finance

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Paulson: Downturn Won't Provoke Recession

Economy tough enough to take market turmoil

(Newser) - The current turmoil in the financial markets will take its toll on the economy, but  won't cause a recession, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson tells the Wall Street Journal in his first interview since the downturn began. Paulson says the crisis comes in the context of a very strong global economy—...

Japan Pumps Cash Into Market
Japan Pumps Cash Into Market

Japan Pumps Cash Into Market

Interest rate hikes unlikely

(Newser) - The Bank of Japan pumped $5.1 billion into the Japanese financial system today as the  global credit crunch continued to ripple through the Asian markets, Bloomberg reports. Adding to the jitters, Japan's growth is slowing more markedly than economists predicted; the world's second-largest economy expanded by only 0.5%...

Fed Pumps $19B Into Market
Fed Pumps $19B Into Market

Fed Pumps $19B Into Market

Will add $19B in temporary funds to bolster credit markets

(Newser) - The Federal Reserve pumped $19 billion in temporary funds into the banking system today by buying up mortgage-backed securities. The move is aimed to insure that there is enough cash available in the credit markets and keep the interest rate close to the Fed's target of 5.25%. It also...

Euro Bank Injects $190B to Avoid Crash

ECB's largest-ever emergency cash injection aims to stave off crisis

(Newser) - The European Central Bank has released $190 billion in emergency funds in a desperate attempt to restore liquidity to the region's markets. The Financial Times reports that the ECB's emergency injection echoes moves by central banks in Japan, the US and Canada but is unprecedented in scale. The move rattled...

BNP Paribas Halts Fund Withdrawals
BNP Paribas Halts Fund Withdrawals

BNP Paribas Halts Fund Withdrawals

France’s biggest bank can’t value holdings after credit collapse

(Newser) - France's largest bank today froze three investment funds threatened by the subprime mortagage collapse, claiming it can’t “fairly” place a value on their rapidly declining assets. Citing the “complete evaporation of liquidity” in the US securities market, BNP Paribas halted withdrawals from the funds, which were worth...

Dow Sees Biggest Gain in 5 Years Before Fed Meeting

Markets break out of three-week slump

(Newser) - US stocks posted major gains after three straight weeks in the red, as blue chips advanced cautiously in the wake of last week's selloff. The Dow was up 286.87 to 13468.78, its best close since October, 2002, mainly following long-suffering financial companies. Merrill Lynch got a boost from...

Credit Crunch Rocks LBOs
Credit Crunch Rocks LBOs

Credit Crunch Rocks LBOs

Fears of risky debt ripples through global markets

(Newser) - Leveraged buyouts, which have fueled Wall Street booms with offers of huge premiums on shares of target companies, are sputtering to a halt, the Wall Street Journal reports. Private equity firms, which just weeks ago were predicting acquisitions worth $100 billion and more, are now finding large-scale borrowing too expensive...

Whole Foods CEO Sorry for Web Subterfuge

Online shenanigans draw board scrutiny along with SEC probe

(Newser) - The CEO of Whole Foods apologized yesterday for boosting his company and posting snide comments about a rival supermarket chain in Internet forums and said he "had fun doing it." John Mackey's actions over the last 8 years have already triggered an SEC investigation, and the company's board...

Funds Find One Bet They Can't Hedge: Trust

It's 1998 all over again as Bear Stearns buckle triggers panic

(Newser) - The recent collapse of two Bear Stearns hedge funds, and the resulting informal SEC investigation, have once again placed the complex system and its impact on markets under the spotlight. The Washington Post delves into the history and ethos of the powerful funds, comparing them to the Wizard of Oz...

Hong Kong Poised to Become Asia's Big Apple

Port city turning into financial capital

(Newser) - Hong Kong is in decline as Asia's premier shipping hub, but the dip in dockyard activity is nothing to fret over, Newsweek reports. The city is on the brink of becoming one of the world's financial capitals—on par with London and New York. Economic shifts are reconfiguring the political...

