"Wallstreet" Reader

"Wallstreet" Reader

Blackstone Wins Bidding for Centro's U.S. Assets

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 07:48 PM PST

Debt-laden Centro Properties Group agreed to sell its 588 U.S. shopping centers to private-equity giant Blackstone Group for $9.4 billion in a deal that will allow Centro's Australian operations to continue as a standalone company.

GM Hastens Tuneup of Opel

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 07:09 PM PST

General Motors is taking steps to speed up restructuring at its European Opel operation, the missing link in the auto maker's budding turnaround.

Only 1 in 4 Got Mortgage Relief

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 06:07 PM PST

Just one in four of the 2.7 million homeowners who sought to participate in the Obama administration's signature mortgage assistance program have succeeded in getting their monthly payments reduced.

Wall Street Bets on Debt That Doesn't Exist

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 05:23 PM PST

Banks and hedge funds are trading credit-default swaps on General Motors bonds, even though no such debt now exists, in what some see as a good sign for the market and others as a return of a dangerous precrisis practice.

Copying Wells Fargo, Banks Try Hard Sell

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 04:47 PM PST

Once derided by its slicker Wall Street rivals as a Midwestern, cornpone operation, Wells Fargo has emerged as the king of consumer banking with its strategy called cross-selling, and now other banks are following suit.

Governors Scramble to Rein In Medicaid

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 05:54 PM PST

More than half the states want permission to remove hundreds of thousands of people from the Medicaid insurance program, a move that would represent a rare cut to a national social program.

Asian Shares Mostly Lower

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 05:56 PM PST

Asian stock markets were mostly lower as a surge in oil prices and news China is targeting lower growth over the next five years hit sentiment. The Nikkei was 0.5% lower.

Oil Rips a Gash in Stocks' Teflon

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 06:49 PM PST

Just when it looked like nothing could stop the U.S. stock market's surprising rally, oil is fueling worries that last week's 2.3% decline by the Dow Jones Industrial Average might be a sign of more trouble to come.

To U.S., Huawei Is Face of China Inc.

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 04:22 PM PST

There are two lessons to draw from the Huawei's stymied efforts to break into the U.S. market. First, the drama goes beyond the Chinese telecom. And second, Huawei may be the least of America's problems when it comes to thwarting aspiring cyberspies.

Germany Frets About Its Car Sector

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 04:31 PM PST

Many in German auto and policy circles worry that the country is falling behind in cultivating electric-car technologies and markets.

OECD Sees Real Demand Driving Commodity Prices

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 05:54 PM PST

A report being prepared for G20 leaders indicates the main factor behind rising prices for wheat, sugar, cotton, metals, oil and other commodities isn't speculators, as some have suggested, but that the global demand to consume these goods is growing faster than the supply.

Time for Next Move on Yuan Liberalization

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 04:46 PM PST

Last year, China made waves by letting foreign investors get their hands on more of its currency. This year, the big question for many is what China will let them do with those yuan.

New Airline, New Ads

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 05:12 PM PST

United Continental is introducing an "interim" advertising campaign this week and a rebranding that melds the United name with the well-known globe that Continental used.

Rebels Take Control of City Near Tripoli

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 03:46 PM PST

Libyan rebel groups appear to have taken control of the area of Zawiya, close to Tripoli, closing the circle on the regime of Moammar Gadhafi a day after the U.N. imposed sanctions on the country. Many streets in Tripoli were calm Sunday.

Tunisia Gets a New Prime Minister

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 03:44 PM PST

Tunisia endured a sudden change of leadership, with Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi resigning and being swiftly replaced.

Iraq Ministers Threatened With Dismissal

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 11:42 AM PST

Iraq's prime minister, following a string of deadly anti-government protests, gave his ministers on Sunday 100 days to improve their performance or risk being fired.

Hyundai Boosts Europe Ambitions

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 04:26 PM PST

Hyundai plans to add a third shift this summer at its plant in the Czech Republic due to surging demand and create 1,000 new jobs there, marking the latest sign that the auto maker is plotting further inroads in Europe.

Irish Vote Sets Stage for EU Showdown

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 03:44 PM PST

Ireland's main opposition party, Fine Gael, won a clear victory in Friday's election, setting Dublin on course for a showdown with the EU over the terms of its $92.83 billion international bailout.

Euro Aims for $1.40

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 08:09 AM PST

A hawkish tone from ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet at the central bank's policy meeting this coming week could push the euro toward $1.40, analysts expect, but the impact of Middle East upheaval on currencies remains a wild card.

Yemeni President Rallies Tribal Support

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 04:42 AM PST

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh rallied tribes to his support after a prominent tribal leader said he would join the opposition, as the president moved to shore up his regime amid fears that other tribal chiefs will follow suit.