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Morning Market Roundup: Shell Sues Greenpeace, GM Recall, BlackBerry Down

Sep. 21, 2012 10:20am Becket Adams

Here’s what’s important in the business world this morning:

Shell v. Greenpeace: Royal Dutch Shell PLC is suing Greenpeace International in an attempt to have the environmental organization banned from holding any protest within 500 meters of any Shell property, or face a €1 million ($1.3 million) fine.

The suit being argued at Amsterdam’s District Court Friday shows Shell aggressively taking the offensive to protect its $4.5 billion investment in drilling for oil in the icy Arctic waters off the coast of Alaska. A verdict is not expected for two weeks.

The oil company’s lawyers said international laws on freedom of speech and assembly “do not grant Greenpeace unlimited powers to carry out protests that violate the rights of other parties.”

Greenpeace called the move a “legal sledgehammer to stifle public discourse.”

It argues that drilling in the Arctic is inherently risky and Shell’s safety plans are inadequate. But Shell has fought its way through numerous environmental and safety challenges in the U.S. licensing process before being granted two permits for exploratory drilling in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas.

The company expects the projects eventually to create hundreds of jobs.

BlackBerry: Struggling BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion said Friday it resolved an outage affecting users in Europe, Middle East and Africa that had interrupted service for customers on the very day Apple Inc. unveiled its new iPhone 5.

BlackBerry announced the issues in postings on Facebook and Twitter on Friday, and said it fixed the troubles after a few hours. It apologized to customers for the inconvenience caused.

RIM spokeswoman Amy Jones said the outage was limited to Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Jones did not have details on what caused it.

RIM was once Canada’s most valuable company with a market value of more than $80 billion in June 2008, but the stock has plummeted since, from over $140 share to around $7. Shares traded down 1.5 percent, or 30 cents, to $6.80 in premarket trading on the Nasdaq. RIM’s decline is evoking memories of Nortel, another Canadian tech giant, which declared bankruptcy in 2009.

GM: General Motors is recalling nearly 474,000 Chevrolet, Pontiac and Saturn cars to fix a transmission problem that can cause the cars to roll away unexpectedly.

The recall affects 2007-2010 Chevrolet Malibus, Pontiac G6s and Saturn Auras in the U.S., Canada and Mexico as well as a small number of exports. All the cars have four-speed automatic transmissions.

GM says part of the transmission cables can break. When this happens, the shifter can show that the car is in park when it’s really in gear. GM says it knows of four crashes from the problem but no injuries.

Dealers will put a retainer over the end of the cables or replace them. Owners will be told by letter when to set up appointments with dealers.

U.S. Futures: U.S. stocks are opening higher as investors cling to hopeful signs about Europe’s roiling debt problems.

The Dow Jones industrial average is up 41 points 13,638 early Friday. The Standard & Poor’s 500 is up six to 1,466. The Nasdaq composite index is up 19 to 3,195.

In Europe, Italy’s premier and Greece’s prime minister met and repeated their conviction for “the absolute need to safeguard the integrity of the eurozone,” according to a statement from the Italian leader’s office.

Spain also appeared near to working out terms for requesting a bailout from Europe.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Comments (29)

udt1719
Posted on September 21, 2012 at 3:40pm
I guess attacking oil wells does not fall in the terrorist column as far as NDAA is concerned.These knuckleheads should be arrested.These people are going to go crazy when Romney opens up the US for oil and gas exploration.I hope then these terrorists are arrested.

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castaways
Posted on September 21, 2012 at 1:42pm
In regards to Shell Oil; glad you are standing up and fighting….The environmental groups have gotten out of control. We have some of the most stringent regulations in the world for developing our natural resources, to the point of choking out jobs and making us non-competitive in the global market. Thus forcing jobs overseas to places with no inforcement or regulations. Funny how America is the only country that pollutes the world..I never hear envioronmental groups going to Russia, China, Venezula and trying to shut them down. Let’s be honest about all of this; being in the environmental business is a huge money maker. There are alot of people with good intentions wanting to preserve our planet, but reality is the ones at the top are making tons money at the expense of us all!

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fcbs46
Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:22am
BlackBerry Live by tech and you better keep up or die by tech, They have an old platform and an old idea of what works for to days market. Frankly they should die off and make room for better Tech.

DIE BlackBerry DIE

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woodyee
Posted on September 21, 2012 at 10:57am
Standing in the way of moving heavy machinery; sitting on grounds that are to be drilled; imperiling fishing boats on the high seas…

…that’s how Green”Peace” defines public discourse. Green on the outside, red on the inside, and nothing peaceful about Greenpeace.

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- JRook
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 12:16pm
  “holding any protest within 500 meters of any Shell property” Yep this is how I would expect the folks here to parse freedom of speech and freedom of assembly. Let’s remember a lease that allows a company to drill for oil does at no point grant them ownership of the property. And certainly no right to unnecessarily endanger the ecosystem.
  
