STOCK MARKET WATCH, Friday February 9

[ozymandius]

Friday February 9, 2007

COUNTING THE DAYS
DAYS REMAINING IN THE * REGIME 710 LONG DAYS
DAYS SINCE DEMOCRACY DIED (12/12/00) 2237 DAYS
WHERE'S OSAMA BIN-LADEN? 1941 DAYS
DAYS SINCE ENRON COLLAPSE = 1901
Number of Enron Execs in handcuffs = 19
ENRON EXECS CONVICTED = 7
Enron execs conveniently deceased = 3
Other Arrests of Execs = 54


U.S. FUTURES & MARKETS INDICATORS
NASDAQ FUTURES-----------------------------S&P FUTURES




AT THE CLOSING BELL WHEN BUSH TOOK OFFICE on January 22, 2001
Dow - 10,578.24
Nasdaq - 2,757.91
S&P 500 - 1,342.90
Oil - $27.69/bbl
Gold - $266.70/oz.

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON February 8, 2007

Dow... 12,637.63 -29.24 (-0.23%)
Nasdaq... 2,488.67 -1.83 (-0.07%)
S&P 500... 1,448.31 -1.71 (-0.12%)
Gold future... 662.80 +5.50 (+0.83%)
30-Year Bond 4.84% -0.02 (-0.31%)
10-Yr Bond... 4.73% -0.02 (-0.32%)






GOLD, EURO, YEN, Loonie and Silver


PIEHOLE ALERT

Heads Up!
Preliminary info on appearances by Bush & Co. throughout the country. Details & links are added as they become available so check back. And if you know more, are organizing something, or would like to, contact [e-mail]

For information on protests and other actions Citizens For Legitimate Government

[ozymandius]

1. Today's Market WrapUp

Bad Technician Says, "Sell the Dow"
BY MARTIN GOLDBERG, CMT

After putting in an intermediate term bottom in July, the Dow surged into an uptrend that has not stopped for either basing or a meaningful correction for over 7 months. This is somewhat unusual behavior and statistically, it can be shown that the odds favor such a meaningful correction to occur soon. However, the basis for most of technical analysis consists of giving the benefit of the doubt to trends which are alive and well. Given the apparently live(ly) trend of the Dow at the present time, it would only be a bad technician that would suggest selling now.

Rather than being a bad technician, let me be a good one and point out some features of the Dow Jones Industrial Average 9 month daily chart that requires immediate attention but no short term selling action.

1. The RSI momentum indicator indicates a series of lower highs, which diverges from the actual price action, which shows higher highs. What the momentum indicator is showing can also be seen in a different way on the chart of the Dow’s price action. The fact that the rate of going up is going down is reflected in the RSI indicator.

2. Note the recent volume trends for the Dow shown in the lower pane. As price has increased in 2007, the corresponding trading volumes seem to be diminishing. A general principle of technical analysis is that volume drives price action. If the diminishing trading volume continues, it will likely signal an end to the Dow’s uptrend.

-cut-

Today’s Market

Today’s market action looked fairly benign with the big exception of the behavior of the sub prime lenders, which did horribly. Of particular note was New Century Financial (NEW) which posted a fourth-quarter loss and said it was restating three quarters of results. It subsequently lost more than one-third of its value. This is the type of market action that we have not seen in quite some time – that is, of a relatively popular stock that was whacked to such a great extent in a single day. Also putting in a bad day at a time when they sit right at their neckline were the US homebuilders. It is my personal (not technical) opinion that the bond market is being supported, and so are homebuilder stocks. It will be interesting to see if Wall Street continues to come to the support of US homebuilders and sub-prime lender stocks in the form of analyst upgrades. Remember, that with respect to the homebuilders, they are just off of a major round of Wall Street analyst upgrades. As I stated about Wall Street analysts and Google, it is a good time to record the names of those firms who are upgrading these stocks in a manner that it would have been fruitful to record who was upgrading Enron in early 2001.

http://www.financialsense.com/Market/wrapup.htm

[ozymandius]

2. Oil prices spike on Iran, cold weather

SINGAPORE - Oil prices rose above $60 a barrel Friday for the first time since early January, lifted by Iran-U.S. tension, violence in Nigeria and frigid U.S. temperatures.

Light, sweet crude for March delivery was up 40 cents to $60.11 in Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, midmorning in Singapore.

-cut-

On Thursday, Iran stepped up its warnings to the United States, which rekindled worries that supplies out of the oil producer could be hindered. Iranian supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Tehran would strike U.S. interests around the world if his country is attacked.

Though the comments didn't immediately cause a spike in prices, it kept prices from falling, as did ongoing forecasts of cold weather throughout the United States, and news of a shutdown at an Occidental Petroleum Corp. crude and natural gas field in California.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/oil_prices

[ozymandius]

3. Group names top 10 polluting refineries

WASHINGTON - Environmental activists on Thursday said more stringent air-quality regulations are needed for oil refineries along the Gulf Coast, a region densely populated with petroleum industry plants.

The Environmental Integrity Project blamed state-level regulations that are weaker than in other parts of the country, as well as lax oversight, for above-average levels of noxious emissions.

-cut-

Topping the list, with nearly 2.1 million pounds of carcinogens such as benzene and formaldehyde was BP PLC's refinery in Texas City, Texas, though the advocacy group said that number was skewed dramatically upward due to a one-time release of nearly 2 million pounds of formaldehyde in 2004.

Eric Schaeffer, director of the Environmental Integrity Project, said the high numbers from BP, compared with other companies, raise questions about whether oil refiners are reporting their emissions accurately to the government.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070208/ap_on_sc/oil_refineries_emissions_1

[ozymandius]

4. Gas prices are going up again

After an all-too-brief break, gasoline prices are climbing again, driven higher by rising oil costs and falling output from California refineries.

The state's drivers now pay $2.60 on average for a gallon of regular, up 8 cents from the start of the month. The national average rose 7 cents in the same period to hit $2.20, according to the AAA of Northern California auto club.

-cut-

Much of the increase can be traced to winter's belated, brutal arrival in the eastern United States. The cold weather drove up demand for heating oil. That, in turn, pushed up the price of crude oil and everything made with it, including gasoline.

-cut-

President Bush also had a hand in driving up oil prices, analysts say. The cost of a barrel jumped 8 percent on Jan. 23, the day he announced he would more than double the amount of oil in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the nation's emergency stash of crude. The government plans to start buying 100,000 barrels per day this spring.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/02/09/BUGG3O1F561.DTL

[ozymandius]

7. Russia: Chevron May Buy Yukos Assets

U.S. oil company Chevron Corp. has expressed interest in acquiring assets of oil company OAO Yukos, a Russian bankruptcy official said Friday.

Nikolai Lashkevich, a spokesman for Yukos bankruptcy supervisor Eduard Rebgun, told The Associated Press that several international companies had inquired about participating in any auction or selloff of the assets of Yukos, which was once Russia's largest oil producer.

"The receiver's office has received letters expressing interest in acquiring certain Yukos assets from a number of large international companies, including from the U.S. company Chevron (nyse: CVX - news - people )," Lashkevich told AP.

-cut-

Yukos' remaining assets include units that produce some 470,000 barrels per day as well as two refineries. The bankruptcy supervisor is readying the company for a series of auctions. Analysts expect them to be dominated by Gazprom and OAO Rosneft, which is also state-controlled and close to the Kremlin.

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/02/09/ap3411899.html

[ozymandius]

8. Investors want pay freeze for BP's outgoing CEO

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two pension funds plan to ask an Alaska state court on Friday to freeze more than $140 million in retirement pay and other compensation for outgoing BP Plc (BP.L)(NYSE:BP - news) CEO John Browne, saying it is excessive and undeserved, an attorney for the investors said.

The expected court action, a draft of which was given to Reuters, comes as investors are becoming increasingly vocal over what they see as runaway pay for chief executives.

In the case of BP, the shareholder plaintiffs want Browne's pension fund to be held in a court-supervised trust while they pursue claims against him and the board of directors for environmental and worker safety issues that have beset the oil company.

"Browne is now, it appears, being pushed out of the company but taking with him upward of God knows how many millions and millions of dollars of severance and pension payments," said William Lerach, a prominent U.S. class-action lawyer who represents the pension plan of U.S. union group Unite Here and the London Pensions Fund Authority in the case.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070209/bs_nm/bp_lawsuit_dc

[UpInArms]

32. GLOBAL MARKETS-G7 nerves weigh on forex, oil breaks $60

http://today.reuters.com/misc/PrinterFriendlyPopup.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2007-02-09T140112Z_01_L09587545_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-GLOBAL-WRAPUP-4.XML

LONDON, Feb 9 (Reuters) - Uncertainty on whether G7 finance chiefs will act to tackle yen weakness kept currency trading on edge on Friday, while oil peeped above $60 and stock upgrades lifted share prices.

The yen's slide to around 21-year lows on a trade-weighted basis is looming over a two-day meeting of the Group of Seven industrial nations, starting on Friday in Essen, Germany.

<snip>

Oil briefly rose above the psychological barrier of $60 a barrel for the first time in a month on more signs of falling OPEC exports and problems at a U.S. oilfield.

Building on Thursday's $2 gain, U.S. crude <CLc1> went as high as $60.42 before easing back on profit-taking.

OPEC's exports in January were down 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) from December, shipping data from Lloyd's Marine Intelligence Unit showed, bringing the group closer to its pledged supply cut of 1.2 million bpd from November.

...more...

[54anickel]

46. Exxon Mobil has no more doubts on warming

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/4539329.html

Big Oil behemoth Exxon Mobil Corp. has dropped any pretense of questioning whether global warming is real. Now the company is seeking to position itself as an active player in efforts to lower greenhouse gases.

"The appropriate debate isn't on whether climate is changing, but rather should be on what we should be doing about it," Kenneth Cohen, Exxon's vice president of public affairs, told reporters on a conference call Thursday.

The call came less than a week after an international panel of hundreds of scientists said new research showed global warming was "unequivocal" and that human activity was primarily responsible for the most significant factor in temperature change — greenhouse gases.

"Climate is changing. It's a serious issue. The evidence is there," Cohen said on the call, which was arranged in part to allow Exxon to state its position on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's report.

snip>

"They certainly have mellowed somewhat," said Art Smith, chairman and CEO of John S. Herold, an energy research and consulting firm. "They took a pretty hard stance that everyone else was wrong about this."

more...

[hatrack]

67. Gosh, isn't that just PRECIOUS?!?!?!?

:puke: :puke: :puke: :puke: :puke:

[ozymandius]

5. Greyhound buses roll into UK hands

FirstGroup is to buy the company that runs the US's iconic Greyhound bus service in an all-cash recommended deal for $3.6bn (£1.84bn), the UK bus and rail operator announced on Friday.

The $35.25 a share offer for Laidlaw International is thought to be mainly aimed at securing for FirstGroup the leading position in the market to provide North American yellow school bus services, in which Laidlaw is the leading operator and FirstGroup number two.

-cut-

Friday's announcement said nothing about whether FirstGroup would retain Greyhound, which is riskier than Laidlaw's other businesses. But it is thought the company will at least consider selling the operation.

-cut-

Greyhound operates the only inter-city long-distance bus service in the US, a business which is far riskier than FirstGroup's existing US operations because it has no guaranteed revenues. The business has declined since its mid-20th century heyday because of competition from cars and, more recently, low-cost airlines.

http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.aspx?feed=FT&Date=20070209&ID=6460438

[ozymandius]

6. Bank's mortgage warning could be bad sign

Just as investors were settling into the comfort of a Goldilocks economy, they are getting a whiff of cold porridge.

HSBC Holdings, a huge British-based bank, alarmed the market this week with the type of news some analysts feared would arise throughout the hot housing market of recent years.

HSBC said that it significantly overestimated the ability of people to make payments on some risky mortgages. Many homeowners have been struggling to handle what are called subprime mortgages--home loans that go to people with risky credit histories, weak pay and too much debt to qualify for standard mortgages.

-cut-

"When one of the largest banks in the world adjusts for defaults, it causes you to worry and wonder if maybe this is going to be worse than we expected," said Bryan Whalen, managing director of Metropolitan West Asset Management. "You wonder who's next, whether this will snowball and get bigger," with more lenders encountering trouble.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/yourmoney/chi-0702090047feb09,0,3732084.column?coll=chi-business-hed

[ozymandius]

13. Homes: Stung by the slow market

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Dave Corey has been flipping houses on the side for nearly 30 years, but the latest slump in the real estate market is taking its toll.

His latest struggle: Unloading a ranch in Ocala, Fla., with three bedrooms, two baths and a two-car garage.

-cut-

After paying $146,000 in January of 2006, he's now out of pocket $160,000 including closing costs and renovations, he said. The list price of $178,900 has drawn zero interest.

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Corey thinks he may have solved his problem, at least for now. He entered into a lease-with-an-option-to-buy transaction with a 30-something couple. They're paying $1,200 a month, of which $200 goes into the down payment principal. He's very pleased with the lessees; they pay promptly and he expects them to follow through on the buy option.

http://money.cnn.com/2007/02/08/real_estate/corey/index.htm?postversion=2007020815

[ozymandius]

14. Mortgage rates dip on weak job growth

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Moderate job growth numbers, along with a slight bump in the unemployment rate, pushed mortgage rates down slightly in the past week, according to a survey released Thursday.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rate averaged 6.28 percent, down from 6.34 percent where it stood last week, according to Freddie Mac's (down $1.12 to $64.43, Charts) Primary Mortgage Market Survey. Last year, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate stood at 6.24 percent.

-cut-

The 15-year fixed rate morgage averaged 6.02 percent, down slightly from last week when it averaged 6.06. Last year, the 15-year fixed rate morgage averaged 5.83 percent.

http://money.cnn.com/2007/02/08/real_estate/mortgage_rates/index.htm?postversion=2007020813

[RawMaterials]

22. Buyer's market may loom as housing inventory rises again

North Texas home sales started 2007 in the red.

Purchases of pre-owned homes fell 4 percent in January – continuing a string of losses started last spring. Pending sales were also down 1 percent.

No surprise then that the inventory of homes for sale has increased.

At the end of January there was almost a nine-month supply of pre-owned homes for sale in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, according to statistics released Thursday by the North Texas Real Estate Information System.

A six-month supply of houses is considered a balanced market. In December, there was just under a 6-month supply of homes listed for sale in the D-FW area.

Much of the increase was seasonal. January sales closings typically reflect homes that went under contract during the holidays when buyer traffic is traditionally low.

"Some may be seasonal, but I also suspect some is due to a real slowdown in the market," said Jim Gaines, a researcher with Texas A&M University's Real Estate Center. 'We need to see what the March, April and May period brings in terms of sales activity.

"If sales volume doesn't show marked improvement over last year, I suspect we'll see a very definite shift toward a buyer's market with longer sales times," he said.

Almost 43,000 pre-owned homes are on the market – 7 percent more than a year ago.

Median home sales prices in January were down 1 percent from a year ago to $139,950.

Condo sales and prices were also down last month. Sales fell 6 percent from January 2006 and median prices were off 2 percent.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/DN-resales_09bus.ART.State.Edition1.1d81fe0.html

[54anickel]

36. HSBC fires US executives as it works to get Household in order

http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2251430.ece

"Embarrassing", "catastrophic" and "disastrous" as not words one usually associates with HSBC. But they were being thrown around with wild abandon yesterday as the market woke up to the first profits warning in the 167-year history of Britain's biggest and most prestigious banking group.

The first came from the mouth of an HSBC spokesman; the latter two were used by analysts to describe a truly horrific trading statement in which the company was forced to admit it had got its figures on non-performing loans - bad debts - badly wrong.

While the market had expected provisions of about $8.8bn (£4.5bn) to cover these, the bank was forced to admit it will need to set aside nearer $10.6bn. The reason? The US sub-prime lender, Household.

Everyone knew there was a problem with the business, which offers mortgages and other loans to people whose poor credit histories mean they are shunned by mainstream lenders.

The company was forced to admit in December that it was grappling with difficulties at the operation, bought for $15bn in 2003. Some clients were defaulting on second mortgages within just six months of taking them out.

However, it appears that the bank underestimated the scale of the difficulties faced by Household. The biggest problem lies with mortgage books bought from other banks. There is a plethora of small banks in the US and their financing costs are much higher than HSBC's. So, the reasoning went, if HSBC were to buy up these books it would produce a good return because it could finance the acquisitions relatively cheaply.

more...

