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By Jonathan D. Salant

(For more campaign news, see ELECT.)

Feb. 21 (Bloomberg) — Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum, who has emerged as the chief rival to Mitt Romney, more than doubled his fundraising after winning the Iowa caucuses last month.

Romney still raised more money than all of his Republican challengers and continued to receive the most financial support from Wall Street.

Meanwhile, former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, winner of the South Carolina primary on Jan. 21, ended the January filing period with as almost as many debate as he has cash in the bank.

A former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania, Santorum raised $4.5 million in January after collecting $2.2 million in the entire last year, Federal Election Commission financial disclosure reports posted yesterday show. He took in 57 percent of his money last month in donations of $200 or less, according to FEC records. Santorum, who won the Iowa caucuses Jan. 3 and the Feb. 7 contests in Missouri, Colorado and Minnesota, reported having $1.5 million in the bank at the start of February, FEC records show.

Romney brought in more than $6.5 million last month, according to his disclosure report. Romney, who has won four primary contests including Florida, has raised a total of $63.7 million and had a campaign bank account balance of $7.7 million on Jan. 31.

Wall Street Donations

He raised $36,996 last month from employees of New York- based JPMorgan Chase & Co., and $33 Casual Clothes,013 from employees of Bank of America Corp., based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Romney, a co-founder of the Boston-based private-equity firm Bain Capital LLC, has raised more money from employees of Wall Street firms and commercial banks than any other 2012 presidential candidate, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington- based research group that tracks political giving.

Donations of $200 or less accounted for 18 percent of his receipts last month, according to his FEC report.

Unlike previous elections, none of the Republican candidates have publicly identified those who are raising money for their campaigns, except the registered lobbyists they are required by law to report to the FEC.

Romney was the only candidate to disclose any so-called bundlers last month, saying that three registered lobbyists who have been raising money for his campaign brought in an additional $163,645. Wayne Berman, whose clients include Blackstone Group LP, based in New York, and San Francisco-based Visa Inc., raised $79,050 of that total.

Gingrich’s Total

Gingrich’s South Carolina victory helped generate $5.6 million in donations last month. Through Jan. 31, he raised a total of $18.3 million for his campaign.

He reported $1.8 million in the bank at the end of January — with $1.7 million in debts, including $115,503 for web ads and $7,500 to his daughter Jackie Cushman’s consulting firm.

Gingrich also relied on small donations; 45 percent of his money last month was in amount of $200 or less.

U.S. Representative Ron Paul of Texas reported taking in $4.5 million in January, with 47 percent in amounts of $200 or less, and entering February with $1.6 million in the bank. Paul has raised $31 million through Jan. 31, second only to Romney. The campaign said on its website today that it has also raised more than $1.9 million so far this month.

The Republicans trail President Barack Obama in fundraising as the Democratic incumbent takes in money for both the primary campaign and the general election. Through Jan. 31, Obama raised $140 million, including $12 million last month, and had $76 million in the bank.

Perry, Huntsman

Texas Governor Rick Perry, who withdrew from the Republican presidential race Jan. 19 and endorsed Gingrich, reported that he had $860,168 in the bank at the end of January. He has asked the FEC for permission to convert his campaign account to a political action committee. He raised $388,531 last month, bringing his total to $20.5 million.

Jon Huntsman, the former Utah governor and U.S. ambassador to China, lent his campaign another $50,000 on Jan. 4 Knits and Tees, 12 days before dropping out of the presidential race and endorsing Romney. He lent his campaign a total of $2.6 million while raising $3.8 million. He also reported other campaign debts of $2.6 million.

Former Louisiana Governor Buddy Roemer, the only Republican candidate seeking federal funds to help finance his campaign, raised $48,807, bringing his total to $393,839, including a $24,900 personal loan. He had $7,126 in the bank.

–With assistance from Kristin Jensen in Washington. Editors: Robin Meszoly, Jeanne Cummings

To contact the reporter on this story: Jonathan D. Salant in Washington at jsalant@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jeanne Cummings at jcummings21@bloomberg.net.

