Bloomberg:
- Bahrain, Yemen, Libya Face Protests as Region's Unrest Spreads. Bahrainis took to the streets for a third day of pro-democracy rallies as Yemeni demonstrators and police clashed and the Associated Press said violence erupted during the first protests in Libya against Muammar Qaddafi. Bahrain’s interior minister, Sheikh Rashid bin Abdullah al- Khalifa, apologized for the killing of two protesters in clashes with security forces this week, saying an investigation is under way, the official Bahrain News Agency said. Hundreds gathered today at the funeral of a demonstrator who died yesterday. They demand democracy and the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa, a member of the Sunni Muslim royal family who has held the post for four decades.
- Oil Climbs as Israel Says Iranian Warships Heading for Syria. Crude rose after Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said two Iranian gunboats are planning to move through the Suez Canal to Syria, spurring concern that Middle Eastern oil shipments will be disrupted. Oil climbed 0.8 percent after Lieberman called the move he expects later today a “provocation.”
- U.S. Economy: Factory Production Increases, Housing Stagnates.
- Portugal's Borrowing Costs Climb at 12-Month Bill Sale. Portugal’s borrowing costs rose at an auction of 1 billion euros ($1.35 billion) of 12-month bills as investors demanded greater yields to compensate for the risk of default. The securities due Feb. 17, 2012 were issued at an average yield of 3.987 percent, IGCP, the country’s debt management agency, said, compared with 3.71 percent at a previous auction on Feb. 2.
- Liberty Mutual CEO Says U.S. Policymakers 'Debase the Dollar'. Liberty Mutual Holding Co., the second-largest policyholder-owned property-casualty insurer in the U.S., is expanding abroad and shortening the duration of bond holdings on concern that deficit spending and Federal Reserve policies may weaken the dollar. Liberty Mutual plans to add business in China, India and Latin America as policy sales in the U.S. decline.
Wall Street Journal:
- Israel: Iran Sending Warships Through Suez Canal. Iran is sending two warships through the Suez Canal en route to Syria, Israel's foreign minister said Wednesday, calling the act a "provocation" that Israel cannot ignore. The Iranian plan described by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman would take the warships past Israel's coast. While it would pose no significant military threat to Israel, he said that such a close encounter between forces of the two countries had not occurred in many years.
- U.S. Wholesale Prices Climb .8% in January. U.S. wholesale prices shot up again in January, largely owing to higher gasoline costs, the government reported Wednesday. The seasonally adjusted 0.8% increase in January follows a 0.9% gain in December and marks the seventh straight monthly increase, the Labor Department said. Core producer prices, which exclude the volatile food and energy categories, spiked 0.5%, marking the largest gain since October 2008.
Business Insider:
- The Latest On George Soros' Portfolio: He's Short Emerging Markets And Got Hurt By Gold In January. During the fourth quarter last year, George Soros’ biggest move was shorting emerging markets. He opened a $360 Million short position using put options on iShares Emerging Markets ETF (EEM). He also shorted BHP Billiton (BHP) to the tune of $72 Million.
- BofA/Merrill Issues Big, Bullish Report On Tech, And Says To Buy These 10 "Titans" Of The Industry.
- Daniels Goes For Broke. People who know Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels (R) say that he has not yet decided whether to seek the 2012 GOP Presidential nomination.
- The Fed Minutes Are Out, And GDP Outlook Is Revised Higher. The FOMC minutes are out. There were no dissents. The GDP outlook was revised somewhat higher to 3.9%. Here are the Fed's whole predictions:
- Matt Taibbi's Latest: "Why Isn't Wall Street In Jail?"
- China, Tired of Manipulating Home Price Data, Suspends It. Once again China shows how it's done. Instead of continuing to issue it vastly manipulated national property price index, the Chinese statistics agency has simply decided to stop publishing this highly regarded (if completely irrelevant) metric.
- Hezbollah Says Ready For Another War With Israel.
- Bernanke's Outrages Exposed. Interesting stuff in an FCIC interview with Ben Bernanke. Let's just do this one page at a time, starting right up front where we find this little tidbit on Page 7:
- Charlie Gasparino Reporting Nasdaq(NDAQ) Considering Teaming Up With The Intercontinental Exchange(ICE). FOX Business Network Senior Correspondent Charlie Gasparino reports that NASDAQ is “scrambling to respond” to the deal between the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Deutsche Boerse. Gasparino said there are “serious discussions” internally at NASDAQ “about teaming up with ICE, the Intercontinental Exchange” in an effort to “make a competitive response” and avoid being “swept away” in the NYSE-Deutsche Boerse merger.
- Disney(DIS) Raises Wholesale Price on Redbox and Netflix(NFLX). Amid calls from some on Wall Street to choke off the supply of newly released DVDs to discount movie rental services, Walt Disney Co. has quietly decided to hike its wholesale prices on new-release DVDs for Redbox and Netflix, according to people familiar with the matter.
- ARM(ARMH) Sees Boost From High-End Smartphones. British chip designer ARM said its royalty revenues would be boosted by the speed of adoption of its newest multicore processors that are powering many of the smartphones unveiled in Barcelona. "We are not surprised by the speed of the roll-out," Chief Executive Warren East told Reuters in an interview at the Mobile World Congress trade fair. "As they have more functionality, we are giving more value to our customers, and we expect to be paid more."
- Domestic US Stock Funds Best Week Since May '09 - ICI.
- Abercrombie(ANF) to Boost Spending, Expand Global Reach. Teen retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co posted a bigger-than-expected quarterly profit as discounts boosted traffic, and said it plans to almost double its capital expenditures this year as it ramps up international expansion.
- Deere(DE) Q1 Profit Doubles; Stock Soars. Farm equipment maker Deere & Co reported a much higher-than-expected profit on Wednesday and raised its full-year forecast, as high food costs drove farm investment in new machinery, sending its shares to a record high in midday trading.
- Prisoners Stole Millions From The IRS In 2009. Seemingly proving the adage that crime pays, even behind bars, prisoners in the three states received nearly $19 million in IRS refunds during 2009 after filing false or fraudulent tax returns, according to an IRS report to Congress that was included in a federal audit released in January.
- DRAM Contract Prices Set To Rise In February, Says Nanya. Contract prices for DRAM chips are expected to increase by at least 5% in February 2011, starting to gain momentum, according to Nanya Technology.
- Beijing will halt residential property sales for local residents who own two homes and non-local residents who have one.
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