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AP
Wall Street Rises in Early Trading
Tuesday February 19, 9:49 am ET
By Madlen Read, AP Business Writer
Stocks Rally in Early Trading; Wal-Mart Posts Profit Rise, but Banks See More Credit Problems


NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks rallied in early trading Tuesday as investors found some relief in an earnings report from Wal-Mart Stores Inc., which saw improvement in sales in the United States and abroad


Investors were pleased about Wal-Mart's report because it was a sign that consumers might not be as hesitant to spend as the market has feared. Still, the world's largest retailer says the uncertain economy will be a critical factor going forward.

Consumer spending, a key driver of economic growth, has been shaky in recent months as Americans struggle with falling home prices, rising food and energy costs and a volatile stock market.

In early trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 122.36, or 0.99 percent, to 12,470.57, following the three-day weekend. U.S. markets were closed Monday for the Presidents Day holiday.

Broader stock indicators also advanced. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 14.53, or 1.08 percent, to 13,364.52, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 23.59, or 1.02 percent, to 2,345.39.

Walt Disney to open 135 stores in India

New Delhi, Feb 19: The Walt Disney Company, consumer product retailing arm of global animation giant, will soon add 135 new stores to its existing 15 in India over the next four years to strengthen its foothold in the rapidly growing market here.

"India is a high priority market for us. We will open 150 stores for our consumer products across the country by 2011," Disney Consumer Products Regional Director (ASEAN) Roshini Bakshi told reporters on the sidelines of the "Technopak Retail Summit" here.

The company, which currently operates 15 stores in the country, would open the outlets in franchisee model.

She said the company would operate the future stores under a license agreement with 'Devyani International', which runs the company's present 15 stores.

"The stores will be set up under franchisee models and we are looking at tier I, II and III cities," she said.

The sizes of the outlets would vary from 500 sq ft to 1,500 sq ft area, which would sell stationary goods, party products, school and office items, gifts and soft toys.

On the company's expected sales, she said, "Last two years, we grew over 100 per cent. In the next five years, we expect a high two-digit growth figure in the country."

It also have about 100 partners in India, like Cadbury's, Narolac, Weekenders, Pantaloons, Big Bazaar, through which the company sells its products. The company has also set up about 45 Disney Corners in the outlets of its partners.

Bureau Report

Realty sector offers top raises: Hewitt survey
Abhishek Gupta
Tuesday, February 19, 2008 (New Delhi) Just a couple of years ago everyone wanted to be an IT professional because that is where you got the highest pay packets. But now the tables have turned as Hewitt's latest salary survey shows engineers in hard hats are riding the infrastructure boom and taking home the highest salaries.

The prices of the high rise buildings have shot up and so have salaries of people who work for real estate companies.

Of course, as infrastructure and engineering companies grow explosively, the competition for good professionals have pushed salaries sky high, says the annual salary survey by Hewitt Associates.

The pay structure in the real estate and infrastructure sectors grew 25.2 per cent replacing insurance at the top and salaries in the Oil and Energy sector in second place grew by 19 per cent. Across all industries average salaries grew 15 per cent.

The growth in salary in ITeS companies impacted by a strong rupee have slipped to the bottom five and IT sector is at number eight with a increase of 15.4 per cent.

"One of the reasons for such a high rise in real estate salary is because of the number of companies that have opened in India," stated Sandeep Chaudhary, Business leader, Hewitt.

Hewitt attributes the rising rupee and increasing maturity of the IT industry as the main reasons for the slip. The survey also predicts that this astronomical increase in real estate even continue in 2008 and IT will continue to slip further.

However, rising employee costs are not the only concern for the industry, the attrition rate at 22 per cent is also scary and sectors like insurance, ITES and hospitality are the worst affected with attrition as high as 35 per cent for insurance.

Though the survey clearly points that the main reason for attrition is a higher compensation in a different organization but companies are thinking out of the box to retain them.

The fast growing salaries and the high mobility of employees across companies could be a trouble for labour intensive sectors like finance and ITES because cost escalation could ultimately make them uncompetitive.

