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Bernanke says more positive signs needed before scaling back stimulus

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:25:11 -0400

WASHINGTON - Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke Wednesday said it was too soon to scale back the monetary stimulus and the central bank needs to see further signs of traction before taking a decision. A decision to scale back the $85 billion in bonds the Fed is buying each month could come at one of the central bank's "next few meetings" if the economy looked set to maintain ...

Higher exports fail to plug widening Japan trade deficit

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:52:11 -0400

TOKYO - Japan's trade deficit rose substantially more than expected in the month April to 879.9 billion yen ($8.6 billion), which is a 70% jump over the trade deficit during the corresponding month a year earlier, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday.. The deficit, for the tenth consecutive month, was wider than what many economists had forecast. A survey from the Nikkei business daily ...

Vitamin C offers hope of tackling drug resistant TB

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:56:35 -0400

WASHINGTON - Adding vitamin C to existing tuberculosis drugs regime could shorten the therapy for drug resistant TB, claims new research findings published in the online scientific journal Nature Communications. The striking discovery, by researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, has determined that vitamin C kills drug-resistant TB bacteria in laboratory ...

IMF warns UK against continuing austerity programme

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:53:31 -0400

LONDON - In a critique of the United Kingdom's austerity programme, the International Monetary Fund Wednesday urged the Europe's third largest economy to rebalance the policy to make the transition to a high-investment and more export-oriented economy. "The UK could boost growth by bringing forward measures already included in its fiscal plan, such as spending on infrastructure and job ...

Labour reforms to top US team agenda on Bangladesh visit

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:50:14 -0400

DHAKA - A high level US delegation led by the State Department's Under Secretary for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman will visit Bangladesh this weekend to press for a major overhaul of labour safety regulations following the nation's deadliest industrial accident, an official said Wednesday. The collapse of a nine-storey factory complex housing several garment units outside the capital last ...

German central bank sees signals of economic pick up in Q2

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:04:27 -0400

FRANKFURT - Germany's central bank Deutsche Bundesbank expects the country's economy to improve "markedly" in the second quarter relying on signals of pick up in industrial orders and likelihood of weather related downturn in construction sector no longer impacting investment sentiments a development that could boost the wider eurozone as it struggles to get out of recession. "Overall ...

Construction begins on new island off Jumeirah Beach in Dubai

Mon, 20 May 2013 04:26:18 -0400

Work began on Monday on the development of a man-made island in Dubai, 500 metres directly opposite the Jumeirah Beach Residence complex. To be known as Bluewaters Island, the new development will house five star hotels and resorts, al fresco dining and entertainment zones, and residential apartments and villas. The focal point of the island city, which will cost $1.6 billion, will be a 688 ...

Mortgage lending in UK rises highest in four years

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:23:44 -0400

LONDON - The UK housing market seems to be picking up with gross mortgage lending up 4.3 per cent in April over previous month to 12.1 billion pounds, the highest in over four years, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). The mortgage lending was 21% higher than April 2012, but this data is skewed by the end of the stamp duty concession on 24 March, 2012. Under the stamp duty ...

Xbox One Steve Jobs dream device made by Microsoft

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:12:23 -0400

Just before he died, Steve Jobs told his biographer Walter Isaacson about his dream for revolutionizing television. His fantasy device would control all the many doodads that crowd your living room - DVRs, game consoles, Blu-ray players - and would connect to the vast world of entertainment available online. Best of all, it would be drop-dead simple to control - no more futzing with the Input ...

European stock markets slide after Nikkei plunges 7 - live

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:04:37 -0400

The Markit Composite PMI, which measures activity across the German economy, came in at 49.9, up from 49.2 in April (where a 50-point reading separates expansion from contraction) German manufacturing output rose slightly, but was balanced out by a small drop in services. And France's private sector kept shrinking, with a composite PMI of 44.3 -- a long way from that 50-point ...

Daily Mail publishers print revenues slide

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:04:17 -0400

Mail on Sunday declined 6% to 287m in the six months to the end of March, as print ads and circulation declined, while the Mail Online juggernaut continued with a 61% year-on-year revenue surge to 20m.Parent ...

The smart technology for running your business from home

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:04:14 -0400

Working from home or running a business from home is a great thing, and using your own equipment can be fun, as well as productive. Many pieces of technology double up as both consumer and business products - here are a handful that I have tried. The opinions expressed here are my own. Feel free to add your own observations in the comments, ...

Chinas manufacturing sector contracted in May

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:03:47 -0400

See Search Box lower down this column for searches of Finfacts news pages. Where there may be the odd special character missing from an older page, it's a problem that developed when Interactive Tools upgraded to a new content management ...

Abolish the Bonus System

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:01:40 -0400

What makes otherwise law-abiding people mis-sell insurance products or derivatives to their customers? Or manipulate market rates to their advantage? Or cover up loss-making trades in order to buy time to move their trading book back into profit again? Probably a whole series of factors, I imagine. But in the financial services sector there is a common thread running through all of these recent ...

Perfect Storm Sparks Massive Nikkei Sell-Off

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:01:40 -0400

A perfect storm of yen strength, a spike in Japanese government bond yields and new evidence of weakness in China's economy were behind a major sell-off Thursday in Japan's equity markets, said experts. The ...

Microsoft Surface Pro review a device of many talents

Thu, 23 May 2013 03:45:30 -0400

mystery press conference in Los Angeles on 19 June last year. Indeed, it was something of a shock, because for the first time, Microsoft was competing against its biggest customers: Windows PC suppliers such as Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Samsung and ...

Spains CaixaBank Mulls Sale of Part of Inbursa Stake

Thu, 23 May 2013 03:45:13 -0400

Spanish lender CaixaBank SA (CABK.MC) said Thursday it is considering the sale of about half of its current 20% stake in Mexico's Grupo Financiero Inbursa SAB de CV (GPFOY) in the Mexican and international markets.In a regulatory filing, CaixaBank said no final decision has been made on the potential deal and this will depend on market conditions.CaixaBank didn't provide any detail on ...

Lloyds Banking Places 77 Million Shares of St Jamess Place at GBP5.80Share

Thu, 23 May 2013 03:45:11 -0400

Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LLOY.LN) Thursday said 77 million shares of St James's Place PLC (STJ.LN) have been placed at a price of 5.80 pounds per share, giving gross proceeds of GBP450 million.MAIN FACTS:-Will realise a gain on sale of GBP40 million.-Placing will increase the Group's core tier 1 capital by GBP40 million, equivalent to an approximate 1 basis point benefit to its core ...

Fee income boosts S.Africas Investec FY earnings by 18 pct

Thu, 23 May 2013 03:04:27 -0400

Thu May 23, 2013 3:04am EDT JOHANNESBURG May 23 (Reuters) - South African investment bank and asset manager Investec reported an 18 percent rise in full-year profit on Thursday, boosted by strong income from fees and commissions. Investec, which is also listed in London, said diluted headline earnings per share totalled 30 pence in the year to end-March, compared with 25.4 pence a year ...

Lloyds raises 450 million pounds from St. Jamess Place share sale

Thu, 23 May 2013 03:03:59 -0400

LONDON (Reuters) - State-backed Lloyds Banking Group said it had raised 450 million pounds from the sale of 15 percent of wealth manager St. James's Place to boost its capital.Lloyds said the 77 million shares had been placed at 580 pence per share, a 9.4 percent discount to its Wednesday closing price of 640 pence.After its previous sale of shares in St. James's Place in March, Lloyds ...

