Market Pulse
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Asian markets rally folllowing Fannie, Freddie bailouts
7 Sep 2008 at 6:20pm
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) — Japan’s Nikkei Average fronted a rally in Asian markets early Monday, with financials such as Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group among gainers as investor confidence surged following the U.S. government’s bailout of troubled mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Japan’s Nikkei was up 3% at 12,572.18, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 3.2% at 5,033.80 and South Korea’s Kospi firmed 3.6% at 1,454.58.
Shares of MUFG surged 9.3%, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group added 9.7% and Toyota Motor Corp. climbed 4.2%. On the energy markets, crude oil for November delivery was up $2.16 to $108.85 a barrel. Gold for October delivery climbed $13.20 to $812.00.
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ConocoPhillips to pay $8B for stake in Australian gas assets
7 Sep 2008 at 6:01pm
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — ConocoPhillips said Monday it has agreed to pay up to $8 billion for a half share in the coal seam gas assets of Origin Energy Ltd. and an associated liquefied natural gas project in Queensland, Australia. According to reports, Origin is trying to fend off a hostile $13.8 billion bid from Group PLC, and has been holding talks with oil and gas companies about partnerships to develop a liquified natural gas plant fueled by its Queensland coal seam gas reserves.
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Washington Mutual forces CEO out - report
7 Sep 2008 at 5:46pm
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Washington Mutual Inc.’s Kerry Killinger has been ousted from the CEO’s position, another casualty of the nationwide banking crisis, according to a report in the online edition of the Wall Street Journal citing people familiar with the situation. An announcement is expected Monday morning before U.S. markets open for trade, according to the report. Alan Fishman, currently chairman of New York commercial mortgage broker Meridian Capital Group, will succeed Killinger, the Journal reported.
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Government takes over control of Freddie, Fannie
7 Sep 2008 at 8:32am
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — The U.S. Treasury Dept. said Sunday it is placing troubled mortgage giants Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae under conservatorship by the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Under the plan, the FHFA will assume the power of the board, and the two firms’ cheif executives will resign after a transitional period. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said: “Based on what we have learned about these institutions over the last four weeks … and given the condition of financial markets today, I concluded that it would not have been in the best interest of the taxpayers for Treasury to simply make an equity investment” rather than take over the firms outright.
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McClatchy chief resigns from controlling trusts
6 Sep 2008 at 1:44pm
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Gary Pruitt, chairman and chief executive of The McClatchy Co. , has resigned from a group of trusts that controls much of the voting power in the company, the company announced, in what it described as an effort toward better corporate governance. Pruitt had been a co-trustee of four separate trusts controlling 12.5 million shares of Class B shares — the stock through which the McClatchy family essentially controls the Sacramento-based owner of The Bee newspaper. Pruitt isn’t a family member. Those shares constitute the bulk of the family’s holdings in the company. Although the family owns about a third of the company’s total shares, the Class B holdings give it 80 percent of the voting control, according to a company statement. Pruitt’s resignation was disclosed in a filing Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. He was replaced by Leroy Barnes Jr., a non-family member who has been a McClatchy director since 2000. The other three co-trustees are two family members, William Ellery McClatchy and William B. McClatchy, and William K. Koblentz, a board member and non-family member.
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Congressman confirms gov’t intervention for mortgage firms
6 Sep 2008 at 11:45am
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) Rep. Barney Frank (D., Mass.) confirmed Saturday that Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is planning government intervention to back troubled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The chairman of the House Financial Services Committee said in a statement Saturday that Paulson “intends to use the powers that Congress provided it” in a law passed in July to keep Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac stable and functioning, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. But Frank said he didn’t “know the details of the proposed interventions,” and a Treasury spokeswoman declined to comment, according to the Journal.
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Boeing machinists to start strike at midnight: reports
5 Sep 2008 at 3:54pm
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Boeing machinists will begin a strike at midnight after contract talks with a federal mediator failed, according to reports Friday. Boeing has been negotiating with the machinists union in a bid reach a contract deal and avert a costly strike.
