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Unilever in £1.2bn move for Sara Lee divisionUnilever is to buy the personal care division of Sara Lee for €1.3 billion (£1.2 billion), delivering it brands such as Radox and Brylcreem. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 25 Sep 2009 | 5:16 am G20 moves against bankers' pay and bonusesG20 leaders meeting in Pittsburgh are set to agree new rules for banks and bankers that will force lenders to build up their capital ratios and help to curb excessive pay and bonuses. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:37 am UK car production reverses by 31.5 per centCar production plummeted in August, despite improved sales resulting from the Government’s “cash for bangers” scrappage scheme. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:32 am Unilever pays 1.3 billion euros for Sara Lee brands (Reuters)Reuters - Consumer goods giant Unilever agreed to pay 1.275 billion euros ($1.87 billion) for Sara Lee's personal care brands like Sanex and Radox on Friday to reinforce its global lead in deodorants and skin cleansing.Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:31 am New Iranian nuclear plant revealedDisclosure of a second uranium enrichment plant will put pressure on Tehran ahead of talks with world powers next week and provide fresh ammunition for critics of Obama’s outreach policySource: Financial Times - US homepage | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:25 am Americans staying put amid recessionAmericans have tamed their wanderlust during this recession, according to the latest data released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Only about 2.4% of Americans moved from state to state in 2008, down from 2.5% the previous year.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:21 am Futures Movers: Crude futures rise above $66 after steep declineCrude-oil futures firm, rising back above $66 a barrel in a modest rebound on the heels of a sharp two-day sell-off.
Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:17 am UK retirement age challenge failsThe High Court has ruled that it is legal for UK employers to force workers to retire at the age of 65.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:13 am Indications: Stock futures edge higher, RIM declinesU.S. stock market futures edge slightly higher ahead of the final trading session of the week, though Research In Motion shares look set for a sharp fall after a disappointing earnings forecast.
Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:07 am U.S. large-loan bank losses triple to $53 billion (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:05 am U.S. large-loan bank losses triple to $53 billion(Reuters) - U.S. regulators say that the level of losses from syndicated loans facing banks and other financial institutions tripled to $53 billion in 2009, due to poor underwriting standards and the continuing weakness in economic conditions.Source: Reuters: Business News | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:05 am Britain's biggest company moves boss to Hong KongHSBC, Britain's biggest company, is relocating its chief executive from London to Hong Kong in response to the growing dominance of Asia in its strategic ambitions. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:04 am Emerging economies 'get new role'The G20 will play a larger role in guiding the world's financial system, the US says, giving emerging economies a bigger say.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:03 am As The World Turns: HSBC CEO To Move To AsiaHSBC (HBC) is the largest bank in Europe, by most measures. Its CEO will be relocating to Hong Kong from London early next year, an indication of the rise of Asia and the fall of Europe as financial centers. HSBC said it will “transfer its Group Chief Executive Michael Geoghegan to Hong Kong from London from Feb. 1, [...][[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:02 am Oracle, SAP work to hold maintenance revenueCorporate software giants SAP AG and Oracle Corp. may begin facing pressure to their lucrative maintenance revenue streams.
Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:01 am Whataburger Takes Customization Culture to New LevelCustomized burger pioneer Whataburger puts diehard fans' custom orders on shirts; Progressive new Web site feature lets customers preview T-shirts during design process SANSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 4:00 am DEALTALK-Unlikely suitor for Hynix may have last laugh* Possible discount could open way for Hyosung acquisitionSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:58 am World stock markets fall as G20 eyes recovery (AP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:55 am Pound hits fresh 5-month low against euroThe pound dropped to a fresh five-month low against the euro and lost ground against the dollar on Friday as traders continued to punish sterling following comments from Mervyn King, governor of the Bank...Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:54 am Car output falls 31.5% in AugustThe number of new cars made in the UK fell 31.5% in August from the same month a year earlier, industry figures show.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:54 am G20 takes helm of world economyPITTSBURGH (Reuters) - The Group of 20 will take on the role of caretakers of the global economy, giving rising powers such as China more clout, and roll out tougher rules on bank capital by the end of 2012, a draft communique said on Friday.Source: Reuters: Business News | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:45 am G20 takes helm of world economy (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:45 am Deals of the day -- mergers and acquisitionsSept 25 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals involving European, U.S. and Asian companies were reported by 0900 GMT on Friday.Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:44 am Stocks set for lackluster startU.S. stocks were set for a lackluster open Friday after two straight sessions of losses.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:40 am Cadbury under Takeover Panel scrutinyThe Takeover Panel is looking at comments made by Cadbury chief executive Todd Stitzer earlier this week which referred to the value of deals similar to Kraft's bid for the chocolate maker.Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:40 am FDIC may face bailout of its ownIt's time for Sheila Bair to stop worrying about bailout politics and hit Uncle Sam up for some dough.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:39 am Asia stocks end mostly lower; Nomura plunges 15.9%Most Asian markets end lower Friday with Japanese stocks taking a beating after Nomura Holdings announced a new $5.6 billion share offering.
Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:38 am Luminar shares plunge on profit warningLuminar, the UK’s largest nightclub owner, issued a stark profit warning today, after rising job losses among young people put a dampener on party spirits. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:32 am US Large Loan Losses To Hit $53 Billion In 2009The federal government’s Shared National Credit (SNC) Review for this year found $53 billion in losses on large loans held by U.S. bank organizations, foreign bank organizations, and nonbanks such as securitization pools, hedge funds, insurance companies, and pension funds. The definition of a large loan is one exceeding $20 million. The SNC said the $53 billion ”exceeded [...][[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:31 am FTSE edges higher in cautious tradeThere was little change to London equity indices on Friday as investors continued to book profits ahead of the end of third-quarter trading.The FTSE 100 has so far put on nearly 20 per cent in the third...Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:31 am UPDATE 1-Gazprom Neft seeks to buy 100 pct of Sibir EnergyMOSCOW, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Gazprom Neft , the oil arm of Russia's Gazprom , has filed a request to the anti-trust watchdog to buy 100 percent of mid-sized oil company Sibir Energy, the competition body...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:26 am 'No bill cuts' for cash customersFive of the UK's big six energy suppliers have no plans to reduce prices for customers who pay by cash or cheque, the BBC learns.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:23 am Pound at 4-month low below $1.60The pound is hurt by fears that interest rates will remain low and that policymakers are at ease with a weak currency.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:23 am Unilever offers $1.9B for Sara Lee unitSource: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:23 am G20 takes helm of world economyPITTSBURGH (Reuters) - The Group of 20 will take on the role of caretakers of the global economy, giving rising powers such as China more clout, and roll out tougher rules on bank capital...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:20 am UPDATE 3-J.Baer poised for buys, new targets disappoint* Says wants to further build Asia as second 'home' marketSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:20 am Stock index futures point to higher open (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:19 am Stock index futures point to higher open(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher opening on Wall Street on Friday, with futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 gaining 0.2 percent, at 4:54 a.m. EDT.Source: Reuters: Business News | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:19 am Stock index futures point to higher open(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher opening on Wall Street on Friday, with futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 gaining 0.2...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:19 am Stock index futures point to higher open (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:19 am Broken promises?See if the G20 leaders are fulfilling the pledges they made at the London summit five months agoSource: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:18 am UK car production falls 31.5pc in AugustUK car production fell 31.5pc in August ending a run of three consecutive months when the decline caused by the financial crisis eased.Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:17 am UPDATE 1-EU agency recommends two H1N1 flu vaccines* Move clears way for vaccination to start within weeksSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:15 am Unilever to buy Sara Lee personal care brandsLONDON, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Consumer goods giant Unilever on Friday agreed to pay 1.275bn ($1.87bn) for the personal care business of Sara Lee bringing it brands such as Sanex and Radox.The Anglo-Dutch...Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:14 am Unilever to buy Sara Lee personal care brandsConsumer goods company Unilever has agreed to pay $1.9bn for the personal care business of Sara Lee, bringing in brands Sanex and RadoxSource: Financial Times - US homepage | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:14 am Goldman to benefit from new OTC derivatives rules: Citi(Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc expects to benefit from the new over-the-counter derivatives and commodity trading rules owing to its strong technology position, said a Citigroup...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:12 am Goldman to benefit from new OTC derivatives rules: Citi(Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc expects to benefit from the new over-the-counter derivatives and commodity trading rules owing to its strong technology position, said a Citigroup analyst, who met with Goldman management, and raised his earnings outlook for the bank.Source: Reuters: Business News | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:12 am World stock markets fall as G20 eyes recoveryGlobal stock markets dropped Friday as leaders of the world's 20 largest economies assembled in the U.S. to find ways to foster a healthy economic recovery. European shares were modestlySource: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:08 am HSBC to move chief executive to Hong KongHSBC on Friday announced a radical shake-up of its senior management, including the relocation of chief executive Michael Geoghegan from London to Hong Kong, in a move that signals the bank's determination...Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:07 am HSBC to move chief executive to Hong KongHSBC has announced a radical shake-up of its senior management, including the relocation of chief executive from London to Hong Kong, in a move that signals the bank’s determination to expand in China and across its Asian heartlandSource: Financial Times - US homepage | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:07 am Japan Airlines plunges on bailout doubtsShares of Japan Airlines plunge, a day after the Japanese government reacts warily to the ailing carrier’s request for a fourth bailout.
Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:02 am Stocks pressured despite G20 pledge, dollar eases (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:01 am 3 health care changes you can count onThe cacophony of the health care debate, already loud, is likely to become deafening as autumn progresses.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 25 Sep 2009 | 3:00 am European banks lead bourses lowerBanks were prevalent at both ends of the FTSE Eurofirst on Friday after a further call on cash from shareholders and a mixed bag of results in the sector.Norwegian financial services group DnB NOR announced...Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:59 am GM: Silence Is GoldenGM’s fairly new CEO Fritz Henderson did not get his job as recently as the car company’s chairman Ed Whitacre did, but neither has been in his current role for even a year. Each man has begun to make a public mark, probably to the detriment of GM and its primary shareholder, the US taxpayer. The [...][[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:52 am London stocks rise at open (AFP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:52 am Julius Baer targets takeovers for post-split growthJulius Baer, the Swiss banking group, is to focus on growing through takeovers as part of its restructuring into a "pure play" private bank. In detailed financial information and projections for investors...Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:49 am John Lewis fuels post-Lehman recovery hopesHopes that consumers are loosening their purse strings were given a fresh boost this morning by the first retail sales data directly comparable to the days following the collapse of Lehman Brothers last year. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:47 am A Market Still Hostage To Meaningless DataThe stock market did not fall apart at the seams, but it did very poorly on news that existing home sales dropped last month by 2.7% to a rate of 5.1 million. That was down from a figure of 5.24 million in July. The National Association of Realtors put a brave face on as it [...][[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:45 am Australia seeks investment limitsAustralia's foreign investment regulator tells Chinese investors that stakes in Australian companies should be under 15%.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:43 am Peston's picksMost of the G20 fudge has already been preparedSource: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:42 am 10 golden rules to survive a tax investigationTaxpayers have good reason to fear HMRC investigations. A new book explains how to get through them.Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:42 am Tax returns: pay up or pay consequencesIndividuals who have received untaxed income or gains in the year ended April 5 2009 may have triggered the need to complete a tax return or risk a £100 penalty an accountancy firm has warned.Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:42 am ANZ buys ING's stake in joint ventures for $1.5B (AP)AP - ANZ Bank said Friday it will buy Dutch-based ING Groep NV's stake in their Australian and New Zealand life insurance and wealth management joint ventures for 1.76 billion Australian dollars ($1.53 billion).Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:38 am Unilever pays 1.3 billion euros for Sara Lee brandsLONDON (Reuters) - Consumer goods giant Unilever Plc/NV on Friday agreed to pay 1.275 billion euros ($1.87 billion) for the personal care business of Sara Lee bringing it brands such as Sanex and Radox.Source: Reuters: Business News | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:38 am London Markets: Defensive plays buoy London stocksLondon’s top index managed to gain ground on Friday, helped by gains from Vodafone Group and Imperial Tobacco.
Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:34 am Obama's ex-doc: Insurers 'screwing it up'President Obama's former personal physician of 22 years, Dr. David Scheiner, has been very vocal on the issue of health insurance, particularly with his criticism of commercial insurers and how he feels they are meddling with the doctor-patient relationship.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:31 am This startup raised $250K - without a bankIn the past year, I made two attempts to take out a loan for my startup graphic design business. All banks demand proof that our business earned money for the past two years. But we need equipment that can only be bought with a loan ...Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:30 am G20 to police new world economic orderThe Group of 20 rich and developing countries is to take on a new role as caretaker of the global economy giving rising stars such as China and India more say in world affairs.Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:30 am Unilever to buy Sara Lee unit for $1.88 billionSara Lee said it’s going to sell its global body care business to Anglo-Dutch food and household goods giant Unilever for 1.28 billion euros ($1.88 billion) in cash.
Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:23 am Confidence re-emerging for deal financingNEW YORK (Reuters) - Bank lending, which plummeted after the credit crunch, remains constrained and leveraged buyout deals are still difficult to arrange.Source: Reuters: Business News | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:22 am Tax tipoffs lead to recovery of £42mMore than £42m in unpaid taxes has been recovered during the past four years as a result of tipoffs from the public the Government has announced.Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:21 am What's new at Chrysler? Not muchThree months after coming through a federally-financed bankruptcy, the new Chrysler Group still faces serious trouble with no quick solution in sight.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:16 am Short Sellers Flee Tech, Hit Weak Balance Sheets (INTC)(DELL)Short sellers posted a mixed record on big banks. Short interest in Citigroup (C) plunged by 73% to 177.5 million shares. The short interest in Bank of America (BAC) was down 18% to 82.2 million. And, shares short in Morgan Stanley (MS) dropped 10% to 39 million. Shares short in Fannie Mae (FNM) were up a fraction [...][[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:15 am Oil rebounds after worst fall in two monthsOil prices rose overnight amid a widespread feeling among investors that yesterday's fall, the steepest in two months, was excessive. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:13 am New funds to piggyback off financials revivalBanks were the bestperforming sector of the FTSE AllShare over the six months since the summer rally began in March.Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:08 am Aust dollar closes lowerSYDNEY - The Australian dollar closed lower after investors failed to resurrect it from overnight lows despite rising risk sentiment throughout the trading day.At 1700 AEST, the local currency was trading at US$0.8691/95, down...Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:06 am Ian Cowie: The HMRC figures show taxes will have to rise and steeplyThe Treasury's predictions of tax revenues are depressing but HMRC has a far bleaker set of figures.Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:04 am DnB NOR to launch $2.4bn rights issueDnB NOR, Norway's largest bank, is to raise NKr14bn ($2.4bn) in a guaranteed rights issue to bolster its capital base against rising bad loans.The bank is the latest in a series of Nordic lenders to seek...Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 2:03 am Media Digest 9/25/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, BloombergReuters: The G20 is taking center stage in the new economic world order. Reuters: Bank losses from large syndicated loans will hit $53 billion this year. Reuters: One Fed governor said the agency may have to hike rates soon. Reuters: Small businesses say that the US economy is improving. Reuters: Bank pay curbs will be considered at the G20. Reuters: [...][[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:55 am ING to sell 51% joint venture stake to ANZDutch bank ING Group NV will sell its 51% stake in a wealth management operation to joint venture partner Australia and New Zealand Banking Group for 1.1 billion euros ($1.6 billion).
Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:55 am Asia Markets: Nomura plunges, drags on Tokyo financialsA rush of sell orders for Nomura Holdings hammers the Japanese financial sector after the Japanese brokerage house announced its second large share offering in six months.
Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:53 am Europe Markets: Industrials drag in steady Europe tradeEuropean shares were in a tight range on Friday, with losses from industrials such as Siemens, ABB and Philips Electronics offsetting gains from commodity-sector stocks.
Source: MarketWatch.com - Top Stories | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:50 am British Airways sets seat chargesBritish Airways is to introduce charges for passengers who want to choose their seats before they fly, the airline says.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:28 am Asia Markets And Europe Open 9/25/2009Markets in Asia fell. The Nikkei slide 2.8% to 10,269. Nomua fell sharply as did Mitsubishi UFJ (MTU). The Hang Seng fell a fraction to 21,042. China Mobile (CHL) and HSBC (HBC) fell. The Shanghai Composite was off .5% to 2,837. At the open in Europe, the FTSE rose .3% to 5,095. The Daxx rose .1% to 4,608. The [...][[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:25 am Aussie stocks close higherSYDNEY - The Australian share market closed moderately higher on Friday driven by gains on financial stocks.The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 12.1 points, or 0.26 per cent, to 4713.3 points, while the broader All Ordinaries...Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:12 am Luminar warns on full year profitsLuminar Britain's biggest nightclub operator said there was a significant risk it would miss fullyear profit expectations after reporting a fall in firsthalf sales and worsening trade in September.Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:05 am Anthem Blue Cross is ordered to repay customer $7,300Herbert Greenberg wins a small-claims case against Anthem for overcharging him for safety-net plan.A Small Claims Court judge ruled Thursday that healthcare giant Anthem Blue Cross of California overcharged a Culver City man more than $5,700 for safety-net medical insurance, and he ordered the company to pay him back with interest.
Source: L.A. Times - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am Environmentalists target plush toilet paperThe soft variety's lack of recycled material is a sore spot for environmental groups. But some changes are occurring in the industry.There is a battle for America's behinds.
Source: L.A. Times - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am G-20 is set to replace Group of 8, U.S. saysThe U.S. will seek to give China a bigger voice on global policies.Leaders of the world's biggest economies gathering here for the Group of 20 summit have agreed that the organization will replace the Group of Eight as a permanent body for international economic cooperation, the White House announced late Thursday.
Source: L.A. Times - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am Calls to renew home buyer tax credit get louder in WashingtonBackers of the program slated to cease Nov. 30 are seeking an extension and even expansion to $15,000 from the current $8,000 and to more than just first-time purchasers.The drumbeat is growing in Washington for extending -- even expanding -- the popular $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers, a soon-expiring benefit that some experts estimate is on its way to spurring as many as 400,000 additional sales this year.
Source: L.A. Times - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am Borrowers rush in as mortgage rates slip below 5%Loan applications jumped 13% last week and are up 50% from late June, a mortgage bankers group says, as borrowers have been taking advantage of rates that now average 4.97% on a 30-year loan.The home mortgage market, propped up by more than $1 trillion in government money, is flashing a strong "buy" sign to house hunters.
Source: L.A. Times - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am Broadcom's Henry Samueli loses bid to revive plea bargainThe Anaheim Ducks owner had challenged a judge's decision to cancel his deal with prosecutors in a stock option case. An appellate panel says he must wait until he is sentenced before he can appeal.A federal appeals court panel on Thursday refused to reinstate a proposed plea bargain that guaranteed Anaheim Ducks owner Henry Samueli that he would spend no time in prison as a result of alleged stock option manipulation at Irvine microchip designer Broadcom Corp.
Source: L.A. Times - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am Protesters target G-20 summitNearly 2,000 demonstrators gather in Pittsburgh near where leaders of the world's 20 largest economies will meet today. Clashes with police result in 16 arrests.As the sky threatened rain here, nearly 2,000 protesters gathered in Arsenal Park on Thursday with a variety of grievances, setting off some clashes with police, and moved toward the distant convention center where world leaders are set to meet today.
Source: L.A. Times - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am 2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 Coupe: specs2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 Coupe
Source: L.A. Times - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am Mercedes' 2010 E550 Coupe wins the E-class beauty contestIs the 2010 Mercedes E550 Coupe pretty?
Source: L.A. Times - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am Ken Howard, a moderate, elected Screen Actors Guild presidentHe defeats main rival Anne-Marie Johnson with 44% of the vote while his coalition consolidates its power on the national board, winning a majority of the 22 seats up for grabs on the 69-member board.Ken Howard scored his second big win this week.
