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Latest Articles: Business
GM To Pay Off $5.8B Bailout Loans Early; Important Step For Company To Go Public Again
Post Date: 2010-04-20 11:27:42 by Brian S
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General Motors Co. is repaying its remaining $5.8 billion in bailout loans to U.S. and Canadian taxpayers two months ahead of schedule. It's another promising milestone for post-bankruptcy GM, which last month reported better-than-expected earnings for the last quarter of 2009. GM Chairman and CEO Edward Whitacre Jr. will make the official announcement Wednesday at at the automaker's Fairfax plant in Kansas City, Kan., two people briefed on the plans said Monday. The actual payment could be made as early as today. The Detroit-based automaker also will announce a new investment at the Kansas plant, which could include adding jobs, a person familiar with the matter said. The final ...
Railroads Seeing First Monthly Year-Over-Year Carload Gains Since July 2008
Post Date: 2010-04-19 20:47:15 by Brian S
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The Association of American Railroads (AAR) is reporting that U.S. freight railroads saw a 7.5 percent rise in carloads during March compared with the same month last year, and a decline of 11.5 percent compared with the same month in 2008. According to the April 2010 AAR Rail Time Indicators Report, 16 of the 19 major commodity categories tracked by AAR saw higher carloads last month compared with the same month last year. U.S. rail intermodal traffic, which covers the movement of truck trailers and shipping containers by rail, was up 12.1 percent in March compared with the same month last year, but down 4.5 percent for the same month in 2008. Commodities showing monthly carload gains ...
Leading Economic Index Hits Record High In March
Post Date: 2010-04-19 12:02:41 by Brian S
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(Reuters) - A gauge of the U.S. economy's prospects rose more strongly than expected to a record high in March, pointing to a steady economic recovery, a private research group said on Monday. The Conference Board said its index of leading economic indicators increased 1.4 percent, rising for the 12th straight month, after an upwardly revised 0.4 percent gain in February. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a 1.0 percent rise in March from a previously reported 0.1 percent gain. U.S. stocks held slim gains after the report, while Treasury debt prices and the U.S. dollar were little changed. "The indicators point to a slow recovery that should continue over the next few ...
Poor Swath Of Conservative, Anti-Stimulus South Carolina Didn't Want The Money, But It's Working
Post Date: 2010-04-16 16:52:20 by Brian S
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AIKEN, S.C. — A majority of people in South Carolina didn't vote for Barack Obama and many didn't want any part of his stimulus cash, and folks in a particularly poor, hard-hit swath near the Georgia line were no exception. Until the money showed up. About $1.6 billion was used to create 3,100 temporary jobs in a rural corner of the state cleaning up the Savannah River Site, which already employed about 9,000 and churned out radioactive metals for the nation's nuclear arsenal during the Cold War. "I am convinced it's what kept Aiken's economy stronger than most communities during these poor economic times," said David Jamison, president of the chamber of ...
33 States Saw Jobs Rise In March, 17 Had Losses [Full Thread]
Post Date: 2010-04-16 11:22:38 by Brian S
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(04-16) 08:03 PDT WASHINGTON (AP) -- Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania recorded sizable gains in employment in March and were among 33 states posting increases. In its monthly look at state job trends, the Labor Department said Friday that Maryland led the country with a gain of 35,800 payroll jobs last month. Virginia and Pennsylvania also posted increases that topped 20,000 in the month. By contrast, Michigan continued to have the nation's highest unemployment rate at 14.1 percent, and also led the country in job losses in March with a decline of 9,500. Nevada and Florida also posted sizable job losses and were among 17states recording job losses during the month. Nationally, ...
SEC Charges Goldman With Fraud Over Subprime Mortgages
Post Date: 2010-04-16 11:19:58 by Brian S
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(Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc was charged with fraud on Friday by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in the structuring and marketing of a debt product tied to subprime mortgages. The SEC alleged that Goldman structured and marketed a synthetic collateralized debt obligation that hinged on the performance of subprime residential mortgage-backed securities, and which cost investors more than $1 billion. It alleged that Goldman did not tell investors "vital information" about the CDO, called ABACUS. This included that a major hedge fund, Paulson & Co, was involved in choosing which securities would be part of the portfolio, and had taken a short position against ...
