Wells Fargo might send jobs overseas

Wells Fargo Co., looking to trim more than $1.7 billion in quarterly expenses between the first quarter and the end of this year, may move some jobs overseas.

Some roles in technology and the retirement division may go to India and the Philippines, Bridget Braxton, a bank spokeswoman, said Wednesday. A Charlotte, N.C., TV station reported the plan earlier, citing an internal memo from a Wells Fargo executive it didn’t name. Braxton, who declined to make the document available, said it alerted employees that the bank was undergoing “an assessment” of the idea. She declined to say how many jobs could be moved.

Wells Fargo announced plans in 2011 to cut expenses by $1.5 billion a quarter to about $11 billion at the end of this year. Costs rose in the first quarter to $13 billion, and Chief Executive Officer John Stumpf said expenses may hit the high end of the range, or $11.3 billion.

The bank had 264,900 full-time employees at the end of March. Stumpf said on Jan. 17 that 98 percent of the workforce is in the United States.

ECONOMY

Hiring in state expected to pick up soon

UCLA forecasters say California’s economy will pick up speed next year, adding tens of thousands of jobs as the housing market begins to recover.

The quarterly UCLA Anderson Forecasts estimates that the state unemployment rate of 10.8 percent will drop to 9.7 percent next year and 8.3 percent in 2014.

That’s still higher than predictions for the national unemployment rate, projected to be 8.2 percent this year and 7.9 percent in 2013.

However, California’s recovery from the 2008-2009 recession may be faster than the nation’s as a whole. In part, that’s because the sour housing market that dragged down California’s economy and cost 350,000 construction jobs may recover in the next two years.

ENERGY

Chevron seeks Gulf of Mexico rights

Chevron Corp. is among 48 companies vying for the first oil-drilling rights in the central Gulf of Mexico since BP’s 2010 spill, hoping to tap a region the United States says may yield more than 1 billion barrels.

Wednesday’s auction included tracts covering almost 39 million acres off Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi. A sale about a month before the April 2010 BP disaster raised $949.3 million for the U.S. government.

“Activity starts on these leases as soon as they are awarded, with environmental work, surveying activity and related supporting services,” Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said as the sale began in New Orleans. “Gulf of Mexico is back in business.”

The Obama administration is opening the central Gulf as Republicans in Congress demand accelerated domestic output to add jobs and reduce dependence on overseas sources. The BP oil spill prompted an overhaul of rules for deepwater drilling after a six-month halt in the Gulf to review safety.

TECHNOLOGY

Yahoo makes moves in online animation

Yahoo said Wednesday that it is expanding its original offerings, partnering with Liquid Comics to offer motion-comics.

The two companies said they’ll make the first two titles – created by film directors Barry Sonnenfeld and Guy Ritchie – available online later this summer through Yahoo Screen.

Motion comics blend elements of comic book art and animation, offering some movement and action but on a limited scale. It’s gained ground and popularity in recent years as publishers big and small experiment with the medium, which can viewed online or on devices like tablets and iPads.

ICloud storage working again, says Apple

Apple Inc. said its iCloud online- storage service was working again by Wednesday afternoon after some users faced problems accessing their content.

The Cupertino computer giant disclosed the service disruption outage on its website early Wednesday. A spokeswoman for Apple declined to comment.

ICloud, introduced by Apple last year, is used for storing photos, music, documents and other files.

This article appeared on page E – 2 of the San Francisco Chronicle

Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/06/20/BU6J1P525C.DTL