Stocks: 4 things to know before the open

Click chart for in-depth premarket data.

LONDON (CNNMoney)

Early indications are good. U.S. stock futures were all higher Monday and European markets advanced.

Here are the four things you need to know before the opening bell rings in New York:

1. Stock market movers -- Burger King, Tim Horton's, Roche, InterMune: Get ready for market reaction after Burger King (BKW) announced it's in talks to buy the Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons (THI) in a deal that could see the burger chain move its headquarters to Canada and lower its tax bill.

Shares in Roche (RHHBY) were up by about 0.5% after the Swiss pharmaceutical giant announced it's paying $8.3 billion to buy Nasdaq-traded InterMune (ITMN). The offer represents a 38% premium compared to where InterMune shares closed on Friday.

2. French government shake-up: French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has presented President Francois Hollande with his government's resignation, and a new government will be announced on Tuesday. Shares in the benchmark CAC 40 in Paris were higher by about 1% in early trading.

Related: Fear & Greed Index

3. Economic data: New data on business sentiment in Germany shows confidence continues to deteriorate as the economy loses steam. Many German firms have suffered as tensions escalate with Russia, a major trading partner.

At 10 a.m. ET the U.S. Census Bureau will release data on new home sales.

Related: CNNMoney's Tech30

4. Friday market recap: U.S. stocks closed mixed Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 both slid about 0.2%, but the Nasdaq gained about 0.1%.

First Published: August 25, 2014: 5:13 AM ET

21.29 | 0 komentar | Read More

Apple recalls iPhone 5s for battery woes

Certain iPhone 5 smartphones are eligible for free battery replacements, Apple says.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Apple (AAPL, Tech30) said "a very small percentage" of iPhone 5 smartphones may "suddenly experience shorter battery life or need to be charged more frequently."

Don't get too excited just yet. After a year or two, everyone's iPhone battery seems to carry less juice than it once did. But Apple's repair program is limited to certain customers in the United States and China.

Only iPhone 5 smartphones sold between September 2012 and January 2013 are eligible, and only those that fall within a certain range of serial numbers. Apple has opened a website that allows people to determine whether their phones are eligible. (To access your serial number, tap Settings > General > About > Serial Number).

Apple announced an even smaller iPhone 5S battery recall program last year. In June, Apple issued a recall in 37 countries for European iPhone chargers that were overheating.

First Published: August 25, 2014: 9:15 AM ET

21.29 | 0 komentar | Read More

Original Superman comic sells for record $3.2 million

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

A pristine copy of Action Comics #1 -- which introduced Superman for the first time -- sold on eBay (EBAY, Tech30) for $3,207,852, a record. When it originally hit newsstands in 1938, the comic sold for 10 cents.

Reports from websites that follow the comic industry say the publication was bought by comicconnect, an online auctioneer.

"I'm proud to have owned the most valuable comic book in the world," said Darren Adams, the comic's seller, and owner of Pristine Comics near Seattle.

In a video on Pristine's website, Adams explained how the comic was bought at a newsstand in 1938 by a man from West Virginia who kept it in a cedar chest. The high-altitude location, and the cool, dry, dark environment kept the comic in nearly perfect condition.

The book was eventually discovered in the 1970s and sold to a prominent dealer, who resold it to Adams.

The Superman comic is graded a 9 on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest, according to comic book grading company Certified Guaranty.

According to the news release, a portion of the proceeds from the auction will be donated to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.

Reeve starred as the iconic Man of Steel is a series of movies before a horse-riding accident left him paralyzed in 1995. He started his foundation to promote research to help people with spinal-cord injuries. Reeve died in 2004.

First Published: August 25, 2014: 8:44 AM ET

21.29 | 0 komentar | Read More

Is Burger King moving to Canada?

HONG KONG (CNNMoney)

The new company would be headquartered in Canada, the two firms said in a joint statement. Both Tim Hortons (THI) and Burger King (BKW) would continue to operate as standalone brands.

By moving north of the border, Burger King would be completing what is called an "inversion" -- a strategy that allows U.S. firms to lower their tax bills by merging with a foreign company, and then relocating to the new country.

Corporate tax rates are lower in Canada than the U.S., which has the highest tax rate among developed economies.

In the case of Miami-based Burger King and Tim Hortons, the combined company would be the world's third largest fast food chain, generating $22 billion in sales at more than 18,000 restaurants in 100 countries.

Related: 7 things you absolutely must know about corporate taxes

In the past decade, at least 47 U.S. companies have used the inversion process. Several inversions have been proposed this year and more are in the works.

One major inversion deal was announced in July, when Chicago-based AbbVie agreed to a $54.7 billion merger with Britain's Shire, slashing AbbVie's effective tax rate to about 13% by 2016 from 26%.

