January 27th, 2012 by InvestorPoint
MADRID, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Fitch Ratings said Friday it has lowered the credit scores for five countries in Europe, all members of the eurozone. The downgrades included lowering Spain's rating from AA- to A and cutting Belgium from AA+ to AA. Italy was dropped from A+ to A-, while Slovenia's rating fell from AA- to A. Cyprus' rating also was cut a notch, a slide from BBB to BBB-. The Wall Street Journal reported the euro slipped quickly after the rating changes were announced, but it fought its way ...
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January 27th, 2012 by InvestorPoint
KINGSPORT, Tenn., Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Eastman Chemical Co. said it had reached a $4.7 billion agreement to buy Solutia Inc. to help it expand quickly into the Asia Pacific market. "The acquisition of Solutia is a significant step in our growth strategy, and one I am confident will strengthen Eastman as a top-tier specialty chemical company with strong, stable margins," said Jim Rogers, Eastman's chairman and chief executive officer. Eastman Chemical had sales of $7.2 billion in 2011. The Kingsport, T...
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January 27th, 2012 by InvestorPoint
ARLINGTON, Va., Jan. 27 (UPI) -- The United States needs to revise its export control system or the U.S. space industry will lose its competitive edge, an industry report says. The report -- "Competing for Space: Satellite Export Policy and U.S. National Security" -- is by the U.S. Aerospace Industries Association, which surveyed U.S. manufacturers of satellite systems and components. It says more than 70 percent of respondents to its survey reported loss of sales because of government export regula...
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January 27th, 2012 by InvestorPoint
DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- High-powered talks at the World Economic Forum in the scenic Swiss resort of Davos have failed to dispel anxieties and gloom over the future of global economy and immediate and pressing concerns in Europe over the fate of the EU and the eurozone. Senior economists differed on whether a hairline global recovery could be around the corner but, in comments, agreed that Europe, including countries outside the EU, faced unforeseeable risks over debt-ridden economies tee...
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January 27th, 2012 by InvestorPoint
WASHINGTON, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- U.S. shoppers hoping to find deals on big-screen TVs in time for the Super Bowl may have less success than in years past, industry analysts said. Retailers probably won't have as many sets on hand compared with previous years, and deep price cuts will be harder find, they said. Shoppers "will see a lot of advertising," Paul Gagnon of DisplaySearch told USA Today. "But I don't know that the deals (will) be especially stellar." Analysts say the main reason is strong 2011...
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January 27th, 2012 by InvestorPoint
MEXICO CITY, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Mexico needs to generate more electricity to meet the needs of its burgeoning population and developing industries but that seems increasingly tied to the prospect of future economic growth, latest data indicated. Mexico's electricity industry is dominated by the state-run Comision Federal de Electricidad, the only company allowed to provide electricity distribution and transmission services in the country. Private sector pleas for more autonomous and independent operat...
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January 27th, 2012 by InvestorPoint
MADRID, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Unemployment rose sharply in Spain in the fourth quarter, with more than 5 million people out of work, the government's statistical office said. The unemployment rate climbed from 21.5 percent at the end of the third quarter to 22.8 percent at the end of the year, the National Statistics Institute said. At the end of the third quarter, 4.9 million were without jobs. Three months later, that figure had risen to 5.3 million, the institute said. Public workers demonstrated du...
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January 27th, 2012 by InvestorPoint
NEW YORK, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Fourth-quarter economic growth of 2.8 percent announced by the U.S. Department of Commerce Friday failed to lift markets out of the doldrums. In midmorning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 53.32 points, 0.42 percent, to 12,681.58. The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 3.36 points, 0.25 percent, to 1,315.07. The tech-dominated Nasdaq composite index added 3.32 points, 0.12 percent, to 2,808.60. The benchmark 10-year treasury note rose 3/32 to yield 1.928...
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January 27th, 2012 by InvestorPoint
WASHINGTON, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- The U.S. economy grew by 2.8 percent in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department said Friday. The figure is the first of three estimates. It fell short of the 3 percent growth economists expected but comes off as respectable following GDP declines in Germany and Britain of 0.25 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively. The department said consumer spending, which accounts for more than 70 percent of the total GDP, rose by 2 percent in the fourth quarter after rising 1.7 ...
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January 27th, 2012 by InvestorPoint
The U.S. gross domestic product for the fourth quarter almost reached expectations, coming in at a relatively lively 2.8 percent in a preliminary estimate. Economists expected growth of 3 percent, generally because the U.S. GDP is heavily slanted toward consumer spending, which makes up about 70 percent of the total domestic output. Consumer spending offered a good news, bad news scenario, analyst say. It picked up considerably, but to such a degree that it will be hard for consumers to sustain the...
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