[54anickel]

37. U.S. mortgage carnage bad, but could be worse

http://today.reuters.com/news/articlebusiness.aspx?type=ousiv&storyID=2007-02-08T215636Z_01_N08301501_RTRIDST_0_BUSINESSPRO-MORTGAGE-LENDERS-DC.XML&from=business

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Problems at companies that make loans to Americans with poor credit histories might be even worse if Wall Street did not like those loans so much.

snip>

HSBC and New Century are two of the three biggest U.S. subprime lenders. Analysts expect more carnage among smaller, often weaker rivals.

"It will be a tough year," said Stuart Plesser, an analyst at Standard & Poor's. "In their drive to pick up market share, too many lenders mispriced loans. Their options were to join the crowd, or do less business. You see the aftermath now."

Yet analysts also say the appetite of investors for securities into which mortgages and other consumers are packaged remains strong. The subprime industry might be due for a consolidation, but not an evisceration.

"The market will see a huge surge of defaults," said Guy Cecala, president of Insider Mortgage Finance Publications Inc. "What would kill the subprime market tomorrow is if there were no demand for securitized subprime loans. That's not likely. The real risk is to pure players like New Century."

snip>

LENDERS REACT

Analysts say people will fight not to lose their homes.

"Historically, people don't walk away from their homes unless they lose their jobs, or have medical expenses or family issues, because their home is their biggest asset," said Kathy Shanley, a senior bond analyst at Gimme Credit in Chicago.

Yet lenders cannot count on borrower perseverance to make money.


more...

[AnneD]

73. True,

folks don't normally walk away from homes-but if those rates keep flexing upward and they get laid off from one of their 3 jobs-they'll just consider the time before the sheriff locks them out as free rent. I saw folks walk away during the recession in Houston in the 80's.

[54anickel]

94. I'm thinking we'll be seeing some surprised analysts down the road.

Let's hope lenders aren't basing their lending on that anal-cyst hope.

I saw them not just walking away in the outskirts of Phoenix in the 80's, but they stripped the place of anything they could hock at the flea-markets - sinks, tubs, light fixtures, vanities, faucets, hardware, etc. etc. etc. You could get a real "fixer-upper" if you had cash, the banks were taking such a hit they weren't too thrilled about lending money without at least 1/2 down.

[54anickel]

61. Take your home equity and run (WTF? - what about a job!?!!)

http://biz.yahoo.com/brn/070208/21029.html?.v=1&.pf=real-estate

If you live in a high-cost metropolitan area, the equity in your current home can buy a heightened lifestyle somewhere else.
While in certain parts of the country home prices have leveled off or headed south, housing price disparities in different regions mean that some people have more equity than others by virtue of their locations.

Extra equity is an added benefit to the American dream. You can manage this equity in one of several ways. You can sit on it and hope that the real estate market in your area doesn't tank. You can tap your equity and use it -- generally not a good strategy since you have to pay it back. Or you can cash it out and move to an area where the housing dollar buys more for the buck.

If you purchased property in a lofty market such as California or any of the regions in the Northeast, Southeast or Southwest that experienced strong appreciation, you might still be sitting on equity in excess of $100,000.

Particularly if you're working too hard to make the mortgage payment each month or if you just want more space -- whether indoors or outdoors -- an out-of-state move may be a solution.

"This is a wonderful strategy," says Sandy Abalos, CPA and managing partner at Abalos and Associates, a CPA firm in Phoenix. Several of her clients have done this recently with success.

snip>

Housing costs are the biggest expense for most families in the U.S. "For people who are not ultrawealthy, it's their biggest investment and piece of debt," says CPA Randy Harrison, a partner at Meyers, Harrison & Pia in New Haven, Conn. "By relocating into a lower-cost market, they are able to reduce the carrying cost of that debt, such as the interest expense on the mortgage."

Once a big chunk of your salary is no longer targeted toward your mortgage, you may wonder what to do with the extra money each month. "By freeing up that cash flow you are able to use the additional cash that is available to invest for future growth or to increase lifestyle," says Harrison.

more...

[AnneD]

71. They had a blurb on NPR today

about how some 'experts' were suprised that the housing market was still in the dumps because 'the economy was doing so well' :eyes: How much kool aid can one possibly drink. I mean really, these are the same folks that cherry picked facts and fudged data to get us into war-ya think they'd be honest about the economy?

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7299415

[54anickel]

102. Yeah, I've lost some respect for public broadcasting, then again, you can't

blame them they've got to appease the money holders. I usually tune out when the start serving the Kool-aid

[ozymandius]

9. Alcatel-Lucent to cut 12,500 jobs

PARIS (Reuters) -- Freshly merged Alcatel-Lucent is stepping up job cuts to 12,500 after lurching into a fourth-quarter loss and forecast a first-quarter sales dip as tough trading and uncertainties from the tie-up take their toll.

However, the French-American telecom equipment provider said it expected full-year revenue to grow by at least 5 percent, in line with the global telecom operators' market.

-cut-

Shedding jobs

Workers at Alcatel-Lucent have called for a strike Feb. 15 to protest against the job cuts, which were previously expected to amount to 9,000. It declined to give details on the speed of the restructuring or regional breakdown.

"The cuts will be discussed at each level in each country with organizations representing employees at Alcatel-Lucent," Finance Director Jean-Pascal Beaufret said in a conference call with journalists.

http://money.cnn.com/2007/02/09/news/international/bc.alcatel.lucent.results.reut/

[ozymandius]

10. Stores say sales top forecast

January an unusually good month as cold, gift cards bring shoppers back to the stores

NEW YORK -- Sales at U S retailers rose last month more than analysts estimated as a cold snap spurred purchases of coats, hats, and scarves and consumers redeemed holiday gift cards.

Sales at 51 U S retail chains rose 3.7 percent, the International Council of Shopping Centers said. It was the fastest increase since September and exceeded the ICSC's preliminary figure of 3 percent. Shares gained after some companies, including Federated and Gap Inc., said fourth-quarter profit surpassed their forecasts.

http://www.boston.com/business/globe/articles/2007/02/09/stores_say_sales_top_forecast/

[ozymandius]

11. Circuit City closing dozens of stores in U.S., Canada

RICHMOND, VA. — Circuit City Stores Inc. said Thursday that it planned to close seven domestic Superstores, a Kentucky distribution center and 62 stores in Canada to cut costs and improve its financial performance.

The closings will take place over the next six months at an expected cost of $85 million to $105 million, Circuit City said.

...very short...

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-circuit9feb09,1,4112686.story?coll=la-headlines-business

[ozymandius]

12. Healhcare Costs Threaten Retirement Plans of Affluent Americans, Women's Concerns Heightened

Pittsburgh, PA (PRWEB) February 9, 2007 -- As the nationwide debate about U.S. healthcare costs intensifies and baby boomers move into retirement, affluent Americans are more concerned than ever that these high costs will consume their financial assets and impact retirement plans, according to survey findings released today by PNC Wealth Management, a member of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE: PNC).

Findings from PNC's third annual Wealth and Values Survey showed that more than four in 10 (43 percent) respondents with assets of $500,000 to $999,999 said, "healthcare costs will ultimately consume a major portion of my financial assets," a number that rose significantly from a year ago, when 36 percent expressed the same concern.

At the same time, women are far more apprehensive than men about the obstacles that healthcare costs may present in retirement. More than half of the female respondents (56 percent) say they worry about maintaining their lifestyle in the face of ever-increasing healthcare expenses, compared to four in 10 (41 percent) men who feel the same way.

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Survey Methodology

The wealth and values survey was commissioned by PNC to identify attitudes about wealth among high-net-worth individuals, how it affects their lives and their needs in managing wealth. The survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive. in October and November 2006 among a nationwide cross section of 1,123 adults (age 18 or over) with annual incomes of $150,000 or above (if employed), at least $500,000 of investable assets (if employed) or at least $1 million of investable assets (if retired). Figures for age, sex, race, education, region, income, asset level and propensity to be online were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with the actual proportions in the population. Findings are significant at the 95 percent confidence level with a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percent.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/2/prweb503140.htm

[AnneD]

64. Morning marketeers...

:donut: and lurkers. I have been so busy covering my bases. It is so much effort for me to leave on a trip. This is why I seldom go to these things. Too much work. It is easy for a teacher to get a sub-but forget trying to get a substitute School Nurse. I'll be landing in Baltimore, but I'll be going into the belly of the beast-Washington DC. We will actually be lobbying Congress to continue to fund the CHIPS program.

And speaking of getting a substitute Nurse....looks like there are some folks that will soon understand our full worth. I am here to tell you that your last years can eat up all your savings. If we had a national or universal health care coverage-this would not be the problem it would. Many medical folks have been pushing it for some years now. The middle man insurance companies heave been eating up too many health care dollars for too long. One of the best things I can say about getting a tribal role card is that I can get health care. I am glad the more well heeled are starting to realize this. This may be one of the great equalizers.



Happy hunting and watch out for the bears.

Updated cause I got an itinerary now.

[ozymandius]

15. G'morning Marketeers.

:donut: :donut: :donut:

I need to dash out for awhile. Keep the light on for me.

Ozy :hi:

[NC_Nurse]

16. Have a great day everybody!

Off to work....:-)

[UpInArms]

17. dollar watch

http://quotes.ino.com/chart/?s=NYBOT_DX&v=i

Last trade 84.92 Change +0.23 (+0.27%)

Dollar Bull Returns - Will It Stay?

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/dailyfx_reports/daily_technicals/Dollar_Bull_Returns___Will_1171027403749.html

EURUSD – We are still looking for a low to be made below 1.2865, which would be followed by a rally that will retrace a portion of the decline from 1.3367. 1.3066 did hold yesterday as resistance so the bearish structure remains intact. Measured objectives are centered near 1.2750. The 61.8% extension of 1.3367-1.2865 / 1.3066 is at 1.2756 and the level where wave 5 would equal wave 1 is at 1.2747. Near term resistance is at the 38.2% of 1.3066-1.2912 at 1.2971 and the 61.8% at 1.3007. Remember that a decline below 1.2865 satisfies minimum expectations for a 5th wave down. Only a rally above 1.3066 (Friday’s) high suggests greater bullish potential.

<snip>

USDJPY – The break above 121.38 brings 122.21 back in focus as the longer term implications from the break of the 8 year trendline are back at the forefront. A break above 122.21 exposes a measured objective at 123.21, which is where the 114.42-119.67 rally would equal the rally from 117.97. In the short term, it looks like there are 5 waves up from 119.96 so a corrective decline is probable. In the event of a decline, look for initial support at the 38.2% of 119.96-121.66. This is also the 4th wave of one lesser degree (2/8 low)

...more...

Dollar Depressed Though Wholesale Data Strong

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/currency/eur_news/Dollar_Depressed_Though_Wholesale_Data_1170962972039.html

As the last few scraps of US data for the week ran across the wires, the currency market was already occupied with events in other countries that better sated short attention spans. However, today’s wholesale sales and inventory data holds greater implications for the world’s largest economy than many may expect.

Looking to the charts, the action in the dollar index illustrated the interconnectivity of the international currency market. Launching off of overnight support at 84.65, the trade-weighted asset rallied 35 points only to fully retrace the whole move in the New York session. In EURUSD, the pair jumped 65 points to come within stones through of the range top. Offering the opposite, GBPUSD plunged over 150 points to 1.9540 after its own central bank decision. Traders continued to flood back into the carry Thursday, sending USDJPY on a 65 point run to 121.45 and USDCHF over 100 points higher to 1.2515.

Though the market was not keen about buying dollars, this morning’s data offers a strong argument for position traders to hold onto their dollar longs. Offering the day some fundamental relevancy, the Commerce Department reported a pick up in wholesale sales and subsequent drop in inventories. According to the official statistics, December sales doubled the previous period’s pick up with a 1.8 percent rise. The strong activity was seen across the broad product groups with notable in petroleum, auto and computer sales. Alone, the sales statistics offer a promising outlook for the December retail sales report which comes out next week. However, the data may be more valuable than just a short outlook for the retail sector. When taken together with inventory figures, today’s numbers may foreshadow a turn in the hurting manufacturing sector. Wholesale stores dropped 0.5 percent for the period, the first contraction since January of 2004 and the biggest slide since May 2003. This is a promising dynamic since factories have had to work off a glut in inventories that was built up in the first three quarters of 2006. With stocks being burned off at a hot pace, new orders will now require a boost in production to keep up with demand.

...more...

[54anickel]

41. Eurobonds issuance hits record levels

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ft/20070208/bs_ft/fto020820071736273991

Banks and insurers drove euro-denominated financial bond issuance to record levels last month as they stepped up borrowing activity to take advantage of rising yields and the absence of corporates in the market.

Financials issued EU24bn in unsecured bonds, which includes senior and subordinated paper, in January - the highest amount since the launch of the euro in January 1999, according to Lehman Brothers (NYSE:LEH - news).

Ben Bennett, credit strategist at Lehman, said: "With little corporate issuance, there was a lot of pent-up investor demand, with people looking to spend their cash, even if it meant buying up relatively boring senior financial paper."

snip>

Separately, there was renewed signs of life among European corporates on Thursday as investors scrambled to buy paper from Spanish oil major Repsol, which opened its books on a two-tranche euro-denominated deal, expected to raise about EU1bn.

Bankers said orders were flooding in from investors starved of company paper in recent weeks. Last month saw EU9.8bn in corporate issuance in euro-denominated paper compared with EU11.2bn in January 2006, according to SG CIB.

more...

[54anickel]

42. The Risks Are At Home

http://www.forbes.com/home/etfs/2007/02/07/dollar-collapse-metals-pf-ii-in_ps_0207soapbox_inl.html

Given the nearly universal agreement that the U.S. dollar will continue to fall, it is surprising how little American investors are doing about it.

As the value of the dollar is completely dependent on the support of foreign central banks, smart investors such as Warren Buffet and Bill Gross, and recently even Alan Greenspan himself, recommend the need for much greater currency diversification.

Although Americans have a growing interest in foreign investing, ingrained suspicion of "risky" markets has limited the appetite. Even self-described "adventurous" investors typically balk at holding more than 20% of their assets abroad. This ignores the greater risk in holding an undiluted position in one of the world's most vulnerable currencies, the U.S. dollar.

Much greater exposure is necessary to protect against the 25% to 50% drop in the dollar that even former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker admits could come over the next five years.

Even those who feel that they have diversified abroad may be fooling themselves. The majority of international investments favored by Americans are as authentically foreign as an Italian meal at the Olive Garden. That's because most "global" mutual funds have only 30% to 40% foreign exposure, and most international funds and ETFs are heavily concentrated in mega-cap multinationals that have huge exposure to the U.S. dollar.

more...

[54anickel]

51. Zero Degrees of Dollar Separation (Willie)

http://www.321gold.com/editorials/willie/willie020907.html

The last several months have provided a keen lesson in currency defense by a nation which has been written off in many circles as owning a dead and hopeless currency. Some key inter-related feedback loops have been on my radar, each vitally important and changing, which underscore in my viewpoint how major markets are inseparable, each inter-connected, and integrally important if the USDollar is to avoid a much deserved crash. A quip of mine at a conference one year ago centered on my claim that the USDollar was backed by the full force of the US Military. While true in some respect, the actual defense day to day entails a green triangle not to be confused by the iron triangle which fortifies the Pentagon funding, namely the US Congress, the defense contractors, and the lobbyists when grease the funding wheels. Complementing this death grip which has contributed over decades to do irreparable harm to the USDollar, the green triangle consists of holding down gold in a straight jacket, and holding down crude oil in a giant clamp. Never stated is its purpose to reinforce the USDollar from its implied inverse leverage device as hedge funds run for cover. The greenback and gold shine in opposite directions. The greenback and crude oil flow in opposite directions. Goldman Sachs has been at the controls on most of the master machinery.

From 2001 to 2006 much attention has been given to the gold cartel, as they conduct ambushes overnight, pull the rug out from the gold bid at 10 o'clock every morning, dump bullion on the market periodically, promise further central bank gold sales, corrupt their new exchange traded funds as a new hobby, and more sinister games. The sheer size of the outstanding short positions, never with any hope or intention of covering, testifies to the absence of a free market and the institution of a corrupt mangling of the regulatory oversight function. The purpose is to prevent gold from rising in price in any sustained uncontrollable fashion. Treasury Secy Paulson is on record as stating that their objective is to keep a lid on the gold price, which stands as the publicly readable meter on all matters pertaining to inflation and its expectations. The other motive is to screw up the entire perception of inflation and its conceptual understanding, a project which fully deserves the claim "Mission Accomplished" to the masses. An entire generation of indoctrinated economists fills the ranks of colleges and universities.

