Sons And Daughters Of BBCMF High Technologies Companies, It, R & D, domestic, international

[mick]

Shares in China's ICBC Take Off in IPO
Friday October 27, 9:00 am ET
By Elaine Kurtenbach, AP Business Writer
Shares in ICBC -- World's Biggest IPO -- Soar in Hong Kong, Disappoint in Shanghai


SHANGHAI, China (AP) -- With the bang of a gong, China's biggest bank kicked off the world's biggest initial public offering of stock on Friday, a milestone for the country's financial markets.
Industrial & Commercial Bank of China's shares surged 14.6 percent in Hong Kong from their IPO price but gained only 5 percent in Shanghai, below analysts' forecasts for at least a 10 percent gain in the opening session.

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ICBC made history by simultaneously conducting its IPO in Shanghai and Hong Kong in parallel listings that enabled both domestic and foreign investors to participate. The key benchmarks in both stock markets fell, contrary to expectations.

ICBC raised a minimum of $19.1 billion, but it was expected to soon increase its offering to $21.9 billion by exercising the so-called greenshoe option to meet extra demand. That beat the previous record $18.4 billion IPO staged by NTT DoCoMo Inc. in 1998.

Investors snapped up the stocks because they viewed Chinese bank IPOs to be good ways to profit off of the nation's roaring economic growth, analysts said.

"They are buying for the China growth story," Francis Lun, general manager, Fulbright Securities Ltd., in Hong Kong. "China's economy is growing by 10 percent a year and ICBC is the largest bank in China. If it grows in tandem with the Chinese economy, I think it should be worth much, much more in the future."

But Lun noted that Chinese banks can be a risky investment because of a history of bad loans and bad management. ICBC received a $15 billion injection from the government to clean up its balance sheet last year.

"If ICBC can clean up its balance sheet, improve its management and if nobody runs away with several hundreds of millions of dollars, that's the most important thing," Lun said.

The timing for the dual IPO couldn't be better for ICBC, with the Hong Kong index near record highs and Shanghai's trading near a five-year peak.

Regulators say they plan to encourage more star companies to list shares on the domestic share markets in Shanghai and Shenzhen.

The stock's price jumped 14.6 percent to HK$3.52 ($0.45) compared to its IPO price of $3.07 ($0.39) per share. Analysts predicted the stock would rise between 10 percent to 15 percent.

But in Shanghai, the so-called "A shares" only gained 5.1 percent from their IPO price to close at 3.28 yuan. They had also been expected to shoot up 10 percent to 15 percent.

Analysts attributed ICBC's lackluster performance in Shanghai to the massive strain on liquidity from the influx of new shares. The Shanghai segment of the bank's IPO raised 46.64 billion yuan ($5.9 billion), a record for a mainland bourse. ICBC issued 14.95 billion Shanghai shares after overallotment, up from 13 billion A-shares originally planned.

Investors also may have become a little gun-shy after shares of state-run Bank of China jumped more than 30 percent on its first day of trading in Shanghai in July. Since then, they have generally declined.

ICBC is China's biggest bank, with 6.45 trillion yuan ($816 billion) in assets. It is the third big state-owned commercial bank to list shares, part of reforms aimed at boosting the industry's competitiveness ahead of an opening of the market to more foreign competition later this year.

All three banks received multibillion-dollar government bailouts after writing off massive amounts of bad debt. They're revamping their operations with the help of foreign strategic investors -- in ICBC's case that includes Goldman Sachs Group Inc., American Express Co. and Germany's Allianz AG.

Yet all three listed banks are still controlled by the state. More than 72.5 percent of ICBC is held in equal shares by the Ministry of Finance and the state's asset management arm, Central SAFE Investments Ltd. The national pension fund holds a 5.4 stake and foreign strategic investors a combined 7.4 percent.

That leaves only about 15 percent of the bank's equity in the form of Hong Kong and Shanghai-traded shares.

Local investors are well aware that ICBC, and other local banks, have a long way to go to match the level of services and products offered by global banks.

"Just go to ICBC to try to withdraw some money and you will understand better why it is hard to be quite optimistic about the ICBC's performance in the stock market," said Peng Yunliang, an analyst at Shanghai Securities.

The IPO is just one step, though a major one, said ICBC President Yang Kaisheng, who kicked off Shanghai trading Friday by banging on a gong and then sipping wine served by women in silk red dresses with other VIPs.

