STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday 13 April

[ozymandius]

Wednesday April 13, 2005

COUNTING THE DAYS
DAYS REMAINING IN THE * REGIME 3 YEARS, 282 DAYS
DAYS SINCE DEMOCRACY DIED (12/12/00) 4 YEARS, 121 DAYS
WHERE'S OSAMA BIN-LADEN? 3 YEARS, 177 DAYS
DAYS SINCE ENRON COLLAPSE = 1235
Number of Enron Execs in handcuffs = 19
ENRON EXECS CONVICTED = 2
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

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON April 12, 2005

Dow... 10,507.97 +59.41 (+0.57%)
Nasdaq... 2,005.40 +13.28 (+0.67%)
S&P 500... 1,187.76 +6.55 (+0.55%)
10-Yr Bond... 4.36% -0.09 (-1.91%)
Gold future... 429.30 -1.10 (-0.26%)

GOLD, EURO, YEN, Dollars and Loonie




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. WrapUp by Ike Iossif - THE TECHNICAL PICTURE

-cut past many charts-

Summary

Despite today's spirited recovery, the indices still remain below resistance. A close above resistance would suggest "success" while a close below support (see table below) would suggest "failure." We believe that the odds favor "failure," but we learned a long time ago that it doesn't pay to argue with the market. If the markets close above resistance the trend will turn up and remain so until it turns down again! We expect failure, but we know better not to argue with success. In other words, the best place to be at the moment is in cash until the market--through its failure or success--gives us a reason to go partially long, or partially short.

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

[RawMaterials]

16. Resistance Table

   	                 DJIA  SP500  	NASDAQ

2nd Upside Target 	10975 	1235 	2100
1st Upside Target 	10750 	1210 	2070

Resistance 	        10625   1200 	2015-30
Support 	       10350    1165 	1970

1st Downside Target 	9950 	1140 	1900
2nd Downside Target 	9650 	1100 	1850

Ike Iossif 

morning oz, and everyone :hi: hope i can get my brain functioning, I'm still having trouble with the time change, plus work has been hectic.

:donut:

[UpInArms]

20. thanks for the table, RM

you know how much I love visuals :hi:

[RawMaterials]

22. NP UIA

I had to look at your source code to get the right HTML tag.

B-)

[On the Road]

63. Thanks for the Link, Ozy

I had never considered this:

"My read on the situation says the biggest part of our “growth” is coming from inflation. Remember that understated inflation means overstated GDP growth!"

[UpInArms]

2. daily dollar watch

http://quotes.ino.com/chart/?s=NYBOT_DXY0

Last trade 84.31 Change -0.11 (-0.13%)

Look Out Dollar! Fed To Continue Measured Pace According to March Minutes

http://www.dailyfx.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=695&Itemid=39

EURUSD

Trading proved to be quite interesting today as the dollar first sold off on the new record high in the trade balance, only to do a complete 360-degree turn, reversing once the market got a chance to look at the details of the release. To their disappointment, even though the deficit widened to $61 billion from $58.5 billion, the trade deficit with China actually shrank. The market had expected the abolition of textile quotas to result in another sharp surge in imports from China. The latest report though, indicates otherwise. The trade deficit with China actually fell $1.4 billion after exploding over the past two months. Instead, imports rose 1.6% between January and February as US consumers and businesses paid more for oil with crude oil imports rising 11.8%. For the time being, the market may be more interested in the immediate rewards of steadily rising US short term yields rather than the long term implications of a persistent trade deficit. Judging from the price action, it looks like the market is still holding out for Friday's Treasury International Capital flow (TIC) data before pounding the dollar based upon the proverbial deficits. Moving over to the Eurozone, the French trade balance widened more than expected due to higher oil and raw material prices. Unsurprisingly, rising oil prices have also pushed German wholesale prices above expectations. A government official from Luxembourg said it best today, when he noted that EU officials have no business trying to change China's currency regime when oil prices are weighing on Eurozone growth. The ECB should be focusing on spurring its own growth rather than muddling in the practices of a country who has no plans of succumbing to international pressure.

<snip>

USDJPY

The Japanese yen rebounded against the US dollar for the third consecutive day. No new developments to report from the Land of the Rising Sun. Japanese Finance Minister Tanigaki did confirm that there should be no change to the G7 stance on foreign exchange this weekend, especially with China not attending. Tensions are building between China and Japan over the Japanese textbook treatment of the invasion of China in WW2, calling it an "incident" rather than a "massacre. The Chinese government has already taken steps to contain the protests but the latest bout of words has Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao telling Japan to "face up to history." Although there should not be any lasting damage, the Chinese government is certainly using this opportunity to send a powerful message to the Japanese.

...more...

Instant Insight: Trade Balance At Record High, But Deficit With China Shrinks!

http://www.dailyfx.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=693&Itemid=39

The US Trade Balance widened to a new record high of $61 billion in February. Imports continued to rise by 1.6% while exports remain flat for the second consecutive month. US consumers and businesses paid more for oil, with crude oil imports rising 11.8%. The euro skyrocketed on the initial release but the details of the report were less discouraging which perfectly explains the near immediate dollar rebound. For the time being, the market may be more interested in immediate rewards of steadily rising US short term yields rather than the long term implications of a persistent trade deficit.

With oil prices beginning to retrace, future trade balances which have been particularly sensitive to oil could also fall in tandem. The key optimism from today's report is the surprisingly improvement in the trade balance with China - apparel imports only increased marginally despite the recent removal of the textile quotas. The trade deficit with China actually shrank by $1.4 billion after exploding the past two months. Year to date however, the trade deficit with China is still higher by 47.4%. It looks like the market wants to wait for Friday's TIC data before pounding the dollar based upon the proverbial deficits.

...more...

Ouch! on the 'toon, Ozy :D

Have a Great Day Marketeers!

[UpInArms]

15. Dollar falls after weak retail sales report

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.3609411921-834111769&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - The dollar lost strength after news that retail sales in March increased at a seasonally adjusted pace of 0.3%, weaker than the 0.7% advance predicted in a MarketWatch poll. The euro traded at $1.2950, up from $1.2916 before the news. The dollar traded at 107.17 yen, contrasting with 107.34 yen beforehand.

[54anickel]

52. Record Trade Deficit despite Lower Dollar

http://www.321gold.com/editorials/schiff/schiff041305.html

snip>

Although the dollar has indeed fallen for three consecutive years, and is now trading near its all-time record low, America's monthly trade deficit is now at its highest level ever. If February's dismal performance were repeated each month for an entire year, America's annual trade deficit would eclipse $730 Billion (approximately $2,400 worth of borrowed goods for every man, woman, and child in the United States). However, in the absence of a significant change in the current dynamic, and given its current trajectory, this staggering projection is likely to be exceeded.

The reality is that a falling dollar, by itself, only exacerbates the trade deficit, by increasing the cost of imports. In addition, as domestic savings continue to decline, America becomes less able to finance the capital investments necessary to increase the production of consumer goods, thereby diminishing its ability to export. Today's data evidences this perfectly, as imports surged 1.6% while exports rose by a meager .1%

What is required for America to balance its books is a substantial change in the underlying dynamic of its dysfunctional economy. To export more and import less, Americans must consume less and produce more, requiring them to save more and borrow less. Since better than 80% of U.S. GDP is dependent on borrowing and spending, this adjustment will require a significant recession, unprecedented in the post-war era. In addition, as service sector jobs produce a limited output of tradable goods, significant transitory unemployment will result as many service sector workers seek more productive employment.

