GDP Rises     2/26/10

U.S. gross domestic product rose 5.9% at a seasonally adjusted annual rate in the fourth quarter, compared to an initial reading of 5.7% growth, the Commerce Department reported. Economic growth accelerated to the strongest pace in more than six years late last year, as revisions showed businesses slowed inventory reduction and boosted spending, but consumers spent less than first thought.

Daimler's shares tumble 7.7%       2/18/10

Daimler's shares tumbled 7.7% in Frankfurt after the German car and truck maker reported a fourth-quarter net loss of 352 million euros ($479 million), undershooting analyst expectations of a net profit of 277 million euros. The loss compares with a 1.53 billion-euro loss a year earlier. The earnings follow an announcement late Wednesday renewing Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche's contract until Dec. 31, 2013.

The Price of Safety Just Went Up   2/17/10

Investors battered by market upheaval, including a 6% stock slide in recent weeks, have a new mantra for their portfolios: preserve, protect and defend.

Dollar Loses Ground    2/16/10Subscriber Content Read Preview

The dollar declined against rivals as investors piled into stocks and commodities, turning their backs on the low-yielding greenback.

FirstEnergy Agrees to $4.7 Billion Takeover of Allegheny Energy         2/11/10

U.S. Employers Cut 20,000 Jobs in January; Unemployment Rate Drops to 9.7%                2/5/10

U.S. employers cut 20,000 jobs in January, while December's tally of job losses was revised to a drop of 150,000 from 85,000. The unemployment rate, calculated using a household survey, fell to 9.7% last month from an unrevised 10% in December.

Global Fears Grind Down Stocks; Dow Falls 2.6%        2/4/10

Fears about the global economy and sovereign credit hammered stocks Thursday, causing the Dow Jones Industrial Average to briefly cross below 10000, though it settled slightly above the mark. The Dow ended down 268.37 points, its worst one-day point slide since April 20, 2009. The measure was off 2.6% for the day to end at 10002.18, a three-month low.

Throughout the day, investor fretted over signs that Europe's governments are struggling to finance their debts and that America's employment picture may not be improving as much as expected. Other markets gyrated as well, with commodities reeling while Treasury prices and the dollar rose as investors sought safety.

Windows 7 Boosts Microsoft's Profit       1/28/10

Microsoft's quarterly profit jumped 60% to $6.66 billion, benefiting from strong holiday sales of PC running the Windows 7 operating system. Revenue jumped 14% to $19.02 billion, including $1.7 billion in revenue Microsoft had to defer in previous quarters through its Windows 7 upgrade option.

Peter Klein, Microsoft's chief financial officer, said the company sold more than 60 million copies, making it the fastest selling version in the company's history.

Analysts Bullish on Precious Metals         1/28/10

The Reuters Precious Metals Poll found that leading analysts of the precious metals markets remain bullish on the precious metals. Precious metals are expected to make further gains this year, with platinum group metals (PGMs) and silver forecast to outperform gold on hope that an upturn in the economic cycle will boost demand for industrial usage. 60 leading precious metals analysts, traders and fund managers (including GoldCore) took part in the survey on the outlook for precious metals in 2010 and 2011, collected in January.

Bank of New York Mellon in Talks to Buy Unit of PNC Financial Services            1/28/10

Bank of New York Mellon is in final-stage discussions to acquire a unit of PNC Financial Services Group, for close to $2.5 billion, said people familiar with the matter.

The unit is PNC Global Investment Servicing, a Wilmington, Del., unit that provides back-office processing for financial advisers, fund managers and brokers.

PNC has been shopping the business for about three months, said these people. A deal with Bank of New York Mellon could be announced as soon as next week. The talks were at a sensitive stage, the people familiar with the matter warned, and an announcement could still be delayed or scuttled.