Source: L.A. Times - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am G-20 is set to replace Group of 8, U.S. saysThe U.S. will seek to give China a bigger voice on global policies. Leaders of the world's biggest economies gathering...Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am Broadcom's Henry Samueli loses bid to revive plea bargainThe Anaheim Ducks owner had challenged a judge's decision to cancel his deal with prosecutors in a stock option case. An appellate panel says he must wait until he is sentenced before he can appeal. ...Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am Ken Howard, a moderate, elected Screen Actors Guild presidentHe defeats main rival Anne-Marie Johnson with 44% of the vote while his coalition consolidates its power on the national board, winning a majority of the 22 seats up for grabs on the 69-member board. ...Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 25 Sep 2009 | 1:00 am Nomura's record share sale drags down NikkeiJapan's biggest brokerage fell the most in over thirty years after announcing a record 511.3bn yen £3.5bn share sale to fund expansion.Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 25 Sep 2009 | 12:53 am U.S. bedmaker Simmons seen filing for Chapter 11: report(Reuters) - U.S. bedmaker Simmons Co is expected to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection under a plan where it will be sold to Ares Management LLC, a private-equity fund, and the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.Source: Reuters: Business News | 25 Sep 2009 | 12:27 am NZ sharemarket downThe New Zealand sharemarket weakened today as investors disappointed with Fisher & Paykel Appliances Ltd's profit warning sold the stock.The benchmark NZSX-50 index closed down 19.167 points, or 0.612 per cent, at 3111.251, after...Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 25 Sep 2009 | 12:25 am Nomura slumps on share sale newsShares in Japan's biggest brokerage fall sharply after it announces its second share sale of the year to raise up to $5.6bn.Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 25 Sep 2009 | 12:16 am Morgan Stanley leads as M&A shows signs of lifeLONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley is outrunning archrival Goldman Sachs as 2009's busiest adviser on mergers as optimism grows that the crippling effects of the financial crisis on dealmaking may be easing.Source: Reuters: Business News | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:55 pm G20 to become world's main economic forumWorld leaders have announced that the Group of 20 developed and developing nations would become the top economic forum, spreading influence to emerging powers such as China and India. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:44 pm Kiwi dollar easesThe New Zealand dollar fell today as weak equity markets again had investors favouring US dollars.But it found support at lower levels and recovered to end little changed.It was trading at US71.89c at 5pm, off the US71.06c...Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:43 pm Morgan Stanley leads as M&A shows signs of life (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:27 pm World leaders to expand G20 powersThe group will focus on economic issues while the G8 will deal primarily with international relations and foreign policy under the terms of a new ‘global compact’Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:24 pm ANZ buys up INGANZ has announced it will buy the remaining 51 per cent of its ING life insurance and wealth management ventures in Australia.The purchase price is a little over $2 billion.ING employs 2,200 staff in Australia and 500 in New...Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:12 pm Broker Talk: The Recovery Will Surprise You (Broker Talk)Investors are still jittery about the market recovery. But considering history, some brokerages say the outcome could be better than they think. Who’s Talking: Dirk Hofschire, president of market analysis at Fidelity The Gist: The economic recovery may be weak in its early stages but still stronger than many economists are predicting. The recession is, or nearly is, over, says Hofschire. But the question now is how strong and sustainable the recovery will be. There’s a growing chorus of skeptics predicting that growth will be tepid at best in the near term, Hofschire says. But historically, steep economic contractions tend to give way to sharp recoveries. The four severe recessions since World War II (of 2.5% contraction or more) were followed by two quarters of sharp economic growth, says Hofschire. Even in the worst of these cases, the Great Depression, the economy contracted by more than 26% from peak to trough but was followed by 10.8% growth in the first year of recovery, he says. On the other hand, milder recessions usually precede more modest early recoveries, Hofschire says. For instance, following the last two recessions, 1990-91 and 2001, (the mildest economic contractions on record), economic growth averaged around 2% during the first two quarters of recovery and 2.5% in the first year. Why? Simple math, says Hofschire. Bigger recessions “leave an economy further below its full-capacity potential,” he says, which allows for more rapid growth to return the economy to that former level. Smaller contractions don’t require the same growth to get back to full capacity, he says. Many people are underestimating the potential for stronger economic growth in the short-term, says Hofschire. Economists surveyed by the Wall Street Journal expect an average growth rate of 2.3% over the next two quarters and 2.4% over the next year, he says. But historically, those growth rates look more like the pace of recovery that has followed mild recessions. What’s being predicted – an extremely severe contraction followed by a mild early-stage recovery -- “has not happened in the U.S. in modern history,” he says. Meanwhile, says Hofschire, leading economic indicators are looking up. Businesses also posted better-than-expected earnings in the second quarter because they cut costs so dramatically in early 2009, and governments around the world are still providing stimulus and low interest rates to support growth. Granted, Hofschire says there is good reason to be cautious about the pace of recovery in the medium-term. U.S. consumer spending still makes up two-thirds of the economy, he says, and the U.S. consumer, having lost one-fifth of their net worth in the downturn, is borrowing less and saving more. The high level of unemployment doesn’t help either, he says. And economic downturns resulting from financial crises tend to take longer to recover than other types of recessions, he says. Finally, there’s legitimate concern about whether the government will be able to time its monetary and fiscal policies well enough to keep the economy on track after the stimulus ends. But for investors, all the low expectations could be a good thing, says Hofschire, since it’s the unexpected that tends to move the market. If better-than-expected economic data surprise the market in months to come, it could create “positive ripple effects,” helping to fuel a more sustainable recovery. Who’s Talking: Alan Skrainka, chief market strategist at Edward Jones The Gist: Investors should act on all the signs pointing to an economic recovery, especially since the market historically performs well in the first year of recovery. Skrainka says there are numerous indicators that the economy is on the mend (bank lending increasing, global economies improving, manufacturing rebounding and housing bottoming, to name a few). Given all the good signs, he says, it’s time that investors “start looking forward and stop looking back.” But many investors are hung up on the fact that the official “scorekeeper” of recessions, the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), hasn’t officially “called” the recession’s end yet, he says. That’s because “these folks aren’t terribly interested in forecasting turns in the economy,” says Skrainka. The NBER tries first and foremost to make sure that its recession start and end dates are “absolutely accurate and not subject to future revisions,” he says. In fact, the head of NBER’s Business Cycle Dating Committee, Robert Hall, has said it’s more important for the organization to call the end of the recession once economic growth has surpassed its previous peak, an event that could take more than 18 months to pinpoint, according to Hall. In the last recession, Skrainka says, the NBER took 20 months after the recession ended, long after stock prices had started climbing, to declare that it was over. Skrainka says investors who wait that long to jump back into the market will be missing out on serious gains. Historically, he says, the stock market has performed well in the six months and 12 months following the postwar recessions, an average of 9.6% in the first six months and 15.5% in the first 12 months. Of course, there is still risk involved, he says. The recovery could be rocky and something “unforeseen might derail the progress we’ve made,” says Skrainka. But that doesn’t change his investing advice: Investment decisions should be based on principles (good quality and diversification), not predictions. And remember, says Skrainka, “you can’t recover if you’re not invested.” SMARTMONEY ® Layout and look and feel of SmartMoney.com are trademarks of SmartMoney, a joint venture between Dow Jones & Company, Inc. and Hearst SM Partnership. © 1995 - 2009 SmartMoney. All Rights Reserved.
Source: SmartMoney.com | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:00 pm Turning Into a Monster of a CompetitorWHILE THE WORST RECESSION SINCE THE 1930s has pummeled the labor market, Monster Worldwide , parent of Monster.com, the big online job site, has been spending heavily to bolster its business. Now, it's positioned to reap the fruits of its investments. Over the past three years, Monster has spent more than $200 million redesigning its Website for job seekers, expanding globally with the purchase of ChinaHR.com and buying Trovix, a technology outfit that should help make its services more appealing to its bread-and-butter clients: staffing companies and corporate human-resources departments. Next month, it will introduce an innovative online search tool for employers. And, while it's been doing all this, the company has been cutting costs -- by 25%, or $164 million, in the first half alone, it says. These changes -- along with investors' hopes for an economic rebound -- have boosted Monster Worldwide shares (MWW), above 17. That's nearly triple their March low, about where they traded a year ago. The stock's superheated performance makes it iffy in the short term. But a pullback of 10% or more would offer a nice buying opportunity for long-term investors. INDEED, OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS, Monster will benefit mightily from its increased presence abroad, where it already gets about 45% of its annual revenue of $1.3 billion, and which was growing at a near 18% annual clip last year before the global markets swooned. Monster lost 10 cents a share for the first half, but should move back into the black in the second. For the year, it's likely to make 5 cents a share. And when the economy -- and employment opportunities -- rebound, it should be able to supersize its profits. Sal Iannuzzi, the former Symbol Technologies chief who became Monster's CEO in 2007, says that it isn't "out of the realm of reason" that earnings could reach 40 to 45 cents a share per quarter when the economy returns to a normal level. Based on the recent stock price, that would mean that the shares could be trading at a price/earnings multiple below 11, versus its historical average of 25. Moreover, the stock currently fetches 1.91 times per-share sales, about a third of its 10-year average multiple of 5.6, notes Tobey Sommer, of SunTrust Robinson Humphreys, one of the few analysts with a Buy rating on Monster. His 12-month price target is $23. David Katz, chief investment officer of Matrix Asset Advisors in New York, has been buying the shares. "We're very confident that on a 12-month basis, the stock will be in the mid-20s," he says. He acknowledges that there's short-term danger; Monster might fall twice as much as the broad market in a correction, he says. But, longer-term, he views it as a solid bet. Already, there have been some tentative signs of life in the labor market. Employers in August cut 216,000 jobs -- bad, but well below the awful numbers seen earlier this year. By Monster's reckoning, online job postings in August rose 6%, the most since 2005, with the Monster Employment Index hitting 121. Sommer says that Monster's North American business, which accounts for 48% of revenue, is closely related to that index, meaning that it probably went up by a like amount. Last year, Monster's North American revenue fell about 10%. Despite a national jobless rate that hit 9.7% last month, independent research also has shown an encouraging upturn in the online job market. The Conference Board reported employer job demand up a seasonally adjusted 5%, or 169,000 jobs last month, compared with July's level. "The August increase was some very good news," says June Shelp, a Conference Board economist. Since April, online job demand has risen by 300,000, with many larger states showing stable trends, the Conference Board reports. "Advertised vacancies tend to be a lead to what's happening in employment," notes Shelp. To be sure, some surveys have shown less rosy prospects for hiring. But Monster's strong and growing international presence, with operations in 50 countries, definitely gives it an edge, regardless of how the true picture turns out. Iannuzzi says he's seen a pickup in China, as well as Korea and Western Europe. Monster has also moved into Latin America, and last year inked a joint venture with News Corp . (NWSA), Barron's publisher, in Australia. "We're the only firm out there with geographical reach," Iannuzzi says, distinguishing it from the other big players in online recruitment, CareerBuilder and Yahoo! HotJobs. CareerBuilder is a private company owned by a consortium led by Gannett (GCI) and Microsoft (MSFT). HotJobs is run by Yahoo! (YHOO). Monster commands about 30% of the North American online job-search market of about $2.3 billion, second only to CareerBuilder's 35%, Sommer says, and 20% of the overall North American market of $5.3 billion, including print advertising, to CareerBuilder's 23% and HotJobs' 10%. BUT HAVING RECENTLY REORGANIZED its sales force, and with the rollout of its employer search tool imminent, Monster could boost its share. In fact, while the number of online job seekers grew 4% in August, year-over-year, Monster saw a whopping 66% growth in visitors, versus CareerBuilder's 38%, according to comScore Media Metrix. Sue Feldman, an analyst at Interactive Data Corp., calls Monster's new search tool "a huge leap forward." Using advanced match technology makes it easier to link suitable candidates with appropriate jobs, even if job seekers and employers use different terms to describe their goals. Monster also should benefit from a recession-inspired decrease in the size of corporate human-resource departments that is unlikely to reverse when the good times return. This offers more opportunity to online job sites. In the second quarter, Monster became the primary provider of online recruitment services for Microsoft, and signed a big insurance wholesaler, Burns & Wilcox, to a multiyear deal. Monster is focusing on new technology to leverage its online presence. It has also moved into job sites for workers such as police and teachers, aiming to stem the competition from niche players and social-networking sites. And the company has a solid balance sheet, with $236 million, or nearly $2 a share, in cash and almost no long-term debt. All in all, Monster looks like an idea that will work for long-term investors.
