The CDC Says Flu and Pneumonia Deaths Exceed Epidemic Levels

“Vaccine against this year’s predominant flu strain, called H3N2, is only 62 percent effective, scientists reported in the CDC’s weekly publication.

The proportion of all deaths in the United States last week caused by pneumonia and influenza reached 7.3 percent, above the epidemic threshold of 7.2 percent, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday.

Only the Southwest and California had “normal” flu activity last week, the agency said. The other nine regions had “elevated” activity, confirming that seasonal flu has spread across the country and reached high levels several weeks before the usual time of late January or February…”

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“$GOOG currently has about 60,000 full time employees and tens of thousands more contractors.

Google CEO Larry Page dreams of scaling the company “10X” to a million employees, he told Wired’s Steven Levy at the end of a magnificent interview.

He said:

“We’re a medium-size company in terms of employee count. We have tens of thousands of employees. There are organizations out there that have millions of employees. That’s a factor of a hundred, basically. So imagine what we could do if we had a hundred times as many employees.”

“Doesn’t Walmart have more than a million employees? OK, maybe it’s not important for us to have a million employees, but I like to think that we could build companies that are really scalable to that size. We could add people and still be really innovative. That would be great for us. We’re one of the bigger companies of the world, and I’d like to see us do more stuff—not just do what somebody else has done, but something new.”

It would be lovely if Google could find a way to enter into human capital intensive businesses and see them pay off.

Lately, tech companies have been great at creating wealth – but not jobs….”

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“WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Americans are feeling increasingly confident in the future and more and more are striking out to set up their own homes, a move that is helping propel the housing recovery.

The deep financial crisis and recession of 2007-2009 kept many Americans from leaving their parents’ nests and drove others back into them, putting a sharp brake on the pace at which new households formed.

Household growth averaged about 500,000 per year from 2008 through 2010 – less than half the rate seen at the height of the housing boom in the years just before that. The pace in 2010 was the weakest since 1947.

But the rate at which individuals or families are getting their own homes picked up over the past two years, underpinned by a steady if tepid economic recovery and gradual labor market gains. In 2011, households increased 1.1 million and they grew closer to 1.2 million last year.

“The rise in household formation bodes well for the housing recovery. Instead of having too many houses, we are turning to a situation where there aren’t enough,” said Guy Berger a U.S. economist at RBS in Stamford, Connecticut.

Indeed, housing has turned from the economy’s sorest spot to its brightest, with new building activity at 4-1/2-year highs. Housing activity in turn spurs related areas like furniture.

That is because of people like Linna Chhean. After graduating from college in May 2007, she moved back in with her parents, helping out in a family-run business.

The 27-year-old finally moved into her own one-bedroom apartment four weeks ago after she was hired as a designer in the Dallas offices of a global public relations firm.

“I wanted to get a job in my field, which is art. I was working for them in a convenience store, which is not what I wanted to do at all,” said Chhean.

BRIGHTENING PROSPECTS…”

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“FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Investors who lost money in a Ponzi scheme run by Helmut Kiener, convicted founder of the K1 hedge fund in Germany, are suing Barclays Plc for selling his products to them, their lawyers said on Friday.

The lawyers said they were seeking a total of around 100 million euros ($133.58 million) in damages and had lodged more than 100 suits against Barclays with regional courts in Frankfurt and Munich over warrants issued by the bank that were linked to Kiener portfolios.

Kiener, dubbed a German “mini Madoff” by the media in reference to the jailed U.S. fraudster, was sentenced in July 2011 to more than 10 years in prison for a scam that prosecutors said cost investors 345 million euros.

The lawyers, who said they represent more than 1,000 claimants, have also moved to bundle the claims into a class action suit.

“We are confident the Frankfurt court will initiate the class-action case within six months,” said Andreas Tilp, one of the lawyers from the ProtectInvest Alliance (PIA), which respresents the plaintiffs.

The Munich and Frankfurt regional courts confirmed that the PIA had filed claims against Barclays in December.

“It was a large number of suits,” a spokesman for the Frankfurt court said. He confirmed the request to start a class-action suit but declined to give further details.

