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Today - Thursday, February 23, 2012
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6:38 AM U.S. stock futures push slightly higher in advance of this week's jobless claims report set for release at 8:30 AM EST. S&P +0.1%, Dow +0.1%. [U.S. Economy] Comment!
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6:00 AM Overseas: Japan +0.4%. Hong Kong -0.8%. China +0.3%. India -0.4%. London +0.2%. Paris -0.1%. Frankfurt -0.3%. Comment!
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5:57 AM The European Commission now forecasts a mild recession for the eurozone, with the region shrinking 0.3% this year. As recently as November, the EC had expected 0.5% growth this year. One of the sharpest country revisions is for Spain, now expected to contract 1% vs. prior forecast of +0.7%. Stocks give back gains after the report: London +0.2%. Paris -0.1%. Frankfurt -0.3%. Euro +0.5% to $1.3314. [Global & FX, Top Stories] Comment!
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5:52 AM Anadarko Petroleum (APC) and BP (BP) are liable for civil damages related to the Gulf oil Spill, District Judge Carl Barbier ruled yesterday, exposing the two firms to billions in potential fines. The government will now pursue civil penalties in a trial set to begin Monday. [Energy] Comment!
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5:35 AM British American Tobacco (BTI) FY net profit rose to £3.1B from £2.9B a year earlier, with pretax profit +11% to £5.52B. Revenue +3% to £15.4B. Despite an unsettled global economy, the company sees momentum this year for marketshare growth and margin improvement. Recommends a full-year dividend of 126.5 pence, and will buy back another £1.25B of shares. Shares -1.9% in London. [Consumer, Earnings] Comment!
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5:29 AM The U.K. and Japan are urging the U.S. to rewrite the Volcker Rule, concerned trading restrictions on U.S. banks could hit sovereign debt markets at a particularly fragile moment. In a high-profile expression of their concern, U.K. finmin George Osborne and Japanese counterpart Jun Azumi have written an op-ed in the FT. [Financials, U.S. Economy, Global & FX] Comment!
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5:23 AM Wynn Macau will hold an emergency board meeting tomorrow to discuss the removal of Kazuo Okada as a director, sources say. Wynn Macau's board can unanimously vote Okada off, but removing Okada from the board of parent Wynn Resorts (WYNN) will require a vote by shareholders. (previously) Comment!
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5:16 AM Still trying to track down $1.6B in missing customer money, regulators are reportedly focusing on two transfers made during MF Global's (MFGLQ.PK) final days, including a previously undisclosed $165M transaction. 2 Comments
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4:48 AM Spanish PM Rajoy has reportedly asked European officials to raise Spain's debt reduction target to 5%, arguing the current 4.4% target will be impossible to meet. Sources say the EC is preparing to cut its eurozone growth forecasts, and Spain may latch on to the downward revision to argue its target needs adjustment. [Global & FX] Comment!
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4:40 AM China could face an economic crisis unless it implements deep reforms. That's the conclusion of a report, to be released Monday by the World Bank and a Chinese think tank, which challenges how China's economic model has developed over the last decade and stresses the need to scale back China's vast state-owned enterprises. [Global & FX] Comment!
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4:15 AM Nissan (NSANY.PK) will recall 250,000 cars globally to fix a mechanical glitch that could lead to a fuel leak in extreme cases. No accidents have been reported due to the fault. [Consumer, Global & FX] Comment!
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4:13 AM Ifo's index of German business confidence rises to 109.6 from 108.3, better than the 108.8 expected. Current conditions rises to 117.5 from 116.3, beating expectations of 116.5. Business expectations up to 102.3 from 100.9, vs. 102 expected. [Global & FX] Comment!
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4:03 AM Microsoft (MSFT) files a complaint with European regulators that Motorola Mobility Holdings (MMI), with Google's (GOOG) support, is misusing patents, demanding unfairly high prices from device makers to use standard patents relevant to products like MSFT's laptops and Xbox game console. [Tech] Comment!
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3:49 AM Economists expect China’s Premier Wen Jiabao to target an expansion of around 7.5% in his report to the National People’s Congress next month, a slight pullback from the 8% goal maintained from 2005-2011. A cut in the target growth rate would suggest policymakers are prepared to accept slower growth as the cost of shifting the economy’s drivers to consumption from exports and investment. [Global & FX] Comment!
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3:06 AM That sounds more like it: Shanghai denies plans to ease home buying restrictions, keeping itself in line with Beijing's goal of curbing speculation and cooling rapidly rising prices. But with home prices now falling in China's major markets, it might be time to relax the restrictions. [Global & FX] Comment!
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3:01 AM Asian companies are preparing to accelerate acquisitions in Europe to take advantage of asset prices depressed by the region's debt crisis, says Colin Banfield, Citigroup’s head of M&A for Asia-Pacific. Asia-to-Europe acquisitions have already hit $14B YTD, vs. $7.3B for the same period last year, and last year ended up at a four-year high. [Global & FX] Comment!
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2:43 AM BofA (BAC) will accelerate its expansion in China, adding as many as five branches in the country over the next 2-3 years from its current three outlets in Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou. BofA is also open to other options including a securities venture with a local partner. [Global & FX, Financials] 1 Comment
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