Further, as this transition necessitates much higher interest rates, and significantly lower assets prices (particularly stocks and residential real estate) its ramifications are indeed profound. Efforts by the government, the Fed, and foreign central banks to resist this change and postpone the recession, only serve to increase the size of the ultimate adjustment required. This delay will only exacerbate the economic pain inherent in the transition.

bit more...

[54anickel]

69. What Insiders Think of the Dollar (Bit gold buggy in the end)

http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_05/swanson041105.html

snip>

He notes that the government budget deficit and America’s consumption of goods and services has forced the United States to borrow $540 billion a year from the rest of the world. “This unprecedented current account deficit is paid for through direct lending and net sales of US assets to foreign businesses or persons: everything from stocks and bonds to corporations and real estate. “The United States,” he writes, “imports roughly $4 billion of foreign capital each day, half of that to cover the current-account deficit and the other half to finance investments abroad. At 5.4% percent of GDP in the first quarter of 2004, this deficit is substantially higher than its previous record (3.5 percent of GDP) in 1987, when the dollar fell by a third and the stock market took its “Black Monday” plunge.”

Economists at the Federal Reserve believe this deficit is going to continue to grow, with dire implications. According to Peterson, “If nothing else were to change, borrowing would continue until foreigners accumulate all the US assets they cared to own, at which point a rise in interest rates(choking off investment) and a decline in the dollar (choking off imports and stimulating exports) would gradually close the current-account deficit....In the absence of an increase in the national savings rate, people would just have to get by with less investment in their own economy and debt-service payments would no longer rise. Instead, Americans would simply make do with less capital, slower growth in GDP, and, of course, a slower rate of increase in their living standards.”

Peterson calls this a best case “soft landing” scenario. The alternative is a continual decline in the dollar that eventually snowballs into a fall blown panic, which leads to a sharp jump in inflation, soaring interest rates, and loss in confidence in the economy. It would be the type of thing that we’ve seen happen over the past few years in Argentina.

Peterson interviewed tons of powerful people to write this article. “Many see a real risk of a crisis. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volker says the odds of this happening are around 75 percent within the next five years,” he writes, “former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin talks of a day of serious reckoning.”

more...

[paula777]

97. 75 percent chance of a collapse eh. I've read other things that say

there is a 100% chance so a 75% chance sounds good. How pathetic is that!

[UpInArms]

3. Greenberg Puts $2.2 Billion AIG Stake in Wife's Name

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=awvTZFWnVo8M&refer=top_world_news

April 12 (Bloomberg) -- Maurice ``Hank'' Greenberg, ousted from American International Group Inc. amid an accounting probe, transferred $2.2 billion of AIG shares to his wife's name four days before he stepped down as chief executive last month.

The gift of 41.4 million shares represents most of Greenberg's stake in the company, according to a filing today with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Greenberg made the transfer to Corinne P. Greenberg on March 11, the filing said.

Greenberg, 79, may be seeking to shield his wealth from lawsuits that may come from the accounting investigation, said former federal prosecutor Christopher Bebel. Shares of New York- based AIG, the world's largest insurer, have declined 27 percent since the company disclosed subpoenas from New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and the SEC on Feb. 14.

``He's probably trying to shelter those assets from civil litigants,'' said Bebel, who now practices law in Houston.

...more...

[UpInArms]

17. AIG, Harley-Davidson, McDonald's

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/print_story.asp?print=1&guid={A8EBA5AE-D568-4667-B422-F554A0636683}&siteid=mktw

AIG (AIG: news, chart, profile) may be in focus again after the company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that Maurice "Hank" Greenberg, the Dow component's ousted chief executive officer, recently gave a gift of 41.4 million shares of AIG to his wife, Corinne P. Grrenberg.

<snip>

MBIA Inc. (MBI: news, chart, profile) said that a series of class-action lawsuits have been filed against the insurance and investment-services company and that it anticipates further suits. The suits filed to date allege MBIA failed to make various disclosures covering business activities and transactions dating back as far as 1998, according to a company filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. "No time currently is set for MBIA Inc. to respond to the complaints," the company said. Shares of MBIA added $1.03, or 1.9%, to end Tuesday's trading at $55.40.

<snip>

Pinnacle Systems (PCLE: news, chart, profile) warned that fiscal 3Q revenue would miss expectations, as uncertainty regarding the acquisition of the company by Avid Technology (AVID: news, chart, profile) slowed orders from its distribution channels. The digital media company now expects revenue of $64 million to $66 million, below prior projections of $74 million to $77 million. The stock closed Tuesday down 8 cents at $5.54, and were currently halted for trading for news dissemination.

...more...

[spotbird]

23. That kind of family devotion is touching.

Isn't that a sham transaction? Would it really protect him?

[UpInArms]

26. definitely a sham transaction

and no, it won't protect those assets from civil litigation. :evilgrin:

[Tace]

32. Yeah, But He (She) Can Get A Little Cover To Get The Assets Offshore

I'm ignorant about this stuff, but it would seem that she may not be bound by the same SEC laws regarding moving some of those bucks out of the reach of U.S. authorities.

It may simply buy a little time, which if Ken Lay is any indicator, is worth something... especially to an older fella'.

[AnneD]

56. Please....

Issue a spew alert. Coffee is rough on the electronics and the clothing....:spray:
Morning marketeer, love to read this thread daily, I learn so much...thanks:hi:
Say what about them going after the big tax cheats...those Bahama trusts, etc. I heard one guy settled up and payed 400 mil. How many earned income credit single moms would they have to lean on to get that amount.

[UpInArms]

60. Maurice Greenberg took the Fifth Amendment "dozens of times"

http://www.newsday.com/business/ny-bzaig134215515apr13,0,6682167.story?coll=ny-business-headlines

Maurice Greenberg took the Fifth Amendment "dozens of times" when he was questioned yesterday about possibly illegal transactions between the giant insurance firm he headed for nearly 40 years and a unit of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc., sources told Newsday.

Greenberg, 79, who stepped down last month as chief executive of the world's largest insurer, American International Group Inc., invoked his right against self-incrimination to all questions except his name during a 45- minute session with state and federal regulators, the sources said.

He even took the Fifth when asked who his employer had been, said a source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The session took place at State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's Broadway offices. Regulators from the New York State Insurance Department and federal prosecutors also questioned Greenberg.

<snip>

Greenberg had been advised to take the Fifth by his attorneys, who have argued Greenberg has not been given enough time to prepare for questioning.

...more...

:wow: He didn't have time to prepare an answer about who his employer had been for the past 40 years?!?! Sheesh!

[UpInArms]

4. Naming Names - NYSE Specialists Indicted for Fraud, Improper Trading

NYSE Specialists Indicted for Fraud, Improper Trading (Update8)

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&refer=top_world_news&sid=aJxtzBxBD5IY

excerpt:

As a specialist with Fleet Specialist Inc., David Finnerty, 38, handled NYSE trading of General Electric Co. shares.

<snip>

Seven of the 15 specialists charged worked at Van der Moolen. Five, Joseph Bongiorno, 50; Michael Hayward, 51; Michael Stern, 54, Richard Volpe, 45; and Robert Scavone, 45, had supervisory roles at the exchange. Bongiorno was among the 20 senior NYSE officials known as floor governors.

<snip>

The remaining two former Van der Moolen specialists charged are Patrick McGagh, 39, and Gerard Hayes, 44. Together, the seven conspired to break securities laws and their actions cost customers at least $5.9 million, according to the indictments.

In addition to Finnerty, Fleet employed three of the indicted specialists: Thomas Murphy Jr., 41; Scott Hunt, 36; and Donald Foley, 44. The remaining four specialists charged are Robert Johnson, 40, of Spear Leeds; Kevin Fee, 37, and Frank Delaney, 42, of Bear Wager; and Freddy DeBoer, 43 of LaBranche.

