Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:
- Wall Street is losing its top oil analysts as securities firms suffer record losses and hedge funds offer the promise of higher pay.
- Kuwait followed Saudi Arabia in saying crude oil prices are too high as evidence mounts that energy costs are restraining growth and accelerating inflation.
- Goldman Sachs Group(GS), the world’s biggest securities firm, surpassed analysts’ estimates as gains in prime brokerage, asset management and commodities buoyed second-quarter profit. Goldman, which dominates the business of commodities trading along with Morgan Stanley, said revenue from commodities was higher in the second quarter than a year earlier. The firm doesn't provide any separate figures for the business, instead reporting it under the broader category of fixed-income, currencies and commodities. Crude oil futures doubled in the past year, and the price of products from gold to corn soared to record highs. Finance ministers from the Group of Eight nations said June 15 that surging food and fuel prices replaced the credit squeeze as the biggest threat to the world economy.
- The cost of protecting corporate debt from default fell as Goldman Sachs(GS) said its second-quarter profit fell less than analysts had estimated. Credit-default swaps tied to the debt of NY-based Goldman fell 8 basis points to 104 basis points. Contracts on Lehman(LEH) fell 10 basis points to 225 basis points. Contracts on Morgan Stanley(MS), which reports earnings tomorrow, fell 8 basis points to 160.

Wall Street Journal:
- Senator Barack Obama shed new light on his economic plans for the country, saying he would relay on a heavy dose of government spending to spur growth, use the tax code to narrow the widening gap between winners and losers in the US economy, and possibly back a reduction in corporate taxes.
- US Car, Truck Fuel Efficiency May Get Even Better.
- Help For Holders of Auction-Rate Securities May Be on the Way. Regulatory doors appear to have opened that could permit the creation of a new type of security to rescue stranded auction-rate preferred shareholders.
- Suburbs a Mile Too Far for Some. Demographic Changes, High Gasoline Prices May Hasten Demand for Urban Living.
- Hedge Funds Heart Goldman Sachs(GS), But Not Bear Stearns.

NY Times:
- Data Engineers Needed as Internet Demands Grow.
- In a Twist, a Hedge Fund Boss Defends MBIA(MBI).

AP:
- A major labor union and the liberal organization MoveOn.org are joining forces to air a provocative new ad portraying John McCain’s Iraq policy as a prolonged presence that would involve a new generation of Americans. McCain has stressed that his goal is to reduce American casualties, shift security missions to Iraqis and, ultimately, have a non-combat US troop presence in Iraq similar to that in South Korea. Polls show that while a large majority of the public opposes the war, they split almost evenly between McCain and Senator Barack Obama over who would better handle Iraq.

USA Today:
- European and Asian companies are beating their American rivals into Iraq now that security has improved the investment climate, Iraq and US officials say. “It’s starting to turn…and the people who are getting in on the ground floor are not American,” said Paul Brinkley, the Pentagon official who is leading US efforts to help Iraq rebuild its economy. “It’s ironic.” Foreign companies, including US investors, have committed to deals worth about $500 million so far this year and Brinkley expects at least $1 billion in foreign investment by the end of the year. Some US and Iraqi officials say American companies risk losing an early opportunity to establish long-term strategic ties with Iraq. Many of the companies active in Iraq now are from countries, including France, Russia and Turkey, that did not send combat troops into the country. China has also aggressively pursued the Iraqi market, selling machinery to the government and electronic products to consumers. “My question is, ‘Where are you guys in terms of investment, in terms of economic engagement?’” said Naufel al-Hassan, Iraq’s commercial counselor in Washington. “Iraqis need your support. Why let someone else do that?”

NY Post:
- Phil Falcone’s Harbinger Capital Partners – the hedge fund that won a battle to land board seats at The NY Times(NYT) – is expanding its size and presence to capitalize on its newfound clout. Falcone is seeking to use the reputation gained from the Times fight and winning bets against US subprime mortgages to springboard Harbinger, which now has $25 billion in assets, towards new goals.

Reuters:
- To counter the global food crisis, Africa could triple or quadruple food output quickly, a UN food expert said.

Financial Times:
- Latin America pays the price for fuel subsidy.

AFP:
- Iran is against any plan by Saudi Arabia to increase oil production without the consensus of OPEC, citing an Iranian official.

La Tribune:
- NYSE Euronext(NYX) is in talks with possible partners to create a global stock index, citing an interview with exchange deputy CEO Jean-Francois Theodore.

Sueddeutsche Zeitung:
- Almost three quarters of Germans say that income and wealth are not fairly distributed in Europe’s largest economy, citing a survey by Bertelsmann Foundation.

Die Welt:
- Germany’s ruling coalition government plans to water down measures to reduce carbon-dioxide emissions to ease the burden on homeowners from rising energy prices.