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President Barack Obama welcomes guests during the White House Music Series saluting Blues Music in recognition of Black History Month, Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012, in the East Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

President Barack Obama welcomes guests during the White House Music Series saluting Blues Music in recognition of Black History Month, Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012, in the East Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Republican presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum speaks during a campaign rally at the El-Zaribah Shrine Auditorium, Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012, in Phoenix, Arizona. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks at a town hall meeting at Eagle Manufacturing Corporation in Shelby Township, Mich., Tuesday, Mich., Feb. 21, 2012. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? A surging Rick Santorum is running even with Mitt Romney atop the Republican presidential field, but neither candidate is faring well against President Barack Obama eight months before Americans vote, a new survey shows.

Obama tops 50 percent support when matched against each of the four GOP candidates and holds a significant lead over each of them, according to the Associated Press-GfK poll. Republicans, meanwhile, are divided on whether they’d rather see Romney or Santorum capture the nomination, with Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul lagging behind. It’s a troubling sign for the better-funded Romney as the GOP race heads toward crucial votes in his home state of Michigan, in Arizona and in an array of states on Super Tuesday, March 6.

“I’d pick Santorum, because it seems Romney may be waffling on a few issues and I’m not sure I trust him,” said Thomas Stehlin, 66, of St. Clair Shores, Mich. He thinks the Detroit-born son of a Michigan governor is facing a strong challenge from Santorum in his home state because of his tangled answers on the auto industry bailout.

Also, he says, there’s this: Romney, the self-described can-do turnaround artist of the corporate world and the troubled Salt Lake City Olympics, with his millions of dollars, has been unable to vanquish his political opponents.

“That may be the reason right there,” said Stehlin, a retired government worker and a Republican. “He spends lots of money and he doesn’t get anywhere.”

Nationally, Republicans are evenly split between Romney and Santorum. The poll found 33 percent would most like to see Santorum get the nomination, while 32 percent prefer Romney. Gingrich and Paul each had 15 percent support.

Romney’s fall from presumed front-runner to struggling establishment favorite has given his opponents an opening as he tries to expand his support. His Republican rivals have stepped in claiming to be a more consistent conservative and viable opponent against Obama, and each of the last three AP-GfK polls has found a different contender battling Romney for the top spot. But Santorum, the former Pennsylvania senator and abortion foe, has hit his stride at a key moment in the nomination contest.

Santorum’s spike comes as satisfaction with the field of candidates remains tepid and interest in the contest is cools. About 6 in 10 Republicans in the poll say they are satisfied with the people running for the nomination, stagnant since December and below the 66 percent that felt that way in October. Only 23 percent are strongly satisfied with the field and 4 in 10 said they are dissatisfied with the candidates running, the poll found. And deep interest in the race is slipping: Just 40 percent of Republicans say they have a great deal of interest in following the contest, compared with 48 percent in December.

“It seems like in the last month or so everything’s just chilled out,” said James Jackson of Fort Worth, Texas, a 40-year-old independent who leans Republican. “I just haven’t been following it lately.”

Santorum remains Romney’s biggest threat. He won GOP contests in Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri and Colorado, stunning the GOP establishment that Romney has methodically courted since his first bid for the GOP nomination in 2008. The poll suggested more people are getting to know and like Santorum, with 44 percent of all adults saying they have a favorable impression of him, compared with 25 percent in December. The share with negative views has grown as well, with 42 percent having an unfavorable opinion of Santorum.

Among Republicans in that time period, Santorum has shot from 37 percent to 70 percent favorable.

There’s evidence that Santorum’s comments about social issues may not have hurt him so far among women.

The former Pennsylvania senator has been unapologetic in his opposition to abortion and his concerns about working moms, women in combat and contraception ? some of the many examples he cites while making the case that he would draw a clearer contrast than Romney against Obama.

For all that, there’s little evident gender gap between Romney and Santorum, the AP-GfK poll showed. Santorum, who made some of the comments while the poll was being conducted Feb. 16-20, runs even with Romney among both Republican men and women. And Republican women may be rallying to his defense: Seventy-five percent of GOP women have a favorable impression of Santorum, compared with 66 percent of Republican men, the poll found.

