Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:
- Goldman Meets Match in Googleplex When Recruiting Graduates.
- Merrill Lynch(MER) CEO O’Neal says subprime mortgage losses are contained.
- White House spokesman Tony Snow said the Bush administration is critical of Democratic legislation that would more than double taxes paid by managers of hedge funds, buyout firms, real estate partnerships and venture capital firms.
- The wealth of the world’s millionaires swelled at the fastest pace in seven years in 2006, led by growth in emerging markets such as China, according to an annual survey by Capgemini SA and Merrill Lynch.
- Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs(GS), said “the private equity boom isn’t over” and that “market conditions are quite benign.”
- Corn is falling another 4.1% in Chicago on speculation that rains will revive Midwest crops.
- Oil is rising over $1/bbl. on a fall in gasoline supplies as refinery utilization remains very low for this time of year due to ongoing maintenance “problems” and the cancellation of plans by refiners to increase production capacity by 500,000 barrels per day earlier in the year.
- Apple Inc.(AAPL) is offering easy activation of its new iPhone by using iTunes, which will be critical to a successful introduction of the mobile device, according to American Technology Research analysts.
- Iranians rioted in the streets of Tehran after the government imposed rationing of gasoline, which the country spends $5 billion a year to import.
- Fidelity National Information Services(FIS) agreed to buy rival EFunds(EFD) for about $1.8 billion in cash to bolster its debit-card business.
- CommScope Inc.(CTV), a maker of cable for high-speed services, agreed to buy mobile-phone equipment maker Andrew Corp.(ANDW) for about $2.6 billion.
- China, the world’s biggest producer and consumer of cotton, may reduce imports by 32% this year, pressuring international prices, as a record domestic crop boosts supplies.

Wall Street Journal:
- US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson will announce today a review of financial-market regulation. Recommendations might include consolidating some overlapping regulatory jurisdictions. Also today, Paulson will probably call for hedge-fund managers to develop voluntary standards for behavior to minimize market risks.
- Wal-Mart Stores(WMT), Home Depot(HD), Best Buy(BBY) and other big-box retailers are putting up clearer signs, adding brighter lights and speeding up checkouts to make shopping less tedious.
- Apple Inc., Nokia Corp., Samsung and other makers of cell phones are increasingly offering wireless Internet access.
- About 17% of the fund managers questioned said US stocks are overrated, the highest percentage in the survey’s three-year history, despite the fact that valuations have fallen substantially over that timeframe, citing a quarterly Russell Investment Group survey.
- United Auto Group(UAG) will change its name to Penske Automotive Group next week to tap the name recognition of its CEO and controlling shareholder.
- Amazon.com(AMZN) is increasing services to business Internet usurers, selling digital storage and computing power that could lift sales in 2008 and 2009, citing Deutsche Bank analyst Jeetil Patel.

NY Times:
- Kurdistan’s relative stability compared with the rest of Iraq has brought it billions of dollars of investment in the past four years.

Dow Jones:
- Carlyle Group may go public after rival buyout firm Blackstone Group’s successful IPO, citing a managing director.

Philadelphia Inquirer:
- Donald Trump’s plan to sell Trump Entertainment Resorts(TRMP), the casino company he controls, to a private-equity partnership has hit snags over the price.

Market News Intl.:
- The European Central Bank hasn’t decided whether to raise interest rates again in September, citing “well-placed monetary sources.”

AppleInsider:
- Mac sales are accelerating faster than anticipated across the board thanks to the iPhone and Leopard, and could even crack the elusive business market that has remained a Windows sanctuary, according to a pair of new reports.

CNBC:
- The Chinese government has shut down 180 food manufacturers after a probe found industrial chemicals and additives in their products.

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung:
- Germany’s government wants to increase energy efficiency and lower the use of electricity, oil and gas by increasing subsidies to meet a goal to cut emissions in 2020 by 40% from 1990’s level.

People’s Daily:
- Cuba will help Nigeria develop technology to produce ethanol from sugar cane, citing Elio Olivia, the Cuban ambassador to Nigeria.