Asia Favors Gold as Inflation Hedge        1/28/10

Gold could increasingly be investors' top hedge against mounting inflationary pressures in Asia, a regional survey showed on Wednesday. With economic growth in Asia expected to lead the world again in 2010, 45 percent of investors in the region's markets outside of Japan picked the precious metal as their most favoured tool to protect their returns from inflation, while 42 percent chose equities, according to a quarterly survey from ING

Bernanke Nomination Passes Procedural Vote in Senate              1/28/10

The Senate voted 77-23 to end debate on the nomination of Ben Bernanke for a second four-year term as chairman of the Federal Reserve, clearing the way for a final vote later today in which Bernanke is expected to prevail.

During more than two hours of debate on the Senate floor, Bernanke backers warned that voting him down risked sparking turmoil in U.S. and foreign markets and thwarting a budding economic recovery. They said the Fed chairman deserved an opportunity to finish what he started.

Will China top India as the largest gold consumer?      1/28/10

China looks set to overtake India as the world's largest gold consumer while also being the world's largest gold producer. China's gold output jumped 11.34 percent to a record of 313.98 tonnes in 2009, securing the country's position as the world's largest producer of the yellow metal. China has dramatically opened bullion markets to active trade in the past decade, including allowing gold to be traded freely on the Shanghai Gold Exchange. Citizens owning gold was outlawed in 1949 when the communists took power and was only allowed again in 2003.

Greek Finance Minister Says No Bailout Talks Held            1/28/10

George Papaconstantinou, the finance minister of Greece, said he hasn't held any discussions with other European governments or the International Monetary Fund about a bailout. Greece is facing increasing skepticism from financial markets about its ability to raise the money it needs in 2010 to finance its budget deficit for this year and its maturing debts.

On Monday, Greece issued 8 billion euros of bonds. But prices of Greek bonds fell sharply on Tuesday following reports that investment bank Goldman Sachs was seeking to sell Greek debt to China. "We have not talked to China and no investment bank has a mandate from us to talk to China," Mr. Papaconstantinou said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal.

Overview of  2009's Metals             1/28/10

Metal whose price rose steadily through the entire previous decade, much to the consternation of the editors at Money Magazine - prices for both precious metals and base metals ended 2009 far higher than where they began.  The first observation that can be made after looking back the last 4 years is that gold was the only metal to post gains in all four years - even in 2008 when nearly everything else plunged.  Gold's total four-year gain of was 211 percent. Rounding out the top five metals over the last four years, zinc was up 196 percent, silver gained 189 percent, and copper rose 163 percent with platinum, palladium, aluminum and nickel all more than doubling.

Ford Posts Its First Annual Profit Since 2005        1/28/10

Ford reported its first annual profit since 2005, helping the auto maker further distance itself from its troubled U.S. rivals while stoking consumer buzz about the company and its vehicles.

Net income for the fourth-quarter was $868 million, or 25 cents a share, compared with a loss of $5.98 billion, or $2.51 a share. The automaker's fourth-quarter revenue was $35.4 billion. Ford's full-year 2009 profit was $2.7 billion, compared with a loss of $14.7 billion the previous year.

Fed More Upbeat on Economy; Hoenig Dissents From Decision                1/27/10

The Fed gave a slightly more upbeat reading of the U.S. economy's outlook, but left short-term interest rates near zero to help support a soft recovery.

A day before Chairman Bernanke is expected to face a tough vote in the Senate to win a second term, Kansas City Fed President Hoenig dissented from the decision, objecting to language that commits the Fed to low rates for "an extended period."

Sales of New Homes Unexpectedly Fell 7.6% in December            1/27/10

Demand for new homes unexpectedly fell in December, with sales dropping 7.6% from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 342,000, the Commerce Department said. Prices and inventories fell.

Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had estimated sales would climb 2.8%. Aside from unemployment, new-home sales are suffering because of strong demand for used homes and the looming expiration of a big tax credit.

