. stock market futures point slightly higher as oil prices continue to recover from lows and after Kuwait scraps plans for a $17.4 billion joint venture with Dow Chemical.

Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:15 pm

Budget Bright Spot : Parking Meters

Cities and states around are facing tight budgets as tax revenues drop. Maryland is looking at a $400 million shortfall for instance.

And this isn't going to fix things, but the Baltimore Sun (my wife actually) reports that revenue from parking meters have risen 54% over the last four years, to $7 million. And that, the city says, is without raising rates. How?

New electronic meters. People tend to pay for more time than they need. And the days of pulling up and finding leftover time on the clock are gone.

Of course not everyone is happy about that. And one guy in the story found a way to save himself some money.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Source: NPR Blogs: Planet Money | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:13 pm

Billionaire Mark Cuban Discloses 9.4% Stake in Carmike Cinemas (CKEC)

Billionaire Mark Cuban disclosed a 9.4%, or 1,200,000 share, stake in Carmike Cinemas, Inc. (Nasdaq: CKEC). Cuban did not hold a prior stake in the company.

Curban disclosed that he paid $2,758,376 for the shares, or about $2.30 per share. Purchases were made from October through December. Shares of Carmike Cinemas closed at $2.03 on Friday.

Read more....

Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:12 pm

Citigroup pumps $800 million into S.Korea unit

SEOUL (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc is injecting $800 million of new capital into its South Korean banking arm, Citibank Korea said on Monday, joining other banks in efforts to shore up their financial bases.
Source: Reuters: Business News | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:11 pm

Divine Small Business -- 'Yes We Can' Bailout Plan for the New Year!

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., Dec. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- "Small government contractor" might sound like a contradiction in terms, but Divine Imaging Inc., a small,...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:10 pm

Rohm and Dow shares fall on investor concern over deal (Reuters)

Reuters - Shares of Rohm & Haas plunged more than 17 percent in Monday pre-market trade a day after Kuwait decided to scrap a $17.4 billion joint venture deal with Dow Chemical , potentially upsetting the company's plans to buy rival Rohm & Haas.

Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:08 pm

UPDATE 3-More directors quit troubled Satyam; shares rise

BANGALORE, Dec 29 (Reuters) - Three more directors quit India's Satyam Computer Services on Monday, but its shares rose after the firm said it would consider more options to improve shareholder value...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:00 pm

Beacon Equity Issues Technical Trade Alerts on Market Movers: SBUX, DRYS, CSCO, QCOM, S, AUY

DALLAS, Dec. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- BeaconEquity.com announces the availability of Trade Alerts on stocks making news today. Investors can view all of the daily...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 2:00 pm

European stocks jump after mixed Asian trade (AFP)

AFP - European stock markets rose strongly in thin trade on Monday as Asian equities posted a mixed performance ahead of the New Year holiday break.

Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:58 pm

With gas down, trucks come back

After nearly a year of flagging sales, low gas prices and fat incentives are reigniting America's taste for big vehicles.
Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:57 pm

Wall Street stocks seek momentum

Wall Street stocks could struggle for momentum in holiday-thinned trading, although the commodity sectors were poised to provide support as escalating violence in the Middle East prompted a jump in oil and gold prices
Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:56 pm

Israeli air strikes on Gaza continue

Israeli war planes continued their attacks on the Gaza Strip overnight, targeting security installations, rocket squads and the offices of senior Hamas officials
Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:52 pm

Britons rush to repay mortgage debt

Britain's worried homeowners are rushing to repay their mortgage debts as worries about sliding house prices and the end of cheap credit put the dampeners on household spending plans, according to the latest official figures.
Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:51 pm

Stocks' wild ride: 8 days to remember

Stocks were on a roller coaster in 2008 as investors tried to keep up with bailouts, bankruptcies, a credit crisis and a long recession.
Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:48 pm

Oil rises above $40 on Israeli attacks (Reuters)

Reuters - Oil prices rose above $40 a barrel on Monday, boosted by the weak dollar and Israeli attacks on Hamas that served as a reminder of tensions that could threaten Middle East crude oil supplies.

Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:45 pm

Oil rises above $40 on Israeli attacks

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose above $40 a barrel on Monday, boosted by the weak dollar and Israeli attacks on Hamas that served as a reminder of tensions that could threaten Middle East crude oil supplies.
Source: Reuters: Business News | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:45 pm

Oil Profiteering For Fun And Money

Nothing could really stop the falling price of oil as it slumped from $147 last summer to well under $40. The recession caused too big a drop in demand. OPEC was repeatedly humiliated by tightening production only to see the price of crude drop more.

Most analysts expect OPEC to cut production again in the new year. Perhaps another cut of two million barrels a day will do the trick.

In the meantime, what normal supply and demand could not do is getting done by a small war that energy traders think may turn into a larger one. It is a good and honest way to make money even it if appears unseemly.

