Saturday, December 31, 2011

Fed-up consumers planning for 'Bank Transfer Day'

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, On Saturday November 5, 2011, 9:14 pm EDT

NEW YORK (AP) -- It's moving day for bank customers.

A grassroots movement that sprang to life last month is urging bank customers to close their accounts in favor of credit unions by Saturday.

The spirit behind "Bank Transfer Day" caught fire with the Occupy Wall Street protests around the country and had more than 79,000 supporters on its Facebook page as of Friday. The movement has already helped beat back Bank of America's plan to start charging a $5 debit card fee.

It's not clear to what extent the banking industry's about-face on debit card fees will extinguish the anger driving the movement. But many supporters say their actions are about far more than any single complaint.

"It's too little, too late," said Kristen Christian, the 27-year-old Los Angeles small business owner who started "Bank Transfer Day." She already opened accounts at two credit unions in preparation for cutting ties with Bank of America this weekend.

"Consumers are waking up and seeing that they have options," she said.

Even with its public support, however, it's not likely that any account closings that take place on Saturday will make a big dent with industry titans such as Chase, which is the largest bank in the country with some 26.5 million checking accounts.

But the call to action shows just how incensed consumers were at the prospect of a debit card fee at a time of so much economic uncertainty. Even those who were appeased by the industry's reversal may have tapped into a new sense of empowerment.

That's the case for Dan Blakemore, a Bank of America customer for the past 10 years. He said he no longer plans to close his checking account now that the debit fee has been scrapped. But he'll be on the lookout for any other changes that might hit his wallet.

"I'm pretty confident they're going to find some way to get that extra money," said Blakemore, a 28-year-old who works for a nonprofit fundraiser in New York City. "I'll just have to see if it offends my sensibility enough to close the account."

Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Wells Fargo & Co. are keeping mum on whether they've seen an uptick in account closures in recent weeks. But credit unions and small community banks have been basking in the spotlight and issuing press releases highlighting what they say are superior interest rates and more intimate service, along with tips on how consumers can transfer accounts. They haven't been shy about the surge in new business they're enjoying either.

Navy Federal Credit Union, the largest credit union in the country, says new account openings in September and October were up 38 percent from a year ago. National Capital Bank, a two-branch community bank in Washington, D.C., says the vast majority of its new account openings in recent weeks have been by fed up Bank of America customers.

"The debit fee was definitely a driver," said Noah Wilcox, president of Grand Rapids State Bank in Minnesota, which is also enjoying a lift in account openings.

Because credit unions and community banks vary so greatly in size, however, it's hard to gauge the total scope of the defections they're reporting. For example, the Lower East Side People's Federal Credit Union in New York City says it's enjoying more than 55 new account openings a week. That's a big jump from its average of about 10 new accounts per week, but insignificant when weighed against the portfolios of the nation's largest banks.

Big banks have also learned that customer grumblings don't always translate into action. That's particularly true for those who have multiple accounts, direct deposit and automatic bill pay; many decide that switching just isn't worth the hassle.

"People will do a lot of complaining before they actually uproot and move," notes Mark Schwanhausser, a banking analyst with Javelin Strategy & Research.

The recent firestorm over debit card fees was "in a class of its own" because customers saw it as a charge for accessing their own money, he said.

The timing of Bank of America's fee announcement was unfortunate on multiple levels as well. In addition to the anxiety many are feeling amid high unemployment and stagnant wages, the news broke just as the Occupy Wall Street protests were capturing the national spotlight.

And big banks have been a key target for Occupy Wall Street, which has tapped into the lingering resentment many harbor over the role of banks in the financial meltdown of 2008.

Last month, two dozen Occupy Wall Street protestors were arrested when they entered a Citibank branch in New York City and refused to leave. Protestors have also banged drums and demonstrated outside bank branches in other cities; PNC Bank twice closed branches in downtown Pittsburgh last week after protestors entered.

But those are the extremes. Schwanhausser of Javelin said many customers will likely be placated by the industry's white flag on debit card fees.

"People are people going to look at that Nov. 5 date and say `We made our point'," Schwanhausser said

The banking industry may feel the same way; representatives for Bank of America, Chase, Citi and Wells Fargo indicate they haven't done anything to prepare branch employees for a surge in account closings this weekend. Then again, many of the closures may have already taken place.

Molly Katchpole, a 22-year-old nanny in Washington, D.C., who started an online petition urging Bank of America to drop its debit card fee, says the bank's about-face won't win her back.

"The damage is done," said Katchpole, who has since joined a credit union in Washington, D.C.

Candice Choi can be reached at www.twitter.com/candicechoi

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/finance/news/rss/story/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/finance/news/topfinstories/*http%3A//biz.yahoo.com/ap/111105/us_bank_transfer_day.html

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4 Ways Hollywood Can Save the Local Multiplex

Hollywood has a problem.

Raise your hand if you watched fewer movies at the theater this year than you did in 2010. Heading toward the final few days at the box office, 2011 is shaping up to be a theatrical dud. Barring a last-minute War Horse rush, this will be the first time that the industry posts back-to-back years of declining receipts in more than two decades.

Here's another alarming statistic: 2011 will be the first year since 1995 that domestic theaters fail to ring up 1.3 billion movie tickets.

Is it the quality of the movies or the quantity of bills in consumer wallets during these economically challenging times? What if this is a more problematic -- permanent -- trend? What if the waning attention span of new generations spoiled by social networking and the popularity of home-based streaming are eating into the market?

Before the situation gets any worse, let's go over a few things that the industry can do to beef up interest in celluloid.

1. Charge less for admissions

Inflation is a part of life at the multiplex. Exhibitors inch their ticket prices higher every passing year. You have to go all the way back to 1993 -- a whopping 18 years -- to find the last time that the average ticket price actually declined over the previous year.

That's not right.

Sure, it makes sense on the surface. Minimum wages inch higher. Film production costs escalate. Inflation doesn't take a holiday. However, it doesn't make sense for actual ticket prices to increase during economic lulls.

The annual increase hasn't been much in 2011. The average price for a screening is $7.96, just ahead of last year's $7.89 ransom. However, just five years ago the average was at a more reasonable $6.55 per ticket.

The growing popularity of premium cinema is playing a part in this metric. Folks have been willing to pay a little more for IMAX (IMAX) and RealD (RLD) 3-D screenings over traditional showings. However, as attendance is off by 5% this year -- after stumbling nearly 6% in 2010 -- maybe some price breaks are in order.

Chains have been promoting earlier matinees at lower price points, but maybe an entire week or month of rollback pricing is necessary to get folks who have sworn off pricey outings to rediscover the joys of cinema on the big screen.

Instituting lower prices as movies age is another idea, though it probably wouldn't work for exhibitors that take a larger share of box office receipts later in a new release's run. However, studios may need to revisit that relationship, because something needs to give.

2. Encourage repeat viewings

Multiplex operators have spent the past few years upgrading their projection systems. The shift to digital platforms isn't just about crisper images-- movie studios save a bundle by not having to ship out pricey reels.

The other thing digital projection systems allow is easier updates.

