The recent traumatic jolt to Japan’s economy, by lowering global energy demand,
has at least temporarily offset some of the Libyan uprising’s impact on oil prices.
But experts say there are limits to how long that buffering effect might last.
In addition to Japan’s nuclear power industry, the earthquake and tsunami also damaged nine oil refineries,
disrupting nearly one-third of the country’s refining capacity.
The $39 billion proposed merger of AT&T and T-Mobile could save the companies a lot of money.
For everyone else, it could cost a lot more.
No sooner did the two companies announce a $39 billion merger on Sunday than
industry analysts began assessing the impact on the biggest potential losers in the deal:
consumers.
If approved by regulators, the merger would leave just three major cellular carriers in the United States,
All the deliberations over what military action to take against Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi of Libya have failed to answer the most fundamental question:
• Is it merely to protect the Libyan population from the government ???
• Or is it intended to fulfill President Obama’s objective declared two weeks ago that Colonel Qaddafi “must leave”?
Egyptian voters overwhelmingly approved a referendum on constitutional changes on Sunday that will usher in rapid elections,
with the results underscoring the weakness of emerging liberal groups,
and strength of established political organizations, particularly the Muslim Brotherhood.
The Muslim Brotherhood and remnant elements of the National Democratic Party,
which dominated Egyptian politics for decades under Hosni Mubarak,
were the main supporters of the referendum.
Even as ordinary investors look forward to the prospect of larger dividend payouts by the big banks,
another group is poised for a rich payday:
bank chief executives.
On Friday, the Federal Reserve gave a handful of institutions, including JPMorgan Chase and Capital One,
permission to pay higher dividends, another sign of the predictable success of banks since the depths of the financial crisis they created.
Goldman Sachs has said it will pay off an expensive 2008 investment from Warren E. Buffett,
hoping to put one of the most difficult periods in its history behind it.
In total, the investment netted the billionaire investor $1.7 billion, or roughly $190,000 a day.
The Federal Reserve on Friday blessed the balance sheet of the Wall Street firm,
paving the way for it to pay back the $5 billion investment,
made during the darkest days of the Black September financial crisis.
Japan’s vaunted “just in time” approach to business has become “wait and see.”
Much of Japan’s industry seems to be in a state of suspension,
as the devastation from an earthquake and tsunami,
combined with fear and uncertainty over the nuclear calamity,
made it difficult for corporate Japan to think about business as usual.
And that has left many overseas customers and trading partners in something of an information vacuum,
With Japan’s nuclear crisis showing no sign of ending, the yen strengthened against the dollar on Thursday,
compounding that country’s economic worries and raising expectations the central bank will soon have to intervene.
Producer prices surged in February at their fastest pace in about 18 months,
lifted by high food and energy prices,
according to a government report on Wednesday that pointed to a buildup in inflation pressures.
In a second report, the government said housing starts declined the most in 27 years in February,
while building permits dropped to their lowest level on record,
a sign that the beleaguered real estate sector has yet to rebound from its deep slump.
The financial aftershocks from the earthquake in Japan gathered force on Tuesday as
investors fled from riskier assets like stocks, oil and gold.
Unnerved by a 16 percent drop in Japanese shares in the first two trading days of the week,
stock markets slumped as investors sought havens like United States dollars and Treasury bonds, pushing interest rates lower.
“This was a very scary day for global stock markets,” said Carl B. Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics.
