$FB is up 75%+ since its recent lows…
Comments »$JPM Likely to Be Served With a Cease and Desist Order, Systematic Lapse in control Over Money Laundering
“(MoneyWatch) JPMorgan Chase (JPM) is likely to face a major regulatory actionconnected with firm’s anti-money laundering and compliance programs. The banks two main regulators, the Office of the Comptroller and the Currency (OCC) and the Federal Reserve, are expected to announce the action as early as today, according to Reuters, which would likely be in the form of a cease and desist order. A cease and desist order is the harshest form of enforcement action that the OCC can issue. While the bank is not expected to pay a monetary penalty, the order could potentially limit the bank’s business activities and strategic opportunities. Additionally, the bank will be required to enhance its monitoring and risk surveillance systems and procedures.
JPM CEO Jamie Dimon can’t blame this on a “flawed, complex, poorly reviewed, poorly executed and poorly monitored” strategy, like he did when the bank lost $6.2 billion on the so-called “London Whale” trade, which was disclosed in May of last year. At that time, the lapse was described as an uncharacteristic black eye for its charismatic CEO.
In many ways, the current potential regulatory action is worse than any trading loss, because it indicates a systemic lapse in controls. Regulators, who heightened scrutiny in this area months ago, appear to have found a company-wide lapse in procedures and oversight connected to anti-money-laundering (AML) surveillance and risk management. AML controls are intended to deter and detect the misuse of legitimate financial channels for the funding of money laundering, terrorist financing and other criminal acts.
The JPM sanction would be the fourth major AML action in the past 12 months….”
Comments »$F Will Hire 2200 in 2013
“SYDNEY (MarketWatch) — Ford Motor Co. F +1.05% said Friday that it’s planning to hire 2,200 salaried workers in the U.S. this year to support the introduction of new products. The job additions announced Friday were the company’s largest increase in new salaried workers in more than a decade, it said. Ford is now more than halfway to reaching its target of creating 12,000 hourly U.S. jobs by 2015, it said.”
Comments »$MRK Takes its Cholesterol Drug Tredaptive Off the Global Market
“(Reuters) – Merck & Co Inc said it would withdraw its cholesterol drug Tredaptive from markets worldwide after European regulators recommended that marketing of the drug be suspended.
The drug was under review in Europe after the failure of a major study raised safety concerns.
Merck recommended that physicians stop prescribing the drug and review treatment plans for patients taking it.”
Comments »$BA Dreamliner Marred by Two More Mishaps
“TOKYO/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Boeing Co’s 787 Dreamliner jet suffered a cracked cockpit window and an oil leak on separate flights in Japan on Friday – the latest in a series of incidents testing confidence in the sophisticated new aircraft.
All Nippon Airways Co said a domestic flight from Tokyo landed safely at Matsuyama airport in western Japan after a crack developed on the cockpit windscreen, and the plane’s return to Tokyo was cancelled.
The same airline later said oil was found leaking from an engine of a 787 Dreamliner after the plane landed at Miyazaki airport in southern Japan. An airline spokeswoman said it later returned to Tokyo after some delay. No one was injured in either incident.
The world’s first carbon-composite airliner, which has a list price of $207 million, has been beset by problems this week. Some analysts say these are normal teething issues as a new plane enters service under close scrutiny. Others say the incidents could erode public confidence in the mould-breaking aircraft.
U.S. transportation officials will hold a press conference in Washington at 0930 EDT (1430 GMT) to discuss issues related to recent electrical problems on the new plane, one person familiar with the matter told Reuters. Bloomberg News said the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration would announce a review into the jet’s power system.
U.S. regulators have raised questions about the plane’s reliability on long transocean routes, the Wall Street Journal reported….”
Comments »Gapping Up and Down This Morning
$SAP Challenges $ORCL by Boosting Flagship Software Speed
“SAP AG (SAP) unveiled the biggest overhaul to its mainstay enterprise software in two decades, in a move to cement its dominance in that market while springing an attack on Oracle Corp. (ORCL)’s database business.
