U.S. President Barack Obama painted an up-beat picture of the domestic economy on Mar. 24, saying there were ‘signs of progress’ in his administration’s attempts to stabilize the U.S. economy. Speaking at a televised press conference, Obama said: “[W]e’ve put in place a comprehensive strategy designed to attack this crisis on all fronts,” adding “and we are beginning to see signs of progress.”

His vote of confidence came as the U.S. Congress finalizes new regulation that would allow the government to seize companies and freeze their contracts. The U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee will vote as early as next week on the legislation. Giving evidence to Congress on Mar. 24, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the lack of authority to seize struggling insurer American International Group forced authorities into owning almost 80% of the insurance giant.

Source: Financial Times, Wall Street Journal

Obama to Meet Bank Execs

U.S. President Barack Obama will meet with top bank chief executives on Mar. 27, including those from JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and Citigroup, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The meeting is expected to focus on concerns that financial firms have raised about the restrictions attached to government aid.

Source: Reuters

PetroChina Records First Profit Drop Since 2001

PetroChina — the world’s second-largest company by market capitalization — on Mar. 25 recorded its first drop in full-year profits since 2001 after due to slumping oil prices and widening refining losses. The company’s net income fell 22% to $16.7 billion, the Beijing-based company said in a statement.

Source: Bloomberg

China Rejects Coke’s Expansion

China has rejected Coca-Cola’s bid to buy a leading local juice maker because of fears the U.S. company could abuse its position across the whole soft drinks market, an official said in remarks published on Mar. 25. “Potential competitors would find it very difficult to enter this market and grow into substantive competitors against Coca-Cola and thereby eradicate or restrict the possibility of Coca-Cola engaging in abusive conduct,” Ministry of Commerce spokesman Yao Jian said.

Source: Reuters

Japan’s Exports/Imports Fall

Japan posted another record drop in exports in February, highlighting the damaging impact of the global downturn on the world’s second largest economy. Exacerbating problems, the country’s February imports also fell much more than expected.

Source: Financial Times

Morgan Stanley to Combine Forces with Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group

Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group is expected to combine its brokerage firm unit with Morgan Stanley’s Japanese operations, according to a person familiar with the matter. The merger announcement between unlisted Mitsubishi UFJ Securities and Morgan Stanley Japan could be made as early as this week, with MUFJ expected to take a 60% stake in the venture.

Source: Wall Street Journal

IMF Unveils Reforms to Combat Economic Crisis

The International Monetary Fund on Mar. 24 unveiled reforms to become more effective in combating the global economic crisis. The central point of the reforms is a new line of credit that gives countries with well-managed economies the ability to borrow more money, faster, and with no strings attached. The fund also has doubled limits on the amount of money countries may receive through some of its other programs.

Source: Washington Post

Congress Cuts Obama’s Budget

U.S. Democratic politicians on Mar. 24 announced major cuts to President Barack Obama’s first budget plan in order to bring skyrocketing annual deficits under control. Under the proposals, Democrats plan to cut hundreds of billions of dollars from Obama’s spending request over the next five years. They also want to eliminate Obama’s plan to devote more cash to the financial sector bailout.

Source: New York Times

Dell Struggles With Smartphone Plans

Maybe now is not such a good time for Dell to launch a smartphone. Instead, the technology giant might want to introduce a different kind of handheld known as a mobile Internet device, or MID. These machines are larger and more powerful than smartphones, yet they’re far smaller and of lighter weight than even the tiniest notebook computers known as netbooks.

Source: BusinessWeek

HSBC Cuts 1,200 Jobs

HSBC Holdings, Europe’s biggest bank by market capitalization, will cut about 1,200 jobs in Britain in response to the “challenging” economic environment. The jobs will be eliminated over the next 12 months in processing and operations, and some administration sites may be closed, according to a spokesperson.

Source: Bloomberg

The Rise of the Jumbo Loan

It soon might become easier again to buy a house worth $1 million or more. That’s because, despite the bruising that the luxury home market has taken over the past 12 months, rates for jumbo mortgages in the U.S. could finally fall to more affordable levels.

Source: BusinessWeek

Conversation of the Day: Tata’s Nano and Detroit

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