Barclays Faces INVESTIGATION and 4 HOT Stocks Sparking Chatter

Gap (NYSE:GPS) announces a comprehensive beat on August same store sales which were up 9 percent versus consensus expectations of only 5.4 percent. Apparently the higher sales are not at the cost of margins, which are holding up. Except the International segments where sales were down 2 percent, other segments all showed good growth: Gap North America up 9 percent, Banana Republic North America up 8 percent and Old Navy higher by 12 percent.

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Barclays (NYSE:BCS) is now dealing with the second criminal investigation into its affairs by the U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office for alleged payments under “advisory services” agreements with Qatar related to Barclays’ Middle East fund-raising in 2008. The bank has named Antony Jenkins, head of its retail and business banking operations, as CEO in place of Bob Diamond, a casualty of the Libor scandal. Jenkins must cope with investigations and litigation relating to Libor and now, the above probe into its dealings with the Qataris.

Louis Freeh, the trustee for MF Global’s (MFGLQ.PK) parent company, sought co-operation from the firm’s bankruptcy administrators in the U.K and the U.S. in arriving at a “global resolution” that would cut through expensive and time taking litigation while ensuring that creditors and clients get their monies back.

In a move that could be a big positive for the future of General Motors’ (NYSE:GM) Chevrolet Malibu and the Buick LaCrosse vehicles, the automaker has applied for $120 million in industrial revenue bonds to be applied towards renovating a paint plant in Kansas City, where these models are produced.

Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) gives a broad-brush view of Kindle Fire sales volumes, hinting that the device has garnered 22 percent of tablet sales in the U.S. While the impact of these numbers on amazon’s earnings are still being calculated, it os clear that the tablet’s market share has beaten expectations.

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