Obama Softens Stance on Protectionist Clause
Responding to international criticism over a “Buy American” clause inserted into the federal aid bill, U.S. President Barack Obama said late yesterday that he did not wish to send a message to international trading partners that the US was resorting to a policy of protectionism.
“I think we need to make sure that any provisions that are in there are not going to trigger a trade war”, he said in an interview with ABC Television. More
Panasonic Expected to Eliminate 15,000 Jobs
Japanese electronics manufacturer Panasonic – the world’s largest producer of plasma TV screens – announced today this it expects to lose 380 billion yen ($4.2 billion USD) for the financial year ending March 31st. As part of an aggressive drive to reduce costs, Panasonic will close 27 plants worldwide resulting in a loss of 15,000 jobs.
Obama Orders Executive Pay Cap for Companies Receiving Federal Aid
Reports indicate that President Barack Obama will announce later today that compensation for executives at institutions receiving money from the federal rescue plan will be limited to $500,000. Any amount of compensation above that level will be restricted to stock not permitted to vest until the loans have been paid back. More
New Car Sales in China May Have Surpassed US Sales
While the final results are not yet available, industry experts expect that car sales last month in China were – for the first time – greater than sales in the US. Preliminary sales figures suggest that 790,000 autos were sold in China compared to 656,976 in the US. More
