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Biostar Raises $3.6 Million

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:26:18 GMT

Biostar Pharmaceuticals has completed a private placement that raised $3.6 million in new capital. Biostar will use the proceeds to complete its new raw materials processing facility. By taking its raw material production in house, Biostar will lower costs and ensure its product quality. Biostar plans to sell excess raw materials to other pharmaceutical companies in the Shaanxi province.[More...]

Bulls Back On Track?

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:21:18 GMT

Good morning. With chants of "Dow 10K… Dow 10K" once again rising from the streets at the corner of Broad and Wall yesterday, it is easy to believe that the bulls are back on track and that we'll soon be looking at new highs for the stock market. And when reviewing the data inputs to yesterday's 204 point romp, it is also easy to don the Dow10K hat once again and join in on the celebration.[More...]

Ford's Main Problem: The UAW's Crippling Job Classifications And Work Rules

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:52:50 GMT

Ford's 2,215 page 2007 master contract with the UAW 1941 UAW-Ford contract[More...]

Your Kind of Day?

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:06:48 GMT

As a rule, I try not to read too terribly much into a "Fed Day" as there is usually a big batch of volatility that may or may not mean much of anything come the dawn of the next day. Maybe, it's just me. Or maybe there are others that find themselves inclined to simply stand aside and watch the nuttiness from the sidelines on "Fed Days." But in any event, the volatility after a Fed announcement, while fun to watch, may not be telling as to what to expect in the future.[More...]

The Dollar-Proof Portfolio

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:31:14 GMT

Don't put off this important piece of the financial-planning process.[More...]

What Investors Should Look for In Today’s Fed Statement

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:04:24 GMT

In its continuing efforts to nurture the fragile economic recovery, the U.S. Federal Reserve is widely expected to leave interest rates at record lows when it concludes its meeting today (Wednesday).[More...]

Are Discount Brokers Shares Worth Owning?

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 01:28:03 GMT

The third quarter was a favorable one for the longs. Except for a few short-lived, minor pullbacks stock prices moved higher through the quarter. Stock price volatility declined, takeover activity rose, and risk appetite improved to help the S&P gain 15%.[More...]

Technology Rises And Buying Facebook

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:54:11 GMT

Technology stocks have done well this year. The Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) bottomed out in March and by late October was up more than 60%. Tech has performed better than any other sector year-to-date – up 33.7% as of Friday’s close.[More...]

Buffett Gets His Cheque Book Out

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:17:34 GMT

Given the slew of positive economic data Monday you might have been forgiven for expecting a decent rebound in risk assets. There was a rebound of sorts in early New York trading, with the Dow up close to 150 points at one stage.[More...]

Five Ways To Ride The Commodities Bull

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:21:07 GMT

Commodity prices have faltered in the last couple of weeks, and much of the “smart money” is saying the boom is over. Don’t believe it.[More...]

Bank of Scotland could be forced to sell Citizens

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:48:00 GMT

Nov. 3--The Royal Bank of Scotland, which nearly collapsed during last year's financial panic, is trying to avoid a possible sale of U.S. banking arm Citizens Financial Group, according to Reuters news service.
A later government decision to rescind the ordered sale could keep Citizens Bank intact, but European Union regulators still have the option to force divestiture, according to news accounts.
The media have reported that RBS's chief executive, Stephen Hester, considers Citizens a "red line" issue that could weaken his company's chances for recovery if regulators force the bank's sale.

[More...]

Bank of Canada Governor Says Currency Intervention to Control Loonie Has Limited Appeal

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:48:00 GMT

OTTAWA - Canada's central bank must be prepared to rein in the dollar if it gets too high or risk hollowing out the country's industrial base, CIBC warned Tuesday, adding to calls for Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney to intervene in currency markets.
The warning from the chief economist at Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (TSX:CM) comes at a time when the central bank has held out the possibility of intervention, although it hasn't said it will do so.
The Bank of Canada hasn't recently used its power to buy and sell huge quantities of Canadian dollars and other currencies to affect the loonie's value, although it has done so in years past.

[More...]

Kelman Technologies Inc. Convertible Secured Debenture Financing

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:49:00 GMT

CALGARY, Oct. 23 /CNW/ - Kelman Technologies Inc. ("Kelman") announced today that it has reached an agreement with Epstein Enterprises Inc. ("EEI"), a corporation controlled by Seymour Epstein, Chairman of the Board of Directors and major shareholder of Kelman, to refinance a CDN$500,000 promissory note due on October 30, 2009 with a CDN$500,000 principal amount convertible debenture.
Kelman may elect to pay up to 5% of the interest on the debenture in kind by adding such annual interest to the principal amount of the debenture.
The Financing is subject to the final acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange.

