Leading economic indicators rise in August
NEW YORK (AP) -- A private
forecast of U.S. economic activity rose in August for the fifth straight month,
the latest sign the recession has ended. The report points to an economy on
solid ground early next year, though some analysts caution that a rising
unemployment rate will restrain growth.
The Conference Board said
its index of leading indicators rose 0.6 percent in August. That follows a 0.9
percent gain in July revised up from 0.6 percent. Economists surveyed by
Thomson Reuters had expected an 0.7 percent gain last month.
The indicators are designed
to project economic activity in the next three to six months. The August
results support many analysts' projections that the economy started growing
again in the current July-September quarter and will continue to gain in the
fourth quarter.
Stocks end off lows as
health care, tech recover
NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks
mostly fell but ended off their lows as investors moved into technology and
health care shares.
News of Dell Inc.'s plans to
buy information technology company Perot Systems Corp. for $3.9 billion helped
to lift some tech stocks but failed to raise the broader market. A stronger
dollar ignited a sharp sell-off in commodities like oil and gold, which weighed
on energy and material shares.
Stocks and commodities have
been on a relentless ascent over the past six months as investors make bets
that the economy is healing, bolstered by improving activity in the housing and
manufacturing industries and better consumer sentiment.
The Dow Jones industrial
average fell 41.34, or 0.4 percent, to 9,778.86, after earlier falling as much
as 95 points. With stocks up more than 50 percent since bottoming in early
March, analysts say breaks in the rally are healthy.
Lennar posts wider loss in
3Q, but market improves
UNDATED (AP) -- Homebuilder
Lennar Corp. reported a wider loss in its fiscal third quarter as it continued
to write down the value of land and unsold homes, but executives say the
company will be profitable next year assuming the economy remains stable.
Orders for new homes were
down 8 percent from a year earlier, but they increased each month during the
quarter ending Aug. 31. Another positive sign: the Miami-based company had more
sales in the works at the end of last month than any time since August 2008.
The company reported that it
lost $171.6 million, or 97 cents per share, in the three months ended in
August. That includes 76 cents per share in write-downs and tax adjustments,
and compares with a loss of $89 million, or 56 cents per share, a year earlier.
Dell eyes tech services with
$3.9B deal for Perot
NEW YORK (AP) -- Dell Inc.
will spend $3.9 billion for the technology services company Perot Systems Corp.
in an attempt to expand beyond the PC business and compete more aggressively
with Hewlett-Packard Co. -- which recently bought another tech-services company
founded by H. Ross Perot.
Dell said it will offer $30
per share in cash for Perot Systems -- a 68 percent premium over its closing
price Friday. Perot Systems' shares rose $11.65, or 65 percent, to close at
$29.56.
Former presidential
candidate H. Ross Perot Sr., 79, serves as chairman emeritus of Perot Systems,
which he founded in 1988. According to an April regulatory filing, Perot and
related trusts controlled at least 25 percent of the company's stock, though
the beneficiary of those shares was not clear. The company did not respond to a
request for comment on Perot's stake.
AIG shares jump after talk
of bailout revamp
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Shares of
American International Group Inc. jumped more than 20 percent after the head of
the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform said that panel will
examine a plan to reduce the company's massive bailout package.
The stock surge occurred
despite a report from congressional investigators that cast doubt on whether
efforts by AIG to restructure its operations and fully repay the government the
billions it received will ever prove successful.
Rep. Edolphus Towns, chairman
of the House committee, will have that panel study a plan by AIG's former CEO
Maurice "Hank" Greenberg to reduce and restructure the company's
bailout package, a committee spokeswoman said.
Energy prices drop sharply
ahead of Fed meeting
UNDATED (AP) -- Oil prices
fell for a third straight day before the U.S. Federal Reserve meets to discuss
monetary policy, which for months has helped to drive crude prices higher.
Benchmark crude for October
delivery lost more than 3 percent, or $2.33, to settle at $69.71 a barrel on
the New York Mercantile Exchange.
With the October contract
set to expire on Tuesday, traders were focusing more on the November contract,
which fell $2.56 to settle at $69.93. Natural gas futures, which have soared
throughout the month, fell sharply, as did most other fuels.
Energy consumption in North
America and Europe has been crimped by recession, leaving China as one of the
few countries that continue to consume oil, gasoline and diesel in large
quantities. That pace, at least during late summer, appeared to slow, according
to a report.
EU gives details of Intel's
sales tactics
BRUSSELS (AP) -- The
European Union published e-mail excerpts from computer makers and Intel Corp.
to show that Intel pressured chip buyers into choosing Intel over rival
Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
Intel was hit by a record EU
antitrust fine of 1.06 billion euros ($1.45 billion) last May for what the EU
said were strong-arm sales tactics -- payments, rebates and threats to withhold
supplies -- to squeeze out AMD. Intel rejects the charges and is appealing to
the EU courts.
EU spokesman Jonathan Todd
said the publication of the EU's decision "gives full details of the hard
facts on which the Commission's decision was based."
IRS extends amnesty program
for tax cheats
WASHINGTON (AP) --
Procrastinating tax cheats will get a few extra weeks to apply for an amnesty
program that has been flooded with applications from people who hid assets
overseas.
The Internal Revenue Service
said Monday it will extend the deadline, originally set for Wednesday, until
Oct. 15.
More than 3,000 Americans
have applied for the program, which promises no jail time and reduced penalties
for tax dodgers who come forward, said a government official who spoke on
condition of anonymity because the agency has not publicly released the size of
the program.
The IRS is extending the
deadline to give a rush of applicants more time to prepare their paperwork. The
agency said there will be no additional extensions.
Regions to pay $1M penalty
in investment fraud
MIAMI (AP) -- Regions Bank
has agreed to pay a $1 million penalty to settle a Securities and Exchange
Commission complaint that it played a role in a long-term investment fraud that
charged huge hidden fees and sales commissions to thousands of unwitting Latin
American investors.
The Birmingham, Ala.-based
bank and its predecessor, Union Planters Bank, acted as trustees for a pair of
unregistered investment brokers -- U.S. Pension Trust Corp. and U.S. College
Trust Corp. -- that have previously been charged as deceptive by the SEC.
Regions allowed its name to be used in marketing materials, helped prepare a
promotional video and met with prospective investors and some of the schemes'
2,000 unregistered sales agents.
By The Associated Press
The Dow Jones industrial
average fell 41.34, or 0.4 percent, to 9,778.86.
The broader Standard &
Poor's 500 index fell 3.64, or 0.3 percent, to 1,064.66, while the tech-heavy
Nasdaq composite index rose 5.18, or 0.2 percent, to 2,138.04.
Benchmark crude for October
delivery lost more than 3 percent, or $2.33, to settle at $69.71 a barrel on
the New York Mercantile Exchange. The November contract fell $2.56 to settle at
$69.93.
In other Nymex trading,
gasoline for October delivery fell 8.1 cents to settle at $1.7514 a gallon, and
heating oil fell 7.62 cents to settle at $1.7517 a gallon. Natural gas tumbled
more than 5 percent, or 20.2 cents to settle at $3.576 per 1,000 cubic feet.
In London, Brent crude fell
$2.63 to settle at $68.69 on the ICE Futures exchange.