08/14/2010 (2:03 pm)

Weyerhaeuser selling railroads

Filed under: marketing |

Weyerhaeuser Co. said it’s selling six of its railroads that operate over about 160 miles of track, to Patriot Rail Corp.

The Federal Way timber giant (NYSE: WY) said it’s selling the six railroads, including two in Southwest Washington, to Boca Raton, Fla.-based Patriot for an undisclosed sum.

The six railroads handle about 60,000 carloads of freight annually, Weyerhaeuser said, and they employ about 120 people total.

The railroads in the sale include:

— The DeQueen and Eastern Railroad Company consists of two railroads — the DeQueen and Eastern and the Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern railroads — that operate over a total of 87 route miles in southeast Oklahoma and southwest Arkansas;

— The Columbia & Cowlitz Railway operates over 8 payday loan.5 route miles in Southwest Washington;

— The Weyerhaeuser Woods Railroad operates over 30 route miles in Southwest Washington.

— The Golden Triangle Railroad operates over 13.3 route miles in central Mississippi; and

— The Mississippi & Skuna Valley Railroad owns 21 route miles in Mississippi.

Patriot said that the railroads primarily source Weyerhaeuser and International Paper mills, move finished products and serve some third-party customers.

Source

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08/10/2010 (6:27 am)

Stocks end lower as jobs report looms

Filed under: finance |

Stocks ended a listless session modestly lower Thursday as investors focused on the job market amid signs of a sluggish economic recovery.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) fell 5 points, or less than 0.1%. The S&P 500 (SPX) index slid 1.5 points, or 0.1%, and the Nasdaq (COMP) composite lost 10 points, or 0.5%.

The retreat came as investors braced for the Labor Department’s monthly jobs report Friday. The report, one of the most closely watched on Wall Street, is expected to show that the U.S. economy lost jobs in July for the second month in a row.

"We’ve got a market that seems to be waiting on pins and needles ahead of the all-important payrolls report," said Art Hogan, chief market analyst at Jefferies & Co.

Wall Street has been focused on the job market for signs that the economic recovery, which appears to be losing steam, can be sustained. Consumer spending, the main driver of U.S. economic activity, is closely linked to employment.

"Investors are waiting to see if the economy has hit a soft patch, or taken a right-hand turn," Hogan said. "Unfortunately, we need more data before we can determine that."

Reports on the job market this week have been mixed. The government said Thursday that the number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment insurance rose last week to a three-month high. But a payroll processing firm said Wednesday that private sector rolls grew more than expected last month.

Also weighing on stocks, the nation’s top retailers reported July sales growth that largely missed analysts’ expectations, though certain pockets remained strong.

Guarded optimism about the job market helped support stocks Wednesday, but gains were slight. The Dow added 0.4% and the broader S&P 500 increased 0.6%.

The choppy action this week came after the market rallied 7% in July, marking the best month in a year for stocks. Better-than-expected corporate earnings helped support the market as concerns about the debt crisis in Europe eased last month.

"We had a great earnings season, now reality is setting back in," said Dave Rovelli, managing director of U.S. equities at Canaccord Adams.

Jobs: The number of Americans filing for initial unemployment claims climbed 19,000 to 479,000 in latest week. It marked the highest figure in three months and compared with an upwardly revised 460,000 the previous week, the Labor Department said.

Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had expected 455,000 Americans to have filed for first-time jobless claims last week.

On Friday, the Labor Department is expected to report that the economy lost 87,000 jobs in July, according to a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com. The unemployment rate is forecast to rise to 9.6% from 9.5%.

In June, payrolls declined for the first time this year, with the economy suffering a net loss of 125,000 jobs. The drop was primarily due to the end of 225,000 temporary Census jobs that had swelled payrolls in May.

Before that, payrolls had been growing modestly since January as the economy gradually recovered from the depths of the recession. But the recent declines have raised questions about the pace of the recovery and stoked fears that the economy could slip back into recession.

Still, private sector employment has expanded for the last six months and job growth is typically sluggish following a recession, notes John Challenger, chief executive officer of global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

"The job numbers may be weaker than some are expecting," he said. "However, dips in the job numbers and other indicators do not necessarily mean an early sequel to the recession."

