Stocks tumble on economic gloom
NEW YORK - Stocks tumbled at the open on Tuesday on concern that the recession is worsening and that efforts to stabilize the stricken global financial system may not be enough.
A report showing that manufacturing production in New York state fell to a record low in February added to worries about the deepening recession among investors already fearful a new U.S. economic stimulus package won't...
Even Bill Gates feeling the economic pinch
NEW YORK - Even billionaire Bill Gates may be feeling the pinch these days.
The value of Gates' investments fell by $3 billion, or almost 20 percent, in the fourth quarter as the worst financial crisis in decades and a deepening recession hammered stock prices.
The investments of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation fell 19 percent to $9.07 billion, while those of Cascade Investment LLC, Ga...
IPTE makes Q4 loss, to continue restructuring
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Belgian electronics company IPTE (IPTE.BR) reported a sharp drop in fourth-quarter earnings on Tuesday and said it would continue restructuring in readiness for a difficult 2009.
Stocks set for opening slide on economic gloom
NEW YORK - Stocks headed for a slide at Tuesday's opening on concern that the recession is worsening and that efforts to stabilize the stricken global financial system may not be enough.
A drop on Wall Street would mark another leg of a global equity rout that hit Asian markets overnight and drove European stocks down about 2 percent as appetite for riskier assets ebbed.
Top drags would includ...
NY manufacturing slump worsens in February
from January's 26.14.
The survey of manufacturing plants in the state is one of the earliest monthly guideposts to U.S. factory conditions.
(Reporting by Burton Frierson; Editing by Tom Hals)
Eastern Europe triggers new bank fears
to try to ease the deepening recession, but some have been criticized for putting national interests before trade commitments.
ACT TOGETHER
What shocks me, you see, what bothers me a bit is that in the international arena ... everyone agrees that we need to work and act together, IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn told France Inter radio.
Then when everyone goes home, everyone has his nati...
Liberty to loan Sirius $530 million and get 40 percent stake
NEW YORK - Liberty Media has agreed to $530 million in loans to Sirius XM Radio Inc, saving the satellite radio provider from possible bankruptcy and giving Liberty a 40 percent equity stake.
Under the agreement, Liberty, controlled by media mogul John Malone, would offer loans to Sirius, a portion of which will help pay $171.6 million in debt that was due on Tuesday.
Had Sirius been unable to ...
Emerging slump to further hurt Western banks: report
to try to ease the deepening recession, but some have been criticized for putting national interests before trade commitments.
ACT TOGETHER
What shocks me, you see, what bothers me a bit is that in the international arena ... everyone agrees that we need to work and act together, IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn told France Inter radio.
Then when everyone goes home, everyone has his nati...
Trump Entertainment files for bankruptcy
The move was widely expected, coming days after the casino operator's namesake tycoon, Chairman and founder Donald Trump, walked away from the company.
The casino operator had assets of about $2.1 billion and total debts of about $1.74 billion on December 31, 2008, it said in its filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey.
The company missed a $53.1 million bond intere...
Toyota's U.S. workers avoid layoff threat for now
SAN ANTONIO - Even though Toyota Motor Corp touts its mighty Tundra pickup as the truck that's changing it all, workers who build it in San Antonio are not immune from the threat of layoffs that have beset the Big Three U.S. automakers.
Opening the $1.2 billion plant in San Antonio in early 2007 was part of Toyota's public relations campaign to displace big U.S. truck makers like Ford, Che...
Stock futures slide on recession woes
NEW YORK - Stock index futures tumbled on Tuesday on concern that the recession is worsening and that efforts to stabilize the global financial system may not be enough.
The diminishing appetite for riskier assets made stocks sink in Asia overnight while in Europe benchmark indexes were down more than 2 percent.
Top drags before the bell included financials, with shares of Bank of America
Madagascar armed forces ready to fulfil duties
ANTANANARIVO, (Reuters) - Madagascar's armed forces said on Tuesday they were ready to fulfil their duties if a bitter power struggle that has killed about 125 people is not resolved quickly.
GM readies survival plan
STUTTGART/WASHINGTON - Daimler swung to a hefty loss, hit by exposure to Chrysler, and Opel and Saab braced for news of General Motors' survival plan, as European carmakers saw their fates tied closely to their U.S. peers.
As GM and Chrysler put the finishing touches to blueprints showing how they will pay back billions of dollars of government loans, Chrysler's German ex-owner Daimler said it...
Wal-Mart's profit beats expectations
Profit fell to $3.79 billion, or 96 cents per share, for its fiscal fourth quarter that ended January 31, from $4.096 billion, or $1.02 share, a year ago.