<snip>

The SEC's suit names the same 15 specialists, as well as five more not criminally charged. The five include Todd Christie, 40, and Robert Luckow, 57, both former CEOs of Spear Leeds, the specialist firm that Goldman acquired for more than $6.1 billion in 2000.

``Mr. Luckow does not believe he did anything wrong,'' said Richard Morvillo, a lawyer representing him in the SEC suit. Paul Shechtman, a lawyer representing Christie, didn't immediately reply to calls seeking comment.

Two more, James Parolisi, 42, and Patrick Murphy, 45, also worked at Spear Leeds. The third, Warren Turk, 36, worked at Van der Moolen.

<snip>

The two remaining NYSE specialist firms, both of which aren't mentioned by name in the indictments or the SEC suit, are SIG Specialists Inc. and Performance Specialist Group.

The Big Board itself is a repeat offender. The SEC rebuked the exchange in 1999 for failing to properly oversee its floor trading. The following year, SEC inspectors visited the floor and found lingering deficiencies in surveillance, according to a 2001 agency report.

...more...

[UpInArms]

27. oooh! "discipline"?

9:21am 04/13/05 NYSE DISCIPLINES FLEET SECURITIES, 7 INDIVIDUALS

what did they do? spank their pinkies? send them to the corner? make them where dunce caps?

[UpInArms]

28. NYSE disciplines Fleet Securities, 7 individuals (ouch! NOT!)

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.3961084375-834113548&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The New York Stock Exchange said Wednesday it has taken disciplinary action against Fleet Securities Inc. (BAC) and seven individuals for violations of NYSE rules securities laws. The NYSE fined Fleet $100,000.

oh my! that must have hurt for like ... 2 seconds. :argh:

[UpInArms]

39. Goldman specialist barred from NYSE

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BE9CDC9F9%2DA9B9%2D4D84%2D9B51%2D1F377CAE3FEF%7D&siteid=mktw

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Two New York Stock Exchange floor specialists, charged this week with improper trading, have been barred from the business, the Big Board said Wednesday.

The NYSE barred former Fleet Specialist David A. Finnerty and former Spear Leeds Kellogg specialist James V. Parolisi, who had failed to appear and testify in the exchange's investigation into improper trading. See full story.

Parolisi was censured and permanently barred from the NYSE. Finnerty was given 60 days to appear before the hearing panel. Finnerty has testified twice in the case.

Spear Leeds Kellogg, which was renamed Goldman Sachs Execution & Clearing LP in January, is a unit of Goldman Sachs. (GS: news, chart, profile) .

Fleet, now a unit of Bank of America (BAC: news, chart, profile) , was fined $100,000 in a separate case. The NYSE charged that the unit failed to supervise its record keeping.

...more...

[UpInArms]

5. Tobacco seeks new discovery in DOJ racketeering case

Tobacco seeks new discovery in DOJ racketeering case

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BBA660EFF%2D141A%2D40AC%2DA259%2D3BC8301577A3%7D

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Tobacco industry lawyers on Tuesday requested additional discovery to prepare for the remedies phase of the government's racketeering trial against the industry.

In late February, District Court Judge Gladys Kessler, who's hearing the nonjury trial, granted the Justice Department's request to postpone its remedies phase until after the industry's defense, which is in its second month.

"It is unquestionable that the discovery is relevant and it is unquestionable that it is necessary in light of the midtrial re-invention of the government's remedies case," industry lawyers wrote in a brief to Kessler.

The government had sought $280 billion in disgorgement of past tobacco profits and proceeds in order to prevent future fraud, but it was left scrambling when an appeals court panel rejected that effort, saying disgorgement wasn't aimed at preventing future fraud.

<snip>

DOJ has conceded in court papers that the disgorgement ruling necessitated a recalculation of available penalties should the industry be found to have committed racketeering fraud by denying smoking's health effects and addictiveness over decades.

Other penalties include industry funding of smoking cessation programs, antismoking ads aimed at youth and court-appointed industry monitors that would have the power to fire senior industry executives.

...more...

(off topic - but ....)

[UpInArms]

6. Refinancing Slump Brings Job Cuts

http://news.tbo.com/news/MGB41X4WG7E.html

TAMPA - A St. Petersburg mortgage refinancing company says rising interest rates are forcing it to cut local jobs.

Mortgage Investors Corp. cut 200 workers Monday, bringing its local employment to between 450 and 500. The bulk of the cuts were in the Tampa Bay area, and national employment now stands at about 1,000.

The company's primary business is refinancing mortgages for U.S. veterans, and with interest rates rising, demand for refinancing is down, company officials said.

``We feel terrible, but we have to do this to stay in business,'' said chief executive Bill Edwards.

...more...

[UpInArms]

7. Today's Reports:

Apr 13	8:30 AM	Retail Sales		Mar	-	1.0%	0.8%	0.5%	-	
Apr 13	8:30 AM	Retail Sales ex-auto	Mar	-	0.7%	0.5%	0.4%	-

[UpInArms]

10. U.S. March retail sales rise 0.3%, less than expected

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.3542296759-834111347&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. retail sales increased a seasonally adjusted 0.3% in March, boosted by sales of autos and gasoline, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. Excluding the 0.7% gain in auto sales, retail sales advanced just 0.1%, the slowest gain in a year. Sales at the malls were weak. Excluding both autos and the 2.1% increase in gas sales, sales fell 0.1%, the first decline in a year. Economists were expecting stronger sales of about 0.7% for total sales and 0.5% for sales excluding autos. Sales at general merchandise stores fell 0.7%.

8:30am 04/13/05 U.S. MARCH AUTO SALES UP 0.7%

8:30am 04/13/05 U.S. MARCH GASOLINE SALES UP 2.1%

8:30am 04/13/05 U.S. MARCH GEN. MERCHANDISE STORE SALES FALL 0.7%

8:30am 04/13/05 U.S. FEB. RETAIL SALES REVISED UP TO 0.5% VS. 0.4%

8:30am 04/13/05 U.S. MARCH RETAIL SALES EX-AUTOS, EX-GAS DOWN 0.1%

8:30am 04/13/05 U.S. MARCH SALES EX-AUTOS UP 0.1% VS. 0.5% EXPECTED

8:30am 04/13/05 U.S. MARCH RETAIL SALES UP 0.3% VS. 0.7% EXPECTED

[UpInArms]

31. March Retail Sales Weaker Than Expected

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=businessNews&storyID=8168476

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. retail sales rose 0.3 percent in March, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday, falling short of expectations after a sharp downturn in department store and clothing sales.

Wall Street had forecast a 0.7 percent rise in retail sales last month due to higher gasoline prices and based on assumptions that consumers would stock up on spring clothing. February's number was unchanged at up 0.5 percent.

Economists scrutinize retail sales as the key to consumer spending, which in turn makes up two-thirds of U.S. economic output. The numbers give a clue to how households were coping with sizzling oil prices at the end of the first quarter.

Higher energy costs are a tax on household budgets that can crimp spending. Clothing sales declined 1.9 percent while department store sales were off 2.0 percent.

...more...

[UpInArms]

61. Retail sales hurt by higher gas costs

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D89EJFU80.htm?campaign_id=apn_home_down

APR. 13 11:17 A.M. ET Consumers hit by higher gasoline costs cut back spending on clothes and many other items last month, raising concerns about whether the economy might be entering another "soft patch" similar to last year's slowdown.

The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that retail sales rose a disappointing 0.3 percent in March, far below expectations for a 0.8 percent rise.