Drugmaker Mylan also announced last month that it would buy a Netherlands-based unit of Abbott Laboratories in a deal designed to let it incorporate abroad.

Related: 8 of the world's craziest fast food items

The flurry of deals has attracted the attention of Washington, and the White House has called on companies to practice "economic patriotism."

"They're declaring they're based someplace else even though most of their operations are here. .. My attitude is I don't care if it's legal -- it's wrong," President Obama said in July.

First Published: August 24, 2014: 11:18 PM ET

19.33 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hackers attack Sony PlayStation Network

The "Lizard Squad" has targeted Sony's online gaming network.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Over the weekend, Blizzard Entertainment, CCP Games, Riot Games and Sony (SNE) have done maintenance to bring their networks back online.

CNNMoney quiz: What hackers know about you

The hackers, speaking publicly on Twitter, claimed responsibility for attacking the PlayStation Network and others, disrupting the ability of millions of gamers to play together online.

According to the targeted companies, hackers flooded their networks with illegitimate traffic -- a strategy known as a distributed denial of service attack. The FBI said it was investigating.

The hackers slammed the following game networks:

• Battle.net (World of Warcraft, Starcraft II, Diablo III)
• EVE Online
• League of Legends
• PlayStation Network and Sony Online Entertainment

On Sunday, Sony said both its services were still under repair but assured customers no user data was exposed. The other networks did not immediately return requests for comment.

When John Smedley, president of Sony Online Entertainment, acknowledged the "large scale" attacks on Twitter, he came under fire as well. Knowing that Smedley was on a flight from the Dallas area to San Diego, the hackers made a veiled threat about bombs on his plane.

"We have been receiving reports that @j_smedley's plane #362 from DFW to SAN has explosives on-board, please look into this," the group said to American Airlines on Twitter, pairing that with images of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

The plane was diverted to Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport.

CNNMoney's cybersecurity Flipboard magazine: How safe are you?

The FBI later released this statement: "The flight landed without incident. Passengers were safely removed from the plane."

-- CNN's Evan Perez contributed to this report.

First Published: August 24, 2014: 10:03 PM ET

19.33 | 0 komentar | Read More

Stocks: 4 things to know before the open

Click chart for in-depth premarket data.

LONDON (CNNMoney)

Early indications are good. U.S. stock futures were all higher Monday and European markets advanced.

Here are the four things you need to know before the opening bell rings in New York:

1. Stock market movers -- Burger King, Tim Horton's, Roche, InterMune: Get ready for market reaction after Burger King (BKW) announced it's in talks to buy the Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons (THI) in a deal that could see the burger chain move its headquarters to Canada and lower its tax bill.

Shares in Roche (RHHBY) were up by about 0.5% after the Swiss pharmaceutical giant announced it's paying $8.3 billion to buy Nasdaq-traded InterMune (ITMN). The offer represents a 38% premium compared to where InterMune shares closed on Friday.

2. French government shake-up: French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has presented President Francois Hollande with his government's resignation, and a new government will be announced on Tuesday. Shares in the benchmark CAC 40 in Paris were higher by about 1% in early trading.

Related: Fear & Greed Index

3. Economic data: New data on business sentiment in Germany shows confidence continues to deteriorate as the economy loses steam. Many German firms have suffered as tensions escalate with Russia, a major trading partner.

At 10 a.m. ET the U.S. Census Bureau will release data on new home sales.

Related: CNNMoney's Tech30

4. Friday market recap: U.S. stocks closed mixed Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 both slid about 0.2%, but the Nasdaq gained about 0.1%.

First Published: August 25, 2014: 5:13 AM ET

19.33 | 0 komentar | Read More

Glenn Beck sought out CNN deal, but talks died fast

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

But the idea fizzled fast and talks aren't expected to resume, according to several people with direct knowledge of the exchange. "The talks were never serious," one of the people said.

Still, Beck's interest -- first reported Friday night by the Wall Street Journal -- is a sign that he is seeking partnerships to help his two-year-old cable channel, called The Blaze.

The Blaze has had a hard time gaining distribution on cable and satellite systems. It is not alone: Many fledgling channels are in similar positions, particularly channels that are not backed by major media companies.

Time Warner (TWX), owner of CNNMoney and CNN, is one of those major media companies. It also owns HBO, TNT, TBS, and other channels, so it has significant leverage in negotiations with distributors like Comcast (CMCSA) and DirecTV (DTV).

That's one of the reasons why Beck's representatives from his media company, Mercury Radio Arts, reached out.

One of the sources compared the proposal to the joint venture between Oprah Winfrey and Discovery Communications for the channel that became OWN. Discovery provided the shelf space on cable systems and Winfrey provided the bulk of the programming for that channel.

