A Business Related Blog

Markets extend gains, Sensex rises four per cent

adeal — 3/13/2009 5:59:15 AM

Mumbai (IANS): Indian equities rose further on Friday afternoon, with a key index ruling almost four per cent higher about 90 minutes before the closing bell. The 30-scrip Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) sensitive index (Sensex), which opened at 8,480.74 points, was at 8,671.78 points — a rise of 325.95 points or 3.91 per cent from its previous close. Similarly, the S&P CNX Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) gained 2.99 per cent from its last close to rule at 2,695.65 points.

World stocks jump on Asia stimulus hopes, US rally

adeal — 3/13/2009 5:56:35 AM

Asian markets soared Friday as the prospect of fresh stimulus measures in China and Japan and upbeat signals from major U.S. firms like Bank of America sparked hopes of a turnaround in the world economy. European markets opened higher. Major markets advanced throughout Asia, with Japan's index shooting up more than 5 percent and Hong Kong's benchmark gaining over 4 percent. Companies across all industries, from Japanese exporters to Australian resource firms and Chinese banks, posted strong gains.

Toyota concerned about welfare of its top 100 U.S. suppliers

adeal — 3/13/2009 5:55:02 AM

Toyota Motor Company (NYSE: TM) is not only worried about its short-term future, but the futures of about 100 of its U.S. suppliers as well. The automaker offered this tidbit to the automobile task force under President Obama that's currently sizing up whether or not to again help General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM) and Chysler from dire straights. Toyota indicated that out of its top 100 U.S. suppliers, about 20 to 30 were in dire condition, and that it had redundancy plans in place should those partners no longer be able to give it the parts needed to make cars.

Ex-banker convicted of insider trading

adeal — 3/13/2009 5:53:36 AM

HONG KONG - A former banker at giant investment firm BNP Paribas has been convicted of insider trading in Hong Kong's first criminal trial of its kind, authorities said yesterday. Ma Hon-yeung, former vice president of BNP Paribas Peregrine Capital, was found guilty along with his girlfriend and three of his relatives of 12 counts of insider dealing, the Securities and Futures Commission said in a statement.

Wynn CEO's wife up for board spot despite split

adeal — 3/13/2009 5:51:52 AM

Casino operator Wynn Resorts Ltd. says the wife of chief executive Steve Wynn has been nominated for re-election to the company board despite the couple's pending divorce. Wynn Resorts said Thursday that 66-year-old Elaine Wynn will be up for re-election to a 3-year term when the Las Vegas-based company holds its annual meeting May 5. A Clark County District Court spokesman told The Associated Press on Tuesday that divorce papers for the couple were filed March 5 and sealed the same day. The sealing means details are not public.

ADB to provide $630 mln to Pakistan energy sector

adeal — 3/13/2009 5:49:15 AM

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is to provide about 630 million U.S. dollars to Pakistan in the next three years for the development of its energy sector, state radio reported on Friday. The assistance will be used for power generation of renewable and hydropower energy and power transmission stations, Radio Pakistan said. The ADB will also provide technical assistance in clean energy development initiatives, reports said.

Oil slips below $47 as investors eye OPEC meeting

adeal — 3/13/2009 5:47:58 AM

Oil prices slipped below $47 a barrel as investors jockeyed over whether OPEC will announce a production cut at its meeting on Sunday, and how big the cut might be. Benchmark crude for April delivery fell 23 cents to $46.80 a barrel by afternoon in Singapore on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil prices soared $4.70 on Thursday to settle at $47.03. Prices have lurched between $42 and $47 this week as leaders of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries sent mixed signals about a possible output reduction.

Wal-Mart and Dell team up to offer electronic health records to physicians

adeal — 3/13/2009 5:46:37 AM

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) will hook up with PC maker Dell, Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) to enable physician offices across the U.S. to have electronic health record availability. It will also sell data information management systems to clinics and doctor's offices in cooperation with Dell. In other words, Wal-Mart may be planning to expand beyond traditional retail and into health care. Again.

Oil prices rebound above $42 in London

adeal — 3/13/2009 5:45:39 AM

LONDON - Oil prices rebounded back above $42 yesterday as market attention focused firmly on OPEC's weekend output meeting. Oil prices plunged on Wednesday after figures showed rising crude oil stockpiles in the United States and sentiment swung against expectations that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will cut output further. In London yesterday, Brent North Sea crude for delivery in April rose 64 cents to $42.04 a barrel.

GAO: Big defense programs face cost overruns

adeal — 3/13/2009 5:44:06 AM

Costs are likely to keep growing for two of the Pentagon's biggest weapons programs as the military pushes to field fighter jets and high tech Army units even before fully proving the technology, according to Government Accountability Office reports released Thursday. The reports by the government watchdog agency concluded the Army is moving forward with the $159 billion Future Combat Systems program even though some of its technology is unproven and over budget. The Joint Strike Fighter program.

Local banks lack equipment, human resource

adeal — 3/12/2009 5:18:36 AM

KARACHI: In a bid to pacify international lenders, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has introduced such stringent guidelines for banks to monitor accounts and transactions which have little chance of being implemented anytime soon, industry people say. Most of the local banks are not equipped with the technology, human resource and procedures to gather maximum customer information as required by new prudential regulations for curbing money-laundering and terrorist financing, they added.

Oil inches toward $43 as inventories rise weighed

adeal — 3/12/2009 5:17:24 AM

Oil prices inched toward $43 a barrel Thursday in Asia after an unexpected rise in U.S. crude inventories, suggesting demand remains poor, sparked a big drop in prices overnight. Benchmark crude for April delivery rose 48 cents to $42.81 a barrel by afternoon in Singapore on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil prices fell $3.38 on Wednesday to settle at $42.33 a barrel after the Energy Information Administration said crude supplies in the U.S. climbed unexpectedly by 700,000 barrels for the week ended March 6. Analysts surveyed by Platts.

Doomsday Scenario: Bain eats onion, no-name groceries hot, pension fund fracas

adeal — 3/12/2009 5:16:31 AM

More wonderful and weird tidings: Bain Capital, the brainiac Boston buyout fund, has hired salvage consultancy AlixPartners to extricate any remaining value from its bankrupt buy-out, Outback Steakhouse Incorporated. Outback is the originator of mega-calorie Blooming Onion, and is apparently too many calories for Bain, as the company reported a quarterly loss of a whopping $750 million.

UBS revises 2008 loss to 21 bln Swiss francs

adeal — 3/12/2009 5:15:56 AM

ZURICH - UBS revised its annual loss for 2008 upward by 1.2 billion Swiss francs yesterday because of legal settlements and writedowns. The Swiss bank said a previously announced $780 million fine and restitution package agreed with U.S. authorities to settle a massive tax evasion probe, together with writedowns on toxic assets, pushed its losses to 20.89 billion francs last year. UBS' previously published full-year loss was 19.7 billion francs.

J&J CEO got $23 million in compensation for 2008

adeal — 3/12/2009 5:15:14 AM

Johnson & Johnson's chairman and chief executive received compensation valued at $23.03 million in 2008, an 8.2 percent decrease in a year when the health care company posted better results than many competitors and net income and revenue rose. William C. Weldon, who has held his posts since 2002, received compensation totaling $25.1 million in 2007. In 2008, he received a base salary of $1.79 million, according to a proxy statement filed Wednesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.