The Bottom Line
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Source: SmartMoney.com | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:00 pm September 25, 2008 (Thursday): Bailout Deal Stalls Out; WaMu CollapsesKabooom!What in the morning looks like a deal on the $700 billion bailout unravels by day’s end, with House Republicans bailing on the White House, the Treasury Secretary pleading with the House speaker for support, and President Bush issuing dire warnings. The New York Times quotes a source who describes Bush declaring, “If money isn’t loosened up, this sucker could go down,” as he watches the plan disintegrate. By 10:30 p.m., Congressional negotiators call it a night and plan to reconvene on Friday. The fate of the presidential debate, planned for Friday night in Mississippi, is also uncertain. (For more on this news, click here.) Et tu, WaMu?The financial sector takes another big blow as one-time high-flier Washington Mutual is seized by federal regulators, marking the largest bank failure in U.S. history. The Seattle-based thrift collapses after a wave of deposit withdrawals, and the government reaches a deal to sell WaMu’s banking operations to J.P. Morgan Chase for $1.9 billion. J.P. Morgan will also assume the thrift’s loan portfolio, and with assets of $307 billion. The bank’s depositors will be able to access their cash as usual, and the FDIC’s insurance fund won’t have to pay out, but shareholders aren’t likely to recover any value. (For more on this news, click here, here and here.) Couric’s Comeback, via PalinIn what becomes an instant YouTube classic, Katie Couric boosts her evening-news cred by interviewing vice presidential hopeful Sarah Palin. Couric draws some good reviews for her even-handedness and for drawing the Alaska governor out on topics from the economy to Henry Kissinger. Of particular note are the VP candidate’s views on Russia, which she describes as “just right over the border” from Alaska. “It is from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right there. They are right next to — to our state.” (For more on this news, click here, here and here.) SMARTMONEY ® Layout and look and feel of SmartMoney.com are trademarks of SmartMoney, a joint venture between Dow Jones & Company, Inc. and Hearst SM Partnership. © 1995 - 2009 SmartMoney. All Rights Reserved.
Source: SmartMoney.com | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:00 pm The Best Back-to-Basics VehiclesYou don’t have to know a piston ring from a brake caliper to know that it’s been a historic year for the car industry—and not in a good way. Back in the spring, Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy protection with an Italian last name. After its massive bailout, GM now stands for Government Motors, the joke goes. Hummer—that icon of American motoring machismo—may soon be owned by an obscure Chinese road-equipment maker. Even with the recent “cash for clunkers” program boosting sales, the market is still down 32 percent this year. And in a sure sign that times have changed, some Bentley dealers are quietly offering $36,000 off the sticker price of $180,000 Continentals. Talk about needing to reinvent the wheel. The auto industry is working to make its wheels leaner, greener and more profitable as consumers steer away from the supersized, blinged-out vehicles of the boom years and move back to basics: practicality, safety and fuel efficiency. While nothing is exactly peeling off the lot these days, sales of compact cars are down slightly less than the industry average. And in the luxury sector, compact premium crossovers are up 18 percent—the only segment of the industry that’s higher. These statistics, says Jeff Schuster, head of global forecasting at J.D. Power, suggest that drivers may be “trading down.” Indeed, slowed by unemployment worries and a drop-off in cheap, heavily subsidized leases, American car buyers are looking for value above all else. “There’s no shame in buying a smaller, gas-efficient car anymore,” says Jesse Toprak, a longtime industry analyst now with Truecar.com. Not that we’ll all be driving stripped-down econoboxes. Many unsold cars languishing on the lots are heavily equipped with high-tech and luxury options—think GPS navigation, premium audio and leather seats. Those features tend to come in packages that are a hangover from the days when dealers could count on an easy $2,000 up-sell. Now they may heavily discount those packages just to seal a deal, says Ed Kim, head of industry research for automotive consultancy AutoPacific. And it’s not uncommon to find even $23,000 sedans loaded with a full suite of optional gear—not to mention generous cash rebates that make it easier to ante up for your favorite extras. But while dealers have been rolling out the red carpet this year, experts caution buyers not to expect the bargains to last. Carmakers, which have been shutting factories, slashing production and selling off excess inventory, have just begun ramping back up, a sign that the window on this incentive-heavy buyer’s market may be closing. To see which cars are worth opening your wallet for, we consulted industry experts and evaluated and test-drove dozens of models in four categories: green machines, family haulers, luxury coupes and value sedans. Ahead, our picks for our annual car-buying guide.
Best Green VehicleAmericans run hot and cold when it comes to hybrids, cars that combine a gasoline engine with batteries and an electric motor to boost fuel efficiency. After torrid sales in 2008, when gas prices were soaring, hybrid fever has cooled this year, with sales down 24 percent. Maybe that’s because drivers have had a hard time adjusting to the quirks of hybrid driving—the weak acceleration, the mashed-potato brake feel—or the average $4,560 price premium over their less-green counterparts. Still, Washington is hot for eco-friendly vehicles, and carmakers keep rolling out more efficient hybrids, along with “clean” diesels—more than a dozen new models since 2008 alone. To get the most green car for your greenback, it’s tough to beat the longtime hybrid standard-bearer, Toyota [TM] Prius. A midsize four-door that can be well equipped for under $25,000, it now delivers a whopping 50 miles per gallon. Trying to maintain its edge over rivals like Honda, which launched the Insight hybrid this year, Toyota recently overhauled its signature green machine, boosting horsepower by 22 percent and nudging up the cabin and cargo space. Eco-geeks may be drawn to features like solar-powered ventilation and Prius’s three driving modes, which let drivers choose to optimize power or mileage or go electric-only (at parking-lot speeds). For more-traditional techie types, Toyota has added options like radar-enhanced cruise control and a self-parking system. Still, for most drivers—including us—the Prius hasn’t lost those hybrid quirks. Getting on the highway, it ambled its way up to 60 mph (Toyota says it takes 9.8 seconds), and the high-tech brakes, which transfer “regenerative energy” to the batteries, felt a bit spongy—even though Toyota says the braking system has just been upgraded. Nor were we keen on the hard plastic interior or the tough fabric seats that left us with sore backs after a four-hour drive. Toyota says the car now uses plant-based “ecological plastics” and that the seats now have optional power lumbar support. Robert Yu, a software consultant in Scottsdale, Ariz., who recently bought the new Prius, says the less-than-luxe cabin and wimpy acceleration don’t exactly rival his old BMW, but he loves the budget price and his average mileage of 51.5 mpg. “You have to come to terms with the compromises,” he says. RUNNERS-UP: A roomy midsize sedan, the Ford [F] Fusion Hybrid averages 39 mpg, near the top of the hybrid class, but it starts around $28,000, pricier than the similar-size Camry hybrid. (Ford says the Fusion has more standard equipment than its hybrid competitors.) For its part, the Volkswagen Jetta TDI gets an impressive 41 mpg on the highway and starts at a more reasonable $24,460 for an automatic. Yet the diesel engine is noisier than gasoline-powered models, and city mileage can’t match that of the hybrids. A Volkswagen spokesperson acknowledges that the Jetta diesel is “slightly louder” and says gas mileage “depends on your driving style.” Best Value SedanCarmakers have a dream for their midsize sedans: to dethrone the Toyota Camry, which has reigned as America’s best-selling car since 1997. But even the mighty Camry has fallen on hard times, with sales down 34 percent this year—and not just because of the car market’s overall slump. Increasingly, Americans are swapping their sedans for more-versatile crossovers, analysts say, and the Camry faces stiff competition from cars with spiffier interiors, sharper exteriors and more features for the buck. After years of watching its midprice Mazda6 sedan play also-ran to the Camry and Honda Accord, Mazda revamped the car in ’09, amped up the incentives (recent offer: $1,500 to $2,000 cash back) and broadened its pitch. Sure, it’s still positioned as the sporty antidote to the plain-vanilla sedan. Indeed, the new 6 looks almost feral with its sleek, swoopy sheet metal, bulging wheel arches and cat’s-eye headlights. And while four-cylinder cars can feel sluggish at low speeds, we came away impressed with the pep and poise of Mazda’s four-cylinder, 170-horsepower model. The steering felt light and precise, even after we packed the car with five adults. But unlike the original Mazda6, which came out in 2002 and had a reputation as a frisky puppy—undersized and rough around the edges—this incarnation, priced starting around $19,000, is designed as a more mature creature. Mazda lengthened and widened the body by several inches, creating a cabin and trunk (16.6 cubic feet) now near the top of their class for roominess. Designers made the car quieter, too, the company says, and spruced up the interior with a two-tone color scheme and brushed metallic finishes. The flip side of all that pep, though, is slightly diminished gas mileage; on the highway it tops out at 29 mpg, trailing some rivals by as much as 10 percent. A Mazda spokesperson says mileage is less of a priority than driving dynamics and styling. We also found some of the switches on the steering wheel too small to be driver-friendly