Today's News - 06/08/2010

iPhone Manufacturer Seeks Higher Rates:
"The increase in operating costs due to the wage increase may impact the company's results but could also be offset by increased revenue or cost reduction in other areas, Foxconn said in a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange. Foxconn said based on a recommendation by its controlling shareholder Hon Hai it had approved a proposal to further increase salaries of its staff on Shenzhen production lines, subject to a three-month work performance assessment, after its recent move to raise China staff salaries by 30 percent effective June 1." ~Reuters~

Possible Anti-Terrorism Squad Nabs Americans in Yemen:
"Last Wednesday, Yemeni security officials said authorities had detained several foreigners, including Americans, Britons and an Australian woman, in connection with an investigation into Al Qaeda's increased activity in the country. The arrests reported last week were made after foreign intelligence agencies provided lists of names of people they wanted to have detained or put under surveillance, according to two Yemeni security officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not permitted to brief journalists." ~Foxnews~

Iran OFFERS Naval Escort of Future Gaza "Aid":
"'Iran's Revolutionary Guard naval forces are prepared to escort the peace and freedom convoys that carry humanitarian assistance for the defenceless and oppressed people of Gaza with all their strength,' pledged Hojjatoleslam Ali Shirazi, Khamenei's personal representative to the guards corps." -The Guardian~

Manpower Report Suggests Hiring May Improve in 3rd Quarter:
"Employers in most economies are more likely to add workers than three months ago, including those in the United States, but big gains are limited to booming emerging economies like Brazil, India and China, according to a quarterly survey by Manpower."
~Reuters~

Credit Rating Group Says Brittain Needs to Make Larger Budget Cuts:
"Britain faces a "formidable" challenge to cut government borrowing and needs more ambitious plans to reduce the deficit over the medium term, ratings agency Fitch said on Tuesday." ~CNBC~

Rice University Create Device to Save 3rd World Infants:
"It started as a class project, but really, the goal was always bigger than simply earning an A. Five engineering students at Rice University wanted to save lives.
They've got a start: Their Baby Bubbler, an inexpensive and portable device to help babies with underdeveloped or weakened lungs breathe naturally, soon may be used in hospitals and clinics across the developing world." ~HoustonChronicle~

Finance Headlines 06/07/2010

iPhone: Latest Version Released by Apple:
"IPhone 4 comes with many features that analysts expected, including a better display and a front-facing camera that could potentially be used for videoconferencing. It is 24 percent slimmer than the current 3GS model." ~CNBC~

BP to Increase from 10k to 20k amount of oil being recovered from well:
"The figure underscored some scientists' concerns that the May 27 government estimate of the amount of oil billowing from the mile-deep well, 12,000-19,000 bpd, may be too low. The 49-day-old spill is causing an ecological and economic disaster along the Gulf Coast." ~Reuters~

Brittain Prime Minister Warns of PAINFUL Cuts:
"New Prime Minister David Cameron said Monday the state of Britain's finances was "even worse than we thought" as he warned of "painful" and unavoidable cuts to tackle the record deficit." ~Breitbart~

Germany to make tough cuts too...
"Germany was close to finalizing Monday a major package of government savings, which would likely cut social welfare benefits, slash public sector jobs, and raise taxes to tackle the budget deficit. With the debt crisis undermining the euro, Chancellor Angela Merkel's government is determined to tackle Germany's deficit - which while among the smallest in Europe is still above the official EU limit." ~mywaynews~

Skin Cancer Drug Offers Hope - to both Shareholders and Patients:
"Bristol's ipilimumab added an average of four months to the lives of patients with advanced melanoma, according to data released at a major cancer meeting, marking a huge advance in a disease littered with failures." ~Reuters~

$108 Million Settlement from Bank of America for Countrywide:
"Bank of America will pay $108 million to settle federal charges that Countrywide Financial Corp., which it acquired nearly two years ago, collected outsized fees from borrowers facing foreclosure." ~WashingtonTimes~

Walgreens Sends Letter to CVS/Caremark to End Relationship:
"Drug benefits provider Caremark merged with retail pharmacy CVS in 2007. When CVS CEO Tom Ryan proposed the merger in 2006, he promised that the Caremark business would not play favorites with where a prescription would be filled. But the Walgreens complaint joins those of other drugstores, large and small, about Caremark's bias toward CVS stores." ~CNNMoney~

Finance Headlines

Re-invention of Journalism?
"The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is seeking ways to "reinvent" journalism, and that's a cause for concern. According to a May 24 draft proposal, the agency thinks government should be at the center of a media overhaul. The bureaucracy sees it as a problem that the Internet has introduced a wealth of information options to consumers, forcing media companies to adapt and experiment to meet changing market needs. FTC's policy staff fears this new reality."

$13 Trillion in Debt Surpassed in US:
"Calculated down to the exact penny, the debt totaled $13,050,826,460,886.97 as of Tuesday, leaping nearly $60 billion since Friday, the previous day for which figures were released."

Gulf Coast to Lose out on Jobs & Revenue:
"Two major oil field services companies said Wednesday they will relocate workers and equipment in the Gulf of Mexico amid a government-ordered six-month moratorium on deep-water drilling that could soon drive other oil and gas companies to follow suit. The ban could cut oil and natural gas production by as much as 11 percent next year in the deep-water Gulf as projects are put on hold, Barclays Capital analyst Paul Cheng said Wednesday."

Private Employment Grows Slowly; Weekly Claims Drop:
"The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits fell last week, while private employers added jobs in May, further evidence the labor market was improving. The data on Thursday came ahead of the government's closely watched employment report on Friday, which is expected to show non-farm payrolls increased 513,000 in May, buoyed by hiring for the decennial census, after a 290,000 increase in April."

Job Creation Among Small Business' Sputters:
"At the top of the obstacles: weak demand, higher taxes and uncertainty about future costs."

T. Boone Pickens says to brace for $400 Oil!
"If US energy policy continues on its present path, legendary oilman T. Boone Pickens told Cramer on Friday, the price for a barrel of crude could jump more than five times its present level in a decade."