"We will take this public offering as the first step, and continue to strive toward our goal of becoming a first-rate international financial enterprise," Yang said.

Associated Press writers Bill Foreman and Sylvia Hui in Hong Kong contributed to this report.





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[mick]

hi to all, good stuff to ya.

[mick]

this is for company information


#msg-10599755

[mick]

TO ALL, BBCMF,FRIENDS AND READERS. ONE OF FRIENDS HAS PASSED ON. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SAY SOMETHING FOR HER OR ABOUT HER GIVE THIS PALACE A CLOCK TO.

IN MEMORY FOR MARIE az2820


http://www.investorshub.com/boards/board.asp?board_id=2463

[mick]

me again dubi, just kicking the tires here for with updated ibox today.

NetWorking with Moderator: FinancialAdvisor Assistants: FinancialAdvisorFinancialAdvisor's College Class(FACC)...#board-2767

NetWorking with Moderator: kgoodrich Assistants: cats, flota, Gok...Seasonals rock...#board-1616 & #board-3424 Seasonals rock.

NetWorking with: Moderator: puppman Assistants: Creede Bighorns, rrufff...The Transparent Flamingo 2...#board-5260

NetWorking with Moderator: SeriousMoney, Assistants: None...
Toby Smith Stock Review...#board-4469
Moderator Or An Assistant To These Forums In This Click...#msg-10253185

NetWorking with Moderator: Trade_4_Money,Assistants: IAMSAM, Pay_tience...PENNIES TO DOLLARS...#board-3802

[mick]

I DO AGREE WITH THIS. I THINK IT IS ABOUT THE FORCES SOME IGNORE THAT ARE COMING.

ONE SIN CITY GOT A WARNING HE IS SPEAKING TO US.

[midastouch017]

We had also something similar in our parts as well.
Seems the weather and its strange phenomena is
hitting the whole world.

Dubi

[mick]

you are very welcome. nice job helping all of us.
a sand strom this weekend but it blew by yuma and back to noraml

[midastouch017]

Thanks, Mick,
A glorious day to you.

Regards,

Dubi

[mick]

hi dubi, good morning. as usual you are on top of good articles. INTC

[midastouch017]

Re :INTC,

>>Intel's largest R&D center planned in Haifa

Computer chip giant purchases 5 acres for NIS 27 million; center to employ 1,500 employees, in addition to 2,000 people already employed in Haifa >>

(#msg-9898190)

Dubi

[mick]

it can be but i try to break it up going out with jack.

[midastouch017]

A Full Time Job, almost...
:)

Dubi

[mick]

no , it o.k. there are many good ideas in these readings.

100 to go.

[midastouch017]

Most welcome Mick,

Must be tiring going through all the messages ?

Regards,

Dubi

[mick]

hi dubi, i'm into the pm's now. thank you for these comments.

[midastouch017]

Hi Mick,

In apropos to the subject we discussed,

Hurt bad employers where it counts

15.2.06 | 11:10 By Hanna Zohar
Last week the Ministry of Industry and Trade announced an enforcement drive against cleaning and security service companies. It would inspect 100 companies, the ministry said.

These are sectors famous for trampling workers' rights, but the enforcement drive will change nothing.

When the inspectors raid the workplaces and examine pay slips, they will find - especially if they actually talk with the workers - that most are denied overtime or reimbursement of travel expenses. Most of their employers make no pension provisions for the employees, despite the collective employment agreement that requires them to do so. And they get pittances, if anything at all, for vacation, recuperation, and the like. Moreover, in the security sector, the management tends to fine workers for infractions in on-the-spot kangaroo court proceedings.

The Labor Ministry inspectors have no powers against these infractions. All they have power to enforce is the minimum wage, the law requiring disclosure of information to employees about his employment terms and wages, and the law mandating an annual vacation, and that's a recent development, too.

The inspectors won't find many companies breaking the minimum wage law. If they do find any, the companies will be ordered to pay an administrative fine - though in practice, the fines are rarely collected and the Ministry of Industry and Trade refuses to publicize the names of the offending companies, though it should under a court ruling on a petition by Kav LaOved.

Why all the sudden action? First of all, elections are approaching and the party in power has to show it's doing something. Secondly, the latest Poverty Report revealed that 41% of the people falling into the category of poor, work part- or full-time jobs, but most through subcontractors: they work in security, cleaning, nursing care manpower companies and the like.

Raids won't solve the problem of scorn for the labor laws. The only thing that will, is deterrent action that hurts corporate profits, and renders scorn for workers' rights an economically unwise prospect.

