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Apple Takes a Drubbing
Apple AAPL has been taking a beating on Wall Street today. The stock is down over 10%. The reason isnt the companys holiday performance but the possibility of a weaker future. Forbes is asking if one bad Apple could spoil the bunch - meaning could Apple weakness spill over into other tech stocks. Its hard to see gadgets having as good a year this year as they did last year if we are heading into a recession.To some extent, its a case of one bad Apple AAPL spoiling the bunch. Steve Jobs & Co. is seen as the most innovative, growth-producing group in tech. And if the U.S. consumers economic troubles are starting to rattle mighty Apple, high fliers like Research In Motion RIMM and Google GOOG might not be immune, either.Indeed, Apples holiday performance showed signs that the companys not unstoppable in 2008. In particular, Apples cautious outlook, weakness in U.S. iPod growth and the unpredictability of iPhone sales left Wall Streets pessimists plenty of reason to doubt. And in this jittery market, those pessimists have a lot of power.First, a recap of Apples good news - and there was plenty of it. Apple turned in revenue of $9.6 billion and profit of $1.6 billion for the holiday quarter, blowing past the average analyst estimate. The company shipped a record 2.3 million Intel INTC-based Macs during the period, and actually sold as many iPhones as computers. In the process Apple generated $2.7 billion in cash, bringing its war chest to $18.4 billion.But there was troubling news, too. On the conference call with analysts, Chief Financial Officer Peter Oppenheimer admitted that iPod sales merely met the companys expectations, rather than exceeding them. Part of the reason, he said, was that U.S. iPod sales weakened in December - it took overseas sales to make up the difference. In the U.S., in the gift-buying season, we saw a slightly different curve, he said. That was made up for in our very, very good growth internationally.Apple did have a great holiday quarter but what will happen to Apple in the first three quarters of this year with consumers fighting off a recession and rising prices? Thats the question investors are asking about Apple and many other gadget manufacturers. There are also concerns that if people already have any iPod will they might not be as excited about owning the latest and greatest iPod - especially if things get tight.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.com

Vector Capital says offer to buy Captaris has expired - CNNMoney.com
Vector Capital says offer to buy Captaris has expiredCNNMoney.com - 1 hour agoBOSTON, Mar. 28, 2008 Thomson Financial delivered by Newstex -- Private equity firm Vector Capital Friday said its offer to purchase Captaris Inc. NASDAQ:CAPA for $4.75 per share has expired.UPDATE 1-Vector Capital says Captaris offer expires ReutersVector's Bid for Captaris Expires Houston ChronicleFOXBusiness - Blogging Buy Outs - Bizjournals.com - PR Newswire press releaseall 33 news articles

Jobs Report Shows Weakening Economy
Yesterdays jobs report told a tale of weakness. The U.S. economy lost over 60,000 jobs in the short month of February and over 20,000 jobs in January. An AP article says the pink slips have increased and some economists hear the recession bell ringing.The grim snapshot of the countrys employment climate underscored the heavy toll the housing and credit debacles are taking on companies, jobseekers and the economy as a whole.It sounds like the recession bell is ringing for the U.S. economy, although it is still faint, said Stuart Hoffman, chief economist at PNC Financial Services Group.On Wall Street, stocks tumbled. The Dow Jones lost 146.70 points, a little more than 1 percent to close at 11,893.69. The Dow was down 370 for the last two days of the week.The worsening situation will prompt the Federal Reserve to cut a key interest rate deeply -- perhaps by as much as three-quarters of a percentage point -- at its next meeting March 18, or possibly sooner, to help brace the teetering economy, analysts predicted.The shower of pink slips was widespread. Factories, construction companies, mortgage brokers, real-estate firms, retailers, temporary-help firms, child day-care providers, hotels, educational services, accounting firms and computer designers were among those shedding jobs. All those cuts swamped job gains at hospitals and other health care sites, bars and restaurants, legal services and the government.President Bush was quick to reassure everyone that the economy is not in a recession. Bush said, I know this is a difficult time for our economy, but we recognized the problem early and provided the economy with a booster shot. We will begin to see the impact over the coming months.Less and less people are expecting the quick recovery that President Bush is. With the DOW falling under the 12,000 mark Friday next week could be a difficult one.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.com

