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Global Investment News Briefs

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South Africa Takes Aim at Both Short and Long-Term Goals with World Cup Bid

By , Managing Editor, Money Morning -

Not everyone cheered when South Africa was awarded the 2010 World Cup. Skeptics cited security concerns and poor infrastructure as potential pitfalls for the young democracy.

But now a month before kickoff, South Africa is set to silence its critics. The country has put the requisite work into launching the event and is poised to deliver on one of the world's grandest stages.

Just as the 2008 Olympics in Beijing shone a spotlight on China, this event will serve as a vibrant demonstration that South Africa, more than any other African nation, has arrived.

"Some people were saying it was a stupid decision to organize the World Cup in South Africa," Jerome Valcke, secretary-general of FIFA, told the Financial Times. "We will show the world that it was the right decision to organize the World Cup in South Africa and South Africa was able to provide, not only to FIFA but the world, with the best organization possible."

Better, even, than Germany provided as host in 2006, he claims. That's setting the bar awfully high, considering the 2006 World Cup was a resounding success.

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United, Continental Merge Into World's Largest Airline

By , Associate Editor, Money Morning -

United Airlines parent UAL Corp. (Nasdaq: UAUA) and Continental Airlines, Inc (NYSE: CAL) announced today (Monday) that they plan to merge and create the world's largest airline in a stock swap valued at $3.17 billion.

The merger is the is the biggest airline deal since Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE: DAL) bought Northwest Airlines Corp. in 2008, and it further demonstrates how an industry plagued by losses has devolved into a pattern of consolidation.

The "merger of equals," as described by the companies, would top Delta as the biggest global carrier, have combined annual revenue of $29 billion, and $7.4 billion in unrestricted cash. The deal should yield cost savings of $1 billion to $1.2 billion by 2013.

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Investment News Briefs

By , Money Morning -

Alcoa Narrows Loss, Misses Estimates; Financial Services Fee Part of Obama's Budget Plan; China's Exports Grow For 1st Time in 13 Months; Google Slammed With Complaints on Nexus One Phone; Femsa Sells Beer Franchise To Heineken; IRS Set to Audit Harvard's Investments

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Investment News Briefs

By , Money Morning -

Former McKinsey Director Pleads Guilty in Galleon Scandal; Unemployment Claims Drop; EPA Tightens Ozone Standards; Cold Snap Threatens Natural Gas Production; State Tax Collections Plummet; Oil Slides From a 15-month High

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Investment News Briefs

By , Money Morning -

Senate Approves Bernanke Nomination; Commodities, Markets Fall as Dollar Gains; Citi Shares Fall After Lower-Than-Expected Price for Stock Sale; Weekly Jobless Claims Rise; Whitney Reduces EPS Estimates for Goldman, Morgan Stanley; Report: AIG Asian Subsidiary to Have Hong Kong IPO; RIM Beats Estimates on BlackBerry Shipments; Palm Q2 EPS Misses Wall Street Expectations

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Investment News Briefs

By , Money Morning -

With our investment news briefs, Money Morning provides investors with a quick overview of the most important investing news stories from all around the world.

Survey: China Investments Will Continue to Grow Next Year; Japan's Q3 GDP Revised Down; Kraft Offers Changes to Cadbury Bid; Volkswagen Buys 20% Stake in Suzuki; Research in Motion Option Activity Surges; U.S. Inventories Rise for First Time in 13 Months; Sprint Shares Rise After Citi Upgrade; Neiman Marcus Hit Hard

  • A survey of 369 U.S. firms showed China will continue to be U.S. companies' top investment destination in 2010, the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Shanghai said yesterday (Wednesday). More than 90% of those polled by AmCham had an optimistic business outlook for the Red Dragon, up from 81% in a similar 2008 survey. The study also revealed that 64% of companies polled plan on increasing their 2010 investments in China, up from 58% that increased their investments this year. "American companies are finding that their performance in China is the bright spot in an otherwise difficult global picture," said AmCham Shanghai Chairman J. Norwell Coquillard.
  • Japan's economy grew at a much slower pace than previously thought, with government figures showing a revised growth of 0.3% on a quarterly basis, down from the initial 1.2%. On an annualized basis, Japan's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 1.3%, well below the preliminary 4.8% growth estimate. Consumer spending did improve thanks to stimulus measures, but the corporate sector continued to lag, the data showed.

