More Breaking News
BHP Billiton Profit Rises After Year-Earlier Charges (Update1) BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s
largest mining company, said first-half profit more than doubled
after one-time charges for closing mines and plants in Australia
and the U.S. crimped earnings a year earlier.
Commonwealth Bank Net Rises on Fewer Defaults, Market Recovery Commonwealth Bank of Australia, the
nation’s biggest lender, said fiscal first-half profit climbed
13 percent as fewer customers defaulted on loans and global
markets recovered.
Baidu Forecast Tops Estimates as Google Considers Exiting China Baidu Inc., operator of China’s most
popular Internet search engine, forecast first-quarter sales
that topped analysts’ estimates after rival Google Inc. said it
may exit the world’s largest Web market.
Chevron Says Conflict Taints Amazon Pollution Report (Update1) Chevron Corp. said a report proposing
that the company pay $27 billion for alleged environmental
damage in Ecuador should be thrown out because the court-
appointed author owns a cleanup company and didn’t disclose his
conflict of interest.
Michelle Obama Begins Campaign Against Child Obesity (Update1) First lady Michelle Obama began a
nationwide campaign today against childhood obesity, urging that
American kids get more exercise and eat better-balanced meals.
Equities, Euro, Commodities Rally on Prospects for Greek Aid Stocks rallied, with emerging-market
equities recovering from the worst three-day slide in a year,
and the euro and commodities gained as European officials said
they were considering financial assistance for Greece.
Treasuries tumbled, while Greek bonds surged.
XL Fourth-Quarter Loss Narrows as Investment Results Improve XL Capital Ltd., the insurer that
gained the most in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index last year,
reported a narrower fourth-quarter loss on improved investment
results.
MetLife Said to Weigh $8 Billion in Stock for AIG (Update2) MetLife Inc. may use stock to pay for
more than half of the planned $15 billion purchase of an
American International Group Inc. life insurance unit, said
three people with knowledge of the matter.
Washington Offices, NYC Schools Close as Storm Looms (Update2) The U.S. House of Representatives has
canceled votes for the week, hundreds of flights have been
scrubbed and Amtrak still isn’t running a full schedule as a
“paralyzing” storm packing as much as 20 inches of snow bears
down on the East Coast.
Disney Profit Tops Analysts’ Estimates on TV Gains, Theme Parks Walt Disney Co., the world’s biggest
media company, reported fiscal first-quarter profit that beat
analysts’ estimates as TV revenue rose and theme-park results
stabilized.
Obama Calls for Bipartisan Agreement on Jobs, Deficit (Update4) President Barack Obama told
Democratic and Republican congressional leaders the public is
“frustrated” with the stalemate in Washington and challenged
lawmakers to approve a jobs bill and take “concrete” steps to
reduce the deficit.
Walt Disney Posts First-Quarter Adjusted EPS 47c; Est. 38c Walt Disney Co., the world’s biggest
media company, posted adjusted first-quarter profit of 47 cents
a share. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg estimated average
earnings of 38 cents.
Weight-Loss Surgery May Help Severely Obese Teens, Study Finds Weight-loss surgery was more
effective at slimming severely obese teens and improving their
health than two years of diet and exercise, a study found.
Madison Williams Hires Five From Oppenheimer to Expand Trading Madison Williams & Co., an investment
bank spun off from Sanders Morris Harris Group Inc. in December,
hired five former Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. employees to expand
trading in New York and Connecticut and in industries such as
health care.
Vodafone Says No Plans to Pursue Kabel Deutschland Transaction Vodafone Group Plc said it doesn’t
plan to pursue a transaction with Kabel Deutschland Gmbh.
N.J.’s Christie Said to Plan Freezing Some School Aid (Update1) New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
will announce plans to freeze part of $3.5 billion in unspent
aid to public schools to help close a $2 billion hole in the
state’s budget, according to two people who have spoken with
administration officials about the proposal.
Paulson Tells Buffett Banks to Repay ‘Every Penny’ (Update2) Former Treasury Secretary Henry
Paulson, responding to a question from billionaire Warren
Buffett, said the U.S. government will be repaid in full for the
funds it put into the country’s lenders.
Rajaratnam, Chiesi to Turn Over Wiretaps, Judge Says (Update1) Galleon Group LLC founder Raj
Rajaratnam must surrender to the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission wiretap recordings that he got from prosecutors in
his insider trading case.
Labor Relations Nominee Becker May Be Blocked in Senate Vote President Barack Obama’s nomination
of a union lawyer to the National Labor Relations Board may be
defeated after a Democratic senator aligned with dissenters and
the largest U.S. business-lobbying group rallied opposition.
Jobs Legislation to Be Introduced in Senate Today (Update3) Senate Democrats said they will push
for passage this week of a U.S. job-creation plan that includes
a payroll tax holiday for companies that hire unemployed workers
and $20 billion for highway construction.
