China considers same tax rate for domestic, overseas firms (AFP)
AFP - Chinese lawmakers have mulled a draft law that would impose a 25 percent income tax on both domestic and foreign firms, eliminating the preferential rate for overseas companies, according to state media.
Recession worry, data outweigh good earnings (Reuters)
2008.10.15By Ellis Mnyandu 21 minutes ago
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks slid on Wednesday as investors worried that efforts to ease the credit crisis would not avert a recession, overshadowing solid profits from Coca-Cola Co (KO.N) and Intel Corp (INTC.O).
Investors' mood soured when a government report showed that sales at U.S. retailers last month slid by the biggest monthly drop in more than three years. Consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of U.S. economic activity.
Investors sold shares of economic bellwethers, including Caterpillar Inc (CAT.N) , which fell 8 percent. Energy companies were another casualty as oil prices slid. Chevron (CVX.N) fell more than 6 percent.
U.S. crude for November delivery fell about 4 percent to $75.61 a barrel on the view that a recession would hurt energy demand.
"I think people are realizing there are interesting tools being put in place to deal with the credit crisis, but there's going to be a lag time to get them to work," said Arthur Hogan, chief market analyst at Jefferies & Co in Boston.
The Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) slid 347.03 points, or 3.73 percent, to 8,963.96. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (.SPX) tumbled 43.99 points, or 4.41 percent, to 954.02. The Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC) dropped 53.96 points, or 3.03 percent, to 1,725.05.
Coca-Cola, the world's largest soft-drinks maker, posted a third-quarter profit above Wall Street's forecasts, sending shares 6 percent higher to $46.36.
Intel Corp's (INTC.O) shares rose 2.5 percent to $16.33. The chip maker posted a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit late on Tuesday.
But investors fear the credit crisis has already done enough damage to the economy, making it unlikely that policy measures to unfreeze lending would prevent a recession.
Financial shares fell after an influential bank analyst at Oppenheimer & Co, said U.S. banks were not out of the woods despite the government's plan to stabilize key players by investing $250 billion.
Goldman Sachs fell 3.4 percent to $118.88, while Bank of America (BAC.N) shares declined 3.2 percent to $25.70.
Shares of State Street Corp (STT.N) , one of the world's biggest institutional asset managers, tumbled more than 10 percent to $50.75. The company said it moved forward the release of its results and received some of the $250 billion the U.S. Treasury is investing.
Bucking the trend, JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) rose 1.4 percent to $41.46. The bank said quarterly profit fell 84 percent due to mark-downs on underperforming loans, but its adjusted loss beat Wall Street's estimates.
Caterpillar shares fell to $43.75 on the New York Stock Exchange. Chevron declined to $62.57.
Among retailers, Wal-Mart (WMT.N) fell 3.5 percent to $52.56, while Target Corp (TGT.N) slid 5.2 percent to $37.71. On Nasdaq, Qualcomm (QCOM.O) , a supplier of chips for cell phones and other technologies, were down nearly 4 percent at $38.78.
(Editing by Kenneth Barry)
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China says to continue stable monetary policy (Reuters)
Reuters - China's central bank said on Monday that it would continue to take steps to keep investment and credit growth in check, while pressing ahead with efforts to make the value of its currency more market-driven.
Reuters - China's central bank said on Monday that it would continue to take steps to keep investment and credit growth in check, while pressing ahead with efforts to make the value of its currency more market-driven.
Economic growth concerns drag down indexes (Reuters)
Reuters - U.S. stocks dropped on Friday as concerns about slowing economic growth persisted, causing investors to sell shares of bellwether companies such as plane maker Boeing Co. and leaving all three major indexes in the red for the week.
Reuters - U.S. stocks dropped on Friday as concerns about slowing economic growth persisted, causing investors to sell shares of bellwether companies such as plane maker Boeing Co. and leaving all three major indexes in the red for the week.
Russia tax office files suit vs PWC on YUKOS audit (Reuters)
Reuters - Russian tax authorities have filed a suit against the local branch of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) accusing it of producing a false audit for fallen oil company YUKOS, the auditor said on Monday.
Reuters - Russian tax authorities have filed a suit against the local branch of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) accusing it of producing a false audit for fallen oil company YUKOS, the auditor said on Monday.
Japan keeps view that economy is recovering (Reuters)
Reuters - The Japanese government kept its assessment of the economy unchanged in a monthly report on Monday, after downgrading it for the first time in almost two years last month.
Reuters - The Japanese government kept its assessment of the economy unchanged in a monthly report on Monday, after downgrading it for the first time in almost two years last month.
