Interesting Things For you Late @ Night 2: July 2008

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Thursday, July 31, 2008

Bloomberg.com: Worldwide

July 31 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. economy shrank at the end of 2007 and grew less than forecast in this year's second quarter, signaling that the country is in worse shape than investors had anticipated.

``We're in a recession,'' Allen Sinai, chief economist at Decision Economics Inc. in New York, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. ``It's going to widen, it's going to deepen.''

The economy may weaken further as the temporary boost from tax rebates, which aided a pick-up in gross domestic product last quarter from the previous three months, fades. Stocks and the dollar dropped, Treasuries rallied, and traders reduced bets that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this year.

``This confirms the general picture of weakness, but it is surprising that GDP declined,'' said Martin Feldstein, who headed the National Bureau of Economic Research until June and serves on the group's recession-dating panel. He added that today's figures underscored his estimate that a downturn began in December or January. The last time the economy contracted was in 2001.

Gross domestic product increased at a 1.9 percent annualized rate, the Commerce Department said in Washington, compared with the median projection of 2.3 percent in a Bloomberg News survey. The Labor Department said separately that more Americans filed claims for unemployment insurance last week than at any time in more than five years.

Financial Markets

Yields on benchmark 10-year Treasuries dropped to 3.97 percent at 10:47 a.m. in New York, from 4.05 percent late yesterday. The Standard & Poor's 500 Stock Index declined 0.1 percent to 1,283.1. The dollar fell 0.4 percent to $1.5632 per euro.

``As we look forward, we realize we have to grow out of a deeper hole than we thought,'' said Jack Ablin, who helps manage $55 billion as chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank in Chicago. ``We're going to operate at a kind of lackluster growth rate for many quarters to come.''

The smallest trade deficit in seven years, helped by the weakening U.S. dollar, prevented the economy from shrinking again last quarter. The trade gap narrowed to a $395.2 billion annual pace, adding 2.4 percentage points to growth, the most since 1980. Excluding trade, the economy would have contracted at a 0.5 percent pace, the second such decline in the last three quarters.

Exports may have also spurred a gain in the National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago's business activity index. The group said today its measure increased to 50.8 this month from 49.6 in June. Fifty is the dividing line between growth and contraction.

2009 Recovery

``Exports are making the difference between a near recession, or mild recession, and a deep recession,'' Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at Global Insight Inc., a Lexington, Massachusetts, forecasting firm, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. ``We don't really see a recovery until some time in the spring or summer'' of 2009 for the economy, he said.

Initial claims for unemployment insurance jumped by 44,000 to 448,000, the Labor Department said today. The department tomorrow may say payrolls declined by 75,000 in July, bringing total job losses so far this year to over 500,000.

Annual benchmark revisions showed consumer spending slowed more than previously estimated and the housing slump worsened. The economy shrank 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter last year, compared with a previously reported 0.6 percent gain.

First-quarter figures were also revised down to show a 0.9 pace of growth compared with a prior estimate of 1 percent.

Economists' Forecasts

The median forecast of economists for the second quarter GDP figures was based on 79 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey. Today's report is the first for the period and will be revised in August and September as more information becomes available.

Declines in growth in the revisions are reinforcing the recession signals sent by the loss of jobs so far this year. Still, a downturn is unlikely to be officially declared for months to come.

The NBER, the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based arbiter of economic cycles, defines a recession as a ``significant'' decrease in activity over a sustained period of time. The declines would be visible in GDP, payrolls, production, sales and incomes. The NBER usually declares a recession six to 18 months after it begins.

Bush would become the first president since Richard Nixon to have two recessions while in office, after the downturn from March to November of 2001.

The housing slump continued to hurt the economy, even as the decline moderated. Residential construction dropped at a 15.6 percent annual pace after dropping 25.1 percent in the first three months of the year. The decline detracted 0.6 percentage point from growth, the smallest reduction in more than two years.

Consumer Spending

Consumer spending last quarter grew at a 1.5 percent pace, less than anticipated, compared with a 0.9 percent gain in the January-to-March period that was the smallest in 13 years.

Most economists are forecasting the lift from the rebates will fade in the second half of the year. Retail sales rose 0.1 percent in June, less than forecast, indicating consumers may already have started to retrench at the end of the quarter.

Shoppers are hunting for bargains to stretch the buying power of the stimulus checks. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the largest retailer, said same-store sales in June rose 5.8 percent, the biggest increase in four years, as costumers spent the rebate money on discounted gasoline and food.

`Struggling' Americans

``At times like now, when the average American is struggling with the cost of everyday needs, price matters,'' Eduardo Castro- Wright, chief executive officer of Wal-Mart's U.S. stores division, told shareholders last month.

The price index in today's report rose at an annual rate of 1.1 percent, the smallest increase since 1998 and down from 2.6 percent in the first quarter.

Investors are betting the Fed will keep the benchmark rate unchanged at 2 percent at its Aug. 5 meeting, according to federal funds futures contracts. Odds of an increase by year-end fell to about 60 percent today from 69 percent yesterday, futures prices showed.

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Bloomberg.com: U.S.

July 31 (Bloomberg) -- Exxon Mobil Corp., the world's biggest oil company, posted a smaller increase in second-quarter profit than analysts estimated after production slid the most in at least a decade, sending its shares lower.

Oil and gas output tumbled 7.8 percent after Venezuela seized assets, Nigerian workers went on strike and governments from Angola to Russia kept more crude under contracts that give them a bigger share when prices rise. Crude climbed above $140 a barrel for the first time, allowing Exxon Mobil to achieve the highest profit ever for a U.S. company without one-time gains.

Net income rose to $11.7 billion, or $2.22 a share, from $10.3 billion, or $1.83, a year earlier, the Irving, Texas-based company said today in a statement. Excluding costs related to the Valdez oil-spill lawsuit, per-share profit was 26 cents below the average of 12 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

``They are not growing,'' said Philip Weiss, an analyst at Argus Research in New York who rates Exxon Mobil shares ``buy'' and owns none. ``Production is becoming more and more of a concern. For these guys, access to reserves is a very big issue.''