The enduring split between Romney and whichever Republican opponent is up at any moment reflects a familiar dispute in the broader GOP over whether to focus on social issues or financial matters in presidential races. According to exit and entrance polls conducted so far this cycle, Romney has carried voters who called the economy their top issue in 4 out of 5 states, while Santorum has drawn broader support among those calling abortion their top concern. Abortion has lagged well behind the economy as a priority for voters through the Nevada caucuses, but the recent focus on social issues in the campaign could increase its importance.

Among conservative Republicans, Santorum holds a decisive edge, with 41 percent preferring him and 27 percent supporting Romney. But ask moderate and liberal Republicans the same question and the results flip: Forty percent favor Romney while 20 percent prefer Santorum.

Similarly, tea party Republicans also favor Santorum over Romney, 44 percent to 23 percent. Non-tea partyers tilt toward Romney, with 38 percent preferring him and 25 percent supporting Santorum.

Santorum enjoys an edge among Republicans age 45 and up, those paying the closest attention to the GOP race and born-again and evangelical voters.

Looking ahead to the general election, Obama holds an 8-point lead over Romney, 9 points over Santorum and 10 points over Gingrich or Paul, the survey found.

Notably, the survey showed the president dominating among independents, a group central to Obama’s 2008 victory, whose support for him had faltered in recent months. According to the poll, 6 in 10 independents would choose Obama over any of the Republicans.

There was good news for Republicans, too: Any of the four Republican candidates would likely top Obama among those age 65 and over, as well as among whites without college degrees.

For their part, Democrats were watching with some glee.

“It’s been a great show,” said Karen Clark, 38, a radio personality from Raleigh, N.C., who’s voting for Obama.

The Associated Press-GfK Poll was conducted Feb. 16-20 by GfK Roper Public Affairs & Corporate Communications. It involved telephone interviews with 1,000 adults nationwide and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 percentage points.

___

Associated Press writers Dennis Junius and Stacy Anderson contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-02-22-AP%20Poll-Republicans%20vs%20Obama/id-33f7a3258319452b98c10a5dd1ee103e

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Stocks closed slightly lower and yields for ultra-safe U.S. government debt fell to their lowest level this year as investors around the world waited for Greece to nail down a deal to reduce its crushing debt.

Borrowing costs for European countries with the largest debt burdens shot higher Monday. The two-year interest rate for Portugal’s government debt jumped to 21 percent after trading around 14 percent last week.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 6.74 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 12,653.72.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 3.32 points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,313.01.

The Nasdaq composite lost 4.61 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,811.94.

For the year so far:

The Dow is up 436.16 points, or 3.6 percent.

The S&P 500 is up 55.41 points, or 4.4 percent.

The Nasdaq is up 206.79 points, or 7.9 percent.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120130/ap_on_bi_ge/us_wall_street_box

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The Dow jumped 337 points to close at 12103 as good news from Europe combined with a surprisingly strong report on US housing sent stocks soaring through their best day of the month

?Encouraging signs out of Europe and a surprisingly strong report on the U.S. housing market drove the Dow Jones industrial average up more than 300 points Tuesday. It was the best day for stocks this month.

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The Dow gained 337.32 points, or 2.9 percent to close at 12,103.58. It lost 100 points the day before.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index gained 35.95 points, or 3 percent, to 1,241.30. Only six stocks in the index fell. The Nasdaq composite index rose 80.59, or 3.2 percent, to 2,603.73.

The Spanish government pulled off a successful debt auction and gauges of business and consumer confidence in Germany rose unexpectedly. Both helped ease worries about Europe’s debt crisis. The dollar fell against the euro and U.S. government bond prices dropped as traders shifted money out of the safest assets.

Borrowing costs for the Spanish government plunged at an auction of short-term debt, a sign that investors are becoming more confident in the country’s ability to pay.

“Spain has plenty of problems, large debts and budget deficits,” said Sam Stovall, chief equity strategist at S&P Capital IQ. “So when we see debt auctions go much better than expected it’s very encouraging.”

Spain’s government raised ?5.6 billion ($7.3 billion), much more than its goal of ?4.5 billion. Investors demanded an interest rate of only 1.74 percent to lend to Spain for three months, a steep fall from the 5.1 percent at an auction in November.

