President-elect Barack Obama’s transition team is reportedly putting the finishing touches on an economic recovery plan that could run from $675 billion to $1 trillion, though many experts believe the program will most like range between $700 billion and $800 billion.

Briefings for top congressional Democrats were to start either over the weekend or today (Monday), a senior transition-team official told The Associated Press late last week. President-elect Obama is slated to meet today with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., in a Democratic strategy session that is likely to focus on the economic recovery package.

It’s time to look forward, not back. The 111th Congress meets tomorrow (Tuesday), and a comprehensive economic stimulus package is at the top of its agenda.  Hopefully, the lawmakers can put partisan bickering aside (fat chance) and have a bill in place for President-elect Barack

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President-elect Barack Obama yesterday (Thursday) named Mary L. Schapiro – a strong proponent of protections for individual investors – to head the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission when his administration takes office next month, the biggest of three nominations with potential financial crisis implications.

And in the latest addition to his Obamanomics plan, the president-elect has also proposed a massive stimulus package of as much as $775 billion over the next two years as part of a historic infusion that’s aimed at overhauling America’s infrastructure, schools, broadband networks and energy use, a Congressional source told MarketWatch.com yesterday.

But making the Schapiro nomination official was considered a key move. In its Thursday morning issue, Money Morning reported that Schapiro had been chosen and that an official announcement would be made later in the day. And that’s just what happened.

Obama named

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Managing Director Peter Jacobs brings more than twenty-five years of experience in the telecommunications and technology sectors to the company. Previously, he served as a president of a nationwide telecommunications inter-exchange carrier where he was responsible for the conception, development, and rollout for the prepaid calling card. Later, he successfully rolled out the first machine-vended telecard in America. Within two years, a nationwide network of 3,000 of these advanced vending machines was in almost every major truck stop in the U.S.

Corporate Counsel William Haseltine has more than two decades of experience in corporate and securities law and has practiced around the world. He spent nearly ten years at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission where he was Special Counsel, working in the Office of International Corporate Finance, the Office of Disclosure Policy, the Office of Chief Counsel and the Office of Disclosure Operations. His expertise lies in small businesses and

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AgFeed Industries (FEED) produces and sells fodder and blended feed for use in the domestic animal husbandry markets in China. The company also raises hogs for China’s pork industry and manufactures premixed poultry food products. AgFeed has production facilities in Shanghai, Nanchang and Nanning, and over 20 hog farms in southern China. AgFeed has been acquisitive to add to its bottom line and gain market share, making several acquisitions earlier this year in China. China, the world’s largest country by population, is also one of the largest pork markets in the world.

On Monday, the company announced a $10-million share repurchase program, which will be funded with available cash on hand. AgFeed has $31.3 million in cash on hand. The company also said it expects to earn $1.10 a share for fiscal 2008, which is 10 cents above the average analyst estimate. Three Wall Street analysts track the company and

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U.S. stocks soared yesterday (Tuesday) - with the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 485 points in posting its third-biggest point gain ever - as investors surged back into stocks just one day after the surprise rejection of a $700 billion bailout plan touched off a record sell-off.

Money Morning/The Money Map Report Where to start?  Market volatility is sure to continue for the indefinite future as investors, economists, analysts and politicos debate the merits of the federal government’s ongoing move – and try to make heads or tails out of the new financial landscape. Mega-financials that offer everything (deposits, lending, brokerage services, deal underwriting, wealth management, mergers & acquisitions deals) appear to be the wave of the future (is beleaguered Citigroup Inc. (C) suddenly ahead of its time?). Comparisons to past crises are emerging: The Great Depression, the savings & loan crisis, the junk bond collapse, Japan’s stock-and-real-estate implosion, and even Tulip Mania). Many investors have thrown in the towel (capitulation) and unloaded any and all financials (not to mention autos, airlines, and even technology stocks…anyone catch the 25,000 jobs lost at Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) or ...

After all the hoopla this week, the Dow ended at 11,388.44, which is pretty much where it left off last Friday. The blue chip index advanced by 368.75 points, or 3.35%, for the day.

Broader indexes also ended higher Friday. The S&P 500 index increased 48.57 points, or 4.03%, to 1,255.08, and the Nasdaq gained 74.80 points, or 3.40%, closing at 2,273.90.

TodayÂ’s rally was fueled by the governmentÂ’s announcement that it will step in to help rescue banks from bad bets on mortgages. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson explained that a bailout is necessary though he offered little in terms of specifics. Paulson said that he will meet with members of congress over the weekend to hammer out the details.

The government announced other actions as well in order to help facilitate a less turbulent environment in the financial system. The Federal Reserve will expand its emergency lending program, allowing commercial banks

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I once asked my friend – world-famous magician Lance Burton – if he could show me how he did a particular trick. “Can you keep a secret?” he asked. “Of course,” I replied. “So can I,” he said. The point is that the U.S. Federal Reserve, the U.S. Treasury Department and federal regulators are keeping secret the true precariousness of the capital markets credit crisis and the banking system’s close-to-the-precipice predicament. They need to give banks and investment banks room to maneuver their balance sheets by whatever “hocus-pocus accounting” methods they can utilize – without being outright fraudulent.  It’s a matter of putting on a good show to give the banks time to repair their balance sheets and build up capital, however long that takes and with whatever magic can be mustered. No End in Sight Contrary to once-prevalent expectations – including the early prognostications from the ...

The China Securities Regulatory Commission — Beijing's equivalent of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission — is pressing the country's listed companies to adopt more generous dividend policies. Previously, China-listed companies that wanted to issue additional stock had to pay out at least 20% of their annual average profit for the past three consecutive years in the form of shareholder dividends (cash or stock). The CSRC wants to raise the minimum amount to at least 30% of profits to shareholders. If a company refuses to comply, it will be punished by not being able to float new bonds or sell additional shares. According to the Chinese agency, "Giving fair returns to shareholders is part of listed firms' responsibilities and is the foundation of stable and healthy development of the securities market." ...