Latam Africa surges ensure SABMiller profit growth

Thu, 23 May 2013 03:03:57 -0400

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - SABMiller, the world's second biggest brewer, reported profit growth in line with expectations thanks to a surge in earnings in Latin America and Africa and said its markets should be broadly unchanged in the coming months.The maker of Grolsch, Peroni and Pilsner Urquell, said on Thursday adjusted earnings per share rose 11 percent to 238.7 U.S. cents in the year to the ...

Futures Movers Oil drops below $94 on weak China data

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:56:35 -0400

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Weak Chinese manufacturing data and a drop in Asian stocks helped send oil futures lower in electronic trade ...

Microsoft takes ‘console wars’ to next league with Xbox One

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:54:34 -0400

Don Mattrick, Microsoft's President of Interactive Entertainment Business, unveils the new Xbox entertainment and gaming console system at an event in Redmond, WA. on Tuesday, May, 21 ...

Live discussion social enterprise and housing Wednesday 5 June 12-1.30pm

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:53:19 -0400

. In his piece, Temple said that while housing associations are a 'powerful lobby, an economic force and a major influence on all kinds of social policy', other social enterprises were yet to harness their sending powers.Figures show that 1700 registered housing associations spend 13bn annually - but 69% of housing associations spend less that 50,000 with social enterprises and 60% ...

Apple taxes Irish economy and creating 200000 net jobs

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:52:54 -0400

EU summit on tax evasion/avoidance, Brussels, May 22, 2013: Enda Kenny, Irish taoiseach; Dalia Grybauskaite, president of Lithuania; Franois Hollande, president of France; Angela Merkel, German federal chancellor; Martin Schultz, president of the European ...

Japan Bond Yields Spike – 10-Year Now at 1

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:50:46 -0400

Japanese government bond (JGB) yields soared to 1 percent on Thursday, their highest level in a year, prompting the Bank of Japan to hold true to its promise of taking action to stabilize an incredibly volatile bond market. Analysts expected the market volatility to last for a while, but added that buying by domestic pension funds and the central bank should help keep a lid on yields. Benchmark ...

AIG eyes new director with regulatory experience

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:37:33 -0400

AIG.N ) board is looking for a new director with regulatory experience, as the insurer readies for the government to classify it as big enough to merit greater scrutiny, according to two sources familiar with the ...

Nissan to recall 841000 vehicles due to steering wheel glitch

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:37:32 -0400

7201.T ) will recall about 841,000 vehicles worldwide including the Micra compact car, also known as the March, as a result of a steering wheel glitch, Japan's No.2 automaker said on ...

BRIEF-Lloyds says St James Place divestment to raise 450 mln stg

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:09:31 -0400

LONDON | Thu May 23, 2013 2:09am EDT LONDON May 23 (Reuters) - Lloyds Banking Group PLC : * Placing of shares in st james's place plc * Gross proceeds of the placing are approximately 450 million * Settlement of placing will take place on 29 may. on completion, Lloyds will hold 110 million st james's place ...

Lenovo shares jump more than 4 percent after earnings beat forecast

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:55:22 -0400

Reuters © A convertible Lenovo Ultrabook is displayed at an Intel news conference during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas January 7, 2013. REUTERS/Steve ...

Path says ‘eye’ do

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:50:59 -0400

Get a look at what could be the most expensive catering hall in the world.The $3.74 billion World Trade Center PATH terminal - a Santiago Calatrava-designed centerpiece known as the Oculus - will be rented out for such events as charity fundraisers, art shows and, yes, maybe even weddings, The Post has learned.The eye-shaped, multistory space - so large it can fit two-and-a-half Grand Central ...

CEO median salary $9.7M

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:50:59 -0400

The head of a typical large public company made $9.7 million in 2012, a 6.5 percent increase from a year earlier, aided by a rising stock market, according to an analysis of data from Equilar. CEO pay, which rose 6 percent in 2011, has never been higher.Pay for all US workers rose 1.6 percent in 2012, not enough to keep up with inflation. The median US wage was $39,900 in 2012, according to the ...

Ratner puck luck ploy

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:50:59 -0400

Barclays Center owner Bruce Ratner is trying to defend against a power play.The developer, who hopes to bring six New York Islanders games a season to a slimmed-down Nassau Coliseum once the team moves to Brooklyn, said he doesn’t think Madison Square Garden can block the move."I don’t think it requires [MSG’s] approval," Ratner told Fox Business Network yesterday. ...

Restructuring Ross now headed for trial

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:50:58 -0400

Billionaire Wilbur Ross is famous for restructuring failing companies - but shareholders say he crossed a line when it came to bailing out one of his own bad investments.Nearly four years after it was brought, a lawsuit accusing the legendary founder of New York-based WL Ross & Co. of double dealing and breach of fiduciary duty is headed to trial.A South Carolina state judge last week ...

Twitter ups its security

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:50:57 -0400

Twitter is adding an extra security measure to prevent unauthorized log-ins.The microblogging service said yesterday that users will be able to enroll in a log-in verification program. Twitter will send a six-digit code using a text message each time the user signs in to Twitter.com. Besides their username and password, users will have to enter the code to log ...

HP beats the Street

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:50:57 -0400

Hewlett-Packard raised its 2013 earnings outlook after beating expectations, as CEO Meg Whitman’s turnaround plan shored up profits and offset shrinking PC sales with enterprise computing services.Fiscal second quarter profit fell 32 percent, less than feared. Shares gained 14 percent, or $2.86, to $24.09, in extending trading after HP projected full-year earnings per share of $3.50 to ...

Bloomberg checked out flacks for flak

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:50:57 -0400

Bloomberg LP, as its Spygate scandal spilled across papers around the world, sought professional help, The Post has learned.The data company weighed hiring crisis p.r. consultants, sources said.Bloomberg reached out to at least one New York-based external communications firm to get help addressing reports that its reporters were using its ubiquitous Wall Street terminals to spy on clients, the ...

Clearwire board call for Sprint

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:50:56 -0400

Clearwire’s board recommended Sprint Nextel’s higher takeover bid of $3.40 a share, or about $2.5 billion, saying it’s the best offer available to the struggling wireless-service provider.The bid, which Sprint boosted from $2.97 a share, tops a $3.30 contender from Dish Network. After the terms were changed, Clearwire rescheduled the shareholders’ vote until a week from ...

Tumblr spins $13M into $192M for lucky VCs

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:50:56 -0400

Tumblr’s $1.1 billion purchase by Yahoo! returned $192 million to two of its biggest venture backers, a person familiar with the matter said, disputing an estimate by PrivCo. Spark Capital and Union Square Ventures invested $13 million apiece, according to the source. That represents about a 15-fold return for Spark, based in Boston, and Union Square, in New York. PrivCo, which earlier this ...

Saks shares spike on heels of sale scoop

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:50:55 -0400

For Saks investors, it’s like the financial crisis never happened.Shares in the owner of Saks Fifth Avenue spiked 13 percent yesterday, after The Post first reported late Tuesday that the luxury retailer had hired Goldman Sachs to explore options, including a possible sale of the company.The stock gained $1.83 yesterday to settle at $15.50 after hitting an intraday high of $16.17 - the ...

