Moody's Investors Service has placed the Ba2 long-term local currency deposit rating of Prominvestbank on review for possible downgrade due to the lowering of the bank's Baseline Credit Assessment from B1 to B2. At the same time, Moody's has affirmed the B2 foreign currency bank deposit rating, which remains constrained by the country ceiling, the
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The U.S. Senate approved a $700 billion bailout of the financial industry, putting pressure on the House to approve a plan that political and financial leaders called crucial to averting economic castastrophe. The revised legislation is aimed at reinvigorating worldwide credit markets and interbank lending that had frozen up while overleveraged financial institutions staggered under
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The White House expressed hope on Wednesday the Senate would pass a revised $700 billion financial rescue package in the evening, after the House of Representatives voted down a bailout measure earlier this week. “We look forward to the debate, and hope to see strong support,” White House spokesman Tony Fratto said. “The president will
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First came denial, then outrage, and finally, as the breadth of the financial crisis sank in, frenzied attempts to limit the damage. The turmoil that sent shockwaves around the world last month has presented Europe's politicians with formidable challenges and their responses have been at once forceful and flawed. A look at their reactions to
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U.S. private employers cut a surprisingly low 8,000 jobs in September, a report by a private employment service said on Wednesday. ADP Employer Services also said it revised the number of jobs lost in August to 37,000 from the originally reported loss of 33,000. The median of estimates from 29 economists surveyed by Reuters was
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Standard Life Investments, a top investor in Lloyds TSB and HBOS, supports the planned takeover of HBOS by Lloyds under the terms originally announced, a person close to the investment firm said. HBOS shares are trading at a big discount to the indicated offer price, reflecting concern the deal may not be approved by shareholders
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Anglo-Swiss miner Xstrata Plc dropped immediate plans for a $10 billion bid for No. 3 platinum producer Lonmin Plc on Wednesday but set the scene for a later deal by scooping up Lonmin shares as they fell. Xstrata, the world's fifth biggest mining group by market value, said financial turmoil and difficult debt terms were
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Technology company RealNetworks and major film studios on Tuesday squared off in a legal battle over a new product allowing consumers to make computer copies of DVDs that the studios claim is illegal. RealDVD, a software product from RealNetworks subsidiary RealNetworks Home Entertainment Inc, allows users to create a copy of a DVD for their
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Social network software maker, Slide Inc has signed a deal with major media companies to distribute video content on Facebook, capitalizing on the success of social networking. The distribution partnership includes CBS Corp's CBS Interactive, Comcast Corp's E! Entertainment channel, Time Warner Inc's Warner Brothers as well as News Corp and NBC Universal's jointly-owned video
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Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said on Tuesday the global financial crisis will sap consumer and business spending, affecting all companies, including his own. "Financial issues are going to affect both business spending and consumer spending, and particularly … spending by the financial services industry," Ballmer told reporters on the sidelines of a news conference
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