and the navigation system tough to both reach and see. (The company responds that everyone has a different opinion about the feel of the car.) Owner Paul Manuel of Elkton, Md., says he can live with the downsides. “I drive it hard,” he says, “and like the sporting edge.” RUNNERS-UP: Compared with the Camry, both the Hyundai Sonata and Chevy Malibu offer slightly more horsepower, similar gas mileage and comparable standard safety gear like traction and stability control. Both also have cabins that were redesigned with higher-quality materials and premium options like leather and wood trim. Their big drawback: ride and handling that may be charitably described as comfortably numb. A spokesperson for Chevrolet says the Malibu was engineered for a smooth ride, and Hyundai says drivers looking for sportier performance can choose the Sonata’s SE model. Best Family CrossoverFamily haulers come in all shapes and sizes, but the sweet spot for many buyers is the crossover: a vehicle engineered to ride like a car in the body of an SUV. Proving popular with folks who need space for toting kids and gear—and who cringe at the sight of sliding doors—crossovers make up 21 percent of the market, up from 2.1 percent a decade ago. And sales of midsize models are down 21 percent this year, about two-thirds the market’s overall decline. But since crossover country is now jammed with 100 or so models, finding one with the right mix of eight-passenger space, power and safety features can be a tall order. General Motors, whose devotion to the full-size SUV market contributed mightily to its financial woes, has been trying to entice buyers to trade down from the big dogs to one of its sharper-handling and less-gas-guzzling new crossovers. And it’s succeeded with the Chevy Traverse—currently one of the top-selling midsize crossovers—which boasts ample interior space (including a class-topping 116.6 cubic feet for cargo) and giddyap aplenty. The 281-horsepower engine outpowers its rivals. Buyers worried about GM’s quality may be surprised to learn that Chevrolet averages 103 problems per 100 vehicles, barely behind Toyota—and ahead of Nissan—in J.D. Power’s latest survey of “initial quality.” One big improvement: the cabin. The car we tested came appointed with comfortable leather seats, and all Traverse models get a stylish instrument panel with a sweeping, ergonomic design. Loaded with standard safety goodies like six air bags, antilock brakes and stability control, it also offers a nifty low-tech alternative to electronic blind-spot sensors: wide-angle mirrors embedded in the outer corner of the wing mirrors to help drivers change lanes safely—without craning their necks. Still, it’s a biggish car, with biggish-car issues. We averaged only 15 mpg, well below the EPA estimate of 19 mpg in combined city/highway driving. (A GM spokesperson says the vehicle gets the best mileage in its class.) And the Traverse didn’t maneuver as sharply in our tests as rivals like the Mazda CX-9. GM says the suspension was tuned to “strike a balance” between comfort and performance. In other words: All that rolling real estate does have its price. RUNNERS-UP: Top among midsize crossovers in J.D. Power’s 2009 survey of long-term reliability, the Toyota Highlander has long been popular for its carlike handling and reputation for quality. But it lacks a six-speed transmission, and the third-row seats fold as a single unit instead of in sections. Toyota says it’s looking into both features for a future redesign. The popular and affordable Honda [HMC] Pilot offers a more versatile cabin, with a split-folding third row. But its 250-horsepower engine is weaker than rivals’, and it doesn’t get any better gas mileage, according to EPA estimates. Honda says the fuel economy is quite good given its accommodating interior. Best Luxury CoupeA few years ago, folks who wanted a sporty luxury car had two choices: a high-performance sedan or a two-seat roadster. These days, however, there’s middle ground: the two-door coupe. More compact than sedans, coupes tend to offer sharper driving dynamics and pizzazz behind the wheel. And though they’re not quite as fun to drive as lightweight roadsters, they have functional backseats and trunks that can fit more than a single set of golf clubs. Yet with almost 50 coupe models currently on the market, nearly two dozen of which are priced over $100,000, finding value in the luxury class now takes a bit of detective work—even in a slump that’s left most sporty “weekend” cars lingering on dealers’ back lots. Long a luxury underdog, Infiniti now equips its G37 with a 330-horsepower engine, heftier than that of similarly priced coupes from Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz. It has one of the few seven-speed transmissions in its class and a satisfying array of luxury appointments and tech toys. And starting around $37,000, it costs roughly $7,000 less than its German brethren. According to the latest Automotive Lease Guide, it also has a higher resale value. It’s certainly a more compelling ride than the old G35, with dozens of design and engineering upgrades, including a platform that’s 36 percent stiffer, Infiniti says, reducing its “body roll” through curves. Inside, Infiniti scrapped some of the cheap plastics and buffed up the interior with aluminum-alloy accents and more leather trim. The company also added new electronic controls for the steering and brakes, along with high-tech options like headlights that adapt to the road and “intelligent” cruise control that uses laser sensors to keep the car’s speed flowing with traffic. Critics complain the G37 still doesn’t feel as refined as the Audi A5 or as balanced as the BMW 335i. And the car has a few other drawbacks. As with most coupes, backseat headroom is minimal. And our gas mileage—around 19 mpg—wasn’t great. (Infiniti says the engine is larger but still has increased its EPA mileage over the previous model’s engine.) But we liked the hustle and grit of the car. The seats felt supportive, and even after a full day of driving it around New Jersey’s back roads, we were eager for more. At least, that is, those of us sitting in front. RUNNERS-UP: The BMW 335i offers an impressive mix of poise and handling, plus rocket-like acceleration with its twin-turbo 300-horsepower engine. But it starts around $43,000—without luxury basics like leather upholstery or even an alarm system. The elegant Audi A5 3.2 Quattro has one of the highest-quality interiors in the class, but its 265-horsepower engine isn’t nearly as powerful as that of the 335i, and a fully loaded model can top $58,000. SMARTMONEY ® Layout and look and feel of SmartMoney.com are trademarks of SmartMoney, a joint venture between Dow Jones & Company, Inc. and Hearst SM Partnership. © 1995 - 2009 SmartMoney. All Rights Reserved.
Source: SmartMoney.com | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:00 pm Everything Borrowed? 7 Subtle Wedding Savings (Deal of the Day)Cutting your wedding budget doesn’t have to set guests’ tongues wagging about a dreary location or bland food. During 2008, couples spent an average $21,814 on a wedding, according to The Wedding Report. That’s 24% less than they spent in 2007. But many couples are trimming their budgets in ways that aren’t immediately apparent to guests, says Joyce Scardina Becker, the founder of Events of Distinction, a San Francisco wedding design firm. “Guests don’t necessarily notice something missing at a wedding,” she says. “It’s what’s inconvenient, when their needs haven’t been met.” (For example, it might be better to keep that open bar and limit liquor options instead of asking guests to dig out their wallets for a cash bar.) Here are seven cost-cutting trade-offs couples are making that aren’t obvious to their guests:
Old: Credit cards Wedding vendors are eager to avoid credit-card processing fees and -- with the recession putting pressure on future bookings -- maximize their upfront pay. Offer to hand them cash or a check, and you may be rewarded with a discount of up to 10%, says Samantha Goldberg, a wedding planner based in Summit, N.J., and a counselor on The Style Network series “Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?”
Old: Saturdays A Saturday wedding package can cost 10% to 20% more than an identical service during the rest of the weekend. For example, the Hermann Hill Vineyard and Inn in Hermann, Mo., charges $3,875 for its Ultimate Wine Country Wedding Package if you schedule for a Saturday. For a Friday or Sunday, you’d pay $3,325 -- 14% less. Weekday nights can be even cheaper, but not always. You may bump up against corporate event demand at some venues, which could actually increase the price, Becker says.
Old: Separate ceremony and reception sites If you book a venue that can host the ceremony and the reception, you can spend a little less on flowers and other decorations, says Vanessa Wakeman, the founder of The Wakeman Agency, an event-planning firm based in New York. You’ll also save on transportation costs, she says.
Old: Summer Avoid the peak months of May, June, September and October, and you can as much as double your buying power, Goldberg says. “Demand is low, so you have more leverage to negotiate with vendors,” she says. (For more on winter wedding deals, click here.)
Old: Evening “There’s an air of sophistication about [early weddings],” Wakeman says. Couples can also save on a range of expenses, even if they stick with a Saturday, summer event: Food. More elaborate options for less. At The Valley Green Inn in Philadelphia, menu options for a $60-per-person wedding brunch include poached eggs with lobster, smoked salmon Benedict and Brie-stuffed French toast. For simple dinner options like rib-eye steak, pan-seared salmon and chicken marsala, you’d pay $82 per person ($92 if it’s a Saturday night). Alcohol. Guests drink less at daytime weddings, Wakeman says. It’s also easy to cut the number of bottles opened with traditional daytime cocktails like a Mimosa or Bloody Mary. Lighting. Evening weddings, indoor or out, usually require extra lights or candles. Nixing that expense can save $1,500 or more, depending on the venue, Becker says. Entertainment. DJs and bands are most in-demand for evening events, so many might cut you a break on daytime gigs, Wakeman says. Potential savings: 10% to 30%.