Fighting between Hamas and Israel in the Gaza Strip has killed several hundred people. Israel is calling up its reserves and sending troops to the border. Crude oil prices were up Friday as the early battles took place. It is up again today, nearly 5% to close to $40.

There has always been the threat that unrest in Venezuela, Nigeria, or the Middle East could bounce crude much higher. Some violence in Nigeria earlier in the year marked a period when oil moved up. That was short lived.

War, which may become more likely as the global economic system falls to pieces, could accomplish what OPEC has not been able to. Conflicts in one region may bump prices a bit. If two regions have trouble, there is every reason that crude could move well above $50.

For now, fear looks like a better motivation for crude prices than OPEC policies. Trading oil based on price increases is a good way to make money again.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:24 pm

The Fed Cannot Create Economic Growth

John Tamny RealClearMarkets

As the year 1970 drew to a close, some of President Richard Nixon's top economic advisors were frantically searching for ways to grow the economy ahead of the '72 elections. Herbert Stein served Nixon as head of the Council of Economic Advisors, and he was of the view that "full employment" of 4.5% and gross national product growth of 9% ($1.065 billion) could be achieved if the Federal Reserve oversaw money growth of 8%.

Channeling our Washington minders of today who feel that any economic "crisis" necessitates a muscular governmental response, Stein suggested that "the situation is serious and getting more serious every day." Stein didn't get his wish of 8% growth, but a study soon to be released by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) would largely bolster his argument.

Read more....

Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:12 pm

Japan insurers seek merger as gloom over 2009 grows (Reuters)

Reuters - Crumbling home and auto sales pushed three Japanese insurers into merger talks and data from Europe showed the region's economies faced a bleak 2009.

Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:12 pm

Japan insurers seek merger as gloom over 2009 grows

SINGAPORE/LONDON (Reuters) - Crumbling home and auto sales pushed three Japanese insurers into merger talks and data from Europe showed the region's economies faced a bleak 2009.
Source: Reuters: Business News | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:12 pm

JC Flowers and others close to IndyMac deal: source (Reuters)

Reuters - A consortium of private equity and hedge fund firms, including J.C. Flowers & Co, is close to a deal to buy the assets of failed mortgage lender IndyMac, a source familiar with the matter said on Sunday.

Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:06 pm

JC Flowers and others close to IndyMac deal: source

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A consortium of private equity and hedge fund firms, including J.C. Flowers & Co, is close to a deal to buy the assets of failed mortgage lender IndyMac, a source familiar with the matter said on Sunday.
Source: Reuters: Business News | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:06 pm

Kuwait Steps Back

The Persian Gulf states have taken huge strides in recent years in showing that they can be aggressive and savvy investors of their petrodollars. The collapse of a $17.4 billion joint venture with Dow Chemical is a step backward.

In the 1970s, the oil states were criticized for investing their oil gains in European and North American real estate, especially trophy properties. The last two decades have seen the rise of sovereign wealth funds and other investment vehicles led by sophisticated managers that have invested in a wide range of businesses around the world and have developed infrastructure and a chemical industry in the region.

While these funds have had their setbacks—for example, investments in U.S. financial institutions like Merrill Lynch that still had further to fall—they have displayed a savvy, aggressive style of investing equal to older Western and Asian funds. But the withdrawal from the Dow Chemical venture shows that the investment managers are not always in charge.

Under the deal, whose final terms were agreed on December 1, the state-owned Petrochemical Industries of Kuwait would have bought a 50 percent stake in Dow Chemical's plastics unit. The transaction was hailed as a sign of long-term bullishness, despite a 70 percent slide in oil prices this year and the continuing financial turmoil. The joint venture had a strong strategic appeal, combining a cost advantage in having a Kuwaiti production partner with Dow's technological expertise and global reach.
 
By Sunday, however, long-term strategy was forgotten, as the Kuwaiti government announced that it was backing out of the deal. Despite being aware of the drop in oil prices and the financial crisis on December 1, the Kuwaiti government had decided that the deal was "very risky."

The withdrawal makes the Kuwaitis appear weak and uncertain as strategic investors. Western companies and investment firms seeking to tap Gulf riches may have reason to pause.

More troubling for future potential partners is the involvement of politics in the death of the deal. Lawmakers in Kuwait had been using the proposed joint venture to criticize the prime minister, already under attack over accusations of corruption in the government.

For Dow Chemical, it must now scramble to salvage its $15 billion acquisition of Rohm & Haas, a specialty chemicals company. Dow had planned to use the proceeds from the Kuwaiti investment to help finance the Rohm deal.



