I'm out of here....GL to all..

have a good day all...

Cree And Arrow Electronics Sign Distribution Agreement To Serve Global Adoption Of Silicon Carbide-Based Power ElectronicsLast update: 1/21/2010 9:00:17 AM

Target Plans $1B Store Remodeling As Part Of 10-Year Outline

Last update: 1/21/2010 9:00:46 AM

DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
Target Corp. (TGT) said it would spend about $1 billion this year to remodel stores as part of a plan that outlines major initiatives for the next five to 10 years. The discount retailer also said it plans to build fewer than 10 net new locations in 2010, develop and test a smaller store format for urban areas, and expand outside the U.S. Nearly 60 new stores were opened in the year through October. But Chairman and Chief Executive Gregg Steinhafel said ahead of a meeting with analysts that Target will apply "the same rigorous financial discipline" in the reforms that have ensured strong returns and prudent use of capital in the past. In November, the company had warned it could have difficulty meetings analysts' fiscal fourth-quarter earnings expectations, which were for $1.12 a share at the time. Its third-quarter earnings rose 18%, snapping a streak of eight quarterly declines, as the discount retailer saw profitability improve in both its retail and credit-card operations. The remodeling, which is meant to boost growth in same-store sales, will include more grocery selections and changes in layout and new merchandise. The exact number and pace of new store openings beyond this year will depend on factors such as the state of the economy and real estate, as well as internal operational performance. As for the urban format, it hopes to test the concept in the next few years. Target said its international push would most likely occur in Canada, Mexico or Latin America beyond a three- to five-year time horizon. Shares closed at $50.72 and weren't active premarket. The stock rose by about 40% in 2009 and has continued to climb since the start of the year. -By Joan E. Solsman, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2291; joan.solsman@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones NewswiresJanuary 21, 2010 09:00 ET (14:00 GMT)

right...

Xerox 4Q Earnings Surge On 2008 Charges; Shares Up On View

Last update: 1/21/2010 7:35:31 AM
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

Xerox Corp. (XRX) reported surging fourth-quarter earnings amid prior-year charges and as demand continued to improve from earlier this year. But revenue fell 3% from a year earlier and Chief Executive Ursula Burns said the top line "will continue to be under pressure until there is a more sustainable economic recovery." For the new year, Xerox projected earnings of 75 cents to 85 cents a share, compared with analysts' average estimate of 70 cents, according to Thomson Reuters. As a result of that upbeat forecast, shares rose 3.2% premarket to $9.17. The recession has exacerbated weak demand for printers and the international sector that accounts for much of Xerox's revenue has seen profits muted by a strong dollar. In a bid for new markets, Xerox agreed in September to pay about $6 billion for business-software provider Affiliated Computer Services Inc. (ACS). The printer and copier maker posted earnings of $180 million, or 20 cents a share, up from $1 million, or a negligible amount per share, a year earlier. The latest quarter included 5 cents in acquisition-related charges while the prior-year's charges totaled $349 million. Xerox had projected earnings of 20 cents to 22 cents. Revenue dropped to $4.22 billion, while analysts' average estimate was $3.92 billion, according to a survey of analysts by Thomson Reuters. Gross margin widened to 39.9% from 37.9%. Most of Xerox's sales are from services businesses that include maintenance contracts, printing supplies and lease revenue. So-called post-sale revenue was flat, with currency changes boosting results. Equipment sales fell 11%. -By Joel Stonington, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2934; joel.stonington@wsj.com; (END) Dow Jones NewswiresJanuary 21, 2010 07:35 ET (12:35 GM

I'm here for 20 mins then off to school til about 9 PM...

Prudential Financial Cut To Hold From Buy By Citigroup >PRULast update: 1/21/2010 8:49:11

day off today?

Brazil Stocks Erase Early Gains, Fall On U.S. Jobs DataLast update: 1/21/2010 8:46:16 AM

I may call you this evening..I'll be doing school stuff til 9:30 PM EST..leaving here in 30 mins

SNSS MRNA = ATMS

I still think green today on GS beat...they usually bellweather

Futures
North/Latin America



INDEX VALUE CHANGE OPEN HIGH LOW TIME
DJIA INDEX 10,535.00 -22.00 10,564.00 10,588.00 10,523.00 08:32
S&P 500 1,133.00 -1.00 1,134.90 1,139.00 1,131.00 08:32
NASDAQ 100 1,866.00 -1.00 1,870.00 1,875.25 1,860.50 08:32

figured you and SL would...long PMI turd big...selling covered calls...but still shopping...

SNSS MRNA turning into ATMs

figured I had to post the brazil news lol

just saw...chite!