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By Michelle Fay Cortez

Feb. 14 (Bloomberg) — St. Jude Medical Inc.’s Riata, a cable used in heart defibrillators, is the latest example of a defective medical device that wasn’t spotted quickly enough because U.S. surveillance systems are lacking, according to an article in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The device maker stopped selling the wires known as leads in December 2010, then the St. Paul, Minnesota-based company recalled the products a year later because they could break through Riata’s insulation coating and cause a potential failure. Still, 79,000 of the devices are inside U.S. patients, with questions remaining about their risks, said Robert Hauser, a cardiologist at the Minneapolis Heart Institute.

St. Jude and U.S. regulators aren’t conducting the research needed to guide treatment for patients with Riata leads, though technology is available to do so. Surveillance systems weren’t in place to detect the defects early, even after the need for them became clear when Minneapolis-based Medtronic Inc. halted sales of its Sprint Fidelis leads in 2007 because of their potential to fracture, Hauser said.

“Patients in the United States continue to be exposed to underperforming and potentially hazardous medical devices after they have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, despite multiple recalls and some tragic adverse events,” Hauser wrote Replica Watches, in the article released today by the medical journal. “We are confronted once more with a critical clinical situation in which we have no scientifically valid information to guide us.”

Safety Study

St. Jude started a 500-patient Riata Lead Evaluation Study in December 2011 to get more information on how often the wires break free from the insulated cables; evaluate any related electrical abnormalities; and help guide future patient management. A website was introduced to improve communication with physicians and provide additional information, the company said in a statement.

“St. Jude Medical has the most active post-market surveillance program in the industry for these leads,” said Mark Carlson, chief medical officer of St. Jude, in an emailed statement. “St. Jude Medical has a strong history of product safety and reliability, and we remain dedicated to developing technology and products that save and improve the lives of patients.”

The current surveillance system doesn’t detect defects until thousands of patients have been exposed to a new technology, Hauser wrote. There is little information to ensure the safety of any new products, including the St. Jude Durata lead that replaced Riata, or guide the care of patients who receive potentially harmful devices, he said. As a result, doctors react ineffectively and perhaps dangerously, he said.

Manufacturers should conduct studies after devices used to sustain life are released to spot problems early and gather data needed to guide patient care, Hauser wrote. Already, more than 150,000 Americans rely on life-saving medical devices, he said.

“We’re not doing it right,” Hauser said in a telephone interview. “We do have the technology. We even have the software programs that can monitor these devices in real time. We need a vigorous, robust system that keeps these devices under the microscope every day.”

–Editors: Angela Zimm, Bruce Rule

To contact the reporter on this story: Michelle Fay Cortez in Minneapolis at mcortez@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Reg Gale at rgale5@bloomberg.net

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A CHILD who was thrown from Brisbane's Story Bridge by his father, who then jumped off, was not known to child protection authorities.

The man, reported to be 40 years old, and his child, reported as a two-year-old boy, died in the incident around 3.30am (AEST).

Premier Anna Bligh said preliminary investigations showed the boy was not known to the Department of Community Safety.

She said investigators were trying to find what was behind the incident.

"It is nothing short of a heartbreaking tragedy, and there is a family out there in a lot of pain today Replica watches," she told reporters in Rockhampton.

An outbound lane of the Story Bridge was closed for police investigations, causing peak hour problems.

Police are likely to view footage from the 14 cameras on the bridge and eight "pan and zoom" cameras aimed at the structure.

Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14
 

By Shoshanna Solomon

Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) — Israel’s TA-25 Index declined from an almost three-month high, slipping less than 0.1 percent to 1,136.43, at the 4:30 p.m. close in Tel Aviv.

The following stocks rose or fell today. Symbols are in parentheses.

Ampal-American Israel Corp. (AMPL IT), the owner of a stake in a company that exports gas from Egypt to Israel, advanced for the fifth time in six days, gaining 1.3 percent to 1.625 shekels. Ampal said the gas supply from Egypt to Israel has been restored partially after being halted following explosions on the Sinai-pipeline network.

Elad Canada Inc. (ELCN IT) gained to the highest level since Aug. 4, advancing 3.1 percent to 10.62 shekels. The real estate company said it plans to pay a dividend of 75 million shekels ($20 million).

Gazit-Globe Ltd. (GLOB IT) rose to the highest since Dec. 26, adding 1.1 percent to 37.38 shekels. The real-estate company agreed to sell about 134.7 million shekels of bonds and 1.3 million options to institutional investors.