The company said earnings per share excluding a 7 cent charge for the settlement of class action lawsuits was $1.03 per share. Analysts, on average, had been expecting it to earn 99 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.
Last month, ...
Harper says he's confident GM will stay in Canada
TORONTO, (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Tuesday he is not concerned about the possibility of General Motors Corp (GM.N) moving out of Canada as the Detroit-based company restructures its operations.
Nortel to present new business plan in few weeks
BARCELONA - Nortel Networks Corp aims to present its new business plan on how it will scale down its business operations within the next few weeks, a senior company official told Reuters on Tuesday.
The Toronto-based telecom equipment maker filed for bankruptcy protection in Canada and the United States last month, blaming the economic crisis for derailing a turnaround effort that ...
China defends its Khmer Rouge ties as trial opens
China defended its ties with Cambodia's Khmer Rouge regime saying it was part of normal diplomatic relations, as a trial began on Tuesday in Phnom Penh of the group's chief torturer.
Nortel to present new business plan in few wks
BARCELONA - Nortel Networks Corp aims to present its new business plan on how it will scale down its business operations within the next few weeks, a senior company official told Reuters on Tuesday.
The Toronto-based telecom equipment maker filed for bankruptcy protection in Canada and the United States last month, blaming the economic crisis for derailing a turnaround effort that ...
MOBILE FAIR-Vodafone says on right track in Spain
Vodafone, the world's largest mobile phone group by revenue, believes competition will continue to increase in Spain but is not concerned and believes it is on the right track.
Wal-Mart quarterly profit falls
Profit fell to $3.79 billion, or 96 cents per share, for its fiscal fourth quarter that ended January 31, from $4.096 billion, or $1.02 share, a year ago.
The company said earnings per share excluding a 7 cent charge for the settlement of class action lawsuits was $1.03 per share. Analysts, on average, had been expecting it to earn 99 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.
Last month, ...
U.S. recession concerns hit Brazil stocks, currency
SAO PAULO - Brazil's stocks and currency sank on Tuesday, dragged down by fresh concerns that the recession in the United States is worsening and that Washington's efforts to shore up the economy may not be enough.
Wal-Mart intl ops hit by firmer dollar, Asda shines
LONDON - Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) posted a 14.3 percent drop in fourth-quarter operating income at its international businesses, hit by the stronger dollar, but said underlying growth was solid, led by the UK, China and Brazil.
Eastern Europe woes hit European shares
Growing concerns about deteriorating emerging European economies hit European shares and the euro on Tuesday, driving capital to safer government bonds and gold.
Israel engaged in covert war inside Iran: report
Israel is involved in a covert war of sabotage inside Iran to try to delay Tehran's alleged attempts to develop a nuclear weapon, a British newspaper said on Tuesday, quoting a former CIA agent and intelligence experts.
Stock futures slide as recession woe fans global rout
NEW YORK - Stock index futures slid on Tuesday as concerns that the global recession was worsening fueled a global equity rout, and investors worried that efforts to stem the downward spiral and stabilize the financial system may not be enough.
* The diminishing appetite for riskier assets sunk stocks in Asia overnight, while in Europe benchmark indexes were down more than 2 percent.
* S&P ...
HTC launches sleek new touchscreen Google phone
The new touchscreen HTC Magic is the phone maker's sleek second attempt at integrating Google's mobile phone Android operating system.
Stock futures signal drop; eyes on Wal-Mart
- Stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Tuesday, as the market reopens after a long holiday weekend, with investors bracing for quarterly results from retail behemoth Wal-Mart .
At 4:48 a.m. EST, futures for the S&P 500 were down 2.1 percent, Dow Jones futures were down 1.8 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures were down 1.9 percent.
Wal-Mart, the world's bigg...
GM and Chrysler ready survival plans
Daimler swung to a hefty loss, hit by exposure to Chrysler, and Opel and Saab braced for news of General Motors' survival plan, as European carmakers saw their fates tied closely to their U.S. peers.
U.S. calls for coordinated response on economy
rose by the same amount, but confidence among non-manufacturers worsened by 8 points to a record low of minus 39.
Japan's finance minister, Shoichi Nakagawa, also said he would resign, after Japan's budget passes, over his embarrassing performance at a G7 weekend meeting in Rome.
Nakagawa's untimely departure is a major blow to increasingly unpopular Prime Minister Taro Aso. Analysts said As...
Intel sees Atom sales up 50 percent
Intel, the world's biggest chipmaker, expects to sell at least 50 percent more of its Atom chips for netbooks and other mobile Internet devices this year than it did last year, the head of that unit said.