Chief Executive Officer Rex Tillerson, 56, is spending $52 million a day to search for new fields after reserves fell in 2007 by the most in at least a decade. Exxon Mobil plans to start 12 projects this year that will pump the equivalent of 411,000 barrels of crude a day, more than the daily output of Prudhoe Bay, the largest U.S. oil field.

Refining Profit Falls

Record energy prices inflated costs for Exxon Mobil plants that process crude and natural gas into fuels and chemicals. Profits from refining and chemicals fell 54 percent and 32 percent, respectively. U.S. gasoline futures rose at less than half the pace of crude during the quarter.

Exxon Mobil fell $2.68, or 3.2 percent, to $81.70 at 12:02 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shortfall in earnings per share relative to analyst estimates was the company's biggest in at least three years. The stock has dropped 13 percent this year.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe's largest oil producer, today reported a 33 percent gain in second-quarter profit to $11.6 billion. London-based BP Plc said earlier this week that its net income climbed 28 percent to $9.47 billion. Shell's output fell 1.6 percent, and BP's was little changed from a year earlier.

Chevron Corp., the second-biggest U.S. oil company, and France's Total SA are scheduled to report earnings tomorrow. ConocoPhillips, the third-largest U.S. petroleum producer, said last week that its profit jumped to a record $5.44 billion.

Production Falls

Exxon Mobil pumped the equivalent of 3.8 million barrels of oil a day, its lowest average since the third quarter of 2005. Crude production declined in every region where the company has wells, and gas output fell everywhere except Russia, Europe and Africa. Production-sharing contracts with price triggers took away 160,000 barrels of daily oil equivalent, company spokesman Henry Hubble told investors on a conference call.

Profit from oil and gas sales climbed 68 percent to $10 billion.

``If oil prices are going up $20 and $30 a barrel a quarter like they have been, it hides a lot of flaws,'' said Brian Gibbons, an analyst at New York-based CreditSights Inc. ``The question on everyone's mind is, how do these guys expect to grow production given the restrictions on access to reserves?''

Tillerson, who succeeded Lee Raymond as CEO in January 2006, is facing increasing barriers to oil and gas exploration in Russia, Alaska and the South China Sea as governments limit access or raise the costs of tapping natural resources.

Price Impact

New York oil futures, which had never traded as high as $112 before the second quarter, surged to a record $143.67 in June. Each $1 gain in the price of oil boosts Exxon Mobil's net income by 11 cents a share, according to William Featherston, an analyst at UBS Securities LLC.

Natural gas rose even faster than oil in this year's first half, and the average second-quarter price jumped 50 percent to $11.47 per million British thermal units. Exxon Mobil's output is about 60 percent crude and 40 percent gas. Oil and gas sales account for more than 80 percent of profit.

Exxon said its second-quarter revenue jumped 40 percent to $138.1 billion. The company said it had $290 million in after- tax costs related to the June ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that reduced a punitive damage award for the 1989 Valdez spill from $2.5 billion.

Exxon Mobil generates about $27 of cash flow from each barrel of production, 21 percent higher than the industry average, Gibbons said. The company was the most efficient oil and gas producer among its peers, yielding almost $3 of cash flow for every $1 spent, he said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Joe Carroll in Houston at jcarroll8@bloomberg.net.

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Mortgage rates drop as commodities ease - Jul. 31, 2008

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Mortgage rates fell slightly this week according to a weekly report released Wednesday, as lower oil prices briefly ease fears of price inflation.

The Primary Mortgage Market Survey from mortgage finance company Freddie Mac said that rates of 30-year fixed-rate mortgages (FRMs) averaged 6.52% for the week ended July 31 with an average 0.7 point discount, down from an average 6.63% last week, and down from an average of 6.68% recorded during the same week last year.

The 15-year FRM averaged 6.07% this week with an average of 0.6 point, down from 6.18% last week, and down from 6.32% last year.

A point, or "discount point," can be purchased at the time of closing to decrease the mortgage rate. Each point costs 1% of the loan amount and each point that a borrower purchases lowers the the loan interest rate.

Five-year adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 6.07% this week, with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 6.16%. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 6.29%.

One-year ARMs averaged 5.27% this week with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it was 5.49%. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 5.59%.

"Mortgage rates moved lower this week as a drop in commodity prices eased market concerns over inflation pressures," said Freddie Mac chief economist Frank Nothaft in a statement.

The price of gasoline at the pump continued to fall below $4 a gallon as crude oil prices have fallen nearly $23 a barrel over the past several weeks from its peak of $147.27 on July 11.

"Yes, there is some influence in hope for less inflation pressure, but we'd need a more extended period of these softening prices" to see a significant decline, said Keith Gumbinger, vice president of HSHAssociates.com, an online publisher of consumer loan information.

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Jobless claims surge to 5-year high - Jul. 31, 2008

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Jobless claims rose to their highest level in five years last week, the latest evidence that Americans are still having a hard time finding a job.

The Department of Labor reported Thursday initial filings for state jobless benefits increased by a seasonally adjusted 44,000 to 448,000 in the week ended July 26.

Unemployment claims rose much more than had been expected. The consensus estimate of economists surveyed by Briefing.com was for claims to come in at 395,000.

Last week marked the highest total for weekly jobless claims since the week ending April 19, 2003. It was the highest week-to-week increase in jobless claims since the week ending September 10, 2005.

That rise sent the four-week moving average of new jobless claims up 11,000 to 393,000.

The weekly jobless claims report also showed continued unemployment insurance claims from those already receiving benefits rose in the week ended July 19 to 3.28 million, up 185,000 from the previous week.

The four-week moving average for continued claims rose by 42,750 to 3.17 million.

Not quite as bad as it seems

The rise in new unemployment claims was sharp, but this tends to be a choppy time for claims. On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, initial claims actually fell for the second straight week.