Hollywood and exhibitors should cash in on the ability to differentiate a product as it ages. The same die-hard fans who just have to see a movie the week it comes out may also be the same ones to come back if a blooper reel is added two weeks later. It may be too ambitious to expect an alternate director's cut during the theatrical screening process, but tacking on deleted scenes or a "making of" clip at the end may encourage repeat viewings.

Yes, padding a film will make it longer, but it's not as if theaters are filling up for most movies after the first week or two. If anything, the extras can be added during the slower weekday screenings.

3. Play up the social

Nothing can sink a bad movie faster than ho-hum word of mouth. Twitter and Facebook -- and even film critic aggregator Rotten Tomatoes -- can kill a theatrical release quicker than ever these days.

Theater owners need to embrace the technology that may very well be emptying theaters. Hollywood can either embrace Web 2.0 or let it defeat celluloid the way it has for two years running.

Studios already use social media to promote their movies, but exhibitors have been slow to catch on. If Foursquare or Facebook show friends "checking in" near a movie theater for something else, why can't it hit them all with a sponsored movie suggestion? Encourage more people to come along by offering group discounts on tickets or perhaps concessions during these social media promotions.

Movie studios with active Twitter feeds or Facebook fan pages can also do a better job of encouraging friends to head out to the local multiplex for a specific showing.

4. Differentiate the experience

Folks have different expectations from theatrical outings. Couples want quiet screenings without rowdy teens. Parents with young children don't want to risk offending nearby patrons when their kids act up. Older patrons may have a problem with a foreign film whose subtitles are too small or a conventional movie that may not be loud enough.

Theater chains have spent the past few years packing as many screens as they can in a venue in order to show as many movies as possible, but they're behind the curve in differentiating the actual screenings.

Some theaters are already offering special showings. AMC offers select screenings for families with autistic children on weekend mornings that have the lights turned up and the sound turned down. No one gives parents a stern look when autistic kids act up during these Sensory Friendly Film viewings.

How about the other end of the spectrum? Why aren't there some late-night screenings actively patrolled for scene-making revelers? Wouldn't you go see more movies if you were assured that loud and rowdy patrons would be whisked away at select screenings?

I haven't delved into concessions, but why can't some screenings feature updated snacks and premium food offerings to encourage folks to pay up for a different experience? Even if it means outsourcing operations to have a popular barista joint beef up coffee drinks by night and a hot local pizzeria spruce up pie offerings by day, it's all about getting folks to rally around select screenings -- and then collecting their information to make sure that they are alerted as to when such screenings will happen again.

Fade to black

Let's move ahead a couple of years.

I'm at a movie theater, mowing down some tasty boneless wings that Buffalo Wild Wings provides to the exhibitor every Thursday night. I'm sitting in the row reserved for Facebook meet-ups, along with some of my friends who just happened to be in the area. I'm watching a screening made exclusively for repeat viewers of a pretty loopy Chris Nolan flick. It's OK if someone blurts out the ending, since we've all seen it before.

Then again, we haven't seen this particular version. Folks who bought tickets to previous screenings were given unique ticket codes that they could use to vote online for changes that could be made to the story. We're about to see the alternate version -- or at least the one that the majority in this particular theater wanted.

Everybody wins. The studio and exhibitor get me twice. I get to enjoy a movie again on an entirely different level. This scenario may be far-fetched, but it may be what has to happen if the local exhibitor is still around at that point.

Longtime Motley Fool contributor Rick Munarriz does not own shares in any of the stocks in this article. The Motley Fool owns shares of Buffalo Wild Wings. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Buffalo Wild Wings and IMAX.

Source: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2011/12/28/4-ways-hollywood-can-save-the-local-multiplex/

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Dollar rises as global stock markets plunge (AP)

WASHINGTON ? The dollar rose strongly against the euro and other major currencies Thursday as a selling spree in global stock markets increased demand for lower-risk investments.

Asian and European markets plunged Thursday as traders absorbed the Federal Reserve's bleak assessment of the U.S. economy. The Fed had said that the U.S. economy is vulnerable to major risks, including from unstable financial markets.

Bad economic news from Asia and Europe also pushed people to sell riskier investments that typically gain value during periods of growth. HSBC's index of Chinese manufacturing showed that factories there have slowed in September.

Markets in China and India closed down more than 4 percent as traders questioned whether emerging economies will remain strong if developed nations enter recession. Major indexes in Germany and France lost 5 percent on spreading fears about an economic slowdown caused by the sovereign debt crisis there.

U.S. shares followed, with indexes sliding more than 3 percent by midmorning.

Money flooded into currencies that are seen as safe, stable bets ? the dollar, Japanese yen and Swiss franc.

At 1:10 p.m. Eastern time, the euro was worth $1.3481, down from $1.3667 late Wednesday. The British pound fell to $1.5368 from $1.5578. The dollar rose to 0.9073 Swiss franc from 0.8954 franc. But it slipped to 76.37 yen from 76.62 yen.

Traders dumped commodities such as oil and metals, fearing demand will decrease as the global economy slows. Oil fell more than 6 percent, silver lost nearly 9 percent.

That hurt currencies of nations that produce those commodities. The dollar rose to 1.0286 Canadian dollar from 1.0035 on Wednesday. It rose against the Norwegian krone and Swedish krona as well.

The Australian dollar was worth 97.76 cents, down from $1.0125. The New Zealand dollar fell to 78.06 cents from 80.54.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110922/ap_on_bi_ge/us_dollar

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Money manager pays $2.5M to settle fraud case (AP)

WASHINGTON ? A former California investment executive is paying $2.5 million to settle federal charges that he hid a computer error that resulted in financial losses for clients. He will also be banned from the securities industry for life.

The Securities and Exchange Commission says Barr M. Rosenberg, the co-founder and former chairman of AXA Rosenberg, learned of the coding error in June 2009. But the SEC says he told others to keep it quiet and not fix it immediately The error was not disclosed to clients until April 2010, after they lost $217 million.

The investment firm is also paying $242 million to settle civil fraud charges.

AXA Rosenberg, based in Orinda, Calif., is owned by French insurance company AXA SA.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110922/ap_on_bi_ge/us_sec_fraud_charges

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House prices will remain stagnant or fall in 2012, economists warn

?With the UK economy struggling to gain momentum, labour market conditions are likely to remain challenging in 2012, deterring buyers from entering the housing market,? said Robert Gardner, the chief economist at Nationwide, one of the country?s biggest mortgage firms.

?The housing market in 2012 looks likely to be characterised by low levels of activity once again, with prices moving sideways or modestly lower over the course of the year.?

The continuing turmoil in the euro means that few experts are optimistic about prospects for shares, property and the wider economy in 2012. Interest rates are expected to remain at the record low level of 0.5 per cent throughout the year ? a blow to savers.

A BBC poll of 34 independent economists who provide forecasts for the Bank of England found that one fifth expect the eurozone to break up in the next year.

?Europe is going to face a deep recession in the first half of next year,? said Gerard Lyons, the chief economist at Standard Chartered bank.

?It?s in terrible shape. Fundamentals are not good, policy stance is terrible and confidence has been shot to pieces.?

