May 12, 2008

The Latest Business Headlines from WWJ Newsradio 950

American Axle Talks Hit Snag | United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger tells WWJ Newsradio 950 he thought a contract deal with American Axle was near – until the company proposed closing three plants. | Story | Related Podcast

Credit Union Deal | Bloomfield Hills-based T&C Federal Credit Union and Auburn Hills-based USA Credit Union expect to merge, Crain's Detroit Business reports.| Story

Health Systems Investing Millions | The region's major players are trying to capture a larger share of Metro Detroit's fast-growing health care market, The Detroit News reports. | Story

State Launches Tourism Campaign | Michigan leaders hope the 2008 Pure Michigan campaign will convince tourists to enjoy the state's beaches, golf courses, and fishing. | Story

Postage Prices Go Up | Mailing a letter costs a penny more than it did last week. The price of a first-class stamp is rising to 42 cents starting today. | Story

Stocks End Week Lower | The major indexes were hit with weekly losses of at least 1 percent after AIG reported a $7.8 billion loss and Citigroup unveiled plans to shed assets. | Story

This Week in 'Your Company'

Food, fuel inflation add risks as credit crises seems to ease.

UK-based bank expects more pain for U.S. financial system.

The Millennials are coming – and changing the workforce.

Oil and gas executives expect oil prices to fall.

Climate change pressure heating up for businesses.

Trade deficit drops more than expected.

Today's Worldwide Automotive Report podcast.

CREDIT CRISIS MAY BE EASING, BUT FUEL, FOOD PRICES ADD NEW RISKS TO ECONOMY

The worst of the U.S. credit crisis may have passed without causing a meltdown of the financial system. But, thanks largely to rising fuel and food prices, the economy is not out of the woods yet, experts say.

"We all hope the worst is over," said Amiyatosh Purnanandam, an assistant professor of finance at the University of Michigan. "I am not sure, though.”

Purnanandam said it will be “another quarter or so” before it is clear whether things like the federal economic stimulus package and the apparent stabilization of the banking sector will be able to overcome negative factors, such as high fuel prices and food inflation.

Purnanandam, whose work focuses on risk-management, securities, investments, credit risk pricing and banking, said Michigan still has a rougher economic road to travel than the rest of the country. He attributes that to the state’s continued reliance on the automotive industry, which faces challenges during an era of high gas prices and slow economic growth. More...

UK-Based Bank Expects More Pain for Financial System

Spring is in the air, and the credit crisis seems to be abating. But are the markets over-reacting to positive economic signs that have emerged in recent weeks? London-based Standard Chartered Bank thinks they are. "The U.S. credit crisis has most likely reached the end of the beginning," according to an analysis from the bank. More...

Look Out, Workforce: The Millennials are Coming

The labor market has been weak this year. But the outlook for 2008 college graduates is improving. That's because the baby boomer generation is reaching retirement age, and corporations are preparing for the impact. By 2010, an estimated 31 million Millennials will be in the U.S. workforce, outnumbering Generation X and filling the jobs left by retiring boomers. More...

OIL AND GAS EXECS EXPECT OIL PRICE TO FALL: Oil and gas executives say that the price-per-barrel of oil will drop significantly from the current high level by the end of the year, according to a survey conducted by KPMG LLP's Global Energy Institute. In the survey, 55 percent of the respondents said the per-barrel price of crude oil will drop below $100 by the end of the year. Twenty-one percent think that the price will close between $101 and $110; 15 percent predicted $111 to $120; and nine percent believe it will close at above $120. Forty-four percent felt that prices would peak by the end of the year, while 39 percent thought that they would not peak until after 2010. More...

PRESSURE TO ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE HEATING UP: What’s your opinion about the impact on human activity on climate change? In a business sense, it almost doesn’t matter whether you agree with most of the scientific community when it says humans are contributing to global warming. Public pressure to take action is intense and carbon emission regulations are on the way, according the Knowledge@Wharton Web site. Those regulations will carry significant costs. But many companies “are finding that investments in greener operations can offer more payoff than they expected, and some observers see large green-related market opportunities still sitting on the table for innovators to grab." The article summarizes the ideas presented by a conference held by Wharton’s Initiative for Global Environmental Leadership. To read the whole thing, click here.

MCCAIN URGES FREE-MARKET PRINCIPLES TO REDUCE GLOBAL WARMING: Republican John McCain, reaching out to both independents and green-minded social conservatives, argues that global warming is undeniable and the country must take steps to bring it under control while adhering to free-market principles. In remarks prepared for delivery Monday at a Portland, Ore., wind turbine manufacturer, the presidential contender says expanded nuclear power must be considered to reduce carbon-fuel emissions. He also sets a goal that by 2050, the country will reduce carbon emissions to a level 60 percent below that emitted in 1990. More...

STABENOW CALLS FOR ALTERING ENERGY POLICY: The public must pressure Republicans in the White House and Congress to change directions in the country's energy policies, which have pushed oil and gas prices to record highs, Michigan U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow said Saturday. Stabenow, a Democrat, said the rising price of oil, fostered by President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney's close ties to the oil industry, is no longer just a burden. "Now it is a crisis for every American family,'' the Michigan senator said in the Democrats' weekly radio address. More...

THE FUTURE OF TRANSPORTATION: Join WWJ Newsradio 950 for a business breakfast titled The Future Of Transportation In Southeast Michigan. The event will take place May 15 at the Anderson Theatre at The Henry Ford in Dearborn. The two-panel conference will discuss Detroit's future in moving freight and moving people. For more information, click here.

TRADE DEFICIT DROPS MORE THAN EXPECTED: The U.S. trade deficit narrowed sharply in March as demand for imports fell by the largest amount since the last recession was ending. The Commerce Department reported Friday that the deficit totaled $58.2 billion, down 5.6 percent from February, a larger improvement than had been expected. The smaller deficit reflected spreading weakness in the U.S. economy, which cut demand for imports by 2.9 percent, the largest one-month decline since December 2001, one month after the last recession ended. More...

WORLDWIDE AUTOMOTIVE REPORT PODCAST: We talk exclusively with UAW President Ron Gettlefinger about a new snag in the American Axle strike. What's Kirk Kerkorian's next move? Delphi has another rough quarter.

MICHIGAN MINORITY PROCUREMENT CONFERENCE: WWJ Newsradio 950 is a sponsor the 27th Annual Michigan Minority Procurement Conference and Trade Fair, to be held May 12-14 at Cobo Center in Detroit. The theme for this year's event is: “The Economic Turning Point Starts with Minority Business." The conference will provide opportunities for networking, training, leadership development and relationship building designed to position minority businesses for growth and sustainability. For more information and to register online, click here.