"It's summer, when initial claims are traditionally very volatile," said Adam York, an economist with Wachovia.

Furthermore, President Bush signed a bill last month that extends unemployment benefits to as much as 13 weeks for some. In an effort to notify hundreds of thousands of Americans about the extension, the Labor Department discovered many were eligible for initial unemployment claims - not just an extension of benefits.

The Labor Department said some of these people had intervening wages such as a temporary summer job that qualified them to reapply for jobless insurance benefits. As a result, the government said many valid claimants who did not previously know they were eligible applied for new benefits.

That makes the number a bit difficult to compare to previous weeks.

"Nevertheless, these numbers are clearly very weak," York added. "We're not in a situation that we can't dig ourselves out of, but we're not going to rebound very quickly either."

The latest claims reading comes on the heels of a report out Wednesday that showed the private sector unexpectedly added 9,000 jobs in July. The ADP employment report had been forecast to show a large decline.

Both the weekly jobless claims report and the ADP payrolls survey come ahead of the more closely watched employment report from the Labor Department, which is due out Friday. The report is expected to show that employers cut jobs for a seventh straight month. The unemployment rate is expected to rise to 5.6%.

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Altria profit edges estimates, cigarette volume down - Forbes.com

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Altria Group (nyse: MO - news - people ) Inc posted a second-quarter profit Thursday that slightly beat Wall Street estimates, helped by higher prices, but the number of cigarettes shipped by its Philip Morris USA unit fell more than some analysts expected.

The pace of the shipment decline also accelerated from the first quarter, the opposite of what rival Reynolds American (nyse: RAI - news - people ) Inc reported on Wednesday, and Altria's stock lost more than 5 percent.

"Price increases accelerated the volume decline seen in the first quarter," Gregg Warren, an analyst at Morningstar said.

Altria shares also may have been pressured because the House passed a bill that would give the Food and Drug Administration broad authority to regulate cigarettes and other forms of tobacco, Warren said.

But the White House said advisers would recommend the president veto the bill, and Philip Morris USA has actually supported the legislation.

The parent of Marlboro cigarette maker Philip Morris USA said profit from continuing operations was 45 cents a share in the second quarter, compared with 34 cents a share a year earlier.

Excluding one-time items, earnings were 46 cents a share, compared with the 45-cent average analyst estimate compiled by Reuters Estimates.

Altria spun off the Philip Morris International tobacco business at the end of March, so net income fell to $930 million, or 45 cents a share, from $2.22 billion, or $1.05 a share, a year earlier.

The company also stood by its full-year profit forecast, with price increases and lower expenses helping to boost earnings from continuing operations.

That forecast calls for earnings from continuing operations of $1.63 to $1.67 a share, while the average analyst estimate is $1.67 a share, according to Reuters Estimates.

Revenue rose 4 percent to $5.05 billion.

Revenue, excluding excise taxes, was $4.18 billion, compared with the average analyst estimate of $4.03 billion compiled by Reuters Estimates.

Philip Morris USA's cigarette market share rose to 51 percent from 50.5 percent a year earlier, with the top-selling Marlboro brand commanding 41.8 percent of the U.S. market, up from 41 percent a year earlier.

The company shipped 43.6 billion cigarettes in the quarter, down 4.5 percent from a year earlier. Shipment volume fell only 1.2 percent in the first quarter.

That decline was steeper than some analysts had expected.

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Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Capcom: Monster Hunter Freedom 2G Boosts Capcom

Thanks largely to strong sales of Monster Hunter Freedom 2G on the PSP, Capcom said it had its best fiscal first quarter since it began reporting quarterly.

The company saw 16,352 million yen ($153.2 million) in net sales for its fiscal first quarter, an increase of 14.5 percent over the same period last year. The company's overall revenues took a 43.5 percent jump to 2,978 yen ($27.6 million), and profits were up 60.1% to 4,024 million yen ($37.2 million).

Monster Hunter Freedom 2G sales have been "skyrocketing," according to Capcom, since its March 27, 2008 release. The company also said the game broke Japanese PSP sales records, with 2 million units sold.

On the downside, the company's arcade business is struggling, though the impact to Capcom is mitigated by its home software performance.

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Nintendo Q109 Results: The GBA And GameCube...Still...Function!

The Game Boy Advance and GameCube. Relics of Nintendo's early 21st century efforts. Purple, plastic-looking consoles that, for all their strengths, were the company's flagship devices during the "dark days". With the Wii and DS on the scene nowadays, and printing all kinds of cash money, they're dead machines, yes? Gone, no further need for them, thanks for the memories, right? WRONG. They LIVE.

Nintendo's quarterly earnings show that, while they're hardly raking in the big bucks, both consoles are still selling units and still making money well into 2008. While nobody in Japan, Europe, Asia or Australia bought a new GameCube between April and June, somewhere, somehow, 40,000 Americans did. As for the GBA, well, none were sold in the US, but globally, 180,000 of them found new homes. 180,000! If you ever wonder why Nintendo have never publicly proclaimed the death of the little handheld, that's probably why.

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Capcom Q109 Results: Capcom Sales Up, Put Rough Window On SFIV Release

Capcom released its financial statement today, revealing a 14.5 percent increase in net sales and a 110.8 percent increase in net income with compared to Q1 last year. According to the release, the weaker yen meant a foreign exchange gain of ¥840 million — "a significant boost to ordinary income." Net sales for home console games were up 31.5 percent in comparison to the previous year's Q1. Game sales were powered by the Monster Hunter Freedom 2ndG phenomenon, which has shipped 2.48 million units as of July 2008 in Japan and Asia.

In the next quarter of this financial year, Capcom has no plans to launch any major titles. According to insiders however, Capcom said in a conference call today that it did plan to launch Street Fighter IV on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC in the third quarter of this financial year, which would make it a holiday release (this Thanksgiving in the US?). Nothing has been confirmed, but that would make sense as Resident Evil 5 launches in March 2009.

