"Wallstreet" Reader

"Wallstreet" Reader

Nontraded REITs Are Put on Notice by SEC

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 06:09 PM PDT

The Securities and Exchange Commission is intensifying its scrutiny of the booming business of real-estate investment trusts that aren't traded on a stock exchange.

Fed Extends Lending Program for Central Banks

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 06:08 PM PDT

The president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis said the U.S. central bank extended a crisis-lending program that was due to expire Aug. 1 and allows the European Central Bank and other foreign banks to tap the U.S. for dollars.

Auditors Sharpen Queries in China

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 06:27 PM PDT

Auditors are learning that, in China, they sometimes must go the extra mile to verify even the most basic things about clients—like how much cash they have.

Insurer's Cost-Cut Plan: Buy Hospitals

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 05:50 PM PDT

Health insurer Highmark reached a provisional agreement to acquire struggling hospital operator West Penn Allegheny Health System for as much as $475 million.

Auto Makers Seek Mileage Leeway

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 05:46 PM PDT

U.S. auto makers are pushing regulators to allow them to make slow progress toward a 56-miles-per-gallon fuel economy standard while holding out hope that the target could be lowered in the future.

Stifel Claims RBC Misled It on Deals

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 06:48 PM PDT

Stifel Financial accused Royal Bank of Canada of intentionally hiding how much it was going to earn on complex derivatives it created and which Stifel then sold to five Wisconsin school districts.

BofA Nears Huge Settlement

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 04:40 PM PDT

BofA is close to an agreement to pay $8.5 billion to settle claims by a group of high-profile investors who lost money on mortgage-backed securities purchased before the U.S. housing collapse.

France's Lagarde Named IMF Chief

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 05:34 PM PDT

The IMF's executive board Tuesday officially named French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde as the fund's next managing director, catapulting her into the middle of a deepening European debt crisis that threatens global financial markets.

Medtronic Surgeons Held Back, Study Says

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 05:36 PM PDT

Surgeons conducting clinical trials to test a Medtronic bone-growth protein used in spine surgery didn't report serious complications, a study says. Fifteen of those surgeons collectively received $62 million from Medtronic for unrelated work.

Treasury Assails OCC on Draft Rule

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 04:23 PM PDT

The Treasury Department sharply criticized a fellow regulator for violating the intent of Congress's financial-regulation overhaul, in the latest sign of conflict among key officials as they approach a series of deadlines to implement the law.

Morgan Stanley May Change Brokerage's Name

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 01:35 PM PDT

Morgan Stanley plans to rename its retail brokerage joint venture—now called Morgan Stanley Smith Barney—as soon as early next year.

Tech IPOs Test Sky-High Values

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 05:52 PM PDT

Online social gaming company Zynga is preparing to file for an initial public offering as early as Wednesday, expecting a valuation of between $15 billion and $20 billion.

Google Takes On Friend Sprawl

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 07:46 PM PDT

Google launched its most ambitious social-networking effort yet, broadening a battle with Facebook to grab the attention of Web users and advertising dollars.

EU Looks to Financial-Sector Tax

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 11:32 AM PDT

The European Commission is set to propose a tax on the financial sector this week as Brussels seeks to boost the revenues it can lay direct claim to as part of a multiyear EU budget plan.

White House Pushes for Votes on Trade

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 04:37 PM PDT

Congressional negotiators and the White House said they reached a deal to break a stalemate that has delayed ratification votes on free-trade pacts with South Korea, Colombia and Panama, but Republicans sent mixed signals on support for the deal.

No OPEC Retaliation Over IEA Move

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 12:26 PM PDT

Despite loud complaints from some members of OPEC, the Saudi Arabia-led wing signaled that it intends to implement plans to boost output irrespective of the IEA decision to tap stockpiles.

Indian Companies Tighten Their Belts

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 11:40 AM PDT

India's companies are scaling back spending and curbing expansion plans this year, putting a dampener on the country's economic growth, in an unintended consequence of interest-rate hikes aimed at stemming inflation.

Lead Bid Emerges in Sale of Myspace

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 06:14 PM PDT

News Corp.'s talks to sell most of Myspace have narrowed to the ad-targeting firm Specific Media and Golden Gate Capital. Any deal would include hundreds of job cuts at the struggling social-networking website.

Afghanistan Issues Arrest Warrant for Central-Bank Chief

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 08:50 AM PDT

Afghanistan's attorney general's office issued an arrest warrant to the U.S. Embassy and Interpol for Afghanistan's central-bank governor, claiming he was involved in systemic fraud at the country's largest lender.

Westpac Applies for Yuan License

Posted: 28 Jun 2011 09:08 AM PDT

Australia's Westpac Banking has applied to conduct local-currency banking in mainland China, joining a growing list of banks seeking to beef up yuan-related services.