A loss of confidence in the government sponsored mortgage firms Federal National Mortgage Association (NYSE: FNM), or Fannie Mae, and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (NYSE: FRE), or Freddie Mac, resulted in both companies shares plunging about 15% to 14 year lows. Because the two are the largest providers of funding for mortgages in the U.S., their troubles are significant as both may have to issue billions of dollars in stock to save themselves, diluting current shareholders, according to the Wall Street Journal.
For 75 years the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers have been owned by the Rooney family, but that may now change as the Wall Street Journal reported that the family is seeking to sell the football team which is valued at about $1.2B. One potential buyer is Stanley Druckenmiller, a billionaire, and chairman of Duquesne Capital Management in Pittsburgh.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown yesterday raised the issue of visa problems facing BP Plc (NYSE: BP) employees in Russia with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, but Medvedev did not make any concessions on the issue, according to the Financial Times. Some people have suggested that BP's billionaire partners in its Russian joint venture, TNK-BP, have orchestrated the visa problems in order to gain control of the venture.
A newly published report by Standard & Poor's said that the performance of organizations such as Federal National Mortgage Association (NYSE: FNM), or Fannie Mae, and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (NYSE: FRE), or Freddie Mac, could directly affect the U.S. economy and the country's credit rating, especially if they have to be rescued by the government, according to the Wall Street Journal's "Credit Markets" column.
Seagate Technology LLC (NYSE: STX), a hard drive maker, filed a patent infringement suit in San Francisco against STEC Inc (NASDAQ: STEC) over four patents related to technology used to store data on computer chips, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The Financial Times reported that Citigroup Incorporated (NYSE: C) is allowing private equity groups such as Apollo, The Blackstone Group LP (NYSE: BX) and TPG that are bidding for up to $12B of its leveraged loans to 'cherry-pick' from a wide range of assets with different credit ratings and prices.
To help stabilize the housing market, the Wall Street Journal reported that the Bush Administration is planning to help create fresh funding for mortgages. The plan, which still requires final approval, is said to ease an excess-capital requirement for government sponsored organizations Federal National Mortgage Association (NYSE: FNM), or Fannie Mae, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (NYSE: FRE), or Freddie Mac, and the Federal Housing Administration.
The Wall Street Journal also reported that a merger between Northwest Airlines Corporation (NYSE: NWA) and Delta Air Lines Inc (NYSE: DAL) may be derailed after Delta pilots notified executives they remain unable to reach an agreement with Northwest pilots on how to integrate pilot ranks should the two combine.
The Financial Times reported that BAE Systems Plc (OTC: BAESY) won a $715M order to supply nearly 1,500 mine-resistant vehicles from the U.S. government.
OTHER PAPERS:
The Chinese government has locked out Australian mining giants BHP Billiton Limited (NYSE: BHP) and Rio Tinto Plc (NYSE: RTP) from selling iron ore into its daily spot market, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Mining sources said that the decision may have already cost Australia up to $300M in export profits.
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