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| Sotheby's comes out with defense in battle with Loeb Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 09:28 PM PDT  (Reuters) - Sotheby's on Tuesday published a 53-page slide deck in its defense against hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb, who has been trying to force his way onto the board of the auction house. Sotheby's said Loeb, whose Third Point LLC is the biggest investor in the company with a 9.6 percent stake, and his nominees would add "no incremental, relevant skills, experience or expertise" to the company's board, according to a regulatory filing. In February, Loeb nominated three directors -- Harry Wilson, Olivier Reza and himself, to the company's board. Full Story | Top |
| Data trove shows U.S. doctors reap millions from Medicare Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 09:23 PM PDT  By Sharon Begley and M.B. Pell NEW YORK (Reuters) - In 2012, an enterprising ophthalmologist in south Florida received $20.8 million in Medicare payments, the highest amount the government health plan for the elderly paid an individual provider that year, according to a preliminary analysis of federal data. And a California laboratory apparently received $190 million, the most Medicare paid a single entity in 2012. After decades of litigation and over the strenuous objections of the American Medical Association, the leading U.S. doctors group, the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on Wednesday made public for the first time how much Medicare pays individual doctors. The massive data release, totaling nearly 10 million lines, also includes which medical services each of more than 880,000 physicians and other healthcare providers nationwide billed Medicare for in 2012. Full Story | Top |
| Non-banks notch a win in long-running derivatives battle Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 09:13 PM PDT  By Lauren Tara LaCapra NEW YORK (Reuters) - A group of small brokerages and large commodities companies convinced lawmakers to tweak a rule that they say would have made derivatives trading more expensive for them and sent more business to Wall Street banks that already dominate the market. Companies including INTL FCStone Inc, Nomura Holdings Inc, Cargill Inc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc lobbied a congressional committee to change a rule proposed by the U.S. Commodities Futures Trading Commission on how much capital they must hold against derivatives trades as dealers. Cargill and Shell have derivatives trading arms. Under proposed CFTC rules, these companies would be required to hold more capital against certain derivatives trades - also known as "swaps" trades - than banks. Full Story | Top |
| Japan, United States face off in crucial trade negotiations Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 09:02 PM PDT  Japan and the United States on Wednesday began a round of crucial talks aimed at concluding a trade pact seen as critical to the success of regional negotiations, although officials warned that bridging differences would be difficult. Tokyo and Washington are seeking a two-way trade deal, regarded as a key part of the U.S.-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) that is the centerpiece of Washington's push to increase its Asian presence, before U.S. President Barack Obama travels to Japan for an April 24-25 state visit. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has touted the multilateral framework as a key part of his growth strategy but the outlook for a Japan-U.S. deal is cloudy as both sides accuse each other of inflexibility. "I think if there is good will on both sides we can make progress on bridging our differences," U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman told reporters before talks with officials including Economy Minister Akira Amari. Full Story | Top |
| Olympus says six banks sue for 27.9 billion yen compensation over 2011 scandal Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 09:01 PM PDT  TOKYO (Reuters) - Olympus Corp said on Wednesday that six trust banks have filed a lawsuit against the medical equipment maker seeking 27.9 billion yen ($273 million) in compensation related to false financial statements on losses from fiscal year 2000 to 2011. The six trust banks include State Street Trust and Banking Co Ltd, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corp and The Nomura Trust and Banking Co Ltd. ... Full Story | Top |
| Two more 'pings' detected in search for missing Malaysia plane Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 08:58 PM PDT  By Matt Siegel SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian officials said on Wednesday that two new "ping" signals had been detected in the search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, injecting fresh confidence into the search that had been struggling with a lack of information. Angus Houston, head of the Australian agency coordinating the search, said one ping was detected on Tuesday afternoon and lasted five minutes, 25 seconds, while a second was picked up on Tuesday night and lasted seven minutes. Full Story | Top |
| Race to find Malaysia plane as 'pings' prove illusive Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 08:57 PM PDT  By Matt Siegel and Swati Pandey SYDNEY/PERTH, Australia (Reuters) - The search for a missing Malaysia Airlines jetliner continued on Wednesday, as the U.S. Navy said it had been unable to relocate possible "pings" from the black box recorders that had injected fresh urgency into the international effort. A U.S. Navy "towed pinger locator" (TPL) onboard Australia's Ocean Shield on the weekend picked up two signals consistent with black box locator beacons - the first for more than two hours and the second for about 13 minutes - at the weekend. Angus Houston, head of the Australian agency coordinating the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, said that the signals represented the best lead yet in the month-long hunt in the Indian Ocean. But Commander William J. Marks, public affairs officer for the U.S. Navy's 7th Fleet, told Reuters on Wednesday that they had so far failed to replicate the findings, raising concerns as time ticks down on the devices' batteries. Full Story | Top |