Separately, the company said it bought 1 million shares of Atrium European Real Estate Ltd. (ATRS AV) for 3.58 euros each, increasing its stake in the manager of retail-real estate to 32.46 percent.

Marathon Investments Ltd. (MARA IT) soared 46 percent, the most since at least February 1996 when Bloomberg started tracking the stock Breitling replica watches, to 1.078 shekels. The venture capital fund said it is in talks to sell a unit for 210 million shekels.

Strauss Group Ltd. (STRS IT) climbed to the highest since Jan. 2, advancing 0.8 percent to 46.97 shekels. The food, snack and coffee maker said its coffee unit signed a five-year agreement with a German manufacturer to produce coffee.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (TEVA IT), the generic drugmaker whose bestselling medicine is Copaxone, an injectable treatment for multiple sclerosis, advanced to the highest since May 31, increasing 0.9 percent to 173.50 shekels. U.S. and European regulators said they were reviewing Novartis AG ’s multiple sclerosis pill Gilenya after reports of 11 deaths.

Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (TSEM IT) rose 4.7 percent to 2.689 shekels, or the equivalent of 71 cents, the highest since Nov. 16. The U.S.-traded shares of the maker of customized chips rose 5.1 percent to 72 cents on Jan. 20.

–Editors: Susan Lerner Replica Breitling watches, Daliah Merzaban

To contact the reporter on this story: Shoshanna Solomon in Tel Aviv at ssolomon22@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Maedler at cmaedler@bloomberg.net

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By Simon Kennedy and Jonathan Tirone

(See DAVOS for more on the World Economic Forum.)

Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) — The United Nations nuclear inspectorate said it’s uncertain Iran has declared the full extent of its atomic work as Israel’s defense chief warned the Persian Gulf nation’s program may spill over in the region.

“We are not very sure that Iran has declared everything,” International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Yukiya Amano said in Davos, Switzerland. An Iranian nuclear weapon would mean “the end of any anti-proliferation regime” in the Middle East Replica Tag heuer watches, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said after Amano’s remarks.

IAEA nuclear inspectors leave Vienna tomorrow for three- days of talks with Iranian authorities. While the agency confirmed Iran hasn’t used its declared uranium stockpile to make weapons, inspectors said they have credible intelligence showing the country studied how to make a nuclear bomb. Iran, under four sets of UN sanctions, says it only wants atomic power and that the intelligence was fabricated.

European Union foreign ministers agreed on Jan. 23 to ban oil imports from Iran and to freeze Iranian central bank assets. EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said the embargo was aimed at pressing the Iranian government to resume negotiations over its nuclear program.

Israel will assess the effects of the European embargo, which starts on July 1, “in the next months,” Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said Jan. 24 in Vienna. Israel has said it would use force to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

Iran ‘Determined’

“Iran is determined to more forward toward a nuclear- military program Replica Tag heuer watches,” Barak told a panel in Davos today. “They are ready to fight and deceive the whole world to turn into a nuclear-military power.”

Saudi Arabia and Turkey would also pursue atomic weapons if Iran is allowed to become a nuclear-military power, Barak said. Israel probably has about 80 nuclear warheads, according to the Federation of American Scientists, citing the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency.

Iranian officials have said they would block the Strait of Hormuz, a transit route for a fifth of globally traded oil, if military action were taken against their country.

Crude for March delivery today was up 21 cents at $99.91 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 10:16 a.m. Vienna time. The contract settled at $99.70 yesterday, the highest closing price since Jan. 19. Prices are up 17 percent in the past 12 months.

Iran, which hid its nuclear work for more than a decade before IAEA inspections began in 2003, is obligated under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to declare its enriched-uranium stockpile.

“We have requested Iran to engage with us to clarify the decisions,” Amano said. “Iran has a case to answer.”

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said yesterday his country is willing to revive talks on its nuclear program and accused Western countries of dodging discussions, the state-run Fars news agency reported.

–Editors: Jennifer M. Freedman, Zoe Schneeweiss

To contact the reporters on this story: Simon Kennedy in Davos, Switzerland at skennedy4@bloomberg.net; Jonathan Tirone in Vienna at jtirone@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Andrew J. Barden at barden@bloomberg.net; James Hertling at jhertling@bloomberg.net

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By Simon Kennedy and Patrick Donahue

(See {EXT4 <GO>} for more on Europe’s debt crisis)

Jan. 13 (Bloomberg) — France was stripped of its top credit rating by Standard & Poor’s and banks suspended talks with Greece over debt restructuring, the first blows this year to efforts aimed at stemming Europe’s fiscal turmoil.

