Business World

Loonie up 2.8 cents from Friday’s close

Wednesday, 26. November 2008 von Jim

The Canadian dollar is trading at its highest levels in nearly a week.

At early afternoon, Canada's currency was below the high of the day but still above 81 cents US.

RBC Capital currency strategist David Watt says the loonie's strength reflects renewed confidence in currencies that are sensitive to the global economy.

He says the U.S. government's weekend bailout announcement for Citigroup is helping restore calm, as is the new economic team announced by president-elect Barack Obama business cards.

At about 1 p.m. in Toronto, the Canadian dollar was worth 81.10 cents US – up 2.8 cents from Friday's close.

The loonie hasn't closed above 81 cents since last Tuesday.

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National securities regulator coming: Flaherty

Thursday, 20. November 2008 von Jim

OTTAWA–Finance Minister Jim Flaherty insisted today that Canada will create a national securities regulator even if some provinces remain opposed.

The finance minister made the blunt pronouncement Wednesday in answering questions about a reference in the throne speech to the government's long-standing commitment.

Asked about Quebec's continued opposition, Flaherty replied in no uncertain terms that a Canadian regulator will be established after the Tom Hockin committee delivers a final report and a model for draft legislation.

"This is a time of international economic volatility, instability. Canada's system is held out and looked as a model around the world but the flaw we have in our system is the fact that we still have 13 securities regulators," Flaherty said.

"We are going to go ahead and create a Canadian securities regulator, we're going to do this with our willing partners. Those willing partners include, of course, some of the provinces."

Flaherty has advocated the idea since becoming finance minister in January 2006, with limited success. But the global financial crisis has given greater impetus and urgency to the proposal since global leaders have talked about the need for co-ordinated action.

Ontario has been the staunchest supporter of a single national securities regulator while some have been more resistant to the idea.

Flaherty said Wednesday that more than one province is on board now and "I hope we will be able to have quite a few provinces." He didn't name any provinces who might have changed their position cash loan in one hour.

Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach continued to voice concern Wednesday.

"My concern is for the junior oil and gas companies … just the whole increase in the whole regulatory burden to raise cash in Ontario, in a place where they don't understand what drives the Alberta economy," Stelmach said in Edmonton.

British Columbia Primer Gordon Campbell has said recently he is more open to the idea, citing the need for "new thinking" in the midst of the financial markets crisis.

The Canadian Bankers Association said it supports the federal move, saying a common regulator will enhance efficiency and increase confidence in Canadian capital markets at a critical time.

"When international securities regulators sit down to deal with this economic turmoil, Canada needs a single voice at the table," said CBA president Nancy Hughes Anthony. "Our fragmented regulatory system is out of step with the rest of the world, and it's time that we moved into the 21st century."

Canada's big banks own all of the country's biggest investment houses, which make them major players in the country's stock and bond markets as well as the mutual fund industry.

Federal officials have said previously they have detected greater comfort with the concept among some provinces as a result of the financial crisis that has plunged the world into a recession.

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Japan slips into recession, G20 fails to inspire

Monday, 17. November 2008 von Jim

Japan sank into recession in the third quarter, even before it felt the full force of the financial crisis, and world leaders at a weekend summit gave investors little hope they could rescue the global economy.

With the euro zone also in recession, the U.S. economy shrinking in the third quarter and China slowing sharply, markets shrugged off pledges to stimulate growth from leaders of the Group of 20 nations.

The yen and U.S. dollar pressed higher as investors pulled cash away from emerging markets and riskier assets. Oil fell more than $1 to below $56 a barrel and stock markets slid in early Asian trading.

While the Japanese economy was weakening, the pace of the decline was unexpected. Analysts polled by Reuters had predicted the economy would expand 0.1 percent. Instead it shrank by 0.1 percent as exports crumbled faster than they had thought.

The third-quarter data did not capture the full impact of the crisis that exploded in September, destroying Wall Street banks and threatening to rupture the global financial system.

Japan had largely escaped the first shockwaves of the crisis triggered last year by U.S. mortgage defaults. It felt the first major tremors in October when the Tokyo stock market crashed forcing banks to try to replenish capital and the yen surged, sideswiping exporters facing their toughest markets in decades.

“I think that it is possible for the negative growth to continue in the second half of the fiscal year,” said Tatsushi Shikano, a senior economist at Tokyo’s Mitsubishi UFJ Securities creditscore.com.