Related: Future of media

Another source said Beck's company proposed that it buy a block of time on HLN, a smaller television sibling of CNN. That would have been a homecoming of sorts for Beck, who hosted a nightly show on HLN from 2006 to 2008. But CNN signaled that it was not interested.

The contact from Mercury Radio Arts came after media reports about talks between Time Warner and Vice Media. Those talks, first reported in late June, have also involved HLN. They are believed to be ongoing, though neither of the companies have commented publicly.

Spokespeople for Beck and CNN declined to comment.

When I interviewed Beck for CNN's "Reliable Sources" last month at his headquarters in Irving, Texas, he acknowledged the challenges that independent channel owners face. At the time, I didn't know about his company's outreach to CNN, and he didn't mention any possible partnerships with major media companies.

Related: Glenn Beck's challenge: Getting into your TV

But he spoke at length about his interest in making sure Mercury Radio Arts reaches audiences through television, radio, the Internet, in-person events, and other means.

"I am interested in delivering an experience for people," he said. "And I want to be in every -- in every possible venue."

Beck's channel is arguably the biggest opportunity he has. It originated on the Internet and was picked up by the country's second-biggest satellite television provider, Dish Network (DISH), in 2012. At the time, that was a big coup for Beck.

Since then, The Blaze has struck distribution deals with about 70 smaller TV providers. But the industry is top-heavy, and only two of the ten biggest providers, Dish and Cablevision (CVC), have supported The Blaze so far.

Beck's representatives have declined to say how many of the country's 100 million homes with pay-TV currently have access to The Blaze, which helps to explain his apparent interest in partnerships.

First Published: August 23, 2014: 8:17 PM ET

21.29 | 0 komentar | Read More

10 Western companies getting slammed in Russia

LONDON (CNNMoney)

Many are reporting slower Russian sales and, in some cases, store closures as the Ukraine-Russia conflict drags on. Some have seen their share price get pummeled since the start of the year.

Cold War-style tensions and escalating sanctions are slamming these companies, as American and European leaders blame Russian President Vladimir Putin for the unfolding crisis and violence in Ukraine.

Here are 10 of the highest profile, worst hit companies:

1.McDonald's: Russian officials and regulators have been cracking down on the restaurant chain. Officials shut a handful of popular McDonald's (MCD) restaurants in Moscow this week, and state media report that Russia's consumer watchdog will be conducting checks on outlets as part of a food standards investigation.

Meanwhile, Wendy's (WEN) was recently forced to exit Russia due to what it said was a change in management at its local partner Wenrus. Wendy's had been in Russia since 2011.

2. Coca-Cola: The drinks giant said this week that quarterly sales declined by about 5% in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. Coca-Cola (KO) blamed "economic instability in the region," but global sales increased by 3%.

3. Carlsberg: The Danish brewer warned this week its annual results will be weaker than expected, as Russian demand dries up. Carlsberg (CABGY) estimated that industry-wide Russian beer sales fell by as much as 7% in the first six months of 2014 due an uncertain economic environment, leading it to also lose market share. Carlsberg beer is the most popular beer in Russia by a wide margin. The company's stock has fallen 15% since the start of the year.

4. Adidas: In late July, the German sportswear company announced it was shutting stores and scaling back expansion plans in Russia. It said that "tensions in the region" had hurt consumer spending, and that the decline in the Russian ruble hurt profitability. Adidas (ADDYY) slashed its 2014 earnings forecast by 20% to 30%, partly because of Russia. Shares have plunged 37% since the start of 2014.

5. Volkswagen: The German automaker blamed an 8% drop in its Russia car sales during the first six months of the year on political tensions, and it said it believes i sales industry wide fell about 25% in July. Volkswagen (VLKAY) shares are down 13% since the start of the year.

6. Ford: A weakening ruble and slower sales in Russia have hurt Ford's (F) bottom line.

7. Renault: The French car maker has warned investors about a sharp slowdown in Russia and other emerging markets. Russia is Renault's (RNSDF) third largest market in terms of sales.

8. BP: The British oil giant BP (BP) owns a large stake in Rosneft, Russia's biggest oil company, and warned that unit will suffer from tougher U.S. sanctions. Investors are also worried about other energy companies, including Total (TOT) and Exxon Mobil (XOM), which have significant ties with Russia.

9. Societe Generale: Profits at the French bank's Russian unit fell 36% in the second quarter.

10. Danone: The French food multinational said first-half results were hurt by a decline in the ruble, and that it was forced to hike prices for some products in Russia due to strong inflation.

-- CNN's Olga Pavlova contributed to this report.

First Published: August 23, 2014: 10:12 AM ET

21.29 | 0 komentar | Read More

Stock market matchup: Yellen vs. Putin

Investors are caught in the middle of Yellen and Putin.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Despite their differences, Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen and Russian President Vladimir Putin are having big impacts on the stock market these days.

