Nasdaq resumes trading after technical glitch

Trading halted for nearly three hours, latest in flurry of high-profile glitches on US markets.

Nasdaq is the second-largest US stock exchange operator, listing about 3,200 shares [Reuters]

Trading in Nasdaq-listed securities has resumed after being halted for several hours because of a technical problem in distributing stock price quotes. All traffic through Nasdaq stopped at 12:14pm EDT (16:14 GMT), the exchange said on its website on Thursday. It resumed nearly three hours after trading in Apple, Google, Microsoft and more than 3,000 other US companies had been abruptly halted. "Any brokerage firm gets paid by executing orders," said Sal Arnuk, co-head of equity trading at Themis Trading in Chatham, New Jersey. "So yes, we are frustrated, and this hurts us, it hurts the market and it hurts public confidence." A source familiar with the matter described the problem as a "data feed issue". Earlier, rival exchanges, including NYSE Euronext's New York Stock Exchange, had halted trading in Nasdaq-listed shares. Trading of shares not listed on Nasdaq continued, but transactions could not be executed on the Nasdaq platform. Options trading was also halted. 'Level of automation' Nasdaq is the second-largest US stock exchange operator. In all, it lists about 3,200 shares. "I can't remember this happening in recent memory," said Christopher Nagy, president of consultancy firm KOR Trading and a former head of trading at TD Ameritrade. Before the halt, the Nasdaq Composite Index had been up 0.87 percent. Thursday's outage was the latest of a flurry of high-profile glitches that have become familiar to participants in US stock markets. "As we continue to eliminate human beings from the execution of security trading, this is the problem you run into," said Stephen Massocca, managing director of Wedbush Equity Management LLC in San Francisco. "These events are going to take place, given the level of automation." On Tuesday, a technical problem at Goldman Sachs Group Inc resulted in a flood of erroneous orders being sent to US equity options markets. Two weeks earlier, on August 6, stock exchange operator BATS Global Markets was hit with a nearly hour-long outage.

India firm buys stake in Mozambique gas field

ONGC secures 10 percent holding for $2.64bn in gas field with potential to become one of world's largest.

Demand for gas in India outstrips consumption, but prices have been kept low for strategic industries [Reuters]

India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC.NS) has agreed to buy a 10 percent stake in a gas field offshore Mozambique from Texas-based Anadarko Petroleum Corp for $2.64bn. ONGC is aiming to offset diminishing supplies from domestic gas fields by buying overseas assets, according to the Reuters news agency. Anadarko's (APC.N) stake is the latest in a handful of overseas assets that ONGC Videsh, the overseas business unit of state-controlled ONGC, has bought in the past couple of years to boost India's energy needs. In June, ONGC and state-run Oil India Ltd (OILI.NS) signed a deal to buy a 10 percent stake in a Mozambique gas field from Videocon Group (VEDI.NS) for $2.48bn. "There is a lot of energy demand and whatever volumes of gas we are able to bring to the country are of utmost significance," A K Srinivasan, ONGC's group general manager for finance, told Reuters. "Mozambique will be a big LNG hub for the future." Anadarko said it would remain the operator of Area 1, with a working interest of 26.5 percent in the block, which is located in Mozambique's deepwater Rovuma Basin. Recent discoveries have turned the Rovuma field into a major draw for global energy producers and boosted Mozambique's natural gas reserves to around 150 trillion cubic feet or enough to supply Japan, the world's top LNG importer, for 35 years. Rovuma has the potential to become one of the world's largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) producing hubs by 2018, and is strategically located to supply gas to India at competitive prices. Internal cash balance ONGC, which expects the cash transaction to close by March 2014, is likely to finance the deal through internal cash balance and fresh borrowings, Srinivasan said, adding that financing details would be finalised over the next few months. The company's bonds were trading at marginally wider spreads on Monday, underperforming tightness in the market, and shares fell as much as 3.8 percent in the Mumbai market .NSEI that was trading flat, on worries about its higher debt levels. Analysts expect ONGC's two recent acquisitions to lead to higher debt levels, although a credit downgrade is unlikely. "Given current market conditions and uncertainty about India, financing may be a challenge and we think most of it will come from the bank market. That said, a potential bond activity cannot be ruled out," a U.S. bank said in a note. ONGC, which has struggled to maintain output from its ageing wells off India's west coast, will be interested in buying more overseas assets to feed the energy needs of Asia's third-largest economy, Srinivasan said, but declined to give details. "The country is starving for gas, for our power development and any other development," he said. Demand for gas in India far outstrips consumption, but prices have been kept low for strategic industries, deterring investment in the sector. India has few energy resources other than coal and is the world's fourth-biggest importer of fuel.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to retire

 

Investors dance as Steve Ballmer exits

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced Friday that he will retire within the next 12 months.