Old: Invitations stuffed with extras Gone are the days when couples needed to stuff invitations with weighty extras like maps, accommodation suggestions, registry information and local amenities -- jacking up their postage costs in the process. Now free wedding web site providers like MyWedding.com let brides and grooms share that information online and provide guests with other details about their big day. Lightening the weight of an invitation from three ounces to one would cut postage by 34 cents a letter, or about $68 for sending 200.
Old: Purchase everything There’s no need to buy a fancy designer cake, or even a wedding dress, Goldberg says. Instead of paying $15 per slice of a fancy cake, rent a plastic model covered with fondant (and one real layer snuck in for the cutting ceremony) for as little as $100. Behind the scenes, an inexpensive sheet cake for $3 a slice will be what actually goes out to guests. “Nobody will know it’s not the same cake they saw in front of them,” she says. For wedding dresses, ask boutiques about rental rates. Typically, you’ll pay 10% to 20% of the initial selling price, Goldberg says. SMARTMONEY ® Layout and look and feel of SmartMoney.com are trademarks of SmartMoney, a joint venture between Dow Jones & Company, Inc. and Hearst SM Partnership. © 1995 - 2009 SmartMoney. All Rights Reserved.
Source: SmartMoney.com | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:00 pm SmartMoney's 2010 Car Buying Guide
It may take a leap of faith in the economy to plunk down $30,000 on a new car or commit to the monthly payments these days. But folks in the market are in a good position to strike a hard bargain. Car sales soared in August with the government’s cash-for-clunkers program. But showroom visits are down again in September, according to CNW Market Research, and the industry may soon have to ramp up incentives just to entice shoppers to take a test-drive. Best Green Vehicle: Toyota PriusMSRP: $22,750 The hybrid market is crowded with new models from Honda and Ford, but the Toyota [NYSE: TM] Prius is still the gas king, getting 50 MPG in city/highway driving. The third-generation Prius, starting around $23,000, is slightly larger and more powerful than its precedessor and can now be driven in three modes: Eco, Power or Electric. The acceleration is still a bit wimpy, though, and we weren’t keen on the tough fabric seats. (Toyota says lumbar support is optional).
Best Value Sedan: Mazda6MSRP: $21,070 Priced around $21,000, this generation of Mazda’s flagship sedan is a more mature creature than its predecessors. Mazda lengthened and widened the body, made the car quieter and spruced up the interior with brushed metallic finishes. The four-cylinder, 170-horsepower model had pep and poise in our tests. Highway mileage tops out at 29 MPG, though, trailing some rivals. Mazda says mileage is less a priority than driving dynamics and style.
Best Family Crossover: Chevrolet Traverse LSMSRP: $29,999 Crossovers are popular with folks who have kids and cargo to haul. And the all-new six-cylinder Traverse, priced around $30,000, edges the competition for interior space and engine power. It’s also loaded with safety gear and a stylish interior, featuring a sweeping, ergonomic instrument panel. Gas mileage isn’t great, though, rated at 19 MPG, and it didn’t handle as sharply as other crossovers we tested. GM [OTC: MTLQQ.PK] says the suspension was tuned to “strike a balance” between comfort and performance.
Best Luxury Coupe: Infiniti G37MSRP: $36,765 Sporty coupes are the whimsical luxuries of the car market, but the G37 makes a strong case as the bargain in the field. Starting around $37,000, it’s priced well below rivals from Audi and BMW [NasdaqGS: BMW]. The 330-horsepower engine, one of the most powerful in the class, had hustle and grit in our tests. Backseat headroom is minimal, however, and critics complain that the interior doesn’t feel as refined as cabins of the Audi A5 or BMW 335i.
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Source: SmartMoney.com | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:00 pm Twitter now worth $7.14m per characterSecond injection of cash this year even though service has yet to make significant revenuesSource: Financial Times - US homepage | 24 Sep 2009 | 9:32 pm Stitzer under fire over Kraft commentsThe Takeover Panel is examining comments made by Cadbury’s chief executive in a private meeting with investors that referred to potential takeover valuationsSource: Financial Times - US homepage | 24 Sep 2009 | 9:29 pm ANZ to buy up rest of ING's local operationsANZ Bank is to purchase the 51 per cent of Dutch-based ING's Australian and New Zealand operations that it does not already own.Shares in ANZ, ING Medical Properties Trust, and ING Property Trust were all placed on a trading...Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 9:00 pm August trade deficit $725m, worse than expectedNew Zealand posted a worse than expected trade deficit of $725 million in August, with the value of both exports and imports more than 20 per cent lower than a year earlier.Imports were a little above expectations at $3.47 billion,...Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 7:00 pm G20 to debate plan to phase out G8 over next two yearsLeaders at today’s G20 summit are expected to discuss a strategy for winding up the G8 group of industrialised economies that has served as a magnet for controversy and protest by anti-globalisation activists. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 24 Sep 2009 | 6:42 pm Fed may have to hike rates before need clear: WarshPITTSBURGH (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Reserve may have to raise interest rates from their currently ultra-low setting near zero before the need to take action becomes obvious, Fed Board Governor Kevin Warsh said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Business News | 24 Sep 2009 | 6:36 pm F & P Appliance profit to miss forecast, in talks with banksFisher & Paykel Appliances, which was forced to sell shares at a deep discount and bring in China's Haier Group as a cornerstone investor this year, said earnings will miss its prospectus forecasts and be outside the terms of a bank...Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 6:30 pm 5 IPOs today - most since 2007After a six-month hiatus of initial public offerings, the market looks to be heating up.Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 24 Sep 2009 | 6:25 pm Financial groups hit by surge in loan lossesThe US financial sector’s losses on large loans exploded over the past year, exceeding the combined losses since 2001, with hedge funds and other members of the “shadow banking system” hit the hardest, official figures revealedSource: Financial Times - US homepage | 24 Sep 2009 | 6:09 pm Telecom resale services may be freed from regulationTelecom has convinced the Commerce Commission that regulation of its resale services is outdated, raising the prospect that the level of oversight will be reduced.The commission today announced it will investigate whether to remove...Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 6:05 pm When it’s going well, start worryingRemember all those dire warnings about the risk of a stock market correction in September, the cruellest month in the financial calendar? We are not quite through it yet, but with four more trading days to go, the FTSE 100 is up another 4 per cent. So much for history. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 24 Sep 2009 | 6:01 pm Postie Plus edges back into profitClothing retailer Postie Plus has reported a full year net profit of $615,000, edging back into the black from a $10.85m loss the year before on "a very good second half recovery".The company, whose brands include Postie+, Schooltex...Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 6:00 pm Drop in home sales, tumbling oil weigh on stocks (AP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 24 Sep 2009 | 5:35 pm Video ads: Tipping point is nearSource: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 24 Sep 2009 | 5:27 pm Write-Offs: 09.24.09$$$ Paul Volcker: Obama Plans To Maintain 'To Big To Fail' [HP] $$$ Mafia boss used crocodile to extort money [CNN Money] $$$ Goldman Sachs Helped Michael Moore Make His Anti-Capitalist Film [BI] $$$ Court to Decide Fate of Madoff Claims in February [Dealbook] $$$ Prosecuting Paupers Over Princes [WSJ] 
 Sponsored Topics: PaulVolcker - Mafia - Goldman Sachs - BarackObama - Wall Street Journal Source: Dealbreaker | 24 Sep 2009 | 4:48 pm RIM results, outlook disappoint, shares tumbleTORONTO (Reuters) - BlackBerry maker Research In Motion said on Thursday its profit dropped and gave an outlook that fell short of analyst forecasts heading into the holiday shopping season, sending its shares down almost 10 percent.Source: Reuters: Business News | 24 Sep 2009 | 4:31 pm Citigroup U.S. retail bank focusing on 6 cities (Reuters)Reuters - Citigroup Inc's U.S. retail banking business plans to focus its marketing efforts on six cities, a source familiar with the matter said, but the bank's chief executive said he does not plan to dramatically shrink its branch network.Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 4:28 pm Rim outlook misses analysts’ estimatesShares in Research in Motion fell after the Canadian maker of the BlackBerry family of smartphones warned that fiscal third-quarter sales would miss analyst estimatesSource: Financial Times - US homepage | 24 Sep 2009 | 4:11 pm Australia Not Too Impressed With US Definition Of Standards
Congratulations. You're now 2-for-2. Higher standards saved us, says RBA [The Australian]
Sponsored Topics: Mortgage - Loan - Australia - United States - Subprime lending Source: Dealbreaker | 24 Sep 2009 | 4:02 pm Boockvar on Economic Outlook, Fullman on Options: AudioSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 24 Sep 2009 | 3:46 pm Small details sometimes hinder help on mortgages (AP)AP - It all comes down to details: The success of the federal government's attempts to keep homeowners from defaulting on their mortgages appears to hinge on small things such as a servicer not losing a customer's documentation.Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 3:16 pm An Upset In The Derivatives WorldThe chair of the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee spoke at a derivatives conference in London today and, as you'd expect, anybody who is head gatekeeper for derivatives legislation in Europe added more fuel to the derivatives vilification campaign.
Wait a second! OTC derivatives were not a major factor in the crisis?! Maybe it's just a case of British sarcasm not coming through very well on paper. Did she not tune into the Congressional panels filled with experts who explained once and for all that derivatives do nothing but cause destruction? Ask the Oracle. He'll tell you what bespoke derivatives can do. But maybe that was just a slip up on her part. Please continue Sharon.
In the words of Al Michaels, "Do you believe in miracles? YES!" EU Econ Committee: Derivatives Not Big Factor In Crisis [WSJ]
Sponsored Topics: European Union - European Parliament - London - Sharon Bowles - Al Michaels Source: Dealbreaker | 24 Sep 2009 | 2:43 pm Savages Catch Lenny Dykstra On Tape Doing Business DealsWhat has this world come to when you can't drop your World Series rings off at a pawn shop without having some Japanese film crew up your ass? While it's true that yeah, we track Nails' every move, we do so out of love/fascination/admiration for the guy, not in order to humiliate him/make something out of nothing. He just needed a little money to cover the costs of dip and Twizzlers for a while, and this makes it seem like he's a homeless dude on his last legs, so desperate for a hit he'd rip the fixtures out of his foreclosed house and hock them for cash (longer clip here).