Brazil Stocks Open Higher On Fund Buying, Bargains

Last update: 1/21/2010 8:37:42 AMSAO PAULO (Dow Jones)--Brazilian share prices opened higher Thursday on bargain hunting by domestic investment funds. The benchmark Ibovespa stocks index opened 0.29% higher at 68,413 points. Traders said domestic funds were picking up bargains following a steep 2.4% loss for the Ibovespa index in Wednesday's session. Traders added that domestic funds were positioning themselves for expected robust economic growth in Brazil in 2010. In a conference call with reporters Wednesday, Brazilian Central Bank President Henrique Meirelles forecast economic expansion of 5.8% for Brazil this year. But traders warned that the Brazilian market could turn volatile later in the session because of international factors, including release later Thursday of fourth quarter earnings reports by key U.S. companies. International funds were largely sidelined in early trading in Brazil. Blue chips were mixed in early trading. Brazil's government-controlled energy giant Petroleo Brasileiro SA (PBR, PETR4.BR), or Petrobras, rose 0.17% to 35.51 Brazilian reals ($19.95). But mining company Vale (VALE, VALE5.BR) was down 0.37% at BRL46.25. Brazil's second largest private bank, Bradesco (BBD, BBDC4.BR) rose 0.37% to BRL32.72. Telecommunications company Tele Norte Leste SA (TNE, TNLP4.BR), or Oi, was down 0.49% at BRL32.41. Aircraft manufacturer Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica (ERJ, EMBR3.BR), or Embraer, retreated 0.20% to BRL9.93. Minas Gerais utility Cemig (CIG, CMIG4.BR) rose 0.17% to BRL29.55 while southern steel maker Gerdau (GGB, GGBR4.BR) rose 0.25% to BRL27.70. -By Tom Murphy, Dow Jones Newswires; 55-11-2847-4519; brazil@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones NewswiresJanuary 21, 2010 08:37 ET (13:37

News Highlights: Top Economic Stories Of The DayLast update: 1/21/2010 8:34:59 AM

TOP STORIES

OBAMA TO PROPOSE NEW LIMITS ON BANKS
President Barack Obama is expected to propose new limits on the size and risk taken by the biggest U.S. banks, officials and congressional sources tell The Wall Street Journal.

GREECE WEIGHS ON EURO-ZONE MARKETS, PLANS BOND
Renewed worries over Greece's fiscal problems weigh on the country's financial markets even as the government reaffirmed that it isn't seeking outside support to meet its borrowing needs.

UK PUBLIC-SECTOR BORROWING LESS THAN EXPECTED
U.K. public sector net borrowing is smaller than expected in December, with central government revenues experiencing their smallest decline since September 2008 in a sign the public finances are steadying.

ECB WARNS RECOVERY TO BE MODERATE, UNEVEN
The euro zone's economic recovery is likely to be moderate and uneven, meaning the ECB will only gradually phase out the extraordinary liquidity measures put in place to support the economy and the banking system.

US STOCK FUTURES EDGE HIGHER
U.S. stock market future edge higher in the wake of a slew of better-than-expected earnings reports from Xerox and others as the market also looks ahead to economic reports to come, as well as strong growth data out of China.

COMERICA SWINGS TO LOSS BUT CREDIT PICTURE IMPROVES
Big regional bank posts 4Q loss of $29 million, or 41c a share, but the loss is smaller than expected and its credit-loss provision and loan charge-offs both improve from the prior quarter.

CITI OFFERS TO BUY BACK UP TO $7.32B OF DEBT
Citigroup is offering to repurchase $7.32 billion of notes as part of the banking giant's strategy of using excess cash to retire older-vintage debt nearing maturity.

LEGG MASON SWINGS TO PROFIT AMID PRIOR-YEAR CHARGE
Company posts 3Q profit of $44.9 million, or 28c a share, below analysts' expectations of 31c, as revenue rises 5% to $690 million. Shares slide 7% early.

PNC SWINGS TO PROFIT, GETS BIG GAIN ON ACQUISITION
Bank swings to 4Q profit of $1.11 billion, or $2.17 a share as revenue more than triples to $5.08 billion, in part on the acquisition of National City. Shares edge higher early.

FED PUSHES BACK AGAINST LAWMAKERS
The Federal Reserve is ratcheting up its response to congressional criticism in an effort to protect its regulatory authority and autonomy -- a move that is softening some attacks but doesn't appear to be enough to win over hostile lawmakers.




======== DOW JONES NEWSWIRES ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY ========

Mark to Market
SPENDING RESTRAINT DOESN'T MEAN SPENDING CUTS
Jim Murphy says that as several large states teeter on the edge of what would be called bankruptcy, it is instructive to delve a bit more deeply into the claims of their governors that - in view of austere economic conditions - state spending is being cut.

Video
GREEK WOES SPREAD TO PORTUGAL
Portugal becomes the latest country to get an official warning from the IMF, and with other fiscally challenged euro-zone countries waiting in the wings, Nick Andrews asks how will the euro zone deal with this growing uncertainty? --Watch video

Money Talks
CORRELATIONS START TO UNTANGLE
Could it be that investors are having to learn how to discriminate between assets again? Either the investment environment is starting to normalize, or we're at the first stages of a shift from risk on to risk off, writes Alen Mattich.

Money Talks
EDGING TOWARDS THE EXIT IN CHINA
China may have met its economic goals for 2009, but the pickup in activity and price pressures in the last quarter of the year will still have Beijing moving only gradually towards the exit, Rosalind Mathieson writes.


============ MARKETS ACTION ============

TREASURYS LOWER BEFORE DATA; SUPPLY ANNOUNCEMENT
Treasurys move higher ahead of U.S. data.

US STOCK FUTURES EDGE HIGHER AS EARNINGS ROLL IN
Futures edge higher as earnings roll in.

