Court: Newmont venture in Uzbekistan is bankrupt
Tashkent, Uzbekistan – An Uzbek court has declared bankrupt the local joint venture of Newmont Mining Corp., a government-run newspaper reported Wednesday, likely ending the Denver company’s gold operations in Uzbekistan.
The Zarafshan-Newmont joint venture owned by Denver-based Newmont and the Uzbek government was declared bankrupt Aug. 10 over back taxes of $48 million, according to a statement published in the Narodnoye Slovo newspaper.
The Uzbek Anti-Monopoly State Committee said in the statement that the mining venture’s creditors would meet Sept. 19, and that it had appointed a temporary manager. Newmont officials in Uzbekistan were not available for comment.
Newmont, one of the world’s largest gold producers, said last week that Uzbek authorities were trying to seize its part of the venture. It complained of officials opening a criminal probe into its operations and staffers, freezing its bank accounts and blocking shipments from the venture’s Muruntau mine, 250 miles west of the Uzbek capital, Tashkent. Relations with the United States soured after Washington joined with European countries in calling for an independent probe into the crackdown on the May 2005 uprising in Andijan, in which at least 20 people were killed.
DENVER
Colo. retains top spot for home foreclosures
Colorado had the nation’s highest foreclosure rate in July, the fifth straight month the state has held the top spot, according to RealtyTrac, a California provider of foreclosure listings.
One of every 480 Colorado homes entered some stage of foreclosure during the month, compared with a ratio of one out of 1,245 for the United States.
ST. LOUIS
Ex-BetOnSports exec released on bond
Former BetOnSports executive David Carruthers was freed on a $1 million bond Wednesday after spending nearly a month behind bars following his arrest on racketeering and fraud charges.
Carruthers, 48, was freed after a hearing before U.S. District Judge Mary Ann Medler. He had been expected to be released as early as Monday, but it took days to work out technical details.
Carruthers’ charges are part of a 22-count indictment against the London-based online gambling firm.
PALO ALTO, Calif.
Printers, laptops lift HP’s fiscal 3rd quarter
Hewlett-Packard Co. beat Wall Street’s expectations Wed nesday, when the computer maker reported that fiscal third-quarter profit surged on strong printer and laptop sales.
For the three months ended July 31, HP earned $1.38 billion, or 48 cents a share, compared with $73 million, or 3 cents per share, in the same quarter last year. Sales in the fiscal third quarter rose 5 percent to $21.89 billion.
WASHINGTON
Fed following up with more lender loan data
The Federal Reserve Board next month is scheduled to release a study of 2005 lender loan data after the previous year’s report led to investigations of about 200 lenders whose records showed possible discrimination against minority borrowers.
Banking-industry insiders expect last year’s loan-price data to show about a 20 percent increase in the number of high- cost, or “subprime,” loans issued over 2004. They disagree with consumer groups about the significance of the anticipated jump.
HOUSTON
Oil refiner buying out Venezuela’s stake
Lyondell Chemical Co. said it will buy the 41 percent stake in its Houston refinery owned by Citgo Petroleum Corp., the U.S. refining arm of Venezuela’s state oil company, for about $2.1 billion.
Lyondell said it also entered into a five-year supply contract with Petroleos de Venezuela SA for most of the crude oil needed for the 268,000-barrel-a-day plant.
The price is more than $19,000 per barrel of capacity, the highest ever for a U.S. plant or refinery owner.
NEW YORK
3G networks’ outlook boosts Qualcomm
Qualcomm Inc. shares had their biggest gain this year after Merrill Lynch & Co. added the world’s second-largest maker of mobile-phone chips to its “Focus 1 List” and said the spread of so-called third-generation, or 3G, wireless networks will boost the company’s earnings.
San Diego-based Qualcomm’s profit may increase 26 percent each year from 2006 through 2008, “driven mainly by deployment of 3G networks,” Tal Liani wrote in a note. Qualcomm shares rose $2.38, or 6.7 percent, to $37.83 in Nasdaq Stock Market composite trading.
NEW YORK
Pan Am expects final payments from Libya
Pan Am World Airways said Wednesday it would collect $30 million from the government of Libya and make final payments to creditors by the end of the year, officially ending the company’s bankruptcy.
Pan Am had pursued civil and criminal action against the Libyan government following the deadly December 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Scotland. The bombing killed 270 people and led to a severe decline in traffic for the company.
WASHINGTON
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac eye charter’s end
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are mulling the benefits of severing their government ties if limits on their combined $1.4 trillion mortgage portfolios and new regulations curb shareholder returns, a Fox-Pitt Kelton Inc. analyst said.
Tougher regulation has led the two biggest mortgage-finance companies to reappraise the value of their government- chartered status, Fox-Pitt analyst Edwin Groshans said after meetings last week with the chief executives of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
DALLAS
Dell battery recall draining enthusiasm
Dell Inc.’s unprecedented recall of 4.1 million faulty laptop batteries is creating headaches for corporate customers who have come to rely on notebook PCs as an indispensable part of doing business.
Information-technology departments are faced with the prospect of testing – and potentially having to swap out – the batteries of hundreds or thousands of notebooks. If the batteries are affected by the recall, companies – like consumers – must wait for replacements to be shipped.
NEW YORK
KKR has $3.5 billion for new investments
KKR Private Equity Investors LP, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.’s publicly traded buyout fund, said it has committed to invest $3.5 billion in transactions such as the buyout of hospital chain HCA Inc.