“The economy abroad, especially the United States, is slowing down and it is likely that exports will remain weak,” he said.

FISCAL AND MONETARY STEPS

The euro zone is in its first recession and the U.S. economy only avoided one earlier this year because of a stimulus plan. Most economists say the United States is probably already in recession, although official data confirming that will not come until January.

Leaders of the world’s 20 largest economies, meeting in Washington over the weekend to address the worst financial crisis in 80 years, agreed on a host of fiscal and monetary steps to rescue the global economy.

But they left it to individual governments to tailor their response to their own circumstances and troubled industries.

“Taken as a whole, it does not appear that the outcome of the summit will be sufficient to stem the financial crisis. This was a high bar from the start,” said Marc Chandler, global head of currency strategy with Brown Brothers Harriman in New York.

MADE THINGS WORSE

The post-meeting statement from the group of major industrialized and developing countries contained a laundry list of reform pledges aimed at soothing volatile markets and calming consumers’ worries. 

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China seen topping up government reserves with cheap crude

Thursday, 13. November 2008 von Jim

Beijing appears to be taking advantage of falling crude oil prices to fill its strategic reserve tanks, potentially giving it a 100-million-barrel buffer by year’s end that could help smooth out future demand growth.

A near 30 percent surge in China’s crude oil imports to their third highest daily rate on record last month, coupled with widespread signs of anemic demand in the world’s second-largest user, has stirred fresh speculation about Beijing’s emergency reserves, the status of which remain a closely guarded secret.

Data due on Thursday is expected to show that the country’s major refiners — which have increased output by only 5.5 percent so far this year — could not have processed all of that crude themselves, suggesting some of it has been put in storage.

Analysts say it is still too early to conclude that Beijing must have given the order to top up its national reserves, half of which were constructed over the past two years while the other half are due to be finished by the end of the year.

But from the economics point of view, oil’s plunge from a record above $147 hit in July to below $60 definitely makes buying crude now an attractive and logical option, they say.

“There is no question about stockpiling,” said Lin Boqiang, director of the Center for China Energy Economics Research (CCEER) at Xiamen University.

“Strategic storing needs to be done even without a plunge in oil prices, and China should go for three months (of buffer stocks) now,” he said.

Building stocks now would also allow China to take advantage of the steep contango structure in oil markets, with prompt prices far cheaper than longer-dated futures, at a time when many oil companies and traders are struggling to profit from storage as the credit crisis drives up the cost of financing stockpiles payday advance services.

September crude imports rose 28.2 percent from a year ago, their fastest pace in more than a year, to hit 3.81 million barrels per day (bpd), the third highest ever. Domestic production has also eked out modest growth, helping meet some of the growing demand.

China’s first phase of its SPR plans, with tanks that can hold 100 million barrels of oil or just under a month’s imports, are due to be commissioned by year-end with the completion of the last two out of four bases at Qingdao and Dalian.

The first two facilities at Zhenhai and Zhoushan were up and running more than a year ago.

Last year the government leased out its 33 million barrel capacity tanks at Zhenhai to top refiner Sinopec Corp (0386.HK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) for use as commercial storage, but it is not clear whether that arrangement continues or whether the tanks are full or not.

Beijing has maintained a near total silence on the status of these tanks and the location for a second batch of facilities to hold some 26.8 million cubic meters, plans for which have just been finalized, Beijing announced on Wednesday.

By comparison, the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) holds about 700 million barrels.

STRATEGIC OR COMMERCIAL? 

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Unions lose `bargaining clout’ amid hard times

Tuesday, 11. November 2008 von Jim

For 42,000 Ontario government employees who started contract talks last week, negotiations likely couldn’t have come at a worse time.

The global financial crisis that has laid waste to stock markets and brought banking giants to their knees also is hitting government coffers.

In an economic update last month, Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan projected a $500 million deficit for the current fiscal year, after several years of balanced budgets, forcing the province to delay or slow down some new spending.

"It’s hard to say where it’s going to go," said Smokey Thomas, president of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, or OPSEU. "Who would have figured the world would go egg-shaped the way it did?"

Not surprisingly, the economic downturn is expected to dampen union wage increases. Late last month, the Conference Board of Canada said average wage increases for unionized employees in 2009 would be 3.2 per cent – 3.5 per cent in the public sector and 3.1 per cent in the private sector – down from an average of 3.5 per cent this year. But the survey was taken between June and August, before the full impact of the financial crisis became clear.

