Tesco reviews property strategy

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d2828764-4105-11e0-bf62-00144feabdc0.html

February 25, 2011 11:06 pm
Tesco reviews property strategy
By Andrea Felsted, Senior Retail Correspondent

Philip Clarke, the incoming chief executive of Tesco, is examining the group’s property strategy in a move that some analysts believe could herald a further multibillion-pound disposal programme.

AB: Ratings Agencies Criticized for Going Easy on Mortgage Servicers

Ratings Agencies Criticized for Going Easy on Mortgage Servicers
By Jeff Horwitz
FEB 25, 2011 5:23pm EDT

Investors and analysts have howled over specific mortgage servicers' handling of delinquent loans for years. The ratings industry generally has not.

Frankfurt’s ‘Mainhattan’ Reaches for the Skies

February 25, 2011, 10:59 AM
Frankfurt’s ‘Mainhattan’ Reaches for the Skies

By Tom Fairless

Frankfurt’s landmark towers are gleaming anew. This week, the last of 2,800 staff moved back into Deutsche Bank’s 155-meter towers, nicknamed “debit” and “credit,” after a three-year refurbishment. Everything bar the concrete skeleton is new. The pair will be formally launched at a party on Thursday.

http://blogs.wsj.com/source/2011/02/25/frankfurts-mainhattan-reaches-for-the-skies/

AB: A Servicer's Alleged Conflict Raises Doubts About 'Skin in the Game' Reforms

A Servicer's Alleged Conflict Raises Doubts About 'Skin in the Game' Reforms
By Jeff Horwitz
FEB 24, 2011 3:12pm EDT

Carrington Capital Management, a former subprime securitization specialist, salvaged an impressive amount of money from its low-ranked residential mortgage-backed securities, thanks to the unusual strategies of its servicing affiliate.

2011 Outlook For The U.S. Trucking Sector (S&P)

The Road Ahead: Standard & Poor's 2011 Outlook For The U.S. Trucking Sector (00:04:14 min)

Despite volatile fuel prices due to Middle East instability and increased costs from rising wages and recruitment, the U.S. trucking sector's outlook for 2011 should continue to improve. As industry demand correlates well with overall GDP -- which should rise this year -- we expect overall industry tonnage to increase. In this CreditMatters TV segment, Standard & Poor's Director Anita Ogbara discusses our expectations for the sector in 2011.

Watch

Winters, Lord Rothschild to launch Renshaw Bay

http://www.ftadviser.com/2011/10/25/investments/winters-lord-rothschild-to-launch-renshaw-bay-uRZXrGyFDRZVIg6LbxBiPO/article.html

Winters, Lord Rothschild to launch Renshaw Bay

Former JP Morgan co-chief executive Bill Winters has unveiled an alternative asset management and advice venture with Lord Rothschild, targeting the UK's wealthy investors.

By Marc Shoffman | Published Feb 24, 2011

Rising Oil Prices Raise the Specter of a Double Dip

ECONOMY|FEBRUARY 24, 2011
Rising Oil Prices Raise the Specter of a Double Dip

By JUSTIN LAHART

A sustained and significant rise in oil prices could derail the U.S. economic recovery by stirring inflation and putting the brakes on spending.

Oil futures touched $100 a barrel at the New York Mercantile Exchange Wednesday—the highest since before the financial crisis hit in late 2008—before pulling back. Pricier oil drives up the costs of everything from gas at the pump to the raw materials used to make nylon and food packaging. That could mean higher inflation and prompt consumers, who lately have shown more willingness to spend, to cut back their purchases.

Home Sales Rise as Prices Fall (WSJ)

HOMES|FEBRUARY 23, 2011, 11:12 A.M. ET
Home Sales Rise as Prices Fall

By TOM BARKLEY And JEFF BATER

WASHINGTON—Existing-home sales unexpectedly rose last month, though a drop in prices to their lowest level in nearly nine years suggests the housing market continues to search for a bottom.

Demand for used homes increased by 2.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.36 million in January, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday.

WJS: German Consumer Confidence Climbs

ECONOMY|FEBRUARY 22, 2011, 2:35 A.M. ET
German Consumer Confidence Climbs

By TOM FAIRLESS

FRANKFURT—German consumer confidence is set to rise further in March following a jump in income expectations, signaling that domestic demand will help underpin the country's brisk rebound from the financial crisis, German market research group GfK said Tuesday.

U.S. Economic Outlook And The Implications For Structured Finance (S&P)

Standard & Poor's U.S. Economic Outlook And The Implications For Structured Finance (00:06:18 min)

Over the winter, the U.S. economy picked up the pace, although we expect it to drag a bit during the second quarter. In this CreditMatters TV segment, Standard & Poor’s Chief Economist David Wyss provides our economic forecast for rest of 2011. Topics include GDP, unemployment, interest rates, inflation, home prices, consumer performance, and commercial real estate.

Watch