France Seeks To Retain Top Rating (WSJ)
Sarkozy, who unexpectedly came back to Paris from his holiday retreat on the Côte d’Azur to call a meeting with key cabinet ministers and Bank of France governor Christian Noyer, said the deficit-reduction goals are “imperative,” and tasked the finance and budget ministers to make proposals so that they can be safeguarded.

London Rioting Prompts Fears Over Soccer And Olympics (NYT)
Fearing for the safety of players and fans amid the rioting in London, soccer officials on Tuesday canceled two international matches and may postpone the opening weekend of the English Premier League, prompting questions about the city’s ability to secure high-profile events like soccer matches and next summer’s Olympics.

SEC Probes Goldman Over Libya Dealings (WSJ)
Tuesday’s disclosure by Goldman of numerous investigations, regulatory reviews and legal action related to its sprawling businesses included a probe of the company’s “compliance with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act,” according to a securities filing…People familiar with the probe said the SEC is scrutinizing Goldman’s dealings with Libya’s sovereign-wealth fund, called the Libyan Investment Authority. In 2008, Goldman made options trades for the fund, controlled by Col. Moammar Gadhafi, but they suffered losses of more than $1 billion.

Reid Names First Debt Panel Picks (WSJ)
Reid named Sens. Patty Murray of Washington, Max Baucus of Montana and John Kerry of Massachusetts. Ms. Murray will be co-chairman of the committee. House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) will name the other co-chairman. Mr. Reid avoided choosing anyone in the so-called Gang of Six senators that recently came up with its own deficit-cutting plan. That group irked Mr. Reid by going its own way and trying to influence matters during the recent negotiations on the debt ceiling. In addition, those senators accepted cuts to Social Security at a time when Mr. Reid was strongly rejecting such cuts.

Commerzbank Profit Drops 93% on Greek Debt (Bloomberg)
“The earnings were very positive if you strip out the Greek writedown,” said Dirk Becker, a Frankfurt-based analyst at Kepler Capital Markets who recommends buying the shares.

US Mint Halts Sales Of Gold Collector Coins (Reuters)
A spike in gold prices prompted the U.S. Mint to suspend the online sale of gold collector coins Tuesday for the first time in recent memory, a mint spokesman said. The move affects only the gold numismatic products sold to collectors and not the gold bullion coins sold to investors, Mint spokesman Mike White said from Washington. Sales were suspended at midday for re-pricing, which was expected to be completed by late Wednesday, he said. Asked when that had last happened, White said, “not in recent history that I can remember.”

UK Businesses Tally Up Steep Costs Of Street Riots (CNBC)
The insured costs of the riots that have rocked the United Kingdom for four days look set to exceed 100 million pounds ($163 million), according to early estimates from the Association of British Insurers. However, with uninsured losses resulting from the closing of shops — as well as a now deeper dent pounded into already fragile economic sentiment — means that businesses now need strongly supportive governmental policy, businessmen and trade associations said.

Rental Options Sought On Foreclosed Homes (WSJ)
The Obama administration will announce plans Wednesday to seek investors’ ideas for turning thousands of foreclosed properties owned by government-backed entities into rental homes, according to administration officials…One proposal would sell packages of hundreds or thousands of foreclosed properties in bulk to investors that agree to rent them out. That approach is preferred by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is taking back properties as defaults mount on loans backed by the FHA.

Cracks In China Housing Push (WSJ)
In recent weeks, several reports of shoddy workmanship on low-income housing have appeared in state media, raising concerns about safety and suggesting that the flagship project may have to proceed more slowly than expected. “If low-income housing construction is blindly devoted to speed, then like the frequent accidents we’ve seen recently, problems will keep occurring…and potentially even end in tragedy,” said an article in the People’s Daily, the official mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party, on July 27.

Fund Stars Find Fortunes Fading (WSJ)
Well-known mutual-fund investors Bruce Berkowitz and Bill Miller enjoyed winning streaks that lasted years. But they have been among those whacked in the current downturn. The $13.4 billion Fairholme Fund lost about 18% in August through Monday, including a nearly 9% drop on Monday. That compares with a 14% decline in that time for similar large-value funds, according to Morningstar Inc. data. The fund likely rebounded some Tuesday.

Dylan Ratigan: I’m Mad As Hell, How About You? (HP)
Yesterday, on TV, I exploded. I spent two minutes giving a primal yell at our political system, demanding the extraction of our money and dignity end. It was my most heartfelt and emotional moment on television, ever. And the emails poured in. I hit a chord, because it’s something we all feel. Take a look.

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