Related Links
Kuwait's Chemical Reaction
Chemistry in Chemicals
Malaise Per Gallon



Source: Portfolio.com: Top 5 | 29 Dec 2008 | 1:00 pm

5 Best and Worst Addictions to Cultivate During 2009

Sour economic times surface the uglier facets of human nature: Crime, penury, and addictions. We’ll all feel the need to soothe away the pain of collapse for the foreseeable future. Luckily, there are beneficial ways to play out pain-induced compulsions–and less productive ones. The best lifestyle option is always moderation, but if that kind of discipline just isn’t in you, review the addictions below for inspiration:

The 5 Best Addictions

1) Blogging

It’s fun, it’s addictive, and someone usually reads it. What better way to pass time? Best yet, it may function as a portfolio, resume booster, or, if you tend to be of the more verbose ilk, a way to make like-minded friends. And enemies.

In sum, blogging is a great way to stay entertained on the cheap.

2) Exercise

Exercise reaps innumerable health benefits, making it a beneficial addiction to entertain during hard times. Walking and jogging have the lowest overhead (one pair of good sneakers) and give the most instant gratification. For winter, the Nintendo Wii is another good bet—and beats gym fees in the long run.

3) Work

Work addictions don’t exactly foster functional families, but they sure do pay off monetarily. If you are in a position where excessive work won’t harm crucial relationships, and you’re able to funnel your compulsions into productivity, this addiction is for you. To make sure your addiction pays well, make sure you either get paid by the hour, make overtime, or have a salaried position with room to grow. Entrepreneurship also serves work addicts well.

4) Hobbies

If you have a cheap hobby, such as knitting, birdwatching, or book clubs, it’s time to get compulsive. Aspire to be an expert in your field so that you have a goal to prompt your addiction into action.

If your hobby is expensive, find a way to do it on the cheap—or replace it entirely. Downgrading equipment and memberships may make your hobby more affordable. If you must give it up, find something equally compelling. Do not turn to cognac (below).

5) Religion or philosophy

When the going gets tough, the tough get religious. Your religious tradition can be an excellent source of support, inspiration, and relief. If you are not religious, your philosophy may provide a similar sense of solace. Many people find addiction to adage extremely helpful during hard times.

If your dogma requires that you hate people, however, you may find that a religious addiction fosters paranoia as well as peace. The beliefs you involve yourself—and their consequences—are ultimately your own choice.

The 5 Worst Addictions

1) Cognac

Like wine and beer, cognac can be purchased for cheap. Unfortunately, an addiction to cheap cognac is an actual health hazard that will pickle your liver in a smooth half-decade. Assuming you polish off two bottles of reasonable to excellent cognac a week, an addiction can set you back from $80 to $13,000/week. Better to stick to Pabst Blue Ribbon or Franzia.

2) Prescription Drugs

Scarce employment and limited health insurance make this addiction a very expensive prospect. When you receive prescription drugs, research them for addictive potential, and keep an eye on your intake habits. It is very easy to end up with a cabinet full of prescription drugs after only a couple of doctor visits. Don’t get too cozy with your little white pills, or you’ll find your pockets empty in a flash.

3) Slot Machines

If you must gamble, try something with a higher probability of winning, like blackjack. Don’t let bright colors and blinky lights fool you–slot machines will almost invariably rip you off.

4) Shopping

This addiction might serve the macroeconomy well, but in an unstable employment environment, individuals need to squirrel away money for hard times. Foresaking those new Seven jeans and Burberry boots in favor of cheaper, albeit less trendy, duds will go a long way towards keeping your personal finances in the black. You may want to give up and join the bankrupt masses, but if you can spare yourself this trouble, it’s well worth looking less suave for a little while.

5) Doctors’ visits

Although unemployment numbers have gone up, healthcare costs have gone anywhere but down. Check out these frightening statistics from the National Coalition on Healthcare:

• Every 30 seconds in the United States someone files for bankruptcy in the aftermath of a serious health problem.

• A new survey shows that more than 25 percent said that housing problems resulted from medical debt, including the inability to make rent or mortgage payments and the development of bad credit ratings.

• About 1.5 million families lose their homes to foreclosure every year due to unaffordable medical costs.

It is a fundamentally bad time to develop hypochondria, Munchausen’s, or any other syndrome that doesn’t kill you, but takes you to the doctor all the time. If you must get sick, make sure it is acute and ultimately harmless, or that it’s something your insurance covers. Preventative measures such as exercise, relaxation, and healthy eating go a long way to prevent chronic problems.

Source: Business Pundit | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:51 pm

Early Analyst Calls (CHTR)(HON)(AEO)(MAR)

Charter Communications (CHTR) was downgraded to "sell" at Citigroup.

Honeywell (HON) was downgraded to "hold" at Argus.

American Eagle (AEO) was startes as "buy" by Pali.

Marriott (MAR) earnings lowed by Argus.