However the numbers play out, one thing is virtually certain: unions trying to bargain new contracts over the coming months will face a difficult slog as they negotiate with employers struggling to come to grips with new economic realities. Some, like the 3,350 York University contract faculty and teaching assistants who set up picket lines Thursday after rejecting an offer that would have given them a 9.25 per cent raise over three years, are still willing to take their chances.

The economic downturn could have a significant impact on bargaining, depending on geographic region and sector, said Prem Benimadhu, vice-president of governance and human resources management at the Conference Board.

In the private sector, he said, manufacturing unions "have lost all bargaining clout because of the recession in the United States and because of globalization," he said.

On the other hand, he added, wage increases in the oil patch will remain healthy because, while some companies are postponing investments, there is still a lot of activity Faxless pay advances.

The government’s deteriorating fiscal picture will also lead to bargaining pressures.

Ontario, for example, "is going through some significant financial difficulties, and that definitely will have an impact on wage settlements in the public sector there because the money is simply not there unless the taxpayers want to cough up additional taxes," Benimadhu said.

Ontario is still trying to reach deals with some of its teachers after their contract expired Aug. 31.

English public high school and elementary teachers are not at the provincial table, despite a Nov. 30 deadline set by Queen’s Park to agree to the province’s offer – or accept a 2 per cent increase in each of the next two years. Both holdout unions say their decision has to do with factors beyond wages.

The province is standing firm. "We’ve put forward a package that has good provisions, especially given our economy, and we would seriously hope they would take a look at that and come back to the table … knowing the provincial coffers aren’t what they were, even a year ago," said Michelle Despault, a spokesperson for Education Minister Kathleen Wynne.

Robert Hickey, an assistant professor of industrial relations at Queen’s University, says his impression "is that the public sector tends to react more slowly to changes in the economy than the private sector." That’s partly because governments have the option of going into deficit, a choice that is less viable for private-sector companies.

"Many observers have commented to me … saying unions that have 3 per cent on the table should take the money and run," Hickey said. "Now, whether or not that’s accurate strategic advice, I don’t know, but certainly it’s indisputable that the bargaining environment will be changed for some time due to the current economic conditions. I’ll be surprised if some of the recession effects don’t get worse before they get better."

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Canada adds jobs but storm in forecast

Sunday, 09. November 2008 von Jim

Canada’s economy added 9,500 net new jobs in October, showing surprising resilience as fallout from the global financial crisis pushed the U.S. unemployment rate above ours for the first month since 1981.

Despite the better-than-expected numbers, Canada’s jobless rate crept up slightly to 6.2 per cent, from 6.1 per cent in September, as more people looked for work.

Economists were quick to point out that at least some of the strength in the job market could be chalked up to temporary hiring related to last month’s federal election, which drove an increase in public administration jobs of 40,000 positions.

"This wasn’t a great month, after you strip out the jobs associated with the election," said Avery Shenfeld, senior economist at CIBC World Markets. "But Canada really hasn’t had the steady downtrend in employment that the American economy has suffered. We may be entering a period like that in the coming months, but we have the advantage of having gotten off to a better start to 2008."

Despite that glimmer of optimism, yesterday’s dismal U.S. job report had some economists predicting tougher times ahead for Canadians.

"We have to more fully reflect the weakness in the United States, and I would think fairly soon," said TD Bank chief economist Don Drummond, who called the U.S. numbers "bleak beyond belief."

The U.S. labour department reported yesterday that 240,000 jobs had been slashed in October. The heavy losses pushed the U.S. jobless rate to a 14-year high of 6.5 per cent, a sharp rise from 6.1 per cent in September. The U.S. also revealed that job losses in August and September were much deeper than previously reported, saying 1.2 million jobs have evaporated since 2008 began.

"The U.S. numbers, I think, are consistent with a full-blown recession, and there’s just really no two ways about that," said Douglas Porter, deputy chief economist at BMO Capital Markets.

So far, at least, Canada is faring better than its southern neighbour. Statistics Canada reported that employment has increased by 203,000 jobs since the beginning of the year, although that was still a sharp decline from the 338,000 jobs added over the same period in 2007 cash advance no faxing. In another positive sign, the economy added 47,500 full-time jobs in October, compared with a loss of about 38,000 part-time jobs.

