- U.A.E. Leaders Try to Ease Concerns Over Dubai
- Dubai World in Talks on $26 Billion of Debt, Rest Is ‘Stable’
- AIG closes debt for equity deal with NY Fed
- Madoff Investor Rosenman Loses Bid to Recover Assets
- GE, Vivendi Agree on $5.8 Billion Value for NBC Stake
- Cramer reverses his stance on stock-trade levy
- SEC Watchdog Eyes Insider Trading Probe
- Carlyle Group sued over collapsed fund
- CBOE to demutualise ‘within days’
- Cyber Monday sales may hit record, Amazon ahead
- Cyber Sales Beat Estimates, May Not Ease Retail Drop
U.A.E. Leaders Try to Ease Concerns Over Dubai – Wall Street Journal
The leadership of the United Arab Emirates tried Tuesday to steady the nerves of investors after concerns over Dubai’s debt crisis sent stock markets across the Gulf sharply lower for a second day.
In a public statement, Dubai’s ruler stressed federal unity across the U.A.E. amid concern that oil-rich Abu Dhabi will remain on the sidelines as it struggles to restructure the debts of its government-owned companies.
The country is working on “enhancing integration between the federal and local frameworks,” said Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who is also Prime Minister of the U.A.E…..
Dubai World in Talks on $26 Billion of Debt, Rest Is ‘Stable’ – Bloomberg
Dubai World began talks with banks to restructure $26 billion of debt, including $3.5 billion owed by property unit Nakheel, and said the remainder of its liabilities are on “a stable financial footing.”
Debt from subsidiaries including Infinity World Holding, Istithmar World and Ports & Free Zone World will be excluded from the negotiations, Dubai World, one of the emirate’s three main state-related holding companies, said in a statement. The cost to protect Dubai debt against default fell to the lowest since Nov. 25. Dubai’s main equity index dropped 6.6 percent….
AIG closes debt for equity deal with NY Fed – Reuters
Insurance giant American International Group Inc (AIG) (AIG.N) said on Tuesday it had closed two transactions that reduce its debt with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York by $25 billion through two debt-for-equity swaps.
AIG said that under the agreement the NY Fed would receive preferred shares with a liquidation preference worth $16 billion in American Life Insurance Co (ALICO) and $9 billion in American International Assurance Co Ltd (AIA), which would be placed in special purpose vehicles (SPV)…..
Madoff Investor Rosenman Loses Bid to Recover Assets - Bloomberg
Rosenman Family LLC, which gave Bernard Madoff $10 million six days before he was charged with running a $50 billion Ponzi scheme, lost a legal bid to recover the money.
Rosenman Family LLC, managed by Martin Rosenman, president of Bronx-based Stuyvesant Fuel Service Corp., sued Irving Picard, the trustee appointed to supervise the unwinding of Madoff’s business last year. He gave Madoff $10 million on Dec. 5 and argued in a lawsuit that he should recover the full amount because Madoff never obtained legal title to the funds….
GE, Vivendi Agree on $5.8 Billion Value for NBC Stake – Bloomberg
General Electric Co. and Vivendi SA agreed on a $5.8 billion valuation for the French telecommunications company’s 20 percent stake in NBC Universal, according to two people with knowledge of the discussions…..
Cramer reverses his stance on stock-trade levy – NY Post
After spending much of the Thanksgiving weekend on the defensive, TV loudmouth and well-known stock picker Jim Cramer yesterday backed away from supporting a congressional proposal to tax stock trading as a way to pay down the national debt.
“I am against the trader tax,” Cramer declared yesterday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” show. “I don’t want this tax because it will discourage people from coming back into the market.”
The comments marked an abrupt turnabout for the 54-year-old former hedge fund manager and host of CNBC’s “Mad Money.” Last week Cramer triggered a firestorm from fans, traders and subscribers to his financial Web site, TheStreet.com, when he threw his support behind a Democrat-proposed plan to charge a 0.25 percent tax on the sale and purchase of stocks and other securities as a way to finance job growth and pay down the deficit…..
SEC Watchdog Eyes Insider Trading Probe – Reuters via ABC News
The internal watchdog for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is probing whether enforcement staff “committed acts of negligence” in conducting an insider trading investigation.
Inspector General David Kotz’s office said it is looking at a complaint that SEC staff had access to specific evidence that insider trading had occurred prior to staff closing the investigation.
The insider trading probe is one of 16 investigations Kotz’s office is conducting, according to his semi-annual report to Congress that was released on Monday….
Carlyle Group sued over collapsed fund – Financial Times
A prominent Kuwaiti conglomerate is suing the Carlyle Group in a local court, alleging that the US private equity firm misrepresented the safety of its affiliate, Carlyle Capital Corp, a public debt fund that collapsed in March 2008.
The conglomerate, National Industries Group, invested $50m in CCC, which was marketed to many investors in other Carlyle funds as a safe fund that would invest largely in triple A mortgage-backed securities….
CBOE to demutualise ‘within days’ – Financial Times
The Chicago Board Options Exchange, the US’s primary options-trading venue and one of the world’s last big member-owned financial exchanges, will demutualise “within days or weeks”.
The exchange made the announcement on Monday night after reaching a final settlement of a long-running legal battle with members of the Chicago Board of Trade…..
Cyber Monday sales may hit record, Amazon ahead – Reuters
Online retail sales on “Cyber Monday” are set to reach a new record, with rivals Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Walmart.com set to be the prime beneficiaries, according to industry experts…..
Cyber Sales Beat Estimates, May Not Ease Retail Drop – Bloomberg
Cyber Monday e-commerce sales in the U.S. that topped some analysts’ estimates are unlikely to change the outlook for a slowdown in retail spending this holiday shopping season.
Online purchases rose 14 percent as of 3 a.m. New York time compared with last year, Coremetrics, a San Mateo, California- based marketing company, said today in an e-mailed statement. Forecasts called for growth of as little as 5 percent…..
Tags: AIG, Bernie Madoff, Carlyle, CBOE, Credit Crunch, Dubai, Jim Cramer, retailers, SEC, Sovereign wealth funds