Europe’s major stock markets also climbed. Germany’s DAX soared 3.1 percent. France’s CAC-40 jumped 2.7 percent.

The gains in the U.S. market held on Tuesday afternoon even after the U.S. House of Representatives rejected a plan to extend a cut in Social Security taxes. Unemployment benefits for 2 million people are also at risk.

A Federal Reserve proposal for stricter rules on larger banks didn’t knock down JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and other big bank stocks. JPMorgan Chase & Co. gained 4.9 percent. Citigroup added 4.6 percent.

Analysts cautioned that recent big rallies in the stock market have been quick to fade as traders seize the chance to sell stocks and lock in gains. “If you’re selling into rallies, it means people want out,” said Quincy Krosby, Prudential Financial’s market strategist. “They don’t believe it’s sustainable.”

Take the Dow’s 490-point jump Nov. 30 after major central banks made a coordinated move to prop up European lenders by freeing up cash. The one-day rally brought the Dow to 12,045, but that gain had evaporated by last week.

The Commerce Department said Tuesday that builders broke ground on 685,000 new homes last month, a 9.3 percent jump from October. That’s the highest level since April 2010. Building permits, a gauge of future construction, increased 5.7 percent, spurred by a jump in apartment permits. Stovall said the surge in housing construction was another piece of evidence that the U.S. will avoid slipping into another recession soon. “It’s great news,” he said.

The report drove housing stocks higher. PulteGroup Inc. jumped 10 percent. D.R. Horton Inc. rose 5.7 percent.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/3AtjO9wkoZg/Dow-surges-337-on-Europe-housing-report

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PARIS ? European markets edged tentatively higher Monday, stabilizing after losses in Asia, as investors weighed the potential consequences of the death of North Korea’s absolute ruler, Kim Jong Il.

Markets’ first reaction was to drop on the news of Kim Jong Il’s death, which analysts warned could cause an uncertain power transition and put the brakes on talks aimed at getting the secretive communist state to give up its nuclear weapons.

Kim Jong Un, the supreme leader’s untested third son and heir-apparent, is expected to want to consolidate his power and dispel any notions of weakness.

Even before Kim’s death, the United States and others have said they viewed the power transition as a dangerous time ? when the ascendant Kim Jong Un could seek to demonstrate his leadership credentials through martial and provocative actions, such as a military attack on South Korea or a nuclear test.

“The most likely scenario for regime collapse has been the sudden death of Kim (Jong Il). We are now in that scenario,” said Victor Cha, a former U.S. National Security Council director for Asian affairs.

But after Asian indexes closed lower, European stocks recovered their poise. Germany’s DAX rose 0.7 percent to 5,741 and Paris’ CAC 40 index rose 0.2 percent to 2,979. Britain’s FTSE gained 0.3 percent to 5,405.40.

Wall Street was set to open higher, with Dow futures up 0.5 percent at 11,831 and the broader S&P 500 futures up 0.6 percent at 1,218.20.

Overnight South Korea’s Kospi index dived nearly 5 percent but later recouped some losses to close 3.4 percent lower at 1,776.93. The Korean won also fell, losing 1.6 percent against the U.S. dollar, a traditional haven in times of uncertainty. The Japanese yen and other regional currencies also weakened against the dollar.

The euro was flat around $1.3030.

Kim’s death overshadowed what already was a gloomy start to the week after Fitch warned after the market close on Friday that it may downgrade the credit ratings of heavyweights Italy and Spain, as well as Belgium, Cyprus, Ireland and Slovenia.

EU finance ministers will later Monday discuss how much money their countries will lend to the International Monetary Fund in a conference call.

The ministers will seek to decide how to split up the euro200 billion ($261 billion) EU leaders promised to send to the IMF at a summit 10 days ago.

The money is meant to boost the eurozone’s firewall against the escalating debt crisis.

There were some doubts whether the EU would reach the euro200 billion after several non-eurozone countries balked at having to support the currency union.

The ministers will also discuss in their conference call a new treaty to tighten fiscal discipline, a spokesman for the Polish delegation to the European said.

Over the coming days, investors will remain alert to developments in North Korea’s power transition.