Capcom did provide its sales target for upcoming titles. Resident Evil 5 is expected to move 2.3 units, SFIV is expected to move 1.7 million, Bionic Commando 1.5 million units and Dead Rising Chop Till You Drop 0.5 million units.

Capcom also reports that arcade operations were up 6.5 percent, while arcade game sales were up 47 percent. However, as Capcom states: "Arcades in shopping centers had a particularly difficult time because of the rising popularity games for home video games and escalating gasoline price." Imagine that means the Japanese suburban arcade scene isn't exactly hopping. Between April and June 2008, one Capcom arcade was opened and zero were closed. The arcade division was in the red due to heavy development costs and the lack of new releases. "Card game sales to arcade game machines are running somewhat above plan," Capcom added.

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Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Bloomberg.com: U.S.

July 29 (Bloomberg) -- Starbucks Corp., the world's largest chain of coffee shops, will cut another 1,000 jobs and eliminate the chief operating officer position as the company seeks to reverse slumping sales.

Operating chief Martin Coles will take over as president of Starbucks Coffee International, the Seattle-based company said today in a statement. Jim Alling, the previous international chief, is leaving the company.

Starbucks founder Howard Schultz, 55, resumed the position of chief executive officer in January to revitalize the chain's cafes after U.S. customer visits declined. Earlier this month, he announced plans to close 600 stores in the U.S. and eliminate as many as 12,000 positions, or 7 percent of the workforce.

``They're just streamlining a lot of their overhead business units at this point,'' said Sharon Zackfia, an analyst at William Blair & Co. in Chicago. She recommends investors buy the shares.

About 550 of the latest jobs being eliminated are non- store positions, spokeswoman Bridget Baker said. The company employed about 172,000 as of last September

Starbucks climbed 76 cents, or 5.3 percent, to $14.99 at 4 p.m. in Nasdaq Stock Market composite trading. The shares have dropped 18 percent since Schultz took over again.

Australia Cuts

Earlier today, the coffee-shop chain said it will shut three-fourths of its 84 stores in Australia within the next five days, backing away from a market it entered eight years ago.

Starbucks probably will concentrate more of its growth in China and Japan, Zackfia said. Mexico and South America have also been ``very good markets,'' she said.

``They've just started to scratch the surface in Brazil, which has a lot of people, and a lot of people drinking coffee,'' Zackfia said.

Schultz has called the company's problems ``self- induced,'' and vowed to introduce more innovative products and clean up aging stores. Since January, Starbucks has introduced a milder blend of coffee, new drinks and consumer-loyalty cards, and is tinkering with breakfast-sandwich recipes so their smell doesn't overwhelm coffee aromas.

Management Appointments

Starbucks also named Michelle Gass to oversee marketing, food and beverage; Dorothy Kim to run global strategy; and Peter Gibbons to head the company's supply-chain operations. Vivek Varma will manage communications.

Starbucks opened its first store in 1971 in Seattle's Pike Place Market as a place to sell beans and coffee-making equipment. The company was named for the coffee-drinking first mate in the novel ``Moby Dick.''

Starbucks reports third-quarter financial results tomorrow.

To contact the reporter on this story: Lauren Coleman-Lochner in New York at llochner@bloomberg.net.

Vonage names former AT&T executive as new CEO

NEW YORK (Associated Press) - Struggling with tough competition, Internet telephony provider Vonage Holdings Corp. has turned to a former marketing executive from AT&T Inc. to polish up the company's image as its new CEO.

The Holmdel-based company said Tuesday that its board of directors has selected Marc Lefar as the company's new chief executive.

He replaces company founder Jeffrey Citron, who has served as interim CEO since April 2007, when Michael Snyder stepped down as the company's legal challenges and financial losses mounted.

Lefar served as chief marketing officer of Cingular Wireless, now AT&T Mobility, for more than four years, and later founded a technology and media consultancy called Marketing Insights.

Vonage is one of the leading providers of Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP, services, which allows people to make cheap or free calls over a broadband Internet connection. With 2.6 million customers, Vonage is the leading independent Internet phone service, but its once rapid growth has lost steam as cable companies like Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Inc., have rolled out competing services.

Due to high marketing costs and patent-infringement lawsuits from phone companies, Vonage has lost more than $967 million over the past five years.

Lefar said in a statement that he will focus on improving the customer experience, and that "meaningful, intuitive features will accelerate growth and improve loyalty."

Vonage shares gained 3 cents to $1.45 in after-hours trading Tuesday. They had closed the regular trading session down 4 cents, or 2.7 percent, at $1.42. News of the appointment of a permanent CEO leaked last week.

Monday, July 28, 2008

Surgical Errors Cost Almost $1.5B a Year - washingtonpost.com

MONDAY, July 28 (HealthDay News) -- Preventing medical errors that occur during or after surgery could save lives and almost $1.5 billion a year, according to U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) study.

The researchers analyzed data on more than 161,000 patients in employer-based health plans who underwent surgery between 2001 and 2002.

The study found that insurers paid an additional $28,218 (52 percent more) and an additional $19,480 (48 percent more) for each surgery patient who suffered acute respiratory failure or post-operative infections, respectively, compared to patients who didn't suffer those complications.

Among the other findings:

Nursing care associated with medical errors, including pressure ulcers and hip fractures, cost an additional $12,196 (33 percent more) per patient.Metabolic problems, such as kidney failure or uncontrolled blood sugar, linked to medical errors cost an additional $11,797 (32 percent more) per patient.Blood clots or other vascular or pulmonary problems associated with medical errors cost an additional $7,838 (25 percent more) per patient.Wound opening tied to medical errors cost an additional $1,426 (6 percent more) per patient.

In addition, the study found that one out of every 10 patients who died within 90 days of surgery did so due to a preventable error, and one-third of the deaths occurred after the initial hospital discharge.

The study was published in the July 28 issue of the journalHealth Services Research.