Sources: Briefing.com and wire services.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:43 pm

Pound hits new low against euro

The pound hits a new record low against the euro due to continued concerns about the outlook for the UK economy.
Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:32 pm

A Mistaken Vote For US Banks (FRE)(FNM)(C)(WFC)(BAC)

At some point all stocks get too cheap. Enron go too cheap. So did Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE).

The next round of company shares that appear to be bargains is bank stocks. The government is throwing them cash at unprecedented rates. Some, like Citigroup (C), Wells Fargo (WFC), and Bank of America (BAC) are probably too big to fail. Low interest rates from the Fed ought to make lending more profitable.

According to Reuters, Ladenburg Thalmann analyst Richard Bove believes that banks are now "excellent values". The news service reports that he thinks that the mortgage re-finance boom, the attractiveness of FDIC-insured accounts as "safe havens", and government economic stimulus should bring the financial firms back.

The analysis is almost certainly wrong. A deep recession is likely to increase home loan and credit card defaults. There more derivatives on bank balance sheets, some based on consumer credit. Commercial mortgages and corporate loan defaults are likely to rise sharply and LBO write-offs are going to spike.

Otherwise, everything is fine.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:31 pm

Pakistan stocks shed 2.97 pct (AFP)

AFP - The free fall of Pakistan's main stock index showed no signs of letting up Monday, with shares shedding nearly three percent -- meaning the market has lost nearly a third of its value in two weeks.

Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:16 pm

Phoenix built it, but will they come?

Read full story for latest details.
Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:10 pm

Kuwait kills $17B Dow Chemical deal

Read full story for latest details.
Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:09 pm

Early Bird Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (SPF, FPL)

Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:09 pm

UK retailer Adams on the brink of bankruptcy (AP)

AP - British children's clothing retailer Adams Childrenswear Ltd. is on the brink of a form of bankruptcy protection, a spokeswoman for the 75-year-old company said Monday, which would make make Adams the latest well-known British retailer to fall victim to the economic downturn.
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:01 pm

Europe, Asia markets advance in thin holiday trade (AP)

AP - European stock markets advanced in thin holiday trade Monday helped by gains in commodities stocks. Asian stocks rose moderately.

Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 29 Dec 2008 | 11:55 am

More toxic milk trials in China

Nine more people go on trial accused of making and selling the chemical used in tainted milk that killed and sickened babies in China.
Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 11:55 am

Woolworths to close Scots stores today

Some 37 Woolworths stores will close their doors for the last time today. All but three of the stores are in Scotland, with one on the Isle of Man and two in Cumbria. The chain went into administration in November. The last stores will shut on January 5 and the group’s 27,000 temporary and full-time staff will be made redundant.
Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 29 Dec 2008 | 11:49 am

Analyst Bove: U.S. banking sector's outlook better than believed

(Reuters) - The U.S. banking sector may be considerably stronger than what conventional wisdom suggests, and the decline in bank stock prices has been excessive as many of these stocks represent "excellent" values, according to veteran banking analyst Richard Bove.
Source: Reuters: Business News | 29 Dec 2008 | 11:44 am

The Sony (SNE) Turnaround Goes To The Morgue

Sir Howard Stringer's appointment in 2005 as Sony's CEO was meant help turn the company into what it used to be--Apple (AAPL) based in Tokyo and not Cupertino. With products like the Walkman and early versions of the PlayStation, Sony was considered the most innovative consumer electronics company in the world, until about five years ago. The firm's inventiveness fell on hard times. The party line was that the cause of this was fighting amongst the company's engineers.

Stringer based a lot of his turnaround plan on the newest version of the PlayStation, the so-called PS3. It would put the firm back into competition with the Microsoft (MSFT) Xbox.

After three years of Stringer at the wheel, the coroner's report is that Sony is dead as a first-tier global consumer electronics firm. The Xbox has done remarkably well, and once-tiny Nintendo has seized the lead in the video game market with its remarkable Wii. Meanwhile, PS3 sales are falling year-over-year.

According to The Wall Street Journal, "The sales decline is a heavy blow to Sony, which was banking on the video game division to provide a bright spot as its core electronics business is hit by the global economic downturn." The game operation of Sony has been an earnings drag for several years now.

Sony has three other substantial businesses. It sells cameras. It markets TV screens. And, it has a movie studio. A tough economy is likely to hurt all three. To make matters worse, the studio business is extremely cyclical.

The thought of Sony as a leading electronics company is just a chuckleheaded dream. Sony's run is over. It will hang around, but that is about it.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 29 Dec 2008 | 11:01 am

Home loan repayments 'a priority'

UK homeowners are no longer funding spending by cashing in on the value of their homes, official figures confirm.
Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 10:45 am

As Recession Bites, Global Politics Turn Dirty

It is easy to look at Kuwait's abandonment of a deal with Dow Chemical (DOW) as a simple economic decision on the part of the small Arab country. But, the country's Parliament was involved. It said the risks of a deal during a recession were too high. It did not say that the US and Dow are benefiting from low oil prices and Kuwait is suffering. Some things are better left in the shadows.

