| The reasons why proposed IMF gold sales won
NEW ORLEANS (Mineweb.com) --There are numerous reasons why the IMF panel of distinguished current and former central bankers recommendation for the sale of 400 tonnes of gold to help plug operating IMF budget deficits wont happen.
Even if the IMF gold sale does occur, it will give the market yet another bullish signal on prices.
There are a number of reasons this won't happen, but should it still come to pass, it will give the market yet another bullish signal on prices.
First, the U.S. Congress would have to approve the move by the IMF because the United States has ultimate veto power over IMF decisions. The IMF needs an 85% consensus on a move like selling gold reserves.
Since the United States holds 17% of the voting power at the IMF, if Congress isn't on board, it's a non-starter.
5 new ministers, but many miffed
BANGALORE: Heartburn and discontent in the BJP marked the long-postponed cabinet expansion on Thursday even as letdown aspirants in JD(S) pinned their hopes of getting a chance in the power shift later this year.
Three vacancies in the JD(S) and two in BJP were filled with all berths going to the major communities — Lingayats and Vokkaligas. Those who got in are H S Mahadeva Prasad, Alangur Srinivas and G T Deve Gowda (JDS) and Sogadu Shivanna and Appasaheb (Appu) Pattanashetty from the BJP.
Governor T N Chaturvedi administered the oath of office and secrecy to the newly inducted members, all cabinet rank, in Raj Bhavan. Portfolios of the new ministers and likely changes in some of the old ones are expected to be announced over the weekend.
Chief minister H D Kumaraswamy managed to quell any uprising in the JD(S) as names of the new ministers were doing the rounds since the last expansion on June 22, 2006.
Schering-Plough Net Rises on Cholesterol Drugs' Sales (Update3)
Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Schering-Plough Corp.'s fourth- quarter earnings surged 62 percent as the combined sales of its Vytorin and Zetia cholesterol drugs jumped to $1.1 billion. Net income rose to $204 million, or 12 cents a share, from $126 million, or 7 cents, a year earlier, the Kenilworth, New Jersey-based company said today in a statement. Revenue increased 14 percent to $2.7 billion, spurred by a 46 percent rise for Zetia and Vytorin. Chief Executive Officer Fred Hassan closed plants and fired 2,000 workers to cut $100 million in 2007 costs. Schering, the eighth-biggest drugmaker by sales, said it expects revenue from the company's cholesterol drugs to increase this year even as the treatments face competition from generic copies of Merck & Co.'s Zocor.
How to crush high prices for pills
It's no secret that prescription drugs can be very expensive. But you're not necessarily stuck paying the high prices.
That's important to know, given that more people are paying for large parts of their medical insurance nowadays. But even people with prescription-drug coverage can lower their spending on co-payments for medications.
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