Ford adds production in North America to meet new car demand

Reuters - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

F.N ) is adding a week of production at 20 North American factories this year to build an additional 40,000 vehicles and help sustain its gains in U.S. market ...

Microsoft talks about Xbox One’s internals while disclosing nothing

Ars Technica - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

The Xbox One is full of technology and after its big reveal, Microsoft talked a little about what's going into the console, giving some tidbits of info about what makes it tick. Microsoft says that the Xbox One has five custom-designed pieces of silicon spread between the console and its Kinect sensor. It didn't elaborate on what these are. There's a system-on-chip combining the ...

Photos Tour Carol Bove’s “Caterpillar” on the Last Unopened Stretch of Manhattan’s High Line Park

Vanity Fair - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

ince its opening in 2009, Manhattan's High Line--an elevated city park built on a reclaimed Depression-era industrial railroad line--has featured, along its meandering length, a constantly rotating display of artworks. These sculptures, billboards, performances, and installations are chosen by Cecilia Alemani, the curator of High Line Art, and have been a core element in the park's ...

Bernankes congressional testimony to be studied for any hints of shift on Fed bond purchases

Star Tribune - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

WASHINGTON - When Ben Bernanke testifies about the U.S. economy Wednesday, the Federal Reserve chairman's words will be examined for any clues that the Fed might soon taper — or increase — its support for the economy. The Fed is pursuing an aggressive program of bond purchases to try to keep long-term interest rates down and encourage borrowing and spending. The Fed has said ...

Top dogs Highest zoo CEO pay

San Diego Union-Tribune - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

With the Australian Outback exhibit opening this week at the San Diego Zoo, the U-T decided to review zoo CEO salaries. Although San Diego's zoo attracts the most visitors in the U.S., its CEO is not the top paid among more than 40 public or nonprofit institutions in our survey.Sources: Most recent IRS tax forms for salaries, AZA survey for zoo stats Also ...

Its a super day

New York Post - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

Dimon’s overwhelming victory came as a surprise to activist investors who saw the vote as a referendum on good corporate governance as opposed to a popularity contest for the bank boss. Pension giants, including the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, supported the proposal, as did influential proxy advisers Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services.All 11 ...

Feds mull racketeering charge for SAC

New York Post - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

Call him Capo Cohen. Federal prosecutors, amid a criminal insider trading probe of Steve Cohen’s SAC Capital, are weighing the possibility of charging the $15 billion hedge fund as a criminal enterprise - a tool traditionally used to bust organized crime families.The news, reported earlier by the Financial Times, comes on the heels of government subpoenas to Cohen and other SAC executives ...

Hearst and Oz may be off to see the printers

New York Post - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

"There was no creative or anything to look at, but a lifestyle approach different from the field," said one source who was involved in the discussions. Oz will only give final approval if he is convinced the project will be a huge hit. Oz’s highly rated talk show is already carried by many Hearst- owned television stations. A joint venture with Hearst is expected to be ...

Carl’ssss Herbalife buy has Bill profit-lesssss

New York Post - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

Call him Icahn the python.Billionaire investor Carl Icahn and his fellow Herbalife bulls have slowly and steadily squeezed the profit out of Bill Ackman’s $1 billion short bet.Ackman, who once had a paper profit of $480 million, is now down $10 million, according to calculations by The Post.Icahn, on the other hand, is up $228 million, calculations show.Ackman, 47, yesterday slipped into ...

ESPN whacking 250 jobs

New York Post - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

Cable powerhouse ESPN is cutting 250 jobs after shelling out big bucks to secure sports programming rights.The layoffs were concentrated in ESPN’s digital operations, a source said. ESPN said it was "smartly managing costs." On top of pricey contract renewals with the NFL and MLB, ESPN just struck an 11-year, $770 million deal with the USTA to snag rights to the US ...

Cook beats back senators

New York Post - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

Apple CEO Tim Cook to Congress: Kiss this, we’re part Irish.The studious, levelheaded tech boss testified before sometimes less-than-steady lawmakers yesterday after being invited to explain why Apple avoided some $9 billion in taxes on its overseas profits.Cook countered that it was the crazy, Byzantine US tax code - set up by Congress - and not Apple that is to blame."We pay all the ...