| South Africa's Woolworths set to buy Australia's David Jones for $2 billion Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 08:39 PM PDT  By Byron Kaye SYDNEY (Reuters) - South African retailer Woolworths Holdings Ltd is set to buy Australia's second-largest department store David Jones for $2 billion, trumping an offer from Australian rival Myer Holdings Ltd with a hefty premium. The deal, the biggest for Woolworths to date, creates a leading southern hemisphere retailer that will benefit from greater scale and a common fashion seasonality, and comes as Australia's retail market proves increasingly attractive to overseas players. Resilient consumer spending, fuelled by a strong local currency and record low interest rates have encouraged the likes of Sweden's Hennes & Mauritz , and Japan's Fast Retailing , the operator of the Uniqlo clothing chain to set up shop in Australia although acquisitions are less common. Woolworths, an upmarket retailer, offered A$4.00 per share. Full Story | Top |
| UK says investigating spy and police agencies' use of private data Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 08:35 PM PDT  By Andrew Osborn LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's law enforcement and intelligence agencies may be overusing authorisations to access private communications data, the official who regulates the activity said on Tuesday, declaring he had begun an investigation into the matter. Interception of communications commissioner Anthony May said he had also studied concerns raised by former U.S. intelligence operative Edward Snowden about Britain's GCHQ eavesdropping agency and cooperation with the U.S. National Security Agency. Full Story | Top |
| FCA launches inquiry into insurance review announcement Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 08:32 PM PDT  By Jemima Kelly and Huw Jones LONDON (Reuters) - The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has appointed an independent lawyer to lead an inquiry into how it prematurely disclosed details of a review of the insurance industry, sending shares in insurance firms plunging last month. The move follows complaints from the insurance industry body, which called on the FCA to learn lessons from the incident, but stopped short of demanding the removal of senior staff. The incident was described by Martin Wheatley, head of the FCA, as "not our finest hour". On Tuesday, the regulator said it had appointed Simon Davis, a partner at law firm Clifford Chance, to conduct an inquiry into the affair, which it added would be overseen by a committee of non-executive FCA board members. Full Story | Top |
| Asia rides Wall Street rebound, firm yen hits Tokyo stocks Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 08:28 PM PDT  By Shinichi Saoshiro TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares rose in early trade on Wednesday after Wall Street reversed a three-day losing streak, but Japanese stocks dropped sharply after the yen surged on fading hopes of near-term stimulus from the Bank of Japan. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan advanced 0.9 percent , taking heart from a recovery in U.S. stocks overnight. Japanese stocks, on the other hand, had a tough day on the back of the stronger yen which erodes exporters' competitiveness and their earnings when repatriated. The rush to buy the Japanese currency came after BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda offered few signs the central bank was ready to launch additional stimulus in the short term. Full Story | Top |
| Shuttle bus drivers go on strike at Phoenix airport Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 08:27 PM PDT By David Schwartz PHOENIX (Reuters) - Striking shuttle bus drivers at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport walked off the job on Tuesday in a labor dispute that could affect the estimated 25,000 riders who use rental cars and travel within the airport's terminals daily. Union officials said an estimated 180 drivers and other related workers took to the picket lines at the off-airport rental car facility that serves the nation's 10th busiest airport, protesting a contract proposed by Veolia Transportation. "We don't want to put anybody in the general public out, but Veolia is giving us no choice," Bob Bean, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433, told Reuters. Full Story | Top |
| Retailers cut prices at fastest pace since 2006 Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 08:02 PM PDT  The British Retail Consortium said shop prices in early March were 1.7 percent lower than at the same time in 2013, the biggest annual decline in any month since the series began in December 2006. Food retailers are already feeling the pinch, with Britain's "big four" grocers - Tesco, Wal-Mart's Asda, Sainsbury's and Morrisons - all being outpaced by sales growth at discount supermarkets. The BRC's measure of shop price inflation does not include online retailers or costs such as energy, transport and housing, which feed into the broader official consumer price inflation (CPI) measure targeted by the Bank of England. Full Story | Top |
| In smartphone mass-market, Samsung, Apple have margins on their minds Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 07:52 PM PDT  By Miyoung Kim SEOUL (Reuters) - As the smartphone action shifts to the mass market, leaders Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and Apple Inc are under pressure to make their high-end phones more affordable to revive sales. Samsung, which said on Tuesday it would likely post a second straight quarterly profit decline, has knocked around a tenth off the price of its Galaxy S5 in South Korea, in the first such move for a marquee smartphone launch - the S5 rolls out globally on Friday. The mass market - where a smartphone can be had for as little as $25 - is the new mobile device battleground, as high-end growth eases off with sales slowing in mature markets. Japan, for example, may see smartphone shipments shrink this year, according to researcher IDC. Full Story | Top |
| NBC sets online talent search for its next hit sitcom Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 07:39 PM PDT  Pasadena, Calif (Reuters) - NBC, closing in on its first ratings victory in a decade in the 18 to 49-year-old age group that advertisers most want, is hitting the Internet in its search for the next "Friends" or "Seinfeld." The contest, dubbed "NBC Comedy Playground," will give aspiring comedy writers a chance to submit videos and pitches that could be made into prime-time sitcoms, NBC Entertainment President Jennifer Salke told a conference of TV critics on Tuesday. NBC, a unit of cable company Comcast, will select up to 10 finalists to make pilots. An advisory panel, including Seth Meyers, Amy Poehler and Sean Hayes, will help select two shows that will air on NBC during the summer of 2015. Full Story | Top |
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