UBS to mark down auction-rate securities - CNNMoney.com
PravdaUBS to mark down auction-rate securitiesCNNMoney.com - 3 hours agoTORONTO Thomson Financial - UBS NYSE:UBS AG said Friday it is cutting the value of auction-rate securities in its brokerage customers' accounts, the first confirmation that problems with the securities have eroded the principal holdings of investors.3 Firms Are Asked for Data on Auction-Rate Shares New York TimesUBS, Merrill, Bank of America Auction Sales Probed Update4 BloombergForbes - Wall Street Journal - Reuters - Boston Heraldall 54 news articles

Bernanke Says Some Small Banks May Fail
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said in testimony in front of U.S. Congress today that there could be some bank failures because of the ongoing credit crisis. The AP reports that Bernanke did says that the large U.S. banks will likely recover but it is disturbing to hear he expects some small bank failures.Bernanke, testifying before Congress, said that while the large U.S. banks will likely recover from the recent credit crisis, others could fail.Implying that some banks may fail stirs concerns for any investor whos familiar with financial and economic history, said Hugh Johnson, chairman and chief investment officer of Johnson Illington Advisors. Investors have been very edgy about credit market conditions and banks financial conditions. Very edgy. And this doesnt remove that edginess.Earlier, stocks had fallen in response to a Labor Department report that first-time unemployment claims rose last week by 19,000 to 373,000, the highest level since late January.Scott Wren, equity strategist for A.G. Edwards & Sons, said he still believes theres less than a 50 percent chance of a recession, but that its clear employers are cautious about hiring.To consistently see claims up near 400,000, thats pretty telling often-times of a recession, he said.On the positive side Bernanke doesnt anticipate a return to the stagflation periods of the 1970s - although with gas forecast to exceed $4 a gallon not everyone is convinced. Marketwatch reports that stocks are lower today following Bernankes words and news that last years GDP growth was just 0.6%Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.com

Fremont General says FDIC orders recapitalization of bank and ... - CNNMoney.com
Fremont General says FDIC orders recapitalization of bank and ...CNNMoney.com - 42 minutes agoNEW YORK, Mar. 28, 2008 Thomson Financial delivered by Newstex -- Fremont General NYSE:FMT PR NYSE:FMT Corp. Friday said the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation issued a supervisory prompt corrective action directive to the company and to its ...Fremont Ordered to Recapitalize Wall Street JournalFremont Ordered by FDIC to Find Buyer; Curbs Imposed Update3 BloombergReuters - FOXBusiness - Housing Wire - 24/7 Wall St.all 20 news articles

Markets React to Bear Sterns, Weekend Fed Action
JP Morgan Chase has snatched up Bear Sterns in a rapid transaction for a huge discount of $2 a share. JPMorgan Chase & Co. agreed to buy Bear Stearns Cos. for $240 million, about 90 percent less than its value last week, after a run on the company ended 85 years of independence for Wall Streets fifth-largest securities firm.Shareholders of Bear Stearns will get stock in JPMorgan equivalent to about $2 a share, compared with $30 at the close on March 14, the New York-based companies said in a statement late yesterday. The Federal Reserve is providing financial backing to JPMorgan, the second-biggest U.S. bank, and also cut the rate on direct loans to banks in its first emergency weekend action in almost three decades to stave off a broader market panic. The Fed also moved in with a rare weekend move and dropped the emergency lending rate a quarter of a point. President Bush also weighed in predicting a turnaround. President Bush rushed to strike a note of calm to the turbulent situation on Monday morning, hailing the Feds action and saying: Weve taken strong decisive action. The president spoke after meeting at the White House with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and other members of his economic team. Were in challenging times, Bush said.Despite all the action to help prevent losses stocks are still in negative territory again today. The Financial Times says investors are waiting for the next domino to fall.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.com