When the gold price falls, the public perception concerning price inflation relaxes. Better stated, their perception of monetary inflation as an alarm is toned down, thus fostering milder price inflation expectations. With lower inflation built-in gauges at work, comes less erosion to asset prices such as bonds, which are vital to most stock and currency markets. The end result from a subdued gold price is less diversification to other competing currencys such as the euro, and at the same time more USDollar support. Market reality dictates that shortages will persist since a coerced lower price will ensure inadequate supply.

The other side of the Strong Dollar policy has been the other oil cartel, also known as the current Administration of the USGovt. While gold is, or perhaps was, more within the direct control of central bankers via bullion dumping, crude oil has been more within the domain of hedge funds and other mainstream trading houses like big banks and brokerage houses. The funds have managed to bid up the oil price whenever the USDollar sagged in weakness. The Paulson team has gone where no minister has tread or traded before. The Energy Decline Initiative witnessed and engineered last autumn, for the benefit of the ruling party (oops, did not succeed) and economic participants (oil consumers) was something to behold. By cutting by 6% their Goldman Sachs Commodity Index weight for unleaded gasoline, they forced $6 billion in gasoline contract sales, enough to trigger a months long bear in the energy complex. Now that is impressive leverage! This newfound energy trend was sufficient to support the USDollar for another few months. The last year might convince a shrewd iconoclast and suspicious person that the USGovt has been run by a syndicate of sorts for many years. That is certainly my position. The business units of the shadowy group are for the intrepid investigator to discover, not the lazy reader or viewer who relaxes for further infusions doled out by the compromised rags and networks.

When the crude oil price falls, the public perception concerning systemic cost relaxes. Better stated, their perception of the entire cost structure as an alarm is toned down, thus fostering more optimistic growth expectations. With lower cost built-in gauges at work, comes more promising prospects to corporate profits and household spending patterns. The end result from a subdued crude oil price is less speculation in other competing asset groups, and at the same time more USDollar support. The gold price managed to shake off the coordinated siege on the energy complex, primarily delivered as salvos against crude oil. Market reality dictates that shortages will persist since a coerced lower price will ensure inadequate supply.

DEFENSIVE COUNTER-ATTACKS

more...

[54anickel]

52. Gold Rises to 6-Month High on Metal's Appeal as Inflation Hedge

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601012&sid=aOC0H_QZSk4s&refer=commodities

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Gold in New York rose to the highest price in more than six months as the increasing cost of energy boosts the appeal of the precious metal as an inflation hedge.

Gold sometimes moves in the same direction as the price of oil, which today rose above $60 a barrel for the first time in a month. Gold reached a 26-year high of $732 an ounce in May and oil climbed to a record in July.

``Oil helped pushed gold higher,'' said Frank Lesh, a trader at FuturePath Trading LLC in Chicago. ``The market is bullish.''

Gold futures for April delivery rose $6.50, or 1 percent, to $669.30 an ounce at 10:20 a.m. on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices earlier reached $671.20, the highest for a most-active contract since July 17. The metal is up 2.8 percent this week.

snip>

Gold is heading for the fifth consecutive weekly gain, erasing a 4.9 percent drop for the metal during the first week of the year.

``A lot of funds are jumping in and buying,'' said Walter Otstott, a senior commodity broker at Dallas Commodity Company Inc. in Dallas. ``I anticipate a run to $700 before you get any significant degree of profit taking.''

more...

[54anickel]

53. Today's Pfenning - We'll Have to Wait a Month!

http://www.kitcocasey.com/displayArticle.php?id=1216

snip>

We started off yesterday with both the European Central Bank (ECB) and Bank of England (BOE) passing on rate hikes... I didn't really think they would move this month, as I said yesterday, and the markets did not penalize the currencies for this non-move as both central banks issued statements after the rate decision that remained hawkish. In fact, ECB President Trichet came right out and said that the ECB would look to hike rates next month! Now, how's that for transparency, Big Ben?

Speaking of Trichet... I found it quite interesting that he took the time in his statement to mention the yen carry trade... He also followed his mention of the yen carry trade with a little reminder for everyone who believes this carry trade is a one-way street... "Market Conditions won't last forever"...

You know... When it was announced a few years ago that Wim Duisenberg, the first ECB President, would step down for Trichet, I was quite nervous... A French central banker in charge? The French Central Bank had long been known for shooting themselves in the foot! But as time goes on, Trichet has grown on me... I think the guy does a great job... So far!

Then came the news that the Russian Central Bank announced changes to their FX Basket, moving the euro component to 45 cents and dollars to 55 cents... This move caught the markets off guard a bit, in that Russia had been saber rattling for some time now regarding a change, but when was the question.

The move falls in line with all the other central banks that have been changing their currency mix for the last year... Recall, it all began with an announcement by South Korea a year ago, and that has led to a flood of a changes in currency mixes by central banks... Another reason that euros have become a strong challenger to the dollar for the world's reserve currency!

We have 3 more Fed Heads on the speaking circuit today... Poole, Pianalto, and Fisher, with 2 of the 3 being hawks... I suspect some inflation fears, and chances of rate hikes talk will be mentioned once or twice today, which would lend a hand to the dollar...

more...

[54anickel]

54. Washington VS. Gold - Who Will Win? (Another who sees war with Iran)

Yeah, it's gold-buggy - but it's interesting to see how most are seeing Cheney as pushing for war...

http://www.kitco.com/ind/vaughn/feb092007.html

snip>

But all joking aside gold will be the ultimate beneficiary as the world tips further into the abyss that is the “Middle East.” There just will be too many folks competing for all that oil as our decade comes to a close and a new one begins. Oil is running out and the nations of the world know this. China receives most of its oil also from the Mid East so how China yet focuses on this situation will be interesting. I believe about everyone is dependent on that oil in that one tiny little strategic area. And 150 years ago who could have believed that the land then held by a bunch of Bedouin nomads would one day be the cause of World War III.

“…the resolution will force members of Congress to choose sides and thus will lay the groundwork for future battles…” “…an epic battle is unfolding in Washington with great dangers, enormous consequences…” “…there is a raging battle behind the scenes pitting advocates of a preemptive attack against Iran, led by the same civilian neoconservatives who advocated the Iraq War, against critics who view such an attack as catastrophically dangerous.” Click

As I said earlier, war is coming and the only beneficiary to this fact will be a higher gold price.

“The tectonic plates of Washington have shifted in powerful and historic ways.” “The greatest and gravest danger is that a desperate and isolated President with lame-duck status, a failed policy, no credibility, support collapsing to historic lows, and congressional Republicans who increasingly see him as a deadly danger might lash out with a new war against Iran.” “There is real danger here. The President has created hair-trigger tensions throughout a Middle East that is already a cauldron that seethes with chaos and carnage. ANY FORM OF PREEMPTIVE ATTACK AGAINST IRAN OR ANY OTHER COUNTRY COULD EXPLODE INTO A CASCADING WAR THAT COULD ENGULF THE ENTIRE REGION.” “…the epic battle of war and peace has finally begun in earnest.” Click

War with Iran? Yep. That’s what I see next on the agenda. Don’t sell those gold shares yet.

“Iran is currently installing 3,000 centrifuges at a uranium enrichment plant, an Iranian lawmaker said today, a day after a senior U.S. diplomat warned that the country's plans to accelerate its nuclear program "would be a major miscalculation." “Large scale use of centrifuges is necessary to enrich enough uranium for use in a nuclear reactor. Highly enriched uranium is required to make nuclear weapons.” Click

snip>

The Iraq war has been a blatant error made by Bush and Cheney to put their hands on local oil, but the cost of the guerrilla following the war is far higher than any oil they can get, apart from the human lives lost on both sides (mainly civilians).I hope in November 2008 the US citizens will quit watching TV garbage programs and vote for the Democrats (although my all time favorite is Ralph Nader).”

more...

[54anickel]

63. Irrational Exuberance in China

http://www.kitco.com/ind/Schiff/feb092007.html

Recently voiced concerns from the Chinese government that their surging domestic stock market was crossing into bubble territory helped to set off last week’s sharp decline, including a single day plunge of 6.5% (the equivalent of more than 800 points on the Dow Jones). While a bubble may indeed be forming in Chinese stocks, my guess is that there is room for a lot more air before it finally pops.

In fact, the recent warnings in China are reminiscent of Alan Greenspan’s infamous “irrational exuberance” speech in December of 1996. As history has shown, the Chairman was correct (perhaps for the only time in his tenure), but Greenspan failed to comprehend just how much irrationality the markets would bear before they finally gave in. In fact, after nearly four more years of unprecedented market exuberance, Greenspan himself took the “new era” bait hook, line and sinker. Surprisingly, he became one of the market’s greatest cheerleaders. My guess is that before a similar peak is reached in China, officials there will be snared on the same line.

snip>

However, liquidity provided by central banks is false as it produces only malinvestment which must be liquidated in the busts that inevitably follow inflationary booms. The fact that inflation sometimes lifts asset prices before lifting consumer prices is one of the main reasons that it is so intoxicating and so dangerous.

Perhaps no one expressed it better than Alan Greenspan himself, when in 1996 he wrote the following with respect to U.S. Fed policy during the 1920’s.

When business in the United States underwent a mild contraction in 1927, the Federal Reserve created more paper reserves in the hope of forestalling any possible bank reserve shortage. More disastrous, however, was the Federal Reserve's attempt to assist Great Britain who had been losing gold to us because the Bank of England refused to allow interest rates to rise when market forces dictated (it was politically unpalatable). The reasoning of the authorities involved was as follows: if the Federal Reserve pumped excessive paper reserves into American banks, interest rates in the United States would fall to a level comparable with those in Great Britain; this would act to stop Britain's gold loss and avoid the political embarrassment of having to raise interest rates. The excess credit which the Fed pumped into the economy spilled over into the stock market-triggering a fantastic speculative boom. Belatedly, Federal Reserve officials attempted to sop up the excess reserves and finally succeeded in braking the boom. But it was too late: by 1929 the speculative imbalances had become so overwhelming that the attempt precipitated a sharp retrenching and a consequent demoralizing of business confidence. As a result, the American economy collapsed. Great Britain fared even worse, and rather than absorb the full consequences of her previous folly, she abandoned the gold standard completely in 1931, tearing asunder what remained of the fabric of confidence and inducing a world-wide series of bank failures. The world economies plunged into the Great Depression of the 1930's.

Substitute the United States for Great Britain, and China, Japan, and the rest of Asia for the United Sates, and it’s the same situation all over again. Back then, Great Britain was the declining power and America was the emerging one. Today the sun is setting on American dominance just as it is rising in the East....

more...

[UpInArms]

18. Warner Music Profit Falls 74% as Fewer Albums Are Released

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/business/media/09music.html?ex=1328677200&en=b5b7c61203de4761&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

The Warner Music Group, home to recording artists like Red Hot Chili Peppers, James Blunt and Daniel Powter, said yesterday its first-quarter profit fell 74 percent on an 11 percent decline in sales.

The company, which is based in New York, said income declined to $18 million, or 12 cents a share, from $69 million, or 46 cents a share, during the comparable period last year.

Revenue fell 11 percent, to $928 million from $1.04 billion, as the company released fewer albums and sales were soft in the United States and in Europe, Warner said.

<snip>

“This was a difficult quarter, in some part because the industry still faces the challenging environment, but almost entirely due to the comparisons to our very strong first quarter last year,” Edgar Bronfman Jr., Warner’s chief executive, said during a conference call with Wall Street analysts.

Three of the company’s top five sellers of 2006, including an album by Madonna, had peak unit sales in the first quarter of last year.

...more...

[texpatriot2004]

19. K & R nm

[UpInArms]

20. Four Plead Guilty in Trading Case (Pharmaceuticals)

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/business/09plea.html?ex=1328677200&en=1510df18c3cef98e&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

A New Jersey man and his two sons pleaded guilty yesterday to insider trading charges in what federal authorities described as a crooked family business that took in more than $3.7 million over four years.

Zvi Rosenthal, 62, of Tenafly, N.J., pleaded guilty to a conspiracy count before Judge John Gleeson of United States District Court in Brooklyn. Mr. Rosenthal was preceded by his son Amir and followed by his son Ayal in admitting the conspiracy.

<snip>

According to a Securities and Exchange Commission complaint, Zvi Rosenthal, as a vice president at Taro Pharmaceutical Industries in Israel, offered his sons tips on news from his company in a scheme that began in 2001.

...a bit more...

[UpInArms]

21. Former Hedge Fund Executive Enters Plea (Wood River Capital Mgmt)

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/business/09fund.html?ex=1328677200&en=11aff567a628798f&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

The former head of Idaho hedge-fund company, Wood River Capital Management, pleaded not guilty yesterday to securities fraud and other charges after investors lost at least $88 million when two of its funds collapsed in 2005.

John H. Whittier, Wood River’s majority shareholder and principal executive, entered his plea through his lawyer at a hearing in federal court in Manhattan before Federal District Judge Jed S, Rakoff.

A lawyer for Mr. Whittier declined to comment.

Last week, Mr. Whittier was charged with securities fraud and three counts of failing to disclose a beneficial interest in publicly traded securities above certain thresholds.

The Securities and Exchange Commission initially brought civil charges against Mr. Whittier and Wood River in October 2005.

...more...

[UpInArms]

23. Eastman Kodak now sees job cuts of up to 30,000

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/eastman-kodak-now-sees-job/story.aspx?guid=%7BF95329FC%2D6339%2D48DB%2DA9A3%2D94EA10CFEEFF%7D&dist=TQP_Mod_mktwN

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Eastman Kodak (EK : 26.00, -0.69, -2.6% ) Thursday outlined further details of its digital business strategy, saying it now plans to cut a total of 28,000 to 30,000 jobs, up from a prior projection for the layoff of 25,000 to 27,000 employees. The company said it eliminated 1,200 jobs in the fourth quarter, bringing the total-to-date reductions to 23,400 positions. Kodak sees charges of between $3.6 billion and $3.8 billion related to the restructuring program, up from a previous view for charges totaling $3 billion to $3.4 billion. The company is looking to complete the restructuring program by the end of 2007. Kodak also said it expects earnings from operations to equal between 8% and 9% of revenue in 2009 with its target business model yielding gross profit margins of 28% to 29%. For 2007, the company expects net cash generation of $100 million to $200 million on a continuing operations basis following restructuring disbursements of about $600 million and an aggressive introduction plan for inkjet products. The stock closed Wednesday at $26.69.

[UpInArms]

24. Home Builder Says Quarterly Revenue Will Be Down 19%

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/business/09toll.html?ex=1328677200&en=1f067665ba7af6bf&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 8 (AP) — Toll Brothers, the nation’s largest builder of luxury homes, said Thursday that it expected first-quarter home building revenue to fall by 19 percent.

The company also warned that write-downs were expected to balloon to $60 million to $160 million or more for the quarter. In December, Toll Brothers projected a $60 million land-related write-down for all of the 2007 fiscal year.

“The market has just continued to deteriorate over the last few months,” said Alex Barron, senior housing analyst for JMP Securities in San Francisco.

Write-downs also include charges Toll Brothers would incur from walking away from land it optioned for possible purchase.

<snip>

The chief executive, Robert I. Toll, said, however, that the first-quarter’s cancellation rate declined to 29.8 percent from 36.9 percent in the prior quarter. The pace of cancellations still far exceeded the builder’s historical average of about 7 percent.

...more...

[RawMaterials]

25. China Targets 2007 Economic Growth Rate of 8 Percent (Update3)

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- China, the world's fourth-largest economy, targets an 8 percent growth rate this year and is becoming more concerned over inflation, according to the central bank's quarterly monetary policy report.

China will clamp down on credit growth and keep the increase in M2 money supply at 16 percent, the People's Bank of China said in statement posted on its Web site today. The government aims to prevent overinvestment from creating a bubble.

China wants to stop a record $177.5 billion trade surplus from fueling inflation, bad loans and investment in idle factories. The economy expanded at the fastest pace in 11 years in 2006. Consumer prices jumped the most in almost two years in December.

snip..

The quarterly report came after bank Vice Governor Xiang Junbo said China will ``steadily'' increase the flexibility of the currency. Xiang also said the nation needs to step up monetary policy measures to curb inflation.

