Archives: April 2009

Chrysler Drives Into Chapter 11

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

As expected, the troubled carmaker filed for Chapter 11 when it became clear that it could not come to agreement with all its stakeholders. It aims to streamline operations,...

Obama Is Hopeful for Chrysler’s Future

Posted by: Moon Ihlwan on April 30, Categories: early

President Obama is hopeful that Chrysler will come up with a solution that will let a merger with Italian automaker Fiat go through and keep the U.S. automaker in...

A Sharp Decline in the First Quarter

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

The U.S. economy performed more poorly than analysts had figured in the first quarter, with GDP declining at an annual rate of 6.1%. That followed a 6.3% rate of...

Chrysler, Fiat: Back from the Brink?

Posted by: Frederik Balfour on April 29, Categories: early

Italian automaker Fiat moved much closer to a deal with Chrysler on Apr. 28 that will blend the two companies' operations and likely keep Chrysler out of bankruptcy court....

Chrysler and Creditors Come to Terms

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

Chrysler has reached agreement with banks and private equity firms holding $6.9 billion of the carmaker’s debt, and the accord may allow it to avoid bankruptcy. The banks had...

Swine Flu: Lessons from SARS

Posted by: Kenji Hall on April 28, Categories: early

Narayanan Viswanathan knows firsthand not to underestimate the economic impact of a potential pandemic such as the swine flu outbreak that has been spreading from Mexico. Viswanathan was in...

General Motors' New Recovery Plan

Posted by: Harry Maurer on April 27, Categories: late

Under General Motor’s newly unveiled survival plan, U.S. taxpayers could soon find themselves the proud owners of an auto manufacturer. In return for $11.6 billion in additional federal aid,...

Four Days of Crunch Time for Chrysler

Posted by: Dexter Roberts on April 27, Categories: early

As the days dwindle down to Chrysler's Apr. 30 deadline to show the federal government it has a new plan for financial viability—or face bankruptcy re-organization—there has been movement...

Top News of the Week

Posted by: Harry Maurer on April 24, Categories: weekend

Ford Boosts the Street U.S. stock investors got encouraging news from Ford, which announced that it believes it has enough cash to get through the rest of the year....

Auto Industry in Turmoil

Posted by: Andy Reinhardt on April 24, Categories: early

Sources say that the U.S. Treasury Department has ordered Chrysler to devise a bankruptcy plan by as soon as next week, as the troubled automaker faces an Apr. 30...

U.S. Housing Sales Fall Again

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

Confirming some recent signs that the U.S. housing market may have hit bottom, the National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes fell 3% in March, but...

Regulators Prepare for U.S. Bank 'Stress Test'

Posted by: Mark Scott on April 23, Categories: early

U.S. federal regulators on Apr. 24 will reveal the preliminary results of so-called bank 'stress tests' -- reports that will certify which U.S. banks are healthy enough to start...

Morgan Stanley Posts Loss

Posted by: Cristina Lindblad on April 22, Categories: late

It was too good to last. A fantastical streak of positive earnings reports from the likes of Wells Fargo, Citibank and Bank of America was broken on April 22...

Yahoo Cuts Workforce, Posts Upbeat Numbers

Posted by: Mark Scott on April 22, Categories: early

Internet giant Yahoo said on Apr. 21 it would cut 5% of its global workforce on top of 1,600 job cuts announced in December, 2008. The news came as...

Geithner Says Credit Still Isn't Flowing

Posted by: Harry Maurer on April 21, Categories: late

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told a congressional panel that while there are signs of recovery in the credit markets, borrowing costs remain steep and credit is often still...

What Oracle Sees in Sun

Posted by: Andy Reinhardt on April 21, Categories: early

No question: the audacious bid by software giant Oracle to acquire struggling computer-and-software maker Sun Microsystems is a game-changer for the info tech industry. While the deal offers Sun...

Sun Finds a Home

Posted by: Harry Maurer on April 20, Categories: late

In the wake of a failed deal with IBM, Sun Microsystems agreed to be acquired by Oracle for $7.4 billion. Sun, which has struggled for years, has been searching...

PepsiCo Buying Out Bottlers for $6 Billion

Posted by: Andy Reinhardt on April 20, Categories: early

PepsiCo, the world's second-largest maker of beverages, is offering $6 billion in cash and stock to take over the share of its two largest bottlers that it doesn't already...

Top Stories of the Week

Posted by: Harry Maurer on April 17, Categories: weekend

Citi’s Solid First Quarter Citigroup became the third big bank this week, after Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase, to announce decent first-quarter results. Citi reported net income of...

Signs of Stability in Consumer Spending

Posted by: Moon Ihlwan on April 17, Categories: early

It's natural to assume that as the job market goes, so go consumers. But that's not always true, especially right now. Even amid massive job losses in the first...

Encouraging Results from JP Morgan Chase

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

JP Morgan Chase reported better-than-expected earnings for the first quarter, another signal that the stronger players in the financial industry may be on the road to recovery. Chase’s profit...

Tech Sector: Poised for a Comeback?

Posted by: Dexter Roberts on April 16, Categories: early

After bearing the brunt of the economic downturn at the beginning of this decade, the technology sector looks as if it may be among the best positioned to benefit...