Retail sales: The nation’s top retailers reported mixed sales for July as the back-to-school shopping season got off to a sluggish start.

Sales tracker Thomson Reuters, which looks at monthly same-store sales for 28 chains, said that July sales were up 2.9%, just below the 3.1% growth expected by analysts. Same-store sales are a key gauge of a retailer’s performance at stores open at least a year.

Target (TGT, Fortune 500) said sales rose 3.8% last month, driven by apparel purchases, while electronics and other discretionary items remained soft. Shares were up more than 2%.

Wholesale discounter Costco (COST, Fortune 500) reported a 6% increase in sales, slightly higher than the 5.5% that had been expected. Excluding the impact of higher gas prices and favorable foreign exchange rates, however, sales rose 4% in the month. Shares fell 1.7%.

Teen stores The Buckle (BKE) and Hot Topic (HOTT) were two of the worst performers, reporting deep declines in sales for the month of around 9%, But two other teen apparel chains - Zumiez (ZUMZ) and Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) - surprised analysts with much stronger-than-expected sales.

World markets: European markets ended mixed. Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.4%. Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 were little changed.

The European Central Bank voted to hold its benchmark interest rate steady at 0.1%, as expected. In a statement, ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet said the EU economy strengthened in the second quarter and that activity in the current quarter has been better than expected. Looking ahead, he said growth is expected to be "moderate" and "uneven."

Separately, the ECB, European Council and International Monetary Fund said in a statement that efforts to stabilize the shaky Greek economy are off to a good start, though challenges remain.

Greece is undergoing a painful restructuring of its economy with the help of an €80 billion loan from euro area nations and a €30 billion facility from the IMF. The debt-ridden nation is expected to receive additional loans later this month.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei rallied, climbing 1.7%. The Shanghai Composite fell 0.7% and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong finished little changed.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar gained against the euro and the British pound, but fell versus the Japanese yen.

U.S. light crude oil for September delivery fell 46 cents to $82.01 a barrel.

COMEX gold’s December contract rose $3.40 to $1,199.30 per ounce.

Bonds: Treasury prices climbed Thursday, with the yield on the 10-year note falling to 2.92% from 2.95% late Wednesday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.  

Source

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06/29/2010 (12:15 am)

PokerTek signs $5 million funding deal

Filed under: online |

PokerTek Inc., a Matthews maker of electronic gaming tables, has signed a $5 million stock-purchase agreement with Lincoln Park Capital Funds to provide funding for the company over the next 30 months.

Lincoln Park, a Chicago-based asset-management firm, bought 100,000 shares of stock for $100,000 on signing the purchase agreement Thursday. PokerTek has the right under the agreement to sell Lincoln Park $50,000 worth of stock every two days for the next 30 months. The sale will be based on prevailing stock prices — based on the lowest three closing prices in the 12 days preceding the sale.

Lincoln Park also received 137,500 shares of common stock as a consideration for entering into the agreement. Lincoln Park will be issued up to 180,000 more shares of stock if it buys additional stock.

PokerTek controls the amount and timing of future sales. It does not have to sell any additional stock Lincoln Park.

PokerTek (NASDAQ:PTEK) markets electronic tables for up to 10 players of Texas Hold ’Em.

The company’s PokerPro system deals cards, displays them on private screens to the players and provides general information on a large screen in the center of the table. It also enables customers to set up accounts for betting and keeps statistical information on the games.

Source

06/15/2010 (11:48 pm)

RIM works on iPad rival, new Blackberry

Filed under: management |

Research in Motion Ltd. is reportedly working on a touchscreen Blackberry smartphone with a slide-out keyboard and a tablet computing rival to Apple Inc.'s iPad.

The Wall Street Journal cited unnamed sources in a report Tuesday on RIM's (NASDAQ:RIMM) attempts to develop new products to compete with Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) popular lines.

The new smartphone runs on a new version of the BlackBerry operating system, the Journal reported, includes the ability to read finger gestures to expand and contract images and move through screens low fee payday loans.

The new tablet device connects to cellular networks via a BlackBerry phone, the paper reported, and could come out by the end of the year.

