Sears
Is Headed Straight For Death - (www.businessinsider.com) Sears is in huge trouble. The
department store has been bleeding cash, posting its ninth straight quarterly loss this
morning. Sears CEO Eddie Lampert said that the company would close even more
stores and cut costs in the coming months to combat the
"unacceptable" losses. Earlier this year, former Sears executive
Steven Dennis wrote that he believed a turnaround was
impossible. "The uncomfortable and sad reality is this: Sears has
zero chance of transforming itself into a viable retail entity," Dennis
said. Here are four reasons Sears is tanking and has little hope of
recovery.
French
Manufacturing Activity Shrinks for Fourth Month in August - (www.bloomberg.com) French manufacturing activity contracted for a fourth month in August,
signaling that the euro area’s second-largest economy is unlikely to return to
growth after stagnating in the first half. A Purchasing Managers Index for the
manufacturing industry fell to 46.5 from 47.8 in July, London-based Markit
Economics said today. That’s the lowest level in more than a year. Economists
forecast no change, according to a Bloomberg News survey. A composite gauge of
both manufacturing and services activity rose to 50, the mark that divides
expansion from contraction, from 49.4. French gross domestic productremained unchanged in the first two quarters of
the year, prompting the government to abandon its deficit target for 2014.
Countrywide’s
Mozilo Said to Face U.S. Suit Over Loans - (www.bloomberg.com) Countrywide
Financial Corp. co-founder Angelo
Mozilo hasn’t
entirely escaped prosecutors’ wrath for his company’s risky lending. A U.S.
government task force wielding an innovative legal strategy plans to bring a
civil case against him over the excesses of the subprime-mortgage boom. The
last-ditch effort comes three years after the Justice Department abandoned a
criminal probe of Mozilo. In 2012, public anger over the lack of prosecutions
stemming from the financial crisis spurred the Obama administration to create a team devoted to investigating fraud in
mortgage-backed securities. The group has wrestled at least $20 billion from
Wall Street banks using a law with a relatively low threshold for suing and a
long period to bring cases.
Sorry,
Angelo Mozilo Can't Be Sued: He Is Sick – (www.zerohedge.com) After years of evading the tentacles of the US government, yesterday the
crosshairs of American justice (the civil, not criminal variety) which may be
blindfolded but certainly has an offshore bank account, finally locked onto the
orange man who made over half a billion between 1999 to 2008, according to
compensation-research firm Equilar, not to mention saddling Bank of America
with the worst Easter egg M&A transaction in history. Well, it turns out
the US government may not be able to sue the Moz after all. The reason? He
is sick. From the NYT:
In 2011, the United States attorney’s office in Los
Angeles decided not to file criminal charges against Mr. Mozilo. But in recent
months, the office’s civil division has turned the spotlight back on Mr.
Mozilo, whose company originated mortgages that went to people with little
income to repay them, causing devastating losses for investors who bought the
loans. But a complication has emerged: Mr. Mozilo’s lawyers have cautioned
the prosecutors in Los Angeles that their client has a serious illness. The prosecutors
have sought Mr. Mozilo’s health records, the people said, though for now the
case remains on track.
After
Russia targets McDonald's, businesses on edge - (www.cnbc.com) Russia said on Thursday it was investigating
dozens of McDonald'srestaurants, in what many businessmen said was
retaliation for Western sanctions over Ukraine they fear could spread to other symbols
of Western capitalism. Russia's food safety watchdog said it was looking at possible
breaches of sanitary rules at McDonald's, but many in the business community said it
was a reflection of the deterioration in relations between Russia and the West
over Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country are
fighting against government forces. "Obviously, it's driven by the
political issues surrounding Ukraine," said Alexis Rodzianko, president
and CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia. "The question on my
mind is: Is this going to be a knock on the door, or is this going to be the
beginning of a campaign?"
Euro
Area Shows Signs of Weakening as Surveys Miss Forecasts - (www.bloomberg.com)
Brazil Eases Credit Rules to Inject $4.5 Billion in Economy - (www.bloomberg.com)
Brazil Eases Credit Rules to Inject $4.5 Billion in Economy - (www.bloomberg.com)
California
drought stings bees, honey supplies - (finance.yahoo.com)
China says Australian tycoon's attack 'irrational and absurd' - (www.bloomberg.com)
China says Australian tycoon's attack 'irrational and absurd' - (www.bloomberg.com)
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