U.S.

Dodd to Offer Financial-Rules Bill in Sign Talks With Republicans Failing Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd said he will release his version of legislation to overhaul financial rules, signaling that talks on a compromise with Republican Bob Corker have collapsed.

Trade Deficit in U.S. Unexpectedly Shrinks as Oil, Automobile Imports Drop The trade deficit in the U.S. unexpectedly narrowed in January as demand for foreign oil and automobiles dropped.

Treasury Yield Curve Near Record Before Bond Sale; Stocks Little Changed The difference in yields between 2- and 30-year Treasuries was near the highest on record as the U.S. prepares to sell $13 billion of bonds amid signs the global recovery is gaining momentum.

Foreclosures in U.S. Rise at Slowest Pace in Four Years on Modifications U.S. foreclosure filings rose at the slowest pace in four years in February as the government sought to reduce record bank seizures, RealtyTrac Inc. said.

Naked Swaps Crackdown Threat in Europe Rings Hollow Without Obama Backing European politicians and regulators could initiate a continent-wide ban on speculative trading of sovereign credit-default swaps tomorrow. Making it stick without the Americans won’t work.

BofA's Moynihan Is `Comfortable' Bank Can Absorb Home-Equity Loan Losses Bank of America Corp. Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan said the lender, the biggest in the U.S., can absorb losses on its $149 billion home-equity loan portfolio even after the four-year slump in housing prices.

Latin America

Chavez Outdone by Billionaire Mendoza as Wealth Soars Amid Takeover Threat Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez’s “21st Century Socialism” is failing to rein in billionaire Lorenzo Mendoza.

Brazil Recovery and Record Retail Surge Boost Chance of Interest Rate Hike Brazil’s fastest economic expansion in two years and a record jump in retail sales may prompt policy makers to start raising interest rates as early as next week.

Hedge Fund-Backed Argentine Soy Producer Tejar Weighs U.S. IPO on Demand El Tejar SA, Argentina’s largest agricultural producer, is weighing an initial public offering in New York to tap rising investor demand for farming assets.

Devon Energy to Sell Assets in Brazil, Gulf of Mexico to BP for $7 Billion BP Plc will pay Devon Energy Corp. $7 billion for assets in Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico and Azerbaijan, adding fields that may extend its production lead over Exxon Mobil Corp.

Earthquake Devastates New Chilean President Pinera's Plan to Spur Economy Fisherman Adolfo Opazo walks in a daze to where his house stood until Feb. 27, when an earthquake and tsunami turned his neighborhood in Constitucion, Chile, into a wasteland.

Batista's LLX Logistica Plans to Invest $1.04 Billion in Projects in 2010 LLX Logistica SA, the port company controlled by Brazilian billionaire Eike Batista, said it will invest 1.85 billion reais ($1.04 billion) in 2010 as it develops two port projects.

Exclusive

Chavez Outdone by Billionaire Mendoza as Wealth Soars Amid Takeover Threat Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez’s “21st Century Socialism” is failing to rein in billionaire Lorenzo Mendoza.

Brown Tries to `Perversely' Benefit From U.K. Relapse Risk Before Election Gordon Brown is trying to turn the threat of a double-dip U.K. recession into an advantage.

Solar Prospectors Chase `Gold Mine' Deals in Chinese, Israeli Subsidies Olivier de Vergnies quit managing family fortunes at Dexia Private Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. in 2008 to run a New York start-up at 100 Wall St. that’s trying to tap riches in solar energy.

Chrysler in Hibernation Means Marchionne May Have to Wait on Fiat Spinoff Fiat SpA, the Italian carmaker that helped Chrysler Group LLC emerge from bankruptcy, may wait to turn around the U.S. business before deciding on a share sale or spinoff for its automotive division.

Geely May Need to Invest at Least $1.4 Billion in Volvo to Revive Carmaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. may have to spend at least 10 billion kronor ($1.4 billion) to revive Volvo Cars after buying the Swedish brand from Ford Motor Co., Volvo union officials and board members said.

Red-Coral Rescue Plans Endanger Italian Jewelry Makers of Torre del Greco The people of Torre del Greco, 10 miles south of Naples, have lived off the red corals found in the Mediterranean Sea for more than two millennia. A proposal to list the species as endangered may push the seaside town’s $217 million-a-year coral industry into extinction.