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    Investment News Briefs

    By , Money Morning -

    With our investment news briefs, Money Morning provides investors with a quick overview of the most important investing news stories from all around the world.

    Gold Stretches Record Run; GM CEO Henderson Out; Philly Fed Calls For Interest Rate Hike; U.S. Auto Sales Edge Up in November; Chinese Manufacturing Continues to Expand; U.S. ISM Index Shows Slower Growth; Late Auto Payments in the U.S. Rise; The Clock is Ticking for Saab; Staples' Profit, Revenue Beat the Street

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    Investment News Briefs

    By , Money Morning -

    With our investment news briefs, Money Morning provides investors with a quick overview of the most important investing news stories from all around the world. GM May Keep Saab After Deal Falls Apart; Third Quarter GDP Revised Down; Home Prices Rise for Fourth Straight Month; European Commission Drops Qualcomm Antitrust Inquiry; Fitch Downgrades Mexico; Bank […]

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    Investment News Briefs

    By , Money Morning -

    Existing Home Sales Up 10% in Oct.; IMF: Dollar Not at Risk; Cadbury Stock Gains On Rumors of Competing Bid; Microsoft and News Corp. in Discussing Possible Pact; Tyson Earnings Beats Street; Campbell Soup Raises Forecast; Holiday Shoppers Preparing to Pare Spending; Twitter IPO a Possibility

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    Investment News Briefs

    By , Money Morning -

    AOL to Cut One-Third of Workforce; Geithner Rebuffs Calls for Resignation; Oil Follows Equities' Decline; Leading Indicators Hit Two-Year High; U.S. Making Plans for New Iran Sanctions; DirecTV Won't Rule Out Possible Takeover;

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    Although President Obama Warns of a "Double-Dip" Recession, Money Morning Expects U.S. Recovery to Continue

    By , Money Morning -

    retirement blackout In a warning that focuses on the need to contain the soaring federal deficit, U.S. President Barack Obama yesterday (Wednesday) said that a continued accumulation of government debt could be enough to blunt the recovery and then drop the U.S. economy into a “double-dip” recession.

    It was President Obama's most-severe warning yet about the dangers of growing budget deficits at a time when the U.S. unemployment rate is at 10.2% and climbing. The comments were made to Fox News during an interview granted in Beijing during the president's nine-day trip through Asia.

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    Investment News Briefs

    By , Money Morning -

    U.S. Rep: Give Regulators Power to Break Up Financial Giants; GM IPO Could Come in Q4 2010, Official Says; Fed May Not Increase Interest Rates Until 2012; Wells Fargo to Buy Back $1.3 Billion in Auction Debt; GE Says Appliance and Lighting Businesses Improving; October Housing Starts Miss Estimates; DirecTV Hires Pepsi Exec as New CEO; AMD to Pay Off $1 Billion in Debt;

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    Investment News Briefs

    By , Money Morning -

    Hu Silent on Yuan; Troubled U.S. Banks May Get Chinese Bailout; SEC Sanctions Doubled in Last Fiscal Year; October PPI Gains; Playboy CFO Quits Amid Talk of Buyout; U.S. Home Builders Still Discouraged; GM Could Lay Off Up to 10,000 European Workers; Costco Stops Coke Product Orders Over Price Dispute

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    Investment News Briefs

    By , Money Morning -

    "New" GM to Begin Bailout Repayment; Dollar Drops to 15-Month Low, Gold Continues Record Highs; SEC to Investigate Trading Prior to 3Com/HP Deal; Sprint Pays Down Loan, Stock is Upgraded; Canon to Buy Europe's Largest Printer Maker; Hitachi to Raise $4.6 Billion in Stock and Bond Sale; Cisco Ups Bid for Video Conference Equipment Maker; Millions of U.S. Taxpayers May Unexpectedly Owe, Treasury Says

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    Investment News Briefs

    By , Money Morning -

    Intel Pays AMD $1.25 Billion to Settle Multi-Year Lawsuit; WalMart Forecasts Bleak Holiday Sales on Surging Unemployment News; FHA Capital Reserves Lowest in History; Commercial Paper Market Falls For Second Week in Row; Better Ad Market Helps Disney Profit, Sales Grow; British Airways, Iberia to Merge; Barofsky: TARP Will Be a Loss For Taxpayers; Activision Sees Sales of $310 Million on First Day of Game’s Release

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