By Daniel Costello

Good morning everyone. Here are some headlines from this morning's economic and business news:

Warren Buffett's investment arm, Berkshire Hathaway, announced its purchasing the remaining 77% of Burlington Northern Santa Fe it did not already own for $44 billion in cash and stock.

The deal for the nation's second largest railroad is Berkshire's biggest bet ever and is likely to be interpreted as a huge vote of confidence for the ongoing U.S. economic recovery. "Most important of all...it's an all-in wager on the economic future of the United States. I love these bets," Burlington CEO Matt Rose said.

Entertainment giant Viacom announced continued good news by reporting third-quarter profit jumped a better-than-expected 15% on strong movie sales amid continuing declines in advertising and DVD sales.

The company, which includes Paramount Pictures, MTV and Nickelodeon, dodged a bullet this summer when owner Sumner Redstone was able to pay off some of his huge debt load at the last minute -- saving his family's hold on the firm.

Consumer health product giant Johnson & Johnson said it will cut up to 7% of its global workforce as part of an ongoing cost-cutting plan that the company says will save up to $1.7 billion by 2011. The cuts amount to about 8000 jobs.

Lastly, all eyes are on the Federal Reserve today as the Federal Open Market Committee begins its two-day meeting. A report in the Financial Times last week set off a firestorm when it suggested that the Fed was reconsidering its policy of low interest rates to bolster the economy. Most onlookers now believe rates will remain low and are likely to comb the Fed's language mostly to see if it may raise rates in coming months. An announcement is expected Wednesday at about 2:15 p.m. EST

categories: Morning Report

10:37 - November 3, 2009

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