The yuan closed at 7.7476 per dollar before the report's release today, the highest since China ended a fixed exchange rate to the U.S. currency in July 2005. The yuan has gained 6.7 percent since the end of the fixed link.



http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601089&sid=agFhC.ScM76c&refer=china

[RawMaterials]

26. MasterCard Reports $40.9 Million Fourth-Quarter Net (Update1)

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- MasterCard Inc., the second-biggest U.S. credit-card company, reported a profit of $40.9 million for the fourth quarter as it processed more transactions and raised prices on purchases made abroad.

Net income was 30 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $52.9 million, or 39 cents, a year earlier, the Purchase, New York-based company said today in a statement. Revenue rose 17 percent to $839 million.

Chief Executive Officer Robert Selander, who took the company public last May, set MasterCard's annual goal for profit growth at 15 percent to 20 percent. Consumers' growing preference for credit and debit cards over cash and checks is boosting transaction volume for MasterCard and its competitors. American Express Co. last month reported a 23 percent profit surge for the fourth quarter.

snip..

MasterCard shares have almost tripled since the company's May 24 initial public offering. The share sale raised $2.39 billion, helping MasterCard buy out 1,400 financial institutions that collectively owned the company. The stock rose $2.84 to $114.74 yesterday in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, and was at $120.90 in trading before the market opened today.

`Great Run'

``The stock has had a great run,'' said Craig Maurer, a bank analyst at Soleil Securities Corp., in an interview earlier this week. At a price of more than 38 times earnings, MasterCard trades at a higher ratio than rival American Express Co., even though ``we feel that American Express financials and fundamentals are a bit better than MasterCard,'' Maurer said.

Visa International Inc., the world's biggest credit-card company, said last year it too will go public.

Part of MasterCard's share-price premium is the expectation the company won't need to spend as much on advertising, now that it is publicly held and no longer directly responsible to the banks who formerly controlled it, Keefe Bruyette & Woods analyst Sanjay Sakhrani said.




http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=ap8eSz.sIjT8&refer=us

[UpInArms]

27. Ex-Chief of S.E.C. Joins Perella Weinberg Investment Bank

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/business/09wall.html?ex=1328677200&en=6669cd3827cfd756&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

William H. Donaldson, a co-founder of the investment bank Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and later chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, has joined Perella Weinberg Partners, the boutique investment bank, as chairman of its advisory council, the firm said yesterday.

The addition of Mr. Donaldson, who also served as chairman of the New York Stock Exchange, further expands the roster of brand-name deal makers that Perella Weinberg has recruited since it was founded last year by Joseph R. Perella and Peter A. Weinberg.

Mr. Donaldson stepped down as S.E.C. chairman in 2005 and is now chairman of Donaldson Enterprises, a private investment firm, Perella Weinberg said. In his new role, he will work on “strategic issues and organizational and client-related matters,” the firm said.

“We were looking for someone who could set the tone and advise us as we create the firm,” Mr. Perella said in an interview.

Mr. Donaldson said the firm reminded him of his days at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette. “It’s a return to the no-conflicts advise business from another era on Wall Street.”

Perella Weinberg has announced several high-profile hires in recent months, including Ronald W. Tysoe, who until recently was a top executive at Federated Department Stores and was brought in as an adviser; and Andrew Bednar, formerly chief of United States mergers and acquisitions at Banc of America Securities, who was hired as a partner.

...more...

[RawMaterials]

28. Gold off one-week high on profit taking

LONDON - Gold rose to a one-week high on Friday before slipping on profit taking, but dealers said it might hit its highest in seven months on positive sentiment.

Silver jumped to a two-month high, while platinum eased after rising to its highest level in about 11 weeks.

Gold XAU rose to its highest since Feb. 1 at $661.30, but fell to $658.70/659.30 by 1109 GMT, against $659.40/660.10 an ounce in New York on Thursday, when it gained one percent.

“It’s definitely on a very good uptrend and $675 is on the cards. What we are seeing right now is temporary profit taking,” said Tariq Salaria, analyst at Standard Chartered Bank.

“I don’t think the IMF news is really impacting the gold price,” he added.

The International Monetary Fund could sell a limited amount of its gold reserves to increase its sources of income, IMF’s Managing Director Rodrigo Rato said.

snip..

“We remain positive that gold prices this year will be robust ... price volatility for the year ahead looks likely, as high pricing will dissuade jewellery consumption, yet fears of inflation, weaker dollar and high oil prices will tend to encourage investment into gold,” Numis Securities said.

In other precious metals, platinum XPT rose as high as $1,203 an ounce before falling to $1,198/1,203, versus $1,187/1,192 in New York.

Silver XAG rose to $13.89 and was last quoted at $13.86/13.91, against $13.75/13.80 late. Palladium XPD increased to $339/344 from $336/343 an ounce.



http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?xfile=data/business/2007/February/business_February266.xml§ion=business

[UpInArms]

29. Puke Alert: Fox to Begin a "More Business Friendly" News Channel

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/business/media/09fox.html?ex=1328677200&en=9cba2cdb66d1ba79&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

No one has ever accused CNBC, the cable TV home of Jim Cramer, Larry Kudlow and Maria Bartiromo, of being antibusiness. Until now.

Yesterday, Rupert Murdoch confirmed one of the worst kept secrets in the media industry, that the News Corporation will start a long-awaited business news channel in the fourth quarter of this year. In doing so, he also took a shot at CNBC, the leading television business news outlet, vowing that the new channel would be friendlier to corporations.

The new service, currently named Fox Business Channel, will be developed and overseen by Roger Ailes, the chairman and chief executive of Fox News, with Neil Cavuto, the managing editor for business news for Fox, anchoring and overseeing the channel’s content.

<snip>

At a media conference in New York yesterday, Mr. Murdoch said the Fox Business Channel would be “more business friendly than CNBC,” which he said was quick to “leap on every scandal,” according to a report on his remarks by BusinessWeek.com, whose parent, McGraw-Hill, sponsored the conference.

In a separate interview, Mr. Ailes elaborated. “Many times I’ve seen things on CNBC where they are not as friendly to corporations and profits as they should be.”

...more...

the land of spin just got sicker

[UpInArms]

30. FedSpew - Poole the Tool does Dog and Pony Show

12. Poole: Fed can't let core inflation settle above 2% level
8:30 AM ET, Feb 09, 2007 - 33 minutes ago

13. Poole: Rate hike may be needed after any upside GDP surprise
8:30 AM ET, Feb 09, 2007 - 33 minutes ago

14. Poole says inflation momentum headed to favorable direction
8:30 AM ET, Feb 09, 2007 - 33 minutes ago

15. Poole says no evidence yet home prices have stabilized
8:30 AM ET, Feb 09, 2007 - 33 minutes ago

16. Poole says housing sector 'not out of woods'
8:30 AM ET, Feb 09, 2007 - 33 minutes ago

17. Poole sees 'firmer tone' in latest economic data
8:30 AM ET, Feb 09, 2007 - 33 minutes ago

18. Poole says inflation should fall to reasonable range in '07
8:30 AM ET, Feb 09, 2007 - 33 minutes ago

19. Fed's Poole sees 3% growth over four quarters of 2007
8:30 AM ET, Feb 09, 2007 - 33 minutes ago

[54anickel]

95. Stocks Fall on Fed Speech, Oil Jumps

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/wall_street.html?.v=43

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street retreated sharply Thursday as investors glumly absorbed a spike in oil prices and comments from two Federal Reserve officials that unexpected economic growth could prompt an interest rate hike.

snip>

Stocks had spent most of the session in positive territory after Thursday's pullback made for fertile ground for bargain hunters. The markets also were boosted by analyst upgrades of the automobile sector, which sent Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. higher.

However, investors began to sell after St. Louis Fed President William Poole and Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher both warned rates will go higher if inflation doesn't ebb. Wall Street has been looking for any clues about how central bankers are viewing the economy, and which way it might lead on interest rates this year.

Investors also digested a handful of earnings reports and watched the movements of crude oil, which crossed $60 per barrel for the first time since early January. Crude prices flirted with that psychological barrier for three straight days this week only to retreat.

snip>

Bond prices fell sharply following speeches by the two Fed presidents; the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 4.78 percent from 4.73 percent late Thursday. The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices rose.

Also influencing the fixed-income market were comments from Cleveland Fed President Sandy Pianalto that "recent data are encouraging" for the housing sector, according to prepared remarks.

more...

[UpInArms]

31. Delaware: State's foreclosure rates rise, no end in sight

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070208/BUSINESS/702080332/1003

Foreclosures are rising in Delaware, and consumer advocates are worried filings will continue to rise as homeowners with interest-only and balloon mortgages see payments jump.

Foreclosure filings in Delaware for 2006 increased by 36 percent over the previous year, according to RealtyTrac Inc., an Irvine, Calif.-based company that publishes a national database of pre-foreclosure and foreclosure properties. Nationwide, foreclosures jumped by 42 percent, the company found.

A June study by the Reinvestment Fund, which found a 52 percent increase in Delaware foreclosures between 2000 and 2005, an alarming jump for a state not used to high foreclosure rates.

<snip>

"Their rates have adjusted, and their payments have gone up. ... They suddenly find themselves in a crunch and can't make payments," she said. "Electricity has gone up, gasoline, and now mortgage payments as well."

Some of her clients are Spanish speakers, who didn't appear to understand the mortgage agreements, she said. To make matters worse, housing prices are falling, making it difficult to pay off the debt by downsizing, she said. "The borrower owes more in mortgage than they can even recover from selling their homes."

...more...

[54anickel]

33. Stock Futures Inch Higher as Big Three Automakers All Get Broker Upgrades

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/wall_street.html?.v=7

U.S. stock-market futures inched higher on Friday, with the Big Three auto makers all winning broker upgrades and with the eagerly awaited first day of trade for hedge-fund operator Fortress Investment Group LLC on deck.

snip>

Of companies in focus, Fortress Investment Group priced its initial public offering at $18.50 per Class A share, the top end of its indicated range. The first hedge-fund operator in the U.S. to list is due to kick off trading Friday. The world's largest publicly traded hedge-fund operator, Man Group PLC, advanced in London trading.

Alcatel-Lucent said it would cut 12,500 jobs, over 3,000 more than it originally planned. Its fourth-quarter operating profit decline was in line with what the company guided to in a warning last month.

The Big Three auto makers all secured broker upgrades. Deutsche Bank upgraded General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. to buy from hold, on hopes for favorable health-care negotiations.

DaimlerChrysler AG was upgraded to buy at Citigroup ahead of the car maker's restructuring plan for Chrysler, likely to be unveiled next week.

more...

[54anickel]

34. Goldman May Raise $18 Billion for Global Buyout Fund (Update2)

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=amuBbJmDv2qc&refer=worldwide

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Goldman Sachs Group Inc., the world's biggest securities firm by market value, may raise more than $18 billion for leveraged buyouts, almost double what it initially sought, said two people with knowledge of the plan.

Goldman will use its capital and money from investors and employees to pursue takeovers in the U.S., Europe and Asia, said the people, who declined to be identified until the New York- based firm closes the fund next month.

``People continue to invest aggressively in private equity,'' said Hiromichi Mizuno, a partner at Coller Capital Ltd., a London-based private equity firm. ``This flood of cash has intensified competition and pushed up acquisition prices.''

The Goldman fund will be almost as big as pools being amassed by New York-based Blackstone Group LP and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. in a record year for fundraising. That may put Goldman, the perennial leader in advising on mergers and acquisitions, in conflict with LBO firms and investment banking clients when they bid for companies.

snip>

Potential Conflicts

Goldman is teaming up with buyout firms to avoid competing against them. In November, the firm joined KKR to buy the Kion forklift division of Germany's Linde Group for 4 billion euros ($5.2 billion). Goldman also is partnering with KKR to purchase French Yellow Pages publisher PagesJaunes Groupe SA.

more...

[54anickel]

58. Fortress Investment's Shares Almost Double After IPO (Update1)

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=anweNnEqS5os&refer=us

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Shares of Fortress Investment Group LLC, the first U.S. manager of private-equity and hedge funds to go public, almost doubled in their initial day of trading.

The IPO, which raised $634.3 million, gives individual investors access to Fortress's profits from managing funds limited to millionaires and institutions. Its earnings rose almost fivefold to $158.7 million in the first nine months of 2006 from the same period a year earlier.

``The professional traders are saying this is a jewel of a firm,'' Ben Phillips, managing director of New York-based investment bank Putnam Lovell NBF Securities, said today in an interview. ``This is a firm that has not only built private- equity and hedge funds but has shown it can shift with the market and build whatever business is needed next.''

The stock rose 73 percent to $31.95 at 11:13 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, giving it a market value of $12.8 billion. Man Group Plc, the world's largest publicly traded hedge-fund manager, is worth $21.6 billion, while the shares of 3i Group Plc, the largest listed private-equity firm, are valued at $10.1 billion.

Fortress was founded as a private-equity firm in 1998 by Wesley Edens, 45, Robert Kauffman, 43, and Randal Nardone, 51, who came from Swiss bank UBS AG and New York-based BlackRock Financial Management Inc. They and two other principals hold a 78 percent stake valued at about $10 billion.

more...

[54anickel]

35. If Hedge Funds Kept Cows, Your Milk Would Go Sour

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&refer=columnist_gilbert&sid=aBDouX0a6h6o

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- A famous series of jokes attempts to define political systems. In communism, for example, you have two cows, your commune seizes them and charges you for milk. In a democracy, you have two cows, the cows outvote you 2-1 to ban all meat and dairy products, and you go bankrupt and starve to death.

Similar thinking can be applied to financial markets. Here, then, is the world of money recast in bovine terms.

Leveraged Buyouts

You have two cows. You come home from the fields one day to find Henry Kravis chatting to your spouse at the dining-room table. Two days later, you have no spouse, no farm, and no table. Two guys the size of sumo wrestlers have saddled up the cows and are riding them around the farmyard.

Currency Market

You have two cows. China has 1 trillion cows. Guess who sets the price of milk?

snip>

Derivatives

You have two cows. You repackage five of them into a Collateralized Lactating Obligation, pay for a AAA credit rating, slice the CLO into 10 pieces and sell it to investors, skimming the cream from the milk for yourself. Three of the cows fall ill, and the credit rating plummets. You get to keep the cream.

Hedge Funds

You have two cows. A guy in an open-necked shirt drives up in his Bentley and offers to take care of them for you in return for a year's supply of steak and 50 percent of their milk. They won't be allowed to leave his compound for two years.

Six months later, you have half a cow, producing sour milk. ``You have to be willing to lose rump today to get rib-eye tomorrow,'' the hedge-fund guy mumbles through a mouthful of sirloin and champagne.

more...

[AnneD]

78. 54anickle

:spray:roflolpmp. Classic examples easily understood by economic neonates.

[54anickel]

93. Heh, I was just suprised to see anything that resembled humor at Bloomberg. n/t

[54anickel]

38. Hedge Funds Begin to Show Up on Regulators' Radar

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020801829.html

For years, hedge funds barely registered on the Washington agenda, and that was just the way they liked it.

These investment pools designed for wealthy individuals flourished in the shadows: They collected more than $1 trillion; seized control of underperforming companies; and increasingly drew money from gigantic pension funds, including those of government employees.

But now they are so large and numerous -- there could be as many as 9,000 hedge funds -- that federal regulators, state authorities and lawmakers are clamoring to learn more about them, including whether fraud and risky trading flourish in their secretive operations.

This week, the Securities and Exchange Commission staff confirmed that it was conducting a sweeping inquiry into whether hedge funds are misusing information they receive from investment banks to get a jump on trades and sweeten their profits. Last week, federal prosecutors in New York charged a fund manager with criminal securities fraud, saying it cost investors $88 million. And today, German officials are putting hedge fund risks at the top of the agenda of the Group of Eight meeting in Essen, Germany.

"All over the place, there are signals of rising regulatory concern," said Damon A. Silvers, who tracks the issue as an associate general counsel at the AFL-CIO. "It's certainly not an issue that's going away. If anything, it's escalating."

snip>

"Treasury believes systemic risk and investor protection are important concerns," said Jennifer Zuccarelli, a Treasury spokeswoman. "We continue to believe that market discipline and working through counterparties are the best way to address hedge funds." :eyes: Do they have any other choice at this point?

more...

[54anickel]

39. Harley: Strike means fewer bikes

The motorcycle manufacturer says the 6-day-old work stoppage at its biggest assembly plant will cause shipments to fall below forecasts.

