Archives: January 2008

New Jobless Claims Soar

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 31, Categories: late

It’s not easy being the Fed, as new economic reports illustrate. On the one hand, signs of weakness would seem to argue for more loosening of the monetary reins....

Amazon Unfazed by Economic Slowdown

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 31, Categories: early

Amazon’s profits more than doubled to $207 million in the fourth quarter. The e-commerce giant said it sees little sign of a slowdown in consumer spending in the U.S....

U.S. growth slows to a crawl

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 30, Categories: late

The U.S. economy barely grew in the fourth quarter. The Commerce Department reported annualized growth of just 0.6%, significantly below what most economists had predicted. Home construction fell the...

U.S. growth slows to a crawl

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 30, Categories: late

The U.S. economy barely grew in the fourth quarter. The Commerce Department reported annualized growth of just 0.6%, significantly below what most economists had predicted. Home construction fell the...

McCain Wins Florida’s GOP Primary

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 30, Categories: early

Arizona Senator John McCain won Florida’s Republican presidential primary, catapulting him over former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney as the front-runner in the GOP presidential race. Former New York City...

Durables Show Some Muscle

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 29, Categories: late

Maybe the U.S. economy is healthier that it looks? Durable goods orders put up a surprisingly good showing in December, rising by 5.2%, says the Commerce Dept.. And such...

Malone Takes Aim at Diller

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 29, Categories: early

John Malone's Liberty Media, which has been trying for months to buy Home Shopping Network from IAC/Interactive Corp., filed suit to oust IAC chief executive Barry Diller from the...

Executive Shuffle at Sears

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 28, Categories: late

Sears Holdings Chairman Eddie Lampert announced that CEO Aylwin Lewis would step down this week. W. Bruce Johnson will replace him as interim chief while Lampert looks for a...

Bush’s State of the Union to Focus on Economy

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 28, Categories: early

President George W. Bush will make the U.S. economy the focus of his final State of the Union Monday night and urge Congress to quickly approve quickly the $150...

Top Stories of the Week

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 25, Categories: weekend

Asian bourses cheer up Asian markets, apparently cheered by Wall Street’s bounce-back on Wednesday, staged a rally led by Hong Kong, where the key index jumped 6.7%. Japan’s Nikkei...

Asian Bourses Cheer Up

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 25, Categories: weekend

Asian markets, apparently cheered by Wall Street’s bounce-back on Wednesday, staged a rally led by Hong Kong, where the key index jumped 6.7%. Japan’s Nikkei rose 4.1%, and Mumbai’s...

So That’s Why Meg is Retiring

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 25, Categories: early

EBay chief executive Meg Whitman, who will be retiring Mar. 31, has talked with top Republicans about the possibility of running for governor of California in 2010. Whitman became...

Agreement on a Stimulus Plan

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 24, Categories: late

The White House and leaders in the House of Representatives announced agreement on an economic stimulus plan. The package would cost $150 billion and would feature payouts of between...

Rogue Trader Causes SG to Lose $7.2 Billion

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 24, Categories:

A rogue trader at Societe Generale was responsible for an “exceptional fraud” causing a $7.16 billion loss, the bank discovered last weekend. France’s second largest bank said it will...

Motorola's Evaporating Profits

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 23, Categories: late

Motorola reported a steep drop in fourth-quarter net income, to $100 million, from $623 million a year earlier. The stock fell 20% in intraday trading. Sales of the company’s...

Asian Markets Rally After Fed Cuts Rates

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 23, Categories: early

Asian stock markets bounced back after the Federal Reserve surprised the financial markets and cut interest rates by three-quarters of a percentage point. Rumors that the European Central Bank...

Bernanke's Big Move

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 22, Categories: late

Not long after the Federal Reserve cut its benchmark rate by 75 basis points in a rare between-meetings emergency move, observers were already predicting that the central bank’s round...

Asian Markets Plunge for Second Day

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 22, Categories: early

Stock markets in Asia plummeted for a second straight day over concerns about a recession in the U.S. and a slowdown in China. Nervous investors sold their shares after...

Asian Stocks Fall Again

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 21, Categories: early

Asian stocks fell again on concerns that the U.S. economy is sliding into a recession. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell 3.9% to 13,325.94, its lowest level since...

Top Stories of the Week

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 18, Categories: weekend

Bush outlines economic stimulus package The White House on Friday called for a $140 billion to $145 billion package, with tax rebates for households and incentives for businesses. Though...

Top Stories of the Week

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 18, Categories: weekend

Bush outlines economic stimulus package The White House on Friday called for a $140 billion to $145 billion package, with tax rebates for households and incentives for businesses. Though...

Directors Come to Terms with Hollywood Studios

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 18, Categories: early

The Directors Guild of America reached a three-year contract with the major Hollywood studios over compensation for the digital distribution of TV shows and movies over the Internet, cell...

Merrill's Monster Write-Down

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 17, Categories: late

It’s even worse than expected: Merrill Lynch became the latest Wall Street investment bank to unveil more massive losses from the subprime debacle. The firm’s fourth-quarter results feature a...

Merrill's Monster Write-Down

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 17, Categories: late

It’s even worse than expected: Merrill Lynch became the latest Wall Street investment bank to unveil more massive losses from the subprime debacle. The firm’s fourth-quarter results feature a...

Bernanke to Offer Support for Stimulus Package

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 17, Categories: early

Chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke will testify before the House Budget Committee Thursday and tell lawmakers that he can support tax cuts or spending measures to stimulate...