Switzerland, U.S. May Reopen Talks Over UBS Data     1/27/10

The Swiss government said it may have to renegotiate a carefully wrought deal with the U.S. that aimed to end proceedings against Swiss bank UBS. Switzerland agreed last August to hand over thousands of files on suspected tax cheats in return for an end to proceedings against UBS.

Justice Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf said the government will respect a Swiss court decision last week that declared parts of the deal illegal. Ms. Widmer-Schlumpf said Swiss officials will now meet with their American counterparts to "discuss with the United States how we can solve this."

Gold still the favoured inflation hedge in Asia – survey            1/27/10

As inflationary pressures mount in the region that is expected to lead the growth stakes again in 2010, most investors picked out gold as their top weapon against inflation.

Caterpillar's Earnings Tumble 65% in Fourth Quarter            1/27/10

Caterpillar's fourth-quarter earnings fell by nearly two-thirds, but results topped analysts' forecasts and the company said it is seeing demand pick up. The heavy-machinery maker reported a profit of $232 million, down from $661 million a year earlier. Revenue dropped 39% to $7.9 billion.

Caterpillar also forecast current-year earnings of about $2.50 a share on a revenue increase of 10% to 25%.

Caterpillar is bracing for a nasty problem in 2010: the "bullwhip effect," an economic principle that says changes in end demand magnify as they work through layers of the supply chain.

Gold slips on firmer dollar; Fed eyed             1/27/10

Gold prices eased slightly on Wednesday as the dollar firmed a touch versus the euro, as investors shied away from riskier assets on concerns about China tightening lending and ahead of a U.S. interest rate decision.

Obama to Tout Jobs Push in State of the Union        1/26/10

President Obama intends to use Wednesday's State of the Union address to put a new focus on his jobs agenda as he tries to regain the confidence of a disheartened electorate. He will make small-business hiring the centerpiece of that message, pressing Congress to act on a slate of tax cuts that have languished for months.

Obama will call for eliminating capital-gains taxes on investments in small businesses. He will redouble efforts to give small employers a tax credit for new hires. And he will call for extending bigger tax breaks to those that purchase new facilities and equipment.

According to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC poll, Americans think the president has paid too much attention to health care and not enough to the economy.

Ellison Sets New Course as Oracle Gains Control of Sun            1/26/10

Larry Ellison is set to outline a new course for Oracle that includes hiring 2,000 sales and engineering employees and developing a line of high-end computer systems.

The moves come as the company prepares to close its long-delayed acquisition of computer maker Sun Microsystems.

Spyker Agrees to Buy GM's Saab for $74 Million              1/26/10

Dutch sports car maker Spyker Cars has agreed to buy Saab from General Motors for roughly $74 million.

Spyker, which makes only a few dozen cars a year, will contribute $74 million in cash to the deal, while the European Investment Bank will provide a 400 million euro loan (US$566 million) guaranteed by the Swedish government.

The deal would mark a hopeful turnabout for Saab, the Swedish car brand that GM had begun to wind down because it couldn't reach a satisfactory deal to sell the company.

U.S. Budget Deficit to Hit $1.3 Trillion in 2010, CBO Says     1/26/10

The U.S. budget deficit will reach $1.3 trillion in fiscal 2010, slightly less than the $1.4 trillion recorded in fiscal 2009, the Congressional Budget Office said. The CBO forecast that the deficit will reach $980 billion in 2011.

The office also estimated that the U.S. unemployment rate will average 10.1% through 2010 and will drop to an average of 9.5% in 2011.

Verizon Swings to Loss on Layoff Costs                 1/26/10

Verizon Communications swung to a fourth-quarter loss as the company took a $3 billion charge related to work-force cuts. Verizon reported a loss of $653 million, or 23 cents a share, from a year-earlier profit of $1.23 billion, or 43 cents. Excluding one-items including the costs from cutting some 8,000 jobs, earnings fell to 54 cents from 61 cents. Verizon added 2.2 million new wireless subscribers in the quarter, up from 1.2 million in the year-earlier quarter.

