Archive for October, 2008

Wells bids $15 billion for Wachovia; scuffles with Citi

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wells Fargo & Co agreed to buy Wachovia Corp for about $15 billion, upstaging a government-backed Citigroup Inc bid for Wachovia's banking assets with a deal that would catapult it into the top ranks of national consumer banking.

Palin / Reagan / Medicare Mashup

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

Igor Volsky's got the video mash-up of Sarah Palin sampling Ronald Reagan's dire 1961 prediction that Medicare would put us on the road to serfdom, followed by Reagan discussing the issue: It's worth being reminded now and again that conservatives really believed this stuff. That Medicare would lead to the eradication ...

SocGen solid, ready to look at acquisitions: CEO

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

PARIS (Reuters) - French bank Societe Generale , hit by a massive rogue trading scandal this year, is solid and is ready to look at acquisitions, chief executive Frederic Oudea told Le Parisien newspaper.

Lehman creditors seek to probe firm: report

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Unsecured creditors of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc asked a court overseeing Lehman's bankruptcy proceedings for permission to investigate how the firm ran out of money, The Wall Street Journal reported on its website on Friday.

Breakthrough

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

There's long been some sentiment that if Barack Obama wins the election it will not merely reflect improvements in the race/racism situation in the United States, but also possibly cause further improvements. I've always been a bit skeptical of that, but watching the recent controversy over Gwen Ifill's book, the ...

Belgium, Luxembourg scramble to sell Fortis

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

BRUSSELS/LUXEMBOURG (Reuters) - Belgium and Luxembourg scrambled on Saturday to find a buyer for the remains of troubled financial group Fortis and mulled a further nationalization after the Netherlands took over its Dutch units.

Dow Jones FALLS as Bailout Passes

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

Just as the last majority vote was cast to necessitate the passage of the bailout, and as CSPAN anchors were saying the Dow was on the rise, the Dow started (despite the anchor's incorrect and embarassing words) falling! ?And fall it did.But why?UPDATE: ?(I learned a new concept!)Buy the rumor, ...

UBS management will earn less after crisis: report

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

ZURICH (Reuters) - UBS AG will not introduce a cap on salaries, but management will earn less that before the credit crisis, the Swiss bank's chairman said in an interview published on Saturday.

Hypo Real fights for life after rescue collapses

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Property lender Hypo Real Estate (HRE) fought for its life on Saturday after German banks and insurers pulled out of a state-led 35 billion euro ($48.5 billion) rescue program stitched together only days ago.

Palin on Freedom of the Press

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

I guess any time she speaks sentences that were clearly intended to be in the English language she “beats expectations” and Rich Lowry sees starbursts so I suppose we should count this as another triumph: As we send our young men and women overseas in a war zone to fight for ...