DOLLAR RALLIES AMID WORRIES ABOUT GLOBAL ECONOMY
Dollar rallies amid worries over global economy.

GOLD EXTENDS LOSSES AS EURO WEAKENS
Gold extends losses as the euro weakens amid worries about Greek debt. (END) Dow Jones NewswiresJanuary 21, 2010 08:34 ET (13:34 GMT)

not lloyd blankfein....haha

DATA SNAP: US Jobless Claims +36K To 482K In Jan 16 Week

Last update: 1/21/2010 8:30:00 AM
By Sarah N. Lynch
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week - an increase a U.S. Labor Department economist said is partly due to an administrative backlog in processing claims. Total claims lasting more than one week, meanwhile, declined. Initial claims for jobless benefits rose by 36,000 to 482,000 in the week ended Jan. 16, according to the Labor Department's weekly report Thursday. The previous week's level was revised upward to 446,000 from 444,000. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires expected a decrease of 4,000 initial claims. The four-week moving average, which aims to smooth volatility in the data, also increased as well last week. The Labor Department said the four-week moving average increased by 7,000 to 448,250 from the previous week's revised average of 441,250. An economist at the U.S. Labor Department Thursday said last week's numbers were higher then expected in part because the Christmas and New Years holidays created a backlog in some states. "It is not an economic thing - it is an administrative thing," he said. In addition, he added that a total of seven states from Thursday's data had estimated claims figures because of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. Despite Thursday's increase in initial claims, the four-week moving average has been on a downward trend in recent months and economists have said the trend points to a slow-down in the pace of lay-offs. Questions still remain, however, about whether or not laid-off workers will be able to find new jobs anytime soon. The December jobs report found that U.S. job losses were higher than expected and unemployment still remained at 10%. Some have predicted that the unemployment rate may hold steady for much of 2010. In the Labor Department's Thursday report, the number of continuing claims--those drawn by workers for more than one week in the week ended Jan. 9 --fell by 18,000 to 4,599,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 4,617,000. The unemployment rate for workers with unemployment insurance for the week ended Jan. 9 remained unchanged from the prior week at 3.5%. The largest increase in initial claims for the week ended Jan. 9 was in California due to layoffs in the construction and service industries as well as a return to a 5-day work week. The largest decrease in initial claims occurred in Oregon. -By Sarah N. Lynch, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6634; sarah.lynch@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones NewswiresJanuary 21, 2010 08:30 ET (13:30 GMT)

Futures
North/Latin America



INDEX VALUE CHANGE OPEN HIGH LOW TIME
DJIA INDEX 10,567.00 +10.00 10,564.00 10,588.00 10,523.00 08:02
S&P 500 1,136.70 +2.70 1,134.90 1,139.00 1,131.00 08:02
NASDAQ 100 1,870.00 +3.00 1,870.00 1,875.25 1,860.50 08:02

GM SL

I want the %'s...RDN's already at 7$+...

Goldman Sachs 4Q Earnings Blows Past Expectations
Last update: 1/21/2010 8:25:44 AM

Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s (GS) fourth-quarter profit well outstripped analysts' earnings expectations. Shares were up 1% premarket at $169.72. The stock doubled in 2009 but is been down slightly for the year to date. Fixed-income trading slowed after extraordinary profits in the past three quarters. Revenue from fixed income, currency and commodities was $3.97 billion, down from the $5.99 billion last quarter. But investment banking revenue moved higher, after falling almost a third in the third quarter. It rose 82% from the previous quarter to $1.64 billion. Revenue from principal investments, those made with the firm's own capital, fell from the previous period. The investment bank's impressive results in 2009 propelled it further ahead of rivals, many of which have struggled to overcome the credit crisis. Goldman has been able to take on more risk and grab market share while competitors were licking their wounds. But it has faced a populist backlash over employee compensation, facing complaints the company's profits are partly the result of government programs to prop up the industry. Chairman and Chief Executive Lloyd C. Blankfein said its strong results, "as well as recognition of the broader environment, resulted in our lowest ever compensation to net revenues ratio." He went on to say that "despite significant economic headwinds, we are seeing signs of growth." Goldman posted a profit of $4.95 billion, or $8.20 a share. Revenue was $9.62 billion. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters predicted $5.20 a share and revenue of $9.65 billion. In the year-earlier period Goldman had a loss of $2.29 billion, or $4.97 a share, on negative revenue of $1.58 billion. The prior-year period ended on Nov. 28, before the company shifted to a different reporting calendar. -By Joan E. Solsman, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2291; joan.solsman@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones NewswiresJanuary 21, 2010 08:25 ET (13:25

Griff may be

Union Pacific 4Q Net Falls 17% On Still-Weak Demand

Last update: 1/21/2010 8:23:19 AM

Analysts surveyed: 24 Thomson Reuters EPS estimates can reflect either net income, operating income or funds from operations. The company's earnings figure is on a diluted basis. Thomson Reuters assumes earnings estimates from analysts are on a diluted basis.

