News For Monday Sep 8, 2008 News For Monday Sep 8, 2008

Business Business

US stock futures surge on plan for mortgage giants - Added 2 minutes ago

U.S. stock futures pointed to a huge rally Monday as investors rushed to lay bets on a broad economic recovery following the weekend announcement that the U.S. government plans to bail out mortgage lenders Fannie Mae...

Washington Mutual ousts CEO Kerry Killinger - Added 4 minutes ago

Washington Mutual is ousting Chief Executive Kerry Killinger as the beleaguered savings and loan moves to overhaul its business, which has been ravaged by sour mortgage loans. Killinger has served as CEO of the...

US government takes on big role in mortgage market - Added 11 minutes ago

Uncle Sam has just become the 800 pound gorilla in the U.S. mortgage market. The Bush administration announced Sunday it was seizing troubled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in a bid to help reverse a...

China to review Coca Cola bid for juice maker - Added 30 minutes ago

Coca-Cola Co. will have to submit its bid to buy a Chinese juice producer for review under China's new anti-monopoly law, state television reported, setting up the first major test of the legislation. Coca-Cola's $2.5...

Dollar mixed, gold down in Europe - Added 37 minutes ago

The U.S. dollar was mixed against other major currencies in European trading Monday morning. Gold fell. The euro traded at $1.4222, down from $1.4243 late Friday in New York. Other dollar rates: _108.54 Japanese yen,...

Altria Group buys UST for about $10B - Added 43 minutes ago

Altria Group says it will buy UST for nearly $10 billion in a deal that will give the maker of Marlboro cigarettes access to the smokeless tobacco market. Richmond, Va.-based Altria said Monday it will buy the moist...

World stocks soar after Freddie, Fannie bailouts - Added 52 minutes ago

World stock markets soared Monday after Washington announced a bailout of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac _ a move that could help bolster a shaky U.S. housing market and renew global investor confidence. By...

Oil rises in Asia as Ike threatens Gulf of Mexico - Added 1 hour ago

Oil prices rose Monday as Hurricane Ike took aim at the Gulf of Mexico, delaying efforts to bring oil and gas production back online, and Iran's oil minister said he thinks there is too much crude on the market. The...

Mortgage lender Nationwide announces merger - Added 1 hour ago

The Nationwide Building Society, a British mortgage lender, said Monday it is taking over two smaller rivals. Nationwide said it will absorb the Derbyshire and Cheshire building societies. The two small lenders sought...

Australia's St. George agrees to Westpac takeover - Added 1 hour ago

St. George Bank Ltd., Australia's fifth-largest bank, agreed to a revised 17.3 billion Australian dollar ($14.4 billion) takeover proposal by larger rival Westpac Banking Corp. on Monday, in what would be the biggest...

AP Executive Morning Briefing - Added 2 hours ago

The top business news from The Associated Press for the morning of Monday, September 8, 2008: Asian stocks soar after Freddie, Fannie bailouts TOKYO (AP) _ Asian stock markets soared Monday after Washington announced...

Wall Street may cheer Fannie, Freddie bailout - Added 2 hours ago

Wall Street finally got what it's been angling for: a bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that could aid a recovery of the broken U.S. housing market and arrest a slide in stock and credit markets worldwide. Overall,...

Fannie, Freddie deal helps some borrowers, not all - Added 4 hours ago

The government's historic bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on Sunday will be good news to homebuyers and some homeowners hoping to refinance if it leads to lower mortgage rates, as experts expect. But for...

OPEC considers cutting oil production - Added 4 hours ago

Iran's oil minister said Monday that there is too much crude on the market, adding that OPEC is reviewing whether supply exceeds demand before deciding whether to cut back production. Gholam Hossein Nozari spoke on the...

Fannie, Freddie deal helps some borrowers, not all - Added 13 hours ago

The government's historic bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on Sunday will be good news to homebuyers and some homeowners hoping to refinance if it leads to lower mortgage rates, as experts expect. But for...

OPEC considers cutting oil production - Added 14 hours ago

With oil prices off nearly 30 percent from their highs of almost $150 a barrel, OPEC oil ministers are considering what was unthinkable just a few weeks ago _ cutting back output to prop up the price of crude. No one...