A spokesman for Barclays said the bank would vigorously defend itself in the case.

“Barclays continues to believe the Kiener-related claims are wholly without merit,” he said….”

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“SunTrust Banks Inc.’s (STI) fourth-quarter profit surged as the regional bank recorded strong non-interest income, primarily due to higher mortgage-related and investment banking revenue.

Based in Atlanta, SunTrust is considered one of the nation’s most attractive regional banks because of its strong position in the South, an area that was hard hit by the housing downturn. But of late SunTrust, like its peers, has found its results challenged by an uncertain economy and low interest rates. In October, SunTrust told investors that revenue from lending and investing would likely decline next year, and the profit margin in that business should fall.

Friday, SunTrust reported that its net interest margin narrowed to 3.36% from 3.46% a year earlier and 3.38% in the third quarter.

Last week, SunTrust was part of a group of 10 banks that said they would pay $8.5 billion to close a regulatory probe and end a process set up in 2011 amid public outrage over banks’ foreclosure practices….”

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“Rio Tinto RIO.AU +2.71% Chief Executive Tom Albanese agreed to step down Thursday, the latest in a string of leaders toppled by shifting fortunes at the world’s biggest mining companies.

The New Jersey native ended his six-year tenure as the company said it would write off roughly $14 billion in the value of various assets—among the largest charges ever in an industry increasingly rocked by runaway costs.

Mr. Albanese, who was behind two large, ill-timed acquisitions at the world’s second-biggest mining company, took responsibility for the hit. “I fully recognize that accountability for all aspects of the business rests with the CEO,” said the 55-year-old engineer.

The bulk of the write-down, between $10 billion and $11 billion, relates to aluminum assets acquired in 2007 that have socked the Anglo-Australian company before. The remaining $3 billion is for Mozambique coal operations acquired only two years ago.

“A write-down of this scale in relation to the relatively recent Mozambique acquisition is unacceptable,” Chairman Jan du Plessis said. “We are also deeply disappointed to have to take a further substantial write-down in our aluminum businesses.” Rio Tinto’s shares fell 1.5% to close at 64.60 Australian dollars (US$68.29) in Sydney….”

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“When a Samsung Electronics Co. executive showed off a new chip at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week, he created a flurry of news coverage for a completely different product—the company’s next top-of-the-line smartphone.

For about four months, gadget bloggers along with tech writers at South Korean newspapers have tried to uncover the details of Samsung’s next high-end smartphone, likely to be called Galaxy S IV after consecutively numbered versions over the past three years.

They have suggested it will have a bigger screen, thinner case, come with a pen, have no buttons and, of course, have a faster chip to run it, as well as better battery life. Some reports back in November suggested the new phone would have an unbreakable screen, and others have said it would be waterproof.

Pictures of invitations to a March press event in South Korea have even circulated on some websites….”

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“Sharp Corp has nearly halted production of 9.7-inch screens for Apple Inc’s iPad, two sources said, as demand shifts to its smaller iPad mini.

Sharp’s iPad screen production line at its Kameyama plant in central Japan has fallen to the minimal level to keep the line running this month after a gradual slowdown began at the end of 2012 as Apple manages its inventory, the industry sources with knowledge of Sharp’s production plans told Reuters.

Sharp spokeswoman Miyuki Nakayama said: “We don’t disclose production levels”.

Apple officials, contacted late in the evening after normal business hours in California, did not have an immediate comment.

The sources didn’t say how much of the slowdown was due to seasonal changes in demand or consumers opting for the smaller iPad mini and were unable to characterize Apple’s overall tablet sales.

Macquarie Research has estimated that iPad shipments will tumble nearly 40 percent in the current quarter to about 8 million from about 13 million in the fourth quarter, although Apple’s total tablet shipments will show a much smaller decrease due to strong iPad mini sales….”

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“Pfizer’s unit Zoetis plans to sell 86.1 million shares at between $22 and $25 each in an initial public offering that could value the animal health business at as much as $12.5 billion.

At the top-end of the expected range, the offering would raise about $2.2 billion.

The Wall Street Journal reported last month that the Zoetis IPO was likely by January or February, and that it could raise about $4 billion.