Union Pacific Corp.'s (UNP) fourth-quarter profit fell a less-than-expected 17% as shipping demand continued to wane for the railroad company. Earnings "reflected the continued impact of the recession that began in 2008," said Chairman and Chief Executive Jim Young. "Although still uncertain, the economic picture for 2010 looks somewhat more favorable than it did a year ago." The company said it saw "slightly stronger" demand in the fourth quarter over "soft" prior-year volume levels in half of its business groups. Union Pacific, like the rest of the freight-transport industry, was stung in 2009 by declining freight volumes, which led to suffering bottom lines and sliding revenue across all of its sectors. In October, Union Pacific noted its business volumes had seemed to stabilize, but at very low levels, as the economy began to recover. The company reported a profit of $551 million, or $1.08 a share, down from $661 million, or $1.31 a share, a year earlier. Operating revenue dropped 12% to $3.75 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had most recently forecast earnings of $1.04 on $3.78 billion in revenue. Freight revenue dropped across all business segments, with the energy segment--the company's biggest by revenue--falling 22% and its industrial-products segment seeing a 28% slump. The least-hurt segment was automotive, which saw revenue fall 1%. Shares closed at $63.73 Wednesday and weren't active premarket. -By Nathan Becker, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2855; nathan.becker@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones NewswiresJanuary 21, 2010 08:23 ET (13:23 GMT)

National Apartment Vacancy Rates Reach 30-Year High

Last update: 1/21/2010 8:17:00 AM

Landlords Forced to Offer Incentives to Attract Renters PALO ALTO, Calif., Jan 21, 2010 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ --

Incentives in the apartment rental industry are at an all-time high, and this is great news for shoppers wanting to rent cheap apartments. Some landlords are enticing would-be tenants with more amenities, lower up-front costs and reduced rent. The reason? The apartment vacancy rate hit a 30-year high of 8 percent nationally in the fourth quarter according to Reis, an independent real estate research firm.* Conflicting economic forces are responsible for the increased apartment inventories; unemployment, which precludes renting; and an enormous inventory of cheap homes for sale, which is stealing rental tenants away. The housing surplus stems from climbing foreclosure rates, which are currently growing at a 3:1 ratio according to a November 2009 Lender Processing Services report. The quotient means that for every one mortgage approval, three have entered foreclosure. With unemployment at 10 percent; the highest since the recession began according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it's clearly the culprit escalating foreclosures. This cause and effect relationship is decreasing home values, and spurring the increase in apartment vacancy rates by luring renters into homeownership, when previously they may have moved up to a cheap condo instead. The IRS's enticing $8,000 first-time home buyer credit (available through April), is another factor elevating the current rental vacancy surge. Again, high vacancy rates mean good news for prospective renters. However; shoppers wanting to capitalize on the current situation are sure to be overwhelmed with the hundreds of thousands of rental choices. MyCheapApartments.com provides a personalized, targeted search approach, eliminating potential frustrations and optimizing results. The authority in cheap apartment search, MyCheapApartments.com connects visitors to a nationwide supply of rentals with a user-friendly interface, seamlessly guiding shoppers through the process. Consumers can search preferences such as apartment size, location and price and experience hassle-free shopping. The leading website for cheap rentals, MyCheapApartments.com supplies an immense categorized inventory of available apartments in the searcher's designated neighborhood. Through strategic partnerships with the largest network of apartment landlords and resources across the country, MyCheapApartments.com has compiled one of the industry's largest databases of affordable rental units - an exclusive feature. The site also offers free tools including a credit consultation, credit reports, moving quotes, ID protection, and local contractor reviews. In addition to cheap apartments, the site features affordable rental units including condos, houses, duplexes, townhomes, lofts and even short-term furnished rentals. As the leading authority on cheap rental apartments, MyCheapApartments.com connects rental shoppers with the cheapest apartments in the country. *source - Reis Mortgage Monitor Report Background: Founded in 2009, MyCheapApartments is a new real estate search engine that seeks to revolutionize how consumers shop for rentals. With an unprecedented combination of user-friendly search and a large selection of listings, MyCheapApartments empowers users to find their perfect affordable rental. Available Topic Expert(s): For information, click appropriate link. SOURCE MyCheapApartments.com Copyright (C) 2010 PR Newswire. All rights reserved

still long PMI big here...hoping for good things in the coming months...and shopping for other goodies...

Futures
North/Latin America



INDEX VALUE CHANGE OPEN HIGH LOW TIME
DJIA INDEX 10,569.00 +12.00 10,564.00 10,588.00 10,523.00 07:47
S&P 500 1,137.30 +3.30 1,134.90 1,139.00 1,131.00 07:47
NASDAQ 100 1,870.25 +3.25 1,870.00 1,875.25 1,860.50 07:44

GM

Asian Stocks Fall for Fourth Day on China Concern; ICBC Drops Share Business ExchangeTwitterFacebook| Email | Print | A A A
By Anna Kitanaka and Kana Nishizawa

Jan. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks fell the fourth straight day as China’s fastest quarterly economic growth since 2007 and Indian food inflation raised concern about government action to control price increases.

Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. and China Construction Bank Corp. sank at least 1.6 percent in Hong Kong. Larsen & Toubro Ltd., India’s biggest engineering company, tumbled 6.5 percent after profit slid by half Santos Ltd., Australia’s third-largest oil and gas producer, declined 1.1 percent after fourth-quarter sales dropped.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost 0.5 percent to 123.61 at 7:45 p.m. in Tokyo, with about five stocks falling for every four that rose. The measure has jumped 50 percent in the past 12 months as growth in China helped the global economy emerge from the worst slowdown since World War II.

