| Swedish investment bank fined $7.7 mln
Swedish investment bank Carnegie was Friday fined 50 million kronor ($7.7 million , 5.4 million euros) and its chief executive and board sacked after a trading scandal, Sweden's Financial Supervisory Authority said. The bank, which is listed on the Stockholm stock exchange and has operations in eight countries, had "serious deficiencies in its governance and control of the firm's operations," the authority said. The FSA said it came close to revoking Carnegie's licence but settled on a fine and warning after the company presented an action plan to improve routines. This is the first time the FSA's maximum fine of 50 million kronor has been handed down, Swedish financial daily Dagens Industry said. In May, the bank disclosed that it had overestimated its trading results by 630 million kronor ($97 million , 68 million euros) between 2005 and 2007, boosting profits and, in turn, executives' and employees' bonuses.
Nylex falls after takeover bid withdrawn
SHARES in Nylex fell 17.5 per cent today after a private equity firm withdrew its takeover proposal for the building, automotive and plastic products maker. The stock ended down 35 cents to $1.65, after trading as low as $1.55 during the day. On Friday, after the market had closed, Nylex revealed that CHAMP Private Equity would not be making a firm offer for the company after its indicative offer of $2.65 a share in November. Nylex said talks with CHAMP had now ceased. Executive chairman Peter George said the Nylex board was not surprised the proposal had been withdrawn, given the recent turbulence in global financial markets. He said Nylex was still positioned to grow its businesses and build on the benefits of a restructuring program.
Stocks Backtrack On Earnings Misses, Data Slips
Small caps slipped, with the S&P 600 dropping 0.1%. A strong jump in transportation sector durable goods orders gave the sector a boost, with the Dow Transports showing a 1.5% gain. NYSE volume eased, but was still up 7%. Trading was 12% higher on the Nasdaq. Advancing issues led decliners by 3-to-2 on the NYSE and by a narrow margin on the Nasdaq. The Electrical-Parts Distributor group posted the best gain by midday, hoisted higher by Anixter International's (AXE) gap-up gain of 11.08 to 69.38. The 19% jump followed a Q4 earnings and sales report that topped expectations. The company reaffirmed its '08 profit guidance. Anixter has slumped since a steep run-up to highs in July. Tuesday's move punched the stock above its 50-day moving average to just below its 200-day line. The two averages inverted -- generally a bad sign for stocks -- early in December.
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