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Technology Stocks : Applied Materials No-Politics Thread (AMAT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Fred Levine who wrote (7039)	9/3/2003 4:54:36 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Respond to of 25522

Where is the SEC? Why does it seem like Spitzer is the only one interested in those on Wall Street breaking the law? Eliot for President! Mutual Fund Probe Targets Illegal Trading Wednesday September 3, 2:20 pm ET By Jake Keaveny NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer on Wednesday said he launched a sweeping investigation into four major mutual fund companies for what he said were illegal trading practices that cost shareholders billions of dollars. The companies under investigation include: Bank One Corp.'s Banc One funds, Bank of America's Nations Funds, Janus Capital Group Inc. and Strong Capital Management. The investigation is the latest salvo from Spitzer in his crackdown on Wall Street and once again steals the thunder from Washington, where Congress and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (News - Websites) have been probing the $6.87 trillion mutual fund business. As part of the probe, Spitzer said he reached a $40 million settlement with hedge fund Canary Capital Partners LLC, which invested in the mutual funds in exchange for an opportunity to profit from illegal trade in mutual fund shares. New York-based Canary, which did not admit to any wrongdoing, has agreed to aid the investigation into the mutual fund companies. Spitzer said he would seek to return "ill-gotten gains" to investors. "Fund companies are not supposed to favor individual customers, and it clearly sounds like manipulative conduct," said Frank Razzano, a former assistant chief trial attorney at the SEC, and now a partner at Washington law firm Dickstein Shapiro Morin & Oshinsky LLP. "It begs the question of where the SEC has been." The SEC declined to comment on Spitzer's recent probe and his settlement with Canary Capital, but the agency was expected to have a statement after Spitzer's press conference. Thus far, the focus has been on conflicts of interest in selling the funds and overcharging investors for investing in certain mutual funds. Spitzer spearheaded a probe into research practices on Wall Street that resulted in a $1.4 billion settlement by Citigroup , Merrill Lynch & Co. and eight other major firms. THE PROBES Spitzer said mutual fund companies engaged in illegal after-hours trading and market exploitation that cost their shareholders billions of dollars. Canary Capital Partners, two Canary related entities, and the hedge fund's managing principal, Edward Stern, agreed to pay $30 million in restitution and a $10 million penalty for making unlawful trades. Canary also agreed to cooperate in the investigation of the mutual fund companies. Hedge funds are loosely regulated investment pools that can use investment techniques that are normally off limits to mutual funds. One of the violations being investigated is "late trading," which involves buying mutual fund shares after the market closes. While mutual funds invest in stocks with the funds they manage, the shares of the mutual funds also are publicly traded. They are typically valued based on net asset value, or the total value of a fund's investments. "This goes against the integrity of the market," said Gary Gensler, a former U.S Treasury official. "If there's late trading based upon mutual funds' net asset value earlier in the day then that means someone is getting an advantage others are not." Late trading of mutual fund shares is prohibited by New York's Martin Act and SEC rules because it allows the investor to take advantage of events after the market close that can move the stock price. Another market violation, known as "timing," involves taking advantage of small discrepancies between the closing price and early stock movement the next day. The net asset value of the shares that is set at each market close sometimes does not represent the actual market value, allowing traders to profit by buying shares after the market closes and selling them the next day, according to Spitzer's office. Officials at Bank One, Bank of America and Strong Capital Management said their respective firms are cooperating with Spitzer's office. Janus did not return a call for comment. (With additional reporting by Chris Sanders, Cal Mankowski and Svea Herbst-Bayliss)

To: Fred Levine who wrote (7039)	9/3/2003 9:30:34 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25522

[World DRAM Price] Prices of 256MB DDR DIMMs Rise US$10 or More in 3 Months September 3, 2003 (TOKYO) -- The rolling average prices of 256MB DIMMs (PC2100) on the spot markets in the 30-day period ending Aug. 15, 2003 (July 17-Aug. 15) were US$34.18 in North America, US$38.39 in Europe, and US$35.62 in Asia, according to the worldwide DRAM price research conducted by ICIS-LOR. ICIS-LOR has bases in London, Houston and Singapore. Compared with the previous week (the rolling average prices for the 30-day period ending Aug. 8), the prices rose 3.28% in North America, 3.46% in Europe, and 4.29% in Asia. As for memory modules, the prices for 128Mb DRAMs (PC133, 16M x 8) for large-volume users in North America and Europe remained unchanged from the previous week at US$2.83 and US$3.03, respectively, but rose by 8.06% to US$3.35 in Asia. It has been around three months since the 30-day rolling average prices of Double Data Rate (DDR)-type 256MB DIMMs on spot markets started increasing. During that period, the prices have risen by US$10 or more, resulting in a 50% increase from the price recorded at the end of May. Table: 30-Day Rolling Averages of 128Mb DRAMs (PC133, 16M x 8) July 17 - August 15, 2003 (survey by ICIS-LOR)Area Contract price Week-on-week comparison North America US$2.83 0.00% Europe US$3.03 0.00% Asia US$3.35 +8.06% *Week-on-week comparison is the comparison with the 30-day rolling averages of Jul. 10-Aug. 8, 2003. Previous report: PC Makers Remain Bullish on Production (Tamao Kikuchi, Nikkei Market Access)