U.S. Consumer Sentiment Unexpectedly Drops Amid Pessimism Over Job Market
Post Date: 2010-04-16 11:15:00 by Brian S
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April 16 (Bloomberg) -- Confidence among U.S. consumers unexpectedly fell in April to the lowest level in five months, indicating Americans are discouraged about the labor market. The Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer sentiment dropped to 69.5 from a reading of 73.6 in March. The gauge was projected to rise to 75, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of 69 economists. Lagging confidence threatens to restrain household spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the economy. While recent figures showed retail sales picked up in March, a 9.7 percent unemployment rate and mounting home foreclosures are risks for the recovery. “This ...
Homebuilders in U.S. Less Pessimistic
Post Date: 2010-04-15 14:54:27 by Brian S
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By Courtney Schlisserman April 15 (Bloomberg) -- Homebuilders in the U.S. turned less pessimistic in April as customers took advantage of a government tax credit before it expires. The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo index of builder confidence increased to 19, exceeding the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, from 15 the prior month, data from the Washington-based group showed today. Readings less than 50 mean more respondents said conditions were poor. Buyers rushed to qualify for an Obama administration cash incentive by signing deals ahead of an April 30 deadline, sending the builders’ gauge of current home sales to the highest level in ...
Manufacturing in New York Area Grows More Than Estimated, Fed Index Shows
Post Date: 2010-04-15 11:39:12 by Brian S
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April 15 (Bloomberg) -- Manufacturing in the New York region expanded in April at a faster pace than anticipated, indicating factories will remain at the forefront of the U.S. expansion. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s general economic index climbed to 31.9, a ninth consecutive month of growth, from 22.9 in March. Readings greater than zero signal gains in the so-called Empire State Index that covers New York, northern New Jersey and southern Connecticut. Companies are boosting output to meet increased demand at home and abroad and to replenish inventories that were drawn down by a record amount last year. The recovery is broadening out beyond manufacturing, leading to gains ...
Factory Production Gains as U.S. Companies Boost Stockpiles Amid Recovery
Post Date: 2010-04-15 11:36:56 by Brian S
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April 15 (Bloomberg) -- Manufacturing production in the U.S. accelerated in March as factories spearheaded the recovery from the worst recession since the 1930s. Output at factories climbed 0.9 percent after a 0.2 gain in February that was revised from a previously estimated decline, Federal Reserve figures showed today. Warmer weather caused utility use to drop by the most in four years, limiting the overall gain in industrial production to 0.1 percent, less than anticipated. Companies may keep rebuilding depleted inventories and investing in new equipment as global demand rises, one reason why producers like Intel Corp. see better times ahead. Payrolls will probably climb further as ...
Reports Show More Americans Feel Economic Recovery
Post Date: 2010-04-14 12:17:54 by Brian S
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WASHINGTON — A flurry of reports out Wednesday suggested that many Americans are feeling better about the economic rebound. Retail spending rose sharply and more than expected. Consumer inflation remains all but invisible. Businesses are boosting their stockpiles in anticipation of higher shopper demand. And Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke expressed confidence that the recovery will endure, though without enough strength to quickly reduce unemployment much. The latest evidence of a gradually strengthening recovery was a third straight month of retail sales gains reported by the government. Better weather and auto incentives brought shoppers out in force in March. Sales surged ...
Credit-Card Swipes by U.S. Truckers Show Recovery Spreading From Factories
Post Date: 2010-04-14 11:44:15 by Brian S
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April 14 (Bloomberg) -- The amount of diesel fuel bought using credit cards at U.S. truck stops increased in March to the highest level in more than a year, indicating the recovery is broadening beyond manufacturing. The Ceridian-UCLA Pulse of Commerce Index, which measures fuel consumption, rose 1 percent last month to reach the highest level since September 2008, a report yesterday showed. The gauge has increased every month since November with the exception of February, when East Coast blizzards hampered travel. Truck tonnage, which accounts for 68 percent of freight transported in the U.S., increased on a year-over-year basis in February for a third straight month, a separate report ...
U.S. Auto Supplier Aid Ends Quietly
Post Date: 2010-04-13 11:38:47 by Brian S
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The Treasury Department has ended its year-old program to guarantee payments to auto suppliers, officials said Monday. The program was to ensure that General Motors and Chrysler received the parts and components they needed to manufacture vehicles, and to see that suppliers had access to credit from lenders. The program ended early this month without fanfare. The Treasury Department had signaled earlier this year that it planned to end it sometime in April. It initially was set at $5 billion, but was shrunk in July to $3.5 billion, at the automakers' request. They said they no longer needed to maintain their prebankruptcy supply capacity, credit markets had opened up, and ...