“China has done the heavy lifting in the recovery process, and now needs to cool its economy down a little bit,” said Prasad Patkar, who helps manage about $1.6 billion at Platypus Asset Management in Sydney. “Policy tightening measures will be forthcoming, but they need to be viewed in the context of how strong the economy has been.”

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 2 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index advanced 0.2 percent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index lost 0.8 percent. The Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive Index fell 2.4 percent after a government index of food inflation stayed above 15 percent.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed 1.2 percent, with Toyota Motor Corp. pacing gains among automakers as a weaker yen boosted the outlook for export earnings. South Korea’s Hynix Semiconductor Inc. advanced 2.2 percent after reporting its biggest quarterly profit in three years.

Starbucks, EBay

Futures on the U.S. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index lost 0.2 percent even as Starbucks Corp., the world’s largest coffee-shop operator, and EBay Inc., the most-visited U.S. e-commerce site, reported better-than-estimated profit after markets closed. The S&P 500 lost 1.1 percent yesterday.

Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, the world’s biggest bank by market value, fell 2.9 percent to HK$5.72, the third- biggest drag on the MSCI Asia Pacific Index. China Construction Bank dropped 1.6 percent to HK$6.12.

China’s fourth-quarter gross domestic product grew 10.7 percent from the same period a year ago, more than the median forecast of 10.5 percent in a Bloomberg News survey, a statistics bureau report showed in Beijing today.

The report may stoke speculation the central bank will raise its benchmark interest rate and tighten restrictions on the nation’s lenders. Minutes after the release, traders said the People’s Bank of China guided three-month bill yields higher at an auction for the second time in two weeks.

Oil Prices

Economic growth of 10 percent or more is excessive, monetary policy committee member Fan Gang said in November. The PBOC ordered ICBC to raise its reserve ratio by 0.5 percentage point, Reuters reported late yesterday, citing two unidentified people. A spokesman for the lender declined to comment.

“At this point, too much growth increases fear of inflation, and not enough growth increases the fear of a recession,” said Roger Groebli, Singapore-based head of financial-market analysis at LGT Capital Management, which oversees about $75 billion in assets. “The government has to make sure the recovery will continue smoothly and not build up a bubble,” he added.

Property developers with projects in China declined on concern tighter lending restrictions will curb real-estate demand. Shimao Property Holdings Ltd. dropped 3.7 percent to HK$12.58, the lowest since Sept. 2. Henderson Land Development Co., a Hong Kong-based developer which gets 12 percent of sales from China, slumped 4.1 percent to HK$51.90.

Consumer Prices

“The strong GDP growth will spur a normalization of easy monetary conditions in China but I don’t think there will be a serious tightening,” said Khiem Do, Hong Kong-based head of multi-asset strategy at Baring Asset Management (Asia) Ltd., which oversees $11 billion. “That’s not going to trigger a slowdown.”

Consumer prices in China rose 1.9 percent in December from a year earlier, today’s data showed, after a 0.6 percent gain in November. Producer prices climbed 1.7 percent, after declining for the previous 12 months.

Signs of a recovery in Asia’s economies have helped drive the MSCI Asia Pacific Index up by 75 percent from a more than five-year low on March 9. Stocks on the gauge are priced at 1.63 times book value, near the highest level since September 2008.

Asset Bubbles

Developing Asian economies face the risk of asset bubbles or overheating as the region’s growth outpaces the rest of the world this year, the World Bank said in a report today. An index of wholesale food articles compiled by the commerce ministry rose 16.81 percent in the week ended Jan. 9 from a year earlier.

Larsen & Toubro sank 6.8 percent to 1,524.1 rupees. The company cut its sales forecast for the year ending March 31 after customers delayed projects, Chief Financial Officer Y.M. Deosthalee said on CNBC-TV18 channel. His comment came after Larsen & Toubro reported third-quarter profit fell 50 percent.

Santos fell 1.1 percent to A$13.48 after saying fourth- quarter sales dropped 7 percent because of lower oil prices. Crude oil for March delivery sank 2 percent to $77.74 a barrel in New York yesterday, while copper futures fell 2.7 percent.

BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s largest mining company, dropped 1.7 percent to A$42.67. Rio Tinto Group, the world’s third-biggest mining company, retreated 3.2 percent to A$75.55. The two companies were the biggest drags on the MSCI Asia Pacific Index.

Yen Benefits

Japanese automakers advanced on optimism the weaker yen will boost the value of overseas sales when converted into the companies’ home currency. The yen depreciated to 91.56 against the dollar, the weakest intraday level since Jan. 14, from 91.24 yesterday.

Toyota, which gets 31 percent of sales in North America, jumped 2.1 percent to 4,190 yen. Honda Motor Co. added 1.7 percent to 3,310 yen.

Every 1 yen increase by the currency against the dollar this fiscal year will cut Honda’s operating profit by about 12 billion yen ($132 million) and reduce Toyota’s profit by about 30 billion yen, the automakers said in November.

Hynix, the world’s second-largest computer-memory chipmaker, gained 2.2 percent to 25,950 won after saying fourth-quarter net income was 652 billion won ($573 million), compared with a 1.69 trillion-won loss a year earlier. The company also said sales more than doubled.

