Fairmount CA

(Updates with economist comment in fourth paragraph.)

Feb. 10 (Bloomberg) — The trade deficit in the US widened in December to a six-month high as a strengthening economy prompted bigger gains in imports than exports.

The gap increased 3.7 percent to $48.8 billion from $47.1 billion in November, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. Purchases of goods and services produced overseas were the strongest in more than three years on record demand for capital equipment like machinery and semiconductors.

Imports may keep rising as an improving job market underpins consumer spending, and businesses rebuild inventories and replace outdated equipment. At the same time, demand from emerging markets is boosting sales at companies like General Electric Co. and Caterpillar Inc., buffering the fallout from Europes debt crisis and helping to sustain exports.

Growth in consumer and business demand is pretty good and that is helping to pull in imports,” said Jay Bryson, a senior global economist at Wells Fargo Securities LLC in Charlotte, North Carolina, who projected the gap would rise to $49 billion. We will see a widening trade deficit this year as imports grow faster than exports.”

Stock-index futures slumped on concern over Greece as one of the three party leaders supporting the countrys government said he cannot vote for the current austerity package. The contract on the Standard amp; Poors 500 Index maturing in March dropped 0.9 percent to 1,335.8 at 8:44 am in New York.

Survey Results

The median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of 75 economists called for the deficit to rise to $48.5 billion from a previously estimated $47.8 billion in November. Estimates ranged from gaps of $43 billion to $50.5 billion.

For all of 2011, the shortfall grew 12 percent to $558 billion, the most since 2008. Both imports and exports climbed to records.

Imports advanced 1.3 percent to $227.6 billion, the most since July 2008. In addition to capital goods, American companies also bought more consumer household items, automobiles and parts and crude oil from overseas.

Exports increased 0.7 percent to $178.8 billion, boosted by record sales of petroleum to buyers overseas. That caused the trade gap excluding petroleum to widen even more than the deficit overall, rising to $21.9 billion in December from $19.4 billion the prior month.

After eliminating the influence of prices, which are the numbers used to calculate gross domestic product, the trade deficit grew to $47.7 billion from $47 billion. The fourth- quarter average of $46.2 billion was larger than the $45.7 billion in the previous three months, confirming that trade subtracted from growth over the period.

Growth Accelerates

The worlds largest economy expanded at a 2.8 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter after a 1.8 percent pace in the prior three months, Commerce Department figures showed on Jan. 27. The trade gap subtracted 0.11 percentage point from GDP in the final three months of 2011, after adding 0.43 points in the prior quarter.

The trade gap with China narrowed to $23.1 billion from $26.9 billion as imports dropped, todays report shoed.

Exports to the European Union climbed 3.6 percent and imports rose 2.2 percent, leaving the trade gap with the region little changed.

US exporters globally may continue to see gains. Caterpillar, the largest construction and mining equipment maker, posted fourth-quarter profit that beat analysts estimates and said prospects for global growth have improved. It also projects more orders as pent-up demand is released and customers replace older products.

Growing Exports

Were expecting 2012 to be another year of good growth,” Doug Oberhelman, chairman and chief executive officer of the Peoria, Illinois-based company, said in a Jan. 26 statement. 2011 was a record-breaking year for US exports,” which supported thousands of jobs in the United States.”

China, the worlds second-biggest economy, expanded 8.9 percent in the fourth quarter from a year earlier, exceeding the Bloomberg survey median forecast. An index of Indias services industry rose in January at the fastest pace in six months, and manufacturing accelerated.

The emerging markets continue to be very strong,” Jeffrey Immelt, chief executive officer of General Electric, said on a Jan. 20 conference call with investors. There are a few challenged markets like Europe and appliances, but on balance, we have a positive outlook.”

Gap with China

Even with the improvement in December, the trade deficit with China remains a thorny issue as the US presses the Asian country to allow its currency, the yuan, to rise against the dollar. President Barack Obama, in his State of the Union address, said last month he is creating a trade enforcement group that would use investigators and other federal resources to combat unfair trade practices by nations including China.

Chinas overseas shipments decreased 0.5 percent in January and imports declined a more-than-forecast 15.3 percent from a year earlier in a month that had four fewer working days than in the same month in 2011 because of the Chinese New Year holiday, the customs bureau said today. That pushed the trade surplus for the worlds second-largest economy up to a six-month high of $27.3 billion, the data showed.

–With assistance from Chris Middleton in Washington. Editor: Carlos Torres

(AP) — Monthly US exports to Europe grew in December, a hopeful sign after a steep decline the previous month. But, some economists remain concerned that the regions debt crisis will still weigh on the US economy this year.

