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Mortgage woes trim bonuses on Wall Street

By Times Wires
Published January 18, 2008

NEW YORK

Wall Street bonuses fell nearly 5 percent in 2007 after a relentless subprime mortgage crisis battered the stock market, forcing the country's biggest investment banks to write down billions in bad loans. The average bonus of $180,420 in 2007 dipped 4.7 percent from the previous year, state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said Thursday. The numbers are taken from the seven largest financial firms headquartered in New York City, which are tracked by the comptroller's office. The firms are Citigroup Inc., Merrill Lynch & Co., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Bear Stearns Cos., Morgan Stanley and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.

DETROIT

GM finds $5B morein cost cuts by 2011

General Motors plans to reduce its annual U.S. labor costs by an additional $5-billion by 2011, the company said. Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner said most of the reduction will come from the new contract agreement reached last year with the United Auto Workers. The contract shifts the obligation for about $46.7-billion in retired UAW worker health care from the company to the union, with the company pouring billions into a trust fund. The trust, called a voluntary employees beneficiary association, takes over the health care obligation in 2010.

DALLAS

Texas Instruments chairman to retire

The chairman and former chief executive of Texas Instruments Inc., Thomas J. Engibous, will retire after the semiconductor maker's annual meeting in April, the company said Thursday. Chief executive Richard K. Templeton will succeed Engibous as chairman. Engibous, 54, served as CEO from 1996 until 2004, when Templeton, 49, was named CEO. The two have worked together for 15 years. Engibous joined the company in 1976 after graduating from Purdue University. He rose to president of the semiconductor group in 1993, CEO and board member in 1996, and chairman in 1998.

BONITA SPRINGS

WCI shares rise sharply after deal

Shares in WCI Communities Inc., the Bonita Springs homebuilder whose chairman and largest investor is billionaire Carl Icahn, gained 23 percent Thursday, a day after creditors agreed to loan amendments and waivers to help it weather the housing slump. The changes, which last through June 2009, will give WCI the ability "to manage its business during this industry downturn," the company said. WCI gained 56 cents, or 23 percent, to close at $3 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.

NEW YORK

'07 best year ever for video games

Fueled by the success of Nintendo Co.'s Wii and Microsoft's Halo 3, U.S. video game sales hit a record $17.94-billion, according to the NPD Group. The market researcher said total video game sales grew 43 percent, up from $12.53-billion in 2006. Hardware sales jumped 54 percent to $7.04-billion in 2007. The portable Nintendo DS was by far the year's best-selling gaming system with 8.5-million units sold. In short supply all year, the Wii still sold 6.3-million units.

[Last modified January 18, 2008, 00:11:26]