Shares of Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500) soared nearly 7% on the news.

"There is never a perfect time for this type of transition, but now is the right time," Ballmer said. "We have embarked on a new strategy with a new organization and we have an amazing senior leadership team."
Microsoft unveiled its latest reorganization a month ago, hoping to better align the company's organizational structure with its new corporate strategy. Ballmer wants Microsoft to transition to a "devices and services" company, focusing on making hardware, online services and apps that work together seamlessly across multiple screens and gadgets.
Ballmer said he originally had planned to retire in the middle of the company's latest transition plan, but he felt the company needed a longer-term CEO who would be able to see Microsoft through its restructuring.
Read Steve Ballmer's letter to employees
No successor for Ballmer was named. Bill Gates, Microsoft's founder and chairman, will be involved in the hiring process.
"I'll work closely with the other members of the board to identify a great new CEO," said Gates. "We're fortunate to have Steve in his role until the new CEO assumes these duties."
Investors have criticized Ballmer for failing to groom a successor. Virtually every Microsoft executive who was an heir apparent seemed to fly too close to the sun and ended up retiring or being forced out. Windows Chief Steve Sinofsky and Software Chief Ray Ozzie are recent prominent examples.
Though Devices Chief Julie Larson-Green seems to be an obvious CEO candidate, many analysts are clamoring for Microsoft to consider an external candidate who could help the company transition away from the PC.
Infographic: A tale of two Microsoft CEOs
Ballmer has had a rocky tenure as CEO, a role he took over from Gates in 2000. The company was once the most valuable in the world, but Microsoft has lost more than half of its market value over the past decade. During that time, the stock has failed to gain any traction, mostly wavering between $25 and $35 a share.
Investors have been critical of Ballmer for failing to anticipate the mobile computing revolution. Microsoft trails Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) and Google (GOOG, Fortune 500)in the world of mobile software and devices.
Its late-to-the-game attempts to get the company into the mobile arena have largely fallen flat: Windows Phone is critically acclaimed but has gained poor traction among consumers. The Surface tablet -- the first PC of Microsoft's own design -- sold so poorly that Microsoft was recently forced to take a $900 million writedown on excess Surface inventory.
Mobile is only the latest bust for Ballmer. There was the Zune, Microsoft's ill-fated attempt to get into the once-hot MP3 game dominated by Apple's iPod. Despite a search partnership with Yahoo (YHOO, Fortune 500), Microsoft still has been unable to generate profits from its Bing search engine and other online properties.
And of course, there was Windows Vista, a disastrously buggy PC operating system that tarnished the company's reputation. The latest version, Windows 8, has so for been poorly received, as consumers have found it difficult to master the completely redesigned operating system. But Microsoft responded to some complaints with an update, dubbed Windows 8.1, that is expected to launch in October.
Related: 13 killer Windows 8.1 features
But there have been many hits during Ballmer's tenure as well. Windows 7 was the fastest-selling operating system of all time. Xbox and Kinect did the unthinkable last year, taking the lead in the video game world. And Microsoft's cloud and enterprise businesses have remained strong throughout the past decade.
Microsoft supported Ballmer throughout. Gates and Ballmer are longtime friends, and Ballmer was one of the first 30 employees to join the company.
"This is an emotional and difficult thing for me to do," Ballmer wrote in a letter to employees. "I take this step in the best interests of the company I love; it is the thing outside of my family and closest friends that matters to me most."

Banks face $2 billion U.K. credit card scandal bill

British and other banks will take part in the scheme to compensate customers in the latest of a series of scandals concerning misconduct in the financial services industry.

LONDON (CNNMoney)

Banks and credit card issuers will have to pay up to £1.3 billion ($2 billion) compensation to British customers who were sold identity theft and fraud protection policies they didn't need.

It's the latest in a series of fines, settlements and compensation payments in the industry as banks try to move on from a recent sorry history of manipulating interest rates, breaking money-laundering laws and selling individuals and businesses complex products that were inappropriate or not properly explained.