How High Will Google Go?
Google, which trades on the Nasdaq as GOOG, is getting close to the $600 mark. The stock has been on an incredible ride since it started trading at $85 in 2004.Google, which began trading at $85 in 2004, has the sixth- highest stock price in the U.S. and has surged 27 percent this year. The shares rose $1.84 to $584.39 at 4 p.m. New York time on the Nasdaq Stock Market and earlier reached $596.81.The search engine has taken users from Yahoo! Inc. and Microsoft Corp., pushing sales growth to at least 70 percent in each of the past three years. Google plans to lure more Web surfers and advertisers through the YouTube video site, bought last year, and has introduced software to sell mobile ads.Google is still dominating, Piper Jaffray & Co. Web analysts including Gene Munster said in an Oct. 1 report.Munster, in Minneapolis, rates the stock outperform and estimates it will reach $660 within a year as Google parlays its lead in search into other areas of online advertising next year.Google may very well break the $600 mark and even $650 but how much upside can be left for this powerful technology firm? Henry Blodget has suggested GOOG could trade as high as $2,000Remember a couple years back when some analyst floated the idea that Google could eventually be worth $2,000 a share--and was ridiculed from coast to coast? Well, first its worth noting that Google is now almost a third of the way there. Second, its worth noting that $2,000 a share would mean a market cap of about $750 billion, which--given a reasonable time horizon--just isnt that far-fetched.Why? First, from a macro level, in every technology wave, the market leader usually ends up amassing more power, wealth, and market capitalization than the leaders in the prior wave, often by a startling magnitude. The leaders in the last technology wave included Microsoft and Cisco, both of which peaked around $500 billion in market capitalization...Blodgets remark has stirred up controversy among tech and financial bloggers - see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here. You can check the latest GOOG quote here on Yahoo Finance.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.comAd: Singers Sing is a music news blog.Feed: Bloglines | Google | Netvibes | Other Readers

Why the Paulson Plan is DOA - BusinessWeek
Boston GlobeWhy the Paulson Plan is DOABusinessWeek - 1 hour agoLet?s see. In the middle of perhaps the greatest financial upheaval since the Great Depression, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson is proposing a change in financial regulations which basically amounts to a big wink to Wall Street.News Analysis In Treasury Plan, a Reluctant Eye Over Wall Street New York TimesKeeping US Financial Markets Competitve ForbesFOXBusiness - Bloomberg - Reuters - Chicago Tribuneall 916 news articles

Greenspan Sees Recession Risk
The BBC reports that former Fed chairman Alan Greenspan - who blasted Bush in his book - has warned that US economic growth has stalled and a quick recovery is not likely.As of right now US economic growth is at zero, he said, adding the longer it stayed this way the greater the risk of a deep recession.Wall Street giants Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch have both forecast that the US economy will contract in 2008.The US Federal Reserve has said 2008 growth will be between 1.3% and 2%.The forecast, made last week, was half a percent lower than the Feds previous estimation.The gloomy outlook was blamed on falling house prices, reduced bank lending, turmoil in the financial markets and higher oil prices.If the gloomy outlook isnt enough Greenspan also thinks oil will keep rising and that the housing mark will provide more concern before it gets better.Mr Greenspan also predicted that booming oil prices, which reached a record of more than $101 last week would keep rising and that the US housing market would see more misery before the tide turned.Greenspan isnt alone. Just yesterday there were reports that more analysts have jumped on the recession is likely bandwagon. If we do dip into an actual recession how long will we stay there? Thats the next question that needs answering.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.com