Kim Jong Il’s death, announced Monday by North Korean state television, raises the specter of more instability on the divided Korean peninsula.

Those worries are most acute in South Korea and Japan, which have often been the targets of North Korea’s mercurial military and diplomatic actions.

“We’re seeing deeper negative sentiment in some markets,” said Dariusz Kowalczyk, strategist at Credit Agricole CIB, in Hong Kong. “Basically this is because risk aversion on the geopolitical front has increased given that there’s a transition of power in a relatively unstable country. So we’re seeing an impact on equities, currencies.”

South Korea’s military and police went on alert and President Lee Myung-bak, convened a national security council meeting. Japanese leaders said they were watching markets closely and in contact with the U.S., Kyodo News Agency reported.

Kim was ailing after suffering what is thought to have been a stroke in 2008 and died at age 69 on Saturday.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency identified his third son, the twenty-something Kim Jong Un, as the “great successor” to the man known officially as the “Dear Leader.”

But even with the younger Kim designated as his father’s successor, and already filling high-ranking posts, some experts fear a behind-the-scenes power struggle or nuclear instability.

Fitch Ratings said it did not view Kim’s death “as a trigger for negative action on South Korea’s sovereign ratings in itself.”

“For now, it’s much too early to say risks have materially increased, but clearly we will keep the situation under close review,” said Andrew Colquhoun, head of Fitch’s Asia-Pacific sovereigns.

Markets in Taiwan, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia also sank on Monday.

Still, barring unexpected developments in Pyongyang the impact of Kim’s death on markets is likely to be passing, analysts said.

“In the short term there will be some psychological uncertainty but I think things will go back to the fundamentals,” said Steven Leung, director of institutional sales at UOB-Kay Hian Ltd. in Hong Kong.

Benchmark oil for January delivery was up 51 cents at $94.04 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

___

Elaine Kurtenbach in Shanghai and Kelvin Chan in Hong Kong contributed.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111219/ap_on_bi_ge/world_markets

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A currency trader reacts in front of the screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Korea Exchange Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Dec. 19, 2011. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A currency trader reacts in front of the screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Korea Exchange Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Dec. 19, 2011. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A currency trader looks at the monitors at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Korea Exchange Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Dec. 19, 2011. Asian stock markets slid Monday amid news that the mercurial leader of nuclear-armed North Korea has died, raising fears of increased political instability in the region. (AP Photo/ Lee Jin-man)

Currency traders react at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Korea Exchange Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Dec. 19, 2011. Asian stock markets slid Monday amid news that the mercurial leader of nuclear-armed North Korea has died, raising fears of increased political instability in the region. (AP Photo/ Lee Jin-man)

Currency traders watch monitors at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Korea Exchange Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Dec. 19, 2011. Asian stock markets slid Monday amid news that the mercurial leader of nuclear-armed North Korea has died, raising fears of increased political instability in the region. (AP Photo/ Lee Jin-man)

Currency traders talk in front of the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index, left, and foreign exchange rates at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Korea Exchange Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Dec. 19, 2011. Asian stock markets slid Monday amid news that the mercurial leader of nuclear-armed North Korea has died, raising fears of increased political instability in the region. (AP Photo/ Lee Jin-man)

PARIS (AP) ? European markets edged tentatively higher Monday, stabilizing after losses in Asia, as investors weighed the potential consequences of the death of North Korea’s absolute ruler, Kim Jong Il.

Markets’ first reaction was to drop on the news of Kim Jong Il’s death, which analysts warned could cause an uncertain power transition and put the brakes on talks aimed at getting the secretive communist state to give up its nuclear weapons.

Kim Jong Un, the supreme leader’s untested third son and heir-apparent, is expected to want to consolidate his power and dispel any notions of weakness.

Even before Kim’s death, the United States and others have said they viewed the power transition as a dangerous time ? when the ascendant Kim Jong Un could seek to demonstrate his leadership credentials through martial and provocative actions, such as a military attack on South Korea or a nuclear test.

“The most likely scenario for regime collapse has been the sudden death of Kim (Jong Il). We are now in that scenario,” said Victor Cha, a former U.S. National Security Council director for Asian affairs.