In nations such as Russia and China, the governments are having to look inward. Labor strife caused by slowing economies is caused by dropping fuel income and slowing exports. Both of those can be put at the feet of the US, EU, and Japan, at least based on the perverse logic that every problem creates the opportunity to blame someone.

According to Bloomberg, "The global recession is re-exposing fissures in U.S.-China relations that Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson spent more than two years smoothing over." The US buys Chinese imports and China buys US government paper. The export part of that equation is falling apart.

Russia's desperate situation has caused it to threaten to put together a cartel to raise the price of natural gas. Venezuela, hurt by falling oil prices, is planning to seize local gold concessions, the largest of which is controlled by Canada, itself a major oil exporter which is not a part of OPEC. Put another way, it is not a friend of the Venezuelan government.

All of these national actions in the face of a dying global economy and competition for global capital could be viewed as random, unrelated events brought on by a full moon, global warming, or the earth spinning slightly off its axis. Or, a new generation of politics driven almost exclusively by economic concerns is emerging. If so, that would tend to break down fragile alliances and exacerbate bad blood.

When there is money to burn, everyone is a friend.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 29 Dec 2008 | 10:40 am

Firms to pipe Burma oil to China

Burma signs a deal with Korean and Indian firms to pipe gas to China, despite complaints from rights activists.
Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 10:27 am

New Congress And Administration Get Ready To Sucker Punch Labor

Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 29 Dec 2008 | 10:20 am

HK stock index advances 1 percent (AP)

AP - Hong Kong's key stock index rose 1 percent in feather-light trade Monday to snap a four-day losing streak.
Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 29 Dec 2008 | 10:05 am

Dire warning over 2009 UK job cuts

At least 600,000 people could lose their jobs in the UK in 2009, a report by a personnel managers' professional body says.
Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 9:48 am

Yule Catto scraps dividends to cut debt

Yule Catto, the speciality chemicals company, has suspended dividend payments as part of a plan to reduce its debt burden over the next two years.
Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 29 Dec 2008 | 9:33 am

GMAC plans to release results of debt swap soon

NEW YORK (Reuters) - GMAC LLC expects to soon announce the results of a debt exchange offer that is key to North America's largest auto finance company's capital levels, a spokeswoman said on Sunday.
Source: Reuters: Business News | 29 Dec 2008 | 9:31 am

Pound edges closer to euro parity amid rate fears

The bleak economic outlook in Britain sent the pound to a record low against the euro today, bringing parity a step closer.
Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:26 am

China stocks fall on supply, earnings fears (AP)

AP - Chinese shares drifted lower Monday, with little fresh news to distract investors from worries over a flood of newly tradable shares and bleak corporate earnings prospects.
Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:10 am

Weekend box-office results

Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:00 am

'Marley & Me' and a big Christmas audience

The dog tale is No. 1 at the box office, though 'Bedtime Stories,' 'Benjamin Button' and 'Valkyrie' all open strong. ...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:00 am

Kuwait pulls out of Dow Chemical deal

Kuwait's government on Sunday scrapped a $17.4-billion joint venture with U.S. petrochemical giant Dow Chemical after criticism from lawmakers that could have led to a political crisis in this small, oil-rich...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:00 am

Dollar slides against euro, yen in advance of economic reports

The dollar dropped Monday against the euro in overseas trading for a fourth day before reports this week that may show the world's largest economy is slipping further into recession.
Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:00 am

Cut health costs, not your care

Balancing your budget shouldn't mean your health pays the price. Here are smart ways to manage both. Amber Eyerly,...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:00 am

Small businesses await stimulus, tax changes in the new year

Small businesses trying to plan their finances for 2009 are finding the process complicated not only by the recession but by the uncertainty about what governments at all levels will be doing to stimulate...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:00 am

Traders eager to exit '08 cautious about new year

Investors are preparing to close out the last three trading days of 2008 amid Wall Street's worst year since Herbert Hoover was president.
Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:00 am

Small-business owners need advice network

Peers can aid in strategic thinking, creativity and long-term planning. Dear Karen: I'm so worried about my business surviving that it's...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:00 am

Singles unite! Magazine covets the solo and solvent

Launching amid publishing industry woes, Singular celebrates the unpartnered lifestyle. It took 18 years of marriage...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 29 Dec 2008 | 8:00 am

Japan stocks rise on insurance merger reports (AP)

AP - Japanese stocks rose for a third straight session Monday, lifted by hopes for mergers in the insurance and semiconductor sectors.
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 29 Dec 2008 | 7:07 am

Japan stocks rise on insurance merger reports (AP)

AP - Japanese stocks rose for a third straight session Monday, lifted by hopes for mergers in the insurance and semiconductor sectors.
Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 29 Dec 2008 | 7:07 am

Euro vision

The tiny Swedish town that sees currency in change
Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 6:46 am

Going for gold

Russian investment and Olympics bring wealth to Abkhazia
Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 29 Dec 2008 | 5:48 am

Japanese insurance companies in merger talks

Three Japanese non-life insurance companies are considering a merger that would create the largest company in the sector with combined premium revenues of $30.2bn
Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 29 Dec 2008 | 5:16 am

Law and Financial Disorder

"Failure does not equate to a crime,” said Kenneth Lay, the chief executive of Enron, as he proclaimed his innocence in the 2001 collapse of the company.

