Archive for July 29th, 2009

NEW YORK: California may have a budget, but that doesn’t mean it has the money to cash the 1.1 billion in IOUs sent out this month.The state Controller’s Office, which has issued nearly 220,000 IOUs to residents, government agencies and contractors, likely won’t know until the end of next week when it can start trading… »

NEW YORK (Fortune) — Don’t look now, but the government has actually strung a couple modest victories together in its dealings with big banks. American Express (AXP, Fortune 500), the New York-based credit card giant, said Wednesday it paid the Treasury Department 340 million to repurchase the warrants the bank issued in January after borrowing… »

(breakingviews.com) — The porous divide between Wall Street and Washington is getting grayer and messier. Look no further than the unfolding tale of Charles Millard, the former head of the U.S. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.BlackRock (BLK, Fortune 500) and Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500) in particular lobbied him for lucrative asset management gigs, perhaps too… »

NEW YORK: Ruth Madoff, wife of imprisoned Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff, was sued Wednesday by a court-appointed trustee seeking 45 million in funds to compensate victims.0:00
/1:17Madoff gets the maxLast month, federal authorities seized the Madoffs’ assets but left Ruth Madoff with 2.5 million — an amount they could not tie to her husband’s massive and… »

NEW YORK (Reuters) — American Express Co. paid the U.S. Treasury Department 340 million Wednesday to redeem warrants to buy its stock, allowing it to fully escape the government’s bank bailout program.The New York-based credit card and travel services company joins Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS, Fortune 500), U.S. Bancorp (USB, Fortune 500), BB&T Corp…. »

NEW YORK (Reuters) — The dollar rose broadly Wednesday, as a sell-off in Shanghai’s stock market and a weaker-than-expected U.S. durable goods report revived safe-haven demand for the greenback.Falls in U.S. equities and a 5% slide in China’s benchmark stock market, the Shanghai Composite Index, cut investors’ appetite for risk. That helped the dollar recover… »

NEW YORK: Is the Chinese economy in the same state as the American economy was in the summer of 2007? In other words, all pumped up and ready to pop? If so, it might be time to learn how to say bubble in Mandarin. And that could be bad news for those hoping for a… »

NEW YORK: Treasurys fell Wednesday, giving back earlier gains, after the government’s 39 billion auction of 5-year notes received lukewarm demand. The government said it took in 74.8 billion worth of bids for the 39 billion in 5-year notes offered, which made for a bid-to-cover ratio of 1.9. That compares with 2.58 at June’s auction… »

(Fortune Small Business) — Want to build a better snorkel? Add a safety whistle. Need more eye-catching goggles? Try lime-green frames. Cindi Walters believes underwater gear should swim against the tide of traditional design. That’s good news for her 75-employee firm, C. Walters Intercoastal Corp. Last year CWIC’s revenues hit 25 million, up 14% over… »

NEW YORK: “Microhoo” is finally a done deal, but will it really be able to make a dent in Google’s enormous search market lead?It’s a difficult feat for sure. Google maintains 65% of the U.S. search market, compared to a combined 28% for Microsoft and Yahoo. But the newly partnered tech giants are hoping that… »