But after Asian indexes closed lower, European stocks recovered their poise. Germany’s DAX rose 0.7 percent to 5,741 and Paris’ CAC 40 index rose 0.2 percent to 2,979. Britain’s FTSE gained 0.3 percent to 5,405.40.

Wall Street was set to open higher, with Dow futures up 0.5 percent at 11,831 and the broader S&P 500 futures up 0.6 percent at 1,218.20.

Overnight South Korea’s Kospi index dived nearly 5 percent but later recouped some losses to close 3.4 percent lower at 1,776.93. The Korean won also fell, losing 1.6 percent against the U.S. dollar, a traditional haven in times of uncertainty. The Japanese yen and other regional currencies also weakened against the dollar.

The euro was flat around $1.3030.

Kim’s death overshadowed what already was a gloomy start to the week after Fitch warned after the market close on Friday that it may downgrade the credit ratings of heavyweights Italy and Spain, as well as Belgium, Cyprus, Ireland and Slovenia.

EU finance ministers will later Monday discuss how much money their countries will lend to the International Monetary Fund in a conference call.

The ministers will seek to decide how to split up the euro200 billion ($261 billion) EU leaders promised to send to the IMF at a summit 10 days ago.

The money is meant to boost the eurozone’s firewall against the escalating debt crisis.

There were some doubts whether the EU would reach the euro200 billion after several non-eurozone countries balked at having to support the currency union.

The ministers will also discuss in their conference call a new treaty to tighten fiscal discipline, a spokesman for the Polish delegation to the European said.

Over the coming days, investors will remain alert to developments in North Korea’s power transition.

Kim Jong Il’s death, announced Monday by North Korean state television, raises the specter of more instability on the divided Korean peninsula.

Those worries are most acute in South Korea and Japan, which have often been the targets of North Korea’s mercurial military and diplomatic actions.

“We’re seeing deeper negative sentiment in some markets,” said Dariusz Kowalczyk, strategist at Credit Agricole CIB, in Hong Kong. “Basically this is because risk aversion on the geopolitical front has increased given that there’s a transition of power in a relatively unstable country. So we’re seeing an impact on equities, currencies.”

South Korea’s military and police went on alert and President Lee Myung-bak, convened a national security council meeting. Japanese leaders said they were watching markets closely and in contact with the U.S., Kyodo News Agency reported.

Kim was ailing after suffering what is thought to have been a stroke in 2008 and died at age 69 on Saturday.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency identified his third son, the twenty-something Kim Jong Un, as the “great successor” to the man known officially as the “Dear Leader.”

But even with the younger Kim designated as his father’s successor, and already filling high-ranking posts, some experts fear a behind-the-scenes power struggle or nuclear instability.

Fitch Ratings said it did not view Kim’s death “as a trigger for negative action on South Korea’s sovereign ratings in itself.”

“For now, it’s much too early to say risks have materially increased, but clearly we will keep the situation under close review,” said Andrew Colquhoun, head of Fitch’s Asia-Pacific sovereigns.

Markets in Taiwan, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia also sank on Monday.

Still, barring unexpected developments in Pyongyang the impact of Kim’s death on markets is likely to be passing, analysts said.

“In the short term there will be some psychological uncertainty but I think things will go back to the fundamentals,” said Steven Leung, director of institutional sales at UOB-Kay Hian Ltd. in Hong Kong.

Benchmark oil for January delivery was up 51 cents at $94.04 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

___

Elaine Kurtenbach in Shanghai and Kelvin Chan in Hong Kong contributed.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2011-12-19-World-Markets/id-df5b828f5e5942ebb17709331d1a2814

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WASHINGTON (AP) ? A gauge of future economic activity rose at solid pace in October, offering hope that the economy may see stronger growth in coming months.

The Conference Board reported Friday that its index of leading economic indicators rose 0.9 percent last month, significantly faster than the revised 0.1 percent rise in September and the 0.3 percent increase in August.

The economy, after growing at an anemic pace of just 0.9 percent in the first six months of the year, grew at a 2.5 percent rate in the July-September quarter. Some analysts are looking for even stronger growth in the current October-December quarter.