The Commerce Department said Friday that the overall trade deficit widened to $48.8 billion in December because imports grew at a faster pace than exports. It was…

On the “Vinnie and Cook” show on 93.7 the Fan this morning, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports said a proposed trade with the Yankees for AJ Burnett will hinge upon money. The sides are “several million apart,” he said, but the deal has a good chance of happening.

It seems the Pirates will have to pay around $10 million of the $33 million remaining on Burnett’s contract over the next two seasons. Burnett signed a five-year, $82.5 million contract before the 2009 season.

That $10 million would amount to $5 million a year in 2012-13, money the Pirates have to spend. The offer they made to Edwin Jackson displayed that. But that doesn’t mean they want to spend that much on a 35-year-old who had an ERA of more than 5.00 in each of the past two seasons.

Burnett’s performance last season presents concerns. Burnett went 1-5 in the months of July and August and had an 11.91 ERA in 222/3 August innings. He allowed 31 home runs in 2011, the most in his career, after allowing 25 in both 2009 and ’10. He allowed those numbers, however, with Yankee Stadium as his home ballpark.

He made at least 32 starts in each of the past four seasons and pitched 180-plus innings in those seasons. His innings declined in 2010 and ’11 despite making the same number of starts, indicating he did not pitch as deep into games.

Innings per start in the past four seasons:

2008: 6.51

2009: 6.27

2010: 5.66

2011: 5.95

His Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) and the expected figure (xFIP) suggested he pitched better than the results showed. His peripheral stats (walk rate, strikeout rate, etc.) indicate the 11-11 record in 2011 and 5.00-plus ERAs in the past two seasons resulted from bad luck, though his hits per nine innings figure and WHIP increased in the past two seasons.

As far as Garrett Jones: The Pirates reportedly turned down an offer involving Jones, who would have, at least partially, filled the Yankees’ desire for a left-handed hitter. This could stem from concerns about the ability of Casey McGehee, who has played 11 major league games at first, starting none of them, to man the position, or a lack of comfort with having Matt Hague, Nick Evans and/or Jake Fox at first.

Acquiring Burnett would force Clint Hurdle to rearrange the rotation, which currently projects as Jeff Karstens, Erik Bedard, Charlie Morton, Kevin Correia and James McDonald. The move could force Karstens to the bullpen as a long reliever, but he pitched as well as any starter in the National League at times last season. The Pirates likely will not trade any of their starting pitchers, given their attempts to acquire another one and the injuries they endured last season.

They all have their issues: innings limits (Karstens), health (Bedard, Morton), new mechanics (Morton), pitching deep into games (McDonald). Aside from Karstens, none are immediate bullpen candidates, and the bullpen is crowded as it is, especially with Chris Leroux out of options.

The Pirates want as many options for the rotation as possible, but the trade would force some creative roster moves.

The Yankees, of course, could decide to wait. They could take Burnett to spring training and see if a contender that loses a starter to injury, or that has an unsettled rotation, would make a better deal. The Pirates could also decide the addition would create too much of a jam in the rotation or the asking price is too high.

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By Claudia Assis, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Canadian stocks ended lower Friday, pulled down by a bout of risk averseness following stumbles for the much-awaited Greek agreement on austerity measures and as stock markets around the world and commodities reacted much the same way to the news.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index

/quotes/zigman/20942 CA:$ISPTX
-0.87%

 lost 108.52 points, or 0.9%, to 12,389.42.

Click to Play

U.S. stocks drop on concerns over Greece

Stocks fall as concerns over whether Greece will be able to receive bailout funds prompted a pullback. Photo: AP

Lower prices for most commodities also pressured Canadian stocks, with crude-oil futures and gold futures trading sharply lower in New York. Oil ended 1.2% lower, while gold futures stumbled 0.9%.

The S&P/TSX Capped Diversified Metals and Mining index

/quotes/zigman/24977 XX:TTMN
-1.68%

 retreated 1.7%, the worst performing indexes. Tech companies had been spared much of the bloodbath earlier on, but later the the S&P/TSX Capped Information Technology index

/quotes/zigman/23269 XX:TTTK
-1.02%

 was off 1%. Health care and utilities shares outperformed the broader market.

Canadian data for the day was favorable, with Statistics Canada reporting a higher-than-expected trade surplus in December. Exports rose 4.5% as Canada sold more goods to the U.S., its main trading partner, since October 2008.

Air Canada

/quotes/zigman/37491 CA:AC.B
-5.22%

 declined 5.2%, after ending off nearly 14% Thursday. The airline on Thursday reported a fourth-quarter loss of $60 million. According to reports Friday, it has reached an agreement with one of its largest union.