  Report this comment
ProgressivePete
Posted on September 21, 2012 at 10:54am
This is not true, GM was saved by the Obama administration. It was Romney who wanted GM to collapse. As Joe Biden said on the DNC speech “Bin Ladin is dead and GM is alive.” GM has made a comeback thanks to the Obama administration, and other companies will also do the same when he is re elected

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- woodyee
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:02am
  Gaybama Motors wasn’t “saved” by the Gaybama administration, Pete. It was CONFISCATED. The bond-holders, legally to have been the first ones paid in any “buy-out” (confiscation is the true term) were left holding the bag.
  
  Now Gaybama Motors wants to get rid of Gaybama’s hold on the company, because they’re driving their market-share down, but Gaybama isn’t budging and will hold on to majority holding, at least until Gaybama is tossed out of the White House.
  
  Report this comment
- contkmi
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:05am
  That has to be one of the most ignorant comments ever made on this website. And we’ve had some doozies.
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:13am
  Don’t do us anymore favors…..As of September 2012, General Motors (GM) is still indebted to the US Government for $27.2 billion.
  
  As part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), GM received a total of $50.7 billion. The government also holds an approximately 26% stake in the equity of GM. A current report issued to Congress showed that if the government were to sell its position in GM, it would be at a loss of $25.1 billion to the American taxpayer.
  
  Chrysler has paid back it’s loan- 5yrs early no less.
  Ford refused the bailout.
  GM should have been left for dead
  
  Report this comment
- ProgressivePete
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:29am
  @ ALL COMMENTS ABOVE
  Here is a detailed version of how Obama saved GM, deny it all you want but GM lives on along with the auto industry. Bill Clinton laid out all the facts perfectly in his speech at the DNC
  
  “During this period — during this period, more than 500,000 manufacturing jobs have been created under President Obama. That’s the first time manufacturing jobs have increased since the 1990s.
  And I’ll tell you something else. The auto industry restructuring worked. It saved…
  It saved more than a million jobs, and not just at G.M., Chrysler, and their dealerships, but in auto parts manufacturing all over the country. That’s why even the automakers who weren’t part of the deal supported it. They needed to save those parts suppliers, too. Like I said, we’re all in this together. So what’s happened? There are now 250,000 more people working in the auto industry than on the day the companies were restructured. So — now, we all know that Governor Romney opposed the plan to save G.M. and Chrysler. So here’s another job score. Are you listening in Michigan and Ohio and across the country?”- Bill Clinton 2012 DNC speech
  
  Report this comment
- fcbs46
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:33am
  If GM had been allow to die a natural death we would have a stronger auto market today . GM if bought by some else would have reorganized with less models and less employees the union would have had to renegotiate and we would have a leaner and stronger company. Instead we have a country club, retirement club for the unions. The BHO gets his bail out with millions to try to keep him in office.
  Try to open your brain a little progressive and you might find you can really think without the prompts from your commie buddies.
  
  Report this comment
- woodyee
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:39am
  LOL! I get you, Pete! We’ve been had!
  
  It was also Bill Clinton, the chief law enforcement officer in the land at the time, who said “I did not have sex with that woman – Monica Lewinsky.”, or was it ” I did NOT have sex with THAT woman, Monica Lewinsky!” LOL!
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:41am
  @PROGPETE…
  Don’t you own a calculator?
  Saving 1million jobs-
  “creating” 1/2 a million more-
  lets just add in another million jobs as a fudge factor on local economic impact. hell- throw in 2 million for all i care.
  Say the bailouts saved/ created 10 million jobs!
  … at a cost of $25 billion. BILLION w/ a “B”
  
  How does that help anyone?
  The gov could have just given all those people $10million each and it’d still be a better deal for the U.S. taxpayers.
  
  Get a clue.
  
  Report this comment
- Chuck7884
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:44am
  Makers of the M-1 Abrams,Bradly APC and Hummer’s are all Divisions of GM. Now do you really want China to build them for you?.You know sell off those assets to any country who could afford to buy them?.The Military has bought and paid for there fleet of equipment and those factories may make a few a month to replace items that are not repairable,Those factories are run at a huge loss each year.
  
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- booger71
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:47am
  The pnly thing Omama saved was the UAW by defrauding the bondholders.
  
  Report this comment
- woodyee
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:58am
  @ Chuck – if they’re building Abrams the way they’re building GM’s, then let Ford or Toyota build them. We don’t need a Gaybama-stolen, anti-American union run welfare-case quasi-business building our military arms.
  
  Report this comment
- Eastinfection
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 12:05pm
  @ CHUCK- if GM was kept alive for the sole purpose of manufacturing the vehicles you mention, and ONLY manufactured those vehicles (shedding the rest of their dead weight) i would be more likely to support it…
  I also think we should reduce the need for those vehicles and stop playing “Team America- World Police”- but that is a different issue.
  