So, What About Silver?            1/26/10

Like gold, the silver market was holed by news of Chinese bank tightening. The talk about a three-year government spending freeze and the dollar's buoyancy isn't helping the silver bulls' cause, either. This morning's reports on consumer confidence and home prices were a mixed bag that apparently didn't contain enough bullish goodies. At last look after the reports were digested, spot metal was off about 13 cents to $16.84 an ounce.

Cash silver is trying to maintain itself above the same support level held between May and August 2008 before a breakdown to the $8-$9 tier. The market opened today near oversold levels, at least as measured by volatility and stochastics. Other key technical indicators, such as MACD and relative strength, turned bearish last week.

U.K. Pulls Out of Recession            1/26/10

The U.K. economy grew in the fourth quarter of 2009, emerging from a deep recession that began in the second quarter of 2008.

The Office for National Statistics said that compared with the third quarter, gross domestic product in the three months to the end of December increased 0.1%. Compared with the fourth quarter of 2008, GDP fell 3.2%. Britain is the last of the major economies to emerge from the downturn created by the global credit crisis and economists expect growth to remain fragile for several months.

The pound slid, however, as the slight fourth-quarter growth was weaker than economists expected.

S&P Puts Negative Outlook on Japan        1/26/10

Standard & Poor's revised its long-term rating on Japan to negative from stable, saying the nation's diminishing fiscal flexibility may lead to a downgrade unless Tokyo takes steps to deal with its weakening fiscal position and the threat of deflation.

White House to Propose Budget Freeze              1/25/10

President Obama intends to propose a three-year freeze on spending that accounts for one-sixth of the federal budget -- a move meant to quell rising voter concern over the deficit but whose practical impact will be muted.

To attack the $1.4 trillion deficit, whose size is becoming an increasing issue for voters, the White House will propose a three-year freeze on discretionary spending unrelated to the military, veterans, homeland security and international affairs. Also untouched are big programs such as Social Security and Medicare.

Apple Posts Higher Profit, Sales                1/25/10

Apple posted higher profit, boosted by a change in the way the company accounts for revenue from its iPhone as well as strong demand for its Macintosh computers during the holiday season.

For the quarter ended Dec. 26, Apple reported earnings of $3.38 billion, or $3.67 a share. Revenue was $15.68 billion.

In the latest quarter, Apple shipped 8.7 million iPhones, which was more than double a year earlier but not as much as some of the most bullish expectations on Wall Street. Apple sold 3.36 million Macintosh computers in the latest quarter, up 33% from a year earlier.

U.S. Existing-Home Sales Tumble          1/25/10

Existing-home sales sank 16.7% in December to a 5.45 million annual rate, according to the National Association of Realtors. The drop, which came after three straight increases that were fed by a government tax credit, was steeper than Wall Street expected.

The data also said inventories shrank, and that prices rose year over year for the first time in more than two years.

Dow Industrials Drop in 5.2% Three-Day Slide     1/22/10

Stocks suffered a third straight day of steep losses, led by technology shares, which suffered from analyst downgrades and sky-high earnings expectations. The selling picked up in the afternoon over concerns that Ben Bernanke might not get confirmed to a second term as Fed chairman.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 216.90, or 2.1%, to 10172.98, off 5.2% over its three-day slide. For the week, the Dow was off 4.1%. The S&P 500 plunged 2.2% to 1091.75, off 3.9% for the week. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index ended down 2.7%, the worst decline of the major indexes.

Swiss Central Bank Chief Backs Obama's Bank Rules            1/22/10

The new head of Switzerland's central bank endorsed the fresh banking regulatory push out of Washington and reiterated that he would fight any "excessive" appreciation of the Swiss franc. Philipp Hildebrand, who became president of the Swiss National Bank this month, also chided bankers for doling out big bonuses so soon after taxpayers had paid huge sums to rescue the financial system.