Farmers Demand GrainCorp Sell Assets Ahead of ADM Takeover

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:28:00 -0400

Australian farmers have written to the government demanding the sale of some GrainCorp Ltd. (GNC.AU) assets as a condition to its takeover by Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM), fearing the U.S. grain giant could squeeze the few remaining competitors out of the market.GrainCorp late last month accepted a sweetened A$3.4 billion (US$3.3 billion) takeover offer from ADM. The deal--ADM's largest ...

China Construction Bank Buys Stake in Russian Bank

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:28:00 -0400

China Construction Bank Corp. (0939.HK), China's second-largest bank by assets, said Thursday that it purchased a $100 million stake in Russia's VTB Bank (VTBR.RS).The Chinese bank said in a statement on its website that it bought the newly issued shares in the Russian bank through a placement.The state-controlled Russian bank's share offer raised about $3.3 billion, China ...

Berkshire Seeks ResCap Ally Financial Report

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:27:59 -0400

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRKA) wants an independent examiner's report on dealings between mortgage company Residential Capital LLC and its government-owned parent Ally Financial Inc. released.Berkshire Hathaway says the report's findings can help it determine if a bankruptcy settlement involving the companies is fair. ResCap creditors including Berkshire want to see the report because ...

Pfizer takes its shot at a vaccine for evasive superbug

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:27:22 -0400

Kathrin Jansen, senior vice president of Vaccine Research and Early Development at Pfizer Inc, poses for a portrait in one of her labs at Pfizer headquarters in Pearl River, New York, April 19, ...

Exxon Mobil accused of anti-gay bias

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:26:30 -0400

The complaint, filed Wednesday with the Illinois Department of Human Rights by Freedom to Work, said Exxon was sent two nearly identical resumes for an opening in Illinois. The only major differences: one applicant made clear she was a gay-rights activist, and had higher grades than the other ...

Ford grows in America shrinks in Australia

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:45:03 -0400

Ford Motor Co. is adding production, and 3,500 jobs, in North America as it tries to keep up with Americans’ appetite for new cars and trucks. But the automaker will end production in Australia, cutting 1,200 jobs by 2016, as high costs left it unable to ...

Metals Stocks Gold falls after Fed talk boosts dollar

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:40:35 -0400

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Gold futures fell Thursday, weighed by strength in the U.S. dollar after the head of the U.S. Federal Reserve indicated the central bank could start tapering stimulus efforts in the coming ...

In a 3 a.m. vote Raytown gives green light to downtown Wal-Mart grocery store

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:39:12 -0400

After meeting for about seven and a half hours, the Raytown Board of Aldermen voted 6-4 early Wednesday to allow a change that paves the way for a Wal-Mart grocery store in its ...

Ignore Fed Hawks Bernanke in Driving Seat

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:34:25 -0400

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke would not risk a premature withdrawl of the stimlus that has underpinned the U.S. economic recovery, former vice chairman of the Fed Alan Binder told CNBC. In a testimony to Congress on Wednesday, Bernanke sounded a dovish tone, remarking that the premature tightening of monetary policy carries a "substantial risk" of slowing the economic recovery. ...

Hackers Find China Is Land of Opportunity

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:34:24 -0400

Name a target anywhere in China, an official at a state-owned company boasted recently, and his crack staff will break into that person's computer, download the contents of the hard drive, record the keystrokes and monitor cellphone communications, too. Pitches like that, from a salesman for Nanjing Xhunter Software, were not uncommon at a crowded trade show this month that brought together ...

Average U.S. 401 balance tops $80000 up 75 percent since 2009

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:20:45 -0400

BOSTON (Reuters) - The average 401(k) retirement balance for U.S. workers hit a record high of $80,900 in the first quarter, a growth spurt of 75 percent since the stock market's nadir in March 2009, Fidelity Investments said on Thursday based on a survey of its ...

SoftBank would appoint security director to Sprint board

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:20:45 -0400

S.N ) board if its takeover bid succeeds, and would give the U.S. government the right to approve the nominee, an attempt to address security concerns raised by the proposed ...

Mitsubishi Motors weighs capital shift dividends sources

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:20:44 -0400

7211.T ) is taking steps toward resuming dividend payments after nearly a decade-long turnaround bankrolled by other Mitsubishi group companies, according to people with direct knowledge of the ...

JGB yields surge markets spooked by Bernanke remarks

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:20:44 -0400

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Japanese government bonds plunged on Thursday, taking yields to their highest in a year and leading a selloff in bonds globally after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's remarks sparked worries of a reduction in U.S. monetary ...

Delta will wait for new planes to mature CEO

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:20:43 -0400

DAL.N ) is letting a wave of orders for the newest planes on the market roll by, giving the jets time to prove themselves before buying, its chief executive told Reuters on ...

High costs currency push Ford out of Australia car manufacturing

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:20:43 -0400

F.N ) will shut its two Australian auto plants in October 2016, blaming a strong currency and costs that are hitting manufacturers just as the country looks for other sectors of its economy to cushion the end of a mining ...

US stocks edge higher before Bernanke test

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:20:26 -0400

US stocks have opened slightly higher as the market looked ahead to congressional testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. Five minutes into trade on Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 16.11 (0.10 per cent) to 15,403.69. The broad-based S&P 500 added 1.37 (0.08 per cent) at 1,670.53, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index increased 0.68 (0.02 per cent) to ...

BASF To Spend EUR300 Million A Year Globally to Raise Capacity for Agricultural Products

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:17:37 -0400

Germany-based chemicals company BASF SE Thursday said it plans to spend an average of EUR300 million annually to build additional production capacity for agricultural products.The company announced plans to set up a new formulation and packaging plant for crop protection products in China. The new plant, which will have an annual production capacity of 10,000 metric tons, will be set up in Rudong ...

Newcrest Says Exploration License to be Reconsidered

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:17:36 -0400

Australia's largest listed gold miner, Newcrest Mining Ltd. (NCM.AU), said an exploration license near one of its biggest mines is being reviewed by the state government after a court upheld objections from a small private explorer to it being renewed in full.The New South Wales Land and Environment Court ruled the government hadn't provided sufficient reasons to support the full ...

Metrobank Gets Central Bank OK for 3-For-10 Stock Dividend

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:17:36 -0400

The central bank has approved Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co.'s (MBT.PH) 3-for-10 stock dividend, Metrobank said on Thursday.The country's second-largest lender by assets is now waiting for the securities regulator to approve a plan to double its authorized capital to 100 billion Philippine pesos ($2.4 billion). At present Metrobank has 1.5 billion common and 1 billion preferred ...

Jennifer Lopez Teams With Verizon to Revolutionize Smartphone Shopping

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:15:25 -0400

business venture.The woman of many hats has dipped into smartphone territory, teaming with Verizon Wireless to announce the launch of Viva Movil, a shopping tool designed with Latino consumers in mind, at the company's CTIA 2013 media event."This new company is here to revolutionize the entire mobile experience for Latinos," Lopez said. "There's no specific place for ...

HP earnings revenues go south

Wed, 22 May 2013 23:14:40 -0400

(48 mins ago) Hewlett-Packard said quarter profit was hit by a dramatic slump in sales of personal computers, while maintaining that its reorganization is making progress. The troubled but biggest maker of personal computers said net profit in the second fiscal quarter fell 32 percent from a year ago to US$1.1 billion. The earnings amounted to 87 US cents a share after adjustments, better than ...