What strength there was came mainly from auto sales, which climbed 0.7 percent in March. Excluding autos, retail sales rose by just 0.1 percent last month, the weakest showing in nearly a year, since a 0.1 percent drop in April 2004.

That decline occurred as the U.S. economy was entering what Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan termed a "soft patch" as growth slowed abruptly during the spring of last year. Consumers at that time, too, were hit by higher energy bills, and they responded by abruptly cutting back their spending in other areas.

Analysts said the same thing could be occurring again this year although more data will be needed to confirm that.

...more...

Oh Boy! That sure is a mighty big "soft patch"! Feels more like quicksand to me :eyes:

[54anickel]

35. U.S. Treasury Notes Gain; Retail Sales Rise Less Than Forecast

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000006&sid=acNwC4JB6WAk&refer=home

April 13 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Treasury notes rose after a government report showed retail sales in March rose less than forecast, boosting speculation the Federal Reserve can stick to a policy of gradually raising interest rates.

Signs of weaker consumer spending may damp speculation that inflation is quickening. Even as inflation risks are ``now tilted a little to the upside,'' Fed policy makers said ``a degree of economic slack apparently remained'' and an ``accelerated pace'' of rate increases is not necessary for the time being.

``With these type of numbers, the bond market is realizing the Fed is not going to be as aggressive as most people were expecting it to be,'' said Andrew Harding, director of taxable fixed-income assets at National City Investment Management in Cleveland who manages $6 billion. ``The Treasury market has a good excuse to rebuild long positions.''

snip>

The retail report comes a day after Treasury 10-year notes had their biggest gain in more than two months, when minutes of the Fed's March rate meeting suggested policy makers see no need to move faster on rate increases. They may even pause in raising rates ``if the data warrants,'' according to the minutes.

``The Fed may stop earlier rather than later,'' said Gerald Lucas, head of U.S. Treasury and agency debt strategy at Banc of America Securities LLC in New York. ``This may keep the Fed from going 50'' basis points in a single increase, but won't put an end to the cycle of higher rates, he said.

more...

[UpInArms]

8. Pathmark delays annual report; swings to Q4 loss (impaired goodwill)

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.3304440162-834110160&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Pathmark Stores, Inc. (PTMK) delayed its annual report until April 29 on "complex accounting issues" but said any adjustments won't be material to operating results. The supermarket chain also reported a fourth-quarter loss of $262.3 million, or $8.73 per share, compared to earnings of $9.6 million, or 32 cents per share, last year. The loss includes a pre-tax, non-cash charge of $270.4 million, or $8.76 per diluted share, for the impairment of goodwill. Sales were $996.8 million, a decrease of 1.6% and same-store sales fell 2.6%. Shares rose 10 cents to $6.25 on Tuesday.

[fasttense]

9. Thanks Ozymandius and Upinarms. I always look forward to your postings.

[UpInArms]

14. Hi fasttense!

Glad you're out there lurking :D

Come on in anytime :hi:

[UpInArms]

11. Harley-Davidson cuts full-year forecast

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B2452A852%2D27FF%2D4FF5%2D9B78%2DC1FC02E9A6CB%7D&siteid=mktw

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Shares in Harley-Davidson Inc. tumbled in pre-market trading Tuesday after the company cut its full-year profit growth forecast because of lower-than-expected first-quarter motorcycle sales.

The Milwaukee, Wisc., motorcycle manufacturer (HDI: news, chart, profile) saw its stock fall 9.8%, or $5.77, to $53 before the opening bell.

As part of its first-quarter earnings report, Harley-Davidson said fiscal 2005 earnings are now projected to grow 5% to 8%, down from its prior outlook for a 14% to 16% increase.

<snip>

The company also lowered its full-year motorcycle shipment target to 329,000 from 339,000 due to the lower-than-expected first-quarter sales

...more...

[Zynx]

30. Before that, Harley had a bigger market cap. than GM.

[UpInArms]

12. Foreign Investments: US agency approves VSNL's acquisition of Tyco assets

http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/apr132005/update955152005413.asp

The approval by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) will give VSNL control over 60,000 km of undersea communications cable spanning three continents.


Tatas-controlled Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd today got clearance from a US government agency for acquisition of undersea cable assets of Tyco Global Network (TGN) for 130 million dollars.

The approval by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) will give VSNL control over 60,000 km of undersea communications cable spanning three continents.

"CFIUS, the regulatory body tasked with investigating potential national security concerns, issued a formal notice to VSNL that its review of the situation uncovered no significant issues of national security with regard to this transaction," a VSNL spokesperson said.

<snip>

Earlier, AP reported that the US Justice Department, FBI, Homeland Security Department and Defence Department signed a 32-page agreement with the company to guarantee the US government can continue to install court-authorized wiretaps on the network and conduct background checks on VSNL employees in the United States.

...more...

[punpirate]

89. Slightly more than...

... $2K/km. Bargain basement rates. Couldn't buy the cable new for that price, let alone lay it underwater and pay for the repeaters. In the `80s, AT&T laid a 27K km cable between Great Britain and Japan at a cost of well over a billion dollars.

Hope VSNL at least kissed Tyco.

[Sven77]

13. interesting perspective on peak oil

Respected Scientist Says Peak Oil Is A Scam
http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/april2005/120405peakoilscam.htm

Prison Planet | April 12 2005

This is a 1 hour+ audio clip featuring Alex Jones' comments on peak oil and then the analysis of Dr. Nick Begich.

i listened to this radio show and thought it had some interesting ideas. Enviromental preserves are just to keep oil off the market and raise prices, car manufacturers keep new technologies off the market, the british crown owns 25% of BP, how the government takes over countries and sells off its oil to private companies, and how 5 oil companies (soon to be 4) own 95% of all the worlds oil preserves. don't quote me on any of these, im just tring to remember the major/controversial points.

[RawMaterials]

19. PBS ran a special about the developing world

and how we are running out of resources. at the end the one scientist said(I will try to quote from memory) " that humans have gone millions of years without oil, but will only last days with out H20".. he went on to point out that the loss of water is much more of an issue then the loss of oil, but no body seems to be concerned with the loss of water.

[UpInArms]

18. IMF projects global growth slowdown

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B602742A0%2DF9D1%2D4CFE%2D833D%2DF23FE2106011%7D&siteid=mktw

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- With downside risks proliferating, the global economy will moderate from the strong 5.1% growth rate seen last year, the International Monetary Fund said in a report released on Wednesday."The balance of risks to the short-term outlook is tilted to the downside," the IMF said in its latest World Economic Outlook, timed to be released ahead of the IMF/World Bank spring meetings this weekend.

Almost everywhere, the IMF sensed danger to the global economic outlook.

The IMF said it was concerned that U.S. financial market conditions "could tighten significantly," which would hurt domestic demand and potentially cause a shift of funds from emerging markets.

Another risk is from the oil markets, which are expected to remain tight and vulnerable to price shocks.

<snip>

If this continued, it could widen the U.S. current-account deficit, which already ballooned to a record $665.9 billion in 2004.

And this in turn would increase the risk of what the IMF called "a low probability but high-cost event" in which investors get skittish about dollar assets and pull their money out, sending the dollar plunging as interest rates shoot up and the U.S. economy stalls.

"A further -- and possibly disorderly -- depreciation of the U.S. dollar cannot be ruled out," the report concluded.

...more...

