Economy | News-Opinion
TOP NEWS: Economy: September 21th, 2012
Excerpts and More Top News and Analysis:
FED/QE3: Beware the costs and psychology of QE3 - FT
Hopes and fears are being ratcheted up with each round of Fed easing, yet consumers and CFOs sense monetary policy is becoming less effective
FED: The Federal Reserve Dissenters - WSJ, OPINION
Robert L. Pollock: Richard Fisher and his allies at the Fed are a fine talent pool from which a new sound-money chairman might be drawn.
FED/QE3: Brazil’s finance chief attacks US over QE3 - FT
Guido Mantega says the Federal Reserve’s move is protectionist, will hurt world trade and could restart the ‘currency wars’
FED: A Fed Hawk Urges More Action on Rates - WSJ
Fed regional bank president Narayana Kocherlakota said the central bank should respond to high unemployment with low rates for even longer.
FED: Fed hawk changes tack on stimulus - FT
Narayana Kocherlakota says he would have voted to back the Fed’s latest quantitative easing programme, underlining the FOMC’s shift toward easingare hit by higher labour costs
REGULATION: Behind the Scenes, Lawmakers Lobby to Curb Bank Rules - NYT
In public letters and closed-door meetings, more than 100 lawmakers have appealed to the Federal Reserve and other authorities over the Volcker Rule, records show.
REGULATION: In the Money-Market for More Oversight - WSJ
The SEC demurred, but the Financial Stability Oversight Council will be able to bolster fund reform.
REGULATION: U.S. Seeks to Patch Laundering Net - WSJ
U.S. regulators are proposing to enlist companies across the financial sector—and possibly beyond—as a front-line defense against money laundering.
SEC: Circuit Court Needs to Let the S.E.C. Do Its Job - NYT
In the area of regulatory law, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia is controlled by judicial activists who seem willing to negate regulations they do not like.
MARKET REFORM: In Calls for Market Reform, Multiple Voices - NYT, DEALBOOK
A number of events in Washington this week put the spotlight on high-frequency trading, the proliferation of new exchanges and other concerns about the structure of the market.
MARKET REFORM: Senate panel looks into high-frequency stock trades - WP
The technological revolution that has swept through Wall Street and enabled stock trades to take place in milliseconds has thrust the equity market into a “crisis” that demands a regulatory response, a former
CORPORATE TAXES: Panel Targets Corporate-Tax Loopholes - WSJ
Microsoft and H-P used accounting strategies to hold down their U.S. tax bill while shifting profits in and out of the country, a Senate panel said.
CORPORATE TAXES: Report: U.S. multinationals exploit tax code - WP
Many U.S. multinational corporations, including Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard, have exploited weaknesses in the tax code to avoid paying billions of dollars in taxes on overseas profits, said a Senate subcommittee report released Thursday.
JOBS: Jobless Claims Drop, Remain Elevated - WSJ
Initial unemployment claims fell 3,000 to a seasonally adjusted 382,000 last week but remain high, showing the labor market is struggling to sustain improvement, while leading indicators dropped 0.1% in August.
MADOFF: $2.5 billion sent to victims of Madoff’s fraud - WP
Bernard Madoff’s victims will soon receive $2.48 billion to help cover their losses, by far the largest payout since the swindler’s massive fraud was uncovered nearly four years ago.
HOUSING: Rising Home Values Repair Balance Sheets - WSJ
A strengthened housing market is lifting property values and helping Americans repair their balance sheets, a trend that could spur the economy by making households more willing to spend.
MUNICIPAL DEBT: California Debt Higher Than Earlier Estimates - NYT
When Jerry Brown became governor of California he estimated the state’s debt at $28 billion, but that amount is now estimated to be as much as 12 times greater.
INVESTING: How the 99% Can Invest Like the 1% - WSJ
Three portfolio moves for the moneyed that Main Street can make.
BANKING: How to Lose Weight Fast the Deutsche Bank Way – BLOOMBERG, OPINION
Imagine if I told you I could reduce my own body weight by 80 percent or more, on paper, through a series of calculations utilizing my own proprietary mathematical models, the details of which are so complex and highly prized that I couldn’t divulge them.
POVERTY: Poverty, Inequality Aren’t as Bad as You Think – BLOOMBERG, OPINION
Poverty statistics can be used to prove almost anything.
LOANS: Cheap Loans Could Spell Long-Term Headaches - NYT, DEALBOOK
Low interest rates have led many corporations to load up on debt, but this could lead to a flood of bankruptcies once maturities hit.
ENERGY/TAXES: Tax Credit in Doubt, Wind Power Industry Is Withering - NYT
The American wind sector has been buffeted by weak demand for electricity, stiff competition from gas and uncertainty over a tax credit that has become a campaign wedge issue.
PRODUCTION: US set for industrial revival, says study - FT
Consultants say the country could increase goods exports by $130bn by 2020, adding 5m jobs, as competitors
ENERGY/OIL Gulf Oil Drilling Rebounds - WSJ
After a steep drop in oil production in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon disaster, the U.S. Gulf of Mexico is set for an energy boom boosted by new projects by BP and others.
BUSINESS NEWS:
IPHONE 5: Apple Makes a Wrong Turn With Maps - WSJ
Apple made a rare strategic blunder in unseating Google’s map software from its mobile devices, sparking a world-wide consumer backlash.
IPHONE 5: Global Sales of iPhone 5 Kick Off With Crowds - WSJ
Customers in parts of Asia and Europe began snapping up Apple Inc.’s iPhone 5 amid signs of strong demand for the high-profile handset, despite widening controversy over its mapping features.
RETAIL: Coup Lands Banana Republic in The Gap - BLOOMBERG, OPINION
Patricia: One day in November 1982, Don Fisher came to our San Francisco store on Polk Street. Tall, balding, in his late 50s, he shook Mel’s hand and mine. With him was Maury Gregg, his chief financial officer at The Gap, and Sam Gerson, his president.
AUTO WORKERS: Canadian Auto Workers Union and G.M. Agree on Contract - NYT
The Canadian Auto Workers Union agreed on a tentative contract with General Motors, but said that it was still in talks with Chrysler.
HEALTH CARE: Health premiums’ rise is modest but unwelcome - WP
Federal employee insurance payments aren’t going up much, but when your basic pay is frozen, any increase can be too much.
GOOGLE/CHINA: Google to Close China Music Service - WSJ
Google said it will shut down its China-only music-download service, in the search giant’s latest setback in the fiercely competitive Chinese Internet market.
US-CHINA TRADE: In Manufacturing Shift, Made in U.S. but Sold in China - NYT
A company in Brooklyn called Watermark Designs is making luxury plumbing parts, like faucets, and exporting them.
WAL-MART/KINDLE: Wal-Mart Is Deleting the Kindle From Stores - NYT
By STEPHANIE CLIFFORD and JULIE BOSMAN
Retailers have been worried that displaying the new Kindles will encourage customers to browse in stores and then buy from online competitors instead, analysts said.
FAST FOOD/HUNGER: Yum Brands Puts Focus on Hunger Relief - NYT
KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, all owned by Yum Brands, are continuing their sixth annual World Hunger Relief fund-raiser to benefit the United Nations World Food Program and other groups.
ENTERTAINMENT: Valuing What Anschutz Entertainment Might Be Worth - NYT, DEALBOOK
News that the Anschutz Entertainment Group is being put up for sale sent the sports and entertainment worlds buzzing. But what would any prospective buyer get?
MANUFACTURING: Furniture maker helps cushion offshore drift - FT
Investment in manufacturing technology has enabled one US company to maintain a large proportion of its production in American factories
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