But some sectors are showing signs of strain. Last month, manufacturing, which has been hit hard by the U.S. slowdown, lost 8,600 jobs, while construction shrank by 8,800 workers. Some 27,000 jobs were lost in accommodation and food services – in other words, hotels and restaurants.

Despite mounting layoffs at Ontario’s manufacturers, particularly the auto sector, the province’s unemployment rate edged up only one-tenth of a percentage point in October, to 6.5 per cent. "So we’re scraping by, but there’s a sense that some deeper job cuts are coming just around the corner," Shenfeld said. He warned that "Ontario has really thrived on manufacturing, construction and financial services, and all three look vulnerable."

Yesterday, General Motors said it is laying off 3,600 workers in early 2009, including 500 at its Oshawa plant, after reporting a $2.5 billion (U.S.) third-quarter loss. Ford, which lost $129 million in the quarter, said it will cut about 2,260 more white-collar employees in North America.

In the U.S., huge job losses mean the consumer outlook heading into the all-important Christmas season "is probably going to dismal," said Adrienne Warren, a senior economist at Scotiabank. "That spills over to Canada to the extent that they buy some of those goods from us," she added.

But, with Canada still largely dodging the worst effects of the financial crisis, she said, "we can probably have a little cheerier Christmas."

With files from Star wire services

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Oil falls to 20-month low

Friday, 07. November 2008 von Jim

Oil prices continued to decline Thursday as concerns about slowing demand mounted and the sluggish global economy hammered equity markets.

U.S. crude for December delivery ended the day down $4.53 to $60.77 a barrel in New York trading. The settle was the lowest since March 21, 2007, when crude ended trading at $59.61.

Investors have been looking to the world’s stock markets for a read on the health of the global economy, and the demand for fuel and other petroleum products that goes along with it.

"It would make sense to watch equities because that’s a daily read on economic expectations," said James Williams, president and energy economist at WTRG Economics in Arkansas.

Demand: Concern about falling demand has been a major factor in oil’s fall from a record $147.27 a barrel on July 11.

Gasoline prices, which peaked at $4.114 a gallon at the pump a few days later, soon followed. By Thursday, gas prices had declined to a national average of $2.34 a gallon, according to motorist group AAA.

Demand for gasoline was down 3.9% last week, compared to the same period last year, according to MasterCard’s weekly survey of gas station credit card swipes.

The U.S. Department of Energy also said that gasoline demand was down 2.3% over the past four months compared to last year.

World declines: Equities around the world resumed their decline Thursday, with stocks in Germany, France and the U.K. falling about 3%, and Japan plummeting more than 6%.

Decisions by the European Central Bank and the Bank of England to cut key interest rates in order to pump cash into the economies of Europe underscored the gravity of the economic downturn there default payday loan.

The ECB cut its key interbank lending rate by one-half percentage point to 3.25%, while Britain’s central bank cut rates by 1.5 percentage points to 3%, a much deeper cut than investors had expected.

"It’s just another data point that reflects how severe this economic downturn looks like it could be," said Brian Hicks, fund co-manager at U.S. Global Investors in Texas.

Meanwhile in the United States, the Dow Jones industrial average shed more than 400 points in early afternoon trade, amid poor retail performance, and as doubts about the strength of U.S. automakers triggered concern that the country could face a prolonged recession.

Dollar: The rate cuts in Europe boosted the dollar against the 15-nation euro, which also helped drive down oil prices. Because oil and other commodities are traded in dollars, a rise in the dollar compared to other currencies makes oil more expensive for foreign investors and drives down its dollar-denominated price.

"It’s just exactly the opposite of what happened last week when the Fed cut," said Williams.

The Federal Reserve cut its key interest rate last week, weakening the dollar and helping to send oil more than $4 higher. 

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BNP Paribas’s profit drops as provisions soar

Wednesday, 05. November 2008 von Jim

Third-quarter net profit at BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) more than halved due to higher provisions tied to the financial crisis, France’s biggest bank by market capitalization said on Wednesday.

The bad debt charge rose to 1.992 billion euros ($2.56 billion) during the quarter, higher than many analysts had estimated and four times as big as a year ago.

BNP said this reflected higher provisions in areas such as investment banking and its overseas businesses.