China HSBC flash PMI hits 7-mth low fans growth fears

Wed, 22 May 2013 23:11:59 -0400

The flash HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for May fell to 49.6, slipping under the 50-point level demarcating expansion from contraction for the first since October. The final HSBC PMI stood at 50.4 in ...

Investment firms sue exchanges in dispute on improper fee charges

Wed, 22 May 2013 23:11:58 -0400

(Reuters) - A group of investment firms including Citadel Securities LLC sued the Chicago Board Options Exchange Inc and four other exchanges on Wednesday for improper charges on millions of options trades over a seven-year ...

Home sales prices up during April in Minnesota U.S.

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:24:31 -0400

Home sales in Minnesota and across the country posted modest gains last month, while prices increased by double digits, according to a pair of reports released ...

Xcel Energy changes top managers in Minnesota

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:24:30 -0400

In the face of regulatory challenges in Minnesota, Xcel Energy Inc. on Wednesday assigned a veteran executive to run its division in the state after promoting regional CEO Judy Poferl to corporate ...

Koalas have a new hangout at SD Zoo

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:24:04 -0400

Designed to mimic the animals' Australian homeland, the $7.4 million exhibit not only includes a brand-new habitat with more enclosures for the tree-perching koalas, but also aviaries and dedicated areas for wallabies and wombats -- all accented with Aussie architecture, plantings and 8-foot-to-15-foot-tall Aboriginal-inspired totem ...

Australian Market Declines On Wall Street Cues

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:23:26 -0400

The Australian stock market is trading weak on Thursday with investors pressing sales at several counters, tracking cues from Wall Street where stocks tumbled overnight amid doubts about further stimulus from the U.S. Federal Reserve.Financial, consumer staples, industrial and property trusts stocks are trading weak, while mining, energy and healthcare stocks are trading mixed.The benchmark ...

James Moore While RBS and Lloyds are just capital speculation starts about the small fry

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:17:32 -0400

Is that the conclusion we are supposed to draw from yesterday's unscheduled "we're all OK, honest" announcements from Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland? It's rosy in their (capital) gardens, they say, which will grow through a "strongly capital-generative core business" plus a few more disposals (Lloyds) and "delivery against against its business ...

QA Microsoft Games boss on Xbox One lineup Spielbergs Halo and more

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:14:33 -0400

Microsoft’s unveiling of the Xbox One console on Tuesday mostly showed off the system’s entertainment capabilities. The next big Xbox event, on June 10 in Los Angeles, will be mostly about games. For a preview I buttonholed Phil Spencer, vice president of Microsoft Game Studios,on ...

Volatile Trading Day Keeps Focus on Fed Jobs Data

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:13:30 -0400

Volatile trading in stocks and bonds could continue as investors sort out what's going on with the Fed and whether markets have come to some sort of inflection point. That makes every bit of economic data even more important, since the Fed has made clear its path will be determined by the progress of the economy, and employment in particular. ...

Xbox One Has Microsoft lost the name game in the console war

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:03:52 -0400

On Tuesday, before a roomful of panting games journalists and sore-thumbed enthusiasts, Microsoft unveiled its latest games console. The curtain was pulled, and the Xbox One was revealed. As gamers ruminated on the implications of the 'box (not hardcore enough? Better than the forthcoming PlayStation 4?), some of us were left ...

Hewlett-Packards slump continues as revenue drops 10

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:57:24 -0400

Hewlett-Packard Chief Executive Meg Whitman has repeatedly warned that HP's revenue might not start growing at an acceptable rate for another year or ...

HP earnings fall 31 percent but surpass expectations

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:50:02 -0400

Hewlett Packard CEO Meg Whitman Hewlett-Packard Co. reported second quarter earnings Wednesday, showing earnings per share of $0.55 or $1.1 billion, a 31 percent decline in earnings from a year ago. Adjusted earnings came in at $0.87 a share or $1.7 billion, exceeding analyst expectations of $0.81 a share. Net revenue fell 10 percent to $27.6 billion, and cash flow came in at $3.6 billion, a 44 ...

Wall Street pours cold water on Targets weather excuses

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:14:55 -0400

Target blamed the weather for slow sales, but analysts don’t think that’s the whole story. The retailer’s stock fell 4 ...

Blu-ray patent group sues Imation over blank discs

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:14:53 -0400

Sony Corp. and three other companies that helped invent Blu-ray movie discs sued Imation Corp., claiming the data-storage company broke patent laws by selling blank, recordable versions of the ...

HPs slump deepens in second quarter as earnings fall 32 percent

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:14:52 -0400

Hewlett-Packard Co. reported Wednesday that quarterly earnings fell 32 percent from a year ago. But the company’s stock rose in extended trading after the company’s forecast came in above analysts’ ...

Wall Street falters in volatile session on Fed worries

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:00:29 -0400

NEW YORK: Stocks fell on Wednesday with the S&P 500 posting its biggest decline in three weeks, after minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting showed some officials were open to tapering large-scale asset purchases as early as at the June meeting. Trading was volatile - the Dow and the S&P indexes both rose more than 1 percent during the morning, but fell more than 1 percent in the ...

GM recalls more than 27000 Cadillac crossovers with wheel issue

Wed, 22 May 2013 20:51:34 -0400

GM said on Wednesday it knows of no crashes or injuries due to the issue and that no wheels have separated from the sport utility vehicles built on car-based ...

ICBC Chinas Largest Bank by Assets Promotes Vice President to President

Wed, 22 May 2013 20:48:27 -0400

Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. (1398.HK), China's largest bank by assets, has appointed vice president Yi Huiman as president, replacing Yang Kaisheng who will retire.Mr. Yi, 49, joined the bank in 1985 and was named as vice president in 2008, state-owned ICBC said in a statement to the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The appointment is subject to approval from Chinese regulators, ...

AEA Investors Hires Banks for CPG International Sale Sources -Reuters

Wed, 22 May 2013 20:48:27 -0400

Building products maker CPG International may be sold by its private equity owner, AEA Investors LP, for between $1 billion and $1.5 billion, the Reuters news agency said Wednesday on its website, citing three unnamed people familiar with the matter.AEA Investors has hired Barclays PLC (BCS) and Deutsche Bank AG (DB) to find a buyer for CPG, the people were quoted as saying in the report.CPG is ...

Australia shares down after Wall St drops awaiting China PMI

Wed, 22 May 2013 20:27:42 -0400

Wed May 22, 2013 8:27pm EDT (Updates to open) SYDNEY May 23 (Reuters) - Australian shares fell 0.4 percent early on Thursday, after Wall Street retreated over worries that the U.S. Federal Reserve may consider winding back its economic stimulus programme. Investors will watch for HSBC's early manufacturing report on China, Australia's biggest export market, for clues to China's ...

UPDATE 1-Ford to close Australia auto plants - reports

Wed, 22 May 2013 20:24:30 -0400

Wed May 22, 2013 8:24pm EDT * Ford to end Australia production by 2016 - reports * Strong Australia dollar, cheaper imports hurt local manufacturers * Australian economy at risk as mining boom peaks, other sectors sluggish * Govt previously committed A$5.4 bln to support car manufacturers to 2020 CANBERRA, May 23 (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co is set to announce it is closing its two Australian auto ...

Ed Miliband a googly for tax avoiders | Editorial

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:57:47 -0400

Ed Miliband is pretty clear about how he would like to distinguish the Labour party he leads from the Labour party that went before. He aims to be readier than Blair and Brown to challenge the powerful in general, and the economically mighty in particular.Over three years, we've seen flashes of both halves of that - in, for example, his determination to take Wapping to task over phone ...