"Like the physical and emotional harm caused by medical errors, the financial consequences don't stop at the hospital door. Eliminating medical errors and their after-effects must continue to be top priority for our health care system," AHRQ director Dr. Carolyn M. Clancy said in an agency news release.

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For parents, a phone dilemma -- chicagotribune.com

NEW YORK — It's a signature parenting dilemma of the wireless age: Should kids have cell phones?

It pits parents' desire to keep tabs on their offspring against the feeling that it's wrong for youngsters to spend time chatting and texting.

Now there's further ammunition: The warning last week by the head of a prominent cancer research institute to his faculty and staff. Limit cell phone use, he said, because of the possible cancer risk — especially when it comes to children.

The warning from Dr. Ronald Herberman, director of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, was based on early, unpublished data and came despite studies that have not found a link between increased tumors and cell phone use. But it's struck a nerve among parents.

"Now we hear about this possible medical risk," said Marybeth Hicks, mother of four. "I couldn't possibly know if it's real or not."

It's hard to gauge but in 2004, 21 percent of those ages 8 to 10 and 36 percent of the 11 to 14 group had phones, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Should the latest medical news cause huge concern? "If you've got good reasons for them to have it, I'd go ahead," said Frank Barnes, a professor who chaired a recent report on the subject. However, he added, "they've probably got other things they should be doing."

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Industry says granite countertops are safe to use

MONDAY JULY 28, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) -- The Marble Institute of America on Friday responded to the studies by Rice University physics professor W.J. Llope saying that granite countertops pose no significant health risk.

Earlier, Llope was cited by Houston Chronicle as finding that some granite countertops generate gamma radiation and radon gas at a level that is considered dangerous by the U.S. government.

In its statement, the MIA categorized the studies as junk science and cited new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) statements to say that radon gas and radiation released from granite countertops do not pose a risk.

The MIA represents producers and quarriers, fabricators, installers, distributors and contractors worldwide in the natural dimension stone industry.

"While natural minerals such as granite may occasionally emit radon gas, the levels of radon attributable to such sources are not typically high," the EPA statement was quoted by MIA as saying.

"EPA believes the principal source of radon in homes is soil gas that is drawn indoors through a natural suction process.”

In an EPA statement cited by the industrial organization, the EPA acknowledges that the "it is possible for any granite sample to contain varying concentrations of uranium that can produce radon gas. Some granite used in countertops may contribute variably to indoor radon levels.”

But the government agency goes on to say that it "has no reliable data to conclude that types of granite used in countertops are significantly increasing indoor radon levels."

The MIA also quoted a statement by the EPA to discount worry about the radiation from granite countertops. "Construction materials such as concrete, cinder blocks, bricks, and granite contain small amounts of radioactive materials that are found naturally in the materials used to make them," meaning that radiation is not unique with granite countertops.

"Every time researchers have applied rigorous scientific standards to testing, the results have found that granite countertops pose no risk," said Jim Hogan, president of the MIA.

"Repeated studies have found that granite is safe. Unfortunately, some recent junk science being reported as fact only serves to panic the public, not inform it. Our goal is to end this fear mongering by facilitating the creation of a real scientific standard for testing granite countertops."

Llope tested 55 stones of 25 varieties of granite stones purchased from local dealers and found some homeowners would be exposed to 100 millirems of radiation in just a few months, exceeding the annual exposure limit set by the Department of Energy for visitors to nuclear labs.

Llope did not publish the names of the granite countertops that he found are most dangerous, but he was cited as saying that the highly radioactive varieties include striated granites from Brazil and Namibia.

In a document published on his website, Llope said there is no safe threshold for radiation and the general guideline is that each rem of radiation would cause cancer in 4 people in a population of 10,000.

Some granite countertops he tested released one rem of radiation in just 250 hours or 10 days.

But the MIA cited two recent studies by researchers at the University of Akron and Consumer Reports as finding no grounds to fear granite countertops because radon gas did not seem to be an issue.

It is not immediately clear if these two studies tested radiation from granite countertops.

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Central Valley air quality suffers from fires - San Jose Mercury News

FRESNO, Calif.—Smoke from a fire burning out of control near Yosemite National Park has prompted air quality warnings as far south as Kern County.

Officials from the San Joaquin Valley Air District say particulate levels from the fire, and another one near in Fresno County, are expected to be high from San Joaquin County south through Bakersfield.

Particulate in smoke can cause health problems, asthma attacks and acute bronchitis and increase the risk of respiratory infections. Air district officials warn people to avoid prolonged exposure and heavy exertion outdoors.

The fire near Yosemite fire has destroyed 12 homes and forced the evacuation of about 200 others. Fire officials say it has charred more than 40 square miles since a target shooter sparked a flame Friday.

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WTF? damn, she is madd late-90's FOXNews.com - Britney Spears Nominated for Video Music Award - Celebrity Gossip | Entertainment News | Arts And Entertainment

Britney Spears is in the running for a 2008 MTV Video Music Awards, it was announced on Friday.

After thousands of votes on VMA.MTV.com (along with ballots from select industry insiders), the 26-year-old VMA veteran is up for Best Female Music Video for "Piece of Me."

At last year's VMAs, Spears appeared nervous, out-of-shape and just plain out-of-it on stage, botching what was supposed to be her "comeback performance."

Spears will compete in the category against Katy Perry for "I Kissed a Girl," Rihanna for "Take a Bow," Mariah Carey for "Touch My Body" and Jordin Sparks for "No Air."

The 25th annual awards will be hosted by British actor/comedian Russell Brand. The show will air live on Sept. 7 at 9 p.m. ET/PT from Paramount Studios in Hollywood.

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Analysts Expect EA Posting US$111 Million In Losses [Rumor]

According to Forbes, Electronic Arts is expect to report losses of US$111 million (33 cents per share) for the quarter ending June 30th. It's apparently not the company's performance, but investor expectations as this is the first quarter EA hasn't provided "financial guidance." Speculation swirls that launching new IPS like Spore, Dead Space and Mirror's Edge and concern whether EA can actually get them out the door on time. Because of this, Forbes states, analysts earning estimates are all over the place — from 10 cents per share to a loss of 46 cents per share. The second quarter results will be posted this Tuesday.