RIM's North American smartphone market share plunged to 38 percent in the March quarter from 54 percent a year earlier, while Apple's share grew to 23 percent from 18 percent.

Source

06/08/2010 (6:33 pm)

Desperately seeking COBRA subsidy

Filed under: money |

If you lose your job after June 1, you’ll see more than just your paycheck disappear. You also won’t get the 65% federal subsidy to cover your COBRA health insurance premium.

That’s because House Democrats last week opted not to extend the subsidy in order to bring down the cost of a jobs and tax bill winding its way through Congress. Continuing the provision through Dec. 31 would run $7.8 billion.

The loss of the 15-month subsidy leaves hundreds of thousands of newly jobless Americans to shoulder the burden of health insurance coverage on their own. On average, the monthly premium alone eats up 84% of a person’s unemployment check, according to Families USA, a consumer advocacy group.

Dozens of people currently benefiting from the subsidy wrote to CNNMoney.com in recent days to say how crucial it is. Without the extra help, they said they could not afford to pay for their coverage and their treatments for diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure and other ailments.

"I’m unemployed. I don’t have money to pay for medical bills," said Stephanie Kohnke, a St. Paul, Minn. resident who lost her job in May and is waiting to be approved for the subsidy. "This is the worst time to lose that safety net."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said Tuesday that she plans to revisit the COBRA subsidy. However, she noted, it is a controversial provision that could be difficult to pass.

Stimulus subsidy

The subsidy was created in February 2009 as part of the Obama Administration’s $787 billion stimulus program. It was among a number of measures meant to aid Americans suffering during the Great Recession.

Those who lost their jobs between September 1, 2008 and May 31, 2010 were eligible to have the federal government pick up 65% of the monthly premium’s cost if they continued their employer-sponsored insurance under COBRA. Originally scheduled to last 9 months, it was later extended to 15 months.

Just how many people are filing for the subsidy isn’t known. But a recent Treasury Department survey found that between 25% and 33% of eligible jobless New Jersey residents were participating and most of them were middle class.

For a typical family, the subsidy reduced the annual cost of COBRA to about $4,725, down from about $13,500.

"Anyone subsisting on unemployment insurance cannot afford to pay COBRA premiums without getting help," said Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA.

Ann Bates is thankful that she has the COBRA subsidy that brings her monthly premium down to $181 a month. Without it, she’d have to pay more than $500 a month for coverage, a price she couldn’t afford since she only collects $1,450 in unemployment benefits.

A Cedar Rapids, Iowa resident who lost her office manager job in February, Bates said she must have health insurance or she couldn’t afford the insulin she takes for her diabetes. With insurance, it costs her $75 a month but without it, the price zooms to more than $300. And that doesn’t include the cost of syringes and test strips.

Debbie McBride knows exactly what the newly unemployed are going through. McBride, who lost her administrative assistant position at an aerospace company in February 2009, just exhausted her 15-month subsidy and is now left to fend for herself.

Unable to afford her $390 unsubsidized monthly premium, McBride refilled her five prescriptions last month. She has looked for cheaper health plans but can’t find one, especially now that she has diabetes.

McBride has yet to pay her June premium because she doesn’t have the funds. The La Habra, Calif. resident said she doesn’t know what to do.

"Where are we supposed to get the extra money?" she asked. 

Source

05/26/2010 (11:03 am)

Denver offers free Small Business Week seminars

Filed under: legal |

The city of Denver Office of Economic Development is sponsoring a series of small-business classes this week to mark "National Small Business Week."

Also involved in presenting the free seminars are the City & County of Denver General Services/Purchasing Division, Denver Metro Small Business Development Center, Rocky Mountain Minority Supplier Development Council and the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Here is the schedule of available seminars. Registration is required at www.denversbdc.org (except as noted). For more information on Small Business Week, visit www.MileHigh.com or call 720-913-1999.

MONDAY, MAY 24

Kick-Off Reception & Overview of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in Colorado — 4–6 p.m., Confucius Institute at the Community College of Denver, 1030 St. Francis Way.

ARRA overview to be provided by Maranda Pleau, Director of Minority and Small Business Outreach, Governor’s Office. Reception hosted by the Small Business Administration, Denver Office of Economic Development, Denver Small Business Development Center and the Rocky Mountain Minority Supplier Development Council.