Pimco Adds to Poland Holdings on Greece, Gomez Says (Update2) Pacific Investment Management Co.,
manager of the world’s biggest bond fund, added to its holding
of Polish debt today amid signs that Greece will receive a
bailout package, said Michael Gomez, the firm’s co-head of
emerging markets.
Google Buzz Social-Networking Feature Added to Gmail (Update2) Google Inc., the world’s most popular
search engine, added a social-networking feature to its Gmail e-
mail software, taking on market leader Facebook Inc.
Corporate Credit Risk Falls Amid Prospects of Greece Support The cost to protect against defaults
on U.S. corporate bonds fell as the likelihood grew that the
European Union would help Greece through its budget crisis.
Nokia, Microsoft, Amazon Sued on Translation Patents (Update1) Nokia Corp., Microsoft Corp., and
Amazon.com Inc. were sued by a closely held company which claims
they used two patents used for translating Java code for
specific computers.
Wal-Mart, Amazon.com Lead 2.6% Jump in Web Retail (Update1) Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Amazon.com
Inc. led a rebound in U.S. online shopping in the fourth quarter
as they gained market share over smaller competitors, researcher
ComScore Inc. said.
European Officials Consider Greek Bailout on Budget (Update1) European officials said they are
considering assistance for Greece as its struggle to contain the
European Union’s highest budget deficit threatens to erode
confidence in the euro.
Toyota Faces U.S. Recall Inquiries as Washington Lobbying Force Toyota Motor Corp. is armed with one
of the auto industry’s biggest lobbying budgets as it faces U.S.
government and congressional inquiries into millions of vehicles
recalled for sudden acceleration.
Toyota Corolla Complaints Being Reviewed By U.S. (Update2) Toyota Motor Corp.’s Corolla, the
world’s best-selling car, is being reviewed by the U.S. after
driver complaints about steering, according to a government
spokeswoman.
Toyota Extends Recalls to Prius Hybrids to Fix Brake Software Toyota Motor Corp. will recall
437,000 Prius and other hybrid cars globally to fix faulty
braking systems on four models, adding to almost 8 million
vehicles the company is repairing for separate defects.
Germany Weighing Support for Greece, Lawmakers Say (Update1) Germany is considering assistance for
Greece after the country’s fiscal woes threatened the stability
of the euro and financial markets, two lawmakers from Chancellor
Angela Merkel’s governing coalition said.
Greece’s Papaconstantinou Unveils Tax Overhaul to Boost Revenue Greece’s government announced an
overhaul of the tax system, including higher levies on
dividends, and reiterated a pledge to freeze wages of public
workers to rein in the European Union’s biggest budget deficit.
Vodafone Said to Bid for German Cable Company Kabel Deutschland Vodafone Group Plc is bidding for
Germany’s largest cable operator Kabel Deutschland GmbH,
challenging private-equity firms, according to two people familiar
with the matter.
Greek Bonds Surge as EU’s Rehn Offers ‘Support in Broad Sense’ Greek bonds jumped after the European
Union signaled it may aid Greece in return for progress by the
country in reducing the bloc’s biggest budget deficit.
BA Business-Class-Only Carrier Adds Paris-U.S. Route (Update1) British Airways Plc’s business-class-
only subsidiary OpenSkies will add flights to Washington and
target profitability by 2013 after its parent company turned
down five offers for the Paris-based carrier, Managing Director
Dale Moss said in an interview.
Euro Surges Against Dollar as EU Signals Support for Greece The euro rose the most in more than
five months versus the dollar as European Union officials held
out the prospect of aiding Greece if the country made progress
in reducing its budget deficit.
Summers Says He’s Optimistic Congress Will Pass Job-Growth Bill White House economic adviser Lawrence
Summers said today he is “optimistic” that Congress will pass
legislation this year aimed at job creation.
U.S. Postal Service Logs $297 Million Quarterly Loss (Update1) The U.S. Postal Service said its net
loss narrowed to $297 million in the fiscal first quarter as it
trimmed expenses to account for a drop in mail volume.
U.S. Says North Korea Must Act on Nuclear Pledge (Update2) The U.S. said North Korean leader Kim
Jong Il’s declaration that he is committed to shelving the
country’s nuclear weapons program must be followed by action to
rejoin international negotiations.
Connecticut’s Blumenthal Urges Senate to Create Consumer Agency Connecticut Attorney General Richard
Blumenthal said the U.S. Senate must create a Consumer Financial
Protection Agency to prevent recurrence of banking-industry
excesses that pushed the economy to the brink of collapse.
‘Blind Pools’ Falter as Ziman, Callahan Plan Comeback (Update1) Richard Ziman and Timothy Callahan
want to raise money in the equity market after selling their
real estate companies for a combined $12 billion before the
property crash. Investors may balk at bankrolling their return.