Asia And Europe Move Up On US Data
Markets in Asia and Europe were up after strong housing data was released in the US, and American markets advanced over 2%. The Nikkei 224 was up 1.41% to 8,454. The Hang Seng was…
All Work
Douglas A. McIntyre
Chinese Hackers Hit U.S. Chamber of Commerce
According to the Wall Street Journal, hackers hit the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The paper reports that: A group of hackers in China breached the computer defenses of America’s top business-lobbying group and gained…
Amazon (AMZN) Approaches RIM About Buyout? How About Nokia And Micrososft?
Update: The Wall Street Journal reports that Nokia (NYSE: NOK) and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MFST) may also have consider a join bid. The rumors that a company would offer to buy Canadian smartphone pioneer Research In…
Oracle Reports Q2 GAAP EPS Up 17% to 43 Cents
Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL) shares fell 8% after it reported worse than expected earnings The software company said fiscal 2012 Q2 GAAP and non-GAAP total revenues were up 2% to $8.8 billion. Both GAAP and…
Markets Rally On Housing
Markets moved up at the open with the DJIA higher by over 200 points. Market leaders included Sprint-Nextel (NYSE: S), up nearly 5% as the AT&T (NYSE: T) deal with T-Mobile was cancelled. Alcatel-Lucent…
Todays’ Best Market Rumors (12/20/2011) Apple And Anobit
Updated throughout the day Olympus will get $1.28 billion in financial help from Sony (NYSE: SNE) (Nikkei) Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) bought Anobit (Calcalist) Apple and KKR will invest in a solar venture in California…
FBI: Crime Drops in First Half of 2011
The U.S. may have run out of criminals, and crimes of passion must have nearly disappeared. The FBI reports that violent crime dropped again in the first half of 2011. The decline has continued for…
Germans, Confident About the Future, Distance Themselves From Neighbors
Consumer confidence has climbed in Germany as the year ends. It is an extraordinary development because the balance of Europe is in such a depressed state. But the numbers reinforce how Germans view the prospects of…
UK Effectively Leaves EU
The UK has finally, unofficially left the EU. The departure began when it would not agree to modifications to restructure the region’s financial mechanism enforcement. Provisions in the plan would have affected London’s banks. The UK…
New York Times Abandons Local Media
It is strange that the New York Times (NYSE: NYT) would want to sell its local media group. Local papers are, in most cases, doing better than large metropolitan ones. Yet, Halifax Media Holdings…
What’s Important in the Financial World (12/20/2011) UK and EU, HTC and Apple
The UK says it will not contribute to a new IMF-based 150 billion euro package for use in bailing out regional economies. The UK government senses that as it pushes it own austerity to make up…
Media Digest (12/20/2011) Reuters, WSJ, NYT, FT
AT&T (NYSE: T) gives up on its effort to buy T-Mobile. (Reuters) Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) wins a patent case over HTC in the smartphone wars. (Reuters) Olympus will sell shares to Sony (NYSE: SNE)…
Markets Rise–Ignore Korea And EU
Markets across the world mostly rose. They ignored potential trouble from succession issues in North Korea and a spread of the eurozone debt problem. North Korea seems stable for now. A new IMF facility to…
Sony Sells 321,000 Playstation Vitas in First Two Days
Sony (NYSE: SNE) has counted on its new Playstation Vita portable game device to resurrect its chance in the console business. Early signs are that the attempt has worked. Nintendo sold 371,000 of its…
Olympus to Sell Shares To Sony (SNE) And FujiFilm
Olympus, its balance sheet hurt by money lost in fraudulent activity, will rebuild its balance sheet with a sale of $1.28 billion to partners Sony (NYSE: SNE) and FujiFilm. The scandal that has engulfed…
Apple Trumps HTC In Court Case
Continuing a long list of battles among smartphone companies, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) won a case against Taiwan’s HTC. The ITC said HTC violated one Apple patent. HTC should have enough time to change the technology involved so that…
South Korea’s Achilles Heel – Energy
South Korea has a market economy which ranks 15th in the world by nominal GDP. But it’s is more fragile than raw statistics indicate, and its prosperity is prognosticated on its access to inexpensive…
AT&T Kills $39 Billion T-Mobile Offer
AT&T (NYSE: T) has ended its quest to buy No.4 US cellular company T-Mobile for $39 billion. It will pay T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom a $4 billion break-up fee. The future of AT&T Wireless…
Today’s Best Market Rumors (12/19/2011) Apple TV
Updated throughout the day. Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) may buy Gulf Keystone Petroleum for $10.9 billion (The Independent) Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) has begun to meet media executives in preparation to launch its TV product.…
Google Chrome Passes Internet Explorer As Top Browser
Microsoft’s (NASDAQ: MSFT) Internet Explorer has been the top browser in the world since the company bought Netscape nearly 15 years ago. Mozilla’s Firefox gains modest share over the last several years. But, it is…