Yesterday, Jean-Claude Juncker, the prime minister of Luxembourg, who leads the group of euro-area finance ministers, admitted that economic growth in the euro region ?isn?t good? and that the world economy was growing only in some Asian and African countries.

� Executive pay and the lack of women on company boards need to be tackled next year to put right some of Britain?s ?key failings?, according to Simon Walker, the director general of the Institute of Directors.

He told business leaders in his New Year message that executive pay at some of the country?s biggest companies had ?got out of line?.

Source: http://telegraph.feedsportal.com/c/32726/f/568312/s/1b69075f/l/0L0Stelegraph0O0Cfinance0Ceconomics0Chouseprices0C89857820CHouse0Eprices0Ewill0Eremain0Estagnant0Eor0Efall0Ein0E20A120Eeconomists0Ewarn0Bhtml/story01.htm

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Ex-HP CEO's sex scandal letter emerges

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The lurid, accusatory letter that led to last year's downfall of Mark Hurd as Hewlett-Packard's CEO has been made public.

The Delaware Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the letter be released, despite Hurd's wishes. The court did not actually release the letter, but it was obtained by several news agencies.

The eight-page account, written in June 2010 by celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred, depicts in detail a story of Hurd repeatedly soliciting sex from Jodie Fisher, a greeter at HP (HPQ, Fortune 500) events and former reality TV star.

The letter claims that over the course of two years, Hurd pushed Fisher to meet him for dinner, give him hugs, sleep in his room and have sex with him, despite her continuous rejections of his advances.

Fisher said in a statement last year that the letter contained "many inaccuracies," and she noted that she believed Hurd's behavior was not "detrimental to HP."

Nevertheless, the scandal eventually led to Hurd's ouster from HP. Hurd privately settled Fisher's charges, which alleged sexual harassment. Though the company's board said its own investigation found no evidence of sexual harassment, it noted that Hurd inappropriately used company funds to take Fisher to dinner at non-HP events. Hurd is now president of Oracle (ORCL, Fortune 500).

A spokesman for Mark Hurd was not immediately available for comment.

According to the letter, events began to unfold in August 2007, when Hurd's program manager Caprice Fimbres suggested that a reality star from the NBC show "Age of Love" be made host of several executive events that Hurd was to attend. Hurd, who is married, flew from Palo Alto to Santa Monica, Calif., to meet Fisher personally, though the 45-minute conversation was primarily personal in nature, according to the letter.

The two met again the following month in what "felt more like a date," Fisher recalled, and she was hired in October to attend an event at the Atlanta Ritz Carlton. Following the event, the letter says Hurd and Fisher had dinner together, and Hurd asked Fisher to come to his room to see some documents about Madame Wu Yi, the Chinese Vice-Premier, whom Hurd was to meet the next day.

Hurd fondled Fisher and asked her to stay the night, a proposition which she rejected. A "clearly miffed" Hurd said he was never rejected, and he demanded at least a hug.

Fisher and Hurd continued to meet for dinner -- charged to HP -- before or after events, according to the letter. It says Hurd continued to woo her, including by telling her about the various women he has slept with. He also noted that many women were "crazy about him," including singer Sheryl Crow.

Using his status and wealth to woo Fisher, the letter accuses Hurd of bullying her into an unwanted relationship. Hurd often called Fisher in her room to talk about personal and business matters -- including revealing that HP was about to purchase services giant EDS, which the company eventually did buy in May 2008 for nearly $14 billion.

If true, it's possible that Hurd illegally leaked insider information. The letter accuses Hurd of instructing Fisher not to disclose anything about the deal "as it would be considered insider trading" if Fisher bought stock in EDS as a result.

In one noteworthy advance that took place in July 2009, the letter says Hurd urged Fisher to "go away with him," and he offered her "anything she needed." Hurd told her that he believed he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her, but "would have to see how the chemistry in bed was."

Fisher declined the sex, the money and the trip.

Hurd allegedly made one last attempt to win Fisher over. In October 2009, in Boise, Idaho, Hurd "grabbed and kissed" her. Fisher said she was feeling ill and left for her room. Her contract was not renewed, and she never saw or heard from Hurd again.

The letter was supposed to remain confidential as part of Hurd's settlement with Fisher. But Ernesto Espinoza, an HP shareholder, sued to make the letter public. He argued that stockholders should be able to determine for themselves whether Hurd's $12 million severance package was appropriate, given that the allegations of wrongdoing may have voided his right to severance.

Hurd fought to keep the letter private, but the Delaware Supreme Court ruled that the "mildly embarrassing" letter was not subject to the same privacy laws that governed trade secrets.�To top of page

First Published: December 30, 2011: 9:25 AM ET

Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/money_topstories/~3/08Lo7ljRY2U/index.htm

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Gold lower for second straight session

Published: Dec. 13, 2011 at 5:59 PM

NEW YORK, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- Gold prices ended trading lower on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange Tuesday, dropping $34.20 to $1,634 a troy in ounce.

Silver gave up 18 cents and closed at $30.82 an ounce.

The euro fell to $1.3028 from Monday's $1.3188. Against the yen, the dollar rose to 78.01 yen from Monday's 77.93 yen.

The dollar was broadly stronger in Asia and Europe.

The British pound was $1.5482 from Monday's $1.5583. Against the Hong Kong dollar, the U.S. standard was 7.7784 HKD from 7.7835 HKD.

The dollar was $1.0341 against the Canadian dollar from $1.0269 Canadian. The Australian dollar was $1.0011 from $1.0073.

Source: http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/12/13/Gold-lower-for-second-straight-session/UPI-21291323817191/

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Stocks slide on Fed entrenchment

Published: Dec. 13, 2011 at 4:55 PM

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NEW YORK, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- Stocks on Wall Street slid Tuesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve said it would keep its monetary policies intact for another month.

The Fed said it would keep its federal fund rate at zero to 0.25 percent and maintain the size of its securities portfolio by purchasing Treasury notes as its holdings mature. The Fed also said it would continue trading in short-term notes for long-term, a move meant to convince businesses that rates for long-term borrowing would remain low.

An up and down day on Wall Street ended in a selling mood, as afternoon gains faded fast when the Fed's position was announced.

By close of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 66.45 points, or 0.55 percent, to 11,954.94. The Standard & Poor's 500 index shed 10.74 points, or 0.87 percent, to 1,225.73. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index gave up 32.99 points, or 1.26 percent, to 2,579.27.

On the New York Stock Exchange, 868 stocks advanced and 2,181 declined on a volume of 3.8 billion shares traded.

The benchmark 10-year treasury note rose 14/32 to yield 1.967 percent.

The euro fell to $1.3028 from Monday's $1.3188. Against the yen, the dollar rose to 78.01 yen from Monday's 77.93 yen.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index shed 1.17 percent, 101.01points, to 8,552.81.

In London, the FTSE 100 index added 1.15 percent, 62.29, to 5,490.15.