Gross Fed Likely to Start Tapering by Fall

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:55:18 -0400

Pimco's Bill Gross says an inflection point is approaching and he thinks the Federal Reserve will probably start tapering its bond buying by ...

Microsoft caves in cripples YouTube for Windows Phone 8 with the latest update

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:53:32 -0400

On Wednesday, Microsoft rolls out an update for its YouTube Windows Phone 8 app which takes away the ability to download content from the popular video-sharing website. The latest iteration arrives one week after Google sent ...

UPDATE 1-U.S. House votes to force approval of Keystone pipeline

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:53:06 -0400

Wed May 22, 2013 7:53pm EDT By Ros Krasny WASHINGTON May 22 (Reuters) - The House of Representatives approved a bill as expected on Wednesday declaring that a presidential permit was not needed to approve the Canada-to-Nebraska leg of the Keystone XL oil pipeline, a move that would take a decision on the project away from the Obama administration. The Republican-controlled House voted 241-175 ...

Bernanke comments hit US stocks Australian dollar

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:52:40 -0400

United States Wall Street saw its biggest one day swing in six months and the Australian dollar dropped overnight as investors raised concerns that the US Federal Reserve will scale back its stimulus program shortly.Markets initially rose as Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernankeaddressed Congress saying the quantitative easing program is providing significant benefits to the American economy ...

HP raises 2013 outlook as Whitmans plan takes hold

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:42:54 -0400

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Hewlett-Packard Co raised its 2013 earnings outlook after quarterly results beat low expectations, as CEO Meg Whitman's turnaround plan helped offset shrinking personal computer sales with enterprise computing ...

Borders gift card holders deserve nothing judge rules

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:42:47 -0400

(Reuters) - Borders owes nothing to holders of roughly $210.5 million of gift cards that had not been used by the time the bookstore chain shut down, a Manhattan federal judge ruled on ...

Apple former Washington wallflower now at center of tax fight

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:42:47 -0400

Apple CEO Tim Cook is pictured during a Senate homeland security and governmental affairs investigations subcommittee hearing on offshore profit shifting and the U.S. tax code, on Capitol Hill in Washington, May 21, ...

Blackstone Prologis Acquire Industrial Portfolio for $960 Million -Sources

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:39:39 -0400

Blackstone Group LP (BX) and industrial landlord Prologis Inc. (PLD) agreed to acquire a warehouse portfolio that is majority owned by Lehman Brothers for $960 million, people familiar with the matter said Wednesday.The deal marks Blackstone's second acquisition of industrial properties this week. The private-equity company now owns 100 million square feet in the sector. Blackstone on Monday ...

In final year as Canada’s top bank watchdog Julie Dickson will make no apologies

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:38:10 -0400

Canada’s top banking regulator is leaving when her seven-year term expires next year, marking a significant changing of the guard. But will the departure of Julie Dickson at the helm of the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) result in a drastic change in tone? Not likely. After all, the 55-year-old career public servant is a product of a regulatory system that ...

Flaherty says Ottawa to move ahead with single securities regulator plan even without provinces

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:38:07 -0400

OTTAWA --Finance Minister Jim Flaherty says the federal government will again push ahead with the creation of a national securities regulator, with or without the agreement of the provinces and territories, to deal with areas in which Ottawa is constitutionally responsible. "I've been advocating a common securities regulator for a long time, with limited success," Mr. Flaherty ...

Executives decry pressure of ‘short-termism’ in earnings targets

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:57:52 -0400

Senior corporate executives say they have faced growing pressure in the past five years to meet short-term earnings targets, leading to a new campaign to urge shareholders to take a longer-term outlook for stocks they own.The heads of the Canada Pension Plan fund and international consulting firm McKinsey & Co. told a Toronto audience Wednesday they are launching a campaign to convince ...

Renting better than buying in the Twin Cites

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:56:36 -0400

Just Listed brings you the latest news and information from the Twin Cities-area commercial and residential real estate market and beyond from veteran reporters Jim Buchta and Janet ...

San Onofre execs in Star Trek parody

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:56:11 -0400

Ross Ridenoure (center facing right), chief nuclear officer of the San Onofre nuclear power plant, and workers stood by one of the two new generators that will be installed in the complex. (Charlie Neuman / ...

Ben Bernanke tells bulls what they want to hear

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:48:46 -0400

Ben Bernanke's statement suggests the prospect of an imminent change of policy by the Federal Reserve is unlikely. Photograph: James Berglie/ZUMA ...

QA with a London derivatives trader | Joris Luyendijk

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:48:44 -0400

interviewee who specialised in shares (equity) and who was lamenting the rise of derivatives - financial products such as options, swaps and futures that can be almost infinitely more complex than simple shares. Today's interviewee is one such derivatives ...

Wal-Mart plans to send automated shopping lists to its mobile app

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:46:28 -0400

IDG News Service - Wal-Mart plans to use big data about a customer's usual shopping to automatically create shopping lists for them on its mobile app. That's one of the tools the world's largest retailer plans to use to improve the in-store shopping experience as it looks to mobile-influenced purchases outpacing e-commerce sales, said Gibu Thomas, Wal-Mart's global head of ...

Wal-Mart Using Big Data to Power Mobile

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:46:22 -0400

Wal-Mart wants to tell you what to buy on your mobile device and it's using its massive collection of data to make it a reality. "Our mobile strategy is as simple as it is audacious. We want to make mobile tools that become indispensable for our customers while shopping in our stores and online," said Gibu Thomas, global head of Wal-Mart's mobile division, on Wednesday at the ...

Tesla Pays Off $465 Million DOE Loan

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:46:21 -0400

Tesla has become the first automaker to repay its loan under the Energy Department's Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing program. In a statement issued after the money had been wired, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said, "I would like to thank the Department of Energy and the members of Congress and their staffs that worked hard to create the ATVM program, and particularly the American ...

DryShips posts another loss expects rates to remain weak

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:34:16 -0400

DRYS.O ), a drybulk shipper and offshore contract driller, posted a sixth straight quarterly loss and said it did not expect charter rates to improve this ...

Midwest gasoline prices expected to cool after spike

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:34:10 -0400

(Reuters) - Gasoline prices in the Midwest should fall in the coming days after hitting record highs in several cities last week in the run up to Memorial Day, the traditional start to the summer driving season, traders and industry analysts said on ...

LyondellBasell Raises Dividend by 25 Approves Share Buybacks

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:31:11 -0400

LyondellBasell Industries NV's (LYB) board has raised the plastics and chemicals company's quarterly dividend by 25% and approved the repurchase of up to 10% of its stock over the next 12 months, moves to increase shareholder return.The dividend increase to 50 cents a share will cost the company about $57.5 million more a quarter, based on roughly 575 million shares outstanding as of ...

Exclusive Glencore Trafigura deals with Iran may have skirted sanctions - U.N.

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:30:33 -0400

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Metals swap deals with Iran by Switzerland-based commodities giants Glencore Xstrata and Trafigura could have been a way of skirting international sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program, according to a confidential U.N. Panel of Experts report seen by Reuters on ...

