Global Investing Roundups Wednesday, April 16th, 2008
Apr 15th, 2008 | By William Patalon III | Category: International InvestingWholesale Prices Soar; U.S. Bancorp Sees Earnings Slide; Johnson & Johnson Enjoys 40% Jump in Profit; China Buys 1% of BP for $1.7 Billion; Brazil’s Retail Sales Hit Four-Year Record; Crocs Stock Drops; Intel Profit Down; Big Loss for WaMu.
- U.S. producer prices rose almost twice as much as forecast, the Labor Department reported yesterday (Tuesday). Wholesale prices surged 1.1% in March, led by rising energy and food prices, which jumped 2.9% and 1.2% respectively.
- U.S. Bancorp (USB) announced yesterday (Tuesday) that first-quarter earnings fell 4% as a result of losses connected to the mortgage crunch but said its credit problems will continue to be manageable. The Minneapolis-based bank said it earned $1.09 billion, or 62 cents per share, down from $1.13 billion, or 63 cents per share, during the same period last year. Revenues were $3.87 billion, up 14% from $3.39 billion in the first quarter of 2007, the Associated Press reported.
- Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) reported a 40% jump in first-quarter profit, mainly due to the weak dollar boosting foreign revenues and a charge that depressed results a year ago, the Associated Press reported. The company reported net income of $3.6 billion, for the first three months of the year, up from $2.57 billion a year ago. Though, the year-ago quarter included a charge of $807 million for research and development related to the acquisition of Conor Medsystems Inc.
- China’s $200 billion sovereign wealth fund, China Investment Corp. (CIC), purchased a 1% stake in BP PLC (BP), worth about $1.97 billion, Bloomberg reported. Last year, CIC spent upwards of $8 billion on stakes in The Blackstone Group (BX) and Morgan Stanley (MS).
- February retail sales in Brazil rose 12.2% from the prior year, marking the fastest pace since 2004. The statistics boost expectations that its central bank will raise interest rates in the red-hot economy from 11.25% to 11.50%, Bloomberg reported.
- Shares of Crocs Inc. (CROX) dropped 43% yesterday (Tuesday) with a $7.68 decline to close at $10.11 after the Niwot, Colorado-based colorful shoemaker lowered its profit guidance and announced it would eliminate 600 jobs at a Canada plant.
- After the close of trading yesterday (Tuesday), Intel Corp. (INTC) reported first quarter profit dropped 12% due in part to spin-off costs. First-quarter net income declined to $1.44 billion, or 25 cents per share, from $1.64 billion, or 28 cents, the year prior, the Santa Clara, California-based chipmaker announced in a statement.
- Washington Mutual Inc. (WM) reported a $1.14 billion loss yesterday (Tuesday) due to a growing number of customers that have fallen behind in their mortgage payments, Reuters reported. WaMu, as the Seattle-based lender is called, said the quarterly loss equaled $1.40 per share, and compared with profit of $784 million, or 86 cents, in the first quarter last year.
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William (Bill) Patalon III is the Managing Editor and Senior Research Analyst for Money Morning, and is also the Managing Editor for The Money Map Report. Patalon's work has appeared in Kiplinger's personal finance magazine, USA Today, and The South China Morning Post, among other publications.
