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Mixed market: Stocks are hovering around the line in early trading. FedEx forecast might help.
FedEx raises outlook: The package-shipping company, often seen as a bellwether for the economy, sees increased demand for express and ground deliveries. (Bloomberg)
BP CEO headed out: Tony Hayward is expected to be replaced by American Robert Dudley. From the NYT:
The move would also be a recognition by the board that even though the oil has stopped spewing into the gulf, dealing with the consequences of the Deepwater Horizon accident -- from tens of billions of dollars in claims to possible criminal charges and new regulations on offshore drilling -- is likely to dominate the company's agenda for years. "It is in the best interest of the company to go forward with fresh leadership," said the person close to the board, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the changes.
Madoff victims face lawsuits: The court-appointed trustee will be going after about 2,000 investors who withdrew more money than the amount they paid in. From the WSJ:
Adele Fox is among the Madoff investors not jumping to negotiate with [Irving Picard]. An 87-year-old former school secretary from New York City who now lives in south Florida, Ms. Fox says she received two letters late last year from a lawyer for Mr. Picard asking her to repay a total of $691,372. Ms. Fox's statements showed nearly $3 million in her accounts when the Ponzi scheme collapsed. She said she had her life savings with Mr. Madoff, including life-insurance proceeds from after her husband died and payments from a legal settlement related to her husband's exposure to asbestos at work.
Disney goes after video game company: The Mouse House is in talks to acquire Playdom Inc., which develops games that people play on social networks. Main sticking point is price. (LAT)
L.A. to name new planning director: Michael LoGrande, the city's chief zoning administrator, will be replacing Gail Goldberg, who retired earlier this month. (LAT)
Tribune CEO doesn't like paywall: Randy Michaels says the economics of charging for online content won't work "unless your content is unique, highly differentiated, difficult to duplicate. As good as I believe our content is, if there are reasonable substitutes available for free it's tough to get people to pay." (WSJ)
Mark Lacter created the LA Biz Observed blog in 2006. He posted
until the day before his death on Nov. 13, 2013.