Rising Demand?

Hynix’s earnings follow those of Intel Corp., the world’s largest chipmaker, which last week forecast higher first-quarter sales than analysts had estimated. Micron Technology Inc., the biggest U.S. producer of computer-memory chips, last month reported its first quarterly profit in more than two years.

Samsung Electronics Co. rose 1.9 percent to 850,000 won, the second-leading mover on the MSCI Asia Pacific Index, behind Toyota. Advantest Corp., the world’s largest maker of memory- chip testers, gained 3.6 percent to 2,597 yen, the highest since Aug. 11. Elpida Memory Inc., Japan’s biggest computer memory- chip maker, added 4.6 percent to 1,769 yen.

“The outlook for the first half looks positive” because of demand for personal computers, said Benjamin Ban, an analyst at Daishin Securities Co. “Still, if there’s too much investment in the industry going forward, we may have to see what happens in the second half.”

To contact the reporter for this story: Anna Kitanaka in Tokyo at akitanaka@bloomberg.net; Kana Nishizawa in Tokyo at knishizawa5@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: January 21, 2010 05:48 EST

Fifth-Third Loss Narrows; PNC Reports a Profit
Published: Thursday, 21 Jan 2010 | 7:33 AM ET By: Reuters


Fifth Third Bancorp reported a much smaller fourth-quarter loss on Thursday after it recorded fewer writedowns on mortgages and other loans.
The Cincinnati-based bank said the loss for common shareholders had narrowed to $160 million, or 20 cents a share, from $2.2 billion, or $3.78 a share, a year earlier.

Analysts on average expected a loss of 31 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.




Among the 10 largest U.S. banks, Fifth Third [FITB 11.31 --- UNCH (0) ] is exposed to some of the areas that have been hit hardest by the financial crisis, and its consumer lending business has suffered as unemployment has climbed.

Losses on loans in Florida and Michigan accounted for 53 percent of the bank's total charge-offs in the fourth quarter, according to the statement.

Total charge-offs — loans the bank does not expect to be repaid — fell to $708 million, from $1.6 billion a year earlier and $756 million in the third quarter.

Fifth Third increased its allowance for loan losses to $4 billion from $3.3 billion in the year-earlier quarter.

But Kabat said: "We do not expect further appreciable increases in our loan loss reserve levels to be necessary."

Although losses are easing, the bank said demand for new loans had fallen 10 percent from a year earlier. Fifth Third shares fell 8 cents to $11.31 on Wednesday. The stock had climbed 16 percent since the start of the year.

PNC Financial Services Group [PNC 58.79 --- UNCH (0) ] reported a fourth-quarter profit on Thursday as it benefited from declining loan losses and the year-earlier acquisition of National City.
Pittsburgh-based PNC posted a profit of $1.1 billion, or $2.17 a share, compared with a year-earlier loss of $246 million, or 77 cents a share.

Analysts on average expected a profit of 77 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. In was not clear whether that figure was comparable to PNC's earnings.

The latest results included a $687 million after-tax gain related to BlackRock's acquisition of Barclays Global Investors.

The bank, among the strongest survivors of the financial crisis, bought Cleveland-based National City at the end of 2008, after the latter struggled with losses from subprime mortgages and other troubled assets.

PNC shares climbed 1.7 percent to close at $58.79 on Wednesday.


Copyright 2010 Reuters

cold here...

I have to leave at 10 AM~ for school

Leading Economic Index in U.S. Probably Rose for Ninth Month Share Business ExchangeTwitterFacebook| Email | Print | A A A
By Timothy R. Homan

Jan. 21 (Bloomberg) -- The index of U.S. leading indicators probably rose in December for a ninth straight month, signaling the economy will keep growing through the first half of the year, economists said before a report today.

The Conference Board’s gauge of the outlook for the next three to six months rose 0.7 percent after a 0.9 percent November gain, according to the median forecast of 56 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Other reports today may show fewer Americans filed for jobless benefits last week and Philadelphia-area manufacturing expanded for a fifth month.

Fewer firings, rising stock prices and efforts by the Federal Reserve to keep short-term interest rates low probably boosted the leading index and may help keep Americans spending. Faster economic growth will hinge on sustained employment gains that have yet to materialize.

“The U.S. recovery remains on track,” said Michelle Meyer, an economist at Barclays Capital Inc. in New York. “The sharp upturn in growth over the next two quarters” should “lead to a sustainable recovery,” she said.

The report from the Conference Board, a New York-based private research group, is due at 10 a.m. New York time. Survey estimates ranged from gains of 0.3 percent to 1.1 percent.

Figures from the Fed Bank of Philadelphia at the same time may show its factory index registered a reading of 18 this month, down from December’s four-year high of 22.5, according to the median estimate of economists surveyed. Readings above zero signal manufacturing growth in the region.

Jobless Claims

Data from the Labor Department at 8:30 a.m. may show 440,000 workers filed claims for unemployment insurance last week, down from 444,000 the prior week, according to the median forecast. Claims fell to 432,000 during the last week of December, the lowest level since July 2008.

The world’s largest economy will probably expand at a 2.7 percent annual pace from January through March and at a 2.9 percent rate in the following quarter, according to the median estimate of economists surveyed earlier this month.