TUESDAY, MAY 25

ACCESS Opportunity with the City & County of Denver General Services/Purchasing Division — 9–11 a.m., 1445 Market St., 4th Floor Boardroom. (Register by noon on Monday by calling Breana Parker at 303-623-3037 or visit www.rmmsdc.org.)

The City of Denver’s Purchasing Division procures goods and professional services for various city agencies. City buyers will be on-site to advise and answer your questions.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 26

National Healthcare Reform: How It Will Impact Your Small Business — 8–11 a payday lenders.m., Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, 1445 Market St., 5th Floor.

8 a.m. ― Breakfast and Networking.

9 – 11 a.m. ― Panel to include Lorez Meinhold, Director of National Healthcare Reform Implementation, Governor’s Office; Marcy Morrison, Colorado Commissioner of Insurance; Ed Regalado, Broker, Hub International Gemini Group; Leo Tokar, Vice-President of Marketing, Kaiser Permanente.

THURSDAY, MAY 27

Road to Recovery — 9 a.m. –12:30 p.m., Kimbal Hall, 700 E. 24th Ave.

During these tough economic times, learn what your company can do to better position itself on the road to recovery. (Individuals can register for one or more of the panel discussions.)

9 – 9:45 a.m. ― The Future of Capital ― Mark J. Martinez, Solera National Bank; Bob Martin, Small Business Administration; Jeff Romine, Denver Office of Economic Development.

10 – 10:45 a.m. ― The Future of Human Capital Management ― Tami Young, AdvenTech; Richard Del Valle, City & County of Denver, Career Service Authority; Janine Vanderburg, JVA Consulting; Jasmin Espy, Summit Staffing.

11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. ― The Future of Technology and Marketing ― Eric Elkins, WideFoc.Us; Bart Lorang, Cloud Services; Kim Dushinski, Mobile Marketing Profits; Enrique Gutierrez, Qwest; LaSheita Sayer, ZoZo Marketing Group, LLC; Ellsworth Grant, DBE Today; Mark Mitton, Carbon8.

Source

05/22/2010 (3:21 am)

UW-Madison awarded $3.7 million to study nuclear energy

Filed under: business |

The University of Wisconsin-Madison was awarded five federal grants worth $3,682,798 to work on projects to advance nuclear energy research and development, the U.S. Department of Energy announced Thursday.

U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu announced the selection of 42 university-led projects for awards totaling $38 million to be funded over three to four years through the department’s Nuclear Energy University Program.

“We are taking action to restart the nuclear industry as part of a broad approach to cut carbon pollution and create new clean energy jobs,” said Chu in a press release.

UW-Madison’s five awards include one grant of $616,073 to research and demonstrate technologies that will enable the safe and cost-effective management of the used fuel, focused on developing novel technology options to improve used fuel storage, recycling and disposal.

Three grants totaling $2.5 million were awarded to UW for research and development of the next generation of nuclear reactors that will produce more energy and create less waste with a focus on developing new reactor technologies with higher safety, economic and sustainability performance.

The final grant of $538,032 is for research focusing on creative, innovative and “blue sky” research in the fields of nuclear science and engineering.

“These projects will help us develop the nuclear technologies of the future and move our domestic nuclear industry forward,” Chu said.

Actual project funding will be established during the contract negotiation phase of the projects.

A list of selected projects can be found at: http://nuclear.gov/pdfFiles/NEUP_FY10_RDAwards.pdf.

Additional information on the Nuclear Energy University Program is available at www.ne-up.org.

Source

05/19/2010 (12:09 pm)

Charlotte-area school systems get federal funds

Filed under: marketing |

Nearly 40 public school systems in North Carolina — including four in the Charlotte region — will share $5.4 million in federal stimulus funding to help save money on utility bills and create jobs.

Grants have been awarded to the following local systems:

•Central Piedmont Community College: $200,000 to repair and upgrade the central energy plant for the uptown Charlotte campus and improve lighting. Total cost of the project is $210,630.

•Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools: $200,000 for lighting retrofits in 16 schools. The project’s total cost is $400,000.