General Electric's Fourth-Quarter Net Income Falls 19%            1/22/10

General Electric's fourth-quarter net income fell 19% as the company was again dinged by a drop in earnings from its finance arm. GE posted a profit of $3.01 billion, or 28 cents a share, down from $3.72 billion, or 35 cents, a year earlier.

GE Capital saw profit drop 67% as revenue fell 15%.

Earnings at NBC Universal, which GE is selling majority control to Comcast, saw a 30% profit drop as revenue fell 4%.

Google Reports $1.97 Billion in Quarterly Net            1/21/10

Google reported fourth-quarter net of $1.97 billion, compared with $382 million a year earlier, as the search giant recorded strong growth in advertising clicks and shed big charges that weighed down prior-year results. Revenue jumped 17% to $6.67 billion. The results topped Wall Street's forecasts, though shares were down 4.8% in after-hours trading.

Obama Unveils Proposal Aimed at Restricting the Size and Activities of Largest U.S. Banks   1/21/10

President Barack Obama proposed Thursday new rules designed to restrict the size and activities of the U.S.'s largest biggest banks, the latest in a series of administration moves to curb Wall Street.

The White House wants commercial banks that take deposits from customers to be barred from investing on behalf of the bank itself--what's known as proprietary trading--and said the administration will seek new limits on the size and concentration of financial institutions.

Shares of big banks fell. Morgan Stanley's shares dropped sharply after the announcement, falling 7.4% to $28.37 in recent trading, as J.P. Morgan Chase declined 5.6% to $40.97. Citigroup fell 4.1% to $3.32 and Bank of America dropped 5% to $15.67.

Supreme Court Overturns Limits on Corporate Spending in Political Campaigns            1/21/10

The Supreme Court has ruled that corporations may spend freely to support or oppose candidates for president and Congress, easing decades-old limits on their participation in federal campaigns.

By a 5-4 vote, the court overturned a 20-year-old ruling that said corporations can be prohibited from using money from their general treasuries to pay for campaign ads. The decision, which almost certainly will also allow labor unions to participate more freely in campaigns, threatens similar limits imposed by 24 states. The justices also struck down part of the landmark

McCain-Feingold campaign finance bill that barred union- and corporate-paid issue ads in the closing days of election campaigns.

Goldman Sachs Posts $4.95 Billion Profit in Fourth Quarter            1/21/10

Goldman Sachs posted a fourth-quarter profit of $4.95 billion, compared with a loss of $2.29 billion a year earlier. Revenue was $9.62 billion. Goldman earned $8.20 a share, well above the $5.20 a share forecast from analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.

Investment banking revenue rose 82% from the previous quarter to $1.64 billion.

EU Clears Oracle to Buy Sun Microsystems            1/21/10

The European Commission cleared U.S. software giant Oracle to take over Sun Microsystems in a $7.38 billion deal.

"I am now satisfied that competition and innovation will be preserved on all the markets concerned. Oracle's acquisition of Sun has the potential to revitalize important assets and create new and innovative products," said Neelie Kroes, the European antitrust commissioner.

The clearance comes after an in-depth antitrust investigation, opened on Sept. 3 amid concerns that Oracle's acquisition of the world's leading open-source database MySQL would hamper competition in the database market.

BSkyB Loses Appeal, Must Sell ITV Stake            1/21/10

British Sky Broadcasting Group lost its latest attempt to stop the U.K. government from forcing it to divest a 17.9% holding in broadcaster ITV.

The U.K. satellite TV operator has made numerous legal attempts to challenge a ruling by the Competition Commission, the U.K. antitrust authority, that it must divest the stake in the broadcaster.

BSkyB, in which News Corp., owner of The Wall Street Journal, has a roughly 39% stake, bought shares in ITV in 2006, prompting widespread complaints from rivals and U.K. lawmakers.