France’s AAA rating will fall by one level by S&P, Finance Minister Francois Baroin told France 2 television today. Slovakia, Italy and Austria are among other countries to be downgraded, European officials said. Germany will keep its top rating, a person familiar with the matter said. S&P may release its report at about 9 p.m. Brussels time.

The decisions came at the end of a week in which signs grew that Europe’s woes may be cresting as borrowing costs fell French Nouveau oil paintings, evidence of economic resilience emerged and the European Central Bank said it had quelled a credit crunch at banks. The immediate impact on French and Italian borrowing costs was limited, with the yield on 10-year government bonds rising 3 basis points and 1 basis point, respectively.

“It’s a reduction of one level, it’s the same level as the U.S.,” Baroin said. “It’s not a catastrophe.”

The euro today fell to its weakest in 16 months against the dollar, declining to $1.2665. The yield on Germany’s benchmark 10-year bund slipped 7 basis points to 1.759 percent and earlier touched a record low.

“We’ve had a few calmer weeks with sentiment improving, but the situation was vulnerable to re-escalation,” said Nick Kounis, head of macro research at ABN Amro Bank NV in Amsterdam. “There are enough challenges ahead which could be fresh triggers for the crisis.”

Third Year

European leaders are struggling to tame a crisis now in its third year and convince investors they can restore budget order. Greece’s creditors today announced they had failed to agree with its authorities about how much money investors will lose by swapping the nation’s bonds, increasing the risk of the euro- area’s first sovereign default.

While confirmation that Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, retains its top rating could lessen fallout, the French and Austrian downgrades threaten the potency of the region’s main bailout fund, which currently has 440 billion euros ($558 billion) to spend.

The European Financial Stability Facility, which is funding rescue packages for Greece, Ireland and Portugal partially with bond sales, owes its AAA rating to guarantees from the region’s top-rated nations.

The French downgrade and refusal by governments to provide more credit enhancements would reduce the fund’s lending capacity by around a third to 293 billion euros Post-Impressionism oil paintings, Trevor Cullinan, S&P’s director of sovereign ratings, said last month.

EFSF Power

“It will be interesting to see what the strategy will be regarding the EFSF,” said David Schnautz, a fixed-income strategist at Commerzbank AG in London. Downgrades could “limit the volume of AAA rated EFSF paper that could be issued, or the EFSF could begin to issue non-AAA.”

Downgrades sometimes lack bite. The yield on the benchmark U.S. government bond fell to a record 1.6714 percent on Sept. 23, seven weeks after S&P withdrew its AAA rating for the first time, citing the nation’s political process and a failure to tackle a record budget deficit.

Today’s impasse in Greece comes three months since officials and creditors agreed to implement a 50 percent cut in the face value of the country’s debt, with a goal of paring Greek’s borrowings to 120 percent of gross domestic product by 2020. Unresolved is the coupon and maturity of the new bonds to determine the total losses for investors.

Greek Impasse

Proposals put forward by a committee representing financial firms have “not produced a constructive consolidated response by all parties,” the Washington-based Institute of International Finance said in a statement today. “Discussions with Greece and the official sector are paused for reflection on the benefits of a voluntary approach.”

The government said the two sides will reconvene discussions in five days. European governments have been pushing for the Greek debt to carry a coupon of 4 percent, a person with direct knowledge of the negotiations said this week. Private bondholders said they would accept those terms for a period of time if they were able to get a bigger payout later as Greece’s economy recovered, the person said.

The Greek bond due October 2022 rose, pushing the yield six basis points lower to 34.36 percent at 5:20 p.m. London time. The price climbed to about 20.5 percent of face value.

–With assistance from Emma Charlton and Fergal O’Brien in London, Rebecca Christie in Brussels, Mark Deen in Paris and Boris Groendahl and Zoe Schneeweiss in Vienna. Editors: John Fraher, Craig Stirling

To contact the reporter on this story: Simon Kennedy in London at skennedy4@bloomberg.net Patrick Donahue in Kiel, Germany at pdonahue1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alan Crawford at acrawford6@bloomberg.net

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