14 10 / 2011
UPDATE 1-Obama recruits more big cash donors for re-election
By Kim Dixon and Eric JohnsonWASHINGTON/CHICAGO, Oct 14 (Reuters) - The number of donors
who raise big money for President Barack Obama jumped in the
last three months as he builds a war chest for what will likely
be the costliest presidential election ever.At least forty-one people have raised at least half a
million dollars for the president, compared to 27 in Obama’s
first report, according to an analysis of campaign data
released on Friday.The big donors, known as “bundlers,” are typically
well-connected people who pledge to gather tens of thousands of
dollars for a candidateFormer Goldman Sachs executive Jon Corzine and Dreamworks
Animation chief executive executive Jeffrey Katzenberg
are on Obama’s elite list and raised $500,000 or more.The president’s campaign finance report shows he can still
pull in major cash despite a stagnant economy, dipping approval
ratings and grumblings among some liberal supporters that he
has not done enough for their cause.While still keeping ties to his famed small donor
operation, Obama is relying heavily on major donors early on to
finance a campaign that is likely to break records in spending,
according to Anthony Corrado, a campaign finance expert at
Colby College.”The emphasis has been on doing larger dollar fundraising
events particularly asking for $2,500,” Corrado said. “Events
like this help him to raise substantial amounts of money for
the campaign allowing him to exceed his pace for 2007.”Obama and the Democratic National Committee have raised
more than $150 million so far for his bid for a second term,
far outstripping Obama’s Republican rivals.DOLLARS = VOTES?But fundraising prowess doesn’t guarantee victory for the
incumbent, who is fighting for re-election amid a economic
stagnation and high unemployment.Opinion polls show that Obama will have a tough time
winning re-election next year. A Gallup poll released on Friday
showed that U.S. registered voters, by 46 percent to 38
percent, are more likely to vote for an unnamed Republican
presidential candidate than for Obama in 2012.Bundlers raised about a third of Obama’s warchest so far.Earlier on Friday, Republican Mitt Romney posted $14
million for the quarter, second to fellow Republican Texas
Governor Rick Perry’s $17 million. Obama’s comparable
fundraising figure for the three months was $43 million.Obama voluntarily releases a list of bundlers. No other
major candidate has done so.The president regularly brings in more than $1 million in a
single evening of fundraising, as supporters donate the legal
maximum of $35,800 to his campaign and the Democratic party for
the chance to have dinner and take a picture with the
president.UBS executive Robert Wolf and hedge fund executive
Orin Kramer are also big Obama fundraisers.At least 40 percent of all the money raised by the Obama
campaign and the Democratic National Committee last quarter
came from those giving in increments of $200 or less.The Obama campaign has been touting its connections to
mainstream Americans who send smaller checks, calling itself a
grassroots effort.”They are still doing well with small donors,” said Darrell
West, director of governance studies at the Brookings
Institution, a thank tank.The campaign said that in the third quarter about 600,000
people donated to the campaign.Much has been made of dipping support among Wall Street for
Obama. Some financial executives, including hedge fund
managers, have complained about Obama’s tax and financial
regulation policies and his comments about the wealthy, at
times calling them “fat cats.”In the second quarter, more Wall Street money did flow to
Romney, who has deep ties there. Still, Obama boosted the
number of bundlers with Wall Street ties in that period.
