STOCK MARKET WATCH, Friday, January 14, 2011

[Pale Blue Dot]

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Friday, January 14, 2011

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON January 13, 2011

Dow 11,731.90 -23.54 (-0.20%)
Nasdaq 2,735.29 -2.04 (-0.07%)
S&P 500 1,283.76 -2.20 (-0.17%)
10-Yr Bond... 3.30 -0.06 (-0.30%)
30-Year Bond 4.50 -0.03 (-0.16%)

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Market Conditions During Trading Hours

Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold

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Handy Links - Market Data and News:Economic Calendar    Marketwatch Data    Bloomberg Economic News    Yahoo! Finance    Google Finance    Bank Tracker    
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Handy Links - Economic Blogs:
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Brad DeLong      Bonddad    Atrios    goldmansachs666    The Stand-Up Economist

Handy Links - Government Issues:
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Handy Links - Videos:
The Coming Collapse of the Middle Class    Charlie Rose talks with Roubini    Charlie Rose talks with Krugman
    William Black: This Economic Disaster    Bill Moyers with Kevin Drum and David Corn

Bush Administration Officials Convicted = 2
Names: David Safavian, James Fondren
Dishonorable Mention: former House majority leader, Tom DeLay

Bush Administration Officials Charged = 1
Name(s): Richard Lopez Razo

Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 = 11

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This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.

Read more: du

[Pale Blue Dot]

1. Today's heap of reports

Jan 14 08:30 CPI Dec 0.3% 0.4% 0.1%
Jan 14 08:30 Core CPI Dec 0.1% 0.1% 0.1%
Jan 14 08:30 Retail Sales Dec 1.0% 0.7% 0.8%
Jan 14 08:30 Retail Sales ex-auto Dec 0.8% 0.6% 1.2%
Jan 14 09:15 Industrial Production Dec 0.6% 0.4% 0.4%
Jan 14 09:15 Capacity Utilization Dec 75.7% 75.5% 75.2%
Jan 14 09:55 Mich Sentiment Jan 75.5 75.5 74.5
Jan 14 10:00 Business Inventories Nov 0.9% 0.8% 0.7%


http://www.briefing.com/Investor/Public/Calendars/EconomicCalendar.htm

The retail sales numbers should be fascinating.

[rfranklin]

4. delete

[Pale Blue Dot]

12. Surprise! Retail number well below expectations.

Date ET Release For Actual Briefing.com Consensus Prior Revised From
Jan 14 08:30 CPI Dec 0.5% 0.3% 0.4% 0.1%
Jan 14 08:30 Core CPI Dec 0.1% 0.1% 0.1% 0.1%
Jan 14 08:30 Retail Sales Dec 0.6% 1.0% 0.7% 0.8%
Jan 14 08:30 Retail Sales ex-auto Dec 0.5% 0.8% 0.6% 1.0% 1.2%
Jan 14 09:15 Industrial Production Dec 0.6% 0.4% 0.4%
Jan 14 09:15 Capacity Utilization Dec 75.7% 75.5% 75.2%
Jan 14 09:55 Mich Sentiment Jan 75.5 75.5 74.5
Jan 14 10:00 Business Inventories Nov 0.9% 0.8% 0.7%

Read more: http://www.briefing.com/Investor/Public/Calendars/EconomicCalendar.htm#ixzz1B16kTDLX

[Tansy_Gold]

17. No one could have imagined THAT!

:hi:

[mbperrin]

19. "I don't think anybody could have predicted..."

except a whole buncha people in the SMW.

[Ghost Dog]

25. Dismal Holiday Shopping Season Dooms U.S. Economy: Opinion

...The second reason to delay my own analysis of this critical component of the U.S. economy is that by mid-January, the real numbers come out and it becomes impossible for the U.S. propaganda-machine to continue to distort the truth. Indeed, the propagandists were previously forced to reluctantly acknowledge that 2008 and 2009 were the two worst U.S. holiday shopping seasons since records began to be kept on this subject. Thus, when I report that the 2010 U.S. shopping season was even worse than 2008 and 2009, it will hopefully cause those deluded by all the hype to pause and reconsider the facts.

Whenever discussing retail sales statistics, the first point which must always be made is that these numbers are never adjusted for inflation (not even with the phony numbers of the U.S. "consumer price index"). This leads to a very obvious analytical point: in order to determine if there was any real growth in U.S. retail sales (i.e. retailers actually selling more goods), we must subtract the (real) rate of inflation from the gross (unadjusted) increase in retail sales. Doing this reveals the ugly truth.

