business

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NYC Biz Leaders Search for Next Mayor/CEO

Bloomberg's city-as-business style likely hard to replicate

(Newser) - New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg will vacate his office in 18 months, the New York Times reports, and local business honchos are already hunting for a replacement candidate who shares Bloomberg's financial independence and city-as-a-business approach. "What the business community wants is not just a businessman but a Bloomberg-type...

Minutes Dwindle for Networks' War Coverage
 Minutes Dwindle for
 Networks' War Coverage 
ANALYSIS

Minutes Dwindle for Networks' War Coverage

Bureaus cut amid financial concerns; political primary blots out other stories

(Newser) - Middle East correspondents are struggling to get stories on the nightly news as TV networks scale back war coverage, the New York Times reports. With violence in Iraq declining and the US public tiring of an open-ended conflict, network execs have focused on hot topics like the contentious presidential primaries....

Broker Breaks Ranks to Rant on Profession's 'Gibberish'

Anonymous London columnist goes public

(Newser) - A London broker who wrote a popular, anonymous newspaper column that lambasted the greed, superficiality, and "gibberish"-peddling nature of his profession is going public, quitting the financial world, and, of course, writing a book about it all, Bloomberg reports. “We didn't invent greed,” said Geraint Anderson,...

US, S. Korea Reach Beef Deal
 US, S. Korea Reach Beef Deal 

US, S. Korea Reach Beef Deal

Imported US meat must come from cattle younger than 30 months

(Newser) - All US beef imported into South Korea will come from cattle less than 30 months old, officials said today, in a deal made to placate South Korean protesters worried about mad cow disease. Nonetheless, thousands of protesters returned to the streets of Seoul, calling for a complete renegotiation of an...

Stealing Home: Five Signs It's Time to Lowball

Forget the market and climb inside the seller's head

(Newser) - It's not always the economy, stupid. Even in a weak market, buyers should consider a homeowner's situation before hurling a lowball bid, writes Daniel McGinn in Newsweek. One real estate broker offers five sure signs that a seller is ready to deal:
  1. Nobody's home. Sellers who have moved on, or
...

Angel Investors Profit From Slumping Markets

Affluent investors increase investments, despite market downturn

(Newser) - The bearish market hasn't stopped angels from acting like bulls, Portfolio reports. Angel investors, those who fund start-ups and small companies, are profiting from Wall Street's woes: Reduced private equity funding has made angels the go-to source for capital, improving their bargaining position and giving them more chances to invest.

Spam Thrives in Tough Times
Spam Thrives
in Tough Times
OPINION

Spam Thrives in Tough Times

Sales of the spongy stuff are on the rise—even though it's not cheaper than meat

(Newser) - Americans have gobbled up Spam for 71 years, despite Monty Python parodies and countless jokes about the spongy stuff. But Spam's sales have spiked 10% over the past 12 weeks, as the economy has gone sour and soaring gas prices have been gobbling up household income. In fact, it's no...

Foreign Investment in Iraq Up
 Foreign Investment in Iraq Up 

Foreign Investment in Iraq Up

American firms may miss early opportunities

(Newser) - European and Asian investors are taking advantage of the recently stabilized Iraqi business climate, USA Today reports. US firms still regard Iraq as too dangerous to invest in, but that attitude may cost them the best opportunities. The firms “who are getting in on the ground floor are not...

Canada Could Hurt Firms It Tries to 'Protect'
Canada Could Hurt Firms It Tries to 'Protect'
OPINION

Canada Could Hurt Firms It Tries to 'Protect'

Blocking US purchase of space division is 'significant risk'

(Newser) - A move last month by the Canadian government to block the country's top space-tech firm from selling one of its divisions to a US buyer illustrates a tricky balancing act, Christopher Sands writes in the American: How far should Ottawa go to appease nationalist sentiment if it eats into economic...

Internet Killed the Video Star That Killed the Radio Star

One-time trendsetter can't connect with wired youth

(Newser) - The MTV generation is pushing middle age, and its favored video-delivery system is falling victim to YouTube, the Independent reports. Younger audiences–those key 16- to 24-year-olds–turn to the Internet for the hottest new music, and MTV's attempts to reconnect have failed. They include stabs at social networking and...