It is easy enough to achieve, but the Finance and Industry ministries have not made the effort. They are afraid of hurting the big companies with which they work. The ministries could set terms in tenders for manpower services that would block companies found guilty of labor violations. That would change things immediately. Terms like that would render the spot inspections unnecessary, as the workers would be in the position of power.

A legislative proposal, which imposes the responsibility on the body hiring from the manpower company, was formulated by a group of groups fighting for the enforcement of worker rights. It was raised for its first vote into law by MK Igal Yasinov, but lost because of cabinet opposition.

The bill presented a simple reform that would have been easy to execute. It would have required any body buying service from a manpower company, to ensure that the workers receive their rights under law. Workers whose rights are violated can sue the employer (say, the security company) and the service recipient as well.

Who are these service recipients? Ministries that publish tenders for manpower, or big businesses like banks, major industrial plants and hi-tech companies.

The proposal did not require added budgets for inspectors, or the creation of enforcement bodies. The service recipients would have had to demand that the manpower companies present proof that they comply with labor laws. At present the manpower companies are required to provide guarantee that they will meet tender conditions such as quality of labor and time, but not labor laws.

The bill did not determine employee-employer relations, only that anybody choosing a company for manpower services must assure the workers get their full pay, under law.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ArticleContent.jhtml?itemNo=683241

Dubi

[mick]

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY TO OUR FRIENDS, READERS, MY ASSISTANTS, AND TO ALL THAT WORK HARD FOR SHARING AND CARING FOR EACH OTHER HERE AT THE IHUB.

[midastouch017]

Precisely.

Dubi

[mick]

that is great to know. you can't do better if you sit on your tail.

[midastouch017]

The main problem with these people is that they
are newcomers, do not yet master the language,
therefore even if skilled, they lag behind, as
can perform only menial jobs.

Btw, my father had it the same, (years and years
ago), and when he mastered the language, he got
a much better job.

Dubi

[mick]

is it hard for the lower wage earner to improve their skills?

[midastouch017]

Now, before election Mar 29th 2006, all parties
promise they will raise it ...lol... promises,
promises.

Although life is somewhat cheaper here than in the US,
it is indeed pretty hard to get by with our minimum
wages.

Dubi

[midastouch017]

That is true, lol... in fact one Israeli domestic airline
has the slogan "How time flies when you have fun"

Very true,

Dubi

[mick]

these pay schedules are pretty good except for minimum wage.

[midastouch017]

Minimum wages are $ 3.72 per hour, average salary
is about $ 1 K, but off course hi-tec employees
is a much different story, and average $ 7.5 K
and up a month.( they deserve every cent they make).

Dubi

[mick]

when you are having fun and enjoyment the time goes by very quickly.

[midastouch017]

Hi Mick,

Short but very fulfilling, thanks.

Regards,

Dubi

[mick]

i hope you had a wonderful weekend.

[mick]

now that is a nice bonus. are the salaries low in israel?

INTC

[midastouch017]

Re: INTC

Intel Israel giving workers 3 months' salary as bonus

13.2.06 | 10:03 By Eynav Ben Yehuda
Intel Israel has a history of sharing its success with workers, and 2005 was no exception. Workers received bonuses equivalent to three months' salary, TheMarker has learned.

The Intel staffers received some of the money last year but most of it in their January and February paychecks.

Intel is diligent about granting bonuses each year, but it's no kneejerk perk. The formula for each employee's bonus is complex, involving to what degree the worker met goals, Intel Israel's own profit and that of its parent company, Intel (Nasdaq:INTC).

While Intel is far from the only hi-tech company rewarding its workers, it is one of the most generous. The average is about one monthly salary.

Intel is also one of the only hi-tech companies that didn't stop giving bonuses during the tech crash from 2001 to 2003: it did scale back the scope, but it continued to share.

Intel Israel is presently in the process of expanding its plant in Kiryat Gat, at a massive investment of $3.5 billion. This is the biggest investment ever made in an Israeli plant. Upon completion, Intel Israel will be hiring more than 2,000 new workers. It already has 6,000 Israelis on its payroll.

Recently the global Intel Corp delivered lower than expected results for the last year, because of weak sales of desktop PCs. It netted $2.5 billion in the last quarter of 2005, or 40 cents per share, an increase of 23% against the parallel quarter and 16% sequentially. But analysts had expected more: earnings of 43 cents per share.