Sponsored Topics: World Series - Cinema of Japan - Film crew - Money - Arts Source: Dealbreaker | 24 Sep 2009 | 2:42 pm How the major stock indexes fared on Thursday (AP)AP - A surprise drop in home sales and another slide in oil prices pushed investors to sell stocks Thursday.Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 24 Sep 2009 | 2:39 pm 'Subprime Guy' Loses Everything, Finds New Definition Of Success
Glen Pizzolorusso at the wheel of his Range Rover, one of five cars he owned before the subprime mortgage market went bust. (Courtesy of Glenn Pizzolorusso) Glen Pizzolorusso got his start in the mortgage industry in his father's company, at age 14. Still in his 20s, by 2007 he'd worked his way up to running his own sales team, making $100,000 a month and helping to inflate the bubble that became the current global economic crisis. When that bubble burst, he told us the story for This American Life's Giant Pool of Money episode. Here, Pizzolorusso writes about the difference between his old definition of success and his new one. I see a Porsche convertible drive by, sky blue, tan leather interior, gorgeous, and immediately a feeling of envy comes over me. I think that's a natural feeling, but I can't help wondering what is the motivation behind the purchase of such an expensive piece of machinery. Is it a burning desire to own the pinnacle of German automobile engineering? Is it a love for speed, wind blowing in your face, freed from the perils of Corporate America? Or is it a symbol of success, a long career, countless promotions, 60-hour workweeks, a remedy for the stress that accompanies such dedication? For me, it was all of the above. After seven long years of 60+ hours a week in the subprime mortgage industry, I had achieved what I had set out to accomplish: success. I was a success, with a seven-figure income, a healthy portfolio of real estate, a gorgeous wife, fancy cars, a Madison Avenue wardrobe. I was the envy of others, my yellow 911 a testament to my success. You see, I grew up in an affluent community. Our neighbors were doctors and lawyers with kids who went to private schools. Money and status defined success for me, and by my definition, success was all around. Now I was worthy to take part in its communion. Then I lost everything. I became a victim of the financial mess I had helped to create. My houses, gone. Cars, gone. Bank account, gone. Success, gone. How could this happen? This wasn't the story you see on TV. This wasn't supposed to happen. The success I had sacrificed so much of who I was to achieve simply disappeared. In the weeks and months following the financial crash I went from highly employable to another "subprime" guy looking for work. Many companies specified not to apply if you had "subprime" experience. These have been the worst months of my life, and oddly enough, so far, these same months also have been the best. I watched as my healthy bank account slowly evaporated, the repos and foreclosures started and my claim for unemployment benefits got denied. It was a downward spiral ending in financial ruin. I should have been terrified, but for some reason I was calm, collected, happy even. The enormous cloud of uncertainty was slowly disappearing and allowing the sun to shine in on my life. I began to realize the things I had been so naive to overlook: my children, my health, the love of a Godly woman and some of the greatest friends on the planet. I was truly blessed. And the best part of it was this was all free, there for me whether my paycheck had six zeros or two. I started to think differently about wealth and how I defined success. The dream of success I once had was radically transformed. I was actually ashamed I had earned so much money and the only thing I had to show for it was a handful of pictures. I hadn't helped anyone but myself. I could have done so many positive things with the money I earned, but failed to. I was not a success. Now that I've been given a second chance, success to me has no monetary value, and it is not something that can be measured by outward appearances. Success is making the best out of what you have been blessed with. It's giving your all despite your circumstances. It's spending the time to teach your children the importance of things such as faith, love, education, and confidence. It is so much more than the shallow emptiness that wealth and material possessions often bring. I think about an illustration someone shared with me recently. When you finish a game of Monopoly, all the pieces go back in the box, so it really doesn't matter how much of the board you control. Life works the same way. Life is finite, your days numbered. When my days have ended, if one person stands over my grave describing the positive impact I had on their life, my life will have been a success. » E-Mail This » Add to Del.icio.us Source: NPR Blogs: Planet Money | 24 Sep 2009 | 2:38 pm China gives bankers red star treatmentParty adds new kind of proletarian icon to the ranks of heroes of labour in run-up to celebrations of 60 years of the People’s RepublicSource: Financial Times - US homepage | 24 Sep 2009 | 2:36 pm New Oil ETF Starts Trading on NYSE: AudioSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 24 Sep 2009 | 2:32 pm Sonic Solutions Cut to ``Sell’’ at Kaufman Brothers: AudioSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 24 Sep 2009 | 2:30 pm 52-Week High ClubDr. Reddy’s Laboratories (NYSE: RDY) hit a yearly high of $19.32 today, building on momentum initiated yesterday when it was reporeted that the company had received approval from regulators to distribute its high blood pressure drug in the UK. Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT) hit a yearly high of $27.95 after a wave of analyst upgrades. OSG [...][[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 24 Sep 2009 | 2:16 pm RIM (RIMM) Crushed By Bad Earnings, Shares Off 10%Shares of RIM (RIMM), maker of the Blackberry, closed the regular session at $83.06 immediately after announcing earnings. Revenue for the second quarter of fiscal 2010 was $3.53 billion, up 37% from $2.58 billion in the same quarter of last year. The revenue breakdown for the quarter was approximately 81% for devices, 14% for service, 2% [...][[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 24 Sep 2009 | 2:15 pm Paper Manufacturers File Trade Complaint Against China And IndonesiaBy Caitlin Kenney U.S. paper manufacturers and the United Steelworkers have accused China and Indonesia of dumping tons of coated paper into the United States. The complaint against the two governments is the latest in an escalating trade conflict between the United States and China, which began when President Obama approved tariffs for Chinese tires. It comes on the eve of the G-20 economic summit in Pittsburgh. From the WSJ: The companies need to prove to the Commerce Department that the governments of China and Indonesia provided subsidies to coated-paper producers, and that imports were sold in the U.S. at prices below the home-market price or the cost of production. The petitioners also need to show the U.S. International Trade Commission that the paper imports caused material injury to the U.S. market or threaten to. "We have very strong evidence on all the factors which are necessary to prove this case," Mr. Kaplan said. A spokesman for Indonesia's Trade Ministry declined to comment because the government has not yet viewed the antidumping petitions. A spokesman at the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said: "The rising trade protectionism is worrying. The U.S. should be aware that trade protectionism is a double-edged sword and will do no good to either side." The complaint over paper dumping differs in two major ways from the tariffs placed on Chinese tires. That case was brought solely by the tire workers, not manufacturers, and it involved special legislation that was part of China joining the WTO. The tire workers made their case by citing a specific provision which allows the U.S. to put tariffs on China if the country starts selling too much to the United States and hurting domestic producers. The paper case is a more traditional trade dispute. » E-Mail This » Add to Del.icio.us Source: NPR Blogs: Planet Money | 24 Sep 2009 | 2:09 pm Julian Robertson's Got That Excited/Scared Feeling
Erin Burnett: Ok, Mr. Roberston, but let's say we don't get out of it and it actually is Armageddon. What's it gonna be like around here? JR: 200 degrees in the sunlight, minus 200 in the shade, canyons of razor-sharp rock, unpredictable gravitational conditions, unexpected eruptions, things like that. EB: Okay, so the scariest environment imaginable. Thanks. That's all you gotta say, scariest environment imaginable.
Sponsored Topics: Erin Burnett - Rock music - Armageddon - Business - CNBC Source: Dealbreaker | 24 Sep 2009 | 1:36 pm Burda Says German Voters Not Sure on More Free Markets: AudioSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 24 Sep 2009 | 1:26 pm A look at economic developments around the globe (AP)AP - A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Thursday:Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 24 Sep 2009 | 1:11 pm Lehman Being Devoured From The Inside Out
Clearly time does not heal all wounds when it comes to former Lehman executives going after their old employer. If everybody from the Giants to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority to the guys who helped Lehman make it the success it is today wants a piece of the carcass, there's virtually nobody left other than the firm itself without a pending claim.
WSJ: European Lehman Administrators To Claim $150B Vs US Parent [WSJ]
Sponsored Topics: United States - New Jersey Devils - Abu Dhabi Investment Authority - Lehman Brothers - Jeffrey Vanderbeek Source: Dealbreaker | 24 Sep 2009 | 1:08 pm Four things you must know about the global puzzleThe UN and G20 jamborees leave the new world landscape a work in progress. But some contours stand in sharp relief. Philip Stephens looks at Chinese multilateralism; the Middle Eastern challenge to US power; Obama’s effort to frame new rules for the global game; and Europe’s place on the marginsSource: Financial Times - US homepage | 24 Sep 2009 | 1:03 pm It's Party Time At The Dias-Griffin Residence
Sponsored Topics: Hedge fund - Business - Merrill Lynch - Emerging markets - Private equity Source: Dealbreaker | 24 Sep 2009 | 12:03 pm Shame on You, Best Buy!
Here at Business Pundit, we read a number of stories about companies acting nasty. For example, credit card companies canceling accounts without prior notice. Or broadband companies slowing customer connections when they use more bandwidth than the company wants. The business world can be a mean place–especially when it comes to consumers. That’s why we’ve decided to start a new series called “Shame on You!” Every time a company does something sneaky, we want as many people as possible to know about it. We hope, with your help, that we can make it harder for companies to get away with deviant practices. If you’ve had a company scam you, take your money, or cheat you in some other way, please write to us through this contact form. Tell us your story. If appropriate, we will publish it on our site anonymously, bringing it to the attention of thousands of readers.
1) This isn’t the first time Best Buy has acted sleazy around customers. In 2004, the state of Ohio sued the company for selling used products as new. In 2007, it was accused of bait-and-switch tactics by Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal. More recently, there’s word of Microsoft training Best Buy employees to discredit the Linux operating system. 2) Best Buy knows about this. There have been many complaints on Best Buy’s official forum. 1) Offer the service, but don’t shove it down people’s throats. It is not necessary. 2) Be clear about what exactly you’re doing. Give the details. Don’t say you’re doing something, then let customers be surprised when they find that you haven’t done what they thought you promised. If you feel scammed by Best Buy–or you have a good defense for their practices–please comment below. Do you have a Shame on You! story to share? Email us here, and we’ll consider it for publication.