At an event in Palo Alto, California, the German company showed a much faster version of its Business Suite software running on top of its Hana database. By speeding up business tasks from pricing airline tickets to predicting weather, SAP is pushing to replace database softwarefrom Oracle, Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) that customers use to process and analyze information, SAP executives said….”
Comments »$VALE Pops as They Comment on China Recovery
“Vale SA (VALE3), the world’s largest iron- ore producer, rose the most in a week after Chief Executive Officer Murilo Ferreira said the company will benefit from a recovery in Chinese construction and manufacturing.
Demand for steel is higher amid a “more favorable” environment in China, the company’s biggest client, Ferreira told reporters in Brasilia yesterday. Prices for iron ore, the main ingredient for making steel, will be less volatile this year after a “significant” recovery, he said.
“I don’t see a scenario that is as pessimistic as in September 2012, or as exuberant as in 2008 and 2010, when prices reached $200,” Ferreira said.
Iron ore posted the biggest quarterly climb on record in the final three months of 2012 and jumped 82 percent since a three-year low on Sept. 5 as Chinese mills restock. Ore with 62 percent content delivered to Tianjin rose to $158.50 a dry ton on Jan. 8, the highest since October 2011, according to data from the Steel Index Ltd. Prices fell to $158.20 yesterday.
Vale, based in Rio de Janeiro, added 0.7 percent to 40.57 reais in Sao Paulo yesterday, the most since Jan. 2, after advancing as much as 1.1 percent on Ferreira’s comments. Brazil’s benchmark stock index rose 0.2 percent.”
Judge: $WMT Can Be Added to a Lawsuit Alleging Widespread Wage Theft
“A federal judge ruled Thursday that Walmart can be added to a lawsuit alleging widespread wage theft at a Southern California warehouse.
Lawyers for contract workers at the Schneider Logistics warehouse in Mira Loma, Calif. – whose sole customer is Walmart – had moved to add the retailer to the case in November.
Monday’s ruling by U.S. District Judge Christina Snyder will force Walmart to defend itself against allegations that Schneider, at Walmart’s behest, cheated as many as 1,800 low-wage workers out of millions of dollars.
Walmart fought becoming a late addition to the case, but Snyder wrote that the plaintiffs had a “good faith explanation that they did not seek to name Walmart as a defendant until this stage of the litigation because they only recently uncovered evidence in discovery that justifies a lawsuit against Walmart.”
The lawsuit, filed in October 2011, claims that Schneider and two staffing agencies, Premier Warehousing Ventures LLC and Impact Logistics Inc., failed to keep proper payroll records, falsified time sheets and misled workers about the amount of money they had earned….”
Comments »$WMT CEO Knew Of Bribery Allegations In 2005
“WASHINGTON/CHICAGO (Reuters) – Lawmakers on Thursday released emails that appeared to show Wal-Mart Chief Executive Mike Duke knew as far back as 2005 of allegations that company representatives had bribed Mexican officials.
The emails appeared to contradict the company’s public statements about a bribery scandal tied to its Mexican affiliate, Wal Mart de Mexico. Lawmakers said Wal-Mart Stores Inc did not dispute the authenticity of the emails.
In two reports last year, the New York Times described how Walmex used large bribes throughout Mexico to open stores it would otherwise have been unable to launch, and how Wal-Mart headquarters had stifled an early internal probe.
The second report focused on how Walmex allegedly paid $52,000 to change a zoning map so it could open a store near the ancient pyramids in Teotihuacan.
The company has maintained its senior executives did not recall mentions of bribery allegations related to the Teotihuacan store….”
Comments »Retailers Continue to Hit the Skids
“We’ve already noted the weak holiday sales report from Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) out this morning. Now two more specialty retailers, American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) and Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO), have posted sales numbers for the period, and the situation has not improved much.
American Eagle reported same-store sales up 5% for the quarter to date, compared with a gain of 13% in the same period a year ago. Excluding online sales, sales increased just 1%, compared with a 12% increase excluding online sales last year.
At Aeropostale same-store sales fell 8% in the nine weeks to the end of December, and that includes online sales. Last year sales fell 9% excluding online sales.