U.S. Deflation Fears Flare Up

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

As if the recession were not bad enough, the threat of deflation now looms over the U.S. economy. On Apr. 15, the Labor Dept. reported that U.S. consumer prices...

Shoppers Go On Strike Again

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

U.S. retail sales fell 1.1% in March, reported the Commerce Dept. That was far worse than the 0.3% increase that economists had predicted, and provided another indication that recovery...

Goldman Vows to Repay Loans As Earnings Beat Expectations

Posted by: Bruce Einhorn on April 14, Categories: early

Goldman Sachs announced quarterly earnings of $1.66 billion and said it will pay back loans from the Treasury Department by raising $5 billion in a stock offering. Analysts had...

A $4.7 Billion Deal for NextRx

Posted by: Harry Maurer on April 13, Categories: late

Pharmacy benefits manager Express Scripts is buying health insurer WellPoint’s in-house drug operation, NextRx, for $4.7 billion. Recent major deals in the pharma and health industry make clear that...

Treasury Tells GM to Prepare for "Surgical" Bankruptcy

Posted by: Frederik Balfour on April 13, Categories: early

The Treasury Department has told General Motors to start preparing for a June 1 filing deadline to prepare for a fast "surgical" bankruptcy, according to people close to the...

Top Stories of the Week

Posted by: Harry Maurer on April 10, Categories: weekend

Goldman Ponders a Big Stock Offering Goldman Sachs is eager to repay at least some of its $10 billion TARP loan from Washington, so it’s considering a major stock...

The World's Most Innovative Companies

Posted by: Andy Reinhardt on April 10, Categories: early

Not long ago, innovation was a must-do priority for business. Now research and development might seem like a luxury that has to wait for better times. But in BusinessWeek's...

Wells Fargo Wows Wall Street

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

Stock traders found another reason for optimism as Wells Fargo bank reported record profits of 55 cents per share, more than double analysts’ estimates. While the report is preliminary,...

Moody's Downgrades Buffett's Berkshire

Posted by: Mark Scott on April 09, Categories: early

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has lost its triple-A rating with Moody's Investors Service -- the ratings agency in which the "Sage of Omaha" holds a 20% stake. The downgrade...

Detroit Taps Aid for Suppliers

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

Chrysler and General Motors received a combined $3.5 billion to aid their suppliers in a new federal program launched Wednesday. The aid can only flow to their suppliers but...

U.S. Regulation Could Have Unintended Consequences

Posted by: Mark Scott on April 08, Categories: early

U.S. President Barack Obama's plan for a wide-ranging regulation for the financial services industry could encourage some firms to take on even greater risks and expanded at too-fast rates....

Wall Street Beats Another Retreat

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

Investors in U.S. equities turned gloomy for a second day, sending the market down sharply, with the Dow declining nearly 200 points at 2:10 p.m. One reason: billionaire hedge-fund...

Poll Finds Increased Optimism in the U.S.

Posted by: Andy Reinhardt on April 07, Categories: early

The latest New York Times/CBS News poll finds that Americans have become more optimistic about the economy and the direction of the U.S. in the 11 sometimes turbulent weeks...

Another Madoff Feeder Outfit Charged

Posted by: Harry Maurer on April 06, Categories: late

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo filed civil charges of fraud against Ezra Merkin and his Gabriel Capital, alleging that Merkin secretly funneled $2.4 billion in client cash to...

IBM's Takeover of Sun Microsystems Stalls

Posted by: Mark Scott on April 06, Categories: early

Technology giant IBM withdrew its $7 billion offer for Sun Microsystems on Apr. 5 after Sun's board balked at IBM's reduced offer, according to three people close to the...

Top Stories of the Week

Posted by: Harry Maurer on April 03, Categories: weekend

More U.S. Jobs Go Poof! The Labor Dept. reported that the U.S. economy shed 663,000 jobs last month, the fourth straight in which job losses totaled more than 600,000....

G-20: $1 Trillion and a Plan

Posted by: Mark Scott on April 03, Categories: early

The Group of 20 Summit of the world's top leaders, held Apr. 2 at a windowless exhibition hall in London's eastside docklands, did not achieve everything its organizers originally...

A Boon from the FASB

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

The Financial Accounting Standards Board handed banks a major victory by voting to change the rules on how mortgage-backed securities are valued. The changes will almost certainly allow banks...

G-20 Protesters to March on Leaders’ Summit in London

Posted by: Ian Rowley on April 02, Categories: early

Protesters are set to march in London today on the heavily guarded conference center where the Group of 20 summit is being held, after demonstrations drew thousands outside the...

Mixed Messages from the U.S. Economy

Posted by: Harry Maurer on April 01, Categories: late

The U.S. economy continues to turn out numbers pointing in different directions—but at least that’s better than unadulterated disaster. On the downside, a report from ADP and Macroeconomic Advisers...

Facebook's CFO Exits: Enter, the Questions

Posted by: Bruce Einhorn on April 01, Categories: early

Facebook is replacing its chief financial officer, Gideon Yu. Facebook spokesman Larry Yu confirmed to BusinessWeek that CFO Yu will be leaving the company. Now the big questions are:...