  Report this comment
- Chuck7884
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 12:29pm
  Don’t think those factories will give up their patients so Ford could make them as for Toyota or any other Foreign national company, hell no.Although our military has been increasingly becoming more dependent on foreign Arms manufacturing I.E. Small arms, web gear and uniforms and such,Which we as a nation should have never done.I remember the stink about China making the Olympic uniforms for our team.not a squeak on military Equipment.
  
  Report this comment
- ProgressivePete
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 12:33pm
  @ALL COMMENTS ABOVE
  Make whatever excuses you want but the fact is GM is alive thanks to Obama. I notice all of you try to make fictitious arguments about how things would have been. People on this site do that every time I point out facts from Bill Clinton’s speech. This proves my point that there is no way the GOP can refute the these facts that Bill Clinton gave in the DNC speech. Now try to refute this:
  
  “Now, the agreement the administration made with the management, labor, and environmental groups to double car mileage, that was a good deal, too. It will cut your gas prices in half, your gas bill. No matter what the price is, if you double the mileage of your car, your bill will be half what it would have been. It will make us more energy independent. It will cut greenhouse gas emission. And according to several analyses, over the next 20 years, it will bring us another 500,000 good, new jobs into the American economy.”-Bill Clinton 2012 DNC speech
  
  Report this comment
- Chuck7884
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 12:52pm
  @ProgressivePete Double the Gas mileage the double the cost of gas no company wants to lose thier profits.green house gas emissions you may be able to hold it down short term but as the amount of cars double per year not for long. green house gases are way down compared to the late 19th and early 20th century which has famous photo’s of Saint Louis during this time the sky was so black and the population of said city actually were soot covered with coal dust.the coal years had more green house gas Emissions than we do today.
  
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- progressiveslayer
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 3:16pm
  You got it wrong there Pete,because Bush bailed out GM and that’s just one reason of many why I don’t like him. GM should have been allowed to go bankrupt to void the idiotic contract with the UAW that will eventually destroy GM anyway.http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/20/business/20auto.html?pagewanted=all&_moc.semityn.www
  
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- Chuck7884
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 5:04pm
  @progressiveslayer Gm Holds the patents on the M1 Abram (main battle tank),M-60 Variants (Tank), Bradley.Lav 7 (Ammtrac) just to name a few.just about all the armor America’s Military use’s belongs to GM.Do not think WE Americans can not afford to completely rearm our Military with a new Manufacturer at this time.Gm is not going to give up it’s patents anytime soon thus guaranteeing it’s survival for the foreseeable future.
  
  Report this comment
- thecleaner45
  Posted on September 22, 2012 at 12:29pm
  Oblahblah( meaning everything he says is blahblahblah) AKA LIES. didn’t save GM. Are you crazy? I normally dont post but I had to on this one. My father worked 42 yr for GM. When so called Oblahblah saved GM he took my fathers retirement and his medical coverage as he made all the Union heads wallets fat. He did nothing to help GM workers. As my father said before he died this last year Oblahblah is killing this country and will take the rest of it with him if he is reelected. I come from Blue Dogs Dems and my father told me to become a Rep because the world cant afford to be Dems anymore. So Romney- Paul for me in 2012
  
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Cavallo
Posted on September 21, 2012 at 10:52am
Gotta love Government Motors. I have no sympathy for the car owners.. well maybe a little. They got swindled just like the rest of us. Let this be /another/ lesson, DON’T BUY GM!!! And for God’s sake don’t buy their corporate bonds.. sooner or later they’ll use the fist of their owners to steal them away like they did before.

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EqualJustice
Posted on September 21, 2012 at 10:39am
http://video.foxnews.com/video-live-streaming.html?video_id=1155606982001 Finally Maxine Waters trial. WHERE”S THE MEIDA???????

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- razhunter100
  Posted on September 21, 2012 at 11:02am
  page not found…
  
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progressiveslayer
Posted on September 21, 2012 at 10:34am
Yeah it would be great if the oil companies got together and sued all the so called environmental groups out of existence.Abolishing the the brown shirts at the unconstitutional EPA would be a great start as well.Just because a congress and tricky Dick Nixon created the EPA doesn’t mean it’s a constitutional agency.

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Delores at CH WV
Posted on September 21, 2012 at 10:32am
I love Shell Oil; So, glad you are fighting these Elities!!!!! It is time for all energy companies to shut this nosense down. Most Americans want lower heating, gasoline, and electricity bills. Obama and his Elitest need to go live in the Artic Circle where they can enjoy the environment that they want to force on the World. I think the Polar Bears would welcome them.

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fande3rls
Posted on September 21, 2012 at 10:27am
I hope Shell wins , green peace are nothing but enviomental terrorist .

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