Gulf oil and gas producers give Ike a serious look - Added 15 hours ago

Efforts to bring oil and gas production back online in the Gulf of Mexico slowed Sunday as Hurricane Ike barreled toward the nation's energy complex, likely to be the second hurricane to slam into the Gulf in as many...

Wall Street wobbles as economic landscape shifts - Added 15 hours ago

The stock market has lurched back near its July lows _ but Wall Street's concerns are a bit different now than they were then. In July, investors were vexed about record-high oil prices; since that time, crude has...

Cruise lines change course to cut fuel - Added 16 hours ago

!!-- pobj:FLWL203-0605080500 -->When the 1,020-foot Explorer of the Seas cruises through North Atlantic waters next year, it'll spend more time off the coast of New England and less time near Canadian shores, and it's...

Summary Box: Foodmakers expand ads in down economy - Added 17 hours ago

MARKETING BOOST: Foodmakers are squeezed right now because of high commodity prices, but they're planning boosts in advertising this year. It comes as they're raising prices and in some cases shrinking products as a way...

Foodmakers plan big ad campaigns in down economy - Added 17 hours ago

!!-- pobj:NYBZ190-0905081229 -->!!-- pobj:NYBZ193-1115071424 -->!!-- pobj:NYBZ192-1115071358 -->!!-- pobj:NYBZ191-0905081227 -->Foodmakers may be worried about higher costs for key ingredients, pushing through price...

Taiwan leaders seek to ease economic concerns - Added 17 hours ago

Taiwanese leaders sought to ease mounting complaints about the island's slowing economy on Sunday, the latest in a string of public apologies and promises to prop up consumer demand and investment. Taiwan's benchmark...

Operator says Dubai oil rig remains shuttered - Added 17 hours ago

The operator of the oil rig involved in last week's deadly helicopter accident off the Dubai coast said production remained halted on the platform Sunday. The rig serves the Rashid oil field, one of four offshore...

Iraqi Cabinet approves initial gas deal with Shell - Added 17 hours ago

Iraq's Cabinet approved an initial gas agreement Sunday between the Oil Ministry and Royal Dutch Shell PLC to invest in a joint venture to tap natural gas in southern Iraq, a government statement said. The agreement...

Long-term plan aids marketing of Michael Phelps - Added 17 hours ago

Olympian Michael Phelps' record-setting performance in Beijing has led to multimillion-dollar endorsement deals, but his road to marketing gold was paved years before he swam a lap in China. Phelps' marketing success...

WWE wrestles for share of Japanese market - Added 19 hours ago

Posing for a snapshot with a glittery championship belt in a packed theater, Seigi Nishiyama was among some 600 fans who can't get enough of World Wrestling Entertainment. "The stories are so much more detailed...

WWE steps up push in Japan market - Added 1 day ago

Posing proudly for a snapshot with a glittery championship belt, Seigi Nishiyama is among some 600 other sports fans packing a Tokyo theater who can't get enough of World Wrestling Entertainment. "The stories are so...

AirAsia takes risks with expansion amid downturn - Added 1 day ago

AirAsia, the region's biggest budget carrier, is making a risky bet. As soaring fuel prices have forced other airlines to cut back, shed jobs and ground planes, AirAsia is doing the opposite: increasing flights, adding...

Price increases push US soy beyond reach of poor - Added 1 day ago

With the dollar a day he earns scrounging for scrap metal and paper, Jumadi can't buy his family beef or even chicken. But until now, the rail-thin scavenger could at least afford soy. His wife and two children snacked...

Talks fail; machinists strike Boeing Co. - Added 1 day ago

!!-- pobj:WAEVE101-0905081757 -->Striking Boeing Co. production workers hunkered down Saturday for what could be along, bruising battle with costly repercussions for both sides. Greeted by friendly honking from passing...

Fannie, Freddie blind to the bubble - Added 1 day ago

Mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac _ despite their robust cadre of economists and mortgage experts _ failed to heed warnings that the most dramatic housing bubble in U.S. history would burst. The companies _...

Contract talks fail; machinists strike Boeing Co. - Added 1 day ago

Boeing Co. machinists walked out on strike Saturday after contract talks arbitrated by a federal mediator failed to produce an agreement. About 100 union members hoisted their strike signs at 12:01 a.m. outside the...