Regulators said they were setting up a program to allow seven million customers to claim compensation relating to 23 million insurance policies sold by Card Protection Plan (CPP), which was fined £10.5 million in November 2012.
"Customers were given misleading and unclear information about the policies so that they bought cover that either was not needed, or to cover risks that had been greatly exaggerated," the Financial Conduct Authority said in a statement.
Related: America's favorite credit cards
The policies cost between £30 and £80 per year and were widely mis-sold by CPP. Many customers were referred to CPP by the biggest names in U.K. financial services.
Thirteen banks and credit card issuers, including Barclays (BCBAY), HSBC (HBC), Morgan Stanley (MS, Fortune 500) and MBNA, will join CPP in the compensation program, which is open to anyone who bought one of the products since 2005.
Customers due compensation will be entitled to the amount they paid for the policy, less any payouts, plus 8% interest on the amount owed.
Other banks participating in the compensation program are Lloyds (LLDTF), Canada Square Operations Limited (formerly Egg Banking), Capital One (COF, Fortune 500), National Australia Group, Home Retail Group (HMRLF), Nationwide Building Society, Santander (SAN)and Tesco (TESO)Personal Finance.
Related: Ex-JPMorgan bankers charged over London Whale
The bill is small compared to the $20 billion the U.K. sector has already paid out to compensate buyers of payment protection insurance aggressively sold at inflated prices alongside mortgages and other loans for more than a decade.
But it comes as banks are still struggling to strengthen their balance sheets to make up for the cost of past misconduct and to meet new tougher rules on capital and liquidity introduced in the wake of the global financial crisis.
Barclays said last month it was looking to raise £7.8 billion by issuing new shares and debt to help plug a £12.8 billion cash gap identified by regulators. It is also shrinking its balance sheet.

Edinburgh Fringe: Comedy Shows 'Losing Edge'

As comedy makes up less of the programme every year, the popularity of theatre and international shows is increasing.

Comedy accounts for around a third of the programme at the Edinburgh Festival but for the last few years its share has actually been marginally falling.

It has long been the Mecca for all things comic, attracting some of the industry's biggest and brightest stars as well as being a launch pad for the up and coming, but since 2011 numbers have fallen by about 4%.
According to Kate Copstick, chief critic for the Scotsman, comedy at the Fringe is losing its edge.
"Everything finds its level and I think big prices in a big auditorium listening to people who are basically just serving you up a slice of their telly show cobbled together to make a bit of money (aren't working).
"People are maybe stupid one or two times but they're not perpetually, endlessly stupid and they're going to remember 'I paid £12 to see him last time and he was rubbish'," she said.

This year's Fringe festival runs until August 26

The Comedian David Baddiel has brought his stand up act to the Fringe for the first time in 16 years and believes the sheer volume of comedians could be the problem.
"One thing I notice after not being here for years is the bewildering amount of comedians here. There's always been quite a lot but now you walk along and it's like being in a zoo of comedians there's so many," he said.
Many people still come to Edinburgh to see comedy, to watch the big names or to discover someone new.
However the idea behind the festival is that people will also stumble upon something completely different that they had never expected to see.
Performers come to Edinburgh from all over the world and the variety is seen as impressive. For instance, Australia's most renowned contemporary circus has brought its show Wunderkammer to the Underbelly, a combination of circus, cabaret and vaudeville.

'The Amazing Bubble Man' from San Francisco rehearses for his performance

As the number of comedy shows falls, theatre has seen a marked increase over the last few years, proving there is a place for the thought-provoking as well as for the fun and frivolous.
One of the shows being talked about includes a play about the political prisoner Yulia Tymoshenko. Her daughter Eugenia has come to the festival to see the show and thinks a play can make a difference, particularly at the biggest arts festival in the world.
"I think it's quite painful for the authorities and the regime who put my mother in prison and others that people are not silent, that a play has been made about her and I think it's very hard to silence it.
"So for them it did make a difference, it made them realise the truth will be heard no matter what," she said.
The average visitor sees three shows while they are at the festival and it seems a punch line is no longer a pre-requisite for success.

Dustin Hoffman Undergoes Cancer Treatment

The Academy Award-winner's publicist confirms that Hoffman was treated for cancer and has been "surgically cured".

 

Oscar-winner Dustin Hoffman has undergone treatment for cancer, the actor's publicist has confirmed.

Jodi Gottlieb did not reveal what kind of cancer the Tootsie star was diagnosed with, or when the diagnosis took place.
But Gottlieb said the cancer had been "detected early and he has been surgically cured".
"Dustin is feeling great and is in good health," she said, adding that he will be continuing with preventative measures to avoid a recurrence of the disease.
Hoffman, 75, who won the best actor Oscar for his roles in 1979's Kramer vs Kramer and 1988's Rain Man, made his directorial debut with the 2012 comedy-drama Quartet.
The legendary actor has starred in dozens of other movies, including Midnight Cowboy, Little Big Man, All The President's Men and Marathon Man.
He is set to star alongside Scarlett Johansson and Robert Downey Jr in the Jon Favreau-directed comedy Chef, which is set for release next year.