The Wall Street Journal-20080111-Business and Finance
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Business and Finance
Bank of America is near an accord to buy Countrywide, a move that would protect a big casualty of the mortgage-default crisis from possible collapse. A deal for Countrywide, whose overall market value had plunged to under $3 billion, would entail risk for the Charlotte, N.C., bank but would help it bulk up in mortgage lending. Shares of Countrywide soared 51%.
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Bernanke opened the door to "substantive" rate cuts, citing the growing threat to the economy from financial markets and weakening employment.
The Dow industrials rose 117.78 points to 12853.09. Crude dropped $1.96 to $93.71 a barrel. Gold hit another record.
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Delta's board is set to decide today whether to let its CEO pursue merger talks with both Northwest and United parent UAL.
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Retail sales were weak last month, prompting many companies to cut profit forecasts. Clothing chains were hardest hit.
American Express warned it will take a $440 million pretax charge following a recent slowdown in cardholder spending and a rise in delinquencies.
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Economists see increasing odds of a recession this year along with mounting inflationary pressures, the latest survey by The Wall Street Journal found.
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Blackstone agreed to buy hedge fund GSO Capital for up to $930 million. Blackstone also will write down part of its stake in Financial Guaranty.
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Toyota's global sales rose 6% to 9.37 million vehicles for 2007. The results threaten to dethrone GM as the top auto maker.
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ConocoPhillips has emerged as the front-runner for a $10 billion project to develop Abu Dhabi's Shah natural-gas field.
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Weinstein reached an interim deal with the writers' union that will allow the independent studio to restart work on new films.
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Airbus and Boeing risk adding excess factory capacity or too many planes to the market if customers renege or disappear.
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The SEC ended its probe of vitamin maker Usana, which was accused of fraud by former distributors, without taking action.
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Intel faces a probe by New York's attorney general to determine if it coerced customers to refrain from buying AMD chips.
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Scottish & Newcastle rejected Carlsberg and Heineken's sweetened $14.88 billion takeover proposal for the U.K. brewer.
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Verizon's president said the company hasn't seen any discernible impact on operations from the slowing economy.
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Northern Rock's private sale "may not be possible," but the U.K. still hopes to recover rescue funds, an official said.