The most important number we need to begin this calculation is the real rate of inflation. As regular readers know, there is only one destination for those who want realistic statistical information on the U.S. economy: Shadowstats.com. Visit that site, and John Williams (the respected economist who runs the site) will tell you that as of his most recent reading, U.S. inflation was still running at about an 8.5% annual rate of increase.

Now the raw data from the U.S. retail sector. Comparing December 2010 to December 2009, we see that total retail sales rose 7.9%. Subtracting 8.5% from that number, we see that the sales of goods in the U.S. fell in December 2010 -- to below the level of the two worst (previous) shopping seasons on record. If we look at the full-year numbers, the picture is even worse. Total U.S. retail sales in 2010 were up 6.6%, nearly a full 2% lower than the rate of inflation.

/.. http://www.thestreet.com/story/10973788/1/dismal-holiday-shopping-season-dooms-us-economy-opinion.html

[Pale Blue Dot]

28. He's wrong, though. They ARE spinning it.

Sample headlines about the retail sales numbers:

Retail sales rise in December, inflation calm (Rueters)
Retail sales rise for sixth month in December (AP)
US Economy: Sales, Production Gains Point to Pickup in Growth (Bloomberg)
Best holiday shopping gain in 6 years (CNN Money)


Lately, and maybe it's just because I'm doing this thread everyday, I've really begun to notice the relentless positive spin put on all of the economic numbers. Last week we even caught two news outlets rewriting stories that were initially negative, in order to make them sound like good news. I find it gross; blatantly deceptive, even - but that's the world we live in now.

[tclambert]

31. It sometimes goes the other way, too.

For instance, in the article above, he says inflation is at 8.5%. Yet other sources tell us to worry about deflation. 8.5% sounds high to me. I don't have the means to calculate my own personal rate of inflation, though. I know gasoline went up. Bread and milk--I'm not sure. My wife said someone at a sewing class told her cotton is going up. Yet I bought a pretty good flannel shirt just now for $12.99. Damn, I forgot to check where it was made. I may have just supported slave labor.

[Ghost Dog]

34. I'm sure you have a good point there, tcl. There's a need to distinguish between

CPI on, as it were, 1). basic essentials; 2). the usual crap people get sold as substitutes for 1).; 3). brainless frivolities; 4). genuine luxuries; 5). um, iDickhead cable TV and social networking, etc...

[Pale Blue Dot]

36. On NPR tonight they said, essentially, minus food and fuel, inflation is almost nothing!

Why, exactly, are we subtracting out the two most important components of every family's budget?

[Ghost Dog]

39. ...And then ask, what do they mean by 'food',

in the context of the regular substitution of items in the 'basket' for cheaper substitutes.

[Ghost Dog]

32. Yes. It's very noticeable, viewed from afar, that is.

Problem is, once you've started spinning, and need to continue spinning in order to maintain a semblance of equilibrium (at least, if not actual malevolent 'growth'), how do you stop without falling over?

[Dappleganger]

37. This is our new reality.

[Pale Blue Dot]

2. Oil falls to near $91 on weak US jobs market

SINGAPORE – Oil prices fell to near $91 a barrel Friday in Asia as traders mulled whether demand in a slowly recovering U.S. economy will be enough to push crude above $100 soon.

Benchmark oil for February delivery was down 19 cents to $91.21 a barrel late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude lost 46 cents to settle at $91.40 on Thursday.

The Labor Department said Thursday that more people filed for unemployment aid last week in the U.S., tempering optimism that a strong economic recovery is under way.

Some analysts expect the U.S. economy to stumble this year, weakening crude consumption and prices. Capital Economics forecasts the oil price will fall to $75 in 2011.

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

[rfranklin]

3. Good morning , PBD...

first time in a long time that I have been the first rec.

Dug out of the snow?

