| Harkin: Subsidies May Be Cut to Pay for Farm Bill
The Des Moines Register is reporting that some crop subsidies could be cut as lawmakers search for ways to pay for a new farm bill.
"As far as I'm concerned, direct payments are still on the table," said Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, referring to the more than $5 billion in fixed annual payments that grain and cotton farmers receive.
The House and Senate resisted reducing those subsidies in writing their versions of the farm bill and got money instead from increasing corporate tax revenues, prompting a White House veto threat. Harkin will be chairman of a House-Senate panel that will be charged with writing a compromise version of the bill.
Charles Conner, the acting agriculture secretary, has said that the administration would not approve a farm bill funded by new taxes.
Owens Corning plans to close New Braunfels plant
Owens Corning notified the Texas Workforce Commission that it will be closing its New Braunfels facility and laying off more than 100 employees in the process. The factory is located at 1851 S. Seguin Ave. According to a letter written to the Texas Workforce Commission by Owens Corning, all positions and jobs at this location will be eliminated sometime between June 16 and June 30 of this year. Some employees may be offered the opportunity to transfer to other Owens Corning operations, although this is uncertain. The letter states that the facility is being closed because its technical fabrics business has been affected by a change in the U.S. market for its products. Officials with Owens Corning were not immediately available for comment.
Does anybody read any more?
You've got to be kidding me. Way back in the special session the wonderful legislature, apparently riddled with the kind of people who took one too many blows to the head, passed a piece of legislation called the Tax Reform Act of 2007. Passed in the dead of night, there's a surprise, it's now drawing harsh criticism from the computer service industry as well as some of the legislators who voted for it in the first place. In the wonderful high-tech corridor of Montgomery County it could mean since the profit margin for most computer services companies is approximately the same as the tax being levied, most of these companies will in essence become non-profits. Fat chance. Say goodbye to a lot of high tech jobs. Those companies will quickly relocate out of Montgomery County and the rest of Maryland.
Meeting demand for oil-pricing answers
Stephen Schork, a former New York commodities trader who lives in Villanova, is attracting a lot of attention with his three-year-old newsletter that analyzes the wild changes in oil prices. Only about 100 people have agreed to pay the upwards of $10,500 that he charges for a one-year subscription. He shows up regularly in newspapers and on national television as reporters seek help in making sense of this crucial and volatile commodity market. This exposure during the year when crude oil prices nearly doubled has produced "a ton of people on trial subscriptions," he said. Schork, 41, caught a wave when the collapse of Enron and other factors came together to drastically change the oil markets. In addition to supply-and-demand and what OPEC is thinking, people with oil-centered lives now "have to worry about what some 28-year-old hedge fund manager in Manhattan, with billions of dollars of other people's money, will do next," Schork said over coffee at the MilkBoy Cafe in Ardmore.
Dreams, bullpen stressing me out
Last night I dreamed I was sent out to Turner Field in the middle of a Braves game, having seen not one minute of spring training and told to come up with something to write, ready to turn in at the end of the game. Oy. I used to have the old recurring stress-out dream in my beat-writing days. But now? Here I am the back-up beat writer in the middle of January. I'm dreaming this the night before I'm supposed to write one lousy fill-in blog for DOB? Such high standards you see, for the Braves/Man in Black. Or so sayeth my subconscious. Let me back up for a second. For those not reading carefully it's CARROLL again - hey! Wassup? Long time! - and I'm feeling a little out of it after submersing myself in hockey (hockey?) and a little Hawks and Falcons for the last three months.
Disastrous Dow tumbles again
Separately, the index of leading economic indicators (LEI), fell 0.2 percent in December after falling 0.4 percent in November. Economists thought it would fall 0.1 percent. Treasury prices were little changed, with the yield on the 10-year note at 3.65 percent, roughly where it stood late Thursday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions. In currency trading, the dollar gained versus the euro and was weaker against the yen. U.S. light crude oil for February delivery rose 44 cents to settle at $90.57 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. COMEX gold for February delivery rose $1.20 to settle at $881.70 an ounce. .
Minority Report: 12 months that changed Apple
There were others sour notes to the year, notably the ongoing investigation into Steve Jobs over stock options. Despite being exonerated of any wrong-doing by the Apple board, the investigation continues, terrifying investors and fans alike. Some early iPhone owners were outraged when Apple dropped the price of the device by $200 after just a couple of months. Meanwhile, users who hacked their iPhones to run them on networks other than AT&T found they were bricked and inactive after a firmware update. Apple left no doubt over their determination to ensure the device remained linked to its chosen telecoms partners. Naturally, there are lawsuits from irate users pending. There were two other key events that didn't make as many headlines as the product launches. The first was the announcement, starting with the iPhone, a version of OS X would be at the centre of all its devices.
Earnings Preview: Safeway Inc.
For the full 2008 year, the company expects earnings of $2.25 to $2.35 per share for the year, including the effect of an extra week in the 2008 fiscal year. Excluding the extra week, the company predicts earnings of $2.21 to $2.31 per share. STOCK PERFORMANCE: Shares rose 14 percent during the quarter but fell 13 percent in the past 52 weeks. .
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