EA Faces A Bumpy Ride [Forbes.com]

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Bloomberg.com: U.S.

July 28 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp. said it will eliminate shifts at two truck plants and slow output at two others under a previously announced plan to build 300,000 fewer vehicles by 2009.

One shift each is being cut effective Sept. 29 at factories in Moraine, Ohio, and Shreveport, Louisiana, that make sport- utility vehicles and pickups, spokesman Tony Sapienza said in an interview today. GM also will trim the hourly production rates at SUV plants in Silao, Mexico, and Mishawaka, Indiana, he said.

``This is a response to the continuing change by consumers to cars and crossovers from larger trucks,'' Sapienza said. ``This gets us much closer to the balance of production we have been seeking.'' The actions, along with more idling of some other plants, will trim output by 117,000 on an annual basis, he said.

GM, the largest U.S. automaker, is building fewer SUVs, pickup trucks and vans after a 21 percent drop in its first-half U.S. sales of the light trucks. Such sales fell 18 percent industrywide because more buyers shifted to cars as average gasoline prices rose above $4 a gallon. GM, Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC, the three U.S.-based automakers, all rely on light trucks for a majority of sales in their home market.

Trimming the shifts at Moraine and Shreveport affects about 1,760 hourly and salaried jobs, Sapienza said. GM makes Chevrolet TrailBlazer, GMC Envoy, Saab 9-7X and Isuzu Ascender SUVs at Moraine. The Shreveport plant builds Hummer H3 sport-utility vehicles and Chevrolet Colorado, and GMC Canyon pickups.

GM also plans additional idle time for truck plants in Silao; Ft. Wayne, Indiana; Oshawa, Ontario; and Pontiac and Flint, Michigan, beginning Sept. 2, Sapienza said.

Representatives of the IUE-CWA, which represents hourly workers at Moraine, and the United Auto Workers, which represents those employees at Shreveport, weren't immediately available for comment.

GM fell 55 cents, or 4.6 percent, to $11.35 at 11:39 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.

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PC World - Business Center: Facebook Poaches Mozilla's Engineering VP

Facebook is strengthening its product development team at the expense of Mozilla Corp., whose vice president of engineering will join Mark Zuckerberg's social networking company.

Mike Schroepfer, a leader in the development of Mozilla's Firefox browser and a former Sun Microsystems CTO, has accepted a job as engineering director with Facebook and will start in a few weeks, Facebook said Monday.

Schroepfer's position is a new one. One of four Facebook engineering directors, he will focus on front-end product and platform engineering and will report directly to Zuckerberg, Facebook's founder and CEO.

At Sun, Schroepfer was CTO of its data-center automation division and became a distinguished engineer. He arrived at Sun when the company acquired CenterRun, where Schroepfer was founder and chief architect and engineering director.

Facebook needs all the high-level engineering help it can get as it attempts to retain and attract subscribers by providing new and enhanced social networking features and to take its application platform to the next level as developers' expectations and competing options continue to rise.

Facebook's new services have been hit-and-miss in the past year or so, ranging from disappointing introductions, like its Beacon ad program, to well-received, albeit far from perfect, efforts like its developer program.

Facebook has a lot of opportunity to improve its core subscriber services, like photo management, search and messaging, while it continues to tweak its application development program to promote truly useful applications and weed out spammy and generally pointless ones.

At the same time, competition has heated up not only from traditional rivals like MySpace but also from new ones, like Google, which has significantly increased its attention on the social networking market, and like microblogging phenoms Twitter and FriendFeed.

For example, OpenSocial, a project launched by Google and now supported by a variety of players, including MySpace and Yahoo but not Facebook, is seen as a competitive reaction to Facebook's application platform. Google and Facebook also recently locked horns over their respective data portability efforts.

Meanwhile, Facebook is rolling out a significant redesign of its user interface, in part intended to highlight the short, spontaneous and frequent messages and updates that have made Twitter and FriendFeed so popular.

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UPDATE: Tyson: No Recovery In Chicken Sector Before October

CHICAGO -(Dow Jones)- Tyson Foods Inc. (TSN) warned Monday that its U.S. chicken business would take longer than expected to recover from the impact of high feed costs, despite solid demand.

Dick Bond, president and chief executive of the largest U.S. meat producer by revenues, also cautioned that the viability of the U.S. chicken business was under threat, with foodservice companies prepared to pay higher prices to guarantee supply.

Tyson and rivals such as Pilgrim's Pride Corp. (PPC) have suffered from oversupply in the chicken industry, leaving them unable to pass on higher feed and transport costs to customers.

The Springdale, Ark.-based company had hoped its chicken unit would recover profitability by the end of its fiscal fourth quarter in September.

However, Bond said a rebound would take longer, with losses in the fourth quarter likely to exceed the $44 million operating deficit in the three months ended June 28.

Tyson's chicken sales rose 1.9% to $2.25 billion in the latest quarter, with prices 6.9% higher on average.

The problems in the chicken industry countered profits from its beef and pork segments as Tyson reported a net profit of $9 million, or 3 cents a share, in the fiscal third quarter, compared with a profit of $111 million, or 31 cents a share, a year earlier. The latest quarter included a $75 million unrealized loss on derivative positions.

The performance fell short of analysts' expectations and Tyson shares were down 5.5% at $15.33 in morning trading, with Pilgrim's Pride - the largest U.S. chicken producer by revenue - down 8% at $12.38.

Bond said that an additional $200 million in feed and transport costs and weak pricing in the higher-margin breast meat segment would weigh on the chicken unit in the current quarter. Pilgrim's Pride reports earnings Tuesday.

He said that chicken was historically more "recession proof" than other meats and that was holding true in the current U.S. economic downturn.

Biodiesel Versus Ethanol

Tyson is focusing on international sales and its nascent renewable energy business to drive future profits, as well as sales of higher-margin prepared foods.