Didn't they just say the other day that 2 weeks would be good to burn up the excess inventory they created leading up to the strike? Willie G., how low can you allow your company to stoop?

http://money.cnn.com/2007/02/08/news/companies/bc.harleydavidson.strike2.reut/?postversion=2007020816

NEW YORK (Reuters) -- Harley-Davidson Inc. said Thursday its first-quarter motorcycle shipments will not meet earlier forecasts because of a strike at its biggest plant that is lasting longer than expected.

Harley will fall short of its shipment target of 82,000 to 84,000 motorcycles in the first quarter and said it is not prepared to offer a revised forecast.

The company also said it is not prepared to predict whether the strike will affect the company's full-year financial forecast.

The news sent shares down as much as 2.5 percent.

snip>

In a note to investors, Michael Savner, an analyst at Banc of America Securities, warned that the strike, which many predicted would be resolved quickly when it began, might be more protracted than originally thought.

snip>

In a separate note, Craig Kennison, an analyst at R.W. Baird, said the strike was lasting "longer than we initially anticipated," but he said he was confident the company could make up for this quarter's shortfall in subsequent quarters.

more...

[54anickel]

40. French strikes over pay and job cuts

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/71fd7a74-b78a-11db-bfb3-0000779e2340.html

France’s presidential candidates were given a taste of the forces they will have to reconcile on Thursday. Public sector workers went on strike over pay and job losses while the national auditor warned that further spending cuts were needed to reduce the budget deficit.

Thousands of teachers, tax collectors and post office staff went on strike, joining train drivers and other public sector workers on big demonstrations in Paris and 20 other cities, including Marseilles, Rennes, Toulouse, Metz and Nantes.

The strikes were over the government’s offer to increase public sector pay by less than inflation, which was 1.5 per cent in 2006. The protesters also targeted plans to cut 15,000 public jobs.

The government said about a fifth of France’s 5.5m public sector workers, including teachers and civil servants, joined the strike. Unions said half of teachers took part, forcing hundreds of schools to close.

Nicolas Sarkozy, the candidate of the right says he will cut public sector jobs but improve pay. Ségolène Royal on the left says cuts are not neccessary and promises to “give the public sector workers the respect they deserve.”

more...

[54anickel]

43. The uneasy crown (Private Equity)

The buy-out business is booming, but capitalism's new kings are attracting growing criticism

http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8663441

snip>

Last year the value of private-equity buy-outs, usually by taking private a company which is trading on a public stock market, surged to $440 billion in America and Europe (see chart 1). Ever bigger companies are being gobbled up. On February 7th Blackstone Group won a bidding war for Equity Office Properties (see article), setting a new high of $39 billion, including debt, for a private-equity acquisition.

Few firms seem beyond the industry's grasp. J. Sainsbury, a British supermarket chain, is among the latest targets. The grapevine buzzes with talk of others, including Dell and even IBM. Such is the fuss that some boosters extrapolate the rise of private equity even to the death of the public-listed corporation, which they argue has become obsolete.

Yet when a group of tycoons gathered in London in January for the Private Equity Foundation, a new charity for children, a trade union picketing the launch said it was “like Herod becoming a patron” of Britain's National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.

Sharp criticism has become a daily nuisance for the private-equity industry. Its leaders, such as Steve Schwarzman of the Blackstone Group, David Rubenstein of the Carlyle Group and Glenn Hutchins of Silver Lake Partners, were treated like royalty at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos. But having to debate “Is bigger better in private equity?” and then listen to Philip Jennings, general secretary of UNI Global Union, tell them they “should no longer consider themselves untouchable” took the edge off their acclaim.

They can be forgiven for a sense of déjà vu. Until recently, private equity seemed to have shed its bad-boy image of 20 years ago, summed up in “Barbarians at the Gate”, a bestselling book about the battle by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) to buy RJR Nabisco. But from barbarians to Herod in two decades hardly seems like progress.

The 1980s boom in private-equity deals—then known as leveraged buy-outs (LBOs)—came to an abrupt and messy halt. The buy-out firms found they had over-paid for some acquisitions, credit markets dried up, some of the important providers of finance (such as Michael Milken, the “junk-bond king”) ended up in jail and regulators cracked down on their beloved hostile takeover bids.

Nobody expects to see a repeat of that reverse, even though some criticisms are eerily familiar. Unions complain that buy-out firms are asset-strippers: the London protest was against the axing of jobs by Birds Eye, a food company owned by Permira, the biggest European private-equity firm. But now fellow financiers are also on the attack. “Am I alone in struggling to make sense of private equity's appeal?” wrote Michael Gordon, the chief investment officer of Fidelity International, in a recent letter to the Financial Times.

more...

[54anickel]

44. Calm Before and During a Storm

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/business/09credit.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

snip>

High on Mr. Geithner’s to-do list is understanding and monitoring the $26 trillion credit derivatives market — twice the size of the United States economy — the fastest-growing financial market there is. Its explosive growth has greased the wheels of the global economy, increasing liquidity, spreading risk and minting money for Wall Street along the way. But it has surged at a time when volatility has been low, debt has been historically cheap and defaults have been virtually absent. When this market gets tested, no one knows for certain how it may react.

Even the heads of some of the world’s biggest banks seem overwhelmed by the size and complexity of credit derivatives. “It makes my head swim,” said Kenneth D. Lewis, the chief executive of Bank of America.

If the brave new world of finance is daunting, the man in charge of it is not. With a boyish charm and a dry sense of humor, Mr. Geithner has taken advantage of the current calm waters of the financial markets to take an active stance, rallying Wall Street to peel apart the market of credit derivatives to try to understand its potential risks. As a financial regulator, his style is more like a cerebral Dr. Phil than an Eliot Spitzer, the former attorney general and now governor of New York, who reveled in showdowns with Wall Street.

Mr. Geithner is the anti-Eliot.

snip>

That has been amply illustrated in how he has persuaded Wall Street to take ownership of the issues surrounding credit derivatives: from the plumbing that makes the system function to more aggressive and creative stress-testing to the relationship between hedge funds and banks. His approach has aimed at helping them believe that they are masters of their own destiny rather than miscreants who need to be punished, while extracting improvements in the financial system along the way.

“Tim manages to get people to work together to reach a higher place,” said Thomas A. Russo, chief legal officer at Lehman Brothers. “He has essentially put the plumbing of the business on equal footing with the revenue side, which is an enormous accomplishment.”

If ever a market required creative thinking, the credit derivative market is it.

“We’ve seen substantial change in the financial system, with the emergence of a very large universe of leveraged private funds, rapid growth in exposures to more complicated and less liquid financial instruments, all during a period of very low volatility,” said Mr. Geithner in an interview in his elegant office in Lower Manhattan. “This means we know less about market dynamics in conditions of stress.”

more...

[54anickel]

45. It's A Low, Low, Low, Low-Rate World

Money is cheap. And some experts say it could stay that way for years. That's creating opportunity—and brand new risks

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_08/b4022001.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_businessweek+exclusives

Wait a minute—weren't long-term interest rates supposed to be a lot higher by now?

When the rate on the 10-year Treasury bond plunged from 6.5% in early 2000 to an average of 4% or so in 2003, the explanations were easy: tech bust, recession, weak capital spending, low inflation, steep rate cuts by central banks around the world. The low rates seemed perfectly normal—and sure to reverse on a dime when conditions changed.

Since then, plenty has changed. The Fed has hiked short-term rates by more than four percentage points. The global economy grew by 5.1% in 2006, the second-strongest performance in 25 years. Europe and Japan have recovered. Even tech spending seems to be on the rise, judging from Cisco Systems Inc.'s (CSCO ) strong earnings report on Feb. 6. And yetand yet!—10-year Treasury rates have risen only three-quarters of a percentage point. Real rates, which adjust for inflation, have barely budged.

It isn't only a U.S. phenomenon. Ten-year euro bonds are yielding around 4% today, no higher than in 2003, despite much faster growth in the region. Real rates in the euro zone are up only a bit.

Borrowers, of course, are deliriously happy. Even the shakiest companies are seeing their debt costs plunge. The spreads on triple-C rated bonds and lower—the junkiest of junk—are at a record low 4.7 percentage points over ultrasafe Treasuries, compared with the previous record of 5.2 percentage points in 1997, according to Merrill Lynch & Co. (MER )

Most remarkably, the craziness isn't likely to stop anytime soon. The low cost of capital is probably going to last "five to seven years," says Samuel Zell, who as chairman of real estate firm Equity Office Properties Trust (EOP ) watched bidders wield cheap debt in a fight over his company. (Blackstone Group, with a $39 billion bid, won out on Feb. 7.) James W. Paulsen, chief investment strategist at Wells Capital Management (WFC ), sees an even longer horizon: "This could be a prolonged cycle where the cost of capital is low 10 or 20 years."

It is, indeed, a low, low, low-rate world.

Easy money is creating all sorts of economic benefits. Corporations are making capital investments again—and with their borrowing costs so low, profits are still zooming. Private equity firms are using loads of cheap debt to buy companies at jaw-dropping prices. Even the housing market, which boomed for five years on cheap money, hasn't fallen apart. It's gliding to a soft landing rather than a hard crash, allowing consumers to keep spending. "We are in this era where financial innovation and product structuring, particularly in the debt markets, has been very stimulative," says Henry H. McVey, chief U.S. investment strategist at Morgan Stanley (MS ). Zell puts the state of rates in similar terms: "I think that's going to be a growth accelerant around the world."

more...

[54anickel]

47. Spending spree over as Americans walk without safety net

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2007/02/07/cnusecon07.xml

Americans are drawing down their personal savings at the fastest rate since the depths of the Great Depression, suggesting that US household finances may be more fragile than they look.

The savings rate fell to minus 1pc in 2006 and has now been negative for 21 consecutive months, according to Commerce Department data. Such a rate was last seen in 1933, when a quarter of the American workforce was unemployed and whole families were kept alive by charitable soup kitchens.

There is no emergency to account for the slide this time. The US economy is well into a long boom that has shaved unemployment to 4.6pc, a phase of the cycle that should normally lead to a strong rise in savings.

Charles Dumas, chief strategist for Lombard Street Research, said a spending spree by rich Americans sitting on fat asset gains might have played a role, but the main driver was distress borrowing by households struggling to keep their heads above water as each source of stimulus dried up.

snip>

The slide into negative savings could hardly come at a worse time, just as 80m or so baby boomers start feeding into the retirement pool and prepare to draw down wealth. Large numbers could face poverty in old age. Yale professor Jacob Hacker said the average American was now walking a shaky financial tightrope, without a safety net.

"American family incomes are on a frightening roller-coaster, rising and falling much more sharply than they did thirty years ago," he said.

The welfare net of health care and pensions once provided by corporations is crumbling as a result of globalisation, leaving families to shoulder the risk. Prof Hacker said personal bankruptcies had risen from under 300,000 in 1980 to more than 2m in 2005.

Many were well-educated and with children. "They are not the persistently poor: they are refugees of the middle-class, drowning in debt, and frequently wondering how they fell so far so fast," he said.

more...

[54anickel]

48. OT - The Gulf of Sneezes

http://www.larouchepub.com/other/2007/3406_gulf_of_sneezes.html

A survey of senior U.S. military, intelligence, and diplomatic specialists confirms that the Bush-Cheney Administration is presently on a course towards provoking a military confrontation with Iran sometime before the end of the Spring of 2007. Were such a lunatic provocation to go unchecked in the immediate days and weeks ahead, the planet would be plunged into perpetual war, and financial and economic chaos, that could take generations to undo. One certain consequence of a U.S.-provoked war with Iran would be the total destruction of the United States as the sovereign republic of the Founding Fathers, and the demonization of the U.S.A. in the eyes of what might remain of the population of the rest of the world.

The simplest and most elegant way to stop this madness is for Vice President Dick Cheney, the thug-in-chief of this Persian Gulf war drive, to be forced out of office this month. As of this writing, four separate House resolutions are being offered, to prevent military action against Iran without prior Congressional deliberation and full authorization. Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.V.) has a similar resolution in the Senate. The weakness of all of these well-intentioned efforts, however, is that none specify that an act of war against Iran, without prior Congressional authorization, would constitute an impeachable offense by both President Bush and Vice President Cheney. Under the present conditions of Bush-Cheney Executive branch madness and intransigence, only such blunt language, backed up by a clear commitment to act, could contribute to actual war avoidance.

It is an open secret that growing legions of leading Republican strategists and financial angels are coming to the conclusion that Cheney has to go—or else the GOP may not survive the 2008 election cycle. Increasingly, according to sources close to the Bush family, there is despair that the President is incapable of facing the reality that Dick Cheney has been the source of every policy fiasco of the past six years, and that Cheney's timely departure is the only "exit strategy" available to Dubya, if he wishes not to go down in history as the worst American President of all time. As of this writing, the President is the runaway leading contender for that dubious distinction.

A `Sneeze' Can Start a War
Military and intelligence sources with decades of experience in the Persian Gulf have warned EIR that once the second U.S. naval carrier group, led by the USS Stennis, arrives in the Persian Gulf sometime in the second half of February, there will be such a concentration of American and Iranian naval equipment in that narrow area, that "a sneeze" could start a conflagration. By "sneeze," these experts meant that naval commanders—American and Iranian—at the tactical level, operating in close quarters in poorly defined border areas of the Gulf, could carry out provocative actions that trigger a general war—without necessarily intending to do so.

According to one retired Persian Gulf commander, prior to the 1991 "Operation Desert Storm," no U.S. carrier groups were deployed into the Persian Gulf, precisely because the danger of blundering into a war was considered too great to justify the risk. Large-scale naval assets assigned to the Persian Gulf region were based in the Indian Ocean and in other nearby locations as a kind of fail-safe measure.

more...

Yeah, I know it's from the LaRouche site.....

[54anickel]

56. U.N. nuclear agency suspends more than a dozen technical aid projects with Tehran

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/02/09/europe/EU-GEN-Nuclear-Iran.php

VIENNA, Austria: The U.N. nuclear watchdog agency on Friday suspended nearly half of the technical aid it now provides Iran, in line with U.N. sanctions slapped on the Islamic republic for its refusal to suspend its uranium enrichment program.

As IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei issued the report to his agency's 35-nation board, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator abruptly canceled planned meetings both with ElBaradei in Vienna and with senior European leaders in Munich, on the sidelines of a security conference in the German city.

Organizers of the Munich conference said negotiator Ali Larijani canceled because of an unspecified illness, while IAEA officials said they were told he was not coming for "technical reasons."

Larijani's meetings with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Javier Solana, the chief foreign policy envoy for the European Union, would have been the first with senior Western officials since negotiations with Solana collapsed last year over Tehran's refusal to suspend enrichment, a potential pathway to nuclear arms.

One diplomat in Vienna who is familiar with the Iranian file suggested that Larijani's decision not to show could have been due to the refusal of other major European nations, like France or Britain, to meet with Larijani because of his country's continued nuclear defiance.

snip>

A diplomat familiar with the issue said the United States — along with key allies — had been looking to have up to half of the projects involving only Iran canceled, restricted or more closely monitored.

A U.S. official said Washington's position on what projects should be affected was "very similar" to that of the European powers, Britain, France and Germany.

The United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany all want Iran to stop its enrichment program and have acted as a group in trying to engage Tehran on the issue. But their approaches and priorities have differed over the past year — resulting in often visible strains in what is meant to be a joint initiative.

more...

[54anickel]

70. Saudi statesmanship

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/02/09/opinion/edsaud.php

Saudi Arabia, ruled by a one- family regime, is the ultimate status-quo power. So it is in character for the Saudi royals to suffer an anxiety attack over events in their region — and to want the fires doused before they flare into an uncontrollable conflagration.

This week, they focused, with success, on the incipient civil war between Palestinian fighters of President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah movement and the Iranian-backed Hamas. They also see a rising Iran with hegemonic ambitions pursuing nuclear weapons; a U.S. superpower blithely toppling regimes in Afghanistan and Iraq that once contained the would-be hegemon; sectarian warfare in Iraq that could easily spread across borders; and a closely affiliated government in Lebanon under assault from the Shiite movement Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and the minority Alawite regime in Syria.

What are out of character are the active efforts of the Saudis to contain the ambient chaos. In the past, the Saudi princes bought safety for themselves by paying off regional thugs and relying on an American security umbrella. But the bungling of the Bush administration — by empowering the Iranians, Al Qaeda in Iraq, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Hamas among Palestinians — leaves Riyadh with little choice but to play its own cards in quest of regional stability.