But even the most optimistic forecasters are not predicting growth will rebound to levels that would make a significant dent in the unemployment rate, which has been stuck around 9 percent for the past two years.

The October rebound in the leading index reflected positive contributions from building permits, the spread between short-term and long-term interest rates, a rising stock market and a slightly better employment reading.

Economists said the strong October gain in the leading index and other positive reports recently had at least eased fears that the economy would be in danger of slipping into a recession.

Conference Board economist Ken Goldstein said that the latest leading indicators report was pointing “to continued growth this winter, possibly even gaining a little momentum by spring.”

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2011-11-18-Leading%20Indicators/id-8b2f7ea8b5d64498867fb86d78fac1d0

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HONG KONG ? A Hollywood-China movie production venture that plans to make big budget films for worldwide audiences has been cleared for an infusion of $220.5 million from an unlikely source ? a construction company.

Shareholders of Hong Kong’s Paul Y. Engineering Ltd. on Tuesday approved the investment in the joint venture that is also aimed at China’s increasingly lucrative film market.

The construction firm, which says it wants to diversify and thinks the movie industry has strong growth potential, is taking a 50 percent stake in the production company, Legendary East Ltd., in exchange for the investment.

“Diversification into some unremarkable business is totally useless. Profit margin would be low, risk high,” Paul Y. Chairman James Chiu said. “We decided to seek an innovative growth avenue.”

After the deal, Hollywood production house Legendary Entertainment will have a 40 percent stake while China’s Huayi Brothers Media Corp. will have 10 percent.

Legendary Entertainment has produced global blockbusters including “Inception” and the two “Hangover” movies while Huayi releases include the hit Feng Xiaogang disaster epic “Aftershock,” the kung fu drama “Shaolin” and the Tsui Hark fantasy epic “Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame.”

Paul Y executives promised to leave the movie making to the experts.

“What we’re bringing to table is, practically, cash,” Deputy Chairman Tom Lau said. “We do not understand the business of motion pictures nor do we pretend that we can contribute” anything more than money.

Legendary and Huayi executives will control the film development and approval committees “completely,” Lau said.

The Hong Kong-based venture, which was announced in June, plans to make one or two big budget movies a year starting in 2013 for worldwide audiences that are also commercially viable in China. The movies will be mainly in English and feature themes based on Chinese history, mythology or culture.

Beijing-based Huayi will distribute the movies inside China while Warner Bros. Pictures will handle international distribution.

Movies produced by the partnership will be allowed to bypass Chinese import restrictions that effectively limit the country to about 20 foreign blockbusters a year. Chinese box office takings surged 64 percent to $1.5 billion in 2010 and are expected to grow 30 percent this year to $2 billion.

Legendary East said in August its first film, “The Great Wall,” will be directed by Edward Zwick and look at how the Great Wall of China came to be built.

Chiu said there are many other stories from Chinese history the venture could draw on, such as the epic novel “Romance of the Three Kingdoms,” a fictional account of feuding warlords amid the disintegration of the Han dynasty in the second century.

Chiu said while he enjoyed “The Dark Knight” and “Superman Returns,” both Legendary Entertainment productions, he’s not a big moviegoer.

“I have no patience to sit in the cinema for two hours.”

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/movies/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111115/ap_on_en_mo/as_film_hollywood_china

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NEW YORK (Reuters) ? Americans became more hopeful about the economic outlook in November, pushing consumer sentiment to a five-month high, though they still have a gloomy view of personal finances, a survey released on Friday showed.

It was the third monthly gain in a row for the index, an encouraging sign for an economy where consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of activity. Even so, sentiment is still at historically low levels, with the index down more than 13 points from a peak in February.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan’s preliminary reading on the overall index on consumer sentiment rose to 64.2 from 60.9 the month before, topping the median forecast of 61.5 among economists polled by Reuters.

The survey’s gauge of consumer expectations climbed to 56.2 from 51.8. While respondents were no more positive about the current state of the economy, they were less likely to expect it to worsen in the year ahead, the survey said.

Economists said the lackluster levels underscored the recent disparity between weak sentiment data and stronger spending reports, suggesting dismal consumer attitudes may not reflect their purchases.