Quarterly revenues were $10.2 billion, an increase of 6% year over year and 2% from the previous quarter. But again the Street was aghast, having expected $10.5 billion sales.

Not that Intel's a slouch. For the year 2005 it achieved record sales of $38.8 billion, and netted $8.7 billion.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/682243.html

Dubi

[mick]

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[mick]

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[mick]

Five Cheap Companies that Create Value
Wednesday February 8, 6:00 am ET
By Elizabeth Collins


My favorite financial ratio is--hands down--return on invested capital, or ROIC. I think it's 10 times better than return on assets (ROA) or return on equity (ROE), and net profit margin doesn't even come close. That's because it single-handedly provides a quantitative answer to the question, "Does this company have an economic moat?" (The idea of an economic moat refers to how likely companies are to keep competitors at bay for an extended period.) Given how great the ROIC metric is, I wish there was a stock screener that would help me find companies with high ROICs, but unfortunately one doesn't exist. So let me show you how to calculate ROICs, and then you'll be able to conduct a sniff-test of a company's economic moat by yourself. I'll also discuss some companies that are high-ROIC machines and happen to be selling at 5-star prices. But first let's talk about what exactly ROIC measures, and why it's superior to all other financial ratios.
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ROIC is a measure of how much cash a company gets back for each dollar it invests in its business. You're probably saying, "That sounds so similar to ROA and ROE, why not just use those, since they're posted on just about every financial Web site?" I agree that using ROA or ROE would be easier, but in my book they just don't cut it. First of all, the numerator in both of these ratios is net income. In many cases a company's net income has nothing to do with how profitable its operations are. There can be so many things going on "below the line"--interest income, discontinued operations, minority interest, and so on--that net income can make companies with unprofitable operations look profitable, and vice versa.

Further, ROA measures how much net income a company generates for each dollar of assets on its balance sheet. The problem with using this metric is that companies can carry a lot of assets that have nothing to do with their operations, so ROA isn't always an accurate measure of profitability.

ROE looks at how much profit a company makes per dollar of shareholders' equity. Theoretically ROE is a great metric because it measures how efficiently a company is using shareholders' money to generate profits--and as investors, that's something we should care about. But ROE has its limitations, too. By carrying high debt levels and repurchasing shares, management can increase a company's financial leverage, and thus its ROE, but too much of either can produce an unreasonably high ROE that doesn't accurately represent the company's profitability.

As far as net profit margin goes--which is net income divided by sales--frankly, I couldn't care less. Sure it measures how efficient a company is with each dollar of revenues, but that's the money its customers give it. As an investor, I care about what the company does with investors' money. And since net profit margin doesn't tell us anything about the balance sheet, you would never know if a company is posting great margins simply because it's interminably shoveling cash into its business. That can't go on forever.

So how do we calculate ROIC? For the "return" part of ROIC, we don't use net income, but rather earnings after taxes but before interest payments. We do this so that companies won't be penalized for having a lot of debt (and thus high interest payments). For the "invested capital" part, we take all of the company's assets, then subtract all current liabilities (those due within a year) except for short-term debt. Dividing aftertax income by invested capital gives us ROIC. Here's what it looks like:

1. Aftertax income = (operating income) x (1 - tax rate)
2. Invested capital = total assets - (current liabilities - short-term debt)
3. ROIC = aftertax income / invested capital

The beauty of ROIC is that you can make any adjustments that you think are necessary. For example, if I think that a company has a lot of cash on its books that isn't being used for operating purposes; I'll subtract this "nonoperating cash" from total assets. Or if the company is actually paying a lot less in cash taxes than what's showing up on the income statement, I'll add the difference back to the "aftertax income" figure. On the flipside, the fact that an investor needs to make some judgment calls in calculating ROIC is probably what's keeping the metric out of stock screeners.

ROIC by itself doesn't tell us much about a company's economic moat. A company creates value only if its ROIC is higher than its weighted average cost of capital, or WACC. The WACC measures the required return on the company's debt and equity, and takes into account the risk of the company's operations and its use of debt. WACCs typically range between 9% and 12% for large-cap companies, although there are many exceptions. Companies that have generated ROICs higher than their WACC for many years running usually have a moat. But a positive spread between ROIC and WACC alone doesn't justify an economic moat. Investors also have to think about the qualitative attributes--high barriers to entry, huge market share, low-cost production, corporate culture, patents, or high customer switching costs--that create an economic moat around a company's profits. Here's how you can use ROIC: If you think a company has a great business model that enjoys an economic moat, check to see if its historical ROICs are greater than its WACC. If they are, chances are you've found a company that will continue to generate value for its shareholders.

