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© St. Petersburg Times, published January 18, 2003
CONSUMER CONFIDENCE FALLS: Consumer confidence unexpectedly fell in January for the first time in three months, a University of Michigan survey showed. The university's sentiment index dropped to 83.7 from 86.7 in December, people with access to the preliminary report said. Consumers' confidence has dropped in eight of the past 12 months and reached a nine-year low of 80.6 in October. The report suggests that consumers aren't convinced that President George W. Bush and Congress will agree to a plan to stimulate the economy and create jobs.
ALLFIRST TRADER SENTENCED: A former currency trader was sentenced to 71/2 years in prison for hiding $691-million in losses at Allfirst Financial after bad bets snowballed, in one of the largest ever bank frauds. John Rusnak, 38, apologized during his sentencing and said he wanted to try to make restitution that could lead to "some redemption later in life."
MORE INTEREST IN BRITISH GROCER: The bidding war for the British supermarket chain Safeway PLC escalated when U.S. buyout specialist Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. said it had made an approach to Britain's fourth-largest food retailer. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts is the fourth company to express an interest in Safeway and the first private equity firm to do so. Wal-Mart Stores has also expressed interest in the British chain.
GAS PRICES RISE AGAIN: Wholesale gasoline at the Gulf of Mexico and other U.S. regions may rise for a fourth day this week as a strike in Venezuela and expected refinery shutdowns in the United States stir concern over tighter fuel supplies. U.S. crude-oil inventories have fallen near 27-year lows and oil prices have reached two-year highs as the strike, now in its 47th day, shuts off shipments from Venezuela. U.S. refiners may face crude shortfalls in coming weeks as they try to step up processing in anticipation of warmer weather and higher motorist demand, traders said.
CREDIT SUISSE TOPS RANKING: Credit Suisse First Boston and Morgan Stanley provided the best global equity research in 2002, toppling UBS Warburg from the top rank, according to a survey of fund managers by Reuters Group PLC and Institutional Investor. CSFB's analysts were ranked first in aerospace and defense, beverages, capital goods, pharmaceuticals, equity strategy and asset allocation, according to results published in Institutional Investor. Morgan Stanley won first place in autos and auto parts, consumer goods, technology and software, telecommunications equipment, derivatives research and economics.
LOCKHEED TO KEEP SATELLITE UNIT: Lockheed Martin Corp., the largest U.S. military contractor, said it will continue making commercial satellites and focus on cutting costs at the unit rather than selling it or discontinuing operations. Lockheed, the No. 2 maker of commercial satellites after Boeing Co., made the decision after a yearlong review in response to overcapacity in the commercial-satellite market, a spokesman said.
3 AIRLINES FORM ALLIANCE: The government approved an alliance between Delta, Northwest and Continental airlines that will allow them to sell seats on each others' flights if they agree to rules aimed at keeping air travel competitive. Low-fare airlines lobbied against the deal, calling it a virtual merger among the third-, fourth- and fifth-largest U.S. carriers. Eight state attorneys general also opposed the agreement.
TRADE DEFICIT SWELLS: The U.S. trade deficit bulged to a record $40.1-billion in November, reflecting Americans' ravenous appetite for foreign-made goods, especially toys, TVs and clothes. The Commerce Department reported that the imbalance between what the United States sells abroad and what it imports swelled by 13.9 percent from the October deficit of $35.2-billion.
US AIRWAYS RECOVERY ADVANCES: US Airways Group Inc. won a federal judge's approval to solicit creditor support for its bankruptcy reorganization plan, putting the airline a step closer to coming out of Chapter 11. With approval of the plan disclosures, US Airways can submit the proposal to creditors for a vote. Under U.S. bankruptcy law, a company in Chapter 11 typically must get a majority of creditors, representing two-thirds of its total debts, to accept a recovery plan before it can go to a federal judge for final approval.
VITAMIN MAKERS TO FACE CLAIMS: Roche Holding AG, Aventis SA, BASF AG and more than a dozen other alleged participants in global cartels that fixed vitamin prices must face claims from non- U.S. customers that may amount to billions of dollars, a U.S. appeals court said.
DYNEGY ENDS NATURAL GAS TRADING: ChevronTexaco Corp. is canceling natural-gas trading contracts with Dynegy Inc. and will open its own market for the fuel. All contracts will end Feb. 1.
NET INCOME UP AT RAYMOND JAMES BANK: Raymond James Bank of St. Petersburg said core net income rose 80 percent, from $984,000 to $1.77-million, in its first fiscal quarter ended Dec. 31. For the three-month period, assets fell 6 percent, from $924.3-million to $868.1-million, while deposits dropped 7 percent, from $793-million to $735.5-million. The bank, a subsidiary of Raymond James Financial, said its retail loan portfolio has remained flat due to offsetting loan payoffs.
General Electric Co.: Profits fell 21 percent in the quarter ended Dec. 31, the biggest quarterly decline in nine years. The company was hurt by a $1.4-billion charge to boost reserves at its reinsurance business.
First Community Bank Corp. of America: The St. Petersburg bank holding company reported a 23 percent drop in net income for the quarter ended Dec. 31 following the sale of excess bank property.
Cornerstone Community Bank: The St. Petersburg bank, which opened in March 1999, posted a 185 percent increase in net income for the period ended Dec. 31. Net income rose 239 percent in full-year 2002. Assets rose to $100.9-million, up from $70.2-million a year earlier.
-- Compiled from Times staff, wire and Bloomberg News reports.