Ralcorp Holdings Inc. (NYSE: RAH) will distribute about 80% of the stock in its spin-off of Post Holdings Inc. to Ralcorp shareholders. Each shareholder will get one share of Post stock for every two…
Brand consultancy Interbrand has issued its latest report on brand value, and while the top five did not change, a gap is opening between the fourth and fifth place finishers. The largest annual gain…
The New York Federal Reserve Bank released its monthly Empire State Manufacturing Index this morning, and the strength of the reading surprised economists who had been expecting a more modest increase. The index rose…
For the first time in the country’s long history, more Chinese live in cities than in the country. Of the country’s 1.35 billion people, slightly more than 51% now live in towns and cities.…
Last week European Union leaders agreed to give member nations six months to arrange for crude oil imports that did not originate in Iran. The decision meant that support for the US-led demand that…
Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) took orders for 805 new airplanes in 2011. Its main competitor, European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (OTC: EADSY), makers of the Airbus, took new orders for 1,419 planes in…
Greek citizens in 2010 accepted new taxes and severe cuts in government spending as the price of a bailout package from the European Union. Now the country is being asked to give up more…
Chances for passage of the Stop Online Piracy Act appear slim in the Senate, now that three Obama Administration officials have weighed in on the measure: While we believe that online piracy by foreign…
US equities opened lower this morning, weighed down by an undistinguished earnings report from JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM). More coverage here. Markets in Europe and Asia were higher on the sale of…
US beef prices rose about 10% in 2011 and could go up another 5% this year, raising prices at supermarkets and at restaurants owned by McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD, The Wendy’s Co. (NYSE: WEN),…
Jeffrey Lacker, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, gave a speech today on his view of the economic outlook for 2012. Unlike several of his fellow Fed presidents who have weighed in…
For the first time ever, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) has released a list of its 156 suppliers in connection with the company’s release of its supplier responsibility audit. The supplier list is available here.…
With the Facebook IPO bus scheduled to leave the station sometime this year, there is very likely to be rush to get onboard. Slot machine maker International Gaming Technology (NYSE: IGT) is going to…
The European Union has indicated that a delay in adopting more sanctions against Iranian oil may last six months while European nations seek alternate sources of supply. The news caused the price of Brent…
President Obama has now revealed his plan for merging the six federal agencies concerned with commerce and trade matters into a single agency. The US Department of Commerce is the largest agency included in…
US coal miner Patriot Coal Corp. (NYSE: PCX) said this morning that it was closing three of its contractor-operated coal mines and two production units in West Virginia “in response to weaker market demand…
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) wanted to buy South Africa’s Massmart chain for about $4.6 billion in 2010. The chain countered with an offer for Walmart to buy 51% for about $2 billion, an…
There are several stocks trading more heavily than usual this morning, and also experiencing large gains or drops in share prices. These include Metabolix Inc. (NASDAQ: MBLX), JDA Software Group Inc. (NASDAQ: JDAS), Diamond…
As part of the Eurozone’s efforts to help Greece get out from under its massive debt, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the IMF have proposed that creditors take a haircut of up to…
President Obama is expected to announce a plan today to merge six federal agencies related to trade and commerce into a single department. The US Department of Commerce is the largest agency included in…