[RawMaterials]

21. IMF says US efforts to reduce twin deficits insufficient - German source

BERLIN (AFX) - The International Monetary Fund has criticised the US' efforts to reduce its twin deficits as insufficient, a German government source said, citing the IMF's spring World Economic Outlook report due to be released later today

The IMF said the latest data on the US current account deficit were not satisfactory, the source said

It also said the US does not have a credible strategy that would consolidate the US budget in the medium-term

Meanwhile, the IMF is concerned about a number of potential risks to the global growth outlook, the German source said

The risks include the high price of oil and global economic imbalances, such as the over-dependence of the world economy on China and the US for growth, the source said

In its spring report, the IMF believes that the dollar could continue to fall against the euro and US interest rates might rise strongly, the source continued. Higher interest rates in industrialised countries could lead to a slump in property prices which would, in turn, erode household confidence, the IMF warned.



http://www.fxstreet.com/nou/noticies/afx/noticia.asp?pv_noticia=1113386106-e04a0f08-19659

[UpInArms]

24. pre-opening blather

briefing.com

9:15AM: S&P futures vs fair value: -1.8. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -6.0.

9:00AM: S&P futures vs fair value: -2.0. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -6.0. Still shaping up to be a lower open for the cash market, as the futures market continues to trade close to fair value... Aside from the disappointing retail sales data, investors have had to juggle mixed earnings and guidance... McDonald's (MCD) has issued upside Q1 guidance while Harley-Davidson (HDI) has beaten Q1 estimates by a penny but lowered its FY05 EPS guidance, prompting an analyst downgrade...

Last night, Compuware (CPWR) and Foundry Networks (FDRY) also warned, providing investors with little in the way of enough upbeat news to extend yesterday's late-day gains

8:34AM: S&P futures vs fair value: -1.8. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -6.5. Futures trade ticks a bit lower following economic data, still indicating a lower open for the indices... Mar. retail sales checked in at 0.3%, well below expectations, while ex autos came in at 0.1%, also below expectations and versus a revised 0.6% (up from 0.4%)... In response to the data, Treasurys have rallied, as the 10-yr note is now up 6 ticks yielding 4.32%

8:00AM: S&P futures vs fair value: -0.5. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -4.5. Futures market versus fair value suggesting a lackluster open for the cash market as investors await economic data... At 8:30 ET, Mar. Retail Sales (consensus +0.8%) and Retail Sales ex-auto (consensus +0.5%) will be released...

ino.com

The June NASDAQ 100 was slightly lower overnight as it consolidates some of Tuesday's rally but remains above the 10-day moving average crossing at 1491.35. Stochastics and the RSI have turned bearish signaling that the short covering rebound off March's low might be coming to an end. Closes below Tuesday's low crossing at 1466 would confirm that the corrective rebound has come to an end, while opening the door for a possible test of last month's low crossing at 1463.50 later this spring. Multiple closes above the downtrend line crossing near 1512.15 are needed to confirm that a short-term low has been posted. The June NASDAQ 100 was down 2.00 pts. at 1491.50 as of 5:48 AM ET. Overnight action sets the stage for a steady to lower opening by the NASDAQ composite index later this morning.

The June S&P 500 index was lower overnight as it consolidates some of Tuesday's rally but remains above the 10-day moving average crossing at 1185.69. Stochastics and the RSI are neutral to bullish signaling that sideways to higher prices are possible near-term. Multiple closes below Tuesday's low crossing at 1173.20 would confirm that the short covering rally off March's low has come to an end. Closes above last week's high crossing at 1195.70 are needed to open the door for a possible test of the 50% retracement level of March's decline crossing at 1200.40. The June S&P 500 Index was down 1.70 pts. at 1188.30 as of 5:51 AM ET. Overnight action sets the stage for a steady to lower opening when the day session begins later this morning.

[RawMaterials]

25. Rising Steel Prices Force Changes in Construction Plans

But since planning started on the development, which had a $50 million construction budget two years ago, the prices of steel and other construction materials have soared, and Mr. Friedman undertook an eight-month redesign to bring the construction budget, which had risen to $70 million, down to $64 million. Because of the higher total cost, he was also required to put up an additional $6 million in equity.

snip..

Since June 2003, the price of steel has doubled. The costs of copper, gypsum, plywood, lumber, cement and petroleum used to fabricate, transport and install many materials have also increased steeply, if less drastically.

In construction, steel is pervasive. It is in structural frames, floor decks, ceiling grids, air-handling systems, wiring, plumbing, interior studs and bars that reinforce concrete. Last November, an index reflecting the cost of a theoretical market basket of steel products peaked at 412.6, according to the Producer Price Index compiled by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices then turned down and by January, the most recent month for which the index is available, they had eased off to 330.7, but this is still double the level of 165 in mid-2003.

Such nettlesome price increases have been compounded by the difficulty at times in obtaining steel and other materials as the fast-growing economies in Asia, especially China, soak up supplies

snip..

Furthermore, for the college's wider expansion plan, totaling approximately $500 million, "the inflation of construction dollars may delay some projects," he added.

In February, the Trump Organization started site preparations in Chicago for an $850 million, 2.6-million-square-foot mixed-use tower. To keep costs in line, it now has a concrete foundation rather than the steel frame that the architect, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, had originally planned, said Donald J. Trump Jr., the vice president for development. He cautioned that if steel prices spiked again and interest rates rose, "the real estate market will decline."

snip..

Architects must design years in advance with prices of land, financing, materials and construction in mind. Now, by the time construction starts, "it's difficult to foresee what will happen to costs," said Mark Sarkisian, a partner at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in San Francisco.

snip..

Indeed, Mr. Timothy added, because of "the largest price increases I've seen in 25 years" for steel, he estimates that overall construction costs in 2004 increased about 12 percent compared with a more common annual inflation rate in construction of about 3 percent. "Private developers can adjust by cutting quality, but cities and states everywhere are finding it real tough," he said.

Recently, the nearby city of Waltham delayed construction of two schools in its $154.2 million eight-school expansion plan as high building costs compounded other problems. "If the United States still had a major steel industry, this wouldn't be such a problem," said John Cervone, chief of staff to Mayor Jeannette McCarthy. "It's gone beyond a ripple to a domino effect."

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/13/business/13prop.html?pagewanted=2&oref=login

[UpInArms]

29. 9:32 EST markets are open

Dow 10,493.05 -14.92 (-0.14%)
Nasdaq 1,998.80 -6.60 (-0.33%)
S&P 500 1,185.15 -2.61 (-0.22%)
10-Yr Bond 4.338 -0.22 (-0.50%)

NYSE Volume 29,997,000
Nasdaq Volume 42,192,000

[UpInArms]

36. 10:07 EST numbers and blather

Dow 10,496.59 -11.38 (-0.11%)
Nasdaq 1,996.26 -9.14 (-0.46%)
S&P 500 1,184.26 -3.50 (-0.29%)
10-Yr Bond 4.338 -0.22 (-0.50%)

NYSE Volume 264,575,000
Nasdaq Volume 253,773,000

10:00AM: Equities remain on the defensive as the bulk of sector leadership remains negative... Eight out of 10 economic sectors have traded lower, with Materials (-0.9%) pacing the way lower due to weakness in Aluminum, Steel and Paper... Information Technology (-0.6%) has also been an influential leader to the downside, amid discouraging news about the semi cap equipment space (-1.8%), while Energy (-0.3%) has been under pressure amid falling oil prices ahead of weekly oil data...