Declines in initial jobless claims, indicating fewer layoffs, and rising stock prices will contribute to the rise in the index of leading indicators, economists said. Jobless claims averaged 460,250 a week in December, down from 480,750 the prior month.

U.S. stocks rose last month as reports suggested the economy was improving. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index averaged 1,110.38 in December, compared with 1,088.07 the previous month.

Sentiment, Building Permits

A pickup in consumer sentiment and a jump in permits for home construction also helped drive the leading index last month. Building permits rose 11 percent to a 653,000 annual rate, the most since October 2008, the Commerce Department said yesterday.

The Reuters/University of Michigan’s reading on consumer expectations for the next six months rose to 68.9 in December from 66.5 the previous month.

Seven of 10 indicators for the leading index are known ahead of time: stock prices, jobless claims, building permits, consumer expectations, the yield curve, factory hours and supplier delivery times.

“We are seeing stabilization in the economy,” Brian Moynihan, chief executive of Bank of America Corp., said yesterday in an interview. The head of the largest U.S. lender also said the economy is “fragile.”

Reiterating their pledge to keep interest rates “exceptionally low” for “an extended period,” Fed policy makers last month said the recovery faced hurdles.

The central bankers, who next meet Jan. 26-27 in Washington, will keep their target for overnight lending among banks unchanged through September before raising it by half a point in the fourth quarter, according to the median forecast of economists surveyed this month. The Fed has kept the benchmark rate near zero since December 2008.

U.S. Stock-Index Futures Are Little Changed; EBay Shares Rise Share Business ExchangeTwitterFacebook| Email | Print | A A A
By Adam Haigh

Jan. 21 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures were little changed before Goldman Sachs Group Inc. releases earnings.

Goldman Sachs fell 0.8 percent in German trading and is scheduled to report results before the market opens today. EBay Inc., the most-visited U.S. e-commerce site, added 8.4 percent after reporting its first profit increase in more than a year. Starbucks Corp. gained 3.8 percent as it raised its annual profit forecast and posted higher than estimated first-quarter earnings.

Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index expiring in March rose 0.1 percent to 1,135.2 as of 12:13 p.m. in London. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures dropped less than 0.1 percent to 10,555 and Nasdaq-100 Index futures gained less than 0.1 percent to 1,867.75.

“We are quite cautious indeed because valuations are a bit high,” said Pierre-Yves Gauthier, founding partner of the independent research firm Alphavalue SAS in Paris. “The outlook for banks is better results but not of the kind the markets have been discounting so far,” he told Bloomberg Television.

More than 60 companies in the S&P 500 are reporting fourth- quarter results this week and analysts surveyed by Bloomberg forecast total earnings grew 67 percent, with estimates for a 30 percent increase in the first quarter of 2010. The benchmark index’s valuation climbed last week to 25 times its companies’ reported operating profits, the highest level since 2002, following a 70 percent jump since March.

‘Enduring Bull Market’

“2010 could be the year in which the market recovery of 2009 is transformed into a long and enduring bull market,” said Max King, a London-based strategist at Investec Asset Management, which oversees about $55 billion. “The consensus earnings forecast of over 30 percent growth looks not just achievable but beatable.”

China’s economy expanded at the fastest pace since 2007. Gross domestic product jumped 10.7 percent in the fourth quarter from a year before, more than the median forecast of 10.5 percent in a Bloomberg News survey, according to data from the statistics bureau in Beijing.

The index of U.S. leading indicators probably rose in December for a ninth month, signaling the economy will keep growing through the first half of the year, economists said before a report at 10 a.m. New York time. Other reports may show fewer Americans filed for jobless benefits last week and Philadelphia-area manufacturing expanded for a fifth month.

Goldman Sachs lost 0.8 percent to $166.38 in Germany. Analysts are counting on the financial industry to snap nine straight quarters of earnings declines for the S&P 500.

eBay, Starbucks

EBay gained 8.4 percent to $24.09 in Germany. Net income jumped to $1.35 billion, or $1.02 a share, from $367.2 million, or 29 cents, a year ago. Excluding some items, profit was $586 million, or 44 cents. Analysts had estimated 40 cents on average in a survey by Bloomberg.

Starbucks added 3.8 percent to $24.17. Earnings per share will probably be $1.05 to $1.08 this year, excluding some restructuring charges, with sales growth at a “mid-single- digit” percentage rate. Analysts projected an average annual profit of $1.02 a share.

To contact the reporter on this story: Adam Haigh in London at ahaigh1@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: January 21, 2010 07:16 EST

where's SL?

I was at hopkins most of the day yesterday....busy busy busy

Obama to Propose New Rules on Banks’ Size, Trading (Update1) Share Business ExchangeTwitterFacebook| Email | Print | A A A
By Nicholas Johnston and Julianna Goldman

Jan. 21 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama will offer proposals to limit financial institutions’ size and trading activities as a way to reduce risk-taking, an administration official said.

Obama will announce the rules today after meeting with former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker at the White House. The proposals will be part of an overhaul of regulations and will specifically address firms’ proprietary trading, the official said yesterday on the condition of anonymity.

Obama is renewing his focus on economic issues in an effort to tap into voter anger about the struggling economy, taxpayer bailouts and growing bank profits at a time of 10 percent unemployment and a federal deficit that rose to $1.4 trillion last year.