Whole Foods says grocer wants to open 40 more stores in Canada

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:29:49 -0400

MONTREAL - U.S. grocer Whole Foods Market Inc. says it could open 40 or more stores and tally $1-billion in annual sales in Canada as part of a wider expansion that continues unabated. ';By the time we actually get to the place of being able to open those stores, I expect the market will continue to evolve,'; company co-chief executive John Mackey told reporters at a business ...

‘Get ready to deal with fear’ CP Rail chief Harrison fires back at union critics over safety concerns

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:29:48 -0400

Hunter Harrison, Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. chief executive, fired back at some of the railway's union leaders Wednesday after they expressed concerns this week that a restructuring underway at the railway may be contributing to several high-profile derailments, including one in Saskatchewan on Tuesday that spilled more than 68,500 litres of crude oil on the ground before it was ...

Assessing Detour Gold’s $153-million bought deal

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:29:48 -0400

There's a lot of wouldas, couldas and shouldas about the $153-million bought deal financing for Detour Gold that came to the market late Tuesday afternoon. That deal, which came a day after the shares hit a recent six-month low, was priced at $8.75 a share, or more than 5% below its then trading price of $9.23. The deal also broke a steady Detour Gold financing strategy: always finance at ...

Amys Baking Company could face legal nightmare

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:28:40 -0400

(MoneyWatch) For those with a taste for reality TV, business or even disaster movies, Amy's Baking Company has become a sight to behold. A disastrous appearance on the show "Kitchen Nightmares" was quickly followed by ...

Hewlett-Packards Q2 profit falls by $516 million

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:27:35 -0400

Hewlett-Packard Co. reported a second quarter profit of $1.1 billion, down $516 million, or 32 percent from the same quarter a year earlier. Palo Alto-based HP (NYSE: HPQ), led by ...

US stocks fall as market eyes possible Fed retreat

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:24:33 -0400

Trader Kevin Lodewick works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in this May 2, 2013, file photo. US stocks Wednesday, May 22, 2013, ended lower following a choppy day of trading as the market weighed exit signals on the Federal Reserve’s exceptionally loose monetary policy. AFP PHOTO/RICHARD DREW NEW YORK--US stocks Wednesday ended lower following a choppy day of trading as the ...

Hewlett-Packard sees profit drop but beats expectations

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:49:23 -0400

A Hewlett-Packard logo is seen at the company's Executive Briefing Center in Palo Alto, California in this January 16, 2013, file photo. Hewlett-Packard Co's quarterly profit slid 32 percent but the world's largest personal computer maker raised the lower end of its full-year outlook as revenue from services to corporations slightly offset shrinking PC sales in the second quarter ...

ValueVision has first quarterly profit in seven years

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:47:50 -0400

Eden Prairie firm, better known as the TV channel and website ShopNBC, earned $1 million, or 2 cents a share, in the first quarter its first quarterly profit since 2006. "We cut costs and managed carefully," said Bill McGrath, chief financial officer, in an interview Wednesday. The firm reduced several lending agreements to one, and expanded its revolving line of credit to $50 million ...

San Diego top Memorial Day destination

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:47:27 -0400

Expect a busy Memorial Day weekend as millions of Southern Californians hit the road, many of them opting to stay in San Diego, reports the Automobile ...

Wal-Mart Hires a New Chief Image Maker

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:44:57 -0400

The company, the nation's largest retailer, announced on Wednesday that Dan Bartlett, an adviser to President George W. Bush, would be its new executive vice president of corporate affairs, starting in late ...

Jennifer Lopez to open cellphone stores

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:42:26 -0400

NEW YORK - "Jenny from the Block" wants the block to buy Verizon phones from her.Singer and actress Jennifer Lopez says she's opening a chain of cellphone stores and a website under the Viva Mobil brand. The aim is to sell Verizon phones and services to Latinos.The first store will open in New York on June 15. Lopez says the stores will have bilingual staff and provide a ...

Confusion Ruled the Day at Microsofts Xbox One Reveal Event

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:25:47 -0400

In today's business world, disruption is a constant force that never lets up. At the annual WIRED Business Conference: Disruptive by Design, we celebrate the creative power of bold new ideas and the people that make them happen. See the event ...

Starbucks veteran Michelle Gass leaving for Kohls

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:24:41 -0400

SBUX.O ) executive Michelle Gass, who was instrumental in the world's biggest coffee chain's post-recession U.S. turnaround, is leaving after more than 16 years to become chief customer officer at retailer Kohl's Corp ...

Dell buyout group discounts companys dismal 1Q earnings

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:22:12 -0400

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn is part of an investor group competing with a group led by Dell Inc. CEO Michael Dell to buyout the companys shareholders. Dell Inc.s prospective buyout group is downplaying last weeks 79 percent decline in first-quarter profits. Tennessee-based Southeastern Asset Management Inc. wrote that Round Rock-based Dells (Nasdaq: DELL) performed well in the business ...

Guess Whos Piling into Stock ETFs Central Bankers

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:21:35 -0400

The U.S. Federal Reserve's zero interest rate policy (ZIRP) and multiple rounds of quantitative easing (QE) have been rightly blamed on surging stock prices ...

SeaWorld reports nearly $240M in sales in first earnings report

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:20:54 -0400

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HP profit down 32 percent shares up as results beat estimates

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:20:52 -0400

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Hewlett-Packard Co's quarterly profit slid 32 percent but the world's largest personal computer maker raised the lower end of its full-year outlook after earnings per share beat forecasts, sending its stock 10 percent ...

Court ruling gives mixed message in Unique Broadband Systems dispute

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:20:07 -0400

Granted, it ain't over till it's over, but there has been something of a mixed message delivered in the matter between Unique Broadband Systems and Jolian Investments Ltd., a private company controlled by Gerald McGoey, the former chief executive of UBS. In a 37-page ruling released Wednesday, Madam Justice Mesbur of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice outlined reasons why ...

Fed uncertainty extinguishes rally

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:19:04 -0400

NEW YORK Stocks fell today on news that several Federal Reserve policymakers in a meeting earlier this month favored cutting back on stimulus programs as early as June if the economy continued to improve. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 80 points to 15,307, a loss of a half a percent. The release of minutes of the April 30-May 1 meeting reversed a 154 point surge in early trading after ...

US Stocks Wall Street extends losses SP down 1

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:16:36 -0400

Sources said the provision would not only badly hit Indian IT cos, but also disrupt operational capabilities of a large number of key US cos as ...

H.P. Earnings Are Higher Than Expected

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:48:17 -0400

SAN FRANCISCO ...

Why Are Homeowners Being Jailed for Demanding Wall Street Prosecutions

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:36:30 -0400

May 22, 2013 3:00 PM ET A two-day long housing protest outside the Department of Justice this week has resulted in nearly 30 arrests and several instances of law enforcement unnecessarily using tasers on activists, according to eye-witnesses. The action – which was organized by a coalition of housing advocacy groups, including the Home Defenders League and Occupy Our Homes – called ...

Target Cuts Full-year Forecast on Disappointing Earnings

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:30:32 -0400

Target Corp., like many other retail rivals, was laid low in its first fiscal quarter by cold spring temperatures that discouraged seasonal shopping and caused the chain to underperform by even its own metrics. The Minneapolis company said sales at stores open more than a year declined 0.6% in the three months ended May 4. That's after the retailer in April amended an earlier forecast ...

