The Week Unpeeled
The deal machine moved into high gear last week with a few big names surfacing and The New York Times on Friday claiming on its front page that “the mega-merger is back” as positive Wall Street news made the headlines. American Airlines and US Airways agreed to merge in a $11-billion deal to form the largest airline in the world, while Berkshire Hathaway, together with Brazilian investment firm 3G Capital, agreed to buy H.J. Heinz for $23 billion. The Dow ended the week slightly lower at 13,981.
Elsewhere:
- Following the SOTU, the Sequester clock ticked louder;
- President Obama’s call for a US/EU free-trade agreement gained more ink, mostly positive;
- G20 finance chiefs are set to meet in Moscow just as Eurozone reports continued decline in growth;
- Investors began pulling as much as $1.7 billion from hedge-fund firm SAC Capital Advisors amid an insider-trading investigation;
- Time Warner Inc. said it was divesting a large number of its magazines to Meredith Corp., greatly reducing the titles of the biggest US magazine publisher;
- Pope Benedict XVI announced his intent to step down, a historic move not seen from a living Pope in centuries;
- A meteor exploded over Siberia, hurting more than 1,000; and
- Olympian “Blade Runner” Pistorius was charged with killing his girlfriend, shocking South Africa and the world.