AP
Stocks End Mixed Amid Inflation Fears
Tuesday February 19, 6:00 pm ET
By Madlen Read, AP Business Writer
Wall Street Pares Gains As Oil Surges, Banks See More Credit Problems


NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street gave up a big early advance and closed mixed Tuesday after oil prices closed above $100 for the first time and stoked fears that inflation will stymie an already troubled economy.



Soaring oil prices could bring more problems for consumers, having already made many Americans shy about spending in recent months. Consumer spending, a key driver of U.S. economic growth, has also been shaken by falling home prices and the volatile stock market.

The market was also concerned that rising inflation might make the Federal Reserve reconsider its bias toward lowering interest rates to help the economy. The central bank, which next meets March 18, last month slashed rates by 1.25 percent.

"I think there are still a lot of worries in the market that we have this stagnant growth in the economy and higher prices," said Richard Sparks, senior equities analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research in Cincinnati.

Investors likely were positioning themselves ahead of a half-dozen economic reports that could give the market further direction. Paramount will be Wednesday's Labor Department report on consumer prices for January, which is a closely watched gauge for inflation. The Fed will also release minutes from its last meeting.

Meanwhile, new concerns that banks are facing more financial problems this year dragged the sector sharply lower -- and reminded investors that the credit crisis appears far from a resolution.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 10.99, or 0.09 percent, to 12,337.22 after being up more than 150 points earlier in the session.

Broader indexes also moved lower. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 1.21, or 0.09 percent, to 1,348.78; and the Nasdaq composite fell 15.60, or 0.67, 2,306.20.

But advancing issues were ahead of decliners on the New York Stock Exchange by about 9 to 7, while on the Nasdaq Stock Market, decliners had a modest lead. Consolidated volume on the NYSE came to about 3.50 billion shares, compared to 3.36 billion on Friday.

Government bonds dipped as stocks gained. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, jumped to 3.87 percent from 3.77 percent late Friday. It rose to 3.90 percent in after-hours trading.

The dollar was mixed against most major currencies.

Light, sweet crude for March delivery rose $4.51 to settle at a record $100.01 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier rising to $100.10, a new trading record. It was the first time since Jan. 3 that oil had been above $100.

Other commodities, including gold and soybeans, rose as well. At the pump, gas prices rose further above $3 a gallon.

Beyond inflation, investors also continued to worry about the financial sector. So far, global banks have written down more than $150 billion from bad bets on mortgage-backed securities -- and more losses are expected to the first quarter.

British bank Barclays Group PLC revealed credit-related losses totaling $3.13 billion, up from a smaller write-down in November, while Credit Suisse, Switzerland's second-largest bank, said it has suspended "a handful" of traders in connection with the overvaluation of asset-backed securities by $2.85 billion.

Also, The Wall Street Journal reported that Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. could see big losses due to its significant investments in commercial real estate loans. Lehman fell $1.35, or 1.3 percent, to $53.42.

"Can these financial stocks get to the bottom of their questions of soundness in asset quality? We have to reach a tipping point here," said Richard Cripps, chief market strategist for Stifel Nicolaus. "That's the part that I think has to occur for this market to have a sustained advance."

There have been some signs that troubled financial institutions are finding ways to regain their footing, however.

Bond insurer Ambac Financial Group Inc. is discussing a plan to raise at least $2 billion in capital to maintain its superior credit rating, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The move would mirror a $3 billion cash-raising effort by rival bond insurer MBIA Inc., which said Tuesday that its former chairman and chief executive has returned to the lead the company.

Ambac fell 19 cents to $10.03, though, after a Goldman Sachs Group Inc. analyst cut his price target for the insurer to $7 from $10 and said the company will probably to need to raise about $3.5 billion to maintain its "AAA" rating. MBIA slipped 41 cents to $11.83.

In economic news, the National Association of Home Builders said its index measuring homebuilder confidence inched up in February. Wall Street remains wary about the prospects for the housing market, however.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 0.82, or 0.12 percent, to 702.34.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average gained 0.90 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 advanced 0.34 percent, Germany's DAX index added 0.50 percent, and France's CAC-40 increased 0.49 percent.