So far, the Saudis are playing those cards well. A telling sign of their deftness is the agreement on a national unity government reached Thursday in Mecca between Abbas and the leaders of Hamas. The other Arab states supported the Mecca talks, as did the Americans, the Europeans and the Israeli government of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

Careful preparations preceded the arrival in Mecca of the Palestinian leaders. Mediators already got the two sides to agree on almost all the crucial points concerning the distribution of ministerial posts and the program of a unity government. Also, high-level talks between Saudi and Iranian officials apparently smoothed the way for a Fatah-Hamas compromise that Tehran is not about to sabotage.

more...

[54anickel]

72. Raiders of the Temple Mount (Another fire to douse)

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1587679,00.html

Amid the old city of Jerusalem and rising above it is the ancient site of Solomon's Temple and the point from which the Prophet Mohammed journeyed to Heaven. Holy to Jews and Muslims, it is as dangerous these days as a ticking atom bomb. Any readjustment of its ancient stones can detonate outrage among millions of faithful around the world. On Friday, Muslims in Jerusalem protested against Israeli excavation work next to al-Aqsa, one of Islam's holiest shrines, which sits atop the site. Around the world, Muslims declared a universal "day of anger," Israeli police stormed into the Muslim compound and fired stun grenades and rubber bullets at youths trying to hurl stones at Jewish worshippers at the Western Wall. Israeli police claim that 17 protesters and 15 police officers were injured in the clashes, but Palestinians say many more were hurt in skirmishes around the mosque grounds.

The latest crisis began when Israeli authorities started rebuilding and extending a pedestrian ramp which rises to the Mugrabi Gate, an entrance that allows tourists to view the gardens of the sacred Muslim precinct, the silver al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock, a shrine clad with turquoise mosaics and topped with a glowing, golden dome. The ramp is a simple piece of construction that will rest on seven concrete pillars. A 2004 earthquake and a snowstorm had damaged the old pedestrian bridge. But with tension running high between Israelis and Palestinians, the repair work has become a volatile religious issue, one that radical Muslim clerics are using to whip up more hatred against Israel. Says Dan Seidemann, a Jerusalem lawyer trying to broker a solution to the latest religious flare-up, "It's reaching critical mass and the situation could explode at any time."

Neither Muslims nor Jews are comfortable sharing this holy site, and religious extremists are trying through bombs, fire, stones and other provocations to drive the other out. Some Muslim clerics say that re-building the pedestrian walkway is tipping the balance of co-existence between the two faiths. As an editorialist wrote wearily in the Israeli daily Ha'aretz: "The excavation work and bridge construction...have turned into the Battle of Armageddon, as happens every time." In 1996, tunneling by Israeli archeologists underneath the compound led to riots between protesters and Israeli troops in which 69 Palestinians and 16 Israeli soldiers were killed.

snip>

All this hostility could have been avoided, say Israeli experts, if the authorities had first sought clearance from the Waqf, the Islamic board which governs the al-Aqsa mosque. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is under pressure from his neighbor, Jordan's King Abdullah, and from his own defense minister Amir Peretz, to halt the controversial dig. So far, Olmert has refused their entreaties, saying that the changes would not " harm" anyone. Meir Ben-Dov, a leading Israeli archeologist who has worked on the site for 39 years, criticized the excavation work. He told the Israeli press that it was " short-sightedness by someone who wants riots, by people with no brain." Already, one Palestinian militant group says it intends to attack synagogues in revenge for the excavations. The standoff at Temple Mount/al-Aqsa, over a simple repair, threatens to blow into something far larger and more dangerous.

more...


linked article -
Wanted: A New Sheriff in Gaza
http://time-blog.com/middle_east/2007/02/wanted_a_new_sheriff_in_gaza.html

In Gaza, gunfire sounded throughout the night. Ok. That's not unusual. But for a change, Palestinians weren't killing each other. They were celebrating. In the holy Muslim city of Mecca, leaders of the two rival Palestinian factions vying for power --President Mahmoud Abbas of the Fatah movement and Prime Minister Ismael Haniyeh of the Islamic militant group, Hamas-- finally signed an accord that will stave off a Palestinian civil war.

Or will it?

It helped that Saudi royals proved the Palestinians with a whopping financial incentive, a cool billion dollars, according to some press reports. But the accord wall-papers over some of the trickier issues. In Gaza and in the West Bank, over 17 feuding militias are driving around, waving their semi-automatic rifles and staking out their turf. There are also countless criminal clans, who occasionally do the dirty work for either Hamas or Fatah (but usually Fatah). Some militant militas are also happy to shoot off rockets at Israelis for the right price. And there are plenty of outsiders, such as Hezballah, willing to dish out the cash.

snip>

The other deal-breaker, of course, is whether the international community will embrace the new Fatah-Hamas government and lift its 10-month crippling embargo on Palestinians. The Bush Administration was against the national unity government in the first place. (Abbas will have some fast explaining to do when he meets a grimacing Condoleezza Rice in a few days.) So let's say the Americans won't accept. After all, Hamas still refuses to recognize Israel's right to exist, or renounce fighting the Jewish state. And if Washington won't approve, Israel won't either.

But maybe the Europeans are weakening. The Palestinians, and the Saudis, too, are hoping that the Europeans may go along with Hamas's concession: the Islamic militant group won't recognize Israel outright, but it will "respect" past international agreements signed by the Palestinian leadership, including those with Israel.

more...

[OrangeCountyDemocrat]

49. Subprime Mortgage Brokers Question

Does anybody know where I could go to find more detailed information about Publicly Traded Companies engaged almost completely in Subprime Mortgage Lending?

I'm specifically looking for some sort of a list which would show the companies with the highest percentages of their overall business, devoted to Subprime Loans. It is obvious to me that there will be more companies like New Century in Irvine, CA(right around corner from me), which have stocks will almost certainly plummet, in reaction to news that they're in deep, deep trouble.

I think it's almost a certainty that we'll see other companies like this one, who have geared their operations so completely towards Subprime Loans, that they're unable to weather the storm which is just coming ashore. Ultimately I'd like to get some Put options on these companies in anticipation of any stock price declines.

Edit: Here's a great site I found which lists the Largest Subprime Lenders, and has some other great information, but does not show which ones had highest percentage of loans which are subprime.

http://ml-implode.com/

[54anickel]

59. Sorry, I can't help you. But you lead to another question - which funds

are buying up the bundles of repackaged subprime mortgages and the possible derivatives thereof? How would I know if one of my retirement plan mutual funds of funds (of funds, of funds, of funds of .....) is holding any and how much? Just seems like a big Ponzi scheme to me. :shrug:

[54anickel]

50. 11:33 and all mixed up

Dow 12,655.25 17.62 (0.14%)
Nasdaq 2,483.70 4.97 (0.20%)
S&P 500 1,448.59 0.28 (0.02%)
10-yr Bond 4.77% 0.04
30-yr Bond 4.8550% 0.0180
NYSE Volume 913,748,000
Nasdaq Volume 745,868,000

11:30 am : More of the same for stocks as there still isn't a strong sense of conviction on either the bullish or bearish side of the aisle. The absence of any influential industry leadership whatsoever is a contributing factor. The day's best performing sectors are Utilities, Telecom and Materials, whose combined weightings on the S&P 500 barely amount to 10%, which nearly equates that of the Energy sector which is turning in the day's worst performance. DJ30 +21.20 NASDAQ -4.41 SP500 +0.64 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1459/1336/690 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1519/1491/424 mln

11:00 am : Oil has slipped back below the $60/bbl level and even turned negative, but the stock market doesn't appear overly convinced that the commodity will stay down for long. Temperatures are still well below normal across the country and the shut down of a California oil field yesterday takes 120,000 barrels a day off the market.

Commodity traders are also pricing in a risk premium amid renewed geopolitical worries surrounding Iran while equity traders watch an oversubscribed IPO -- Fortress Investment Group (FIG 30.50 +12.00) -- continue to relinquish early gains after opening up 89%. The stock is still up an impressive 65%, which bodes well for the investment banks involved in the underwriting (e.g. GS, BAC, LEH); but the rate-sensitive Financials sector is off its highs as Treasuries continue to tumble. The 10-year note (-11/32) yield is now at 4.77% as bond traders digest more commentary from Voting Fed President Poole.DJ30 +19.95 NASDAQ -3.34 SP500 +0.33 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1407/1360/552 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1484/1463/336 mln

10:30 am : The major averages now trade in split fashion as investors continue to weigh the ramifications of oil above $60/bbl. Compounding the problem is the lack of follow-through in the Energy sector. No support from oil stocks to act as an offset provides an added sense of nervousness that has carried over into other sectors. For instance, Technology was providing some early support after the semiconductor space was upgraded; but the sector since turning negative removes some notable leadership and is the most noticeable reason why the Nasdaq is now negative. DJ30 +14.39 NASDAQ -1.98 SOX +0.9% SP500 +0.57 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1282/1381/384 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1268/1576/224 mln

10:00 am : The indices are still on the offensive and so far showing good resilience to oil prices recently eclipsing $60/bbl. Albeit breaking through the psychological $60/barrier in overnight trading, the commodity was relatively unchanged earlier. However, the commodity now holding steady above that level does bring the commodity's inflationary potential back into focus among policy makers, which is a bearish factor for stocks since the Fed continues to echo its tightening bias. In fact, St. Louis Fed President Poole mentioning within the hour that inflation remains a concern is weighing on Treasuries; the 10-year note yield (-6/32) is back at 4.75%.DJ30 +31.00 NASDAQ +4.52 SP500 +3.02 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1064/1404/184 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1077/1582/82 mln

09:40 am : Stocks open higher, but the lack of overwhelming positive catalysts lends minimal conviction on the part of buyers at the onset of trading. One news item garnering added attention and so far contributing to an improving sentiment is the expected response to the first ever IPO of a U.S.-listed hedge fund. Yesterday, Fortress Investment Group (FIG) was priced at $18.50 per share, near the top of its anticipated price range and reportedly 10 times oversubscribed, further underscoring the market's appetite for new issues.

Lead underwriter Goldman Sachs Group (GS 216.00 +2.00) is also making headlines and providing additional support for the influential Financials sectors amid reported that it is expected to raise as much as $19 bln for its newest private-equity fund. DJ30 +30.15 NASDAQ +5.26 SP500 +3.19 NASDAQ Vol 92 mln NYSE Vol 48 mln

09:15 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +1.4. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +2.8.

[54anickel]

55. The Brave New World Economy

http://www.kitco.com/ind/Gnazzo/feb092007.html

The following paper will discuss an article that was given as a presentation in Davos, Switzerland by Mr. Mohamed El-Erian: President and CEO of Harvard Management Company, a faculty member of the Harvard Business School, and deputy treasurer of the university. He is also a member of the International Monetary Fund’s Capital Markets Consultative Group. Credentials par excellence.

This rejoinder is to the ideas expressed in the above referenced work, it is not intended to be personal – it is simply business. Mr. El-Erian is a brilliant scholar, with passages of rights and accomplishments unequaled by all but a few. I am not close to being one of the chosen few: and for that I give thanks.

snip>

Capital flows have been flowing both in and out of the larger new players on the world’s economic stage, as well as to the older and more established economies. Huge sums of money were needed to bring the raw materials and energy from below ground to above ground production and distribution. Once distributed (sold) huge sums of money then flow to those markets where the best return on capital and profits are judged to be had for the taking.

There is another aspect of the process of capitol flows that will discussed, as we proceed further along. Once again - it has to do with the credit and debt levels behind these huge flows of money, which in paper fiat land are one and the same: money, credit, and debt.

This is THE crucial point that is not understood by most, and usually disregarded by those that do know, as it does not serve either their or their masters most basic interests: wealth transference from others to themselves. It is an ancient precept that it is easier to take then make. Some call it tribute, others call it plunder, while some call it profit – but at whose expense? Cui Bono? As they say – follow the money, as it flows back to the same Houses.

Some of these emerging markets have seen changes that are almost of regime style change – in essence they are a regime style change, but it is not the political regime style that is changing – it is the monetary, financial, and economic segments of the various nations that is changing, and quite drastically.

Certain older and more established nations appear to be asserting more power and control, but their Modus Operandi has not changed. Globalism is about capitalism and transnational corporations – it is not about nationalism but internationalism. It is about power and profit. It is about a one world New World Order.

more...

[54anickel]

57. Lear approves takeover offer worth $5.3 billion

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070209/BUSINESS01/70209012/1001/NEWS

Lear Corp., an automotive supplier of interior parts, said Friday it has agreed to be sold to billionaire investor Carl Icahn for $36 a share in a deal valued at $5.3 billion, including Lear’s debt.

Under terms of the deal, Icahn-controlled American Real Estate Partners LP is paying $36 a share, and a Lear spokesman said that amounts to about $2.8 billion. It also includes the assumption of about $2.5 billion in debt.

snip>

“We believe the transaction price, which represents a multiple of about nine times our forecasted 2007 core operating earnings, excluding the interior business, provides shareholders with significant value,” Lear CEO Bob Rossiter said in a statement.

Holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of Lear’s common stock must vote on the agreement before it is approved. Icahn owns more than 11 million of Lear’s 76.3 million outstanding shares. But it’s unclear how Lear’s other shareholders will react.

Lear’s second largest shareholder on Monday wrote a letter to Lear’s directors saying that Icahn’s offer is far too low and that the company’s actual value is closer to $60 per share. Richard S. Pzena, co-chief investment officer of Pzena Investment Management LLC, urged directors to seek other offers.

“We would be happy if Lear said, ‘We’re not up for sale right now,’ or we’d be happy if they sold it at a good price, but this doesn’t make any sense,” Pzena told the Free Press on Feb. 5.

Under terms of Icahn’s offer, Rossiter and his senior management team would keep their jobs.

snip>

During the quarter, Lear reached an agreement with billionaire investor Wilbur Ross to transfer its North American interior business to a joint venture. In return, Lear received a 25% equity stake in the venture.

Lear’s business with Ross is part of a restructuring plan to become leaner and to exit the auto-interiors business in favor of more profitable manufacturing, such as seats and electrical systems.

more...

[54anickel]

60. Sheesh, everyone return from lunch in an ugly mood? 12:59

Dow 12,624.41 13.22 (0.12%)
Nasdaq 2,467.92 20.75 (0.83%)
S&P 500 1,444.27 4.04 (0.28%)
10-yr Bond 4.78% 0.05
30-yr Bond 4.8640% 0.0270
NYSE Volume 1,375,301,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,105,078,000

12:30 pm : No real change to sentiment as the afternoon session gets underway. One stock that continues to get hammered, though, is MasterCard (MA 102.19 -12.54). The stock handily topped Wall Street expectations earlier, lending credibility behind a share price that has nearly tripled since its May 24 debut (MA was last year's biggest IPO).

However, management subsequently deciding not to raise prices and saying such a decision could lead to some margin pressures has prompted an aggressive consolidation effort (-11%). Since it is not a member of the S&P 500 and isn't collaterally weighing too heavily on its closest publicly-traded competitor -- Dow component American Express (AXP 58.26 -0.23), the broader market is not being adversely affected. DJ30 +23.87 NASDAQ -2.95 SP500 +1.18 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1495/1379/882 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1558/1548/570 mln

12:00 pm : The blue-chip indices midday continue to meander where they've traded all week, near the unchanged mark. That's not all that surprising since there has been little in the way of market-moving news this morning -- no influential earnings reports and no economic data -- to more aggressively get buying efforts back on track, especially after such an impressive rally a week earlier.

Among the items making headlines, Fortress Investment Group (FIG 31.47 +12.97) became the first ever IPO of a U.S.-listed hedge fund; and its highly anticipated debut had shares up as much as 100% earlier, lending further support that market conditions remain solid and that more deals may be forthcoming. While that bodes well for lead underwriter Goldman Sachs (GS 216.74 +2.84), which is also in the news after reportedly raising as much as $19 bln for its newest private-equity fund, the rate-sensitive Financials sector is struggling to fend off an increase in borrowing costs. Treasuries are tumbling across the yield curve as traders digest some hawkish Fed speak.

Speaking of policy maker's tightening bias, oil prices at $60/bbl have also posed a problem so far. Not only does eclipsing such a psychological barrier bring the commodity's inflationary potential back into focus with the Fed, but the lack of follow-through in the Energy sector is compounding concerns.

