Off the Wires

Oil Caps Longest Rally in Two Years on Iran

February 24th, 2012 | Source: Bloomberg

Oil capped its longest rally since January 2010 as escalating tension with Iran threatens supplies and on signs of a global economic recovery.

Futures advanced above $109 a barrel for the first time in almost 10 months as sanctions against the Persian Gulf nation make it more difficult to sell oil. Iran dismissed UN atomic inspectors’ concerns that nuclear-weapon work is occurring, a document acquired by Bloomberg News showed. U.S., French and South Korean consumer confidence gained, reports showed today.

“Everyone is looking at $110 oil,” said Stephen Schork, president of the Schork Group in Villanova, Pennsylvania. “The tension between Iran and the West has risen to an incredible level. We’re trading on fear that this will deteriorate into a new war in the Middle East.”

Why Renters Rule U.S. Housing Market

February 23rd, 2012 | Source: Bloomberg

Think of all the recent federal programs to keep people who can’t afford them in their four- bedroom houses.

There are the Home Affordable Modification Program, the Home Affordable Refinancing Program and the Emergency Homeowners’ Loan Program. In addition, there are Hope Now, Hope for Homeowners, the Hardest Hit Funds and, most recently, the proposal to expand HARP to distressed mortgages not covered by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

-- Hopeless HAMP: The administration initially said this program would relieve 3 million to 4 million distressed homeowners, but it’s been a miserable failure. That was to be expected because loose-lending practices put many people in houses so unaffordable that, short of canceling their monthly mortgage payments completely, no modification would return them to financial health. About the only thing HAMP has done is delay foreclosures while lenders, under federal government edict, attempt to modify home loans to reduce total monthly payments on mortgage, credit-card and other debt to 31 percent of income.

The Real Cost of Mardi Gras

February 18th, 2012 | Source: Bloomberg

Mardi Gras, with its masquerade balls, beads, and floats is a financial fest for New Orleans. One million people will jam the city's streets during the two weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday (Feb. 21), says Jennifer Day at the New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau.

In 2011, those visitors had a $300 million economic impact on the city, accounting for 1.5 percent of New Orleans' gross domestic product, according to a study of Mardi Gras prepared by Toni Weiss, an economics professor at Tulane University.

U.S. Air Force May Buy 18,000 Apple IPad 2s

February 10th, 2012 | Source: Bloomberg

The U.S. Air Force may buy as many as 18,000 iPad2s in what would be one of the military’s biggest orders of computer tablets, accelerating Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s inroads into the federal government.

The service’s Air Mobility Command plans to issue a request for proposals to buy between 63 and 18,000 “iPad 2, Brand Name or Equal devices” to lighten the load of flight crews, according to a notice posted on the Federal Business Opportunities website.

The goal is to replace the bag of manuals and navigation charts weighing as much as 40 pounds that are carried by pilots and navigators, said Captain Kathleen Ferrero, a spokeswoman for the command.

“The airline industry is way ahead of us on this,” she said in a telephone interview. “Most, if not all of the major airliners are already switching to tablets.”

Harvard’s Tax Spurs Providence to Press Brown

February 8th, 2012 | Source: Bloomberg

Brown University, the Ivy League school whose endowment grew to $2.5 billion last year, may boost voluntary tax payments to Providence, Rhode Island, after the city said it was nearing bankruptcy.

Governor Lincoln Chafee last week intervened to restart talks over the university’s so-called payments in lieu of taxes after Mayor Angel Taveras, 41, said Providence was about to run out of cash. While Brown is tax exempt, it has been paying more than $1 million a year since 2003 to help compensate for public services it uses. In May, Taveras sought a $5 million increase.

Providence is seeking to emulate Boston, which is on pace to raise collections in lieu of taxes from Harvard University and other institutions by 25 percent to about $19 million this year, city documents show. Mayor Thomas M. Menino is trying to double the number of schools, hospitals and cultural institutions that pay by pressing more than 20 that gave nothing last year.

Feds Seize Sports Streaming Domains in New Super Bowl Crackdown

February 3rd, 2012 | Source: TorrentFreak

In a new round of seizures the US authorities have taken control of domain names belonging to several popular sports streaming sites including Firstrowsports.tv, Firstrowsports.com and Soccertvlive.net.

All affected sites now redirect to a notice from DOJ/ICE. In common with last year’s campaign, the new round of seizures appears to be part of another “Super Bowl Crackdown” targeting sites that link to unauthorized sports streams.

Is Israel preparing to attack Iran?

February 2nd, 2012 | Source: Washington Post

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has a lot on his mind these days, from cutting the defense budget to managing the drawdown of U.S. forces in Afghanistan. But his biggest worry is the growing possibility that Israel will attack Iran over the next few months.

Panetta believes there is a strong likelihood that Israel will strike Iran in April, May or June — before Iran enters what Israelis described as a “zone of immunity” to commence building a nuclear bomb. Very soon, the Israelis fear, the Iranians will have stored enough enriched uranium in deep underground facilities to make a weapon — and only the United States could then stop them militarily.

Bernanke Sees Improvement in Economy

February 2nd, 2012 | Source: Bloomberg

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the economy has shown signs of improvement while remaining vulnerable to shocks, and he called on lawmakers to reduce the long-term U.S. budget deficit.

“Fortunately, over the past few months, indicators of spending, production, and job-market activity have shown some signs of improvement,” Bernanke said today, according to prepared testimony to the House Budget Committee in Washington. “The outlook remains uncertain, however, and close monitoring of economic developments will remain necessary.”

Treasure hunter claims $3bn WWII-era find off US coast

February 1st, 2012 | Source: BBC

A Maine treasure hunter says he has discovered a WWII-era shipwreck filled with platinum, now worth $3bn (£1.9bn).

Greg Brooks of Sub Sea Research says a wreck sitting 50 miles (80km) off the US Atlantic coast is the SS Port Nicholson, sunk in 1942.

The Port Nicholson, a British merchant ship, was torpedoed by a German U-boat in an attack that killed six people.

Some have expressed doubts the wreck holds platinum, and maritime law would complicate ownership claims.

Anthony Shusta, an attorney representing the British government, says it is unclear if the ship ever carried platinum.

"We're still researching what was on the vessel," Mr Shusta told the Associated Press news agency. "Our initial research indicated it was mostly machinery and military stores."

Ratings agencies to be quizzed over MF Global

January 30th, 2012 | Source: FT.com

Lawmakers to grill Moody’s and S&P

Moody’s Investors Service “did not have any understanding” that MF Global, the failed futures broker, had placed a $6.3bn proprietary bet on the debt of troubled European sovereigns until about a week before the brokerage filed for bankruptcy, despite MF Global’s disclosure of the gamble some five months earlier in May.

The revelation, made in a letter by the agency to Congress obtained by the Financial Times, comes as US lawmakers plan this week to grill executives at Moody’s and rival Standard & Poor’s on what they knew and when ahead of the broker’s collapse on October 31.