[More...]

Farmington Council OKs Downtown Re-Development Plan

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 10:48:00 GMT

Oct. 14--FARMINGTON -- City councilors, in a 3-1 vote, approved a resolution that calls for the city to encourage redevelopment of downtown and areas around the Farmington Civic Center and Animas River.
Approval of the resolution at Tuesday night's City Council meeting comes after the city formed the Metropolitan Redevelopment Agency Commission consisting of locals' hired companies to form redevelopment plans and conduct public meetings.
The city will use plans formed by Albuquerque planning firm Sites Southwest and Smithfield, Utah, economic development firm Strategy 5 to guide redevelopment.

[More...]

RBC's International Wealth Management Business Appoints Leadership Team in Asia

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 13:49:00 GMT

TORONTO, Oct. 6 /CNW/ - The international arm of RBC Wealth Management, headquartered in London and part of the Royal Bank of Canada (RY on TSX and NYSE), Canada's largest bank and among the largest banks in the world, has announced the appointments of Matthew Yong and Frank Mu as President and CEO respectively of its Asia operations and the unification of its Asian operations under one umbrella "RBC Wealth Management, Asia."
Yong will be responsible for sales and distribution activities in Asia.
RBC Wealth Management also has a representative office in Beijing and a branch in Brunei.

[More...]

RBC Bank CEO to Retire

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 09:54:00 GMT

Oct. 2--RBC Bank CEO Scott Custer, who made the bank one of downtown Raleigh's anchor tenants and expanded its operations into new territories, is retiring after five years at the helm.
He will be replaced as CEO by his boss, Jim Westlake, the head of international banking and insurance for RBC Bank's corporate parent, Royal Bank of Canada, as well as the current chairman of RBC Bank.
Westlake's appointment is seen by some analysts as a sign that Royal Bank has big plans for its U.S. business -- and that executives in Toronto want to exert greater control over the former Centura Bank, a lender with deep roots in Eastern North Carolina.

[More...]

Ameriprise Buying BofA Fund Business: Acquisition of Bank of America's Columbia Management for $1 Billion Will Double the Size of Ameriprise's Asset Management Business.

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 02:46:00 GMT

Oct. 1--Ameriprise Financial Inc. of Minneapolis, indirectly benefiting from Wall Street's meltdown, nearly doubled the size of its asset management business Wednesday when it agreed to acquire Bank of America's Columbia Management mutual fund business for about $1 billion in cash.
The final price of the deal, widely anticipated in the financial industry, will be somewhere between $900 million and $1.2 billion, depending on how Columbia's $165 billion in assets under management change by the time the transaction closes next spring.
Bank of America has been seeking to raise cash after its balance sheet was hurt by the acquisition of Wall Street firm Merrill Lynch, which suffered bigger-than-expected losses.

[More...]

Yadkin Valley Decides to Suspend Dividend

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 09:50:00 GMT

Sep. 22--Yadkin Valley Financial Corp. became yesterday the latest local community bank to suspend its dividend payment to preserve capital.
Other local banks that have suspended their dividend -- Bank of the Carolinas Corp., Bank of Granite Corp., NewBridge Bancorp and Southern Community Financial Corp. -- also have experienced a major hit to their share price.
The range of decline from the 52-week high is between 39 percent (Bank of the Carolinas) and 87 percent (Bank of Granite).

[More...]

Farmington Weighs Prepaid Gas Contract Again

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 10:46:00 GMT

Sep. 17--FARMINGTON -- The city is trying to revive a prepaid contract for natural gas that stalled after city councilors approved it last year during the financial crisis.
About $700 million in bonds sold in conjunction with Las Cruces and Los Alamos utilities through the Royal Bank of Canada would raise funding to buy 30 years of natural gas supply from BP for Farmington and other communities.
The city's Public Utility Commission will review the contract and make recommendations to councilors on how it should be changed at a meeting 7 p.m. Oct. 13.

[More...]

Kelman Technologies Inc. Convertible Secured Debenture Financing

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 23:48:00 GMT

CALGARY, Sept. 16 /CNW/ - Kelman Technologies Inc. ("Kelman") announced today that it has closed its previously announced $500,000 convertible debenture financing with Epstein Enterprises Inc. ("EEI"), a corporation controlled by Seymour Epstein, Chairman of the Board of Directors and major shareholder of Kelman.
Kelman Technologies Inc. is a publicly traded Canadian company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the trading symbol "KTI".
With offices in Calgary and Toronto, Canada, Denver, Houston, and Oklahoma City, United States and Tripoli, Libya, KTI services oil and gas exploration companies with a full suite of seismic processing and on-line data management and data archival services.

