Author: admin

Whether it’s the polar bear or the petite house sparrow, many of Earth’s species seem to be shrinking in size, a new study reports; its authors believe that is likely a result of global warming.  Other experts disagree, noting that the conclusion goes too far, and that global warming should not be blamed for what […]

The midnight oil burned in Brussels as European finance ministers, heads of state, bankers and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) try to reach an agreement to restructure Greek debt.  In the deal, private banks and insurers would accept 50 percent losses on their Greek debt holdings in the latest bid to reduce Athens’ immense debt […]

The renewable energy industry is facing serious challenges from competition subsidized by foreign governments and restrictive regulations on the home front.  This was the consensus at the recent Solar Exchange East 2011, attended by academics, solar entrepreneurs, engineers, investors, supporters and government officials at the McKimmon Center at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. Larry […]

Federal officials and some of the nation’s largest banks are collaborating on a plan that would make refinancing available to some borrowers whose houses are worth less than their loans, with the caveat that they must be up-to-date on mortgage payments.  Typically, these borrowers can’t refinance because they don’t have enough equity in their homes. […]

Federal regulators have requested public comment on the Volcker Rule — the Dodd-Frank Act restrictions that would ban American banks from making short-term trades of financial instruments for their own accounts and prevent them from owning or sponsoring hedge funds and private-equity funds.  The Volcker rule, released by the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance […]

The strange saga of how a rogue UBS trader lost $2 billion and who has since been fired and charged with fraud and false accounting in a London court has raised questions about the bank’s stability and whether it will retain its clients.  Ghana-born trader Kweku Adoboli was perceived as a polite and snappily dressed […]

Default notices sent to delinquent U.S. homeowners soared 33 percent in August when compared with July, evidence that lenders are accelerating the foreclosure process after almost one year of delays, according to RealtyTrac, Inc.  First-time default notices were filed on 78,880 homes, the highest number in nine months.  Total foreclosure filings, which also include auction and […]

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, in a long-awaited speech in Jackson Hole, WY, announced no new steps the Fed will take to prop up the shaky U.S. economy.  Rather, he expressed optimism that the economy will continue to recover, based on its inherent strength and from assistance provided by the central bank.  Bernanke restated the Fed’s […]

Google’s recently announced $12.5 billion acquisition of Chicago-based mobile phone maker Motorola Mobility could be different if Google CEO Larry Page keeps his promise to run the acquisition as “an independent business.”  “If you believe what they say, they’re going to leave the company alone and let it do what it has been doing,” said […]

World Bank President Robert Zoellick believes the world will not slide into a double-dip recession. Zoellick was in Singapore, attending an economic conference amid plummeting world stock prices and worries over a slowdown in U.S. economic growth.  Zoellick believes the United States and the world will avoid a “double-dip” recession, but admitted that growth is […]