Manulife Financial Corp.

/quotes/zigman/21012 CA:MFC
-1.09%

 also remained under pressure, off 1.1%. It reported on Thursday fourth-quarter losses and weathered reaction to news its chief financial office would be leaving.

Bombardier Inc.

/quotes/zigman/16753 CA:BBD.B
0.00%

 was one of the few Canadian stocks on the rise, although it ended flat for the day at C$4.79.

The company’s shares had gained after Bombardier said Friday it has orders from an unidentified airline for 6 regional jets with options for 18 more.

In currencies, the Canadian dollar

/quotes/zigman/4867882/sampled USDCAD
-0.2647%

 weakened against the U.S. dollar with the greenback buying C$1.0012, compared with 99.49 Canadian cents late Thursday.

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Volume: 192.17M
Feb. 10, 2012 4:34p

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Claudia Assis is a San Francisco-based reporter for MarketWatch.

After two days focused on economic deals, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Friday that his Chinese hosts should expect Canada to continue to advocate for human rights as well.

Canada does not — and cannot — disconnect our trading relationship from fundamental national values, Harper said in a speech at a business dinner hosted by the Chinese ambassador to Canada.

Canadians believe, and have always believed, that the kind of mutually beneficial economic relationship we seek is also compatible with a good and frank dialogue on fundamental principles such as freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, and freedom of belief and worship, Harper said. And they demand that their government — and their businesses — uphold these national characteristics in all our dealings.

I do not claim to fully understand the unique kinds of challenges that a huge, emerging, spectacularly expanding economy, such as this one, faces.– Prime Minister Stephen Harper

Harper arrived Friday morning in Guangzhou, a sprawling urban centre of 13 million people in southern China.

Harpers public messaging for his first two days in Beijing, when he met with top officials including Premier Wen Jiabao and President Hu Jintao, was focused on economic dealmaking and historic milestones in the Canada-China trade relationship.

A joint statement issued Thursday included a brief mention of an agreement to increase dialogue and exchanges on human rights, on the basis of equality and mutual respect, but for the most part human rights remained on the backburner for the Beijing portion of the trip.

Harpers speech to the Guangzhou audience continued to emphasize Canadas trade ambitions, but concluded with a carefully constructed political message alongside his business boosterism of Canada as an emerging energy superpower.

Guangzhou, China

I do not claim to fully understand the unique kinds of challenges that a huge, emerging, spectacularly expanding economy, such as this one, faces, Harper said, noting that the opportunities provided from recent economic growth in southern China are without a doubt…. its own kind of liberation.

Nor do I ignore the undeniable differences of Chinese culture and history, Harper said. However, as Canadians our history has taught us that economic, social and political development are, over time, inseparable.

Pipeline pledge

Harper also used Fridays speech to reiterate for a Chinese audience a message he and other members of his cabinet have sent before to those who oppose the development of Albertas oilsands, and the approval of the pipeline infrastructure necessary to get that bitumen to ports for export to new markets such as China.

Our government is committed to ensuring that Canada has the infrastructure necessary to move our energy resources to those diversified markets, Harper said.

Yes, we will continue to develop these resources in an environmentally responsible manner. But so too will we uphold our responsibility to put the interests of Canadians ahead of foreign money and influence that seek to obstruct development in Canada in favour of energy imported from other, less stable parts of the world, Harper said.

Chinese capital has played an important role in financing oilsands development, although Chinese interests hold only a minority stake in key resource development projects.

Education a strategic priority

When Harper arrived in Guangzhou earlier on Friday, he was welcomed by party secretary Wang Yang, one of the next generation of political leaders in China and someone who is expected to rise through the ranks, the CBCs Susan Lunn reported.

Ping-pong diplomat: Prime Minister Stephen Harper plays table tennis with a student at the Huamei Bond International School in Guangzhou on Friday. (Chris Wattie/Reuters)

The prime minister and Chinese leaders issued a statement agreeing to raise education to a strategic priority in future. They said it is a growing tie between the two countries, worth $1.9 billion in 2010 with more than 60,000 Chinese students coming to Canada.

Speaking through a translator, Wang was clearly pleased that Harper was stopping in his city.

Im very pleased to receive your excellency, because of our friendly exchange of histories, and I believe your visit to Guangzhou will enhance the friendly exchanges in trade, science and technology and education, Wang said.

For his part, Harper said, There is no better place in the world to study than Canada.

That’s why more than 60,000 Chinese students now attend Canada’s world-class colleges and universities, a 35 per cent increase in four years … and the number is growing.

