"Wallstreet" Reader

"Wallstreet" Reader

Government Cuts Clip Office Market

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 06:30 PM PDT

Smaller government means less demand for office space, and that is acting as a drag on the recovery of the commercial real-estate market.

In Galleon Case, Clash Over Goldman Chief

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 08:37 PM PDT

Prosecutors are trying to prevent Raj Rajaratnam's defense team from trying to discredit Goldman Sachs CEO Blankfein as a trial witness with questions about government investigations into the bank.

Asian Shares Mixed

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 08:23 PM PDT

Asian stock markets were mixed, with Japanese shares succumbing to profit-taking after their post-earthquake bounce. The Nikkei Stock Average was down 1.9%.

Groupon President Stepping Down

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 07:15 PM PDT

Groupon's president and chief operating officer Rob Solomon said he is stepping down from his position at the fast-growing Internet company in the coming months.

Public Pension Funds Caught in a Squeeze

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 06:40 PM PDT

Some public pension funds are finding themselves caught in a squeeze between actuaries worried about future benefit costs and local governments worried about immediate budgets strains.

Franco-Italian Tussle Shapes Up Over Parmalat

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 05:31 PM PDT

Revitalized dairy company Parmalat has emerged at the center of a Franco-Italian tussle that has Rome scrambling to protect strategic domestic businesses from foreign takeovers.

Drug Firms End Animal Plans

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 01:37 PM PDT

French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi-Aventis and U.S.-based Merck said they have ended plans to combine their animal-health businesses owing to the complexity of the transaction and regulations.

NRG Energy Casts Doubt on Reactor Plans

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 07:22 PM PDT

NRG Energy's CEO said the power company's plans to build two big reactors at its South Texas nuclear plant could be delayed, or even canceled, in light of earthquake-related failures at a Japanese nuclear plant.

IMF Plan Sees Role for Fund in Crises

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 04:42 PM PDT

The IMF is working on a proposal to become a more significant lender during times of crisis, essentially sharing the role of global lender of last resort with the Fed.

Judge Rejects Google Books Settlement

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 08:47 PM PDT

A federal judge in Manhattan rejected a Google settlement with authors and publishers that would allow it to make millions of books available online, saying it would be acceptable only if copyright owners "opt in."

Supervalu Cost Cuts Are in the Bag

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 06:06 PM PDT

Supervalu stores cut costs by packing more items in each bag and using plastic instead of paper.

Big Banks Find Allies in Debit-Fee Fight

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 04:17 PM PDT

No effort to roll back last year's Dodd-Frank financial-overhaul law has progressed further than the banking industry's campaign to delay new fee limits on debit-card transactions, which has drawn support from some unlikely sources.

Discover Returns to Profit as It Cuts Reserves

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 03:01 PM PDT

Discover Financial Services swung to a fiscal first-quarter profit as improving credit trends allowed the company to free up funds in reserves and cardholders spent more. The credit-card issuer also raised its quarterly dividend.

New Havas CEO Seeks Acquisitions

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 05:35 PM PDT

David Jones, the new CEO of Havas, is looking to quickly spend more than $1 billion on acquisitions to beef up the French ad agency's digital and emerging-markets strategies.

U.S. to Issue More Gulf Drilling Permits

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 10:05 AM PDT

U.S. regulator Michael Bromwich expressed concern about some companies' disregard for last year's Gulf oil spill but said more deep-water drilling permits would be issued in the next week.

Lack of Parts to Crimp Auto Makers

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 05:17 PM PDT

U.S. auto makers face sporadic production shutdowns for several months due to shortages of microchips and other parts that had already been scarce prior to Japan's earthquake and tsunami.

UAW Sets New Tactic to Organize at Foreign Car Makers

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 07:36 PM PDT

The United Auto Workers outlined a new push to recruit U.S. workers at foreign auto makers and will bolster the effort by training and sending activists abroad to organize rallies and protests in support of the effort.

Ex-Intel Worker Tells of Passing Secrets to Rajaratnam

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 07:01 PM PDT

A key witness against Raj Rajaratnam testified he gave the Galleon Group founder secret information about Intel Corp. because "we were very good friends."  

Housing Market's Weakness Persists

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 06:47 PM PDT

U.S. home prices fell for a third straight month in January, adding to evidence that the housing market is weakening even though the economy is improving.

ING's CEO Gives Up Bonus Amid Anger

Posted: 22 Mar 2011 01:04 PM PDT

ING Groep CEO Jan Hommen will give up his bonus for 2010 in response to public anger. At the same time, Dutch parliament voted to fine all Dutch financial companies that received a bailout, including ING and Aegon, for paying bonuses since 2008.