Source: http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/12/13/Stocks-slide-on-Fed-entrenchment/UPI-74121323792825/

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Friday, December 30, 2011

Music Video Moves Bank of America on Stalled Mortgage Loan

Music Video Moves Bank of America on Stalled Mortgage Loan It might not be the right method for everyone seeking a home loan -- it requires both a good credit score (798) and some singing and guitar-playing skills -- but it worked for one Georgia couple. Ken and Meredith Williams' humorous music video, the centerpiece of a no-holds-barred social media campaign waged against Bank of America (BAC), convinced the bank to finally close on the couple's mortgage -- despite the lyric, born of frustration with a 72-day waiting period, "Don't let anybody tell you you're too big to fail/Cause you belong in jail."

As AOL Real Estate's Teke Wiggin reports, Bank of America's social media team took note. Not only did the bank finally close on the $203,000 loan on Dec. 16 -- seven weeks after the Oct. 31 date given originally by a senior mortgage officer -- it also agreed to pay the $50-a-day late fees the couple owed to the seller. "CLOSED THE LOAN," read a triumphant entry in the Williams' blog, closeourloan.wordpress.com. "KEYS IN HAND. PER DIEM FEES PAID FOR BY BANK OF AMERICA."

And a home for the couple's garden gnome at last.

Watch the Williams' successful appeal below, and read more of the story at AOL Real Estate.

Source: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2011/12/28/music-video-moves-bank-of-america-on-stalled-mortgage-loan/

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A look at economic developments around the globe (AP)

A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Thursday:

___

FRANKFURT, Germany ? A raft of downbeat indicators stoked fears that Europe is on the edge of recession as it grapples with a crippling debt crisis.

The European Commission's index of consumer optimism from the European Commission fell to a two-year low of minus 18.5 in September in the 17 countries that use the euro. Meanwhile industrial orders ? key for Europe's manufacturing driven economy ? slid 2.1 percent in July, according to Eurostat, the EU's statistics office.

___

LONDON ? Mounting evidence that the world economy is slowing down sharply sent global stock markets spiraling down as investors brushed off the U.S. Federal Reserve's efforts to spur growth and focused instead on the central bank's gloomy outlook.

France's CAC-40 was down a hefty 5.3 percent while Germany's DAX slid 5 percent. The FTSE index of Britain's leading shares ended down 4.7 percent.

___

TOKYO ? In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped 2.1 percent. South Korea's Kospi slid 2.9 percent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was 2.6 percent down.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng saw the biggest fall, diving over 900 points, or 4.9 percent.

In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite Index closed down 2.8 percent.

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FRANKFURT, Germany ? The departing chief economist of the European Central Bank warned that heavy government debts threatened the existence of the euro currency, and urged the EU to take much tougher steps to force overspending governments back into line.

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ATHENS, Greece ? Austerity-weary Greeks lashed out against more tax hikes and pension cuts with a new round of strikes, with public transport workers, taxi drivers, teachers and air traffic controllers walking off the job.

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MADRID ? Spain's Parliament restored a deficit-reducing wealth tax in its final session before dissolving to make way for an election that opposition conservatives are favored to win.

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TAIPEI, Taiwan ? Taiwan and Japan signed an arrangement to bolster mutual investment despite their lack of formal diplomatic ties.

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BRASILIA ? Brazil's government statistics agency says the unemployment rate in Latin America's biggest economy was 6 percent in August. That's unchanged from the previous month, but the lowest figure for a month of August since 2002.

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DUBLIN ? Ireland's economy has grown 1.6 percent in the second quarter, more than expected, and appears on course to exit a three-year recession.

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PARIS ? The top tier of luxury consumers curbed their spending on high-end clothes, accessories and jewelry in the first half of 2011, while regular consumers picked up the slack for the first time since the 2008 financial crisis, a study by American Express' consulting unit said.

___

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110922/ap_on_bi_ge/us_economy_countries_glance

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Toys Distribution infant rattles recalled

Published: Dec. 13, 2011 at 2:38 PM

WASHINGTON, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a voluntary recall of Toys Distribution Inc. rattles due to a choking hazard.

Toys Distribution of Los Angeles, Calif., imported the rattles from China. They were sold in Colorado and Texas from December 2009 through December 2010 for about $2.

About 50 sets of rattles are involved in the recall. The commission said the rattles can break into small pieces that pose a choking hazard. In addition, the handle of the rattles are small enough to become lodged in an infant's throat.

The rattles were sold in various colors and shapes, including a toy phone, animal, small buggy and sea horse.

They were sold in sets of five or eight rattles per box. "HANDBELL TOYS" is printed in the upper left corner of the package. "MADE IN CHINA" is printed on the bottom of the package.

One set has "JUNYI" printed on the front upper right corner of the package and "ITEM NO. 58083801" printed on the back lower corner on a white sticker. Another set has "XIN DA MEI" printed on the front upper right corner of the package and "ITEM NO. 308363" printed on the back lower corner on a white sticker, the commission said.

Consumers were advised to take the recalled rattles away from children and return them to the retailer for a full refund or replacement product.

Customers can call 323-266-8088 collect for more information.

Source: http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/12/13/Toys-Distribution-infant-rattles-recalled/UPI-61431323805130/

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Cummins Passes This Key Test

There's no foolproof way to know the future for Cummins (NYSE: CMI��) or any other company. However, certain clues may help you see potential stumbles before they happen -- and before your stock craters as a result.

A cloudy crystal ball
In this series, we use accounts receivable (AR) and days sales outstanding (DSO) to judge a company's current health and future prospects. It's an important step in separating the pretenders from the market's best stocks. Alone, AR -- the amount of money owed the company -- and DSO -- the number of days' worth of sales owed to the company -- don't tell you much. However, by considering the trends in AR and DSO, you can sometimes get a window onto the future.

Sometimes, problems with AR or DSO simply indicate a change in the business (like an acquisition), or lax collections. However, AR that grows more quickly than revenue, or ballooning DSO, can also suggest a desperate company that's trying to boost sales by giving its customers overly generous payment terms. Alternately, it can indicate that the company sprinted to book a load of sales at the end of the quarter, like used-car dealers on the 29th of the month. (Sometimes, companies do both.)

Why might an upstanding firm like Cummins do this? For the same reason any other company might: to make the numbers. Investors don't like revenue shortfalls, and employees don't like reporting them to their superiors.

Is Cummins sending any potential warning signs? Take a look at the chart below, which plots revenue growth against AR growth, and DSO:

anImage

Source: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's. Data is current as of last fully reported fiscal quarter. FQ = fiscal quarter.

Source: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's. Data is current as of last fully reported fiscal quarter. FQ = fiscal quarter.

The standard way to calculate DSO uses average accounts receivable. I prefer to look at end-of-quarter (EOQ) receivables, but I've plotted both above.

Watching the trends
When that red line (AR growth) crosses above the green line (revenue growth), I know I need to consult the filings. Similarly, a spike in the blue bars (DSO) indicates a trend worth worrying about. As another reality check, it's reasonable to consider what a normal DSO figure might look like in this space.

Company

LFQ Revenue

DSO

�Cummins $4,641 52
Eaton (NYSE: ETN��) $4,090 57
Emerson Electric (NYSE: EMR��) $6,288 63
Capstone Turbine (Nasdaq: CPST��) $24 74

Source: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's. DSO calculated from average AR. Data is current as of last fully reported fiscal quarter. LFQ = last fiscal quarter. Dollar figures in millions.