On a positive note, semiconductor stocks being upgraded to Bullish at JP Morgan and to Overweight at Deutsche Bank (on valuation) initially gave Technology a lift;. However, Alcatel-Lucent (ALU 13.18 -0.49) swinging to a loss in Q4 has prompted consolidation throughout Communication Equipment. After a nearly 4% gain in four days, due in large part to Cisco Systems' (CSCO 27.75 -0.38) upbeat guidance, the AMEX Networking Index falling 1.2% is acting as an offset to renewed enthusiasm for chip stocks and removing notable leadership in the S&P 500's second most influential sector. BTK +0.3% DJ30 +24.36 DJTA +0.1% DJUA +0.8% DOT -0.4% NASDAQ -2.33 NQ100 -0.1% R2K -0.3% SOX +0.7% SP400 -0.1% SP500 +1.76 XOI -0.3% NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1480/1364/816 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1553/1537/516 mln

[54anickel]

62. Add the updated blather....

1:00 pm : So much for meandering, as a renewed wave of selling interest fueled in part by a recent spike higher in oil prices pushes all three of the indices to session lows. After testing the $60/bbl level throughout much of the session, crude for March delivery now up more than 1% near $60.40/bbl is prompted a broad-based exodus. Eight out of 10 sectors are now trading lower; 30 minutes ago, eight sectors were trading higher. DJ30 -12.10 NASDAQ -19.20 SP500 -4.20 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1650/1256/1.03 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1737/1390/676 mln

[54anickel]

65. Fed's Bies Resigns After Five Years at Central Bank (Update2)

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aTATFBK4zc_s&refer=home

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Susan Bies, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke's point person on banking, resigned after five years, leaving the Fed without a commercial banker on its board.

Bies, 59, was appointed to the central bank in December 2001 and always sided with the majority on interest-rate decisions. She won't attend the March meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, the Fed said in a statement. Her departure opens a second vacancy on the seven-member Board of Governors.

Bies, who combined expertise from 22 years at First Tennessee National Corp. and a stint as an academic economist, adds to a year of turnover at the Fed. The heads of the Boston and Chicago Fed banks are retiring this year, while the Atlanta Fed filled its vacant presidency yesterday, appointing former Citigroup Inc. executive Dennis Lockhart.

snip>

Bies has been commuting to Washington from South Carolina, where her husband lives. She plans to spend more time with her family, the Fed said. In a letter to President George W. Bush, Bies wrote that her Fed service has been ``very rewarding.''

Her resignation is effective March 30.

Bies's successor will be nominated by the White House and must be confirmed by the Senate. Her term didn't expire until 2012. Mark Olson, another former commercial banker, left the Fed last June to head the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, and Bush has yet to replace him. Governor Kevin Warsh, appointed last year, worked as an investment banker at Morgan Stanley.

more...

[llmart]

66. This is in addition to the 10,000 jobs already announced......

Chrysler's Project X

1,000 salaried jobs to go

7% cut in white-collar ranks to hit region hard

Bill Vlasic and Josee Valcourt / The Detroit News

The Chrysler Group expects to eliminate about 1,000 white-collar jobs -- primarily in Michigan -- as part of a major restructuring to be announced next week, according to people familiar with the plans.

The cuts will be in addition to more than 10,000 hourly jobs likely to be slashed in the top-to-bottom overhaul of the underperforming U.S. unit of German automaker DaimlerChrysler AG.

Sources familiar with the restructuring plan, code-named "Project X," said that 7 percent of Chrysler's 14,180 U.S. salaried workers -- or about 1,000 positions -- will be trimmed in the automaker's biggest downsizing since 2001.

A Chrysler spokesman declined to comment Thursday on how many white-collar workers will be impacted by the restructuring that will be unveiled Wednesday by Chrysler CEO Tom LaSorda.

"We're not going to comment on that," said Michael Aberlich of Chrysler.

"Tom will make the announcement as to what will be included in the restructuring plan on the 14th."

Managers at Chrysler headquarters in Auburn Hills told The Detroit News that their departmental budgets for this year have been recalled in anticipation of the downsizing.

Nearly all of Chrysler's 14,180 U.S. salaried employees work in Auburn Hills and other facilities in Michigan, said David Elshoff of Chrysler.

White-collar jobs have been steadily shrinking at Chrysler. Elshoff said Chrysler had nearly 19,000 white-collar workers at the end of 2000.

The latest white-collar cuts are part of a broader effort to return Chrysler to profitability after it lost a projected $1.2 billion last year.

Analysts said salaried workers are often vulnerable in a corporate downsizing because of the size of their paychecks and their lack of protection by union contracts

"The white-collar will go first," said Kenneth Dalto, an independent restructuring consultant in Farmington Hills. "It's what they call low-hanging fruit. You can pick them easy."

Select factories targeted

While German shareholders have called for DaimlerChrysler to sell all or part of Chrysler, the automaker's chairman, Dieter Zetsche, is seeking to transform Chrysler into a smaller, more-efficient competitor in the U.S. auto market.

Project X is said to call for unprecedented levels of cooperation in vehicle development between Chrysler and Mercedes-Benz, DaimlerChrysler's vaunted luxury brand.

But the guts of the restructuring will be across-the-board job reductions and plant closings, as well as elimination of factory shifts.

Unlike the sweeping cost cuts under way at General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co., Chrysler is not planning on offering buyouts and early retirements to its entire unionized work force.

Instead, Chrysler plans to offer retirement incentive packages to hourly workers at select assembly plants and other manufacturing locations in the United States and Canada, according to people familiar with the plan.

Sources said the internal goal is to trim about 10,000 hourly jobs from Chrysler's 60,000 unionized positions, and reduce production capacity to match Chrysler's shrinking market share.

" Sources told The News that Chrysler plans to offer unionized workers a cash payment of $50,000 or more, plus a voucher that can be put toward the purchase of a Chrysler vehicle. "

Shifts will be reduced

The downsizing is expected to include the closure of an assembly plant in Newark, Del., and an engine plant in Detroit.

However, shift reductions -- which can affect as many as 1,000 workers in a plant -- will be more widespread.

Factories likely to have shifts reduced include the Jefferson North plant in Detroit, a pickup plant in St. Louis, Mo., and assembly plants in Windsor and Brampton, Ontario.

The president of the Canadian Auto Workers union said Thursday that Chrysler officials have told him privately to expect major cuts at its union facilities.

"The cuts are significant," CAW President Buzz Hargrove said. "We were shocked by their announcement."

Hargrove said he hopes to negotiate generous retirement incentive packages.

"We'll meet with the company to see if we can find a way to at least cut some of the layoffs," he said.

"And then if we can't, we'll talk about the packages."

Ford, GM cuts more drastic

The cutbacks at Chrysler follow massive restructurings in 2006 at GM and Ford.

The downsizings reflect the steady loss of sales and market share at each of the traditional Big Three automakers.

An auto analyst said Chrysler's downsizing won't be as dramatic as those at GM and Ford, but still painful.

"Ford and GM have been going through some gut-wrenching changes and we don't think that what happens at Chrysler will be nearly as drastic," said David Kudla of Mainstay Capital Management in Grand Blanc.

By cutting both white-collar and union jobs, Chrysler can reduce its overall structural costs and shrink the organization.

"It won't all happen in one place," he said.

"It will be spread across the organization. That's a natural part of the process."

[54anickel]

68. "Project X"....how cute - not! I saw that code-name the other day. Wonder

whose brain child that was....eX-employees, aXed employees, eXtract employees...:eyes:

[llmart]

103. Yeah, just like this misadministration.......

slap a catchy little name on it and it's supposed to soften the harsh effects. It's all a game to the bigwigs just like the war is all a game to Bush/Cheney et. al.

These are the types of people I despise. They have no ability to empathize with people. As long as it doesn't affect them or their cronies, it's all a game (or a "Project").

[54anickel]

69. 2:08 and somebody flushed

Dow 12,583.79 53.84 (0.43%)
Nasdaq 2,461.50 27.17 (1.09%)
S&P 500 1,438.81 9.50 (0.66%)
10-yr Bond 4.79% 0.06
30-yr Bond 4.8700% 0.0330
NYSE Volume 1,788,587,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,471,836,000

2:00 pm : Stocks continue to hit fresh session lows as selling remains the name of the game. The lack of follow through this week amid renewed optimism on the earnings front continues to provide an excuse to consolidate some of last week's stellar performance. The Financials and Tech sectors are now down more than 1.0%. DJ30 -50.81 NASDAQ -26.37 SP500 -9.04 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1985/965/1.40 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 2175/1035/892 mln

1:30 pm : The indices are extending their reach to the downside as sector leadership continues to deteriorate. Technology (-0.9%) is pacing the way lower, as Micron Technology (MU 12.50 -0.40) recently saying the NAND flash memory market is in horrible shape, takes a toll on sentiment, especially amid signs of improving growth prospects in tech earlier in the week. SanDisk (SNDK 40.38 -1.46) is plunging 3.5%.

The fact that Financials, the most influential sector of them all, ranks second among today's laggards (-0.6%) also removes some notable leadership. Rate-sensitive banks and brokers continue to get hit in sympathy with the continued upturn in borrowing costs. The 10-year note is now down 14 ticks to yield 4.78% as hawkish testimony from Fed officials continues to hit the wires. Most recently, Dallas Fed President Fisher has recently said he "wouldn't rule out" further rate increases and that he won't rest easier until core inflation is "well below 2%" on a sustained basis. DJ30 -20.18 NASDAQ -21.29 SP500 -4.86 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1902/1025/1.26 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 2032/1133/800 mln

[54anickel]

74. Lookie what just showed up in my e-mail - Why You Shouldn't Sell

It's dated Feb 1, a bit late coming out, or is it?....:eyes:

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2007/02/01/why-you-shouldnt-sell.aspx?source=ifwflwlnk0000029

"You know less than you think you do."

That's a conclusion from behavioral economist James Montier. What's he talking about? That whether you know it or not, you're making big mistakes with your money. And that over time, they will cost you.

Dearly.

Stock madness
Think we're exaggerating? Consider: Performance-chasing in mutual funds has gotten so bad that Morningstar has created an "investor returns" category to account for the problem of investors buying funds when they're hot and selling when they're not. The difference between fund returns and investor returns can be startling -- as much as 20 percentage points.

snip>

So what's the solution? Buy to hold. Of course, be sure to buy to hold the types of stocks that can be bought to hold. :eyes: You'll have to subscribe to find our which stocks are that "type".

more...

[citizen snips]

75. Stocks Fall on Fed Speech, Oil Jumps

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street extended its decline Thursday as investors glumly absorbed a spike in oil prices and comments from two Federal Reserve officials that unexpected economic growth could prompt an interest rate hike.

Stocks had spent most of the session in positive territory after Thursday's pullback made for fertile ground for bargain hunters. The markets also were boosted by analyst upgrades of the automobile sector, which sent Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. higher.

However, investors began to sell after St. Louis Fed President William Poole and Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher both warned rates will go higher if inflation doesn't ebb. Wall Street has been looking for any clues about how central bankers are viewing the economy, and which way it might lead on interest rates this year.

Investors also digested a handful of earnings reports and watched the movements of crude oil, which crossed $60 per barrel for the first time since early January. Crude prices flirted with that psychological barrier for three straight days this week only to retreat.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/wall_street.html?.v=38

[citizen snips]

76. MasterCard 4Q Earnings Beat Expectations

NEW YORK (AP) -- MasterCard Inc. said Friday its fourth-quarter profit topped Wall Street expectations as consumer spending spiked, but the credit-card company warned margin growth may slow this year. The stock tumbled as much as 10 percent after hitting an all-time high in early trading.

The Purchase-based company, which went public in May 2006, posted quarterly profit of $41 million, or 30 cents per share, compared with a loss of $53 million, or 39 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding the impact of litigation settlements, MasterCard reported a profit of $41 million, or 31 cents per share, in the latest period.

Revenue rose 17.2 percent to $839 million from $716 million a year ago.

Results surpassed projections for profit of 17 cents per share on revenue of $826.9 million, according to analysts polled by Thomson Financial.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/earns_mastercard.html?.v=11

[citizen snips]

77. Nasdaq Gains Share of NYSE-Listed Stocks

NEW YORK (AP) -- Electronic stock exchange Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. said Friday its market share of trading in New York Stock Exchange-listed stocks increased in January.

Stocks listed on one exchange can be traded on another. Nasdaq said it hosted 14.9 percent of trading of NYSE-listed stocks in January from 14.2 percent in December and 6.2 percent in January 2006.

Touched market share, or share of trading of NYSE-listed stocks Nasdaq either executed itself or referred to another exchange, rose to 35.8 percent in January from 33.3 percent in December and 16.1 percent in January 2006.

Nasdaq's total market share of NYSE-listed stocks, which includes trades executed by brokers and reported to Nasdaq, rose to 33.3 percent from 21.7 percent in January 2005.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/nasdaq_market_share.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

79. Sector Snap: Airline Stocks Dip

NEW YORK (AP) -- U.S. airline shares mostly fell in mixed trading Friday, as crude oil prices climbed above $60 per barrel.

The Amex Airline Index dropped 1.1 percent in afternoon trading, split among eight decliners and three gainers.

Hurting shares was oil prices rising 67 cents to $60.38 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier touching as high as $60.61. It was the first time oil topped $60 since the first trading day of 2007, as cold U.S. temperatures and violence in Nigeria helped to push up prices. Crude price gains tend to weigh on airline shares, as jet fuel is one of their biggest expenses.

The index's biggest percentage decliner was JetBlue Airways Corp., down 36 cents, or 2.6 percent, to $12.94 on the Nasdaq.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/airlines_sector_snap.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

80. Sector Preview: Ethanol

NEW YORK (AP) -- Analysts expect strong ethanol prices to boost earnings from the host of ethanol producers that are slated to report fourth-quarter results in the coming weeks.

Archer Daniels Midland Co., a grains processor and major ethanol producer, kicked off the industry's earnings season with a 20 percent jump in earnings, bolstered in part by a strong ethanol market. The Decatur, Ill.-based company on Feb. 1 reported operating profit in its corn processing segment surged 42 percent last quarter, helped by robust ethanol demand.

Stronger ethanol selling prices boosted margins in the company's corn processing segment, but the gains were partially offset by higher corn costs during the period. Ethanol derived from corn has gained favor as a cleaner burning additive to gasoline.

UBS analyst Chris L. Shaw expects strong fourth-quarter earnings reports from ethanol makers, following ADM's lead. But Shaw cautioned in a note to clients that "the good results will be short-lived and the outlooks from company management could be negative."

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/ethanol_sector_preview.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

81. ConocoPhillips Raises Quarterly Dividend

HOUSTON (AP) -- ConocoPhillips on Friday said it increased its quarterly dividend by 14 percent, to 41 cents per share.

The Houston-based company will pay the dividend March 1 to shareholders of record Feb. 20.

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/conocophillips_dividend.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

86. ConocoPhillips to Increase Share Buyback, Dividend

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- ConocoPhillips, the third-largest U.S. oil company, increased its planned buyback of shares this year to as much as $4 billion and will raise its quarterly dividend by 14 percent.

The planned stock buyback was increased from the $1 billion repurchase plan announced Jan. 12. About $1 billion of stock will be repurchased this quarter, Houston-based ConocoPhillips said in a statement today. The dividend is payable March 1 to shareholders of record on Feb. 20, the company said.

ConocoPhillips announced three separate $1 billion share buybacks in 2005. There weren't any new repurchase programs last year.

The company issued stock early last year to help pay for its $35 billion acquisition of Burlington Resources Inc., sending the number of diluted shares outstanding up 19 percent to an average of 1.68 billion in the second quarter.

more...
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601072&sid=aEnagV67LtW8&refer=energy

[citizen snips]

82. General Electric Declares Dividend

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (AP) -- General Electric Co. on Friday announced a regular quarterly dividend of 28 cents per share.

The Fairfield, Conn.-based company will pay the dividend April 25 to shareholders of record Feb. 26. The ex-dividend date is Feb. 22.

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/general_electric_dividend.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

83. DaimlerChrysler, Lear, Micron Technology: U.S. Equity Movers

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies whose shares are having unusual price changes in U.S. exchanges. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names. Share prices are as of 1:10 p.m. New York time.

Achillion Pharmaceuticals (ACHN US) fell $9.22, or 51 percent, to $8.77 and traded as low as $8.56. The pharmaceutical company, along with Gilead Sciences, halted development of a treatment for hepatitis C, after six of eight patients taking the drug in a clinical trial suffered temporary kidney damage.