Gold Passes $1,000 Mark
Gold traded at a record $1,000 an ounce for the first time today. The news coincides will the recession concerns, the weak dollar and the high price of oil. The BBC reports that since the beginning of 2008 gold has jump 20%. Gold also climbed 32% last year.Since the beginning of the year the value of gold has increased by about 20%, after it rose 32% in 2007.Gold eventually settled for the day at $993.80, up $13.30 an ounce.Analysts say gold will stay high as long as dollar and growth fears remain.Every bit of bad US economic data boosts gold in two ways, said Fortis Bank.First because it reinforces the return of its role as a safe-haven asset, and second because the dollar falls on expectations of further Federal Reserve rate cuts.The price of gold story made all the major newspapers and wire services: Reuters, Guardian, The Independent, Forbes, National Post, USA Today, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, Telegraph.co.uk, Bloomberg and New York Times to name a few.A 52% climb in just twelve months might mean gold has climbed too quickly notes USA Today columnist John Waggoner here.If youre hankering to buy gold, you may get a chance to buy it more cheaply in the next month or so. Gold bullion has soared 52% over the past 12 months and 19% this year ? and it may have gotten ahead of itself. But if you want to invest for the long run in gold ? which can have a role in a diversified portfolio ? you have three good options: gold bullion coins, gold exchange-traded funds and gold mutual funds.Then again, Waggoners column also mentions that James DiGeorgia - editor of the Gold and Energy Advisor website - says gold could climb to $2,500 an ounce.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.com

Oil Hits $89 a Barrel
Those forecasts for oil to hit $100 a barrel arent sounding very funny anymore. Oil closed voer $89 a barrel today because of concerns in the Middle East. Turkey has approved the entry of its troops into Iraq which greatly escalate problems in what is already a troubled region. CNN reports that gas prices are just starting to feel the impact from the soaring oil prices. The AAA has gas prices up 4 cents already for the week.Earlier in the day, crude prices scrambled to an all-time trading high of $89.55 a barrel.Prices at the pump have been slow to respond to rising crude prices recently, but that may be changing. On Thursday, gas prices gained nearly 2 cents to a national average of $2.79 a gallon for regular-grade gasoline, according to AAA. They are up 4 cents since Monday.Prices at the pump have been slow to respond to rising crude prices recently, but that may be changing. On Thursday, gas prices gained nearly 2 cents to a national average of $2.79 a gallon for regular-grade gasoline, according to AAA. They are up 4 cents since Monday.Theres almost an inevitability here now that we are going to get to $100 a barrel, said John Kilduff, an energy analyst at Man Financial in New York.Helping to lift crude prices higher was a decline in the dollar, which fell to an all-time low versus the euro and also dipped versus the yenOil closed at $89.47 a barrel. You can track energy prices here on Bloomberg.com. This graph shows how rapidly oil prices have been climbing in 2007.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.com

Gold Soars to 27-Year High
Gold prices are climbing as the dollar falls. The Financial Times reports that Gold prices climbed to $752.80 an ounce - the highest price for gold since January 1980.The dollar hit a record low against major currencies and gold reached a 27-year high on Friday as investors ignored data suggesting that inflation moderated last month.Analysts said the prospect of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and stronger growth outside the US was weighing on the dollar and boosting commodities.The Feds rate cuts have a specific driver - growth risks for the US economy, said Naomi Fink, senior currency strategist at BNP Paribas.A USA Today article about todays new gold record has a chart that shows how investors have been seeking shelter in gold over the past two months.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.comVisit ShoppersShop.coms Halloween Shopping Website to find costumes, coupons and resources.

SEC: Countrywide execs to get - CNN International
EarthtimesSEC: Countrywide execs to getCNN International - 2 hours agoNEW YORK CNN -- The two top executives at struggling Countrywide Financial Corp., the nation's largest mortgage lender, are slated to receive a combined $19 million in payouts, a regulatory filing shows.Countrywide CEO to get $10 milion on way out BloggingStocksCountrywide execs to get millions United Press InternationalThe Associated Press - Bloomberg - CNNMoney.com - Reutersall 370 news articles