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14 10 / 2011
Chinese copper buyers see small Codelco premium cut for 2012
* European buyers not keen to take full 2012 deliveries - tradeBy Polly Yam and Melanie BurtonHONG KONG/LONDON, Oct 14 (Reuters) - Codelco is likely to reduce its 2012
physical copper premiums for Chinese buyers by at most 5 percent, a smaller cut
than it gave European clients as demand in the world’s biggest consumer of the
metal is expected to remain strong, traders said on Friday.Earlier this month, trading sources said Codelco, the world’s top copper
producer, had offered yearly premiums of $90 a tonne over the cash London Metal
Exchange copper prices to European buyers for 2012, a 9 percent cut from
this year, as the spectre of recession looms over the region’s economy.By 2012, however, traders and end-users expected China’s economy to continue
growing, fuelling demand for the industrial metal. Weaker global demand is also
likely to reduce copper prices, which would further boost Chinese consumption.They saw the Chilean firm offering premiums of between $110 and $115 for its
shipments to China, which would be at most a 5 percent cut from this year.Chinese buyers have agreed to pay yearly premiums of $115 to Codelco for
2011 shipments, a gain of 35 percent from 2010.”Some Chinese buyers who got 3,000 tonnes a month or 10,000 tonnes a month
this year are seeking to book 10,000 tonnes a month or 20,000 tonne a month next
year because they expect prices to fall,” said a trader at an international firm
who declined to be identified.”With such demand, we don’t expect Codelco would give a big cut to the
Chinese.”Chinese buyers are expected to hold talks with Codelco in November on the
2012 premiums. Traders said all the signs so far pointed to robust demand,
decreasing the likelihood of any significant reduction.Chinese buyers need to rebuild stocks next year after those in bonded
warehouses in Shanghai fell to about 200,000 tonnes currently, from over 700,000
tonnes in April, a trader said.Beijing’s policy of tightening credit to local companies is expected to keep
up demand from investors who import copper for reselling in the domestic market
as a way to generate cash, a client of Codelco in China added.”The picture in China is different from Europe. Tight credits in China is
expected to stay for a while,” he said.International Copper Study Group expects world apparent refined copper usage
in 2012 to grow by 3.6 percent, mainly supported by a growth of 6 percent in
China as the rest of the world is expected to grow by only 2
percent.China’s copper consumption may rise to 7.8-7.9 million tonnes in 2012 from
7.38 million tonnes expected this year, according to state-backed research firm
Antaike.In September, China imported 380,526 tonnes of anode, refined copper, alloy
and semi-finished copper products, the highest level since May 2010 and a gain
of 3.3 percent from September 2010, data from the General Administration of
Customs showed on Thursday.JAPANESE SUPPLYAnother factor that may discourage Codelco from deepening its premium cuts
to China is the flat rate $100 premium offered by Japan’s top copper smelter,
Pan Pacific Copper, for 2012.”A flat premium (for 2012 shipments) is reasonable for Japanese copper
because buyers’ financing costs are lower than shipments from Chile,” said a
purchasing manager for a large copper fabricating plant which buys from Japanese
smelters, but not Codelco.Codelco, however, risked losing customers if it set the premium at $115,
while prices are expected to fall in the next year, traders said.”If they’re considering trying at $115 they’re going to walk away empty
handed. At the moment, spot premiums are said to be $150, but $130-140 is where
business is being done. The trouble is, seven months of the year, the premiums
have been flat,” a London-based physical trader said.”The Chinese guys are the same as the European guys, they’ll be holding off
to see how the economic situation plays out and end up looking to get a lot on
the spot market,” he said.Traders said some European customers were not keen to take full deliveries
under their contracts with Codelco in 2012 because of worries over weak demand.
They said European buyers considered the $90 premium expensive, compared to the
current levels of between $45 and $50.”So the situation is sit and wait for a while. Probably the first deals will
start to conclude during second week of November,” a Chilean merchant said,
referring to the European buyers.
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12 10 / 2011
Most Americans aware of Wall Street protests: Reuters/Ipsos
Ipsos research director Chris Jackson said the large number of people who were positive or undecided reflected the mood of the country.”People are just sort of angry,” he said. “They aren’t necessarily sure what they are angry about, and the protest captures that to a certain extent.”Democrats and Republicans were equally familiar with the protests, at 84 percent and 82 percent, respectively, but only 73 percent of independents were aware.But their views are sharply divided by party. Fifty-one percent of Democrats viewed the protests favorably, versus just 11 percent who saw them unfavorably. Among independents, 37 percent had a positive view, compared with 14 percent who felt negative.Just 22 percent of Republicans said they had a favorable view, compared with 44 percent who were unfavorable.According to Occupy Together, which has become an online hub for protest activity, the Occupy Wall Street movement has sparked rallies in more than 1,300 cities throughout the United States and around the world.The of 1,113 adults, including 934 registered voters, was conducted October 6-10. It surveyed 536 Democrats, 410 Republicans and 167 independents.The margin of error was 3.0 percentage points for all respondents, 3.2 points for registered voters, 4.2 points for Democrats, 4.8 points for Republicans and 7.6 points for independents.
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