Pfizer said in June last year that it planned to separate its animal-health unit, which sells medicines, vaccines and other products for livestock and pets, into a standalone company.

The unit reported revenue of $3.16 billion, or about 7 percent of Pfizer’s overall revenue, for the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2012.

Zoetis had filed with regulators in August a placeholder amount of up to $100 million, as the largest U.S. drugmaker looked to spin off the unit and narrow its focus on its core prescription drug business….”

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“President Barack Obama approaches his second inauguration amid persistent public resignation about the tepid economic recovery and a widespread belief that Washington’s budget fights have made things worse.

The latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll shows that just 34 percent look at 2013 as a moment of economic expansion and opportunity; fully 60 percent call it a moment “to hold back and save because harder times are ahead.”

Just 36 percent express significant confidence that Obama, after four years in the Oval Office, has the ability to produce a strong and growing national economy.

More ominously, as the White House and Congress move from the recent fiscal-cliff showdown to new battles over the federal debt limit and scheduled across-the-board budget cuts, a 51 percent majority says negotiations between the two ends of Pennsylvania Avenue make them less confident about prospects for economic improvement.

That’s triple the proportion who say those negotiations make them more confident.

Such attitudes, said Peter Hart, the Democratic pollster who conducts the NBC/WSJ survey with his Republican counterpart Bill McInturff, have fundamentally altered the public mood that prevailed during Obama’s first inaugural four years ago.

Instead of “hope” in 2009, Hart explained, Americans are preoccupied with the attempt to “cope” with diminished economic circumstances. (Read More:Conservatives Tell GOP: Don’t Mess With Debt Ceiling)

Obama has received only a faint version of the bump-up in public evaluations that re-elected president’s typically received after election-year acrimony fades. His overall approval rating stands at 52 percent, slightly up from 48 percent one year ago….”

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“The Cayman Islands are poised to break with decades of secrecy by opening thousands of companies and hedge funds domiciled on the offshore Caribbean territory to greater scrutiny.

The British overseas territory, which wants to shed its reputation for clandestine financial activity, is introducing sweeping reforms that will make public the names of thousands of previously hidden companies and their directors.

In proposals sent to Cayman-based hedge fund businesses and seen by the Financial Times, the islands’ powerful monetary authority, CIMA, has outlined plans to create a public database of funds domiciled on the island for the first time. The database will also list funds’ directors, pending an ongoing consultation process due to close in mid-March.

CIMA, which did not respond to a request for comment, also plans to require directors to undergo a vetting process to ensure they are qualified to act as fiduciaries for investors.

“In the 24 months subsequent to the onset of the financial crisis, the BVI Financial Services Commission, the Central Bank of Ireland, the Jersey Financial Services Commission, the Bahamas Financial Services Board and the Isle of Man Supervision Commission all updated their corporate governance codes, laws and/or regulations,” CIMA said in one document….”

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“The “awakening dragon” that is the growing Chinese economy will help boost oil demand in 2013, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday as it raised its 2013 demand forecast.

According to the IEA, global oil consumption will rise to 90.8 million barrels per day (bpd), a 240,000 barrels per day increase over its previous estimate.

Overall, 2013 consumption will increase 1 percent on 2012. The organization cited higher winter demand in the fourth quarter of 2012 and heightened expectations for growth in China, the world’s second largest energy consumer, for hiking estimates.

(Read More: Oil Market Going Through ‘Violent’ Structural Change: IEA)

Economic data from China on Friday, showed a pick-up, with growth accelerating to 7.9 percent in the fourth quarter, from a year ago.

After warning in December of “violent structural changes” as the shift in oil demand moves from west to east, the IEA’s latest report likens the global market to a “crouching tiger, hidden dragon,” with increased demand from China and decreased supplies from Saudi Arabia.

But the IEA said the global market has “nothing to worry about” from the dip in Saudi Arabian supplies….”

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“The U.S. vowed to pursue militants who took hundreds of people hostage at a remote gas plant in Algeria.

At least 22 foreign hostages remained unaccounted for on Friday with varying reports on the number of hostages killed in the rescue attempt.