Toyota's Lexus GX SUV Is Labeled `Safety Risk' by Consumer Reports in U.S.
Post Date: 2010-04-13 11:30:10 by Brian S
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April 13 (Bloomberg) -- Toyota Motor Corp.’s new Lexus GX sport-utility vehicle was labeled a “safety risk” by Consumer Reports, complicating efforts by the world’s largest automaker to repair its image after record recalls. The 2010 GX 460 received the designation and “don’t buy” recommendation because of handling in emergency driving tests, Consumer Reports said today in a statement. The magazine, published by Yonkers, New York-based Consumers Union, said it hadn’t deemed any vehicle a potential safety risk since 2001. The GX’s rear end “slid out until the vehicle was almost sideways before the electronic stability control system was ...
Stocks Rise On More Signs Of Growth; Dow Tops 11K For The First Time Since Sept. 29, 2008
Post Date: 2010-04-09 20:19:38 by Brian S
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NEW YORK (AP) -- Fresh signs Friday that the economy continues to recover sent the Dow Jones industrial average briefly above the 11,000 mark for the first time in 18 months. Easing worries about Greece's debt problems also helped push stocks higher Friday. In the final moments of trading the Dow was up 69.53 or 0.6 percent at 10,996.60, having briefly crossed above 11,000 minutes earlier. It last moved above 11,000 Sept. 29, 2008. Click for Full Text!
Why the Obama Plan Is Working
Post Date: 2010-04-09 11:51:52 by Brian S
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Polls say the economy is heading in the wrong direction. Markets say it's back on track. This time, the markets are rightBy Mike Dorning It's never easy to separate politics from policy, and the past 18 months have only increased the degree of difficulty. The U.S. has been through a historic financial crisis followed by a historic election and a series of historic federal gambles—from bailing out AIG and GM to passing a $787 billion stimulus and a $940 billion health-care reform bill. All that risk has made policy more complicated and politics more fraught ("You lie," "Babykiller"). A Bloomberg national poll in March found that Americans, by an almost ...
US Stocks Rise as Inventories Point to Strengthening Economy
Post Date: 2010-04-09 11:40:32 by Brian S
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By Whitney Kisling April 9 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rose and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index headed for a sixth weekly gain as growth in wholesale inventories added to signs the economy is strengthening and speculation of a Greece bailout grew. Benchmark indexes pared gains after Fitch Ratings cut Greece’s credit rating. Exxon Mobil Corp., the largest energy producer, advanced as much as 1.3 percent to lead energy producers to the top gain among 10 groups. Dish Network Corp. advanced 4.4 percent after UBS AG called it a “turnaround story” and upgraded the shares. The S&P 500 gained 0.3 percent to 1,189.94 at 10:45 a.m. in New York, paring an earlier gain of ...
Retail Sales Surged At A Record Pace, Gains Broad-Based
Post Date: 2010-04-08 19:30:44 by Brian S
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The nation's retailers enjoyed record same-store sales growth in March, smashing views Thursday as an early Easter and higher confidence drove shoppers to heat up spending on spring wardrobes and other goods. The strength and breadth of gains suggest the retail recovery is accelerating, and that consumers are in the mood to buy more than basic necessities. March sales at stores open at least a year climbed 8.7% vs. a year earlier, says Ken Perkins, president of Retail Metrics. That sailed past Wall Street's raised forecast of a 6.1% gain. That was the best since Perkins began tracking same-store sales in early 2000. View Enlarged ImageA hefty 86% of retailers beat ...
Recession's Over, Says Business Cycle Panelist
Post Date: 2010-04-07 20:20:11 by Brian S
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A Member Of The Committee That Determines Recession Chronology Says Jobs Numbers Confirm What Many Suspectedby John MaggsTuesday, April 6, 2010The Great Recession is over, according a member of the committee of professors that is the recognized arbiter on such matters.Harvard University economist Jeffrey Frankel made the declaration Monday on his personal blog, citing Friday's Labor Department announcement that the U.S. economy created 162,000 jobs in March, the most since March 2007.President Obama has said that he hopes that the recession has ended, and his top advisers have gone so far as to say that it ended sometime in 2009, but unlike Frankel, they are not charged with making that ...
