Citigroup moves reflect harsh credit environment

Citigroup’s 9,000 job cuts and $14 billion in write-downs suggest that even if the worst of the credit market volatility is over, the industry is in a conservative, cost-cutting mode.

With banks expecting more loans to go sour, people can expect tight lending standards for many months – perhaps years – to come.

Citigroup Inc. is struggling with not only a troubling lending environment in the United States, but also a dented portfolio of investments. The bank’s write-downs, plus more than $3 billion in costs related to consumers’ credit problems, led it to report a first-quarter loss Friday of $5.1 billion, or $1.02 a share.

“Amazon.com Inc.‘s Kindle has arrived. Again.

Amazon’s $399 electronic book reader debuted in November but sold out almost immediately. Since then, Amazon has been bullish about customer demand but has declined to reveal how many back orders it has taken for the device.

Now, the Web retailer appears to have sorted out its supply chain and manufacturing holdups. Not only is the Kindle back in stock online, it was the sole subject of Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos’ annual letter to shareholders. Bezos wrote that Amazon’s vision for the Kindle is that it will make “every book ever printed in any language all available in less than 60 seconds.”

“Caterpillar Inc. parlayed an increased reliance on international markets to surprisingly strong sales and a 13 percent jump in first-quarter profits, impressing investors who expected the heavy equipment maker to be slowed more by the weak U.S. economy and dollar.

The Peoria, Ill.-based manufacturer’s stock surged more than 8 percent in Friday trading after it easily beat Wall Street’s earnings estimates, benefiting from its strategy of diversification.

Shares rose $6.69, or 8.5 percent, to close at $85.28 Friday and were up more than 40 percent since mid-January to within $2 of their all-time high, despite what CEO Jim Owens characterized as a depressed market for construction equipment in North America.

Even though the housing market slowdown limited sales in the United States and Western Europe, Caterpillar’s stepped-up push into emerging markets and the oil-and-gas, marine, and parts-and-service businesses paid off in a 30 percent leap in international sales.