J.P. Morgan Chase Boss Keeps Both Jobs

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:30:27 -0400

J.P. Morgan Chase Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon can keep both his jobs after just 32 percent of shareholders voted Tuesday in Tampa, Fla. for a non-binding measure that would have advised the global financial giant to split the roles. Last year, 40 percent of shareholders voted for the measure. In six prior annual meetings where Dimon has been both chairman and CEO, shareholders have been ...

Letters Paying tax is absolutely a moral issue

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:29:51 -0400

Never mind morals, tax is all about the rules , 21 May). A great many ordinary people see payment - or rather non-payment - of tax as fundamentally a moral question. Perhaps it might be talked about as justice or fairness, but it boils down to the same thing. Christian Aid supporters have been campaigning on matters of tax justice for five years.At the heart of their concern is the moral question ...

Google boss calls for a rational and predictable international tax system

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:29:50 -0400

Google boss Eric Schmidt, explaining his firm's tax affairs, says: 'Virtually all the American companies have tax structures like this, and UK companies operating in the US do too.' Photograph: Olivia ...

George Osborne warned by IMF that cuts pose headwinds to growth

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:29:49 -0400

George Osborne was on Wednesday urged by the International Monetary Fund to rethink his plans for a 10bn tax-and-spending squeeze this year, as part of a broad based attack on the coalition's economic policies.After a fortnight's fact-finding mission in London, the Washington-based lender warned that the planned package of spending cuts and tax rises would "pose headwinds" to ...

Whitmans Work Continues Hewlett-Packard Rallies After Earnings Beat Outlook

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:29:18 -0400

reported second-quarter earnings that beat the Street's consensus estimate Wednesday, despite falling 11% from a year ago. Earnings per share of 87 cents were above HP's outlook for 80-82 cents and the 81 cents analysts anticipated. Net revenue of $27.6 billion was 10% below the prior year (9% when excluding currency impacts). Despite the declines, HP threw off $3.6 billion in cash, a ...

NJ Cheap Booze Sold as Premium Liquor

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:27:17 -0400

New Jersey officials have seized inventory and demanded records from 29 bars and restaurants that allegedly sold low-quality liquor to patrons who thought they were buying premium ...

HP Earnings Outlook Top Expectations

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:27:17 -0400

Hewlett-Packard reported fiscal second-quarter earnings excluding items of 87 cents a share on revenue of $27.58 billion. Analysts were expecting earnings of 81 cents per share on revenue of $28.01 billion, according to estimates from Thomson Reuters. For the fiscal third quarter, HP said it expects earnings of 84 to 87 cents a share vs. expectations of 83 cents a share.For the full year, HP ...

Stanford Art Collection $2.9 Million for Victims

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:27:16 -0400

Former billionaire Allen Stanford, convicted last year of running one of the biggest investment frauds in history, had particularly expensive tastes in art. Wednesday in Dallas, an auction of some of his most prized possessions brought in just over $2.9 million. The proceeds are to be turned over to victims of the $7 billion scam, who thus far have recovered next to nothing. ...

Refuse to Testify Youre Fired

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:27:16 -0400

Lois Lerner, the IRS official who headed the division that targeted Tea Party and other conservative groups for special tax scrutiny, invoked her Fifth Amendment right to refuse questions before Congress on Wednesday. The decision could cost her her job.And it doesn't mean that she won't be forced to answer questions. In fact, it's relatively easy for Congress to force her to ...

Wall Street declines after Fed releases minutes

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:23:40 -0400

Source: Reuters US stocks have fallen, with a selloff accelerating in late afternoon trade, after minutes from the latest US Federal Reserve meeting showed some officials were open to tapering large-scale asset purchases as early as at the June meeting. The minutes followed comments from Chairman Ben Bernanke who said the Fed could decide to scale back the pace of bond purchases at one of ...

Exxon Mobil Sued For Anti-Gay Employment Discrimination

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:23:23 -0400

There are still 29 states where a person can be fired for being gay, but Illinois is not one of them. Nevertheless, it seems that Exxon ...

Bob Lutz Chinese parts maker offer $20 million for Fisker sources

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:14:08 -0400

Wanxiang and VL Automotive are looking to buy Fisker, which has not built a car since July, through a prepackaged bankruptcy deal. A separate team of investors is looking to buy out the U.S. Department of Energy's position in ...

PepsiCo rethinks U.S. pricing to attract more everyday buyers

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:14:07 -0400

The strategy, which PepsiCo refers to as "hybrid everyday value," involves narrowing the gap between soda prices on holidays and regular days. It aims to lessen the discounts on holidays, when a 12-pack of 12-ounce cans can cost as little as $2.50 to $3, and lower prices throughout the rest of the year, when the same package can cost as much as ...

After Hours Hewlett-Packard in focus after hours

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:12:13 -0400

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Hewlett-Packard Co. shares will be in focus after hours Wednesday as the computer maker reports fiscal second-quarter ...

The Wall Street cicada index

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:12:10 -0400

Super Bowl to predict stock market returns, why not a plague of locusts? There are already goldbugs, so why not bug bugs? Standard & Poor's market-data guru Howard Silverblatt agrees. When MarketWatch called to sound him out this morning, it turned out he'd already thought to check out the cicada market theory and had been pleasantly surprised by the results. Of course, that ...

H-P earnings drop but beat Street estimates

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:12:09 -0400

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Hewlett-Packard Co. said Wednesday afternoon that earnings fell 32% for its second fiscal quarter, though the adjusted bottom line beat Wall Street's estimates. For the period ended April 30, ...

U.S. Capital-Equipment Financing Up 23 in April-Survey

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:11:00 -0400

A survey of credit providers showed that loans and leases for business equipment in the U.S. rose 23% in April from a year ago, as companies went on their largest buying spree of the year so far.Respondents to the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association's monthly survey published Thursday said they financed $7.5 billion of new equipment last month, up from $6.1 billion in April 2012. ...

MARKET SNAPSHOT U.S. Stocks Drop On Fed Tapering Worries

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:11:00 -0400

NEW YORK – U.S. stocks extended losses on Wednesday after minutes from the Federal Reserve latest meeting and comments from the Fed chief suggested the central bank may begin tapering its bond-buying program in coming months.Stocks had a wild ride during the session, as investors digested congressional testimony by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and the release at 2 p.m. Eastern of the minutes ...

Long-Term Mutual Funds Inflows Total $8.51 Billion in Latest Week - ICI

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:10:59 -0400

Long-term mutual funds increased by $8.51 billion in the latest week as investors put money into most fund categories, the Investment Company Institute said.Investors have generally been returning to equity mutual funds since January, after avoiding them for several years after the 2008 financial crisis.For the week ended May 15, equity funds had inflows of $2.38 billion, lower than gains of ...

Pipeline plan to send crude from Montreal to Maine raises ire in New England

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:09:32 -0400

New England is in an uproar over a pipeline reversal that would allow Canadian oil sands to be transported from Montreal to Portland in Maine, en route to global ...

Bernankes leadership a critical factor for Fed policy

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:08:30 -0400

on Bernanke's testimony , it was far from a definitive statement about the future course of policy. Chairman Bernanke's leadership, in particular his ability to prevent premature tightening, will be an important factor in determining how policy evolves in coming ...

How commodities can help a portfolio

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:08:29 -0400

(MoneyWatch) One of the most persistent mistakes made when building a portfolio is evaluating potential investments in isolation, instead of considering how their addition impacts the overall risk and return of the portfolio as a whole. The following is a great example of why this is a mistake. I happened upon it when preparing a presentation on commodities' impact on portfolios. We'll ...