Net profit fell to 901 million euros, down 55.6 percent on a year ago. Analysts had on average forecast a net profit of 1.27 billion euros according to a Reuters poll of 10 analysts.

“The cost of risk was the main issue and was worse than expected,” said West LB analyst Christoph Bossmann, who kept an “add” rating on BNP Paribas shares.

Chief Executive Baudouin Prot said the bank was well placed to handle the tough market environment.

“The group’s ability to withstand the crisis, the attractiveness of its franchises and its sound financial standing enable it, in an environment that will remain difficult going forward, to grow its business units in order to continue servicing the real economy,” he said in a statement.

In total the crisis had a negative impact of 507 million euros on the third-quarter figures.

This included a hit of 289 million euros at its investment banking arm and an 87 million euro impairment charge at its American unit BancWest due to problems at U no fax pay day loans.S. lenders Fannie Mae (FNM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Freddie Mac (FRE.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

TURMOIL TRIGGERED WRITEDOWNS

The market turmoil, which began as U.S. homeowners defaulted on mortgages, has hurt banks across the globe. Many governments, including France, have intervened with taxpayers’ money to shore up financial companies.

Smaller French rival Societe Generale (SOGN.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) has already reported an 84 percent fall in its third-quarter net profit, while Credit Suisse (CSGN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) reported a third-quarter loss.

In France President Nicolas Sarkozy has earmarked 360 billion euros for the country’s finance sector as part of an international effort to help banks survive the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression almost 80 years ago.

France has also agreed to lend 10.5 billion euros to the country’s top banks to encourage them to lend to businesses.

France has agreed to subscribe to subordinated debt issued by Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) for 3 billion euros, BNP Paribas for 2.55 billion, SocGen for 1.7 billion euros, and for 1.2 billion by Credit Mutuel. 

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Oil falls to $63

Wednesday, 05. November 2008 von Jim

The price of oil fell on Monday as fresh signs of economic weakness stoked concerns about waning energy demand worldwide.

Light, sweet crude for December delivery fell $3.90 to settle at $63.91 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The oil market was pressured by a report showing that U.S. manufacturing activity sank to a 26-year low last month and fell below the level consistent with recession.

The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index tumbled to a reading of 38.9 in October from 43.5 in September. It was the lowest reading since September 1982. A reading of 41 is considered a sign of recession.

"The ISM report was very disappointing," said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Alaron Trading in Chicago.

Flynn said weakness in manufacturing is particularly alarming for oil traders because "as goes the manufacturing industry, so to goes oil demand."

At the same time, a grim outlook for economic growth in Europe also weighed on oil prices.

The European Commission is forecasting that the economies of the 15 countries that use the euro will barely grow next year as the financial crisis takes its toll on Europe.

The December oil contract had gained $1.85 to settle at $67.81 a barrel Friday.

But Friday’s advance did little to offset record losses in October. Crude oil prices fell 32.6% last month, the largest percentage since Nymex trading began in 1983, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Dollar and stocks: In addition to the dour economic data, oil was pushed lower by a resurgent dollar.

The U.S. currency was higher against major currencies, adding to its 9% rise in October against both the euro and the British pound.

Many investors buy crude futures when the dollar weakens to hedge against inflation and sell those futures when the dollar rebounds. And a more robust buck makes crude a less attractive investment for overseas buyers.

Monday’s retreat in the oil market came despite a rally in Asian stock markets and moderately higher stock prices in Europe and the United States.

Oil investors have been using global stock markets as a gauge for the overall health of the economy and future energy demand emergency cash loans.

But the weak U.S. manufacturing report coupled with the EU’s grim assessment of future economic growth appeared to outweigh gains in the stock market.

The market is also awaiting the results of Tuesday’s U.S. presidential election.

Analysts say that market participants will be glad to have the election over, eliminating one source of uncertainty, regardless of whether Republican John McCain or Democrat Barack Obama wins the election.

"It would take a surprise upset for the market to rally," Flynn said.

Gasoline: Retail gas prices fell 2 cents overnight, marking the 47th consecutive day of declines.

The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline dropped to $2.415 from the previous day’s price of $2.436, according to a daily survey by the American Automobile Association.

Over the last 47 days, gas prices have decreased by $1.44, or 37.4%. Prices are down more than 41% since the summer’s spike above $4 a gallon.