At 10:30 ET, the EIA is expected to report a 300K barrel increase in crude oil inventories and a 500K build in distillates while gasoline supplies are expected to remain unchanged at 212.3 mln barrels... Consumer Staples (+0.1%) and Health Care (+0.1%), however, have eked out modest gains...DJTA -0.5, DJUA -0.7, SOX -1.2, NYSE Adv/Dec 947/1470, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1005/1350

9:40AM: Stocks show no follow through from yesterday's late-day recovery amid disappointing retail sales data... March retail sales rose 0.3% but checked in well below expectations of 0.8%, while the total excluding auto sales grew just 0.1%, also below forecasts (+0.5%), following a revised 0.6% rise a month earlier... While the weaker than expected March data may raise doubts about the trend in consumer spending, the numbers are not expected to greatly alter Q1 GDP estimates, which currently stand at about 3 1/2%...

In the meantime, stocks remain weak across the board while Treasurys, in contrast, have held onto modest gains following the downside retail sales surprise, as the 10-yr note is up 4 ticks yielding 4.33%...

[54anickel]

33. Reed database theft toll soars

http://business.scotsman.com/media.cfm?id=389312005

REED Elsevier, the Anglo-Dutch publishing group, said the number of people whose profiles had been stolen from its United States databases may be ten times as many as first thought.

Reed originally believed criminals had accessed personal details of 32,000 individuals via a security breach at its Seisint unit - part of its LexisNexis arm - but that figure has now been lifted to around 310,000.

The possible theft emerged last month when Reed processed the billing complaint of one of its customers, which led to US authorities being called in to investigate.

Information that may have been accessed includes names, addresses, social security and drivers’ licence numbers - but not credit history, medical records or financial information. In a statement, the company said the financial implications of the unauthorised access to LexisNexis databases "are expected to be manageable".

Expected to be manageable!?!? What friggen BS! This is one of my pet peeves - SS numbers floating all over the place. Supposedly by law, you are only required to give it to an entity that will pay you taxable income. Yet you can't even get friggen telephone service in my area any more without giving them your SS number. Let's not even get into job applications these days, especially the ones that will only accept applications on-line!

And what's the first stinkin' "Ads by Google" that comes up with this story?


Social Security Number
Lookup Anyone By SSN The High Power People Finder!
www.USATrace.com
:banghead:

[54anickel]

93. Senators Promise Crackdown on Data Brokers

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=666759

WASHINGTON Apr 13, 2005 — In the wake of news that a breach at information broker LexisNexis may have exposed personal information of three times more consumers than initially reported, senators promised a tough new crackdown Wednesday on the loosely regulated commercial data-brokering business.

"There's no federal legislation on the subject … It is my conclusion that we do need federal legislation, that there needs to be uniformity," Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., said at a hearing where senators grilled top executives of LexisNexis and two other leading data brokers.

Data brokers collect personal information on consumers from drivers license and Social Security numbers to medical records and sell it to insurance companies, prospective employers, the IRS, law enforcement agencies and others.

snip>

Several members of the Senate have introduced legislation, including requirements that consumers be notified when their personal information is breached a provision now in place only in California.


:eyes: Gee, thanks guys for looking out for me. How's about returning the to idea of personal information being PERSONAL!!! :grr:

[UpInArms]

95. What, Me Worry About ID Theft?

http://www.fool.com/News/mft/2005/mft05041309.htm

A couple months ago, things were looking pretty grim for the personal information industry. Data-collator ChoicePoint (NYSE: CPS) reported first 35,000, and then 145,000 likely victims of a hack attack on its personal information database. Then, as bad as it was, the situation grew considerably worse with yesterday's announcement by Anglo-Dutch information provider Reed Elsevier (NYSE: ENL).

Reed, you'll recall, had suffered a similar but different disaster to that which struck ChoicePoint. In the latter case, an elaborate scheme was employed to set up fake businesses, buy access to ChoicePoint's database through these businesses, then use that access to make off with reams of personally identifiable information from ChoicePoint's database. The Reed scam had the same effect, but a simpler means to that end: Someone stole the identity and PIN of a legitimate client of Reed's Seisint subsidiary and used those to access the Seisint database.

Except that it turns out there wasn't just one incident of a security breach at Seisint. Rather, there were 57. And two more at other Reed subsidiaries. At last count. As a result, the number of estimated victims of the Reed data theft has now skyrocketed from the original 32,000 to, as of yesterday, more than 310,000.

...more...

Anyone know of anyone that has been notified of such a "compromise" in their personal data?

[UpInArms]

34. Snow says Fannie, Freddie could pose risks to US econ

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.4168896875-834114685&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Mortgage giants Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE) could pose a risk to the strength of the U.S. economy if the companies' businesses are not properly managed, Treasury Secretary John Snow told a congressional panel Wednesday. Snow said in prepared testimony that the Bush administration is recommending limits for the mortgage portfolios retained by both companies. Shares of Fannie Mae were recently trading up 8 cents to $56.85, while Freddie Mac rose 14 cents to $64.14.

Did SnowJob just yell "FIRE" in a crowded theater?

[54anickel]

37. Morgan Stanley's Perella Will Quit, Meguid May Follow

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000006&sid=a935UzLcnNP8&refer=home

April 13 (Bloomberg) -- Joseph Perella, Morgan Stanley's top investment banker, plans to resign, as the exodus of senior managers from the world's No. 2 securities firm gathers pace.

Perella, 63, is in the process of leaving the New York-based firm, two weeks after Chief Executive Officer Philip Purcell shook up management by replacing President Stephan Newhouse, according to his personal spokesman, Tim Metz. The Wall Street Journal reported that Terry Meguid, 49, head of investment banking, also plans to resign. Morgan Stanley spokesman Mark Lake declined to comment.

``It's a horrendous problem,'' said William Calvert, who helps manage about $8 billion in assets at Framlington Group Plc in London. ``Perella is a big name -- the whole prestige of the business, the whole credibility of the business takes a knock.'' Perella ranks among the biggest rainmakers on Wall Street, having led the investment-banking departments at three firms over the past two decades. Purcell, 61, named Perella vice chairman on March 29, seeking to shore up support after Newhouse's demotion prompted the departures of Vikram Pandit, 48, who oversaw sales and trading and investment banking, and John Havens, 48, head of equities.

snip>

Firm Roiled

As the departures roil Morgan Stanley internally, eight of the firm's former leaders are trying to oust Purcell because they say his mismanagement has led the stock to lag behind rivals such as Goldman Sachs Group Inc. The group, led by ex-President Robert Scott, already forced Purcell to announce a possible spinoff of the firm's Discover credit-card business.

Shareholders led by the Council of Institutional Investors, which represents 140 U.S. pension plans, are seeking meetings with Purcell and the former executives to discuss the management changes and turmoil at the firm.

more...

[54anickel]

83. The Outsider, Staying Put at Morgan Stanley

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/13/business/13wall.html?pagewanted=1

snip>

Two weeks into the battle for control of one of Wall Street's oldest firms, Mr. Purcell, who has used his outsider status to secure a string of successes, now finds his job and legacy at stake because of his uneasy relationship with the Wall Street establishment.

But the independent directors have now written a letter to the dissident executives, reaffirming their support for Mr. Purcell and his management team and asking that the executives stop their campaign to oust him, said a person close to the firm. In the letter, the directors called the campaign destructive and damaging to the firm and its shareholders. The letter, which will be delivered today, is the first formal communication from the board to the dissidents, and underscores the board's support for Mr. Purcell.

Mr. Purcell is taking his own steps and is drawing closer to his own power base: his hand-picked board, his small cadre of loyalists and the foundation upon which he has built today's Morgan Stanley: the Main Street brokers from Dean Witter.

big snip>

"I think it is time that the Skull-and-Bones Society types to stop controlling Wall Street," said Orrin G. Hatch, the Republican Senator from Utah, and a long-time friend of Mr. Purcell. "I know Phil. He is a tough guy compared to these limp-wristed Ivy Leaguers who want to keep their clubby status. I'm mad, really mad and I will be doggone upset if the gang of eight wins and wrecks this great institution."

more...