Differences in business models can generate variations in DSO, so don't consider this the final word -- just a way to add some context to the numbers. But let's get back to our original question: Will Cummins miss its numbers in the next quarter or two?

I don't think so. AR and DSO look healthy. For the last fully reported fiscal quarter, Cummins's year-over-year revenue grew 44.7%, and its AR grew 35.4%. That looks OK. End-of-quarter DSO decreased 6.4% from the prior-year quarter. It was down 4.8% versus the prior quarter. Still, I'm no fortuneteller, and these are just numbers. Investors putting their money on the line always need to dig into the filings for the root causes and draw their own conclusions.

What now?
I use this kind of analysis to figure out which investments I need to watch more closely as I hunt the market's best returns. However, some investors actively seek out companies on the wrong side of AR trends in order to sell them short, profiting when they eventually fall. Which way would you play this one? Let us know in the comments below, or keep up with the stocks mentioned in this article by tracking them in our free watchlist service, My Watchlist.

Source: http://feeds.fool.com/~r/usmf/foolwatch/~3/1KxLhcbnW1k/cummins-passes-this-key-test.aspx

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Greek PM, opposition reach power-sharing deal

, On Sunday November 6, 2011, 6:48 pm EST

ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- Greece's embattled prime minister and main opposition leader agreed Sunday to form an interim government to ensure the country's new European debt deal, capping a week of political turmoil that saw Greece face a catastrophic default that threatened its euro membership and roiled international markets.

As part of the deal, Prime Minister George Papandreou agreed to step down halfway through his four-year term. He and conservative opposition head Antonis Samaras are to meet Monday to discuss who will become prime minister and the makeup of the Cabinet.

The new unity government's main task will be to pass the European rescue package, reached after marathon negotiations between European leaders barely a week ago -- a move considered crucial to shoring up the euro. The interim government will then lead the country into early elections, expected early next year.

Officials had been anxious to reach some form of agreement before a meeting of eurozone finance ministers in Brussels on Monday.

"Of course it's a breakthrough," government spokesman Elias Mossialos said. "It is a historical day for Greece, we will have a coalition government very soon, early next week. The prime minister and the leader of the opposition will discuss tomorrow the name of the new prime minister and the names of ministers."

Papandreou sparked the latest crisis by announcing last week that he was taking the hard-fought debt agreement to a referendum. That outraged European leaders, who said such a vote could raise the specter of Athens leaving the common currency -- setting off an unpredictable chain reaction that could drag down other European countries.

They also warned a vote would jeopardize the disbursement of a vital $11 billion (euro8 billion) installment of Greece's existing $152 billion (euro110 billion) bailout, which the country desperately needs to avoid the potential of a catastrophic default within weeks.

In the ensuing market turmoil, Italy -- which also faces severe financial difficulties, but is considered too big to bail out -- saw its borrowing costs spiral, sparking fears it could be dragged into the fray.

Papandreou withdrew the referendum plan Thursday in the wake of European anger and after it sparked a rebellion among his own Socialist lawmakers, many of whom called for him to resign. The turmoil also pushed the conservative opposition party to publicly declare it would back the debt agreement.

Any interim government that is formed with the support of both major parties will be almost guaranteed to push the European rescue package through parliament, even if it has to be approved by a reinforced majority of 180 of the legislature's 300 lawmakers.

The new European deal would give Greece an additional $179 billion (euro130 billion) in rescue loans and bank support. It would also see banks and private investors write off 50 percent of their Greek debt holdings, worth some $138 billion (euro100 billion). The goal is to reduce Greece's debts to the point where the country is able to handle its finances without relying on constant bailouts.

Greece's lawmakers must now approve the package, putting intense pressure on the country's leaders to swiftly end the political crisis so parliament can convene and put it to a vote.

A planned meeting with the leaders of all political parties in parliament, which was to take place Monday evening, was canceled after two leftist parties refused to attend, the president's office said.

Sunday's agreement came after a late-night meeting between Papandreou and Samaras called by President Karolos Papoulias at Papandreou's request to end a two-day deadlock. Direct talks had failed to get off the ground because Papandreou had said an agreement had to be reached on a new government before he stepped aside, while Samaras insisted Papandrepou resign before the start of negotiations and demanded quick elections.

An opposition conservative party official said Samaras' New Democracy party was "absolutely satisfied" with the outcome of the talks and that party officials were to hold meetings late Sunday night with Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos and his advisers to discuss how long it would take to finalize the new debt deal and when elections could be held.

"Our two targets, for Mr. Papandreou to resign and for elections to be held, have been met," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the process.

The Finance Ministry said a late-night meeting between Venizelos and opposition party members determined the "most suitable" date for elections was Feb. 19.

Two turbulent years after coming to power in a landslide election victory, Papandreou has seen his popularity plummet as his government has been forced to severely cut spending while hiking taxes to tackle a runaway deficit and debt that led Greece to become the first eurozone country to seek an international bailout.

Ireland and Portugal have since followed suit, but European leaders have been desperate to ensure other countries with larger economies are not also dragged down.

Associated Press writer Nicholas Paphitis in Athens contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/finance/news/rss/story/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/finance/news/topfinstories/*http%3A//biz.yahoo.com/ap/111106/eu_greece_financial_crisis.html

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Pending Home Sales Rose 7.3% in November

December 30, 2011, 4:04 AM EST

By Timothy R. Homan

Dec. 29 (Bloomberg) -- The number of Americans signing contracts to buy previously owned homes rose more than forecast in November as falling prices and low borrowing costs boosted demand.

The index of pending home sales increased 7.3 percent to the highest level since April 2010 after climbing 10.4 percent the prior month, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed today in Washington. Economists forecast a 1.5 percent gain, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey.

The industry that triggered the 18-month recession that ended in June 2009 is showing signs of stabilizing as construction picks up, builder confidence improves and the number of houses on the market declines. Nonetheless, another wave of foreclosures may weigh on real-estate values next year.

?It looks like buyers are becoming more confident and are attracted to record-low mortgage rates,? Aaron Smith, a senior economist at Moody?s Analytics Inc. in West Chester, Pennsylvania, said before the report. At the same time, he said, ?activity still looks depressed by historical standards.?

Estimates for pending home sales ranged from a drop of 3 percent to an increase of 11 percent, according to the median of 30 forecasts in the Bloomberg survey.

Pending home sales were up 6.9 percent from November 2010.

All four regions showed an increase in contract signings from a month earlier, led by a 14.9 percent surge in the West and an 8.1 percent jump in the Northeast. Pending sales climbed 4.3 percent in the South and 3.3 percent in the Midwest.

Housing Affordability

?Housing affordability conditions are at a record high and there is a pent-up demand from buyers who?ve been on the sidelines, but contract failures have been running unusually high,? NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement accompanying the release. ?Some of the increase in pending sales appears to be from buyers recommitting after an initial contract ran into problems, often with the mortgage.?

Today?s report showed an index level for pending home sales of 100.1 on a seasonally adjusted basis. A reading of 100 is consistent with the average level of contract activity in 2001 and coincides with ?historically healthy? home-buying traffic, according to the NAR.