Venture-Capital Investments Decline
Venture-Capital Investments Decline

Venture-Capital Investments Decline

Amount of money falls 5% vs. last year, but number of deals rises

(Newser) - Venture capitalists’ investments declined 5% in the first quarter to $7.1 billion, compared with $7.5 billion this time last year, suggesting entrepreneurial concerns over startups in a troubled economy, the AP reports. The change marks the first year-to-year dip since late 2005. Still, the figure was the fifth-largest...

Japanese Women Turn to 'Geisha Guys'

Hot 'accessories' earn their pay with flattery, companionship

(Newser) - A new breed of companion is the rage in Japan, entertaining women with lavish compliments, conversation and undivided attention—the male geisha. Businesswomen pay upwards of $1,000 a night for these men, CNN reports—with, industry reps say, nothing physical being exchanged. Hundreds of such services have sprouted across...

Norway Shatters Its Glass Ceiling
Norway
Shatters Its
Glass Ceiling

Norway Shatters Its Glass Ceiling

Nation requires 40% of big companies' boards to be female

(Newser) - A state-mandated shattering of Norway's glass ceiling is drastically changing gender balance in boardrooms there—and not without some resistance, the Guardian reports. A law that 40% of non-executive board directorships at larger firms must go to women went into effect Feb. 22—and though a dozen Norwegian companies failed...

Sprint Nextel Takes $29B Loss as Customers Walk

Loss includes huge one-time writedown; company announces cover-everything plan

(Newser) - Sprint Nextel posted a net fourth-quarter loss of $29.45 billion and doesn’t expect a quick recovery, the Wall Street Journal reports. The No. 3 US wireless company will hold off dividend payments and draw down credit lines for protection as more customers leave the service. It has also...

Retailers Bully Shoplifters for $$
Retailers Bully Shoplifters for $$

Retailers Bully Shoplifters for $$

'Civil recovery' systems using threat of legal action to extort funds

(Newser) - A system designed to compensate retailers for losses incurred by shoplifters has few controls to prevent the extortion or harassment, the Wall Street Journal reports. “Civil recovery” laws allow retailers to turn the names of suspected shoplifters over to collection agencies who demand fees of $200 or much more—...

FBI Targets 14 Firms in Subprime Fraud Probe

Suspected cases of mortgage fraud up in two years

(Newser) - The FBI is investigating 14 companies linked to the subprime mortgage crisis, the Wall Street Journal reports. The bureau is pursuing allegations including accounting fraud  and insider trading, said a bureau spokesman. An investigation into the complex secondary mortgage market could implicate major firms that have lost billions of investor...

1,000 to Lose Jobs as Yahoo Profits Fall 23%

Will continue to face 'headwinds' this year as online ad revenues sink

(Newser) - After a 23% plummet in fourth quarter profits, Yahoo's CEO said the company will face job cuts and continued "headwinds" in 2008, the Wall Street Journal reports. Facing decreased advertiser spending, the company will lay off 1,000 employees next month, though it will try to relocate some within...

New Tech Sinks or Swims Based on Whims
New Tech Sinks or Swims Based on Whims
OPINION

New Tech Sinks or Swims Based on Whims

Users react to devices in surprising ways, NYT scribe says

(Newser) - Innovations like the iPod and Prius usually require new user skills, and acceptance can depend on one's willingness to adapt, writes G. Pascal Zachary in the New York Times. “You throw technologies into the market and see what sticks,” he quotes one analyst as saying. Revolutionary stuff can...

No Real Estate Meltdown Here
No Real Estate Meltdown Here

No Real Estate Meltdown Here

Amazon's move will bring another big name to Seattle's booming South Lake Union

(Newser) - For the first time since the company's founding, Amazon's administrative employees will reside in one ZIP code, the New York Times reports. But the planned 2010 move from scattered offices to a single Seattle location will hardly make it the first big name in Paul Allen-directed South Lake Union: The...

IBM Launches Social Mapping Biz Tool

'Atlas' analyzes individuals' business statistics, relationships

(Newser) - IBM has released a software tool named 'Atlas' that aims to track and analyze statistical relationships among individuals in a corporate setting, MIT Technology Review reports. Employees are given the opportunity to partake in business-adapted online practices—blogging, social grouping, bookmarking, organizing projects—and Atlas creates a "social graph"...

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