The proposals could affect trading at some of the nation’s largest banks, including New York-based Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase & Co., said Frederic Dickson, chief market strategist at D.A. Davidson & Co. in Lake Oswego, Oregon. Banks conduct proprietary trading for their own benefit, not for that of their clients.

“It is an obvious target,” Dickson said. “It has been a highly profitable business for those firms that have superior platforms. Whatever the details of the restrictions, it will draw Wall Street’s attention.”

Obama in June proposed an overhaul of U.S. financial regulations to fix lapses in oversight and excessive risk-taking that helped push the economy into a prolonged recession.

Fee on Financial Companies

Last week the president announced a plan to impose a fee on as many as 50 financial companies to recover losses from the federal government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program. It would be imposed starting June 30 on companies such as New York-based Citigroup Inc. and American International Group Inc. and Bank of America Corp. headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.

“We’ve got a financial regulatory system that is completely inadequate to control the excessive risks and irresponsible behavior of financial players all around the world,” Obama said in an interview with ABC News yesterday.

“People are angry and they’re frustrated,” Obama told ABC. “From their perspective, the only thing that happens is that we bail out the banks.”

Voter anger helped Republican Scott Brown win the late Edward Kennedy’s U.S. Senate seat in Massachusetts this week, giving Republicans the ability to block Obama’s top legislative priority, a health-care overhaul. The Massachusetts seat had been held by Democrats for more than 50 years.

U.K. Plans

Details on the proposed U.S. rules are to be spelled out later today. They could limit activities of banks such as Goldman, the most profitable investment bank in Wall Street history. Goldman reaped more than 90 percent of its pretax earnings last year from trading and so-called principal investments, which include market bets on securities and stakes in companies.

Goldman reports its quarterly earnings today. Morgan Stanley reported yesterday, and JPMorgan published its results last week.

In Britain, the Financial Services Authority last month published plans to make banks scale back proprietary trading, where a firm trades securities and other financial instruments with its own money rather than for customers. Under the rules, banks would have to put up as much as 29 billion pounds ($47 billion) of extra capital to cover potential trading losses.

‘Regulatory Arbitrage’

Bankers say additional regulation may threaten both their industry and a recovery in the economy. Marcus Agius, chairman of Barclays Plc, Britain’s second-biggest lender, said today he’s concerned that regulation imposed by national governments may jeopardize competition among lenders.

“In all of this, there’s the whole question of an international level playing field,” he told a London conference. “It’s something people say they believe in, but we’re seeing elements of regulatory arbitrage. We’re in the early and fragile stages of an economic recovery, and what we don’t want is to kill that with an excess of regulation.”

Volcker, chairman of the President’s Economic Recovery Board, has criticized as “reform light” the financial industry’s efforts to weaken financial regulation proposals in Congress.

A year ago, Volcker issued a report from the Group of Thirty, a panel of former central bankers, finance ministers and academics, calling for separation between commercial banks and businesses that engage in speculative risk-taking such as hedge funds and proprietary trading.

‘A Bad Dream’

“Some market participants, possibly some in this room, seem to be suggesting that the events of the past couple of years were like a bad dream - a truly unsettling bad dream, but nonetheless something that in the cold light of day need not require a really substantive change in the structure of markets or corporate lifestyle,” Volcker told an audience that included bankers Jan. 14.

Four U.S. institutions - Bank of America, San Francisco- based Wells Fargo & Co., JPMorgan and Citigroup - held 35 percent of the country’s deposits on June 30, compared with 28 percent by the four biggest two years before, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Federal Reserve.

John S. Reed, the former co-chief executive officer of Citigroup, said he regrets helping engineer the merger that created the bank.

“I’m sorry,” Reed said in an interview last year. U.S. lawmakers were wrong in 1999 to repeal the Depression-era Glass- Steagall Act, he said. The act required the separation of institutions involved in capital markets from those engaged primarily in traditional customer services, such as taking deposits and making loans.

Reinstating Glass-Steagall

Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona and Democrat Maria Cantwell have proposed legislation to reinstate the Glass- Steagall law as a way to stem the rise of banking conglomerates such as Citigroup, JPMorgan and Bank of America that are active in retail banking, insurance and proprietary trading.

The Securities and Exchange Commission under Chairman Mary Schapiro is beginning its own review of financial markets, including an examination of so-called high frequency trading, in which professional investors execute orders in milliseconds to capture tiny price discrepancies. The strategies make up more than 60 percent of all U.S. stock transactions, according to New York-based research firm Tabb Group.

The House of Representatives passed a package of new financial rules in December while the Senate continues to work on legislation that has the support of Republicans and Democrats.

To contact the reporters on this story: Nicholas Johnston in Washington at njohnston3@bloomberg.net; Julianna Goldman in Washington at jgoldman6@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: January 21, 2010 05:42 EST

Futures
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INDEX VALUE CHANGE OPEN HIGH LOW TIME
DJIA INDEX 10,569.00 +12.00 10,564.00 10,588.00 10,523.00 07:47
S&P 500 1,137.30 +3.30 1,134.90 1,139.00 1,131.00 07:47
NASDAQ 100 1,870.25 +3.25 1,870.00 1,875.25 1,860.50 07:44