Auto sales: The beleaguered auto industry is reporting October sales numbers that are on track to be the worst in 16 years.

Ford’s (F, Fortune 500) October sales were down 30% from year earlier when its Volvo unit was included in the sales total. The results were up slightly from September, which was the weakest month for the company since January 1982.

Rival automaker General Motors (GM, Fortune 500) said sales were down 45% in October from a year ago.

But the sales declines were not limited to Detroit. Toyota Motor (TM), which is now the No. 2 automaker in terms of U.S. sales, posted a 23% decline from year-earlier levels. That was far worse than the 16% drop forecast by Edmunds.

Auto sales suffered despite significantly lower gas prices in October. A lack of available credit and plunging consumer confidence kept potential buyers out of dealer showrooms.  

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Motorola to cut 3,000 jobs

Saturday, 01. November 2008 von Jim

Motorola Inc. posted a hefty loss in the third quarter Thursday, citing the continued troubles of its cell phone division. The company will postpone the planned spin-off of the unit, and cut more jobs.

The maker of communications gear said it would get rid of 3,000 jobs by April, with about 2,000 of them coming from the cell phone unit. The company last announced 2,600 job cuts in April.

Motorola (MOT, Fortune 500) lost $397 million, or 18 cents per share, in the July-September period. It had earned $60 million, or 3 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.

Sales fell 15% to $7.48 billion.

The loss included 23 cents of charges, mostly for restructuring costs. Without the charges, Motorola would have earned 5 cents a share, reflecting unexpectedly strong results in its non-cell phone operations. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had on average expected the company to earn 2 cents per share on revenue of $7.82 billion.

For the fourth quarter, Motorola said it expects to earn 2 cents to 4 cents per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected the company to earn 7 cents per share in the quarter, excluding items.

Shares of Motorola fell 31 cents, or 5.7%, to $5.15 in afternoon trading, even as the broader market rallied.

The job cuts are part of efforts to cut costs by $800 million next year, Chief Executive Greg Brown said.

Motorola sold 25.4 million cell phones in the third quarter, down from the 28.1 million it sold in the second quarter. The company had said it expected a slight decline. With an 8.5% market share, it lost the spot as No. 3 cell phone maker worldwide to Sony Ericsson in the quarter, according to research firm IDC. Nokia Corp. (NOK) and Samsung Electronics Co. are No. 1 and No. 2, respectively.

For Motorola, "the loss of share continues to be extremely worrisome," said Rick Franklin, an analyst at Edward Jones. "This business continues to run without any wheels."

The cell phone unit lost $840 million, including a $370 million write-down of inventory. Revenue was $3.1 billion.

Sanjay Jha, who was appointed in August to lead the handset division, said the weak economy and stresses in the financial market were main reasons for the postponed spin-off freecreditreport. He said the unit would slim down its product portfolio and become a leaner organization.

Jha said the company had 20 major platforms for cell phones, making development unwieldy yet leaving Motorola with few products in the two categories that have been in demand this year: "smart" phones and very cheap phones.

He is pruning the portfolio to focus on three software systems: Windows Mobile, which Motorola already uses on a few smart phones; P2K, its own system, used on the Razr phone; and Android, a free operating system from Google Inc. (GOOG, Fortune 500) Competitor HTC Corp. recently launched the first Android phone. Jha said Motorola will have one by the 2009 holiday season.

Designers at Motorola have been too focused on making "bright shiny objects," Jha said. In the future, he wants them to focus more on making phones easy to use.

The troubles of the cell phone division stem from its inability to produce a follow-up to a phone that was, for a while, the "bright shiny object" everyone had to have: the Razr phone.

Jha also said Motorola will pull back from the cell phone markets of Europe and parts of Asia, though Jha said China will remain a focus for the company, along with the Americas.

Motorola is not alone in seeing a decline in cell phone sales. IDC said Thursday that global handset shipments declined 0.4% from the second quarter to the third, even though the quarter normally sees a pre-holiday ramp-up.

Sales at Motorola’s healthier units were essentially flat, and they boosted profits.

Home and Networks Mobility, which makes cable-TV set-top boxes, modems and related gear, saw its operating earnings increase 65% to $263 million, on $2.4 billion in sales.

Enterprise Mobility, which makes police radios and other communications equipment for organizations, posted operating earnings of $403 million, up 23%, on sales of $2 billion. 

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