•Gaston County Schools: $169,200 to upgrade heating and air-conditioning systems and add system controls for Stanley Middle School and North Gaston High School. Total cost of the project is $369,200.

•Rowan-Cabarrus Community College: $177,521 for lighting improvements, occupancy sensors and HVAC system upgrades. Total cost of the project is $194,546.

The grants program is administered by the N.C. Energy Office, part of the state’s Department of Commerce, to encourage energy conservation and economic investment in counties, municipalities, community colleges and public schools.

Source

04/08/2010 (7:18 pm)

Dow, S&P 500 at new 18-month highs

Filed under: business |

The Dow and S&P 500 ended at fresh 18-month highs Thursday, but tech concerns limited the Nasdaq composite’s gains ahead of a long weekend.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) added 70 points, or 0.7%, ending at 10,927.07, its highest close since Sept. 26, 2008, when it ended the session at 11,143.13. The blue-chip indicator rose to within 43 points of 11,000, a key psychological indicator, before pulling back.

The S&P 500 index (SPX) gained 9 points, or 0.7%. The Nasdaq composite (COMP) added 5 points, or 0.2%.

Stocks rose through the early afternoon as investors welcomed reports showing the pace of job losses is slowing and manufacturing is picking up both in the U.S. and abroad. The advance briefly lost steam in mid-afternoon, before picking up again near the close. Stock markets will be closed for Good Friday, although Treasury markets will have a shortened session.

Weaker-than-forecast readings on private-sector employment and manufacturing dragged on stocks Wednesday at the end of an up quarter, in which the Dow gained 4.1%, the S&P 500 gained 4.9% and the Nasdaq gained 5.7%.

Stocks have been on the rise since mid- February, as worries about a global debt crisis have given way to renewed optimism about the economic recovery. All three major stock indexes have risen in six of the last seven weeks.

On Thursday, reports showed that weekly jobless claims continued to slip, U.S. manufacturing continued grew at the fastest pace since 2004 and construction spending retreated. Reports coming out of China and the United Kingdom showed manufacturing activity picked up the pace in March.

"The initial claims number shows we are seeing shows slow and steady improvement in the jobs market and the manufacturing numbers are providing reassurance about the global economy," said Jim Baird, chief investment strategist at Plante Moran Financial Advisors.

However, he said Wednesday’s weak report on private-sector employment and the still relatively high weekly jobless claims numbers over the last few months show the jobs market is not recovering enough to spark economic growth.

"To get a good number tomorrow would be a strong indicator that we are moving toward a period of job creation," Baird said.

Jobs market: The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment fell last week to 439,000 from 445,000 in the previous week, matching the lowest level since August 2008. Forecasts were for 440,000 claims, according to a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com.

The Labor Department report also showed that continuing claims, a measure of Americans who have been receiving benefits for a year or more, fell to 4,662,000 from 4,668,000 the previous week. Economists thought continuing claims would fall to 4,618,000.

A separate report from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas showed that planned job cuts rose in March. Employers said they were planing to cut 67,611 jobs in March, a rise of 61% from February’s 42,090 cuts.

The biggest employment report of the week is Friday’s March jobs report from the government. Employers are expected to have added 190,000 jobs to their payrolls in March after cutting 36,000 in February. The unemployment rate, generated by a separate survey, is expected to hold steady at 9.7%.

Manufacturing: The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing indexrose to 59.6 in March from 56.5 in the previous month. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com expected a reading of 57.

February construction spending fell 1.3% after falling 1.4% in January, according to a Census Bureau report released in the morning. Economists thought it would fall 1%.

Company news: BlackBerry maker Research in Motion (RIMM) slipped after it posted fiscal fourth-quarter earnings and revenue that rose from a year earlier, but missed forecasts due to weaker-than-expected phone shipments.

The company also issued a fiscal first-quarter earnings and revenue forecast that was better than expected. But shares fell Thursday as analysts and investors expressed worries that the company is not keeping up with Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) and Google (GOOG, Fortune 500).

Primerica, Citigroup’s soon-to-be spun-off life insurance division rallied more than 20% in its first day of trading as a public company.

Autos: General Motors (GM, Fortune 500) and Ford Motor (F, Fortune 500) were among the automakers reporting improved sales in March, although forecasts were short of more bullish analyst estimates released earlier in the month.