An Elvis sighting on the sale block

New York Post - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

Elvis isn’t drawing the same crowds. Core Media Group is trying to sell the image rights to the "King of Rock" and Elvis Enterprises, which houses memorabilia and select music copyrights. The company hopes to fetch around $200 million for the Elvis Presley rights, plus those of famed boxer Muhammad Ali. But banking sources said the list of potential buyers is short. ...

Wal-Mart grocery sparks intense debate in Raytown

The Kansas City Star - Wednesday 22nd May, 2013

The Senate dragged Apple Inc., the world's most valuable company, into the debate over the U.S. tax code Tuesday, grilling CEO Tim Cook over allegations that its Irish subsidiaries help the company avoid billions in U.S. ...

Bank of Japan Keeps Policy on Hold as Expected

CNBC - Tuesday 21st May, 2013

The Bank of Japan on Wednesday decided to keep monetary policy on hold, but one board member tried unsuccessfully to loosen the central bank's commitment to achieving its 2 percent inflation target within two years. In a unanimous vote, the BOJ maintained its pledge to increase base money, or cash and deposits at the central bank, at an annual pace of 60 trillion to 70 trillion yen ...

BOJ keeps policy on hold Kiuchi proposes looser price target timeframe

Reuters - Tuesday 21st May, 2013

TOKYO (Reuters) - The Bank of Japan on Wednesday decided to keep monetary policy on hold, but one board member tried unsuccessfully to loosen the central bank's commitment to achieving its 2 percent inflation target within two ...

Merck signs $5 billion share buyback agreement with Goldman Sachs

Reuters - Tuesday 21st May, 2013

(Reuters) - Merck & Co Inc said it has entered into a $5 billion share repurchase agreement with Goldman Sachs Group Inc, as the drug giant looks to prop up shareholder value in face of stiff competition from makers of less-costly ...

STOCKS NEWS MALAYSIA-CIMB rises after strong Q1 earnings

Reuters - Tuesday 21st May, 2013

Tue May 21, 2013 11:46pm EDT Shares in CIMB Group Berhad, southeast Asia's fifth-largest bank by assets, were up after its first quarter results came in higher than expected. The bank reported late on Tuesday a 37 percent jump in net profit, boosted by asset sales, but remained cautious on its outlook. In a research note on Wednesday, Kenanga Research stuck to its "outperform" call ...

China Big Four Banks New Lending Surged in May - Report

Fox Business - Tuesday 21st May, 2013

China's four largest banks issued 233 billion yuan ($38 billion) new loans in the first 21 days of May, up 30% from the same period a month earlier, the 21st Century Business Herald reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources.The surge in demand for new loans came mainly from local governments spending on infrastructure projects and the property sector, the report said.Total new lending in ...

Mall of America nets up to $250 million in tax breaks

Star Tribune - Tuesday 21st May, 2013

Bloomington behemoth to double its size with more stores, movie theaters, hotels, and maybe a water park. To help ensure the project moves forward, up to $250 million in tax breaks were approved this week by the Minnesota Legislature. In recent years, the megamall’s pleas for public subsidies have failed. This year, lawmakers supported a controversial new funding mechanism that draws ...

$150M loan unraveled for Petters associates banker testifies

Star Tribune - Tuesday 21st May, 2013

Barclays Bank was on the verge of giving James Fry and business partner Frank Vennes a $150 million line of credit to invest with Tom Petters when the bank learned of Vennes’ criminal background and brought the transaction to a screeching halt, a Barclays official testified at Fry’s trial Tuesday. "I was taken aback," testified Barclays Capital director Andrew Shuster as ...

Best Buy reports first-quarter loss on restructuring costs

Star Tribune - Tuesday 21st May, 2013

Best Buy Co. Inc. on Tuesday reported a loss for its fiscal first quarter as it sold its stake in Best Buy Europe and works on a turnaround plan that includes cutting costs and closing some stores. Its adjusted earnings beat Wall Street expectations, as cost cuts helped offset tough pricing competition during the quarter. But shares fell over 4 percent Tuesday. The company has been working on ...

Raj lawyer wants tapes tossed

New York Post - Tuesday 21st May, 2013

Rajat Gupta’s conviction on insider trading charges was the absolute correct verdict given the evidence presented at trial - but some of that evidence should be tossed, his lawyer said today. "It may in fact be true" that Gupta’s conviction for passing illegal tips to hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam was a "virtual certainty," his lawyer Seth Waxman argued before ...