They're not technically in direct competition with each other, but Yellen's speeches and actions tend to move the market up -- or at least keep it steady -- while Putin's moves in Ukraine often spook investors.

Yellen staying the course: In one corner, there's Yellen, who keeps stressing that the U.S. central bank plans to keep interest rates at their historic lows for some time. The Fed's near-zero interest rate policy coupled with its massive stimulus program is widely credited with driving the bull market for the last five-plus years.

Related: Stock market bubble warnings grow louder

Though the stimulus is winding down, there's a perception among investors that Yellen doesn't want to spook the markets and therefore won't raise rates too early. While no exact date has been given, Fed-followers predict a rate bump in summer 2015.

Speaking Friday at a symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Yellen said the job market hasn't recovered, and that has led to speculation that the Fed will continue to support the economy until it does.

"The Fed is absolutely committed to not doing something stupid," said Brad McMillan, chief investment officer for the Commonwealth Financial Network. "The last thing they want to do is send the economy back into the great recession."

U.S. investors seem to be keeping the faith in Yellen, for now. Despite a pullback earlier this month, stocks roared back last week, with the S&P 500 hitting a record high on Thursday, and the Dow trading back above the 17,000 threshold.

Putin not backing down: On the other side of the "pond," the picture is more bleak. Investors worry that sanctions against Russia will hurt an already fragile European economy.

Related: Putin factor snuffs out European growth

Putin hasn't done much to allay those fears. On Friday, a U.S. defense official with direct knowledge of the latest information said Russia now has up to 18,000 "combat ready" troops on its border with Ukraine.

Also on Friday, Ukraine accused Russia of invading its borders with a convoy that was under the guise of a humanitarian aid mission.

Germany, Russia's largest trading partner, saw its main DAX stock index tumble this month due to concerns about the situation in Ukraine. The index has since recovered some of that lost ground, but McMillan believes the tension with Russia could have a noticeable impact on Europe's economy.

"This could reasonably be the blow that socks them back into a recession," he warned.

Don't discount the economy: Part of the reason Yellen and Putin are front and center on investors' minds is because the U.S. economy seems to be chugging along as a solid pace.

Related: 3 reasons stocks are still charging ahead

There have been decent job gains and robust corporate earnings. Even Yellen has said that if the economy improves faster than expected, or if inflation picks up significantly, the Fed may be compelled to hike interest rates sooner rather than later.

At the same time, many countries in Europe are still grappling with persistently slow growth, high unemployment, and anxiety about possible deflation.

So that means any breakdown in trade with Russia will sting.

Still, there's some hope that the European economy would be boosted by some sort of Fed-style stimulus from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi. If that happens, Draghi may ultimately be more important than Putin.

First Published: August 24, 2014: 8:45 AM ET

21.29 | 0 komentar | Read More

The Coolest Kickstarter tops $9 million

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

More than 46,000 people think so. The Coolest Cooler has raised over $9.2 million on Kickstarter -- and it still has a week to go.

It's described as a "portable party" and includes features like a blender, waterproof bluetooth speaker, USB charger, cutting board and bottle opener.

It's the second highest grossing campaign ever, ranking just behind the Pebble (the smartwatch that raised a record $10 million in 2012).

"There's a point where products derive much more attention than any rational expectation would suggest," said Jason Greenberg, PhD and assistant professor at New York University's business school, "In a market where potato salad can raise $55,000, it's not that surprising."

What's more surprising is that this isn't Coolest's first time around the Kickstarter block.

Related: The 13 most WTF gadgets

Ryan Grepper of Portland, Ore., unsuccessfully tried to raise $125,000 for similar model of The Coolest In November 2013. He only raised about $100,000.

On Kickstarter, Grepper detailed the biggest changes this time around: Seasonality (July vs. November), more supporters and an improved design.

It's certainly worked -- but are the millions any indication of how it'll fare post-crowdfunding?

They could be.

"We've seen more and more angels and investors using [Kickstarter] as a minor league in terms of [gauging] customer demands," said Greenberg.

Related: Water balloon lovers pledge $645,000 on Kickstarter

According to PrivCo, a financial data provider on privately-held companies, U.S. cooler sales totaled $635 million in 2013.

Igloo Products Corp "dominates" the market, according to Matt Turlip, senior analyst at PrivCo. The company, which was acquired by VC firm J.H. Whitney & Co. earlier this year, owns 53% of the full-size cooler market.

"Maybe in a year or two, with $9 million in funding, The Coolest can hope to compete," said Turlip.

Those who pledged enough for the cooler ($165 or more) will have to wait until February 2015 to get the product (which will come in Margarita, Blue Moon and Coolest Orange).

But they will have saved a cool $130 -- it'll retail for $299.

First Published: August 22, 2014: 5:22 PM ET

19.33 | 0 komentar | Read More