“Despite the persistence of low consumer sentiment stemming from negative views of government economic policy, concerns about the European debt crisis, and high unemployment, recent data releases on consumer spending have otherwise been in line with our expectation of continued modest growth in real consumption,” Michael Gapen, economist at Barclays Capital in New York, wrote in a note.

Data next week will provide a look at how spending fared in October with retail sales expected to rise 0.3 percent after a strong 1.1 percent gain the month before.

The survey’s barometer of current economic conditions nudged up to 76.6 from 75.1 and all three main indexes rose to their highest levels since June.

Consumers remained gloomy about their own finances with more respondents reporting their finances had worsened than improved. Just one in five consumers expected improvement in the year ahead.

Worries the United States could be in for another recession pummeled confidence in recent months, as did political wrangling over raising the debt ceiling in the summer. Confidence in policy has yet to recover, with 58 percent of respondents rating economic policies unfavorably.

“Overall, it is still likely that real consumer expenditures will not be strong enough during the year ahead to enable the higher rates of economic growth needed to offset the negative grip of income and job stagnation on consumer spending,” survey director Richard Curtin said in a statement.

“Although improved, a renewed downturn in the economy still has an uncomfortably high probability of occurring.”

Still, vehicle buying plans improved as 60 percent of consumers said buying conditions were favorable, helped by price discounts.

The data was overshadowed in financial markets by progress in the euro zone debt crisis as Italy moved to implement tough austerity measures.

The survey’s one-year inflation expectation held steady at 3.2 percent, while the survey’s five-to-10-year inflation outlook eased to 2.6 percent from 2.7 percent, its lowest since March 2009.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111111/bs_nm/us_usa_economy_sentiment

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WASHINGTON (AP) ? The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage fell below 4 percent for just the second time in history.

Freddie Mac said Thursday the rate on the 30-year fixed loan fell to 3.99 percent, down from 4 percent last week. Five weeks ago, it dropped to a record low of 3.94 percent, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.

The average rate on the 15-year fixed mortgage fell last week to 3.30 percent from 3.31 percent. Five weeks ago, it too hit a record low of 3.26 percent.

Mortgage rates track the yield on 10-year Treasury note, which fell this week as investors shifted money into safer Treasurys amid fears Europe’s debt crisis could worsen.

Low mortgage rates have down little to boost home sales. Rates have been below 5 percent for all but two weeks this year. Yet home sales are on pace to be the lowest in 14 years.

Refinancing activity jumped more than 12 percent last week from the previous week, to the highest level in a month, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. But refinancing is down 13.5 percent from a year ago and the four-week moving average for purchase and refinancing mortgage applications is down slightly, suggesting the low rates are failing to entice many Americans.

High unemployment and declining wages have made it harder for many people to qualify for loans. Many Americans don’t want to sink money into a home that could lose value over the next three to four years. And most homeowners who can afford to refinance already have.

The low rates have caused a modest boom in refinancing, but that benefit might be wearing off. Most people who can afford to refinance have already locked in rates below 5 percent.

Just five years ago they were closer to 6.5 percent. Ten years ago, they were above 8 percent.

The average rates don’t include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for the 30-year fixed mortgage was unchanged at 0.7. The average fee on the 15-year fixed loan rose from 0.7 to 0.8.

The average rate on the five-year adjustable loan rose to 2.98 percent from 2.96 percent, which had been a record low. The average rate on the one-year adjustable loan increased to 2.95 percent from 2.88 percent. It fell last month to 2.81 percent, the lowest on records dating to 1984.

The average fees on the five-year and one-year adjustable loans were both unchanged at 0.6.

To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2011-11-10-US-Mortgage-Rates/id-3f982c6729584bc696ef2378101f83be

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BOSTON (Reuters) ? The shock waves of Europe’s debt crisis will take a toll on corporate America, particularly sellers of cars, consumer products and basic materials that generate significant revenue on the continent.

The crisis that this week claimed the heads of the Greek and Italian governments is threatening to throw Europe into recession, and has U.S. companies from General Motors Co to Emerson Electric Co scrambling to find ways to reduce their risk.

GM, the No. 1 U.S. automaker, which gets about 17 percent of sales in Europe, on Wednesday warned that it no longer expects to break even in the region this year, with Chief Executive Dan Akerson blaming “Europe’s economic morass.”

