BooRadley

Such loans, which fund the construction of shopping malls, office buildings, apartment complexes and hotels, could account for nearly half the losses at the banks analyzed by the Journal, consuming capital that is an essential cushion against bad loans.

American Express Co. said late Monday that it’s cutting roughly 4,000 more jobs and will reduce spending on marketing and business development to help it save an extra $800 million this year.

The downturn in home prices has left about 20% of U.S. homeowners owing more on a mortgage than their homes are worth, according to one new study, signaling additional challenges to the Obama administration’s efforts to stabilize the housing market.

“ISOLATED and imperial chief executives who shun contact with the great unwashed — shareholders who actually own the companies — are a distressingly resilient breed. [...]“

“As federal regulators hold fast to their claim that a chemical in baby bottles is safe, e-mails obtained by the Journal Sentinel show that they relied on chemical industry lobbyists to examine bisphenol A’s risks, track legislation to ban it and even monitor press coverage….”

“Two enforcement lawyers at the Securities and Exchange Commission are being investigated by federal prosecutors and the FBI for possible insider-trading violations, according to a report from the SEC’s inspector general.”

Staff at the Securities and Exchange Commission have decided to recommend filing civil fraud charges against Angelo Mozilo, the co-founder of Countrywide Financial Corp., according to people familiar with the investigation.

General Motors Corp. plans to begin exports of vehicles made in China to the United States within two years, ramping up sales to more than 50,000 by 2014, reports said Wednesday.

The U.S. trade deficit widened for the first time in eight months during March, as the price and use of imported oil both climbed.

The link is from 1 May 2009. Responsibility is for the little people.