Battle for Tech-Savvy New Grads Heats Up

Geeks are a hot commodity on the job market

(Newser) - Demand for students and recent grads with top-notch tech skills is higher than it's been in over a decade, thanks in part to banks and securities firms waging the recruiting wars alongside Silicon Valley giants such as Google. Bloomberg goes inside the process of wooing the so-called millennials, born between...

Wall Street, GOP Team Up on Tax Bill

Proposal would raise tax rate for private-equity profits from 15% to 35%

(Newser) - Wall Street stormed Washington yesterday, as more than 70 lobbyists for financial firms met with GOP lawmakers to organize opposition to a bill that would raise the tax rate on private-equity partners. The proposal would require managers at private partnerships to pay the normal income tax rate of up to...

SEC Opens Subprime Probe
SEC Opens Subprime Probe

SEC Opens Subprime Probe

Cox announces investigations into CDOs in wake of Bear Sterns tremors

(Newser) - The feds are investigating the controversial bundles of financial services that have recently shaken the market and sparked a spate of leveraged buyouts, the Journal reports. SEC chief Christopher Cox told a congressional panel yesterday that "about 12 investigations" were under way into CDOs, shared debt packages reliant on...

CPI Registers Spring Spike
CPI Registers Spring Spike

CPI Registers Spring Spike

Energy, food drive big May bump in consumer spending as core inflation stays cool

(Newser) - The consumer price index jumped 0.7% in May, riding high energy prices to its second-biggest spike in 16 years. But the volatile food and energy sectors appeared not to disrupt the rest of the economy, MarketWatch reports. The core CPI, which excludes food and gas prices, rose only 0....

Mortgage Trouble Rattles Wall Street
Mortgage Trouble Rattles Wall Street

Mortgage Trouble Rattles Wall Street

Bear Stearns, Goldman earnings reflect subprime bloodbath

(Newser) - Bear Stearns posted a 10% drop in quarterly earnings today, the latest victim of the subprime collapse. The country's second-largest mortgage-bond underwriter posted profits well below expectations, down nearly 33% from last year to $362 million. Goldman Sachs escaped bruised but more-or-less unscathed, with profits up 1% on the strength...

Dow Falls as Bond Yields Soar
Dow Falls as Bond Yields Soar

Dow Falls as Bond Yields Soar

Record high yields threaten higher mortgage rates

(Newser) - US bond yields have hit a five year high—bringing the threat of higher interest rates, costlier home mortgages and a slowing economy, the Wall Street Journal reports. The benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 5.25 per cent yesterday. Rising bond yields echo throughout the economy, making stocks less...

Interest Rate Cut Triggers Panic in Iran

President goes over finance minister's head, ignites sell-off

(Newser) - Iran's erratic president has set off a stock market scare by ordering banks to slash interest rates, despite high inflation and lots of expert advice to the contrary. The move sparked panicked selling and fears of a full-blown financial crisis, the Guardian reports. The new decreed rate is 12%, down...

China Deals on Finance, Skips Currency

US-China talks bring good news for securities firms, but no yuan reform

(Newser) - Talks between American and Chinese economic officials thudded to a close today, offering mild changes to the financial sector in lieu of major currency reform. The deal hammered out by Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson and China's vice-premier Wu Yi promise foreign financial companies more access to Chinese markets and allows...

Hedge Funds Skip Riskier Gambles
Hedge Funds Skip Riskier Gambles

Hedge Funds Skip Riskier Gambles

Returns are down as more cautious investors hold sway

(Newser) - Are hedge funds going soft? The swashbuckling industry has long been known for its high-risk, high-rewards MO, but returns are down, on average trailing the S&P 500 last year. The reason, BusinessWeek suggests, may be that alternative investments are no longer so alternative. And other non-traditional investments, like private...

Reuters, Thomson Seal the Deal
Reuters, Thomson Seal the Deal

Reuters, Thomson Seal the Deal

(Newser) - Reuters and Thomson have settled on the terms of the $17.24 billion merger announced last week, sounding the starting bell for a longer-than-usual regulatory review, the Journal reports. Reuters head Tom Glocer will become CEO of the new Thomson-Reuters, which combines the second- and third-largest providers of financial data...

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