Money & Markets – Week of 7.15.12

Highway Bill Saves GE $2.5 Billion In Pension Contributions
Pensions and Investments 20 July 2012
General Electric Co., Stamford, Conn., will reduce its pension contributions by a total of $2.5 billion in 2012 and 2013. . . .

Italy’s Economic Crisis Risks Sparking ‘Civil War’ In Sicily
The Telegraph 20 July 2012
The misery caused by Italy’s financial crisis could spark a “civil war” in the southern island of Sicily. . . .

WikiLeaks Wins Case Against VISA
RT 12 July 2012
The Reykjavík District Court has ruled that Valitor, formerly known as VISA Iceland, violated contract laws. . . .

Some Firms Opt To Bring Manufacturing Back To U.S.
The Wall Street Journal 18 July 2012
About 14% of U.S. companies surveyed by a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor. . . .

Fixes Are Sought In Rate Scandal
The Wall Street Journal 19 July 2012
Leading central bankers are banding together to come up with solutions to the Libor interest rate-rigging scandal. . . .

Prosecutors Investigate Vatican Bank Mafia Link
The Telegraph 10 June 2012
Anti Mafia prosecutors have asked the secretive Vatican Bank to disclose details of an account. . . .

Central Bankers Eyeing Whether Libor Needs Scrapping
Yahoo Finance 19 July 2012
Central bankers and regulators will hold talks in September on whether the troubled global Libor interest rate can be reformed. . . .


Investment Banks Seek Business In Patent Deals As M&A Work Slows

Bloomberg 25 June 2012
Amid the death of global mergers and acquisitions, a handful of investment banks are finding business advising companies on patent sales. . . .

State Legislators Want A Say In CalPERS’ Investments; CIO Says No
Pensions and Investments 17 July 2012
California state legislators want a formalized process to have more say in CalPERS’ investment decisions. . . .

Goldman Sachs And The $580 Million Black Hole
The Economic Times 15 July 2012
The business deal from hell began to crumble even before the Champagne corks were popped. . . .

Does Central-Bank Gold-Buying Signal The Top Is Near?
Financial Sense 16 July 2012
“The only thing that scares me is that central banks are buying a lot of gold; they’re historically contrary indicators. . . .”

Phoenix to Invest $50 million in Local Banks
The Republic Azcentral.com 10 July 2012
Phoenix is taking the concept of “buy local” to the next level . . . .

Guess Who Gets A Huge Check From JPMorgan Chase Every Year?
Huffington Post 13 July 2012
Ann Darby, Wife Of New York Fed President, Gets $190,000 A Year From JPMorgan Chase . . . .

JPMorgan Profit Falls on $4.4 Billion Trading Loss
News Daily 13 July 2012
JPMorgan Chase & Co, the biggest U.S. bank, said it had generated $4.4 billion of credit trading losses . . . .

JPMorgan Says Bad Trade Has Ballooned to $5.8B
Yahoo Finance 13 July 2012
JPMorgan Chase said Friday that a bad trade had cost the bank $5.8 billion this year . . . .

Buffett Says Muni Bankruptcies Set to Climb as Stigma Lifts
Bloomberg 13 July 2012
Warren Buffett, the billionaire chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK/A), said . . . .

Family Blames JP Morgan Chase in The Death of Grand Prairie Minister Also Named Are LPS and EMC Mortgage
Foreclosure Nation 15 July 2012
JP Morgan Chase killed a retired minister by giving him a stress-induced heart attack . . . .