JPMorgan's Not-So-Bad Numbers

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 16, Categories:

As earnings season swings into gear, many eyes are on the financials, and JPMorgan Chase gave the Street some small reason to cheer. True, the bank reported a $1.3...

JPMorgan's Not-So-Bad Numbers

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 16, Categories: late

As earnings season swings into gear, many eyes are on the financials, and JPMorgan Chase gave the Street some small reason to cheer. True, the bank reported a $1.3...

JPMorgan's Not-So-Bad Numbers

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 16, Categories: late

As earnings season swings into gear, many eyes are locked on the financials, and JPMorgan Chase gave the Street some small reason to cheer. True, the bank reported a...

Romney Wins Michigan Primary

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 16, Categories: early

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney won the Michigan primary after promising to revitalize the auto industry. The victory by Michigan native Romney, whose father was governor of Michigan in...

A Curb on Investor Lawsuits

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 15, Categories: late

The Supreme Court ruled against investors in a closely watched case involving corporate fraud. In a 5-3 decision, the justices said that secondary actors such as vendors, accountants, and...

A Curb on Investor Lawsuits

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 15, Categories: late

The Supreme Court ruled against investors in a closely watched case involving corporate fraud. In a 5-3 decision, the justices said that secondary actors such as vendors, accountants, and...

Citigroup Expected to Announce $20 Billion Loss

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 15, Categories: early

Citigroup is expected to announce a write-down of up to $20 billion, the biggest loss by a Wall Street investment bank from the subprime mortgage crisis, when it announces...

Big Blue's Big Quarter

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 14, Categories: late

IBM gave a positive burst of energy to a beleaguered Wall Street by reporting fourth-quarter earnings that were much stronger than analysts had predicted. Big Blue’s black ink rose...

Kuwait to Invest in Merrill Lynch, Citigroup

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 14, Categories:

The Kuwait Investment Authority, the country’s sovereign wealth fund, is expected to invest in Merrill Lynch and possibly Citigroup. Merrill Lynch is looking for $4 billion in its second...

Top Stories of the Week

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 11, Categories: weekend

A rescuer for Countrywide Bank of America has agreed to buy the top mortgage lender in the U.S. for $4 billion in stock. The deal marks the demise of...

Senate Investigates Sovereign Wealth Funds

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 11, Categories: early

The U.S. Senate has ordered an inquiry into sovereign wealth funds controlled by foreign governments to find out how much money these funds control, where it has been invested,...

Retail Sales: Not Much Holiday Feeling

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 10, Categories: late

If you’re worried about a recession, here’s something more to chew on: The biggest retailers in the U.S. say their sales in December were anything but sparkling. Big chains...

Retail Sales: Not Much Holiday Feeling

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 10, Categories: late

If you’re worried about a recession, here’s something more to chew on: The biggest retailers in the U.S. say their sales in December were anything but sparkling. Big chains...

Citi, Merrill Looking Overseas for More Money

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 10, Categories: early

Citigroup and Merrill Lynch are in discussions to get additional capital injections from foreign governments before they report earnings next week, which are expected to uncover more losses from...

Countrywide Under Pressure

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 09, Categories: late

The top mortgage lender in the U.S. continued to get hammered on Wall Street after a day in which its stock lost 28% of its market value on rumors...

Clinton, McCain Win New Hampshire Primary

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 09, Categories: early

Senator Hillary Clinton won the New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary in a surprising victory. Polls taken in the past week had her trailing rival Senator Barack Obama in New...

Gold Looks Golden

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 08, Categories: late

The precious metal climbed to a new record in intraday trading on the New York Merc, hitting $883.10, surpassing the high of $875 set back in 1980. True, today’s...

James Cayne Steps Down As Bear Stearns CEO

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 08, Categories: early

James Cayne has told board members that he is stepping down as the chief executive of Bear Stearns. However, Cayne, 73, will stay on as non-executive chairman. Bear Stearns...

Paulson Is In No Hurry

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 07, Categories: late

In a speech in New York, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said the Bush Administration isn’t going to push through an economic stimulus plan anytime soon to offset the effects...

Warner Bros. Chooses Blu-Ray Over HD DVD

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 07, Categories: early

Warner Brothers has decided to release its movies exclusively on Sony’s Blu-ray DVD format starting in May, tipping the DVD format wars in favor of the Blu-ray format. Warner’s...

Top Stories of the Week

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 04, Categories: weekend

U.S. joblessness jumps The labor markets continue to send signals of a slowing economy, perhaps even a recession. The Labor Dept. reports that the unemployment rate jumped from 4.7%...

Obama, Huckabee Win Iowa Caucus

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 04, Categories: early

Senator Barack Obama of Illinois and former governor of Arkansas Mike Huckabee won the Iowa caucus, the first step in their bid to become the Democratic and Republican parties'...

Oil Crosses $100 Again

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 03, Categories: late

Oil futures once again broke $100 per barrel, a level briefly touched yesterday, as OPEC officials said they were powerless to lower prices, U.S. inventories dropped more than expected,...

California Sues EPA

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 03, Categories: early

Following through with its threat, California led 15 other states in filing a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency for refusing to let the state limit greenhouse gas emissions...

Oil Briefly Hits $100

Posted by: Harry Maurer on January 02, Categories: late

Finally, the inevitable arrived: Oil futures topped $100 per barrel for the first time, though they didn’t close that high. The first trade over $100 came at 12.10 p.m....

Letterman Returns with Writers, Leno Faces Picketers

Posted by: Chi-Chu Tschang on January 02, Categories: early

Five network late night talk show, including “The Late Show with David Letterman” and “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno,” will return to air Jan. 2 for the first...