GM Ready To Repay Govt Loan By June, Five Years Ahead Of Schedule
Post Date: 2010-04-07 19:21:19 by Brian S
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By DEE-ANN DURBIN (AP) – 1 hour ago DETROIT — General Motors Co., steadily returning to health after its near-collapse in 2009, said Wednesday it plans to pay off its government loans by June — five years ahead of schedule — and could report a profit as early as this year. GM said it lost $3.4 billion in the fourth quarter of 2009 on revenues of $32.3 billion. But things are on the upswing. Sales and production have increased and GM has gained U.S. market share since the start of the year. The automaker will try to maintain that momentum while facing a stiff challenge from a revitalized Ford Motor Co. For the period from July 10, when GM emerged from bankruptcy ...
Poll: George W. Bush Still Blamed For Economy
Post Date: 2010-04-07 12:05:24 by Brian S
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Former President George W. Bush gets more blame for the country’s economic troubles than his successor or the Democrats who control Congress, according to a Harris poll out Wednesday. Thirty-one percent of the 2,344 adults surveyed said Bush deserves the most blame for a rough economy, leading the second-place Wall Street by 6 percentage points. Democrats in Congress were blamed by 16 percent of those polled, while President Barack Obama was blamed by 14 percent. Republicans in Congress were blamed by 9 percent of respondents, and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was blamed by 4 percent. A majority of Democrats — 53 percent — blamed Bush for the economy. Republicans, ...
More CEOs Of Big US Companies Expect To Add Jobs Than Cut Jobs For First Time Since Early 2008
Post Date: 2010-04-07 11:44:58 by Brian S
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NEW YORK — For the first time in two years, more CEOs expect to be adding jobs than cutting jobs. A survey released Wednesday by the Business Roundtable, an association of CEOs of big U.S. companies, says 29 percent of chief executives expect to increase corporate payrolls over the next six months, while 21 percent predict that their work forces will shrink. Half see no change in jobs. That’s the first time since the first quarter of 2008 that more CEOs have expected to increase jobs rather than shrink them. In the fourth quarter of 2009, only 19 percent expected their payrolls would grow, while 31 percent predicted a declining work force and half expected jobs to hold steady. ...
Job Openings Rise In Several Sectors In February
Post Date: 2010-04-06 13:48:52 by Brian S
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12:01 p.m., Tuesday, April 6, 2010 WASHINGTON -- The Labor Department says job openings rose in several sectors of the economy in February, including retail, manufacturing, restaurants and hotels, and transportation. The report is consistent with other surveys showing hiring is picking up in those areas. It also echoes last week's employment report, which showed broad job gains in March. Layoffs declined sharply in February, falling to 1.8 million from 1.95 million in January. Layoffs have fallen back to pre-recession levels, but job openings and new hirings are recovering more slowly. Total job openings declined in February, a sign that hiring remains sluggish as employers slowly ...
Too Much Fuss About Commercial Real Estate?
Post Date: 2010-04-06 13:01:00 by Brian S
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With commercial real estate showing better-than-expected numbers — although still citing major losses — analyst are asking themselves whether the second shoe left to drop in the financial crisis will be more of a ballerina slipper or a workboot? “Even though commercial real estate is very bad in this cycle versus prior cycles, it’s tracking much better than most of us thought in terms of loan losses. And one reason is restructuring those loans has helped to avoid some of the loss, and it’s postponed,” said Craig Siegenthaler, a senior equity research analyst who covers the financial sector at Credit Suisse. “So CRE, in our view, the hump in terms of the ...
Home Depot Is Adding Jobs for First Time in 4 Years
Post Date: 2010-04-06 11:38:00 by Brian S
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By Chris Burritt April 6 (Bloomberg) -- Home Depot Inc., the largest U.S. home-improvement retailer, is adding store jobs for the first time in four years in anticipation of a rebound in sales. “We have already added to our payroll this year,” Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Frank Blake said in an interview yesterday in Atlanta, where Home Depot is based. “As you have positive transaction growth, you need more associates to handle that in the stores. We are going to lean into our skis a little bit.” Home Depot made the decision to boost hiring late last year, Blake said. Sales advanced more than the company had anticipated in the fourth quarter, helped by ...
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