Now let's look into five companies that are ROIC winners. These companies also happen to be trading at prices well below our analysts' fair value estimates here at Morningstar, so we would consider buying these stocks. The stocks mentioned here had 5-star ratings--or "consider buy" prices--as of Feb. 7, 2005. The star ratings may change daily due to price fluctuations or other factors.

Strayer Education (NasdaqNM:STRA - News)
Business Risk: Average
Economic Moat: Wide
Strayer--a for-profit post-secondary education company--has generated ROICs that have averaged 95% since 2001, the year the current management team joined the company. Stock analyst Kristan Rowland predicts that ROICs will top 110% in the future. From the Analyst Report: "For-profit education is very profitable, with wide-moat companies such as Apollo Group (NasdaqNM:APOL - News) and Strayer generating returns on invested capital north of 90%. We think these outsized returns are sustainable because of the industry's high barriers to entry. Top-flight firms such as Strayer possess regional accreditation, which is difficult to obtain and contributes to their moats. Membership follows a period of candidacy lasting up to five years, and periodic reviews are required for continued accreditation. Regional accreditation also helps Strayer attract students because it is indicative of quality. Furthermore, it allows institutions to tap into federal student-aid programs, expanding the pool of students that they can attract."

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - News)
Business Risk: Below Average
Economic Moat: Wide
Diversified health-care company Johnson & Johnson has posted ROICs of 25%, on average, during the last five years. Stock analyst Tom D'Amore expects ROICs to be greater than 30% over the next five years. From the Analyst Report: "We think Johnson & Johnson is an exemplary wide-moat company--it boasts trusted brand-name products, world-class R&D and marketing capabilities, and global scale and reach. A key reason for J&J's success is its decentralized management structure--the company encourages entrepreneurship among local managers to stimulate creative new product development. Sales and marketing expertise and quality manufacturing skills are important distinguishing core competencies. In addition, the company keeps a careful watch on costs, which shows in the steady improvement in operating margins."

3M Company (NYSE:MMM - News)
Business Risk: Below Average
Economic Moat: Wide
Manufacturing company 3M has generated 18% ROICs over the last five years, on average, and stock analyst Scott Burns is forecasting ROICs of over 24% over the next five years. From the Analyst Report: "Innovation and strong manufacturing capabilities have long been the trademarks of this company. 3M is synonymous with research and development and a corporate culture that breeds innovation. Another of 3M's advantages is its ability to leverage technologies across different businesses and continuously find new uses for basic technologies. In addition, 3M fiercely protects its patents and uses its protected period to perfect its production processes. Combining this production expertise with the company's global manufacturing base makes it cost prohibitive for rivals to undercut its prices once items fall off patent."

Fastenal (NasdaqNM:FAST - News)
Business Risk: Below Average
Economic Moat: Narrow
Fastenal supplies customers, including manufacturers and commercial construction contractors, with 250,000 varieties of threaded fasteners and 265,000 general-purpose maintenance, repair, and operations products. ROICs have topped 19% on average over the last five years, and stock analyst Matthew Warren expects returns to exceed 24% over the next five years. From the Analyst Report: "Fastenal has translated its unique competitive position into decades of profitable growth. This well-oiled machine continues to turn out new stores and take share in a highly fragmented market. By offering more than a quarter million types of fasteners (and a similar variety of maintenance, repair, and operations--or MRO--products) through its 1,700-plus stores, Fastenal provides enhanced selection and more convenience than broad-line distributors or hardware stores. Also, the company's 12 distribution centers and in-house truck fleet provide a highly efficient path to market, especially for heavy fasteners, which are expensive to ship via parcel carriers. Fastenal's unique offering is rewarded with pricing power--an important attribute, given recent steel price fluctuations."