Aon Corp. (AOC US) rose $1.49, or 4.1 percent, to $37.92 and traded as high as $38.95. The world's second-largest insurance broker said profit excluding discontinued operations and severance costs was 67 cents a share in the fourth quarter. That's higher than the 63-cent average estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Applix Inc. (APLX US) gained $1.76, or 16 percent, to $12.65 and traded as high as $13.50. The software developer said that, excluding some items, it expects to earn as much as 53 cents a share this year. Four analysts surveyed by Bloomberg had predicted profit of 47 cents. Analyst Mark Murphy at First Albany Corp. boosted the stock's rating to ``buy'' from ``neutral.''

more...
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601084&sid=aQpKqa5Mmbc4&refer=stocks

[citizen snips]

84. Treasuries Fall as Fed's Poole Says Inflation Still a Concern

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Treasuries fell as a Federal Reserve official reinforced expectations the central bank won't lower interest rates during the first half of the year.

An inflation rate higher than 2 percent ``would be unacceptable,'' said William Poole, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and a voting member of the central bank's monetary policy committee this year. The Fed's preferred measure of prices has exceeded that level since April.

``The prospect of Fed easing is so far away, and if there is going to be any tightening it's going to happen sooner rather than later,'' said Dominic Konstam, head of interest-rate strategy in New York at Credit Suisse Securities LLC. Ten-year yields ``are more likely to be in the high end near-term.''

The benchmark 10-year note's yield rose 5 basis points, or 0.05 percentage point, to 4.79 percent at 12:16 p.m. in New York. The price of the 4 5/8 percent note maturing in February 2017 fell 13/32, or $4.06 per $1,000 face amount, to 98 23/32.

more...
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601009&sid=a5bagdnrLp.c&refer=bond

[citizen snips]

85. Yen Approaches Record Low Versus Euro; G-7 Currency Talk Dims

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Japan's yen dropped for a fourth straight day against the euro, approaching a record low, as speculation faded that the Japanese currency's decline will be a focus of the Group of Seven meeting.

The yen also touched the lowest in more than a week against the dollar as German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck said today he doesn't think a weak yen has hurt German trade. U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said the Japanese currency is ``market- determined,'' brushing aside concerns that it is undervalued. Traders cut bets on an interest-rate boost by the Bank of Japan.

``The fear of the G-7 singling out the yen has been low,'' said Tim Mazanec, senior foreign-exchange strategist at Boston- based Investors Bank & Trust Co. ``It seems more and more that the BOJ won't raise rates anytime soon. The yen will weaken.''

The yen fell to 158.21 per euro at 2:33 p.m. in New York from 157.85 yesterday. It dropped to a record low of 158.62 on Jan. 24. The Japanese currency also declined to 121.60 per dollar from 121.03.

more...
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601083&sid=a1a7Q3JOaFSI&refer=currency

[citizen snips]

87. Nev. Casinos Win Record $12.62B in 2006

CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) -- Gamblers bet a record $170 billion in Nevada casinos during 2006, and the clubs set another record by winning $12.62 billion of the total, according to a state report released Friday.

A breakdown of the win shows that the Las Vegas Strip accounted for $6.69 billion of the total. That's also a record -- but it wasn't enough to fend off booming Macau, the Chinese territory which apparently eclipsed the Strip for the first time with 2006 gambling revenue of $6.95 billion.

"Macau probably has surpassed the Las Vegas Strip gaming win," state Gaming Control Board analyst Frank Streshley said in releasing the Nevada report. "But there's a lot of uncertainty because the computation of their gaming win may not be the same as ours. It may not be a true apples-to-apples comparison."

Macau aside, Streshley said the Nevada figures show that even with some softening in the second half of 2006 the state's casinos showed 8.3 percent growth over their 2005 win. He added that 2006 ended with a $1.06 billion win in December, up 17.1 percent over December 2005.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/casino_win.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

88. Optimer Pharma Opens Above IPO Price

NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of drug developer Optimer Pharmaceuticals Inc. rose from their initial public offering price Friday, their first day of trading.

Optimer opened at $7.50 a share on the Nasdaq Stock Market, after the company sold 7 million shares at $7 a share. In the afternoon, the shares were at $8.40, up 20 percent from the offering price.

The expected price range was $8 to $9, cut Thursday from its initial $12 to $14 range, which had been set by underwriters.

The San Diego company's IPO follows the lukewarm reception to the Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp. debut Tuesday. Synta's IPO also priced below its expected range and the company sold fewer shares than anticipated.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/optimer_pharma_ipo.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

89. House Considers $1.5B Tax Cut Package

WASHINGTON (AP) -- House tax writers will consider more than $1.5 billion in small business tax cuts next week in hopes of freeing minimum wage legislation currently stuck in an impasses between the House and Senate.

The tax package is less than one-fourth the size of what the Senate passed last week, but it sets the stage for negotiations that could result in the first increase in the minimum wage in a decade. The legislation would raise the wage floor by $2.10 over two years to $7.25 an hour.

The House proposal has the bipartisan backing of Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., and the panel's ranking Republican, Rep. Jim McCrery of Louisiana. The committee is expected to consider the proposal Monday. The legislation would then go to the House floor later in the week.

The tax breaks would be paid for by eliminating a tax loophole that permits wealthy taxpayers to shift income to their children in order to avoid high capital gains and dividend tax rates.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/minimum_wage.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

90. Investors Parse Treasury Auction Data

NEW YORK (AP) -- With bonds and the U.S. dollar dependent on foreign central banks that buy U.S. government debt, Wall Street pores over Treasury auction data to get a feel for foreign interest in U.S. Treasuries. But while the data can be telling, a new study finds that investors should be careful when drawing conclusions.

The release of the study by the New York Federal Reserve coincided with the latest quarterly Treasury auction, in which the government sold $16 billion in three-year notes on Tuesday, $13 billion in 10-year notes Wednesday and $9 billion in 30-year notes Thursday. Demand from foreign investors appeared to be steady, much to the relief of U.S. bond investors.

Investors review purchases made by what the market calls indirect bidders to try to determine whether foreign governments, particularly those in Asia, still have an appetite for U.S. debt. While this often works, the New York Fed said the findings are generally more dependable with Treasury notes than they are with Treasury bills.

Treasury notes are securities with original maturities of more than one year but not more than 10 years, while Treasury bills are securities whose original maturities are a year or less.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/market_spotlight_treasury_auction.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

91. Chips Snap: Micron, SanDisk, Lam Fall

NEW YORK (AP) -- Semiconductor stocks edged down in Friday's trading, with flash memory maker Micron Technology Inc. and chip equipment maker Lam Research Corp. among the biggest losers.

Shares of Micron Technology, which hosted an analysts conference Friday, dropped 44 cents, or 3.4 percent, to $12.46 on the New York Stock Exchange. Earlier in the session they hit a new 52-week low of $12.40.

Shares of SanDisk Corp., another flash memory maker, also fell, possibly in step with Micron. SanDisk lost $1.85, or 4.4 percent, to $39.99 on the Nasdaq.

Chip equipment maker Lam Research Corp. shares declined by $1.75, or 3.8 percent, to $43.97, although there was no news on the company.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/sector_snap_semiconductors.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

92. NYSE Group Tumbles in Trading

NEW YORK (AP) -- Goldman Sachs analyst Joshua R. Carter removed NYSE Group Inc., operator of the New York Stock Exchange, from his "Americas Buy List" on Friday on concerns related to its hybrid system, sending shares down in afternoon trading.

Under the NYSE's new operation, called the hybrid system, stocks trade electronically most of the time, but can revert to a floor trader at the request of a client or during periods of volatility. The New York Stock Exchange last month added the final 105 stocks to its electronic trading system, which has been launched in phases since October.

"We are concerned that volume growth year-to-date with hybrid has been slower than we originally forecast and headwinds in the first half of 2007 may put further pressure on the stock," Carter said.

Last month, NYSE Group said its share of NYSE-listed trading volume fell in December to 67.3 percent from 76.5 percent in the prior-year period. The exchange's December share also declined from the 68.2 percent matched in November. Both November and December each had one extra trading day.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/nyse_group_mover.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

96. Dow Ends Down 57, Nasdaq Closes Down 29

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street retreated sharply Friday as investors glumly absorbed a spike in oil prices and comments from two Federal Reserve officials that unexpected economic growth could prompt an interest rate hike.

Stocks had spent most of the session in positive territory after Thursday's pullback made for fertile ground for bargain hunters. The market also got a lift from analyst upgrades of the automobile sector, which sent Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. higher.

But investors began to sell after St. Louis Fed President William Poole and Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher both warned rates will go higher if inflation doesn't ebb. Wall Street has been looking for any clues about how central bankers are viewing the economy, and which way it might lead on interest rates this year.

Investors also digested a handful of earnings reports and watched the movements of crude oil, which crossed $60 per barrel for the first time since early January. MasterCard Inc. also weighed on the market after it warned 2007 margins might be weaker than last year's performance.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/wall_street.html?.v=48

[citizen snips]

97. Friday's biggest stock gainers and decliners

Applix (NasdaqGS:APLX - News) shares gained 15% Friday after the Westborough, Mass.-based company late Thursday reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $6 million, or 34 cents a share, up from $2.48 million, or 15 cents a share, last year. Revenue rose to $16 million from $11.1 million. Applix targeted 2007 earnings of 31 cents to 38 cents a share, or 46 cents to 53 cents a share excluding items, on revenue of $67 million to $70 million

AptarGroup (NYSE:ATR - News) shares rose 7.8% after the company reported fourth-quarter earnings of $27.2 million, or 77 cents a share, up from a year-ago profit of $23.7 million, or 66 cents a share. Revenue jumped in the latest three months to $422.4 million from $338.8 million a year earlier.

Atari Inc. (NasdaqGM:ATAR - News) shares added 7% after the company narrowed its fiscal third-quarter loss to $715,000, or 5 cents a share, from a year-ago loss of $4.8 million, or 35 cents a share. The company reported earnings from continuing operations of 13 cents a share.

Blue Coat Systems' (NasdaqGM:BCSI - News) shares rose 11% after Sunnyvale, Calif.-based developed of proxy appliances said late Thursday it expects fiscal third-quarter revenue of $45.5 million to $47.5 million. Blue coat had previously forecast revenue of $40 million to $

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/cbsm/070209/f3b15df30d1948c0b82cacea94ad73de.html?.v=3

[citizen snips]

98. Dollar Rises Against Most Currencies

NEW YORK (AP) -- The dollar rose against most major currencies Friday as investors positioned themselves ahead of a Group of Seven meeting of finance ministers.

The 13-nation euro bought $1.3006 in afternoon New York trading, down from $1.3038 in New York late Thursday.

The British pound dipped to $1.9503 from $1.9580. The Bank of England's decision Thursday to keep interest rates unchanged at 5.25 percent continues to weigh on the currency. At its previous meeting, the central bank surprised analysts with a quarter point hike.

The dollar rose to 121.64 yen from 121.05 yen on expectations that weakness of the Japanese currency would not be a main focus at the G-7 meeting in Essen, Germany. The meeting ends Saturday.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/dollar.html?.v=3

[54anickel]

99. Miller time!

Dow 12,580.83 56.80 (0.45%)
Nasdaq 2,459.82 28.85 (1.16%)
S&P 500 1,438.06 10.25 (0.71%)
10-yr Bond 4.78% 0.05
30-yr Bond 4.8650% 0.0280
NYSE Volume 2,901,956,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,233,115,000

4:20 pm : What was initially shaping up to be just another sluggish day of vacillating around the unchanged mark, like stocks had been doing throughout most of the week, actually became quite a disappointment for the bulls.

There were no economic releases on the calendar Friday and there were no big earnings reports of note. However, with oil prices eclipsing the $60/bbl mark going into another cold weekend and interest rates on the rise following some hawkish Fed speak, the stage was set for the bears to keep their eyes peeled for a catalyst to finally work off some of the sizable gains endured a week earlier that were already coming under scrutiny.

Then, just as the afternoon session got under way, sellers hungry to lock in profits found the news they deemed necessary to keep buyers sidelined into the close. Albeit not a tech bellwether, Micron Technology (MU 12.54 -0.35) saying it sees memory chip prices plunging 30-40% this quarter sent a shockwave through a tech sector already vulnerable. Just look at the lack of follow through from Cisco Systems' (CSCO 27.71 -0.43) upbeat report earlier in the week.

While Cisco boosting its sales outlook two days ago offered some reassurance about tech's growth prospects, especially following lowered guidance of late, Micron dangling another piece of uncertainty exacerbated the market's underlying skepticism about the sector's profit potential.

Since higher interest rates spark valuation concerns among growth stocks as well, Treasuries consolidating a week's worth of gains took an added toll on a tech sector slated to be one of the biggest profit drivers this year. The 10-year note yield rose to 4.78% after several Fed officials further diminished hopes of a rate cut anytime soon.

As one might expect, the increase in borrowing costs also had an adverse impact on the rate-sensitive Financials sector. As a reminder, Financials are expected to provide about 8% of the anticipated 11% growth in aggregate Q4 earnings for the S&P 500. In the end, the two most influential sectors of all -- Financials and Tech -- turning in the worst performances of the day was too much for a diminishing group of buyers to overcome. BTK -0.7% DJ30 -56.80 DJTA -0.7% DJUA +0.2% DOT -1.3% NASDAQ -28.85 NQ100 -1.4% R2K -1.1% SOX -1.4% SP400 -0.7% SP500 -10.25 XOI -0.7% NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 2013/1038/2.15 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 2303/970/1.59 bln

3:30 pm : Stocks are bouncing off their worst levels of the day; but buyers have a lot of work ahead of them if they think they can retrace morning highs. It would be one thing if there was some semblance of improving leadership. However, the biggest disappointments still coming from the most influential of S&P 500 sectors -- Financials and Tech -- remains a thorn in the market's and an obstacle the bulls are unlikely to overcome with only 30 minutes left before the week comes to a close. DJ30 -53.14 NASDAQ -24.92 SP500 -9.79 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 2063/947/1.83 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 2374/896/1.24 bln

3:00 pm : The bottom continues to fall out of stocks as market internals continue to deteriorate. As reflected in the A/D line, decliners outpace advancers by a more than 2-to-1 margin on both the NYSE and the Nasdaq. A larger ratio of down to up volumes paints an even more dismal picture at the Big Board and the Composite. Not even oil prices recently failing to close above $60/bbl, after posing such a concern throughout most of the session, do little to repair the damage that leaves all 10 sectors trading sharply lower. DJ30 -82.28 NASDAQ -32.55 SP500 -13.63 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 2075/907/1.67 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 2374/885/1.13 bln

2:30 pm : Equities are still on the defensive as the bulk of industry remains negative. The Financials sector now down 1.3% has nearly erased all of its modest year-to-date gain. Brokerages and bank stocks are still expected to provide about 8% of the anticipated 11% growth in aggregate Q4 earnings for the S&P 500. Technology, which is slated to be one of the biggest profit drivers for the year, is experiencing a similar pullback and, not surprisingly, it's decline is largely responsible for the Nasdaq being off more than 1.0%. DJ30 -61.85 NASDAQ -28.94 SOX -1.2% SP500 -10.81 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 2077/893/1.53 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 2265/976/1.00 bln


Have a great weekend! :hi:

[citizen snips]

100. DJIA Leaders and Laggards: DIS GM

NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of Walt Disney Co. ended lower Friday, posting the biggest loss on the Dow Jones industrial average.

The Dow fell 56.80 to end at 12,580.83.

Shares of Disney gave up 93 cents, or 2.6 percent, to close at $34.36 on the New York Stock Exchange after analysts questioned whether Disney can continue stellar growth in 2007 on the heels of its strong first-quarter profit.

Citigroup Inc. shares were down for the second straight day, giving up $1.04 to end at $53.40 on the NYSE.

American Express Co. declined 96 cents to $57.53 on the NYSE after rival MasterCard Inc. reported a fourth-quarter profit that topped Wall Street expectations.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/djia_leaders_close.html?.v=1

[citizen snips]

101. S&P Leaders and Laggards: BMC, GM

NEW YORK (AP) -- BMC Software Inc. was among the laggards of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index in Friday trading, after the Houston-based software vendor forecast fourth-quarter profit below Wall Street's estimates.

Shares fell $2.34, or 6.6 percent, to end at $32.94.

The S&P 500 Index finished down 10.25, to 1,438.06.

Shares of graphics chip maker Nvidia Corp. gave up $1.74, or 5 percent, to end at $32.65.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070209/close_s_p_leaders.html?.v=1