How Goldman Sachs Gives Back

The most recent Goldman Sachs Foundation tax filing was released yesterday, and the New York Times says that it’s “as thick as a phone book” thanks to the firm’s heavy trading and diversified investments. “The list of trades is more than 200 pages, single spaced. Goldman, it seems, invests like no other, even for its own charity,” the paper says. The charitable foundation’s assets have nearly doubled this year to more than $400 million, thanks to the firm’s recent big investments. While that makes the foundation one of the top 10 biggest, Goldman (GS) still can’t escape being called greedy. The paper explains, “the money allotted for its foundation is dwarfed by the sums that will be doled out to its bankers. In the first nine months of this year, the firm set aside about $17 billion for bonuses and other compensation.”

Television anchor Lou Dobbs caught many co-workers and viewers off-guard when he announced his resignation from his position at CNN yesterday, the New York Times reports. While many were surprised by the announcement, it turns out that months ago Dobbs was given the choice by his boss to either tone down his opinions on the newscast or move on from CNN. Even if he chose to express his strong views on a radio program, the network still wanted Dobbs to take a more even-handed approach to delivering the news on television. The paper explains, “Well known for his opposition to illegal immigration, Mr. Dobbs was an outlier at CNN, which has sought to be seen as the neutral turf of cable news.”

Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) is ramping up its presence in China, the Wall Street Journal reports. The company opened the doors to a $4.5 billion “refining and petrochemical complex” in Fujian province yesterday. This comes in the wake of its newly opened gas station on the China mainland, which, the paper says, is one of at least 750 that it’s planning. These moves also come at a time when Exxon is scaling down its U.S. presence. The paper explains, “Evidence is mounting that Chinese and Western oil demand is moving in opposite directions. The International Energy Agency said in its annual outlook, issued this week, that it expects demand for oil to fall in developed economies through 2030 while Chinese demand increases by 3.5% a year. In 15 years, China is expected to surpass the U.S. as the world's largest spender on oil and natural gas.”

“Under fire as in no time since the Great Depression,” the Federal Reserve is feeling increasing political pressure, which may make it even more difficult for the bank to steer the country out of the recession, says today’s Washington Post. The article cites Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd’s appeal this week to remove the central bank’s “long-standing authority to regulate banks along with changing how regional Fed banks are governed.” Citing the dramatic rescue efforts that the Fed has been involved with over the past year, various politicians and groups have questioned the bank’s ability to remain unbiased moving forward. "The current unpopularity of the Fed will make it more difficult for them to raise interest rates when the economy recovers," a former senior Fed economist told the paper. She says, "With the Fed under such close scrutiny, any move to raise interest rates will be challenged even more strongly than in the past."

In an attempt to end speculation over his resignation, Robert Benmosche, chief executive of American International Group (AIG), said yesterday that he’s still "totally committed to leading AIG through its challenges,” according to the Wall Street Journal. Benmosche recently made comments to suggest that he was quitting because of difficulties working with executive compensation guidelines from the government. And that wasn’t the first thing he said that’s upset people. The paper explains, “Mr. Benmosche's resignation threat was the latest in a string of provocative remarks over the last few months that reflect the strong-willed executive's approach to restructuring AIG and his discontent with restrictions imposed by the company's government overseers.”

Walt Disney Studios Chairman Rich Ross has had been in the position for only a month or so, but he’s already on his way to leaving a big footprint. The Los Angeles Times says that he “has carried out a broad restructuring of marketing, distribution and operations to reflect a focus on cultivating entertainment franchises—and finding new ways to reach audiences through technology.” In what Ross called a “studio restructuring” yesterday, 20 people were laid off and the president of marketing was “pushed out.” The cuts and shuffling around of other executives suggests that Disney (DIS) higher-ups have been less than pleased with recent marketing efforts.