Ode To Capitalism

WSJ Markets

• Jefferson County Debt Plan Is Costly
  The plan by Jefferson County, Ala., to emerge from bankruptcy protection hinges in part on the sale of $1.9 billion of new debt this fall to refinance debt tied to its troubled sewer system. But some observers are calling terms of the new debt onerous.
• Thai Rice Aid Criticized
  Thailand's government took a step toward revealing the full cost of its contentious rice-price support program, saying it had lost $4.4 billion on the subsidy from fall 2011 to September 2012.
• KPMG Ex-Partner Is Arraigned
  Former KPMG LLP senior partner Scott London was arraigned here Monday in federal court, where a not-guilty plea was entered on his behalf, although he is expected to plead guilty once certain procedural matters are resolved.
• China Wrestles With Banks' Pleas for Cash
  China's big banks are urging the central bank to free up funds to ease an unusual cash squeeze, as Beijing faces a stark choice: add money to the financial system to help lenders, or stay the course to rein in a rapid expansion of credit.