Because they track contract signings, pending home sales are considered a leading indicator. Existing-home sales are tabulated when a contract closes, typically a month or two later.

Home Sales

Reports last week showed a pickup in demand for houses. Sales of previously owned homes, which make up about 94 percent of the market, rose 4 percent to a 4.42 million annual pace, the most since January, the National Association of Realtors said Dec. 21.

Purchases of new single-family properties advanced 1.6 percent to a 315,000 annual pace, a seven-month high, figures from the Commerce Department showed Dec. 23. The increase pushed the number of new homes on the market to a record low.

?As the stabilization process moves forward, we are seeing inventory levels continuing to ease in many of our markets, which is a prerequisite for a housing recovery,? Jeffrey Mezger, chief executive officer of Los Angeles-based KB Home, said in a Dec. 21 conference call with analysts.

Even with the increase in sales, residential real estate prices continue to fall, showing a broad-based decline that indicates the market continues to be weighed down by foreclosures.

Home Values

The S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values in 20 cities dropped 3.4 percent from October 2010 after decreasing 3.5 percent in the year ended September, the New York-based group said this week. The median forecast of economists in a Bloomberg survey projected a 3.2 percent decrease.

The threat of continued declines could keep potential buyers waiting until they believe the market has bottomed, even as cheaper properties may make purchasing a home more affordable.

U.S. policy makers have initiated programs designed to revive the housing market. The Obama administration this month started a new version of the federal Home Affordable Refinance Program, or HARP, after the original plan helped less than a quarter of the people targeted to lock in lower mortgage rates.

At the Federal Reserve, officials this month reiterated that they will keep their benchmark interest rate near zero until at least mid-2013. The central bank in September decided to reinvest maturing housing debt into new mortgage-backed securities instead of Treasuries.

--Editors: Carlos Torres, Vince Golle

To contact the reporter on this story: Timothy R. Homan in Washington at thoman1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Christopher Wellisz at cwellisz@bloomberg.net

Source: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-12-30/pending-sales-of-u-s-existing-homes-rose-7-3-in-november.html

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Contraction in China’s Manufacturing Boosts Easing Case: Economy

December 30, 2011, 5:23 AM EST

By Bloomberg News

Dec. 30 (Bloomberg) -- China?s manufacturing contracted for a second month in December as Europe?s debt crisis cut export demand, fueling speculation that the central bank may cut lenders? reserve requirements within days.

A purchasing managers? index was at 48.7 in December from 47.7 in November, HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics said today. A reading below 50 indicates a contraction.

Export orders fell in December for the first time in three months and domestic demand was ?sluggish,? today?s report said. Demand for cash ahead of the week-long Chinese Lunar New Year holiday starting Jan. 23 may give officials an additional reason to cut banks? reserve ratios after a reduction last month that was the first since 2008.

?A reserve ratio cut is likely to happen by Jan. 3, before markets resume trading,? said Li Wei, a Shanghai-based economist with Standard Chartered Bank. China?s exports are under threat because ?the euro area is slipping into a recession and the U.S. is also expected to slow down in early 2012,? Li said.

A deeper slowdown in China, the world?s second-biggest economy, would impair a global expansion that is already faltering because of Europe?s austerity measures. Asian stocks rose today, paring the regional index?s first annual decline in three years, on signs of strength in the U.S. economy, where a report yesterday showed stronger-than-forecast home sales.

?Starting to Bite?

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.2 percent at 12:42 p.m. in Tokyo, heading for an 18 percent drop this year.

In China, ?weakening external demand is starting to bite,? said Qu Hongbin, a Hong Kong-based economist for HSBC. Policy easing may enable China?s economy to avoid a ?hard landing,? he said.

Elsewhere in Asia, data from South Korea showed the government wrestling with elevated inflation even as threats to growth mount. The leadership handover in North Korea as Kim Jong Un takes control after the death of Kim Jong Il may undermine confidence in the South by adding to the risk of instability on the Korean peninsula.

South Korea?s inflation exceeded the central bank?s target and all forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey, limiting the scope for an interest-rate cut in January to support growth. Consumer prices rose 4.2 percent from a year earlier, matching November?s gain, Statistics Korea said. The median estimate of 12 analysts was 4 percent, and the central bank targets inflation of 2 percent to 4 percent.

Australian Lending

In Australia earlier, a central bank report showed private lending by banks and other financial companies rose 0.3 percent in November from the prior month, matching the median of nine economists? forecasts.

In Europe today, reports may show house prices in the U.K. were unchanged in December from a month ago and German retail sales rose 0.2 percent in November from the prior month, according to the median estimates of economists surveyed by Bloomberg.

In Spain, a report may show consumer prices advanced 2.5 percent in December from a year ago, while figures on Italian producer prices may show a 0.1 percent gain in November from the month before, surveys showed.

The Chinese manufacturing index released today is based on answers to questionnaires sent to purchasing executives at over 400 manufacturing companies. The statistics bureau and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing will release a separate manufacturing index on Jan. 1. Last month, that gauge showed the first contraction since February 2009.

In November, China?s export growth was the weakest since 2009, excluding seasonal distortions at the start of each year.

Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., Japan?s second-largest heavy-equipment maker, said this month that Chinese demand for excavators will decline in the first half of next year, as the government prolongs a crackdown on property speculation.

Developer China Vanke Co.?s contract sales dropped 36 percent last month from a year earlier, while new home prices in Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen and Guangzhou slid from the previous month.

China?s inflation slowed to 4.2 percent in November, the slowest pace in 14 months. Third-quarter economic growth of 9.1 percent was the least in two years.

--Victoria Ruan with assistance from Ailing Tan in Singapore. Editors: Paul Panckhurst, Brendan Murray

To contact Bloomberg News staff on this story: Victoria Ruan in Beijing at vruan1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Paul Panckhurst in Hong Kong at ppanckhurst@bloomberg.net

Source: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-12-30/contraction-in-china-s-manufacturing-boosts-easing-case-economy.html

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UK taxpayers shoulder 'subsidised stagnation' in housing sector

As with the banks, the state has backed developers without getting enough in return for its help, the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) argued in a new report.

?The Government?s new Housing Strategy does not make sufficient demands of the housebuilders,? said Nick Pearce, its director. ?Instead, it offers them public land, money and guarantees without a serious quid pro quo.?

Companies have been able to prioritise trading land over building homes and, without change, housebuilding risks another ?lost decade?, even as the UK faces a housing crisis, the think tank claimed.

England is set for a shortfall of 750,000 homes in 15 years, with 250,000 homes needed to be built every year to close the gap, the think tank calculates.

However, annual construction of new homes has fallen below 100,000.

In a bid to tackle the shortage and help people on to the housing ladder, the Government has unveiled measures such as a �420m fund offering developers loans or equity investment to unlock stalled sites. The IPPR argues that housebuilders need to do more in return. It called for land trading and housebuilding to be split and for strict conditions to apply to public land released to developers, meaning that they have to build quickly at a lower profit.

State intervention in the sector has so far blocked the ?creative destruction? which would have released land, benefiting new entrants, the think tank said.

