Reports: Retail sales for September, 7:30 a.m.; Consumer Price Index for September, 7:30 a.m.; Business inventories for August, 9 a.m.
Major earnings: Gannett Co., General Electric Co., Mattel Inc.
GM sets aside up to 5% of IPO for employees
General Motors Co. will allocate up to 5 percent of the common stock to be sold in its initial public offering for its employees, retirees and dealers, the automaker said Thursday. Get the full story »
SEC delays Rattner case, NY probe ongoing
A proposed settlement between Steven Rattner, the former head of the U.S. auto task force, and the Securities and Exchange Commission over a pension corruption scheme was unexpectedly pulled from Thursday’s calendar, one source with knowledge of the matter said Thursday. Get the full story »
Google trumps street targets; shares surge
Google Inc. blew past Wall Street’s quarterly profit and revenue expectations as a 25 percent revenue surge offset rising expenses, sending its shares up 9 percent. Get the full story »
Jen Patterson out at Comcast SportsNet Chicago
Jen Patterson, a contributor to Comcast SportsNet Chicago and its Web site, is out at the local cable sports channel.
Business Council finds CEO sentiment souring
America’s corporate leaders are profoundly more pessimistic this fall about prospects for the U.S. economy and their own profitability than they were this spring, according to a survey of CEO sentiment released on Thursday. Get the full story »
Dimon: Foreclosure probes may hurt housing
JPMorgan Chief Executive Jamie Dimon said on Thursday he worries a widening probe into foreclosure practices could be a drag on the housing recovery.
“It may slow it down,” he said. “But we’re hoping it won’t kill it.”
Dimon made the comments after a press conference at the Chicago meeting of The Business Council, a group of 150 top U.S. CEOs that convenes several times a year to discuss issues facing the U.S. economy. Dimon is one of the group’s leaders. Get the full story »
CME to start trading new rainfall contracts Nov. 1
CME Group Inc. said on Thursday it would launch a new set of rainfall futures and options contracts for traders looking to hedge risk in the agricultural commodities markets.
The new contracts, which will be based on the amount of rainfall in cities such as Chicago, Des Moines, Iowa, New York and the Dallas-Fort Worth area, will start trading on Nov. 1, CME Group said in a statement. Get the full story »
Oct. 14, 2010 at 2:50 p.m.
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Filed under: Banking, Mortgages, Real estate, Stock activity Financial stocks dip as bank mortgage woes mount
Stocks dipped Thursday after another disappointing jobs report and growing concern over how potentially damaging foreclosure documents will weigh on the health of major banks. But losses were mitigated by expectations that the Federal Reserve will have to act soon to strengthen the economy.
Oct. 14, 2010 at 2:40 p.m.
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Filed under: Cell phones, Consumer electronics, Internet, Regulations, Technology, Telecommunications, Wireless FCC weighs creating fund to boost broadband
A new fund could help bring high speed Internet to unserved and remote areas of the United States, U.S. telecommunications regulators said on Thursday.
The Federal Communications Commission proposed allocating universal service funds — fees consumers pay telephone companies to subsidize landline phone services for low-income and rural families — to create a “mobility fund” to expand broadband Internet to areas without service. Get the full story »
For-profit college stocks hit on Apollo warning
Investors are fleeing for-profit college stocks after the sector’s bellwether predicted a 40 percent drop in new student enrollment next quarter.
Apollo Group Inc., which runs the University of Phoenix, attributes the expected decline to changing practices aimed at satisfying new government regulations. Get the full story »
Dollar dealt another blow
The dollar fell sharply against a broad range of currencies Thursday as prospects for Asian economic growth contrasted with the likely need for more stimulus in the U.S.
A monetary-tightening move overnight by the Monetary Authority of Singapore accelerated the dollar’s slide, knocking the greenback to long-term lows against rivals in Asia, Europe and North America before regaining some poise in New York trading. Get the full story »
Boeing gets orders for 30 737s
Boeing Co. says it has received orders for 30 more of its 737s in the past week. Boeing’s weekly order update on Thursday did not say who is buying the planes.
Boeing customers have ordered 382 of those planes so far this year, out of a total of 422 orders for all commercial planes. The 737 have a list price of between $51 million to $87 million, although discounts are common.
AOL, firms mull bid for Yahoo
AOL Inc. and several private equity firms are exploring the possibility of buying Yahoo Inc., according to people familiar with the matter.
Shares of Yahoo jumped more than 9 percent on Thursday on the news, fueled by the prospect that the Internet company could be the target of a buyout by private equity firms, possibly in conjunction with another media company like AOL or News Corp. Get the full story »
Grainger 3Q earnings up 4%, topping estimates
WW Grainger Inc. posted better-than-expected quarterly results and raised its full-year outlook for the second time this year, but its shares fell 3 percent as the industrial distributor forecast a moderation in fourth-quarter organic revenue growth. Get the full story »
