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Republicans not sold on this mortgage rescue plan (Finance, 21 articles)
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This is good news for Democrats trying to pass a housing rescue bill that would help thousands of struggling homeowners get into more affordable mortgages, with fixed-rates. Shares of the two pillars of the U.S. housing market surged 17 percent, adding to equally sharp gains earlier this week, helped by stronger-than-expected earnings at JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N). Some conservative Republicans were balking at a proposal unveiled over the weekend by the Treasury Department to prop up Fannie and Freddie, the nation's largest mortgage finance companies, amid a deepening U.S. housing crisis. A stumbling economy and a potential federal bailout of home mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac appear to have prompted some traders to try to profit by questioning what has been one of the most stable investments: U.S. Treasury bonds. Asian and European stock markets fell sharply Tuesday as investor confidence in the U.S. financial system eroded further despite a government-backed plan to help beleaguered mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The turmoil surrounding Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is creating more anxiety and confusion in a Massachusetts housing market already reeling from slumping sales, surging foreclosures, and ever-tightening restrictions on home loans.
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{Earnings Roundup} {EBay's profit up 22%, but shares fall after hours on disappointing forecast} (Finance, 14 articles)
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Harley said its earnings for the quarter ended June 29 fell 23 percent to $222.8 million, or 95 cents per share, from $290.5 million, or $1.14 per share, in the same quarter last year. Baxter profit rises 26 percent in 2Q Strong sales of biotech drugs and vaccines drove second-quarter profit up 26 percent for drugs and medical device maker Baxter International Inc., beating Wall Street estimates. Microsoft said Thursday its fiscal fourth-quarter profit jumped 42 percent - or 13 percent, factoring in a hefty charge a year ago - as revenue topped $15 billion.
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Merrill posts $4.9 billion loss, sells Bloomberg stake (Finance, 6 articles)
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Merrill Lynch & Co., the nation's third-largest securities firm, dropped efforts to sell a stake in BlackRock Inc. and struck a deal instead to sell its 20% share of Bloomberg LP, according to people familiar with the decision. Merrill, poised to report a second-quarter loss today, stood to gain about $2 billion on its 49.8% stake in BlackRock, the nation's largest publicly traded fund manager, based on its current market value. US bank Merrill Lynch has posted a $4.89bn ($2.49bn) loss in the three months to June due to heavy exposure to the sub-prime mortgage market.
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Oil prices drop for third straight day to below $130 a barrel - (Finance, 7 articles)
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NEW YORK - Crude oil fell more than $5 a barrel, dropping below $130 for the first time in six weeks, as global economic growth slows. Natural gas dropped more than 7 percent after a government report showed US supplies rose a greater-than-forecast 104 billion cubic feet last week. "The rout in natural gas is pulling oil lower said Addison Armstrong, director of market research at TFS Energy LLS in Stamford, Conn." The sheer weight of the decline is bound to impact all the energy markets.
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China's growth slows to 10.1 per cent (Finance, 9 articles)
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The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 2.7 per cent to 1,146.34, bringing its gains from the past two days to 3.2 per cent as the hardest hit stocks recovered lost ground. Allied Irish Banks surged 14.6 per cent to €8.34, Anglo Irish Bank added 14.9 per cent to €5.02 and Bank of Ireland climbed 10.2 per cent to €5.39. Global equity markets enjoyed another broadly positive session on Thursday as encouraging US earnings reports - most notably from the investment bank JPMorgan - and a further drop in oil prices offset weak regional US economic data.
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IMF warns emerging markets on inflation (Finance, 4 articles)
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Chinese economic growth slowed in the second quarter of 2008, constrained by slowing demand for exports, rising prices and the high cost of credit. The National Bureau of Statistics said the economy grew at an annual rate of 10.1% in the three months to June, down from 10.6% over the previous quarter. Many emerging markets had to raise interest rates, cut government deficits and let currencies appreciate more to contain the inflation risk, the IMF said.
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Yahoo calls Microsoft's actions `stupefying' (Finance, 8 articles)
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SEATTLE Microsoft Corp. said today its fiscal fourth-quarter profit jumped 42 percent, helped by strong sales of its Office and Windows software, but the company offered a soft outlook for the current quarter. Earnings for the three months ended June 30 rose to $4.3 billion, or 46 cents per share, missing Wall Street's expectations by a penny per share. Investigators are planning to demand documents not only from Google and Yahoo, but also from other large companies in the Internet and media industries, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.
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Intel profit rises 25% on sales of laptop chips (Finance, 8 articles)
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European regulators on Thursday night beefed up their long-running antitrust complaint against Intel, alleging that the world's largest manufacturer of computer chips used rebates to persuade a retailer to sell Intel-based personal computers only. Hector Ruiz was pushed aside Thursday after six tumultuous years as CEO of Advanced Micro Devices Inc., as the chip maker tries to pull itself out of a deep financial hole caused by a questionable acquisition and a major product gaffe. The European Commission said Thursday it has added three new charges against Intel, warning that it may order Intel to change its behavior under threat of large fines that can total 10 percent of its global revenue.
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Mass. unemployment rises to 5.2 percent in June (Finance, 5 articles)
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The Massachusetts unemployment rate last month jumped above 5 percent for the first time in nearly four years, a sign the national economic downturn is taking an increasing toll on the state. " The economy has shifted from high-wage manufacturing to low-wage service jobs, so now the kids are competing for those service jobs with adults said Jack Wuest which commissioned Sum's study. In addition, the Clinton administration cut the Summer Youth Employment Program in 2000, shifting resources to year-round employment for young workers.
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blaster@cs.columbia.edu
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