Beef, its largest segment by sales, has benefited from the reopening of exports to South Korea after a protracted trade dispute over food safety standards. Pork sales, notably to China, are also producing above-average margins.

Bond said the fourth quarter was shaping up to "be a blockbuster" for the beef business.

Tyson's push into renewable fuels includes joint ventures with ConocoPhillips Inc. (COP) and Syntroleum Corp. (SYNM) to produce biodiesel from animal byproducts that would not be fed back into the food chain.

Bond has been the most vociferous food industry critic of subsidies to the ethanol industry, which he said crowds out feed supplies for animal and human consumption and inflates prices.

He has called for the removal of U.S. subsidies and import tariffs for ethanol - which Tyson calls "a well-established industry" - but supports tax credits and other support for what it describes as "new alternative fuels", including diesel made from waste animal fats.

"I do believe that these (ethanol subsidies) will be altered," Bond said Monday.

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Sempra Engery to buy Mobile's EnergySouth for $510M - Birmingham Business Journal:

Sempra Energy, a Fortune 500 company, boosted its natural gas storage capacity by acquiring EnergySouth's two underground sites that will have the capacity to hold 57 billion cubic feet of natural gas when fully developed, a news release said. Sempra also acquired Mobile Gas Service Corp., an Alabama natural gas distribution utility owned by EnergySouth. Mobile Gas serves about 93,000 customers in southwest Alabama.

"This acquisition supports our natural gas strategy by expanding our Gulf Coast operations to serve key markets where gas demand outpaces the national average," Sempra CEO Donald E. Felsinger said in a statement.

Shareholders of EnergySouth will receive $61.50 per share for their EnergySouth stock, according to a news release. The deal is expected to contribute up to 30 cents per share in 2012, Felsinger said.

Upon completion of the acquisition, Sempra Energy's Sempra Pipelines & Storage unit will operate the EnergySouth Inc. assets. The transaction, which is subject to approval by the shareholders of EnergySouth and regulators, as well as other customary conditions, is expected to close by year-end. The boards of directors of Sempra Energy and EnergySouth both have approved the transaction.

Mobile Gas Service Corp., EnergySouth's natural gas distribution company, purchases, sells and transports natural gas through pipeline networks to homes, businesses, and industry in Mobile and surrounding areas.

Sempra, based in San Diego, is an energy services holding company with 2007 revenues of more than $11 billion. Sempra has more than 29 million consumers worldwide.

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Bloomberg.com: Worldwide

July 28 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. budget deficit will widen to a record of about $490 billion next year, an administration official said, leaving a deep budget hole that will constrain the next president's tax and spending plans.

The projected deficit for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 is higher than the $407 billion forecast by President George W. Bush in February. The bigger shortfall reflects dwindling tax receipts because of the U.S. economic slowdown, the cost of a $168 billion economic stimulus package and spending on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

``We've already seen a pretty sharp cooling in tax receipts, and it's just going to continue into next fiscal year,'' Stephen Stanley, chief economist at RBS Capital Markets, said in a telephone interview.

The deficit projection will burden either Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama, the presumptive presidential nominees of the major political parties, with a constricted budget that has little room for cutting taxes or increasing spending. The next president also will inherit the deepest housing recession in a generation, fears of a crisis in the banking industry, a falling dollar and high energy prices.

Campaign Promises

McCain has promised corporate and individual tax cuts that are projected to cost $4.2 trillion over 10 years along with spending to promote U.S. energy independence. Obama is vowing to enact a plan for universal health care, middle-class tax cuts and proposes spending on education and job training.

Instead, both likely will be forced to put their campaign promises on hold to reinvigorate the economy and drive down the deficit while also grappling with left-over foreign policy problems such as the wars and the nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea.

The official, who asked not to be named, also confirmed a report in USA Today that the deficit this year will be less than the $410 billion estimated in February. The White House budget office will release its mid-session review of the government's balance sheets at 1:45 p.m. today.

Treasuries rose as the forecast for a higher budget deficit and a rise in European bond prices led to increased speculation the U.S. economy will slow amid decreasing global growth.

The deficit is one of the ``underlying themes that people are nervous about. It's just more bad news, and that leads to more buying of Treasuries,'' said Charles Comiskey, co-head of U.S. Treasury trading in New York at HSBC Securities USA Inc.

Deteriorating Budget

The shortfall reflects a deterioration of the budget over the past seven years. Bush inherited a budget surplus of $128 billion when he took office in 2001. The budget worsened almost immediately, because of recession, the Sept. 11 attacks, the beginning of the war in Afghanistan and, later, the war in Iraq that began in March 2003.

Bush recorded his first deficit a year after being sworn in, and it widened to the current record of $413 billion in 2004.

Five months ago, the administration projected a shortfall of more than $400 billion this year and next, reflecting a struggling economy, and forecast a recovery to a $160 billion deficit in 2010, declining to $96 billion in 2011 and finally a $48 billion surplus in 2012.

War Costs

The current projections may understate the deficit next year because the administration hasn't requested money to prosecute the wars for the full year, leaving that to the next president. Military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan now are costing about $10 billion to $12 billion a month.

Asked today if the administration still believes it's on a path to a balanced budget by 2012, White House press secretary Dana Perino said , ``I believe so, yes.''

She called the deficit ``temporary and manageable.''

The Bush administration and Congress also haven't dealt with the largest long-term fiscal problems: the growing costs of Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Those three programs consumed an estimated 41 percent of the federal budget in 2007.

Obama is meeting today with his top economic advisers ``on America's pressing economic challenges,'' his campaign said. The Illinois senator was to meet with business and labor officials on oil, food and other commodities, topped with discussions with investor Warren Buffett, former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Paul Volcker, and former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin, among others.

McCain Meetings

McCain, an Arizona senator, was scheduled to talk about the economy at town-hall meetings with voters in Nevada and Wisconsin.