[cosmicdot]

138. hmmm - Mr. Hatch needs to talk to the Human Rights Campaign

about his labels ... just what does this mean: "compared to these limp-wristed Ivy Leaguers" ? sounds like a slur to me

he must be getting senile ... has he checked the White House lately for Skull-and-Bones types ... not to mention Ivy Leaguers?

it's way past time for Orrin to pack it in

[54anickel]

38. Union Files Complaint Against Wal-Mart

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=businessNews&storyID=8168724

CHICAGO (Reuters) - The United Food and Commercial Workers union has filed a complaint against Wal-Mart Stores Inc., asking the National Labor Relations Board to investigate whether the retailer "bribed" employees to block union activities.

The union said its complaint, filed on Tuesday, asks the NLRB to "aggressively investigate whether Bentonville, Arkansas-based Wal-Mart bribed employees to suppress worker support for union representation."

The complaint comes after The Wall Street Journal reported last week that former Wal-Mart Vice Chairman Tom Coughlin may have used undocumented expense payments to pay for anti-union activities, including paying union staffers to tell him of pro-union workers in stores.

"Wal-Mart's actions seemingly involved the criminal misappropriation of company funds to create an illegal anti-union slush fund," the union said in a statement.

more...

[RawMaterials]

40. Coke gives money to aid victims of Colombian violence

ATLANTA, April 12 (Reuters) - Coca-Cola Co. (KO.N: Quote, Profile, Research) , which has been accused by labor activists of turning a blind eye to the murder of union members at bottling plants in Colombia, has helped establish a foundation to assist victims of the Andean nation's civil war.

The Colombia Foundation for Education and Opportunity received $10 million in seed money from the Coca-Cola Foundation, the soft drink maker's charitable arm, the Colombian foundation said in a press release on Tuesday.

It plans to work with non-governmental groups to provide education and other opportunities for those affected by four decades of violence in Colombia. Its board of directors includes business leaders and social activists.

"We believe that this foundation will help to address pressing issues, build capacity and serve as a model for what the private sector can do to help develop sustainable communities around the world," Coca-Cola said in a separate statement.


http://yahoo.reuters.com/financeQuoteCompanyNewsArticle.jhtml?duid=mtfh74116_2005-04-12_21-54-33_n12339144_newsml

Maybe the KarmaBanq is working...

[54anickel]

41. Tariffs, Schmariffs ...and the gold (Gold buggy, but interesting thoughts

regarding protectionism.)

http://www.321gold.com/editorials/wallenwein/wallenwein041305.html

snip>

Since they will earn less dollars for their diminished US exports, their dollar-reserves will rise at a slower clip than before, which will put less upward pressure on the yuan, and that means they have less reason to sell yuan for even more dollars to keep their currency peg intact, so dollar-demand will be that much lower. (They will also have less appetite for US treasuries, putting further upward pressure on US interest rates).

Which will put more downward pressure on the dollar.

Which will make non-Chinese imports less affordable to Americans. And since American products - due to high labor costs etc., - are too expensive for over-leveraged Americans, they'll have to go to the only place where the buying is still cheap - China.

Instead of textiles (on which the tariff is imposed) they'll spend more money on other consumer goods.

Bottom line, economically speaking, its a wash.

American textile manufacturers may rejoice, but Congress' intended effect will have been nil - except that China will then be seriously ticked off at the US, the yuan will still be pegged, Americans will still be buying mainly Chinese goods, the dollar will still continue to drop, the trade deficit will still keep on climbing (loading another straw onto the dollar-camel's back), etc.

Not a very good picture.

The only real difference is that American textile manufacturers will be getting a government-instigated (but consumer, i.e., taxpayer-funded) subsidy from which no one else benefits.

more single sentence paragraphs....

[RawMaterials]

42. Economic, political realities driving China and Latin America closer

GINOWAN, Japan (AFP) - The realities of global trade and politics are driving Asia's new economic powerhouse China and resources-rich Latin America closer, with Japan watching warily, according to researchers.

China is searching for energy sources to feed its fast-expanding economy and for new markets to sell its goods manufactured at low production costs.

For their part, Latin American countries are trying to diversify trading partners, shifting away from over-dependence on the United States which is aiming to create a huge Americas trading bloc to compete with Europe.

snip..

"It is a logical step for China to seek its export markets in Latin America and investment in energy and minerals in the region," said Satoyuki Imai, dean of the Faculty of Modern Chinese Studies at Aichi University in central Japan.

China has to look for new frontiers in less developed countries in Latin America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa since the dominance of its low-priced goods has hit a saturation point in industrialized nations, he said.

snipp..

The leftist Venezuelan government of Hugo Chavez, who is opposed to Washington's dominance in the western hemisphere, has been increasing bilateral trade and investment with communist China.

China, which became a net oil importer in 1993 and ended long-term crude shipments to Japan last year, has signed a contract to buy Venezuela's heavy crude oil to meet its fast-growing needs.

The bilateral deal will also bring in Chinese investment in housing and train projects and agricultural equipment in Venezuela.

"China is exploring for mining rights to oil reserves around the world, from the Middle East to Canada" said Tsutomu Toichi, managing director of the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan.

"Venezuela has a political feud with the US, which makes it even more sense to seek closer ties with China."

Meanwhile, Japan is watching nervously as China becomes a major player on the international scene not only politically but also economically.

Tensions have soared between the two countries since Japan last week approved a nationalist history textbook, leading to violent anti-Japanese protests in China.



http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1518&ncid=1518&e=3&u=/afp/20050413/bs_afp/asialatamidbchinajapan_050413064833

[54anickel]

46. 2 sleeping Asian giants awaken (China's making lots of friends)

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-04/13/content_2821344.htm

snip>

Analysts believe that India and China share command over the computer software and hardware industries.

They believe that competition as well as co-operation should be sought to take on the rest of the world.

"China-India collaboration in the IT sector will herald a new 'Asian Century' in IT," said Premier Wen Jiabao during an official visit to India on April 9 to 12.

He was in India to develop stronger economic ties between the two countries.

"I believe it is right to enhance the economic ties between China and India as the regionalization of the economy," said Wang Yuquan, president of Frost & Sullivan (China) Ltd.

more one sentence paragraphs...:eyes:

[54anickel]

47. China Steps onto the Global Stage

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=66&ncid=749&e=11&u=/bw/20050412/bs_bw/nf200504129145

snip>

Add it all up, and a much more assertive China seems to be in the making, one that's already subtly changing the tenor of geopolitics. In the past, China has felt most comfortable in the shadows, abstaining on U.N. votes, hiding backstage during controversial world events.

Now, in perhaps an early sign of coming tensions with Washington, U.S. efforts to impose U.N. sanctions on Sudan were met with a veto threat by China. In the future, you can expect Beijing to take sides -- and you can safely assume that its interests won't necessarily dovetail with the U.S. agenda. Indeed, it may turn out to be a major rival.

STIRRING GIANT. It's only natural that a rising superpower would want to protect its interests. While China's new stirrings overseas are mostly grounded in economics rather than politics, it's likely they will lead to a more muscular stance if its commercial pipelines are jeopardized.

The battle lines have yet to be drawn, but brace yourself as the world awakens to what it means when Beijing asserts itself as political heavyweight.

more...