Corvette crash knocks out power for 2000

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:01:21 -0400

Authorities in Oregon said a man who lost control of his Chevrolet Corvette caused about 2,000 households to lose power in their homes. The Clackamas County Sheriff's Office said Ethan Cross, 42, had only owned the silver Corvette for a few hours Tuesday when he crashed it into a power pole in Boring around 9 p.m., The (Portland) Oregonian reported Wednesday. Portland General Electric ...

Europe targets Switzerland in fight against bank secrecy

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:29:24 -0400

Reuters © (L-R) Greece's Prime Minister Antonis Samaras listens to Austria's Chancellor Werner Faymann and Latvia's Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis as they pose for a family photo during a European Union leaders summit in Brussels May 22, 2013. REUTERS/Laurent ...

‘Boom Town Baby’ African stock markets soaring

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:28:12 -0400

The barrage of hourly tweets sent out by Aly-Khan Satchu - East Africa's version of CNBC's Mad Money host Jim Cramer - cheers on what Satchu says is a growing sentiment among investors: If you're not investing in Africa, you should be. Or as Satchu loudly proclaims on his Twitter feed or newspaper column: "IT'S BOOM TOWN ...

Fed weighed slowing its pace of bond purchases

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:27:33 -0400

Several Federal Reserve policymakers this month favored slowing the Fed's efforts to maintain record-low long-term interest rates as early as June _ if the economy showed strong and sustained growth. But those officials appeared at odds over what evidence would demonstrate such gains.Minutes of the Fed's April 30-May 1 meeting released Wednesday show "a number" of members ...

GlaxoSmithKline US team up to make new drugs to combat antibiotic resistance terror threats

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:26:43 -0400

LONDON - GlaxoSmithKline PLC says it's starting an unusual collaboration with the U.S. government to develop several antibiotics for both bioterrorism threats and bacterial infections resistant to current medicines. Antibiotic resistance will become a global crisis, experts predict, because most drug companies have cut investment in antibiotics. Instead, they're developing ...

Stocks fall after Fed minutes show policymakers had weighed a pullback on its stimulus program

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:26:41 -0400

NEW YORK - Stocks fell in afternoon trading Wednesday on news that several Federal Reserve policymakers in a meeting earlier this month favored cutting back on stimulus programs as early as June if the economy continued to improve. The release of minutes of the April 30-May 1 meeting reversed a surge earlier in the day on hopes that the Fed was a long way from stopping its stimulus efforts. ...

Basile to star at Inside the Design Studio

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:26:16 -0400

, multiple Orchid winner especially for restaurant design, will reveal his secrets "Inside the Design Studio," sponsored by the San Diego Architectural ...

LRAD avoids proxy fight with big shareholder

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:26:15 -0400

Under terms of the settlement, LRAD agreed to nominate two independent directors proposed by Iroquois and a third director who was mutually agreed to by the company and ...

Wal-Mart hires Hill Knowlton executive

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:25:35 -0400

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is naming Dan Bartlett, who had been president and CEO of the U.S. arm of global public relations firm Hill & Knowlton, as its new executive vice president of corporate ...

Deficit national debt and government borrowing - how has it changed since 1946

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:17:54 -0400

Office for National Statistics said public sector net borrowing came in at 85.1 for the 2012-13 financial year. That's a 35.8bn improvement on the 120.9bn in the previous ...

The Hamptons Billionaire Lane Where Wall Streets Richest Retreat For The Summer

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:17:21 -0400

The Hamptons are awash with ritzy addresses, but perhaps no street boasts more billionaires than Southampton's Meadow Lane. The 5-mile-long road sports a private helipad that can rush residents to Manhattan in 20 minutes, but conveniences like that cost serious cash: The median sale price for a home here last year was $18 ...

Citrix links cloud-based storage to Microsoft SharePoint and Azure

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:15:22 -0400

IDG News Service - Citrix Systems is making its cloud-based storage service ShareFile more Microsoft-friendly with SharePoint integration and the ability to store data on Azure. Services for storing and sharing content in the cloud started in the consumer sector, but more enterprises are now adopting rather than blocking them. Citrix saw this trend coming and acquired ShareFile back in October ...

10 Stocks That Hedge Funds Love

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:15:07 -0400

Goldman Sachs has revealed its list of stocks that are most loved by the nearly $2 trillion hedge fund industry so that they can "follow the smart money," the firm ...

Fed Minutes Participants Mull Taper as Soon as June

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:15:07 -0400

U.S. Federal Reserve's Federal Open Markets Committee this month favored slowing the Fed's efforts to maintain record-low long-term interest rates as early as summer -- if the economy showed strong and sustained growth. But those officials appeared at odds over what evidence would demonstrate such gains. Minutes of the Fed's April 30-May 1 meeting released Wednesday show "a ...

Paid Low Wages on the Government Dime

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:15:07 -0400

Wal-Mart vs. the Feds: Who's the Low-Wage Job King? ) "I work very hard and look over three different areas of the place," said Roseboro. "It's tough. We need to be making $10 an hour.to make a decent living." Roseboro and the other workers are employed under federal contracts with private companies in industries like retail, food and defense. But a recent report ...

Rubio Time for Immigration Reform

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:15:06 -0400

NBC's Erika Gonzalez reports on the aftermath of the Oklahoma tragedy. Meanwhile Sen. Marco Rubio, (R-FL), shares his views on the IRS scandal in Washington. As the "Gang of Eight" immigration bill cleared its first major hurdle to advance to the Senate floor, Senator Marco Rubio urged a bipartisan approach to pass the legislation. "One thing is to have a bill and another ...

Wall St dips as Fed opens taper door

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:07:49 -0400

US stocks and bonds fell, both giving up earlier gains, after Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke suggested the central bank might scale back stimulus measures as early as at its next meeting."If we see continued improvement and we have confidence that that is going to be sustained, then we could in-in the next few meetings, we could take a step down in our pace of ...

US STOCKS-Wall St declines as FOMC minutes raise concern over Fed tapering

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:07:43 -0400

Wed May 22, 2013 3:07pm EDT * FOMC minutes show members open to tapering, disagreement on conditions * Bernanke touts benefits of Fed easing, but hints could act * Stocks down after hitting highs earlier * Dow off 0.4 pct, S&P off 0.7 pct, Nasdaq off 1 pct By Angela Moon NEW YORK, May 22 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday with a selloff accelerating in late afternoon trade, after minutes ...

Video Microsofts Xbox One entertainment console unveiled

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:07:18 -0400

Microsoft's new Xbox One entertainment console seeks to deliver the Holy Grail of home entertainment. It lets you watch television, play movies, listen to music and browse the Internet as well as play video games. (May ...

Activist Raider Stalks London-Listed Oil Firm

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:06:40 -0400

A Ukrainian tycoon will on Thursday move to oust two top bosses of JKX Oil & Gas, a London-listed natural resources group. Sky News understands that Eclairs Group, a vehicle of Igor Kolomoisky, will publish an open letter seeking broader shareholder support to remove Paul Davies and Peter Dixon, JKX's chief executive and commercial director. Citing the company's "ongoing ...

Video Microsoft reveals new Xbox

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:04:56 -0400

'Soldier beheaded' in street as two shot in suspected terrorist attack near Woolwich barracks - 'attacker' shown in video saying 'We will never stop fighting ...