With investors and the economy reeling from the financial crisis, there is much public clamoring for an Enron-like crackdown, complete with executives in handcuffs being paraded before the cameras.  (A federal jury convicted Lay of fraud and conspiracy charges, but he died before he was sentenced.)

Most legal experts, however, predict that it will be tough to establish that crimes were committed.  Failure, in form of the financial tsunami that rocked nearly every bank and institution around the world, will be an effective defense this time around.  Hundreds of billions of dollars have been lost, banks and Wall Street firms have disappeared, stocks of financial companies have tumbled. “Why would everybody have the same fraudulent thought?” notes Robert Giuffra, a securities litigator at Sullivan & Cromwell.

Still, that won’t stop prosecutors, says Robert Plotkin, a lawyer with the Washington office of McGuire Woods and who worked for the defense in the Enron investigation. “A lot of this is going to be politically motivated,” he says. “Almost as a condition for any kind of loans or bailouts, there already has been a ratcheting up of investigations.”

The prime target for the prosecutorial cross hairs is the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the Wall Street firm that filed for bankruptcy protection on September 15. Its demise is at the center of at least three criminal investigations – by federal prosecutors in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and in New Jersey.

In an unusual move,  Manhattan federal prosecutors announced in October that they were cooperating with investigators from the office of the New York attorney general, Andrew Cuomo, to investigate the trading in credit-default swaps that contributed to Lehman’s meltdown. With $600 billion in assets, the Lehman bankruptcy was the largest in U.S. history.

“There is a decent chance that Lehman will be the poster child” of these prosecutions, says Peter Henning, a professor of criminal law at Wayne State University and the founding editor of the White Collar Crime Professors blog. “When that much money gets lost, someone has to get the blame, and so it would not surprise me if there was a prosecution of Lehman management for misleading investors.”

But Henning expects a case very different than those that focused on the complex accounting schemes that caused the collapse of Enron and WorldCom. “In the dying gasp at Lehman, they painted too pretty a picture: It will be a disclosure case as opposed to accounting fraud.”

A good comparison, says Henning, is the pending criminal prosecution of David Stockman, the former Reagan administration official and former chief executive of Collins & Aikman, the auto parts supplier, who is headed to a trial early next year on fraud charges. The indictment against him portrays a chief executive engaged in a web of lies and fraud about the financial forecasts of his company to gain access to credit, which filed for bankruptcy in May 2005.

Such cases are built by sifting through the trail of emails and internal communications and contrasting them with what is said to the public. “Part of the Enron case was the same thing,” Henning says. “What did they know and what were they telling to the public. That is the great thing about white-collar cases. It is never a factual dispute, it is ‘what did you know and when did you know it and what did you say?’”

The financial crisis has created another hurdle for prosecutors: A lack of resources. When the Enron task force was put together, no expense was spared.

“There aren’t going to be these grand enterprises to allow the prosecutors to put together more nuanced, complex malfeasance cases,” says John Hueston, one of the lead prosecutors of the Enron Task Force and now a partner at Irell & Manella of Newport Beach, California. “What they are left with is trying to make quick-hit cases --- narrowly burrowing into emails to see if there is chatter contrary to public disclosures.”

The only prosecution to date,  the June indictment of two  former Bear Stearns hedge fund managers, zeros in on emails and internal conversations. Critics of that case say that  those communications, boiled down to a debate about the  state of the subprime mortgage market between the two executives who oversaw the funds. The indictment against the two managers, Ralph Cioffi and Matthew Tannin, was unsealed the same day that the F.B.I. announced it was launching a crackdown against abuses in the mortgage business, called  “Operation Malicious Mortgage.” The F.B.I.’s press release cites charges against 406 people, but mentions only the Bear Stearns executives by name.
 
Prosecutors seemed very much in a rush in the Bear Stearns case, for they were demanding to interview witnesses at nine o’clock at night, according to a lawyer involved in the case.

“That was prosecution that was brought in great haste, and I worry about that,” says John Carroll, who as an assistant U.S. attorney led the case against Michael Milken.  He has recently joined Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, where he and David Zornow, also a Milken prosecutor, are now reunited on the defense side.

