Wall St set to slide at open on jobs data (Reuters)

September 5th, 2008

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, June 24, 2008. (Brendan McDermid/Reuters)Reuters - Stocks headed for a lower open on
Friday after a government report showed the U.S. labor market
deteriorated further in August, pushing the unemployment rate
to its highest in more than 4-1/2 years.

Original post by Reuters

Jobless rate at 4-1/2 year high (Reuters)

September 5th, 2008

The U.S. unemployment rate unexpectedly shot up to 6.1 percent in August, its highest in more than 4-1/2 years, as employers cut payrolls for an eighth straight month and labor markets showed signs of accelerating decline. (Graphic/Reuters)Reuters - The U.S. unemployment rate
unexpectedly shot up to 6.1 percent in August, the highest in
over 4-1/2 years, as employers cut payrolls for an eighth
straight month and a decline in labor markets accelerated.

Original post by Reuters

Bank of America says ready to settle on auction rates (Reuters)

September 5th, 2008

Reuters - Bank of America Corp , said it
is ready to settle federal and state probes into the marketing
of auction-rate securities, joining eight other companies that
reached agreements.

Original post by Reuters

Pimco names El-Erian CEO; Thompson to retire (Reuters)

September 5th, 2008

Mohamed A. El-Erian in an undated photo. Pimco named El-Erian as its chief executive to replace Bill Thompson, who will retire at the end of the year. El-Erian, currently the co-CEO, joined Pimco in January from Harvard University, where he was managing a $34.9 billion endowment. (Justin Ide/Harvard News/Reuters)Reuters - Pacific Investment Management Co, the
world’s biggest manager of bond funds, named Mohamed El-Erian
as its sole chief executive after co-CEO Bill Thompson retires
at the end of the year.

Original post by Reuters

Columbia Bancorp to close mortgage business, cut jobs (Reuters)

September 5th, 2008

Reuters - Columbia Bancorp , the holding company
for Columbia River Bank, said it plans to close its mortgage
banking division, affecting about 39 jobs, as it strives to cut
costs amid a difficult mortgage market.

Original post by Reuters

Goldman cuts Merrill to sell, sees fresh writedowns (Reuters)

September 5th, 2008

A Merrill Lynch sign is seen in Toronto, April 29, 2008. (Mark Blinch/Reuters)Reuters - Merrill Lynch & Co , battered by more
than $40 billion of write-downs tied largely to mortgages, will
likely incur fresh write-downs, in addition to those assumed
after its recent sale of repackaged debt to Lone Star Funds,
said an analyst at Goldman Sachs, who cut the stock to a
“sell.”

Original post by Reuters

Pimco appoints El-Erian as CEO (Reuters)

September 5th, 2008

Reuters - Pacific Investment Management Co, the manager
of the world’s biggest bond fund, named Mohamed El-Erian as its
chief executive to replace Bill Thompson, who will retire at
the end of the year.

Original post by Reuters

Dell plans to sell computer factories: report (Reuters)

September 4th, 2008

A Dell laptop computer is seen in New York August 26, 2008. (Brendan McDermid/Reuters)Reuters - Dell Inc is trying to sell computer
factories around the world in efforts to cut cost and improve
profitability, the Wall Street Journal said.

Original post by Reuters

Microsoft kicks off $300 million Windows marketing push (Reuters)

September 4th, 2008

Windows Vista logo decorates downtown Bucharest January 31, 2007. (Mihai Barbu/Reuters)Reuters - Microsoft Corp kicked off a
$300 million marketing campaign on Thursday, aimed at improving
the image of its Windows Vista operating system and strike back
at Apple Inc’s “Mac vs. PC” ads.

Original post by Reuters

Lone Star may sue S.Korea govt on KEB deal: paper (Reuters)

September 4th, 2008

A man walks next to the headquarters of the Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) in Seoul March 5, 2008. (Jo Yong-Hak/Reuters)Reuters - U.S. private equity house Lone Star is
seriously considering suing the South Korean government if it
delays approval beyond September of the firm’s $6.3 billion
sale of shares in a local bank, a newspaper reported on Friday.

Original post by Reuters