Charles Schwab lowers cost of online trades Retail brokerage Charles Schwab Corp. said it is initiating a new $8.95 flat fee for online trading. The new commission rate kicks in Jan. 19 and includes online stock trades regardless of investor portfolio size, frequency of trade or size of trade. Currently, investors who hold less than $1 million in household assets at Schwab or who trade fewer than 120 times a year pay $12.95 per trade plus extra charges for trades larger than 1,000 shares.
Jet orders plummet at Boeing Co. Boeing Co. said its customers ordered just 142 commercial airplanes last year as the recession forced airlines to shrink. The net total is Boeing's lowest since at least 2003 and just one-tenth of the 1,413 orders in 2007. Meanwhile, Boeing delivered 481 commercial planes last year, up 28 percent after an eight-week strike by Seattle-area production workers in 2008 slowed production. Boeing had predicted 480 to 485 deliveries for the year. The deliveries were "a solid achievement," wrote Jefferies & Co. analyst Howard Rubel, who added that the achievement has not been adequately valued by investors. Rubel said Boeing delivered four more widebodies than he had expected and three fewer 737s. By delivering more of the higher-priced widebodies, as well as setting a record by delivering 88 of its 777s, "the results were a slightly richer mix than we had expected." The biggest seller was Boeing's workhorse 737. The big issue for Boeing has been its 787 Dreamliner, a new widebody long-range jet that had its first test flight in December -- more than two years behind schedule.
Banks told to prepare for higher interest rates Financial regulators told banks to have procedures in place to minimize their risks from loans when rock-bottom interest rates start to rise. The advisory came from the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, which includes the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Office of Thrift Supervision. The advisory wasn't meant to signal any upcoming change in interest-rate policy by the Fed. To nurture the budding recovery, the Fed has slashed a key bank lending rate to a record low near zero, where it has been for a year. When the economy is on firm ground, the Fed at some point will start boosting rates. Some economists think the Fed might begin to raise rates later this year to safeguard against any inflation problems.
Guilty plea entered in insider-trading case A former director of a global management consulting firm pleaded guilty to securities fraud charges, admitting making $2.6 million by feeding inside stock information to one of America's richest men in history's largest hedge-fund insider-trading case. Anil Kumar, 51, of Saratoga, Calif., entered the plea in U.S. District Court in Manhattan in a cooperation deal aimed at strengthening the government's case against billionaire hedge-fund operator Raj Rajaratnam. Rajaratnam reaped $19 million from investments made after Kumar, a former senior partner and director at McKinsey & Co., fed him tips between March and July 2006 about the acquisition of ATI Technologies Inc. by Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Streeter said. He said Rajaratnam paid Kumar $1.7 million to $2 million for his tips, including a $1 million bonus after the ATI and Advanced Micro Devices deal was announced. "Anil, you're a hero," Streeter said Rajaratnam told Kumar after the big score. Prosecutors say Rajaratnam and Kumar had a personal relationship after the pair met in business school in the 1980s.
Abbott to pay $22.5 million in generics case Drugmaker Abbott Laboratories has agreed to pay $22.5 million to settle allegations that it tried to block generic competition to a popular cholesterol medication, according to officials. The agreement was announced by attorneys general from 23 states and the District of Columbia, who sued Abbott to recover costs to state Medicaid plans. The multistate lawsuit alleged that Abbott and a unit of Belgium's drugmaker Solvay Pharmaceuticals made minor changes to the formulation of TriCor to prevent cheaper generic versions from being launched.
Sears will let third parties sell on its web site Sears Holdings Corp. joined at least two other major retailers in allowing third parties -- including some rivals -- to sell items via www.sears.com. Sears' latest push to beef up its Web presence follows similar moves by Wal-Mart Stores Inc., at walmart.com, and by Amazon.com, which have tussled recently over which company can post the lowest prices for new books, movies and music.
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