The process of sifting through the evidence should take months if not years, but the public appetite for blame is much more impatient than that,  Carroll says.

The June 19 charges in the Bear Stearns case show Tannin complaining in an email that to Cioffi “we are in bad bad shape” and that the “subprime market looks pretty damn ugly,” while cautioning his boss against disclosing anything that could hint at the extent of the funds’ troubles. Days later, in an April 25, 2007 conference call with investors, Tannin sang a different tune, noting, “we’re very comfortable with where we are.” Also on the call, Cioffi ducked the question of whether there had been large redemptions from the funds, failing to mention that a redemption of about $57 million had been made just days before the call.

Prosecutors had suggested that a grand jury would hand up a superseding indictment, but at a pretrial conference on December 5, they added no new charges. A trial has been set tentatively for next September. And it is, to the mind of defense lawyers, the simplest case to make:

 “Valuation cases, to my mind, are the toughest cases to make,” Zornow of Skadden says, who noted that the Bear Stearns case eschewed that problem: “They are charging, they knew X, but they told the public Y.”

Will that be enough to win a conviction?  There is a fine line between trying to seem positive and being deceptive. Surely, lawyers for Richard Fuld, Lehman’s former chief executive, last seen in public scowling before a congressional committee and debating whether his compensation has amounted to $430 million or $300 million in recent years, must be contemplating this question.

Fuld’s compensation would figure into motive, as prosecutors try to explain that  “the pressure was to present as rosy a picture as possible,” Professor Henning says. “As the C.E.O. of a company, do you have to come out and say, ‘We are dead?’ You are allowed to put a positive spin on the news, but when do you cross over from spin to fraud?”

That question may be answered in the months and years to come if Fuld and others are put on the spot for the financial turmoil.  But the law puts a heavy burden of proof on the prosecution.

“For a criminal prosecution, it has to be willful,” says Jill Fisch, a professor of securities regulation and litigation at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. “What does willful mean? It means you knew you were materially mischaracterizing. You have to cross that line.”

With so many cases of poor judgment by financial executives proving that the line was crossed will be difficult to prove. “It looks less like greed and more like horrible mistakes in judgment. And the problem is that is much harder to prosecute criminally,” Fisch says.

There will certainly be prosecutions of fraudulent mortgage originators and brokers, but those nickel and dime prosecutions will do nothing to quench the public appetite for an Enron-like case.

 “There will be a lot of investigations, and there may not be many successful cases made,” Giuffra of Sullivan & Cromwell says. “Extreme and unprecedented market forces caused massive losses. These would be classic ‘fraud by hindsight’ cases if they were brought. If they knew it was toxic, why didn’t they just short the market?”

Both Bernard Madoff, who has admitted to  $50 billion Ponzi scheme, creating the basis for his arrest, and Marc Drier, a law firm chief with a gift for impersonation and a drawer full of cell phones at his fingertips, have recently given prosecutors fish in a barrel by comparison.

Bigger Wall Street fish will be much harder to catch.

There may not be any point to the pursuit. John Carroll  says: “Most white-collar crime is good people who are like gamblers at Atlantic City. They lose a hand and they double and they double and the double. And so mistaken decisions turn into bad decisions and really bad decisions.”

Michael Garcia, who was at the center of many of the financial investigations, as United States attorney in Manhattan until November, says "If anything comes out of this, it is going to be a long haul, to  unravel this is going to take a long time—a year or two years." 

And this time around, the cases are spread around the country,  and many of the offices conducting investigations "do not have the  size or experience" to at many federal prosecutors offices that do  not have the size or experience of the Southern District, says Garcia, now in private practice at Kirkland & Ellis. 

And while prosecutors send out a rash of subpoenas and collect  information, the public appetite for blame has not abated. "Some people  are getting a bit hysterical," he says.

 

Related Links
CDS Didn't Bring Down Bear and Lehman
The End of Lehman
Hank Paulson, Revisionist



Source: Portfolio.com: Top 5 | 29 Dec 2008 | 3:00 am

Wall St. closes out on 2008, year of record losses (AP)

AP - Investors are preparing to close out the last three trading days of 2008, a year in which Wall Street has logged its worst performance since Herbert Hoover was president.

Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:47 am

Group of investors close to buying IndyMac

Read full story for latest details.
Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:17 am

Six vital lessons of the 1931 depression

Those of us who were alive at the time, or who have seen the film, have vivid memories of the sinking of HMS Hood in 1941, and of the pursuit and subsequent sinking of the German battleship Bismarck. Ten years earlier the Hood had been involved in another episode of naval history, which had a significant influence on British economic history.
Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am

Piracy insurance hinges on number of raiders

The surge in piracy off the coast of Somalia could trigger legal disputes between marine and war risk insurers, a leading QC has warned.
Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am

TaxiWalker saves the salaryman’s wallet and his waistline

When economic Armageddon strikes, the investment scene lurches into chaos: some grasp for gold ingots, others stuff their mattresses with wads of hard cash; a few might even consider snapping up some land and becoming a farmer. The Japanese simply pretend that they are in taxis and rack up huge, entirely imaginary, fares on foot.
Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am

Bernard Madoff ‘took SwFr1bn’ from Credit Suisse customers

Clients of Credit Suisse could have lost as much as SwFr1 billion (£640 million) that they had invested with Bernard Madoff, according to internal forecasts.
Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am

Chicago news-stands tell a sorry tale

A little more than a century ago, Chicago boasted 11 daily English-language newspapers. The fierce competition among them, immortalised in the 1928 play " The Front Page ," even turned bloody at times, and that drive to outdo one...
Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 29 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am

Europeans see euro trumping dollar

The euro could overtake the dollar in global importance in the next five years, a large majority of continental Europeans believe, according to a poll days before Europe's monetary union reaches its 10th birthday
Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 28 Dec 2008 | 11:53 pm

China knocked off IPOs top slot

The country's stock exchanges raised just $22bn in initial public offerings in 2008, falling behind New York for the first time since 2005
Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 28 Dec 2008 | 11:20 pm

Obama weighs 'government spending and tax cuts'

A fiscal stimulus plan being prepared by the Obama economic team includes "both government spending and tax cuts", said Lawrence Summers, the designated head of the White House National Economic Council
Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 28 Dec 2008 | 11:16 pm

NZ stocks: Sharemarket makes small gain

The New Zealand sharemarket gained early when it reopened after the Christmas break, despite a drop in Telecom's share price. Telecom was down 2c to 224, but movements by other leading stocks included Contact Energy up 8c to 710...
Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 28 Dec 2008 | 10:40 pm

Currency: Kiwi opens firmer after break

The New Zealand dollar opened firmer today after the Christmas holiday break. The kiwi was buying US57.65c at 8am compared with US56.75c at 5pm on Christmas Eve. ANZ Institutional Bank chief foreign exchange dealer Murray Hindley...
Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 28 Dec 2008 | 10:25 pm

GM finance arm silent on crucial Govt bailout

GRAND BLANC - Even after a crucial deadline came and went, the financing arm of General Motors remained silent over the weekend on whether it had cleared a final hurdle to become a bank holding company and gain access to billions...
Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 28 Dec 2008 | 8:00 pm

Non-profits face donor ire over Madoff exposure

Non-profit organisations may find it harder to raise money, and will almost certainly face calls for greater scrutiny by donors and regulators, after losing billions of dollars by investing with Bernard Madoff
Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 28 Dec 2008 | 7:51 pm

The A-Z of media 2008

It's been a topsy-turvy year across all arms of the media, as John Drinnan illustrates in this guide to who was hot - and who was not. A DVERTORIAL AHOY The Business Herald banged on about the Sunday Star Times Going Up,...
Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 28 Dec 2008 | 7:50 pm

Woolworths collapses in UK

LONDON - About 200 Woolworths stores in Britain have shut their doors for good. The stores that closed on Saturday represent about a quarter of the company's shops. The chain's other 600 stores are to close within about a week...
Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 28 Dec 2008 | 7:40 pm

Music industry looks to internet for revival

A generation after the launch of MTV, major record labels are hoping to revive the music video business online by creating a single digital destination for their artists' output.
Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 28 Dec 2008 | 7:20 pm

Meet Simon Challies, Ryman CEO

Simon Challies, chief executive of the $750 million Ryman Healthcare, is based in Christchurch where he runs a national retirement village network. Next year Ryman enters the NZX top-10, bumping out another highly favoured stock,...
Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 28 Dec 2008 | 7:20 pm

Working smarter can keep costs down

Investing in new communications technology can help businesses to reduce costs, and also ensure they are ahead of the competition when the market picks up, says Victoria Crone, Telecom's general manager of business. This year Telecom...
Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 28 Dec 2008 | 6:40 pm

Emerging economies face rush for credit

Record volumes of government bonds from the industrialised nations – intended to reverse what could be the worst recession since the Great Depression – threaten to curb access to credit markets by emerging economies
Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 28 Dec 2008 | 6:27 pm

The fall of Lehman Bros - Part 2

The fall of Lehman Brothers isn't another tale about an overmatched or under-engaged chief executive. For the 16 years Richard Fuld presided over Lehman, he was considered one of the industry's most skilled chief executives, boosting...
Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 28 Dec 2008 | 4:00 pm

Maire Leadbeater: Super Fund has a way to go when it comes to investing ethically

It was great to hear the New Zealand Super Fund announce this month that it had decided to divest from seven companies involved in cluster munitions and the simulated testing of nuclear explosive devices. Not a moment too soon, considering...
Source: New Zealand Herald - Business | 28 Dec 2008 | 4:00 pm