American Eagle reiterated fourth-quarter earnings per share (EPS) guidance of $0.56 and same-stores sales growth in the mid-single digits.
Aeropostale cut its quarterly EPS guidance from a previous range of $0.36 to $0.41 to a new range of $0.20 to $0.24.
A third specialty retailer, Ascena Retail Group Inc. (NASDAQ: ASNA)….”
Comments »The Most Innovative Companies In The World
“This week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, some of the biggest companies in the world will debut the next generation of products and technology. The goods on display are the product of years of research and billions of dollars. And to protect their investments, companies file for patents on the next game changing device, software, or technology.
The U.S. Patent Office and Trademark Office awards hundreds of thousands of patents to companies each year. Today, IFI Claims Patent Services, a producer of patent databases, released its top 50 ranking of the companies awarded the most U.S. patents in 2012. Based on IFI’s list, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 10 most innovative companies in the world.
24/7 Wall St.’s review of the IFI list finds that producing the most patents does not ensure a successful business — frequently, it can mean the exact opposite. Some of the biggest patent recipients last year are barely profitable, or are losing money. These corporations may be ramping up research and development as their current brand falters. Sony’s patent awards are up substantially compared to 2011, but its shares are down by nearly 40% in the past 12 months, and the company lost more than $5 billion in the last fiscal year.
Meanwhile, several companies that didn’t make our list are among the most profitable companies in the world. Companies like Apple and Google saw major increases in patents awarded last year. Apple’s patents increased by 68% between 2011 and 2012. Google’s grew by an astounding 170%. These two companies remain well out of the top 10 for global patents awarded last year. Apple was 22nd, and Google was 21st….”
Comments »$F Will Double its Dividend
“Ford is doubling its quarterly dividend, one year after the automaker restored the payment to its shareholders.
The automaker announced Thursday that it will pay 10 cents a share to shareholders on March 1. Ford resumed paying dividends at the beginning of 2012 after suspending the payments in 2006 due to mounting financial losses and a need to preserve cash….”
Comments »Gapping Up and Down This Morning
$DB Said to Have Made Mad Money From Libor Bets
“Deutsche Bank AG DBK.XE +2.10% made at least €500 million ($654 million) in profit in 2008 from trades pegged to the interest rates under investigation by regulators world-wide, internal bank documents show.
The German bank’s trading profits resulted from billions of euros in bets related to the London interbank offered rate, or Libor, and other global benchmark rates.
Regulators have been investigating allegations that more than a dozen banks, including Deutsche Bank, rigged Libor and other interest rates underpinning trillions of dollars in loans and other financial contracts. The probe has already produced settlements totaling nearly $2 billion with BarclaysBARC.LN +0.64% PLC and UBSUBSN.VX 0.00% AG.
The Deutsche Bank documents, handed to investigators by a former employee of the bank and reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, show for the first time the scope and manner in which a bank painstakingly constructed a string of trades in hopes of profiting from small changes in various rates…”
Comments »$AIG Decides Not to Sue The U.S. Over Bailout Terms
Stocks on the Move in Early Trade
FLASH: SEC Opens an Inquiry Into $HLF
$LNKD Hits 200 Million Users Worldwide
“LinkedIn has announced it has reached 200 million user registrations worldwide — with new users being added at an average rate of two per second (or 172,800 per day). Not bad for a professional social network (but obviously still a far cry from Facebook’s one billion+ active users).
LinkedIn clocked up its first 100 million members back in March 2011, underlining how its growth rate has accelerated in recent times – with the network adding more than 13 million members since its last announcement on November 1, 2012. Back in January 2009 membership stood at 32 million.
In a blog announcing the new membership figure, Deep Nishar, LinkedIn’s senior VP of products and user experience, described it as an “important and exciting milestone”. The company has produced acelebratory infographic to mark the moment.
LinkedIn’s membership spans more than 200 countries and territories. The U.S. remains its biggest market, followed by India. Membership in its largest markets breaks down as follows:
- USA (74m)
- India (18m)
- UK (11m)
- Brazil (11m)
- Canada (7m) ….”
