Business Highlights: Yellen speaks; Credit Suisse takeover

Business Highlights: Yellen speaks; Credit Suisse takeover

March 22, 2023
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Yellen says bank situation stabilizing, different from 2008

WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says she’s focused on stabilizing the U.S. banking system following regional bank failures in California and New York. Yellen says additional bank rescue arrangements “could be warranted” if new failures at smaller institutions jeopardize financial stability. Yellen spoke Tuesday at the American Bankers Association. The Treasury secretary says overall the bank situation “is stabilizing” and the system “remains sound.” Yellen says government intervention has been necessary to “protect the broader banking system” and more rescue efforts could be necessary. Yellen says the 2008 financial meltdown was a solvency crisis but “what we’re seeing now is contagious bank runs.” Earlier this month, Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank failed.

Swiss suspends bonus payouts to Credit Suisse staffers

GENEVA — Switzerland’s government says it’s ordering Credit Suisse to temporarily suspend bonuses for employees after orchestrating a plan for the No. 2 Swiss bank to be taken over by rival UBS. The Swiss Department of Finance said Tuesday that federal law allows the government to set “remuneration-related measures” in cases involving Switzerland’s biggest banks. Authorities in Switzerland scrambled late last week and this weekend to cobble together a $3.25 billion sale of Credit Suisse to UBS. An outflow of deposits and years of trouble raised fears that it could fail and trigger an international financial crisis after the collapse of two U.S. banks.

Last call: Dodge unveils last super-fast gasoline muscle car

DETROIT — The last gas-powered muscle car from Dodge isn’t leaving the road without some squeals, thunder and crazy-fast speed. The 2023 Challenger SRT Demon 170 will deliver 1,025 horsepower from its 6.2-liter supercharged V-8. The automaker says it will be the quickest production car made. Stellantis says it can go from zero to 60 miles per hour in a scary 1.66 seconds, making it faster than even electric supercars from Tesla and Lucid. It’s what the performance brand from Stellantis is calling the last of the rumbling cars that for decades were a fixture of American culture on Saturday night cruises all over the country. Stellantis will stop making gas versions of the Dodge Challenger and Charger by the end of this year.

Public pension plan losses from bank failures were minor

The failures of two U.S. banks this month meant losses for U.S. public-sector pension systems that invested in them. Experts don’t see the holdings in Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank as especially risky for the funds, which provide retirement incomes for teachers, firefighters and other public workers. But there are worries that the funds have too many risky holdings. More aggressive investing is one way funds have narrowed funding gaps over the last decade. After years of benefit increases and funding contribution cuts in the early 2000s, funds were hit hard by the 2008 financial crisis.

TikTok updates rules; CEO on charm offensive for US hearing

LONDON — TikTok has rolled out updated rules and standards for content and its CEO warned against a possible U.S. ban on the video sharing app as he prepares to face Congress. It’s part of a counteroffensive against Western pressure on the Chinese-owned company over cybersecurity and misinformation concerns. TikTok’s CEO said Tuesday that the hearing “comes at a pivotal moment” for the company after lawmakers introduced measures that would expand the Biden administration’s authority to enact a U.S. ban on the app. TikTok also rolled out updated rules and standards for content and users in a reorganized set of community guidelines that include eight principles to guide content moderation decisions.

Stocks rally on Wall Street, even the most beaten-down banks

NEW YORK — Stocks rallied on Wall Street, including the banks most beaten down by the industry’s crisis. The S&P 500 rose 1.3% Tuesday, its first back-to-back gain in two weeks, after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the government could offer the banking industry more assistance if needed. The Dow and the Nasdaq also rose. Markets around the world have pinballed this month on worries the banking system may be cracking under the pressure of the fastest set of hikes to interest rates in decades. Treasury yields rose in another dramatic swing as the Federal Reserve begins its latest meeting on interest rates.

Producer claims Fox coerced testimony in Dominion libel case

WILMINGTON, Del. — A Fox News producer claims the network “coerced” her testimony during a deposition in a libel lawsuit filed by a voting machine company. The $1.6 billion lawsuit filed by Dominion Voting Systems alleges that Fox amplified false allegations that its machines changed votes in the 2020 presidential election. Abby Grossberg, a former producer for Fox host Maria Bartiromo, has filed a separate lawsuit contending that Fox pressured her to give misleading testimony during her deposition in the Dominion case. Grossberg’s claim is part of a gender discrimination lawsuit she filed against Fox. The network denies her allegations and countered with its own lawsuit, seeking to bar Grossberg from sharing confidential discussions with company lawyers.

French protests drag on after Macron’s pension plan push

PARIS — French garbage collectors, refinery workers and others are striking again. They are angry about President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to force the divisive bill raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 through without a parliamentary vote. Paris police said Tuesday that 234 people were arrested overnight in the capital mostly for setting fire to garbage in the streets. Protests were held in cities around France. Some of them degenerated late Monday into violent incidents. Macron has set a series of political meetings that day with the prime minister, parliamentary leaders and lawmakers from his centrist alliance. The president will speak Wednesday on national television.

Norfolk Southern supports some new regs after Ohio disaster

WASHINGTON — Norfolk Southern’s CEO is offering support for some parts of a bipartisan Senate bill to put tougher safety regulations on railroads. A fiery hazardous materials train derailed last month on the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. CEO Alan Shaw is under pressure from senators and federal safety regulators to step up his commitment to safety regulations as he appears before the Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday. Shaw says in prepared remarks that Norfolk Southern will “support legislative efforts to enhance the safety of the freight rail industry. But he does not address several key provisions of the Railway Safety Act of 2023. ___

The S&P 500 rose 51.30 points, or 1.3%, to 4,002.87. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 316.02 points, or 1%, to 32,560.60. The Nasdaq composite rose 184.57 points, or 1.6%, to 11,860.11. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 32.75 points, or 1.9%, to 1,777.74.

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