Harper greets students at the Huamei Bond International School in Guangzhou. (Chris Wattie/Reuters)

The prime minister also noted that there are more than just friendly exchanges between southern China and Canada.

It is surprising that Im the first sitting prime minister to visit this city and this region, because … this is the ancestral home of a very significant number of Chinese Canadians — in fact, more than any other province in the country, he said.

Harper visited a school in the city that uses an Ontario curriculum. Chinese students graduate with the equivalent of a Canadian high school diploma, all with the goal of attending a university in Canada.

Last year, Chinese students attending universities in Canada brought $1.9 billion in tuition fees with them.

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Luis Valbuena, one of the many players who have tried to fill the hole at second base since the Indians traded Brandon Phillips, was traded to Toronto for cash Saturday.

Valbuena was designated for assignment by the Indians on Nov. 18 as they set the 40-man roster in preparation for the Rule 5 draft. Hell turn 26 Sunday.

The Indians acquired Valbuena and Joe Smith in a three-team trade with Seattle and the Mets at the winter meetings in 2008. Valbuena, acquired from Seattle, caught the eye of former Tribe manager Eric Wedge in 2009 as he hit .250 (92-for-368) with 25 doubles, three triples, 10 homers and 31 RBI in 103 games.

It was downhill from there. After Wedge was fired at the end of the 2009 season, Valbuena opened the 2010 season as the starting second baseman under new manager Manny Acta. He hit .193 (53-for-275) with 12 doubles, two homers and 24 RBI and lost his job.

This past season Valbuena spent most of his time at Class AAA Columbus as he tried to convert to a utility player. He played third, second, short and the outfield. Valbuena was an International League All-Star, batting .302 (127-for-420) with 22 doubles, 17 homers, 75 RBI in 113 games.

He bounced between Cleveland and Columbus four times in 2011, but never found his swing in the big leagues. He hit .209 (9-for-43) with one homer in 17 games with the Tribe.

The Indians traded Phillips to the Reds on April 7, 2006 for a minor-league pitcher. While Phillips became a Gold Glove All-Star with the Reds, the Indians have used 24 players at second. The list includes Ronnie Belliard, Joe Inglett, Hector Luna, Ramon Vazquez, Lou Merloni, Aaron Boone, Josh Barfield, Asdrubal Cabrera, Mike Rouse, Luis Rivas, Chris Gomez, Jamey Carroll, Jorge Velandia, Valbuena, Tony Graffanino, Jason Donald, Jayson Nix, Mark Grudzielanek, Anderson Hernandez, Drew Sutton, Orlando Cabrera, Jason Kipnis, Cord Phelps and Adam Everett.

Note: This article has received comments from fair-trade experts and some errors in understanding were corrected. As the first sentence states, this is a controversial issue. It’s also much more complicated than the writer understood. Please see the comments section for more enlightenment concerning fair-trade, and note the corrections in the article.

A controversy within the Fair Trade movement reached a boiling point recently when the US agency severed ties with the international umbrella group. The argument centers on the coffee segment of fair trade. The cocoa, flowers and bananas crops have been treated differently and don’t figure into the issue. Cacao and sugar, besides coffee, are affected by a newly proposed designation. Because the issue deals with the size of the farms covered by a fair trade designation, and coffee is the sole crop under a cooperative model, it is mostly this segment that’s being redefined by the US group. Indeed, the new fair-trade certification is bringing in large farms at the expense of the small farmer, for coffee and also for the sugar and cocoa.

According to a William Neuman article, it all seems to come down to who one views as the poorest worker in the coffee business. Is the small coffee farmer the poorest or the worker on the big plantation? The US organization says it’s the plantation worker who is poor and underrepresented. By withdrawing from Fairtrade International, they will be bringing more coffee under the fair trade label, because big plantations will be eligible. The international group disagrees that the laborer needs support from a fair trade designation and fears the small farmer will have a harder time finding a buyer for his coffee. They also feel that the whole definition of fair-trade will be diminished, as the co-operative programs set up to make fair-trade work will suffer, thereby affecting the small farmer. Fair-trade was originally developed because the small farmers were being exploited, and this new US certification will undermine what has been accomplished. Not only will the small farmer be affected, but the worker on the plantation will also not benefit from the changes.

At the same time, another issue deals with the millions of dollars spent on licensing and auditing the coffee to make sure it’s what its label says it is. One example Neuman gave is of an importer who paid $51,000 in aid to coffee tea farmers and $37,000 in auditing/licensing fees during the same period. Many might like to see more of that administrative money going to the farmers instead. (Tea and the fair-trade certification is an area with its own issues.)