[Pale Blue Dot]

6. Almost.

I'm old, so I'm doing it in stages. ;-)

[Festivito]

5. Debt: 01/12/2011 14,010,389,488,111.56 (DOWN 9,170,079,476.30) (Wed, DOWN a little.)

(Good morning.)
late day, er, ah, late night.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 9,383,200,281,716.37 + 4,627,189,206,395.19
DOWN 273,054,954.79 + DOWN 8,897,024,521.51

Source: Debt to the penny:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 311-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.21 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,214.12 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.64, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 311,127,392 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $45,031.04.
A family of three owes $135,093.11. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 24 reports in the last 30 to 33 days.
The average for the last 24 reports is 6,820,989,043.10.
The average for the last 30 days would be 5,456,791,234.48.
The average for the last 33 days would be 4,960,719,304.07.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 72 reports in 104 days of FY2011 averaging 6.23B$ per report, 4.32B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 739 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 15.0 and 17.8T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
01/12/2011 14,010,389,488,111.56 BHO (UP 3,383,512,439,198.48 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +0,448,766,457,219.80 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,574,997,662,357.95 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
12/23/2010 +001,962,709,844.10 ------------*********
12/24/2010 -000,001,321,466.66 -----
12/27/2010 -000,059,144,170.26 ---- Mon
12/28/2010 +001,124,227,282.97 ------------*********
12/29/2010 +000,165,778,043.38 ------------********
12/30/2010 +000,091,969,590.77 ------------*******
12/31/2010 +062,732,309,679.32 ------------**********
01/03/2011 -005,396,108,430.64 -- Mon
01/04/2011 -000,085,302,113.98 ----
01/05/2011 -000,029,576,179.10 ----
01/06/2011 -001,749,774,139.62 --
01/07/2011 +000,022,074,863.06 ------------*******
01/10/2011 -000,254,217,892.29 --- Mon
01/11/2011 +000,490,152,520.38 ------------********
01/12/2011 -000,273,054,954.79 ---

58,740,722,476.64 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4695124&mesg_id=4695278

[Ghost Dog]

7. Stocks Fall, 2-Year Yields Rise on Inflation Outlook; Oil Drops

Jan. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Stocks fell for a second day in Europe and two-year note yields climbed after China raised reserve requirements and Germany’s accelerating inflation fueled speculation central banks will step up measures to contain price growth. The Australian dollar weakened, and oil declined.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index lost 0.7 percent at 7 a.m. in New York. The yield on the two-year German note climbed five basis points to the highest since Feb. 3, and the implied yield on three-month Euribor futures jumped. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures slipped 0.2 percent, little changed after JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s earnings beat analysts’ estimates. India’s main share index sank to a four-month low after inflation quickened. The Australian dollar weakened against all major counterparts, and oil decreased 1.1 percent.

China’s central bank said it will raise the reserve- requirement ratio for the nation’s lenders by 50 basis points. Germany’s inflation accelerated to the fastest pace in more than two years in December, data from the Federal Statistics Office showed today, while European Central Bank council member Axel Weber said inflation risks could increase as the economic outlook improves. U.S. consumer prices probably rose amid a pickup in retail sales, economists said before reports today.

...

The two-year German note yield jumped 27 basis points in the week, and the yield on the similar-maturity gilt advanced six basis points today to 1.37 percent. U.K. producer prices rose more than economists forecast in December on higher costs for food and fuel, adding to the Bank of England’s challenge to contain inflation. The implied yield on three-month Euribor futures due in December increased seven basis points to 1.69 percent. The two-year U.S. Treasury note yield rose four basis points to 0.62 percent.

/... http://noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aZf0e9POZzyg&pos=2

[Ghost Dog]

9. China raises banks' required reserves again

BEIJING (Reuters) – China's central bank raised lenders' required reserves on Friday for the fourth time in just over two months to make good on its vow that inflation fighting will be a top priority for the year.

The 50-basis-point increase, effective January 20, will raise the reserve requirement ratio for China's biggest banks to a record high of 19.5 percent.

By forcing banks to lock up more of their cash with the central bank, Beijing hopes to drain the economy of excess money and tame rising prices, which it worries may stir social unrest.

...

Abundant cash is seen as the main driver of China's inflation, which hit a 28-month high of 5.1 percent in November as food and property prices soared.

/... http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110114/bs_nm/us_china_economy_rrr

[Pale Blue Dot]

8. U.S. Stock Futures Fluctuate Before Reports; Intel Gains on Sales Forecast

U.S. stock-index futures fluctuated as investors awaited reports on the country’s retail sales, industrial production and consumer confidence to gauge the health of the economy.

Intel Corp. surged 2.6 percent in German trading after the world’s biggest chipmaker forecast that its first-quarter sales will exceed analysts’ estimates. Alcoa Inc. slipped 0.6 percent in early New York trading as metal prices fell in London.

