Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:
- Axa Investment Managers, part of Europe’s second-largest insurer, is setting up a $1 billion fund for trading in March to buy collateralized debt obligations at reduced prices because of the credit crisis. The Paris-based insurer joins GSO Capital Partners, the hedge fund being bought by Blackstone Group, and Citadel Investment Group in forming funds to buy debt infected by subprime mortgages.
- The risk of defaults by Asia-Pacific companies and governments fell on optimism Ambac Financial(ABK) may avoid a credit downgrade. The Markit iTraxx Japan index declined 8 basis points to 101.
- Gold is falling the most in almost two weeks after the US said it would back “limited” sales of bullion reserves by the International Monetary Fund, the third-largest holder of the precious metal.
- Shares of the 691 US companies with non-investment grade bond ratings have climbed 5.3% in the past month, which could foreshadow an economic recovery.
- Visa Inc. may raise as much as $17 billion in what would be the biggest US IPO as the largest credit-card network tries to replicate the success of MasterCard(MA).
- US banks and securities firms have “manageable” exposure to financial guarantors, although some proposals to restructure the companies could have negative effects, Fitch Ratings said. Citigroup(C), Merrill Lynch(MER) and UBS AG, which already have negative rating outlooks from Fitch, could face additional pressure on their credit ratings because of exposure to financial guarantors.
- Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan criticized Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama for taking “anti-competitive” policy positions.
- GTx Inc.(GTXI) said its experimental drug reduced side effects of prostate-cancer therapy in a trial. The company rose the most ever in NY trading.

Wall Street Journal:
- Harbinger Capital Partners and Firebrand Partners, the private-equity firms that nominated four candidates to the board of NY Times(NYT), raised their stake in the publisher. The group, which holds a stake of more than 15% in the NY Times, is trying to force the company to sell parts of its business and to invest more in its online activities.
- The London Metal Exchange’s steel-futures program may give producers, suppliers and consumers a way to hedge costs as steel prices get more unpredictable. A test program starts today and contracts for the Mediterranean and for the Far East will officially start April 28.

NY Times:
- Walt Disney’s(DIS) ABC television network and Cox Communications(COX) are starting an on-demand video service to let viewers watch shows anytime they want, a move to fight the popularity of digital video recorders.
- Adobe Systems(ADBE), the biggest maker of graphic design software, will release a program today allowing people to use applications interchangeably on the Internet or offline at their personal computers.
- Akoo Builds Remote-Control Cell-Phone Message System.

Morningstar:
- The use of hydrogen fuel in road transport is a realistic alternative to fossil fuels and could cut oil consumption by 40% by 2050, a European report said.