Tuesday morning headlines

Stocks slump: Discouraging news out of Europe isn’t helping. Dow is down about 60 points.
Romney’s taxes: He reported income of $21.7 million in 2010 and paid $3 million in taxes – an effective rate of 14 percent. He also made $3 million in tax-deductible charitable donations. (Washington Post).
Dodgers receive opening bids: More than a dozen investment groups are interested, and several of the bids were in excess of $1 billion, the WSJ reports.

Bankers didn’t require the bids to be binding or ask for bidders to submit a deposit with their offers. Bidders also didn’t have to provide firm promises of financing. As a result, several bidders said, there was little reason for them to not submit high offers with hopes of surviving to a second round.

Academy Award nominees: “The Artist,” “Hugo,” and “The Descendants” lead the way. (NYT)
Greece update: Eurozone officials rejected a final offer from bondholders, which is a big blow to resolving the nation’s debt crisis. From Reuters:

Greece’s top official at the Brussels meeting remained stoic, saying the country had the euro zone’s support to complete the debt swap talks in the “coming days.” “In reality, we are now entering the final stretch,” , Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said in a statement. “I believe everyone has now realized that Greece must be supported in its effort, which is of vital importance not only for us but for the euro zone as a whole and the global economy.”

Calpers returns just 1.1% in 2011: That’s a fraction of the projected 7.75 percent annual returns by California’s pension fund giant. Last year, Calpers earned 12.5 percent. From the LAT:

Calendar-year results, however, are used only as indicators, a CalPERS spokesman said. The fiscal year returns, posted as of June 30 each year, are the legal basis for annual decisions by the CalPERS board to raise or lower the contributions it gets from 3,100 participating government agencies, including the state of California.

Happy hours at Starbucks: The coffee giant will be offering beer and wine in four to six L.A.-area locations by the end of the year. From the LAT:

Starbucks is looking to differentiate itself from competitors as varied as Dunkin’ Donuts, fast-food behemoth McDonald’s Corp. and the fast-casual Panera Bread Co. chain, analysts said. It’s a “natural extension” for Starbucks to move into specialty beverages, said Jason Moser, an analyst with Motley Fool. The coffee chain in November bought San Bernardino natural juice company Evolution Fresh Inc. for $30 million, promising to launch a series of “wholesome” juice shops.

Downtown theater to become hotel: The historic United Artists building at Broadway and 9th Street will be transformed by a chain of boutique inns. The 180-room hotel will have a pool, restaurant, bar and 1,600-seat theater. From the LAT:

The complex at 927 S. Broadway was built in 1927 in part to provide a theater for the movie production company founded by film luminaries Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin and D.W. Griffith. The Spanish Gothic theater was designed by C. Howard Crane and the office tower by Walker & Eisen, the team behind other local landmarks including the Fine Arts Building downtown and the Beverly Wilshire hotel in Beverly Hills.

LAX contract awarded: Westfield Concession Management has received a 17-year lease for the Theme Building, Terminal 2 and the Tom Bradley International Terminal. Westfield will be charged with bringing in restaurants and retailers. (Daily Breeze)
Burkle buys stake in Relativity Media: It’s the billionaire’s second investment this month in the film and television studio led by Ryan Kavanaugh. No terms disclosed. (Bloomberg)
Silicon Valley salary is 100K: Software and other engineering employees made, on average, $104,195 last year, according to a survey, a 5.2 percent increase from a year earlier. (WSJ)
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