Source: Business Pundit | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:54 am The mortgage-modification scamDubious mortgage-modification firms like 21st Century Legal Services help homeowners renegotiate their mortgages, but only in exchange for big upfront fees. Steve Henn reports on how these companies rip off desperate homeowners, then disappear.Source: Marketplace | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:46 am Where are Fannie, Freddie after bailoutNYU Professor Lawrence J. White talks with Kai Ryssdal about the bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, why the government plunged so much money into them, and how it can unwind from the mortgage giants.Source: Marketplace | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:46 am Reform won't change Wall Street payLawmakers may try to regulate Wall Street compensation, but commentator Andy Kessler says no amount of meddling is going to fix the pay scales.Source: Marketplace | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:40 am Goldman Sachs in tough spot over payGoldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein recently denounced huge Wall Street bonuses. But there are reports the bank's own bonus pool has ballooned to near record levels this year. Amy Scott reports.Source: Marketplace | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:40 am Retail holiday sales may suffer, but...Retail analysts say stores could suffer the worst holiday sales in decades this year. But things may not be as bad as they look. Joel Rose reports.Source: Marketplace | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:40 am Plenty of banks are still too big to failMany banks remain too big to fail, and some are even bigger than they were before. Jeremy Hobson reports.Source: Marketplace | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:40 am The G-20's global economic planSteven Dunaway, fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, talks with Kai Ryssdal about the G-20's plans to rebalance global economic growth, and what happens if nothing is done.Source: Marketplace | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:40 am Down The Rabbit Hole Of EOBBy Caitlin Kenney Listener Maile A. sends a great article from the Health Affairs Journal about a medical student's battle with her insurance company. Adventures In (Health-Insurance-Claim) Wonderland: I found an EOB (explanation of benefits) statement from the insurance company in my mailbox in the foyer of my apartment building. Its contents left me half-shrieking and half-wailing in outrage. As I shook the envelope with its rustling plastic window in one hand, holding the horror of the EOB in the other, all thoughts of anyone being nearby vanished. I ignored the sidelong stares and raised eyebrows of my neighbors to focus on the neatly itemized bill for my fractures: nearly $6,000. My estimated share? Almost all of it. As the world began to spin, I couldn't help but wonder, "If I swoon in the lobby and hit my head, will insurance cover that ER visit?" Then my eyes drifted to the actual description of charges. Surgery? Why was I being billed for a nearly $2,000 "surgical procedure," not once (and at a nonreferral penalty amount), but twice (denied the second time)? We'll answer your questions on EOBs and other strange medical billing issues on an upcoming podcast. » E-Mail This » Add to Del.icio.us
Source: NPR Blogs: Planet Money | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:33 am Slok Sees Another Wave of U.S. Home Foreclosures: AudioSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:07 am Katzive Sees Weak Currencies for U.K. and U.S.: AudioSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 24 Sep 2009 | 11:05 am FTSE in sharp decline (AFP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:51 am FTSE in sharp decline (AFP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:51 am Malpass Says U.S. Is Harmed by Weak Dollar Policy: AudioSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:44 am Fusioniq's Ritholtz Likes Dell, Disney, Arch Coal: AudioSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:40 am Laidi Says Euro Won't Rise Above $1.49 for Now: AudioSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:38 am Presented By:Source: Dealbreaker | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:38 am Michael Moore: FYI, Jesus Would Not Be Down With The Ponzi Scheme That Is Capitalism
You've said you started filming "Capitalism: A Love story" a year and a half ago. Did the film change after Lehman went bankrupt and the stock market crashed?
Earlier: Michael Moore: Capitalism Is A Ponzi Scheme
Sponsored Topics: Michael Moore - Capitalism - Jesus - Economics - Hank Paulson Source: Dealbreaker | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:38 am Ballard Sees Treasury Yield Near 3.5% by End of Year: AudioSource: Bloomberg - All Podcasts | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:37 am The White House Has Heard Just About Enough From Benmosche
Your reply Mr. Benmosche? In as much detail as possible please.
Sponsored Topics: United States - Austan Goolsbee - Washington DC - White House - Washington Source: Dealbreaker | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:34 am Children’s & Infant Tylenol Recalled for Containing Pneumonia Bacteria
Johnson & Johnson has issued a recall on 21 lots of children’s Tylenol that could be contaminated with pneumonia-causing B. cepacia bacteria. AboutLawsuits has the scoop: The Tylenol recall affects certain batches Children’s Tylenol Suspension, Infant Tylenol Suspension, Children’s Tylenol Plus Cough & Runny Nose, Children’s Tylenol Plus Cold/ Allergy and Infant Tylenol Drops and other infant and children’s products of various flavors and sizes. B. Cepacia is a type of bacteria and known human pathogen that can cause pneumonia in individuals with compromised immune systems or who suffer from lung diseases such as pulmonary disease, cystic fibrosis or chronic granulomatous disease. McNeil’s letter to healthcare professionals said that the bacteria were detected in raw ingredients used to manufacture its children’s Tylenol products. There have been no injuries or illnesses reported in connection to the contaminated medicine. McNeil has said the recall is precautionary, and they have not found actual bacteria in finished Tylenol products. Parents and caregivers who believe they have a recalled product can contact the McNeil Customer Care Center at 1-800-962-5357 for a coupon for a new bottle. Here’s the full list of recalled products.
Source: Business Pundit | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:14 am Ed Sec'y Duncan going to Oct. 2 Olympics meeting (AP)AP - Education Secretary Arne Duncan will travel to Denmark next week to support his hometown of Chicago's Olympic bid.Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 24 Sep 2009 | 10:10 am Existing Home Sales Dip Unexpectedly
Still on the market in Washington. (Seven_Null7/Planet Money Flickr pool) By Caitlin Kenney Existing home-sales fell in August after making strong gains in the summer months. The National Association of Realtors says sales fell 2.7 percent last month to a 5.10 annual rate. Economists had expected home sales to rise to 5.35 million From NAR economist Lawrence Yun: Home sales retrenched from a very strong improvement in July but continue to be much higher than before the stimulus. The first-time buyer tax credit is having the intended impact of bringing buyers into the market, allowing them to take advantage of very favorable affordability conditions. Some of the give-back in closed sales appears to result from rising numbers of contracts entering the system, with some fallouts and a backlog contributing to a longer closing process, but the decline demonstrates we can't take a housing rebound for granted. First-time buyers purchased 30 percent of homes in August. The tax credit for this group is set to expire on November 30, but realtors and some economists are pushing Congress to extend it. Ian Shepherdson of High Frequency Economics writes: The NAR says closings are being delayed by low appraisals and slow mortgage underwriting but these are hardly new stories so they likely don't explain the sudden sales dip. Could just be noise; we await the next pending sales index with some trepidation. » E-Mail This » Add to Del.icio.us Source: NPR Blogs: Planet Money | 24 Sep 2009 | 9:47 am Today’s Best Market Rumors (NOK)(PALM)(AAPL)(MHP)(CBS)Strauss Zelnick, former record exec, and former WSJ publisher Gordon Crovitz will buy BusinessWeek, (MHP) which was yesterday rumored to be closing. (BW) Nokia (NOK) will buy travel social network Dopplr for $20 million. (TechCrunch) CBS (CBS) is not a bankruptcy candidate. (SAI) A Financial Accounting Standards Board ruling will help Apple (AAPL) earnings, but then again, it won’t. [...][[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Source: 24/7 Wall St. | 24 Sep 2009 | 9:43 am Economic Growth Slows In U.S. Cities. Plus, Fewer Claims For Unemployment.
Real GDP measures the size of an economy adjusted for price changes and inflation (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis) By Caitlin Kenney The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis says that 60 percent of metropolitan areas saw economic growth slow down or reverse in 2008. Real GDP growth slowed in 200 of the 366 metropolitan areas the BEA studies. That growth fell from 2.0 percent in 2007 to 0.8 percent in 2008. New claims for unemployment benefits fell for the third week in a row, the Department of Labor reports. New claims fell by 21,000 to 530,000 last week. The four week moving age also fell by 11,000. Meantime, the number of people claiming Emergency Unemployment Compensation increased by 82,364 for the week ending Sept 5., demonstrating that people remain out of work for longer periods of time. The government is spending its fiscal stimulus dollars more quickly than expected. Just $1 billion of the $49 billion set aside for states and localities remains. The majority of the money spent so far has focused on extra Medicaid and education funding. » E-Mail This » Add to Del.icio.us Source: NPR Blogs: Planet Money | 24 Sep 2009 | 8:41 am European markets drop before G20 (AFP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 24 Sep 2009 | 6:20 am Nintendo Slashes Wii Price 20%, Following PS3 and Xbox 360’s Leads
Inspired by slumping sales, Nintendo has slashed the price of its Wii by 20% in the US. PCWorld reports: As expected, Nintendo has dropped the Wii’s price in both the US and Japan, with European details pending. The cut brings the Wii in line with Microsoft’s $200 entry-level Xbox 360 Arcade in the US, and about $220 (¥20,000) in Japan. The new pricing takes effect on Sunday, September 27th. Both Sony and Microsoft recently slashed the prices of their respective high-end video game consoles by $100 (See “Sony Reveals PS3 Slim, Slashes PS3 Price to $300″ and “Microsoft Pronounces Xbox 360 Price Cut Official”). In the US, Sony’s slim-line PS3 goes for $300, and Microsoft sells a rough and ready version of the Xbox 360 for $200, alongside its higher-spec’d “Elite” model for $300. Microsoft’s also selling its discontinued Xbox 360 Pro for $250 and running a $50 rebate promotion on the Xbox 360 Elite through October 5th. While the US video game industry slumped from March on this year, analysts have predicted it’ll recover as early as this month, possibly breaking even or returning to year-over-year sales increases. After the price drop mania subsides, it’ll depend primarily on consumer enthusiasm for big-leaguers like Halo 3: ODST (Xbox 360), Uncharted 2 (PlayStation 3), and New Super Mario Bros (Wii). Just in time for the holiday season…
Source: Business Pundit | 24 Sep 2009 | 6:00 am Exhilarating or Scary?
Source: Business Pundit | 24 Sep 2009 | 5:54 am
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