Record gasoline prices, plunging home values and shrinking credit access have thrust the economy to center stage. The Labor Department this week may report a seventh straight month of job losses.

House Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt, Democrat of South Carolina, took the administration to task for a record deficit, citing news accounts.

``If these reports prove accurate, they confirm the dismal legacy of the Bush administration: under its policies, the largest surpluses in history have been converted into the largest deficits in history,'' Spratt said in an e-mailed statement.

A Bloomberg survey of 28 analysts completed July 25 showed the average estimate for the deficit at $447 billion next year and $407 billion this year

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Friday, July 25, 2008

Quirky News from Ananova

Villagers were shocked after a monkey-like piglet was born in China.

Mutant pig

Curious locals flocked to the home of owner Feng Changlin after news of the piglet spread in Fengzhang village, Xiping township.

"It's hideous. No one will be willing to buy it, and it scares the family to even look at it!" Feng told Oriental Today.

He says the piglet looks just like a monkey, with two thin lips, a small nose and two big eyes. Its rear legs are also much longer than its forelegs, causing it to jump instead of walk.

Feng's wife said the monkey-faced piglet was one of five newborns of a sow which the family had raised for nine years.

"My God, it was so scary. I didn't known what it was. I was really frightened," she said.

"But our son likes to play with it, and he stopped us from getting rid of it. He even feeds it milk."

Neighbours have suggested the couple keep the piglet to see how it looks as it matures.

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Thursday, July 24, 2008

Second phase of minimum wage hike going into effect - Jul. 24, 2008

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The national minimum wage went up 70 cents on Thursday as the second of three planned increases mandated by Congress took effect.

The national minimum wage will increase to $6.55 per hour as part of the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007.

Before last year's legislation, the national minimum wage had been left unchanged at $5.15 an hour since 1997.

The act calls for a third and final increase, scheduled to take place on July 24, 2009, that will raise the minimum wage to $7.25 per hour.

"The increase in the minimum wage comes at an important time for the millions of Americans struggling to make ends meet," Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., a lead sponsor of the bill, said in a statement.

But the government's efforts may not be enough to help struggling workers, according to a report by economists at the labor-backed Economic Policy Institute.

Even with the increase, the federal minimum wage remains below the rate in 23 states and the District of Columbia, the policy institute said.

The group believes that, even at the new federal level, a full-time, minimum-wage worker earns below the poverty line for a household of two.

"This reflects a stark reality in America: in the face of the rising cost of living for low-wage workers, the federal government is not guaranteeing a fair wage," said Mary Gable, an EPI economist, in a statement.

Some businesses, meanwhile, are concerned that higher labor costs will make an already adverse economic environment even more difficult.

"With inflation pressures increasing for small business owners, this is not the best time to be forcing employers to pay workers higher wages," said William Dunkelberg, chief economist for the National Federation of Independent Business, in a statement.

With labor costs accounting for 70%-80% of business costs, raising the minimum wage will force producers to pass on the added expense to consumers, Dunkelberg said.

What's more, lifting the minimum wage deters employers from hiring young and unskilled workers, since they become more expensive, according to the NFIB.

"So, the increased minimum wage makes it more difficult to hire those who are most adversely affected by the economic slowdown," Dunkelberg said.

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Downey Financial loses $219 million in 2nd quarter - Forbes.com

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. -

Beleaguered regional bank Downey Financial Corp. said Thursday it swung to a loss in the second quarter, as it increased its provision for loan losses by nearly $250 million.

For the April to June period, the bank reported a loss of $218.9 million, or $7.86 per share, compared with a profit of $32.7 million, or $1.17 per share, in the year-ago period.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial, on average, were expecting a loss of $4.60 per share.

Results were weighed down by a $258.9 million provision for credit losses, up from $9.5 million a year ago. The company also reported a $26.2 million increase in operating expenses, primarily due to higher costs related to the operation of real estate acquired in the settlement of loans.

Net loan charge offs, or loans written off as unpaid, totaled $70.2 million, compared with just $1 million in the second quarter of last year.

Net interest income, or income generated from loans and deposits, fell 26 percent to $82.9 million, reflecting a decline in average interest-earning assets and the effective interest rate spread. The decline in interest rate spread is primarily due to a higher proportion of non-performing assets.

Non-performing assets increased to $1.96 billion during the quarter, representing 15.5 percent of total assets, compared with 1.53 percent a year ago.

Other income declined 31 percent to $12.1 million, due in part to a $5.2 million decrease in income from real estate and joint ventures held for investment. The company also reported a decline in net gains on the sale of loans and mortgage-backed securities. These declines were partially offset by an increase in income from loan servicing fees, Downey said.

At June 30, the bank's primary subsidiary, Downey Savings and Loan Association, had capital ratios of 7.57 percent, and a total risk-based capital ratio of 14.31 percent. The bank's regulatory capital position was boosted by $62 million during the quarter by a contribution of equity from the holding company and a dividend paid by the bank's real estate subsidiary. This was more than offset by the net loss recorded in the quarter, the company said.

Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co. analyst Paul Miller Jr. downgraded the shares to "Underperform" from "Market Perform," and slashed his 12-month target price on the stock to $1 from $13.

Escalating credit losses due to further housing market deterioration in California will put the company's operations at risk, Miller said in a note to clients.

The company is currently exploring a variety of strategic alternatives, but finding a buyer could be extremely difficult in this market, Miller said. A capital raise is also unlikely, given the sharp decline in share price.

Shares plummeted 74 cents, or 27.1 percent, to $1.99 in midday trading. Shares are down about 94 percent this year.

"Given continued home price declines, rising losses, and the company's decision to look for strategic alternatives, we now believe there is little value left for common shareholders," Miller said.

Separately, Downey said Thursday that its Chief Executive Daniel Rosenthal has retired and that Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Thomas E. Prince will replace him on an interim basis. Chairman Maurice "Mac" McAlister, the company's 83-year-old founder and largest shareholder, has also retired from the board.

Downey Financial operates 169 branches in California and five in Arizona.