Investments

A number of news events in the past week alone indicate without question the U.S. economy is at a dangerous inflection point, but so far, no one-no economist, analyst, fund manager, regulator, legislator, president or CEO-is willing to put together the pieces to talk about something other than snapshot first-quarter, year-over-year or historical trendline data that make a case for the return of the markets.

On the heels of its $328 million loss in the first quarter, down from a $81 million profit in the first quarter of 2008, American Airlines' parent company, AMR Corp., Fort Worth, Tex., announced on Wednesday it is unloading 90% of its American Beacon Advisors investment management unit for $480 million in cash.

NEW YORK - The financial sector took a beating in the first quarter, but financial "bottom feeders" will speed its recovery, possibly ahead of the rest of the market, experts said here at a gathering of researchers and data providers.

Bank of America has named Claire Huang as head of marketing for its Global Wealth & Investment Management division.

AIG Investments is expanding its Global Business Development team in the U.S. and Europe with the addition of three executive positions.

Citigroup has hired Thomas Flexner as global head of real estate. Flexner comes to Citi from Bear Stearns, where he recently served as vice chairman overseeing commercial real estate and the financial buyers group.

Odyssey Investment Partners LLC has announced several promotions within its investment team.

John Paulson, founder of the hedge fund Paulson & Company, made an unprecedented $3.7 billion last year by betting against subprime mortgages and the financial products that held them.

Standard & Poor’s said the potential bill to U.S. taxpayers for bailing out Wall Street firms could grow to $400 billion, reports The Washington Times.

Russell Investments has launched “LifePoints Funds, Target Distribution Strategies,” a series of multi-manager funds designed specifically for the “decumulation” phase.

Samuel Israel III, the former Stamford, Conn., Bayou hedge fund manager who authorities found to have cheated investors out of $400 million, was sentenced to 20 years in prison by a federal judge, the Associated Press reported Monday.

Gen Xers are stressed out about the prospect of retirement, with only 31% of them believing they will be able to retire from the workforce.

Mike Henkel, the former president of Ibbotson Associates, has joined Envestnet as managing director of the firm’s new retirement services group.

Citigroup Inc. is building an advisory unit to focus on "emerging affluent" customers, or those with under $500,000 of investable assets.

Former Fed Vice Chair Joins TIAA-CREF

In times of market volatility, many people call their fund manager, their broker or their banker to find out what's going on and how they should adjust their portfolios. But fund executives say that the subprime crisis, so far, has not led to knee-jerk decisions.

Hedge Fund Managers Have Rough Month

NEW YORK - Equity mutual funds were hit with "drastic declines" across-the-board in just about every sector and style in the first quarter of 2008.

Consumer confidence in the economy, including stocks, bonds, mortgages, credit cards and structured products, is dropping, but experts say consumers need to stay invested in a fully diversified portfolio of mutual funds for their own good and for the good of the economy.

While criticisms abound as to who, or which regulatory entity, or set of laws and oversight, is to blame for the credit crisis, the Securities and Exchange Commission is quietly flexing new muscle of its own on the mutual fund trading scandal front.