AP
Oil Jumps Above $100 on Refinery Outage
Tuesday February 19, 4:29 pm ET
By John Wilen, AP Business Writer
Oil Jumps Back Above $100 on a Texas Refinery Outage and Possible OPEC Production Cut


NEW YORK (AP) -- Oil futures shot higher Tuesday, closing above $100 for the first time as investors bet that crude prices will keep climbing despite evidence of plentiful supplies and falling demand. At the pump, gas prices rose further above $3 a gallon

There was no single driver behind oil's sharp price jump; investors seized on an explosion at a 67,000 barrel per day refinery in Texas, the falling dollar, the possibility that OPEC may cut production next month, the threat of new violence in Nigeria and continuing tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela.

The fact that there was no overriding reason for such a price spike could be a bad omen for consumers already bearing the burdens of high heating costs and falling real estate values. Many recent forecasts have said oil demand growth this year will be less than initially expected, yet prices continue to rise. That suggests they may continue rising as the weakening dollar attracts new investors to the futures market.

And rising oil prices mean higher gas prices.

"As the economy weakens, it's going to be met with $3.50 and $3.60 gasoline," said James Cordier, founder of OptionSellers.com, a Tampa, Fla., trading firm. "And that really spells trouble for the consumer."

Light, sweet crude for March delivery rose $4.51 to settle at a record $100.01 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier rising to $100.10, a new trading record. It was the first time since Jan. 3 that oil had been above $100.

Oil prices are still within the range of inflation-adjusted highs set in early 1980. Depending on how the adjustment is calculated, $38 a barrel then would be worth $96 to $103 or more today.

Crude futures offer a hedge against a falling dollar, and oil futures bought and sold in dollars are more attractive to foreign investors when the greenback is falling.

"I really think ... crude oil's going to soar through $100," Cordier said.

At the pump, meanwhile, gas prices jumped 1.8 cents to a national average price of $3.032 a gallon Tuesday, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. Retail prices, which typically lag the futures market, are following oil prices higher. The Energy Department and many analysts expect gas prices to peak this spring well above last May's record of $3.227 a gallon.

Gasoline and heating oil prices appeared to lead Tuesday's wide advance in energy prices due to the explosion Monday at Alon USA's Big Spring, Texas, refinery, which could be shuttered for two months.

"The refinery fire in Texas is making people a little concerned," said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research Inc. in Amherst, Mass.

March gasoline jumped 10.93 cents to settle at a record $2.6031 a gallon, and March heating oil rose 11.45 cents to settle at $2.7614 a gallon, also a record.

A threat by a rebel group in Nigeria to escalate attacks on the nation's crude oil infrastructure helped boost oil prices. The rebels were acting in response to rumors that the government had killed a captured leader, whom authorities later said was safe and well. Militant attacks have cut about 20 percent of Nigeria's crude output in recent years.

For the moment, investors appear to have put aside concerns about the economy that have sent oil prices down into the mid-$80 range twice in the last month. Traders are instead focused on the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which will meet early next month to map out production plans, and Venezuela, where President Hugo Chavez made conflicting statements this weekend about the country's legal dispute with Exxon Mobil Corp.

OPEC could move to cut production in the second quarter, typically a period of low demand, though many analysts feel that's unlikely. In Venezuela, Chavez said he was not serious about an earlier threat to cut oil sales to the U.S., but also threatened to sue Exxon Mobil. The world's largest oil company is fighting Venezuela's nationalization of an oil project, and recently convinced several courts to freeze $12 billion in Venezuelan oil assets.

Other energy futures also rose Tuesday. March natural gas jumped 31.7 cents to settle at $8.977 per 1,000 cubic feet. Analysts said prices were supported by forecasts for cooler weather, but that futures were also following oil prices higher.

In London, Brent crude for April delivery rose $3.65 to settle at $98.56 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

AP Business Writers George Jahn in Vienna and Thomas Hogue in Bangkok contributed to this report.

Tuesday February 19, 10:29 PM Microsoft to authorize ***** proxy battle - NYT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp will authorize a proxy battle for ***** Inc this week to convince the Web company's shareholders to agree on a takeover deal that the ***** board so far has rejected, the New York Times' Dealbook blog said on Tuesday.

Quoting people briefed on the matter, the Times Web site said that Microsoft, which has been expected to raise its cash-and-stock bid originally worth $44.6 billion, would seek to nominate a slate of directors by March 13, if *****'s board did not enter talks.