March contracts on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slipped 0.1 percent to 1,279.4 as of 10:45 a.m. in London. The S&P 500 is heading for a seventh straight weekly gain, the longest winning streak since May 2007. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures declined 0.1 percent to 11,668, while Nasdaq-100 Index futures added 0.1 percent to 2,304.25.

“The economy is picking up in the U.S., but the growth still isn’t strong enough to solve the unemployment issue,” said Jacques Porta, a Paris-based fund manager at Ofi Patrimoine, who helps oversee about $425 million in stocks. “Corporate earnings are going to be very important and companies will have to deliver very optimistic results as the market has high expectations.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-14/u-s-stock-futures-fluctuate-before-reports-intel-gains-on-sales-forecast.html

[xchrom]

10. Recommend

[Pale Blue Dot]

11. Citigroup Was On The Verge Of Failure, New Report Finds; Rescue Was Based On 'Gut Instinct'

Citigroup, the nation's third-largest bank by assets, was on the verge of being closed by regulators the week of Nov. 24, 2008 as depositors rapidly withdrew money and the bank's counterparties declined to provide it credit, according to a government report released Thursday.

The new findings shed light on the degree to which Citigroup, the financial services behemoth with a long history of finding itself in trouble and receiving government support, was actually in danger of failing during the fall of 2008. Until now, few were aware that Citi was perilously close to being shut down.

"We were on the verge of having to close this institution because it can't meet its liquidity Monday morning," said Sheila Bair, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, during a meeting the previous Sunday night, according to the report by the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

"Without substantial government intervention," said another FDIC official, bank regulators and Citigroup "project that Citibank will be unable to pay obligations or meet expected deposit outflows next week," according to the report.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/13/citigroup-was-on-the-verg_n_808721.html

[Hugin]

14. "Until now, few were aware that Citi was perilously close to being shut down."

I call BS! Once again... :eyes:

Obviously, they don't recall Meredith Whitney's warning... Just like they "don't recall" many other things.

[Tansy_Gold]

20. The Alberto Gonzales School of Banking?? n/t

[Roland99]

16. Oh, the entity that was formed illegally before Glass-Steagall was repealed?

fuck them

[bread_and_roses]

13. Great toon (n/t)

[Loge23]

15. Yes - love it!

So true too. All we are saying is give peace, health care for all, and equality a chance!
(thank you, John)

[DemReadingDU]

21. Holding hands, singing Kumbaya

[sam kane]

23. Love the toon

please send to Jon Stewart.

[xchrom]

18. kick

[mrdmk]

22. K & R for the toon

I like pictures :grouphug:

[xchrom]

24. Fitch downgrades Greece rating to junk status

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fitch-downgrades-greece-rating-to-junk-status-2011-01-14

The agency said a "high degree of uncertainty" surrounds Greece's goal of returning to international credit markets in 2012, as stipulated under the International Monetary Fund-European Union bailout.

thanks to another duer who post this in lbn.

[tclambert]

26. An update on the Ford Wixom plant.

I live about a mile from this 4.7 million square foot factory, shut down since 2007. Two companies (Xtreme Power and Clairvoyant Energy) announced they would move in and build a "renewable energy park." One company would make batteries, the other would make solar cells. Each would need about a million square feet. The rest would remain available for the ending of Terminator movies or some such. No, actually, they hope other renewable energy companies will move in.

At times when I have driven by, I have seen 70 - 100 cars in the parking lot, which I'm told are work crews tearing out old stuff and making the place ready for the new tenants. Then a couple of months ago, the entire parking lot filled up with about a thousand pickup trucks. Unfortunately they were all identical, surplus production from some other Ford plant. This alarmed me doubly. How can new owners move in with the parking lots filled? And why does Ford have so many surplus trucks?

I drove by today and the pickup trucks are all gone. For Ford's sake, I hope that means they were all sold.

But I still haven't seen any sign of the new companies moving in. The last report I saw on the subject says all the parties to the deal still intend to move forward. They just need final approval of their loan guarantees. Maybe, maybe the new companies will move in this fall.

Businesspeople and towns all around the plant have been anxiously awaiting this. A thousand new workers in the area would create a boom for all the restaurants, stores, and housing developments in the area. The guy who runs Leon's Family Dining across the street from the plant reopened the restaurant after having to close down for five months.