The US Fair Trade designation will also only require 10% of its beans to be fair trade, rather than the 20% required for the international group. For consumers, it will be harder to know exactly where the fair trade portion of the coffee price will be spent. This statement confused coffee with other products that include more than one food component, such as ice cream. It’s only the composite products that go by the 10-20%, such as a coffee flavored ice cream. Coffees that have the Fairtrade International certification are indeed 100% fair-trade.

The labeling will be more confusing, as the heretofore unused Fairtrade International logo will start appearing, and a USA fair trade logo will presumably appear as well. Coffee consumers, importers and roasters will have to figure out whether to make a distinction between the certifications or to buy either.

With demand for coffee going up so regularly as supply decreases, it’s hard to imagine any coffee farmers with coffee on their hands having a hard time finding a buyer. Except for the 10% “watered down” figure, the US fair trade broadening of the definition of who qualifies as fair trade might help the consumer – as well as the farmer won’t help anyone except bigger corporations. As the comments below show, the consumer might be deceived into thinking he’s using fair-trade products when he’s really not, and the small farmers will be negatively affected. One company founder dealing with importing coffee tea summed it up well by calling the dispute a mess, but, “Opening up a can of worms gives us a chance to understand what’s in the can.”

With a tentative deal in place to end the 149-day NBA Lockout, the focus has now shifted to the free agent class of 2012. Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard, New Orleans Hornets point guard Chris Paul and New Jersey Nets point guard Deron Williams contracts all expire at seasons end.

No trade or contractnegotiations took place during the lockout, so the Magic, Hornets and Nets wont have much time when it comes to making a decision. There are plenty of decisions to be made, however, with regards to working out a trade or taking the risk of possibly losing a star player for nothing.

While nothing is concrete with regards to which teams might be interested in Howard, Paul or Williams, it is pretty obvious which teams would benefit from their services and which teams would have the means to acquire them.

Its possible that none of the triumvirate of elite future free agents know precisely what they want to do at this point, but some situations appear to be tailor made for them. Here are the ideal scenarios for Howard, Paul and Williams moving forward.

Dwight Howard

The countdown to Chris Paul has begun.

The tentative agreement between NBA owners and players paves the way for Paul, the Hornets All-Star point guard, to potentially join the Knicks via a sign-and-trade, the same way his good friend Carmelo Anthony joined the Knicks nine months ago.

“Extend and trade and sign and trade are both available,” says one prominent player agent, “then it should help Chris Paul, Deron Williams and Dwight Howard all be able to have leverage to move teams this year if they so choose.”

With the NBA Lockout looking like its finally coming to a close, its time to start looking at what teams will look to make big moves prior to the start of the NBA season.

Teams that everybody will have their eyes on include some of the top teams in the Eastern Conference.

The Miami Heat, Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks are all teams that need to make some big moves either in free agency or the trade market before the season kicks off.

Every one of these teams has the potential to be the team representing the East when the NBA Finals roll around.

All of them are also just missing one or two pieces to stand out above the rest.

Here is a closer look at moves that these teams should make.

Miami Heat

Before they can win seven championships, the Miami Heat just need to grab one with the big three.

However, it appears that the big three will not be enough to get the job done on their own. This team is just missing one or two pieces to be the most dominant team in basketball.

One player that the Heat may want to look to bring in is another talented individual in Cleveland.

PG Ramon Sessions clearly isnt going to be spending too much time on the Cavaliers roster. Before the trade deadline there were multiple teams interested in acquiring him.

Sessions has a cheap contract, with just two years and $9 million remaining, which is essential for a team like Miami, who has already spent so much money elsewhere.

Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics are a team that is aging quickly and could very well pull the trigger on multiple players across the league.

Most of those players have something in commontheir position.

The Celtics are in desperate need of getting a shooting guard, and there are plenty who could be available.

OJ Mayo was nearly traded from Memphis to Indiana last season, but the trade was voided due to missing the deadline.

Courtney Lee of the Houston Rockets and Raja Bell of the Utah Jazz are two other guards who could be on the move this offseason.

I wouldnt be surprised if one of them ended up in Boston.

Orlando Magic

The Orlando Magic are in a difficult situation.

It appears that superstar Dwight Howard will either leave for free agency or be traded from the team.

Obviously, the Magic have more to gain by trading Howard. Its something that they may consider doing in order to stockpile some young talent.

They cant afford to let Howard walk away like the Cavaliers did with LeBron James.

Its unclear what could transpire from a possible trade. Anything is really possible.

One possibility would be a package deal that would bring SG Monta Ellis to Orlando. Ellis along with draft picks or more players could be enough for the Magic to pull the trigger on a trade.