Housing minister Grant Shapps said the IPPR had ?missed the fundamental point of the Housing Strategy which is designed to get much better value for money?.

The industry denied that it prioritises land trading and said separating the process from building would not create more homes. A spokesman for the Home Builders Federation said: ?Home building for the private market is sales led, not building led.?

Source: http://telegraph.feedsportal.com/c/32726/f/568312/s/1b5232b0/l/0L0Stelegraph0O0Cfinance0Cnewsbysector0Cconstructionandproperty0C89753950CUK0Etaxpayers0Eshoulder0Esubsidised0Estagnation0Ein0Ehousing0Esector0Bhtml/story01.htm

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Thursday, December 29, 2011

EU crisis, U.S. politics threats to economy: Geithner (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Thursday said that the European debt crisis and the political divisions in the United States were the biggest threats to the global economy.

Earlier this year, soaring oil prices and the Japan earthquake slowed economic growth substantially, but Geithner said those two "shocks" have started to fade.

"The two other clouds still over us are the European crisis and the deep concern that you can see across the world and around the country about whether the political system in the United States is up to the challenges we face," Geithner said before weekend meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington.

"Not just the near term challenges of supporting an economy still healing from crisis, but long-term challenges of growth and competitiveness and fiscal sustainability," he told an event sponsored by the National Journal news publication.

Geithner will meet with his counterparts from the Group of 20 economies on Thursday evening where discussions about the European crisis and its impact on market confidence will be the focus.

Finance ministers from around the world are pressuring Europe to do more to contain the escalating debt crisis that has rattled global markets and the European financial system.

Geithner, who has traveled to Europe twice in the last two weeks to deal with the crisis, voiced confidence in the European Union's ability to do so.

"They recognize that if you let, as the United States did in the early part of 2008, the momentum of these concerns build, they're very hard to arrest, much more expensive to arrest," Geithner said. "So you're going to see them act with more force in the coming weeks and months," he said.

The IMF has warned that the crisis has increased European banks' exposure by 300 billion euros and has been pushing for a recapitalization so that they can weather any potential losses.

Geithner has privately urged euro zone finance ministers to leverage the European bailout fund to give it greater capacity to handle the bloc's problems.

"I am very confident they're going to move in the direction of expanding the effective financial capacity of that set of financial ring fences because they have no alternative and they recognize that and they're going to do it," he said.

"They're just trying to figure out how to get there in a way that is politically attractive."

(Reporting by Rachelle Younglai; Editing by Theodore d'Afflisio)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110922/bs_nm/us_usa_geithner_global

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Euro falls to 17-month low

euro, dollar, currencies

Click chart for more currency data.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Selling pressure pushed the euro to its lowest level since mid-2010, and the currency could go even lower early next year.

The euro slid as low as $1.2857 -- a level not seen since July 2010, around the time when the Federal Reserve predicted a weaker recovery and Fed chairman Ben Bernanke said the outlook was "unusually uncertain."

Part of the move was attributed to light volume, which typically leads to more pronounced moves. But one expert said the euro could slide even further come January.

"Investors seem increasingly convinced that the European situation will be stabilized," said Sebastien Galy, senior currency analyst at Societe Generale.

This week's Italian bond auctions signal more confidence in shorter-term debt, with strong demand and sharply lower yields than prior auctions. That suggests banks are willing to take on that shorter-term risk.

If that trend continues, banks may start to buy up longer-dated debt, which turns out to be "risk positive, but euro negative," said Galy.

He said the euro could bounce back to $1.30, but he sees another slide back toward $1.26 in January.

"Lower financing costs are helpful for European stocks and sentiment [but] investors perceive it as a form of quantitative easing by the back door, which means that more euro are printed," Galy explained.

It would mean a boost for the U.S. currency.

A stronger dollar may sound like a good thing, but for companies that do a lot of business outside of the United States, the opposite holds true. That's because companies convert their revenue back into dollars when they report quarterly results. And a stronger dollar can crimp that conversion.

Just last month, Fossil (FOSL), which generates more than 50% of its revenue from outside of the United States, trimmed its fourth-quarter earnings forecast. Other companies, including Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL), Compuware (CPWR), and Tupperware Brands (TUP), also cited the dollar's strength as a reason for weaker outlooks.

-- CNNMoney reporter Hibah Yousuf contributed to this report.To top of page

Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/money_topstories/~3/Un_XZ58ep8I/index.htm

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SAC’s Steve Cohen Is Said to Be Bidding for Los Angeles Dodgers

December 29, 2011, 5:08 PM EST

By Katherine Burton

Dec. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Billionaire hedge-fund manager Steve Cohen is bidding for the Los Angeles Dodgers, according to a person familiar with the effort, his second try this year to buy at least a piece of a Major League Baseball team.

Cohen, 55, who runs the $14 billion SAC Capital Advisors LLC in Stamford, Connecticut, is working with Steve Greenberg, a managing director at Allen & Co., and has hired the architectural firm Populous to look at the possible renovation of Dodger stadium, said the person, who was granted anonymity because the sale process is confidential. He?s also met with sports agent Arn Tellem, the person said.

Tellem may end up running the team if Cohen is successful in his bid, according to the Los Angeles Times, which reported the story earlier.

Jonathan Gasthalter, a spokesman for Cohen, declined to comment. Tellem and Greenberg didn?t return e-mails seeking a comment. Executives of Kansas City, Missouri-based Populous, whose offices are closed for the holidays, couldn?t be reached.

Cohen isn?t the only bidder said to be eyeing the Dodgers. Guggenheim Partners Chief Executive Officer Mark Walter said this month than he was joining with Basketball Hal of Fame member Magic Johnson to bid for the team.

The Dodgers, who have won six World Series championships, filed for bankruptcy on June 27. Last month, Frank McCourt, the team?s owner, agreed to sell. Bids are due on Jan. 13. At the time of the bankruptcy, sports bankers said the Dodgers may fetch up to $1 billion.

Mets Bid

Cohen bid this year for a minority stake in the New York Mets. Another hedge-fund manager, David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital Inc., won the bid, but the two parties later walked away from the deal.

The Mets? principal owners, Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, are in a legal battle with the trustee in charge of recovering money for investors in Bernard Madoff?s Ponzi scheme. The team got a $25 million loan from Major League Baseball a year ago, and the New York Times said this month that the franchise received a $40 million bridge loan made available through Bank of America Corp.

The Mets lost $70 million in 2011, General Manager Sandy Alderson told reporters at baseball?s Winter Meetings this month.

--with reporting by Erik Matuszewski and Scott Soshnick in New York and Rob Gloster in San Francisco. Editors: Larry Siddons, Jay Beberman

To contact the reporter on this story: Katherine Burton in New York at kburton@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Christian Baumgaertel at cbaumgaertel@bloomberg.net

Source: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-12-29/sac-s-steve-cohen-is-said-to-be-bidding-for-los-angeles-dodgers.html

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Obama stumps for jobs bill in GOP leaders' turf (AP)

CINCINNATI ? President Barack Obama was marketing his massive jobs proposal Thursday from an outdated bridge that links the home states of his two chief congressional Republican rivals, a symbolic and cheeky maneuver designed to pressure the GOP and convey resolve in the face of a sputtering economy.