Reuters quoted an Algerian security source as saying the siege was over but the British government said it had no word from Algeria that that was the case.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said the situation was stil “ongoing” in a speech to the parliament.

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta who was in London said the U.S. government was working around the clock to ensure the safe return of its citizens caught up in the Algeria crisis. A U.S. plane landed on Friday at an airport near the desert gas plant to evacuate Americans caught in the crisis.

“Regardless of the motivation of the hostage takers, there is no justification, no justification for the kidnapping and murder of innocent people,” Panetta said.

U.S. officials had no clear information on the fate of Americans, though a U.S. military drone had flown over the gas complex where hostage crisis unfolded.

The Al-Qaeda-linked group that carried out the attack vowed more operations, according to Mauritania’s ANI news agency.

Earlier, an Algerian security source told Reuters that 30 people, including several Westerners, were killed in the assault along with at least 11 of their Islamist captors.

Western leaders whose citizens were being held did little to disguise their irritation at being kept in the dark by Algeria before the raid – and over its bloody outcome. French, British and Japanese staff were among the dead, the source said….”

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“Spain’s IBEX 35 Index may have been a laggard last year with a drop of 6 percent but since the announcement of the European Central Bank’s (ECB) bond-buying plan investors have returned to the country and the index has climbed 14 percent.

Analysts have declared that “the worst may be over” and a bailout is “off the cards” but Nicholas Spiro, managing director at Spiro Sovereign Strategy, told CNBC that significant “idiosyncratic” risks are being suppressed and warns of future flare ups.

The Spanish treasury completed another successful bond auction on Thursday with the improved sentiment allowing it to reach around 9 percent of its longer term borrowing needs for the year.

Yields on 10-year benchmark bonds even managed to creep below the 5 percent level last week for the first time since February 2012, well below the 7-plus percent seen in July….”

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“Back in the crisis days, the euro plunged against the Swiss Franc, as everyone rushed their money into Switzerland, to escape the crumbling Eurozone.

Then the Swiss National Banc — fretting about the strength of its own currency and the potential negative economic ramifications — put a ceiling on Franc strength, and so the Euro didn’t move against the Franc for a long time.

But now that fears are subsiding in Europe, we’re seeing the opposite of the run on Europe, and a run back into Eurozone, as folks repatriate their cash back out of Switzerland.

The Euro had a huge week against the Franc, and it’s continuing today, as this chart from Bloomberg shows….”

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“It’s pretty incredible how well data from Macau correlates with the broader Chinese economy. It really is a lock-stop, real-time indicator.

Anyway, from Morgan Stanley, here’s year-over-year revenue growth of Macau VIPs.

China is back. Enough said.”

Morgan Stanley

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/a-chart-of-vip-revenue-growth-in-macau-might-be-the-only-china-chart-you-need-2013-1#ixzz2IKkkp4Zq

“WASHINGTON (AP) — The aftermath of the housing bust forced many homebuilders to dramatically scale back construction on new homes to avoid the risk of ending up saddled with a trove of newly built, yet unsold properties.

But an improving housing market has homebuilders feeling more confident about sales, and that’s likely to kick the pace of new construction into a higher gear this year.

The Commerce Department said Thursday that builders broke ground on houses and apartments last month at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 954,000. That’s 12.1 percent higher than November’s annual rate. And it is nearly double the recession low reached in April 2009.

Construction increased last month for both single-family homes and apartments. And the pace in which builders requested permits to start more homes ticked up to a 4½ year high.

For the year, builders started work on 780,000 homes. That’s still roughly half of the annual number of starts consistent with healthier markets. But it is an increase of 28.1 percent from 2011. And it is the most since 2008 — shortly after the housing market began to collapse in late 2006 and 2007.

Steady hiring, record-low mortgage rates and a tight supply of new and previously occupied homes available for sale have helped boost sales and prices in most markets. That has persuaded builders to start more homes, which adds to economic growth and hiring.

David Williams, a homebuilding analyst with Williams Financial Group, says builders are very closely tied to what’s happening in the housing market and they’re going to build homes to meet demand, but not go overboard….”