Fed again pledges to hold rates at record-lows
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Federal Reserve pledged Wednesday to keep
a key interest rate at a record low for an "extended period,"
signaling that the weak economy remains dependent on government help to grow.
The Fed said economic activity has "continued to pick
up" and that the housing market has strengthened -- a key ingredient for a
sustained recovery.
But Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues warned that
rising joblessness and tight credit for many people and companies could
restrain the rebound in the months ahead.
Stocks give up gains in last hour, finish mixed
The Dow Jones industrial average, up more than 150 points after
the Fed described the economy as showing more signs of recovery, closed up 30.
Broader indexes were narrowly mixed.
Stocks could get a lift Thursday from Cisco Systems Inc., which
reported posted better quarterly earnings and sales than expected after the
closing bell. John Chambers, CEO of the maker of computer-networking gear,
struck an optimistic tone in a conference call with analysts and said orders
continue to rebound.
NY joins the antitrust effort against Intel
Following a similar case in Europe, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo
claimed that the world's biggest computer chip maker paid billions of dollars
in kickbacks to computer manufacturers and retaliated against those that did
too much business with Intel's competitors, namely Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
The lawsuit, filed in
ISM's
service sector index grows again in October
The Institute for Supply Management said Wednesday that its
service index dipped to 50.6 last month from 50.9. Any reading above 50 signals
growth. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected a 51.5 for the index
that tracks the country's hospitals, retailers, financial services companies
and truckers.
But new orders, an augur of future activity, rose to 55.6, from
54.2 in September. Business activity also rose.
Still, the decline in employment worsened. The employment tracker
has contracted for 21 of the past 22 months.
JPMorgan settlement with SEC worth over $700M
WASHINGTON (AP) -- JPMorgan Chase & Co. has agreed to a
settlement worth more than $700 million over federal regulators' charges that
it made unlawful payments to friends of public officials to win municipal bond
business in
The Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday announced the
settlement with JPMorgan, which canceled interest-rate swap contracts with the
county worth $700 million in March. The move lowers the county's bond debt to
about $3.2 billion from $3.9 billion, but officials had no immediate comment on
whether that was enough to help the county avoid filing what would be the
largest municipal bankruptcy ever.
GM's Opel move raises anger, new uncertainty
BERLIN (AP) -- General Motors Co.'s decision to scrap the sale of
European subsidiary Opel raised new uncertainty Wednesday over the unit's
future, astonishing politicians in Germany and Russia, and prompting workers to
plan walkouts in protest.
The GM board's unexpected decision to call off the sale to auto
parts maker Magna International Inc. and Russian lender Sberbank
was a startling end to months of haggling in which Chancellor Angela Merkel and
other German leaders had strongly backed the deal.
Now German workers worry GM will make even more cuts to return
Opel to profit than Magna would have. Still, the decision won a cautious
welcome from union officials in
Cisco earns down but says 'tipping point' passed
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Cisco Systems Inc. CEO John Chambers said
Wednesday that the company's latest quarterly numbers reinforce his observation
that recession-dampened orders are improving after passing a "tipping
point" this summer.
Net income for the world's No. 1 maker of computer-networking gear
dropped 19 percent and sales fell 13 percent, but still topped Wall Street's
forecasts.
Cisco said net income was down 19 percent from the year-ago
period to $1.8 billion, or 30 cents per share.
Excluding one-time charges, Cisco earned 36 cents per share,
ahead of analysts' expectation for 31 cents per share in net income, on that
same basis.
Prudential posts 3Q profit on market, sales gains
NEW YORK (AP) -- Prudential Financial Inc., an insurance and
investment company, on Wednesday posted its second straight quarterly profit,
buoyed by market gains and strong sales of its investment products.
The results led the
Prudential said its financial services businesses earned $1.09
billion, or $2.35 per share, reversing a year-ago loss of $118 million, or 25
cents a year ago.
After-tax adjusted operating profit shot up 70 percent to $733
million, or $1.59 per share, from $430 million, or $1.02 per share, last year.
The per-share results reflect a 9 percent increase in the number of outstanding
shares, following a stock offering in June.
NY prosecutors ask billionaire's bail stay high
The government urged a judge Wednesday not to lower 52-year-old
Raj Rajaratnam's bail. His attorney had asked last
week that the bail be reduced to $25 million. But prosecutors say Rajaratnam has the means to live anywhere in the world and
knows he could face more than 10 years in prison if he's convicted. He's the
236th richest American.
Rajaratnam
was charged with conspiracy last month in federal court in
GMAC Financial Services 3Q loss narrows
Although its third-quarter loss narrowed from a year ago and its
auto lending division made money, the results indicate the GMAC still has work
to do at its mortgage unit. The unit, ResCap, was a
major player in the sub-prime mortgage business and is still suffering from the
bad loans it made during the housing boom.
GMAC Financial Services said its net loss was $767 million during
the third quarter versus a loss of $2.52 billion in the same quarter last year.
By The Associated Press
The Dow rose 30.23, or 0.3 percent, to 9,802.14.
The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 1.09, or 0.1
percent, to 1,046.50. The Nasdaq
composite index fell 1.80, or 0.1 percent, to 2,055.52.
Benchmark crude for December delivery added 80 cents to settle at
$80.40 a barrel Wednesday on the
In other Nymex trading, heating oil
rose 1.69 cents to settle at $2.0902 a gallon. Gasoline for December delivery
climbed 1.23 cents to settle at $2.0127 a gallon. Natural gas for December fell
19.7 cents to settle at $4.725 per 1,000 cubic feet.