[More...]

Abraxas Petroleum Announces Closing of Merger

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 22:45:00 GMT

Abraxas Petroleum Corporation (NASDAQ:AXAS) ("Abraxas Petroleum") today announced that it has closed the merger with Abraxas Energy Partners, L.P. ("Abraxas Energy").
A special meeting of Abraxas Petroleum stockholders was held on October 5, 2009 and the holders of a majority of the shares voting at the special meeting approved the issuance of Abraxas Petroleum common stock to the holders of common units of Abraxas Energy not held by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Abraxas Petroleum in connection with the merger and further approved an increase in the number of shares of Abraxas Petroleum common stock reserved for issuance under its long-term equity incentive plan.
The unitholders of Abraxas Energy will receive 4.25 shares of Abraxas Petroleum common stock for each common unit of Abraxas Energy.

[More...]

Agrium Extends Exchange Offer for CF to October 22

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 21:48:00 GMT

ALL AMOUNTS ARE STATED IN U.S.$
Agrium Inc. (TSX: AGU) (NYSE: AGU) today announced that it has extended the expiration date of its offer to acquire CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CF) for $40.00 in cash plus one Agrium share per CF share until 12:00 midnight, New York City time, on October 22, 2009.
Agrium President and CEO Mike Wilson said, "Agrium remains fully committed to acquiring CF, and as we have previously stated, we strongly believe that combining Agrium and CF will create a terrific company and significant value for stockholders.

[More...]

Quest Resource Corp. Announces Amendments to Loan Agreement, Including New Revolving Credit Facility, and NASDAQ Non-Compliance Notice

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 10:46:00 GMT

OKLAHOMA CITY, Sept. 17, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Quest Resource Corporation (Nasdaq:QRCP) ("QRCP" or the "Company") today announced it has entered into a Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the "Credit Agreement"), as the borrower, with Royal Bank of Canada ("RBC"), as administrative agent, collateral agent and lender.
The Credit Agreement was amended to, among other things, add a new $8 million revolving credit facility to provide QRCP the liquidity necessary to fund its Marcellus Shale development projects in Appalachia and pay overhead, working capital, and other corporate costs prior to the expected completion of its previously announced recombination with Quest Energy Partners, L.P. (Nasdaq:QELP) ("QELP") and Quest Midstream Partners, L.P. ("QMLP") into a new, yet to be named, publicly-traded corporation (which we refer to as "NewGasCo" in this press release).
Additional information about the Credit Agreement is provided in a Form 8-K that QRCP filed with the SEC today.

[More...]

Janice Fukakusa prendra la parole a la conference de Marches mondiaux CIBC a l'intention des investisseurs institutionnels

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:55:00 GMT

TORONTO, le 11 sept. /CNW/ - Janice Fukakusa, chef de l'administration et chef des finances a la Banque Royale du Canada (RY sur TSX et NYSE), fera une presentation lors de la conference de Marches mondiaux CIBC a l'intention des investisseurs institutionnels qui se tiendra a Montreal, le 22 septembre 2008, a 9 h 10 (HAE).[More...]

Janice Fukakusa to speak at CIBC World Markets' Institutional Investor Conference

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:55:00 GMT

TORONTO, Sept. 11 /CNW/ - Janice Fukakusa, Chief Administrative Officer and Chief Financial Officer, Royal Bank of Canada (RY on TSX and NYSE), is scheduled to present at the CIBC World Markets' Institutional Investor Conference to be held in Montreal on September 22, 2008, at 9:10 a.m. (EDT).[More...]

Nomination de Vijay Parmar au poste de president de RBC Phillips, Hager & North Services-conseils en placements, plus importante societe de conseils en placement canadienne au service d'une clientele privee

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 16:55:00 GMT

TORONTO, le 8 sept. /CNW/ - Vijay Parmar a ete nomme president de RBC Phillips, Hager & North Services-conseils en placements, plus importante societe de conseils en placement canadienne au service d'une clientele privee. Cette nomination est assujettie a l'approbation des autorites reglementaires.[More...]

RBC Banque Royale reduit ses taux hypothecaires residentiels

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 18:55:00 GMT

TORONTO, le 4 sept. /CNW/ - RBC Banque Royale a annonce aujourd'hui qu'elle reduit ses taux hypothecaires residentiels a compter du 5 septembre 2009.[More...]