Obama was making his pitch for $447 billion in tax cuts, jobless aid and public works projects at the Brent Spence Bridge south of Cincinnati, an aging span that connects House Speaker John Boehner's state of Ohio with Kentucky, home of Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.

The politics are clear. White House press secretary Jay Carney gladly conceded that the trip was a symbolic one designed to heap pressure on Boehner and McConnell to rally behind his plan

"We have never suggested that ground would be broken on this project immediately," Carney said. "We're very transparent about why we're going to this bridge: We're going to this bridge because it spans the river that divides two states that are represented by the speaker of the House and the Senate minority leader."

The bridge itself, deemed "functionally obsolete" by the federal government, is already scheduled to be replaced starting in 2015, although Carney argued that passage of the president's jobs bill could speed up that timeline.

McConnell and Boehner, both of whom have supported the bridge project, dismissed the visit as a ploy.

"I would suggest, Mr. President, that you think about ways to actually help the people of Kentucky and Ohio, instead of how you can use their roads and bridges as a backdrop for making a political point," McConnell said on the Senate floor Thursday morning. "If you really want to help our state then come back to Washington and work with Republicans on legislation that will actually do something to revive our economy and create jobs. And forget the political theater."

Added Boehner spokesman Brendan Buck, "We want to work with the president to support job creation, but political stunts and empty promises bring us no closer to finding common ground."

In the very short term, Obama's visit was making traffic on the overloaded 1963 bridge worse, not better. Ohio and Kentucky transportation officials warned motorists to expect long delays around the time of the president's appearance Thursday afternoon because of lane closures and a ramp shutdown. Boehner joked that stopping bridge traffic won't win any votes.

Both Boehner and McConnell declined a White House invitation to attend Thursday's event, because Congress is in session.

Public opinion polls show only about 1 person in 4 approves of Obama's economic performance. The president is seeking to put his differences with Republicans into sharper focus and to shift to his political rivals some of the responsibility for the nation's high unemployment and feeble growth rate.

The president's defiant approach to Boehner and McConnell represents a shift from his outreach to Boehner this summer, when the two men tried to work out a deal that would extend the nation's borrowing authority and cut long-term deficits as well.

Then, the president took Boehner golfing. Now he's taking him to task.

Obama on Monday announced a $3 trillion deficit-reduction package, half of which consists of tax increases. It was a direct challenge to Republicans and Boehner in particular, who last week flatly ruled out tax increases as way to lower long-term deficits.

Obama's visit will be his second to Ohio in two weeks. It's not the first time the president has taken on Boehner in his home state. A year ago, Obama went to Parma, Ohio, just days after Boehner had delivered an economic speech to the City Club of Cleveland. Obama criticized the speaker by name for his policy proposals.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110922/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_obama

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No Need to Change That Lightbulb... Until Late Next Year

LightbulbsThe lightbulb is dead... long live the lightbulb! Four years ago, the U.S. Congress, to great fanfare, passed a law aiming to phase out the incandescent lightbulb in favor of longer-lasting, more energy-efficient alternatives. Recently, to even more fanfare, the U.S. Congress changed its mind.

Rather than starting the phase-out on Jan. 1 with a ban on the sale of 100-watt incandescent bulbs, as envisioned in the 2007 law, Congress has instructed government agencies to sit tight till Sept. 30, 2012. What happens after that is anyone's guess.

A Bright Idea?

Whether this is good news or bad news is a matter of opinion. "Pro-lightbulb" folks will never like Washington telling them what to do with their lives -- even (or perhaps, especially) if it's something they'd probably do on their own if there wasn't some politician nagging them about it.

lightbulbOn the other hand, "anti-lightbulb" people will tell you it's silly to spend $0.10 per kilowatt hour on 19th-century lighting technology when we can stretch that dime so much farther along the curlicues of a compact fluorescent lightbulb (CFL)... or even better, an LED.

Energy Efficiency 101

For anyone not yet aware, these are the two big "improvements" in lighting technology lately. CFLs are basically "lightbulb-size" versions of the buzzing fluorescent tubes that have been the bane of America's cubicle serfs for decades. Thanks to rapidly scaled production, they're not all that much more expensive than incandescents these days -- but they last upward of five years, and they cost much, much less to operate than a conventional incandescent.

LEDs, in contrast, are the next big thing. They last longer than CFLs, cost even less to operate, and don't contain toxic mercury. On the downside, though, production isn't plentiful, and as a result the things cost an arm and a leg to begin with -- perhaps $25 a pop to outfit a standard household light fixture.

As Patrick Martin pointed out here on DailyFinance a couple of months ago, it's this $25 start-up cost that keeps many homeowners from buying into the LED concept. Perversely, though, what the LED industry needs to get prices down is for more people to buy them. This would increase demand, grow the scale of production, and deliver greater efficiencies to the manufacturers as a result. This would in turn enable manufacturers to charge less per bulb... and attract even more buyers, in a true virtuous cycle of price drops.

To date, of course, it's been more of a Catch-22 situation for the LED industry... but perhaps not for long.

How Many Dollars Does It Cost to Change a Lightbulb?

In a recent report on conventional lighting's "heavy users," The Wall Street Journal calculated how LEDs are already beginning to make economic sense to corporate buyers.

Using the example of a Wal-Mart (WMT) or Target (TGT) "big box" store that maintains (and lights) acres of parking lots surrounding it, the Journal paints the following picture: The lights in these lots are generally located on poles 20 or 40 feet off the ground. Changing bulbs at such a height is no easy task, requiring "a bucket truck and an electrician to replace those lamps every two years."

Even if a company is buying the cheapest possible incandescent bulbs for these lights, it's paying through the nose in equipment rental and labor to change them when they go dark. This being the case, it might make sense to pay a bit more up front for a fancy LED light if doing so lets you go a decade or more between changings.

Indeed, according to results just in from a case study conducted at a Wal-Mart in Kansas, it does make cents -- and dollars, too. Comparing the costs of lighting a parking lot with LEDs to lighting the lot with conventional bulbs, the study found that an average Wal-Mart can cut its annual lighting costs by more than 12% by going with the newer technology. The reason: While the bulbs cost much more, the initial installation doesn't. More important, the company spends only about 60% its pre-LED rate on electricity, and reaps a threefold savings on maintenance costs!

What's It Mean to You?

"Good for Wal-Mart," you say. "But what's in it for me?" And I can tell you in one word: scale.

What this study means, in a nutshell, is that already businesses are finding they've reached the tipping point at which it makes sense to spend big bucks buying lots of LED lights. As they begin doing this, manufacturers will increase production, spread production costs among more lights -- and drive the cost of each individual LED light down for everybody. The lightbulb is dead... long live the LED!

Motley Fool contributor Rich Smith does not own shares of, nor is he short, any companies named above, but The Motley Fool owns shares of Wal-Mart Stores, and Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Wal-Mart Stores as well as creating a diagonal call position in Wal-Mart Stores.

Source: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2011/12/27/no-need-to-change-that-lightbulb-until-late-next-year/

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