Reuters
Oil slips from record over $100
Tuesday February 19, 9:21 pm ET


SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil slipped on Wednesday after surging nearly 5 percent to a record above $100 a barrel a day ago amid an influx of fresh investor capital into the commodities sector and concerns that OPEC will not hike output next month.

U.S crude slid 61 cents to $99.40 a barrel by 0142 GMT (8:42 p.m. EST) after investors paused for thought following Tuesday's $4.51 a barrel surge. The contract reached a new peak of $100.10 a day ago, one cent beyond its previous January 3 high.

London Brent crude fell 68 cents to $97.88 a barrel.

"It's just a bit of a correction. The market is settling down after such a massive move last night," said Peter McGuire, managing director of Commodity Warrants Australia.

Oil prices hit the triple digits on Tuesday after OPEC sources said a decision to cut oil output when the cartel meets on March 5 was unlikely, with prices rising to records and uncertainty about supply from Venezuela and Nigeria.

News that Nigerian oil delta rebel leader Henry Okah had died -- later debunked by a government spokesman -- a rush of speculative investment in oil and other commodities, as well as U.S. refinery problems and the ongoing row between Venezuela and Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM - News) helped lift prices.

The gains came in tandem with fresh record highs for platinum an

Japan's Nikkei falls, oil shares up on crude surge
Tue Feb 19, 2008 9:11pm EST

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Market News
Oil slips from record over $100 |
Japan's Nikkei slips as oil shares up on crude price
Dollar steady as oil hits record

TOKYO, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average fell 0.8 percent on Wednesday, led down by industrial robot maker Fanuc Ltd (6954.T: Quote, Profile, Research) and tracking losses on Wall Street.

Oil stocks such as Inpex Holdings Inc (1605.T: Quote, Profile, Research), Japan's largest oil exploration company, rose after crude prices surged to a record high.

The benchmark Nikkei .N225 ended the morning session down 0.8 percent at 13,651.64 and the broader TOPIX index was down 0.8 percent at 1,333.95. (Reporting by Taiga Uranaka)

Asian Markets
Nikkei slips 0.8 pct as oil rise stirs econ fears 10:18pm EST
TOKYO, Feb 20 (Reuters) - The Nikkei share average fell 0.8 percent on Wednesday as high oil prices fueled concern over the world's third-largest oil consuming economy, while Konica Minolta Holdings plunged on a brokerage downgrade. Full Article


N225
13,542.03 -215.88 -1.57%
HSI
23,877.20 -245.97 -1.02%
STI
3,344.53 +0.00 +0.00%

Hong Kong Market Report
HK Hot Stocks: Oil and gold plays leap, Lenovo up
HK shares gain as resource plays track record oil
HK stocks seen declining but oil plays may gain
Bank of China lifts HK shares, resource plays rise
HK shares gain on Bank of China subprime assurances
HK shares up on Bank of China, HSBC, but volume thin
Asia/Pacific
Data as of 19 Feb 2008. All quotes delayed at least 15 minutes.
Symb Index Mkt Report Time Last Chg Chg %
.N225 Nikkei Stock Average 225 View Report 10:46pm EST 13,542.03 -215.88 -1.57%
.HSI Hang Seng Index View Report 10:51pm EST 23,877.20 -245.97 -1.02%
.AORD ASX All Ordinaries Index 11:05pm EST 5,649.20 -39.40 -0.69%
.KS11 KOSPI Index 11:04pm EST 1,695.11 -25.41 -1.48%
.KLSE KLSE Composite Index 10:50pm EST 1,411.01 -14.48 -1.02%
8 Jan 2008 3,344.53 +0.00 +0.00%
.SETI SET Composite Index 11:05pm EST 832.22 -3.40 -0.41%
.JKSE Jakarta Composite 11:05pm EST 2,697.94 -13.93 -0.51%
.PSI PSE Composite Index 11:05pm EST 3,181.05 -9.62 -0.30%
.KSE Karachi SE 100 Index 11:05pm EST 14,797.18 -0.29 -0.00%
.SSEC Shanghai Composite Index 10:30pm EST 4,611.54 -52.75 -1.13%

market seems not to consolidate. may slip any time in a day