Obama to Propose New Limits on Banks   1/20/10

President Barack Obama on Thursday is expected to propose new limits on the size and risk taken by the country's biggest banks, marking the administration's latest assault on Wall Street in what could mark a return -- at least in spirit -- to some of the curbs on finance put in place during the Great Depression.

The proposal represents a sharply different philosophical shift from the view of banking over the last decade, which saw widespread consolidation among large financial institutions to create huge banking titans. If Congress approves the proposal, the White House plan could permanently impose government constraints on the size and nature of banking.

China's GDP Rose 8.7% in 2009    1/20/10

China's economy expanded 8.7% in 2009, surpassing the 8% target the government had set early last year, when some economists were warning that growth might only reach 5% or so. The Chinese government said it sees uncertainties in domestic economic development and will maintain stable in it's macroeconomic policy.

Britain Suspends Direct Flights Between U.K., Yemen           1/20/10

Britain's government is suspending direct flights between the U.K. and Yemen over security concerns following the failed bomb attack on a Detroit-bound airliner.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown, in a statement to lawmakers Wednesday, confirmed the decision to halt services between London and Sana'a, the Yemeni capital.

Foreign Office minister Ivan Lewis said Tuesday flights will only be resumed once the Yemeni government enhances airport security.

Bank of America Loss Narrows in Fourth Quarter            1/20/10

Bank of America's fourth-quarter loss narrowed on a surge in noninterest income, joining peers which have also posted improved results a year after the depths of the financial crisis.

The bank's loss narrowed to $194 million from $1.78 billion in the quarter. Including preferred-stock dividends and costs from repaying the federal government its $45 billion in aid, the per-share loss widened to 60 cents from 48 cents.

MetLife Is in Final Negotiations for AIG's Alico Unit      1/19/10

MetLife is in final negotiations to purchase one of the biggest international life-insurance units of government-controlled American International Group, and will pay between $14 billion to $15 billion for the unit.

The sale of Alico would be the biggest step to date by AIG to pay back the U.S. government, which has committed a total of $182.3 billion to prop up the giant insurer. About $9 billion of proceeds would go back to U.S. coffers, AIG has previously indicated.

Cadbury Accepts Kraft's Offer                1/19/10

Kraft Foods closed a deal to acquire Cadbury PLC that values the company at 11.9 billion pounds ($19.44 billion), in a trans-Atlantic tie-up that would end the nearly 200-year independence of Britain's most famous candy company.

After more than four months of public sparring that followed Kraft's hostile-takeover approach for Cadbury, Kraft appeared to relent to the demands of Cadbury management and shareholders, sweetening its bid and adding cash. Under the terms of the deal, Cadbury shareholders will get cash and stock valued at 840 pence per share, plus a special dividend of 10 pence per Cadbury share.

Japan Airlines Files for Bankruptcy            1/19/10

Japan Airlines filed for court-led restructuring with the Tokyo District Court, a quasi-governmental turnaround agency said.

The Enterprise Turnaround Initiative Corp. of Japan said it had decided to support the restructuring of JAL, Asia's No. 1 carrier by revenue. JAL will revitalize its unprofitable operations with a capital injection from the agency, and by trimming its workforce and routes, ETIC said.

Under JAL's revamp plans, the carrier will reduce its capital to zero and ask for a debt-waiver worth about $8 billion (730 billion yen) on a group basis, while cutting costs by reducing its workforce by 15,700 employees -- a third of its 47,000 total.

Hershey Likely to Top Kraft's Bid for Cadbury Next Week               1/15/10

Hershey has concluded it has the financial muscle to top Kraft's $17.2 billion offer for Cadbury and will likely make a bid next week of at least $17.9 billion.

Obama to Campaign in Massachusetts Ahead of Tuesday's Special Election for Senate Seat          1/15/10

President Barack Obama will fly Sunday to Massachusetts to try to save Edward M. Kennedy's Massachusetts Senate seat for his party, and with it the Democrats' filibuster-proof majority.