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Regulator tells Downey to raise more capital
5 Sep 2008 at 3:27pm
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Downey Financial said late Friday that its main regulator, the Office of Thrift Supervision, has ordered the lender to raise more capital. Downey also said it’s now deemed “adequately” capitalized, rather than “well capitalized.” That means the company is restricted in the amount of so-called brokered deposits it can accept. It is also subject to a cap on the amount of interest it can pay on deposits, Downey added. The bank must complete a capital-raising plan by the end of this year. It’s already made progress towards that goal, selling some real estate and getting a dividend from a subsidiary. Those steps, combined with previous moves, have boosted regulatory capital by roughly $176 million. Downey also has to submit a plan to strengthen its executive management. Downey shares dropped 23% to $2.40 during late trading on Friday. The stock had rallied by 33% during regular trading.
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Greenberg faces $100 mln fine on civil-fraud case: report
5 Sep 2008 at 3:27pm
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Maurice “Hank” Greenberg, former chief executive of American International Group faces a fine of at least $100 million as part of a settlement under negotiation with the New York Attorney General’s office over a long-running civil-fraud case, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site Friday, citing a person familiar with the matter. The case stems from an accounting probe of AIG that led to Greenberg’s exit as its CEO in 2005. Still, the settlement talks could break down and a deposition could take place as soon as late next week which would likely eliminate the possibility of an out-of-court deal, the newspaper said.
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Continental Airlines names Zane Rowe chief financial officer
5 Sep 2008 at 2:25pm
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Continental Airlines has promoted Zane Rowe as executive vice president and chief financial officer as of Aug. 31, according to a disclosure submitted by the airline to the Securities and Exchange Commission Friday. He succeeds Jeff Misner who has retired.
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GE gets SEC ‘Wells notice’ over possible violations
5 Sep 2008 at 2:10pm
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — General Electric Co. said it may be facing a civil action from the Securities and Exchange Commission over how it accounted for derivatives in several of its segments, the company said in an SEC filing Friday. On Thursday, GE said it received a “Wells notice” from SEC staff recommending the agency bring a civil injunctive action against the company for possible violations of securities laws.
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Black & Decker names Stephen Reeves chief financial officer
5 Sep 2008 at 2:09pm
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Black & Decker Corp. said late Friday it named Stephen Reeves as chief financial officer. Reeves will succeed Michael Mangan who was named senior vice president of the corporation and president of the worldwide power tools and accessories business.
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Treasury near finalizing Fannie, Freddie backstop: report
5 Sep 2008 at 1:38pm
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — The U.S. Treasury is near finalizing a plan to backstop Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and may make an announcement as soon as this weekend, The Wall Street Journal reported late Friday on its Web site. The Treasury plan includes senior management changes at the two government-sponsored enterprises, according to the Journal.
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U.S. stocks end mostly up Friday but week down sharply
5 Sep 2008 at 1:23pm
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks finished mostly higher Friday, but posted steep weekly losses, as the market digested a big jump in the unemployment rate in August which confirmed this week’s bleak views on both the U.S. and the global economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 32 points, or 0.3%, to end at 11,220 Friday. But the Dow lost 2.8% on the week. The S&P 500 index dipped 5 points, or 0.4%, to end at 1,242, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 3 points, or 0.1%, to end at 2,255. For the week, the S&P 500 fell 3.2% and the Nasdaq lost a steep 4.7%.
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Crude futures close lower, down 8% for the week
5 Sep 2008 at 11:51am
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — October crude closed at a fresh five-month low of $106.23 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Friday, down $1.66 for the session to lose 8% for the week. Traders factored in uncertainty ahead of a key meeting of oil producers next week as well as ongoing concerns about demand.
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source: MarketWatch
November 27 2007 09:09 am