[tclambert]

27. Here's an anecdote about the plant, hearsay from my brother-in-law:

According to him, the township of Novi decided to incorporate as a city because of the Wixom plant. It seems Ford built the plant in Novi Township. But the rules in Michigan allowed a city to annex territory from bordering unincorporated townships. So the city of Wixom "stole" the Ford plant, and the massive tax base it provided, much to Novi's dismay. They didn't want something like that to ever happen again and organized a campaign to make themselves a city. One tiny neighborhood in the middle of Novi opted out and is still called Novi Township, a sweet deal for them because they don't pay for a lot of the services they get from the city.

By the way, Novi is pronounced No-vigh. It sounds like it ought to mean something in Latin. The town's lore says the name actually came from a stop on the rail line that runs diagonally through the city. The stop was number six, so they say, identified by a sign that read: NoVI.

[A HERETIC I AM]

40. Just an FYI re: those "Surplus" pickups.

They were 2011's, waiting to be released to the dealers. I worked for E & L Transport in the late 90's as a car hauler, and currently work in the same capacity for a firm based in the Tampa area. E & L hauled exclusively Ford products. What happens is, they begin production of the 2011 models before they can be released to dealers and the holding lot at the production plant, though large, quickly fills up. They then will begin sending units to other properties as holding lots. That explains why they showed up a few months ago and are now gone. They were all released for shipment and every single one of them was loaded onto a car hauler tractor trailer (carrying probably no more than 7 per truck) and taken either directly to a dealer within 500 miles or put on the railroad.

I've recently been through Kansas City where there is a GM plant. They have 2011 model year units stored at a local amusement park for the exact same reason.

[hamerfan]

29. JPMorgan reports 47% jump in 4Q profit

JPMorgan Chase & Co reported higher-than-expected quarterly earnings, helped by narrowing losses on bad loans that allowed it to release $2 billion in reserves:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41072604/ns/business-eye_on_the_economy/

Glad to see someone has money these days, :sarcasm:

[tclambert]

30. But I still want to know about silver. Specifically, what the hell happened in August, 2010?

I have never invested in precious metals. I always felt there was something faddish about ascribing such high values to shiny rocks. And there's something Lord of the Rings-ish about the term "precious metals." I half expect that one day people will wake up and realize shiny rocks have no intrinsic value. They only cost so much because people think they have value. More and more I have come to accept that that is how valuation works for everything. And I have to admit the tradition of precious metals being valuable shows no signs of disappearing any time soon.

Then someone posted a link to an article predicting silver would go up 60% this year. Someone also said it went up more than that last year. That got me thinking, "I wouldn't mind making a 60% return on investment." Cautious and contrary as I am, I also started asking, "Is this a bubble?"

I found how to look up historical values for silver on kitco.com (http://www.kitco.com/charts/historicalsilver.html) and something made me even more curious. Silver didn't go up 75% over the whole year. It fluctuated in the $17.50 to $18.50 range until late August. Then in the last four months of the year, it rose dramatically to $30.70.

I still don't know why.

Occurrences like this make me nervous. I'm old enough to remember when the Hunt brothers (Nelson Bunker Hunt and William Herbert Hunt) tried to corner the silver market. These two guys drove up the price of silver to $50 an ounce in January, 1980. It subsequently collapsed. Two months later, silver sold for $11 an ounce.

Is someone gaming the price of silver? Is China behind this?

And besides buying shares in a gold mine, is there a way I can invest in precious metals through my stock brokerage IRA?

[hamerfan]

33. "Happy Days Are Here Again"

Market closes:
DOW... +55
NASDAQ... +20
S&P 500... +9

[Ghost Dog]

35. Hmm. This just in: Brits and Russia Announce Energy Alliance

...

The financial media news are beside themselves with the after hours news that British Petroleum and the Russian state-controlled oil giant Rosneft will be swapping spit and taking long walks in the park, with potential consequences yet to come. BP is nominally a private company, but Her Majesty's government still owns a 'golden share' which it uses to make suggestions to a number of her subjects and especially former children, as do most developed nations. Or so I have been somewhat reliably informed.

After all, the Yanks have called dibs on the Mideast. Someone has to grab the Arctic while it is still melting.

It appears to some like a pre-emptive strategic move by the Brits who have been concerned about rumours of a joint economic deal developing between Germany and Russia involving engineering expertise and energy products such as natural gas.

The couples seem to be pairing off, but the evening is still early, and the band is just warming up.

/... http://jessescrossroadscafe.blogspot.com/2011/01/sp-500-and-ndx-march-futures-daily_14.html

[Ghost Dog]

38. Confirmed. See DU thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4696955