Industrial conglomerate Emerson, which generates about 20 percent of its sales in Europe, plans to focus all of its 2012 restructuring efforts on the continent.

“Europe is definitely going to be a problem,” Emerson CEO David Farr told a conference on Wednesday. “I expect Europe next year to be very challenging for us. But I expect them to resolve this and start dealing with their issues long term.”

U.S. stocks tumbled on Wednesday and Italy’s borrowing costs rose to a level viewed as unsustainable, prompting German Chancellor Angela Merkel to warn that deep structural reforms were needed for the euro zone. Unlike Greece, Italy’s economy is seen as too large for the European Union or International Monetary Fund to bail out.

The crisis could push Europe into a mild recession and hit demand for everything from Big Macs to corporate computer servers, said Peter Sorrentino, senior vice president and portfolio manager at Huntington Asset Advisors in Cincinnati.

“It will impact a lot of the major U.S. exporters, split out between technology and the consumer side. The McDonald’s of the world are going to feel this,” he said.

“You might see some order-book erosion, literally across the board, from GE to Hewlett-Packard and IBM as well. This is big enough that it could affect everyone.”

MANY SECTORS HIT

GE and McDonald’s are among 30 companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500 index that Citigroup called out for having both large sales in Europe, the Middle East and Africa and high debt-to-capital ratios. GE shares are down 13.6 percent this year, while McDonald’s has gained nearly 21 percent. The S&P is down 1.9 percent on the year.

The industries most dependent on European sales include automobile and components companies, which generated almost 28 percent of their sales in the region, according to Citigroup chief equity strategist Tobias Levkovich. Food, beverage and tobacco companies had the next-highest EMEA exposure with 22 percent, followed by basic materials with 20 percent.

He also suggested investors should pay special attention to companies with both heavy exposure to Europe and debt-to-capital ratios in excess of 35 percent, describing those companies as “potentially looking risky.”

Two names that topped that list were the foreign affiliates of well-known U.S. brands: Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc and cigarette maker Philip Morris International Inc.

But the list also includes more geographically balanced companies, including glass container manufacturer Owens-Illinois Inc, McDonald’s, insurance company Aon Corp, money manager Invesco Ltd and Dow Chemical Co, all of which generate at least 34 percent of their sales in the EMEA region.

“It should be obvious to almost anyone that the tight fiscal programs needed to address large deficits will cause drags on European economic trends,” Levkovich wrote in a note to clients.

Those concerns are not reflected in Wall Street profit forecasts. Analysts have lowered their next-quarter earnings estimates for the 30 companies highlighted by Citigroup for their European exposure by 0.4 percent over the past 30 days, less than the 2.3 percent decline in estimates for the Standard & Poor’s 500 index as a whole, according to Thomson Reuters StarMine data.

DEMAND SEEN FADING

Rockwell Automation Inc, a maker of systems to help factories run more smoothly, warned investors on Tuesday that European companies’ capital spending may decline next year.

“The outlook there is certainly slowing,” said CEO Keith Nosbusch. “We know that European OEM machine makers will have a slower growth than they did in 2011 … They feel good about the next quarter; but I think as we roll into calendar 2012, they have less visibility.”

In addition to hurting European demand for U.S. goods, the crisis in the euro zone had been pushing down the value of its currency, which on Wednesday hit a one-month low against the dollar, trading below $1.36.

That could hurt not only U.S. companies’ exports to Europe but even to still-growing economies in Asia. A weaker euro, for instance, could make an electric turbine made by Germany’s Siemens AG more cost competitive in China than one made by GE, one investor noted.

“That’s probably the biggest risk, because on a relative basis, our products have been cheaper,” said Peter Klein, senior portfolio manager at Fifth Third Asset Management in Cleveland, Ohio. “If (the euro) goes down to $1.30 it’s probably not a big deal, but if the euro goes to a buck, or even $1.05, that could have a real big impact on domestic U.S. companies selling into Europe.”

(Reporting by Scott Malone in Boston, additional reporting by Nick Zieminski in New York and Ben Klayman in Detroit; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111109/bs_nm/us_usa_corporate_europe

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