Ford said sales rose 40% versus earlier forecasts for a gain of 55%. GM said sales rose 21% versus forecasts for a gain of 27%.

Overall auto industry sales were expected to rise sharply in March in comparison to a weak period a year earlier.

The dollar and commodities: The dollar gained versus the euro and fell against the yen.

COMEX gold for June delivery rose $11.60 to settle at $1,126.10 per ounce.

U.S. light crude oil for May delivery rose $1.11 to settle at $84.87 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest close for crude since October 2008.

Bonds: Treasury prices tumbled, raising the yield on the 10-year note to 3.86% from 3.83% late Wednesday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.

World markets: In overseas trading, European markets rallied. Asian markets ended higher as well.

Market breadth was negative. On the New York Stock Exchange, winners beat losers eleven to four on volume of 930 million shares. On the Nasdaq, advancers beat decliners five to four on volume of 2.28 billion shares.  

Source

03/06/2010 (8:30 am)

Fed May Lose Oversight of Small State Banks to FDIC, Reed Says

Filed under: economics |

The Federal Reserve, which is urging Congress to let it keep its bank supervising role, may lose oversight of smaller state banks to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Democratic Senator Jack Reed said.

“What seems to be emerging is the consolidation” of two Treasury bank agencies “with FDIC having some responsibility for state banks as regulator in lieu of the Fed,” Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat and a member of the Senate Banking Committee, said yesterday in a Washington interview.

Senate negotiators are working through proposals to put in place the financial rules proposed by President Barack Obama more than eight months ago, a process stalled by disagreements over the Fed’s role and consumer protection.

Lawmakers are negotiating language that may give the Fed oversight of the largest U.S. financial companies along with a new consumer unit, two Democratic congressional aides with knowledge of the talks said yesterday. The consumer proposal from Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, and Republican Bob Corker of Tennessee has so far failed to win lawmaker support.

Republicans and the financial-services industry oppose Obama’s Consumer Financial Protection Agency, and Dodd and Corker have scrapped the plan. Banks lobbied against the proposal, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon calling the agency “just a whole new bureaucracy” on a December conference call with analysts.

The Senate plan under consideration would put the Fed in charge of about 20 or 30 bank holding companies, said one Democratic congressional aide who declined to be identified because the talks are private. The Treasury’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which oversees national banks, and Office of Thrift Supervision would merge, Reed said.

Bernanke Setback

A loss of oversight would be a setback for Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke, who told the Banking Committee on Feb. 26 it would be a “grave mistake” to remove authority to regulate banks. Giving another agency the power would make it tougher for the Fed to act as the lender of last resort, he said free credit report online.

The Fed won endorsement yesterday from six Washington-based trade groups, led by the American Bankers Association. A letter to the banking committee said “it would be a mistake to limit the Federal Reserve to supervision of only larger, complex institutions headquartered in major financial centers.”

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner had asked the leaders to back the administration’s rules overhaul at a Feb. 25 Washington meeting. Later, groups including the Financial Services Roundtable and Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association agreed to write a letter, according to two people with knowledge of the matter, who declined to be identified because the meeting was private.

Small Bankers

The leaders then recruited the Consumer Bankers Association and Independent Community Bankers of America, which represent small banks, the people said. Both support the Fed as overseer of some state-chartered banks. The Senate legislation may give such power to the FDIC, which regulates some state-chartered banks.

A copy of the letter was sent March 2 to Michelle Smith, the Fed spokeswoman and adviser to Bernanke, the people said.

The Fed’s role emerged yesterday as senators negotiated the powers of a consumer unit at the Fed.

“Each of these pieces affects another piece in the bill,” Corker said in an interview. “Today has been by far the very best day we’ve had in the process.”

The plan for the Fed, still under discussion and may change, would abandon the single bank regulator Dodd proposed in his November draft legislation.

Dodd wanted to eliminate the OCC, which regulates national banks, and the OTS, the regulator of savings and loans, and merge their authority into a new Financial Institutions Regulatory Administration that would gain oversight powers of the FDIC and the Fed. The House passed a bill in December that merged OCC and OTS, leaving the Fed’s bank oversight powers intact.

Source

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