The Korea Herald

European bank supervisor step closer

Oct 21, 2012

BRUSSELS (AP) ― European leaders took a step toward creating a single supervisor for banks in countries that use the euro on Friday but refused to pin down a start date.Although the leaders meeting in Brussels said their decisions on the watchdog ― the single supervisory mechanism ― were key to shoring up lenders and eventually giving them access to loans from Europe’s bailout fund, many observers were struggling to figure out exactly what had been achieved.Rather than finding new measures to fi
Google slammed by disappointing earnings

Oct 19, 2012

NEW YORK (AFP) ― Google on Thursday reported a sharp drop in third-quarter profits, in disappointing results which sent the Internet giant’s stock price tumbling after an erroneous early release.Net profit was reported at $2.18 billion, down 20 percent from $2.73 billion in the same period a year ago.Google stock slid 8.0 percent to end at $695, taking the company’s market value back down below that of Microsoft, which it overtook earlier this month as the number two player in the tech sector be
Violence breaks out at Greek anti-austerity demo

Oct 19, 2012

ATHENS (AP) ― Hundreds of youths pelted riot police with fire bombs, bottles and chunks of marble Thursday as yet another Greek anti-austerity demonstration descended into violence, less than a month after more intense clashes broke out during a similar protest.Authorities said around 70,000 protesters took to the street in two separate demonstrations in Athens during the country’s second general strike in a month as workers across the country walked off the job to protest new austerity measures
Newsweek ends 80-year print run, goes all-digital

Oct 19, 2012

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― Newsweek announced Thursday it would end an 80-year run as a print magazine, taking the venerable publication all-digital in another sign of the woes of an industry struggling in the Internet age.Tina Brown, editor-in-chief and founder of the online Newsweek Daily Beast Company, said the change means the magazine will “embrace the all-digital future ... We are transitioning Newsweek, not saying goodbye to it.”Like other U.S. magazines and newspapers, Newsweek has been grapplin
EU leaders agree on bank supervisor

Oct 19, 2012

BRUSSELS (AP) ― European leaders reached agreement Thursday on creating a single supervisor for banks in the countries that use the euro that will be up and running sometime next year, German diplomats said.The deal reached at a summit of European leaders in Brussels represents a compromise between the Germans and French, who had been tussling over how best shore up the region’s stricken banking system ― one of the main causes of Europe’s debt crisis. In Ireland’s case, the government’s attempts
Troika hopes for Greek debt deal within days

Oct 18, 2012

BRUSSELS (AFP) ― The EU-IMF-ECB troika of international lenders behind Greece’s delayed bailout said Wednesday that they hoped to conclude a deal to resume financial aid after ending a review mission in Athens.Negotiators “agreed on most of the core measures needed to restore the momentum of reform,” but were to continue discussions from headquarters “with a view to reaching full staff level agreement over the coming days,” a statement said.Officials from the European Commission, the European Ce
Germany: No decision on banking union at EU summit

Oct 18, 2012

BERLIN (AP) ― A top German government official on Wednesday dashed hopes of swift progress on strengthening Europe’s financial sector, saying this week’s summit of the bloc’s 27 leaders won’t make any final decisions on setting up a single banking supervisor. Many “legal, technical and political details” for a continent-wide supervisory authority still have to be hammered out, said the official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity in line with government policy.The single supervisor
China shows signs of growth pickup

Oct 18, 2012

China’s industrial production, retail sales and fixed-asset investment accelerated in September, reducing the urgency for added stimulus to support the economy after a seven-quarter slowdown. Gross domestic product expanded 7.4 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said in Beijing Thursday. That matched the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey and compares with a previously reported 7.6 percent expansion in the second quarter. GDP rose 2.2 perc
Vikram Pandit steps down as Citigroup CEO

Oct 17, 2012

Vikram Pandit, who steered Citigroup through the 2008 financial crisis and the choppy years that followed, abruptly left the bank on Tuesday, stepping down as CEO and as a director. The move shocked Wall Street, and Citigroup offered no explanation. There had been no hint of the departure Monday, when the bank discussed its strong third-quarter earnings in lengthy calls with financial analysts and reporters. A second top executive resigned as part of the shake-up: President and Chief Operating O
Microsoft becomes friend and foe to PC partners

Oct 17, 2012

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― With the launch of its Surface tablet computer, Microsoft is becoming a genuine “frenemy” ― part friend, part enemy ― to its longtime manufacturing partners. Since its founding 37 years ago, the company has had a mutual understanding with makers of computer hardware: Microsoft creates software. Companies such as Dell, HP, Acer and Lenovo pay Microsoft a licensing fee to place the Windows operating system on the desktop PCs, notebooks and other gadgets they market to consumers.
Moody’s confirms Spain outlook negative

Oct 17, 2012

Signals downgrade still possible in coming monthsMoody’s Investors Service on Tuesday confirmed its rating on Spain’s government debt but assigned a negative outlook, signaling that a downgrade is still possible in the coming months. The rating agency said Spain’s efforts to improve its financial position and the European Central Bank’s willingness to lend support should give the government the time and flexibility it needs to stabilize its public debt over the next few years. It cited the gover
Euro gets boost from Moody's rating on Spain

Oct 17, 2012

Fresh expectations of a Spain bailout followed by a Moody's decision not to downgrade Madrid's credit rating to junk grade Tuesday sent the euro climbing to its best level in a month.Late in trade Moody's credited Spain's commitment to reforms and ECB support for its debt in deciding to hold the rating at Baa3, while appending a "negative outlook", a warning that a cut could still take place if th
Moody's confirms Spain's rating, outlook negative

Oct 17, 2012

Moody's Investors Service on Tuesday confirmed its rating on Spain's government debt but assigned a negative outlook, signaling that a downgrade is still possible in the coming months.The rating agency said Spain's efforts to improve its financial position and the European Central Bank's willingness to lend support should give the government the time and flexibility it needs to stabilize its publi
Google rejects claim privacy policy not in line with EU law

Oct 16, 2012

Google on Tuesday rejected accusations by European data protection agencies that its new privacy policy does not comply with EU legislation."Our new privacy policy shows our continued commitment to protecting our users' data and creating quality products. We are confident that our privacy policies respect European law," the Internet giant said in a statement.(AFP)
Citi beats expectations after loss on brokerage

Oct 16, 2012

NEW YORK (AP) ― Citigroup said Monday that it beat Wall Street predictions for quarterly earnings after stripping out a big loss on its retail brokerage and other one-time charges.Net income was $3.3 billion, excluding one-time items. That amounts to $1.06 per share, beating the 96 cents predicted by analysts polled by financial data provider FactSet. Analyst predictions generally exclude one-time charges and gains.Revenue, after the special charges, was $19.4 billion. That beat expectations of