Sysco (NYSE:SYY - News)
Business Risk: Below Average
Economic Moat: Wide
Sysco--a provider of food-service products--has posted 19% ROICs over the past five years, and stock analyst Greggory Warren expects this strong performance to continue. From the Analyst Report: Sysco is the dominant food-service distributor in North America. The company generates impressive returns in what has traditionally been a low-margin business, using economies of scale, investments in technology, and a cadre of marketing associates armed with a portfolio of its own branded products to cement its position. Sysco exhibits the very traits we look for in a wide-moat company. Being the market leader in such a highly fragmented industry allows Sysco to grab share from weaker competitors and gives it prime access to customers and acquisitions. We believe part of Sysco's success stems from its unparalleled economies of scale. The food distribution business has high fixed costs, which means that only companies capable of spreading those costs over a larger base will generate above-average returns. Finally, Sysco's investments in technology and in its distribution network have allowed it to lower its procurement and delivery costs and cement its position as the low-cost provider in the industry."

Elizabeth Collins has a position in the following securities mentioned above: APOL.




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[mick]

AP: Journal Editors Dispute Merck Claim
NEW YORK (AP) - The New England Journal of Medicine demanded changes before publishing results of the study that led Merck and Co. to pull the painkiller Vioxx from the market, and one of its top editors disputes the way the drugmaker is using it as a pillar of its legal defense in liability...

[mick]

U.S. to Probe Toyota Hybrid Patents [external]
Following a complaint alleging Toyota hybrid vehicles may infringe upon a patent, the U.S. International Trade Commission will investigate.

[mick]

Study: A la carte cable would be cheaper [external]
Consumers could shave 13% off their cable TV bills if they were allowed to buy channels individually, a new report from the Federal Communications Commission concludes. The FCC's finding undercuts a bedrock principle of the cable industry that big bundles of channels deliver the best value.

[mick]

Lay's attorney hits snags in dealings with witness [external]
The lawyer representing former Enron CEO Ken Lay finally got a chance to cross-examine the government's first witness Thursday, and whiffed. Shortly after the lunch break at federal court here, attorney Mike Ramsey attacked the credibility of Mark Koenig.

[mick]

Drug stocks mixed, as Pfizer sinks on forecast
Drug stocks closed mixed on Friday, with pharmaceutical issues sinking after Pfizer forecast that its 2006 revenue and adjusted earnings would be about flat with 2005.

[mick]

Net sector mixed; Amazon shares see buying interest
Internet stocks traded mixed yet caught some late buying interest Friday, with Amazon.com Inc. shares finishing strong and seeing their highest closing price this week.

[mick]

Oil, gas stocks end rough week on a low note
Energy stocks wrapped up a down week with more losses Friday, with a steep drop in crude oil and natural gas prices pulling the sector off its recent highs.

[mick]

America s trade deficit hits all-time high [external]
The U.S. trade deficit soared to an all-time high of $725.8 billion in 2005, pushed upward by record imports of oil, food, cars and other consumer goods. The deficit with China hit an all-time high as did America s deficits with Japan, Europe, OPEC, Canada, Mexico and South and Central America.

[mick]

Delta pilots want wage concessions restored [external]
A Delta Air Lines Inc. official told management employees Friday that the company's pilots are asking that their wage scales be restored to December 2004 levels after a certain period.

[mick]

Starbucks scraps chocolate drink [external]
Starbucks Corp. Friday said it would stop selling Chantico, a rich chocolate drink introduced with much fanfare last year, because it was not adaptable to different customer tastes.

[mick]

GM's turnaround plan doesn't go far enough [external]
General Motors Corp. made some tough decisions this week. Unfortunately, the automaker's mess requires tougher moves and a jolt of imagination

[mick]

For Oprah Winfrey, Satellite Radio Is the Newest Frontier [external]
XM Satellite Radio announced that it had signed Ms. Winfrey to a three-year deal to create a channel called Oprah & Friends for its pay service.

[mick]

Enron Witness's Plea Bargain Is Questioned by the Defense [external]
A lawyer for Jeffrey K. Skilling suggested that a prosecution witness in the trial of Mr. Skilling and Kenneth L. Lay did not commit the crimes he admitted to under a plea deal with prosecutors.

[mick]

A.I.G. Apologizes and Agrees to $1.64 Billion Settlement [external]
The American International Group agreed to pay $1.64 billion to settle charges of fraud in the way it attracted business and reported its results.

[mick]

Up Next for Repair: Renault [external]
Carlos Ghosn became perhaps the auto industry's most celebrated Mr. Fix-It with his turnaround of Nissan Motor. Now he's setting out to revitalize Renault.

[mick]

A Second Mistrial Is Declared in Fraud Case Against the Former Chairman of Cendant [external]
The fraud trial of Walter A. Forbes ended in a mistrial Thursday after the jury announced that it had failed to reach a unanimous verdict in its 27th day of deliberations.