Report: Nomura considering stake in Lehman - Added 2 days ago

Nomura Holdings Inc., Japan's largest brokerage group, is considering buying a stake in U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers, a Japanese newspaper reported Saturday. Nomura has funds exceeding more than $1.87 billion...

Silver State Bank in Nevada is shut - Added 2 days ago

Regulators on Friday shut down Silver State Bank, saying the Nevada bank failed because of losses on soured loans, mainly in commercial real estate and land development. It was the 11th failure this year of a federally...

Talk of financial crisis sparks unease in S. Korea - Added 2 days ago

Headlines warn of a "September crisis." The currency falls to a four-year low and the stock market tumbles. Rumors swirl that foreign investors will pull out their money. A spasm of anxiety has gripped South Korea this...

As unemployment spikes, companies weigh options - Added 2 days ago

U.S. companies have cut more than 550,000 jobs so far in 2008 as they try to preserve their profits in a slumping economy, but analysts say such downsizing must be done carefully for corporations to have any long-term...

Soybeans tumble as dollar gains ground on euro - Added 2 days ago

Soybean prices tumbled Friday after the dollar continued its rally against the euro, giving investors more reasons to sell commodities that were bought as a hedge against inflation. Corn and wheat also fell sharply. ...

Treasury prices decline as investors take profits - Added 2 days ago

Treasury prices fell Friday as investors cashed in profits from the strong gains the bonds made earlier in the week. Also weighing on Treasurys was an afternoon reversal in the stock market, even after the government...

GE may face civil action on securities violations - Added 2 days ago

General Electric Co. said Friday it has been informed that the Securities and Exchange Commission may recommend fines and other action for possible violations of securities law related to accounting changes the company...

Prosecutors: Loss in AIG scheme exceeds $1B - Added 2 days ago

Federal prosecutors in Connecticut say a scheme to manipulate the financial statements of the world's largest insurance company, American International Group Inc., resulted in a loss of more than $1 billion to...

Summary Box: Unemployment hits 5-year high - Added 2 days ago

THE LATEST: The nation's unemployment rate zoomed to a five-year high of 6.1 percent August and employers slashed jobs for the eighth month in a row. WHAT IT MEANS: With jobs harder to find, there's growing fears that...

Unemployment climbs to 5-year high of 6.1 percent - Added 2 days ago

The nation's unemployment rate bolted above the psychologically important 6 percent level last month for the first time in five years _ and it's likely to go even higher in the months ahead, possibly throwing the...

Stocks mostly rise as investors snap up financials - Added 2 days ago

Wall Street wrestled with intensifying economic worries Friday, extending sharp losses after a disheartening jobs report and then grudgingly engaging in some mild bargain hunting that gave the market some modest gains....

Nokia, UST, Lehman, Safeway, SanDisk big movers - Added 2 days ago

Stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily Friday on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Stock Market: NYSE Merrill Lynch & Co., up 52 cents at $26.73 Merrill Lynch rebounded to end the day higher as...

GE says SEC probing possible securities violations - Added 2 days ago

General Electric Co. says the Securities and Exchange Commission staff has notified the company it may recommend fines and other action for possible violations of securities laws. GE said Friday that the notification...

InfoGroup no longer faces delisting from Nasdaq - Added 2 days ago

Database provider InfoGroup Inc. said Friday it no longer faces the threat of being delisted, but the Nasdaq plans to reprimand the firm publicly. InfoGroup ran afoul of Nasdaq's rules in April by failing to file...

NY Times to combine some sections in metro area - Added 2 days ago

The New York Times plans to reduce the number of standalone sections of the New York metropolitan editions of the newspaper, a move designed to save money by cutting labor costs. No job cuts are expected as part of the...

Review panel criticizes Great Lakes health study - Added 2 days ago

Substandard science has hurt a federal agency's seven-year effort to document possible links between industrial pollution and health problems in the Great Lakes region, an independent review panel said Friday. The...

Altria calls reports on UST 'pure speculation' - Added 2 days ago

Altria Group, which owns Marlboro-maker Philip Morris USA, said Friday that a report of its impending acquisition of UST was "pure speculation." Analysts said the deal makes perfect sense. The New York Times reported...

Oil prices drop as jobs data add to demand worries - Added 2 days ago

Oil prices sank to a five-month low Friday as a jump in the U.S. unemployment rate signaled to traders that Americans might keep paring back their energy use to save money. The Labor Department said the economy lost...