[UpInArms]

43. DOE: Petroleum Inventories

10:30am 04/13/05 DOE: U.S. CRUDE SUPPLIES UP 3.6 MILLION BARRELS

10:30am 04/13/05 DOE: GASOLINE SUPPLIES UP 800,000 BARRELS

10:31am 04/13/05 DOE: DISTILLATE SUPPLIES DOWN 100,000 BARRELS

[UpInArms]

48. API: Petroleum Inventories (MAJOR discrepancies from DOE)

10:52am 04/13/05 API: U.S. DISTILLATE SUPPLIES DOWN 1.5 MILLION BARRELS

10:51am 04/13/05 API: U.S. CRUDE SUPPLIES UP 4 MILLION BARRELS

10:52am 04/13/05 API: U.S. GASOLINE SUPPLIES UP 2.9 MILLION BARRELS

[Paulie]

57. Do they use the same data?

That's quite a huge difference! If supply is that high, we're being double screwed!

[UpInArms]

58. hard to figure the answer on that one Paulie

http://api-ec.api.org/industry/index.cfm?objectid=CCE0000D-7572-11D5-BC6A00B0D0E15BFC&method=display_body&er=1&bitmask=001004000000000000

Monthly Statistical Report News Release

API Monthly Statistical Report for March 2005

WASHINGTON, April 13 — Petroleum product deliveries, a key measure of demand, rose 2.5 percent for the first quarter of this year, even in the face of sharply rising world crude oil prices which were reflected in refined product prices, according to the API Monthly Statistical Report for March.

Deliveries of residual fuel oil showed the largest product delivery increase in the first quarter, rising by 23 percent, and exceeding 1 million barrels per day for the January-March period for the first time in more than a decade, the API report said. Since the first quarter of 2002, residual deliveries have risen by enough to account for 1.5 percent of current U.S. petroleum demand. Residual fuel oil has seen a resurgence in the past several years as costly natural gas has driven many industrial and electric utility users with switching capability to residual fuel oil as an alternative, API said.

Deliveries of gasoline in the first quarter rose 1.3 percent, while deliveries of low-sulfur diesel, mainly used for on-highway transportation, rose slightly more than 2 percent, API reported. Jet fuel deliveries climbed 3.2 percent, while deliveries of high-sulfur distillate fuel oil, typically used for heating oil, showed a decline in the first quarter.

Residual fuel oil was also the single largest gainer among product imports for the first quarter, with an increase of more than 50 percent, or more than half a million barrels per day, API reported. Refined product imports overall rose 8.4 percent to 3.06 million barrels per day with imports of gasoline rising 12.7 percent to a first quarter record. Crude oil imports increased 2.5 percent, bringing the rise in total imports of crude oil and products to 3.9 percent for the quarter, API said.

Domestic crude oil production fell 3.5 percent for the quarter with a 3.1 percent decline for the lower 48 and a 5.3 percent drop for Alaska, API said.

...more...

DOE: Summary of Weekly Petroleum Data for the Week Ending April 8, 2005

http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/weekly_petroleum_status_report/current/txt/wpsr.txt

U.S. crude oil refinery inputs averaged over 15.2 million barrels per day during
the week ending April 8, down 288,000 barrels per day from the previous week's 
average. Refineries operated at 91.0 percent of their operable capacity last 
week.  Despite the drop in refinery inputs, gasoline production increased last 
week, averaging 8.7 million barrels per day.  Distillate fuel production 
declined slightly compared to the previous week, averaging under 4.1 million 
barrels per day.

U.S. crude oil imports averaged nearly 9.9 million barrels per day last week, 
down 27,000 barrels per day from the previous week.  Over the last four weeks, 
crude oil imports have averaged over 10.1 million barrels per day, which is 
78,000 barrels per day more than averaged over the comparable four weeks last 
year.  Total motor gasoline imports (including both finished gasoline and 
gasoline blending components) averaged 1.0 million barrels per day last week, 
while distillate fuel imports averaged 253,000 barrels per day.

U.S. commercial crude oil inventories (excluding those in the Strategic 
Petroleum Reserve) rose by 3.6 million barrels from the previous week.  Over the
last nine weeks, they have increased a total of 26.4 million barrels.  At 320.7 
million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are just below the upper end of the 
average range for this time of year.  Total motor gasoline inventories increased
by 0.8 million barrels last week, and remain above the average range.  
Distillate fuel inventories inched down by 0.1 million barrels last week, and 
remain in the lower half of the average range for this time of year.  An 
increase in high-sulfur distillate fuel (heating oil) was countered by a similar
decline in low-sulfur distillate fuel (diesel fuel).  Total commercial petroleum
inventories rose by 5.8 million barrels last week, and remain in the upper half 
of the average range.

Total product supplied over the last four-week period has averaged 20.4 million 
barrels per day, or 1.1 percent more than averaged over the same period last 
year.  Over the last four weeks, motor gasoline demand has averaged nearly 9.1 
million barrels per day, or 1.4 percent above the same period last year, while 
distillate fuel demand has averaged nearly 4.3 million barrels per day, or 3.8 
percent above the same period last year.  Kerosene-type jet fuel demand is up 
4.2 percent over the last four weeks compared to the same four-week period last 
year. 

...more...

[UpInArms]

44. 10:42 EST numbers and blather

Dow 10,507.01 -0.96 (-0.01%)
Nasdaq 1,996.18 -9.22 (-0.46%)
S&P 500 1,184.84 -2.92 (-0.25%)
10-Yr Bond 4.352 -0.08 (-0.18%)

NYSE Volume 465,856,000
Nasdaq Volume 423,140,000

10:30AM: Little changed since the last update as the major averages continue to vacillate in roughly the same ranges... Meanwhile, Financial (-0.4%) has been in focus following the departure of two top Morgan Stanley (MWD 53.71 -0.77) investment bankers... Also contributing to sector weakness has been a 4.0% sell off in shares of BB&T Corp (BBT 37.60 -1.61), which posted a 20% rise in Q1 earnings but merely matched analysts' Q1 forecasts amid weaker than expected fee generation...

Goldman Sachs' (GS 111.19 -0.57) has also made headlines, after successful funding the largest ever private-equity fund with $8.5 bln in capital; but yesterday's indictment of one of its specialists for improper trading has kept a lid on buying interest...NYSE Adv/Dec 1089/1709, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1050/1518

[54anickel]

45. Fed Minutes Offer More Confusion Than Clarity

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000039&refer=columnist_berry&sid=asJMgvXGEDiQ

snip>

And then the minutes got to the messy part: What to tell the public about how the committee regarded the risks to sustainable growth and price stability.

After the previous six meetings, each statement had included this sentence: ``The committee perceives the upside and downside risks to the attainment of both sustainable growth and price stability for the next few quarters to be roughly equal.''

Last month, that sentence was changed to read, ``The committee perceives that, with appropriate monetary policy action, the upside and downside risks to the attainment of both sustainable growth and price stability should be kept roughly equal.''

That language presumably was in one of the draft statements presented to the committee by Chairman Alan Greenspan. The point of the new language, the minutes said, was ``to make the committee's assessment explicitly conditional on an assumption of appropriate monetary policy so as to underscore that maintaining balanced risks would require policy action.

snip>

Unfortunately, the new wording has left the committee with a new problem. How on earth could the risks to sustainable growth and price stability ever become unequal? Wouldn't that be the same as admitting that even with ``appropriate monetary policy'' the Fed couldn't keep things under control?

more...

[UpInArms]

49. Siebel replaces chief executive Lawrie (abruptly and with BIG loser)

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BD59C733F%2D504F%2D4FF3%2D9D97%2D710487CC5020%7D&siteid=mktw

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Less than a year since taking the reins, the chief executive of Siebel Systems Inc. abruptly stepped down on Wednesday, barely one week after the troubled maker of customer-relationship management software warned of dismal quarterly results.

Siebel (SEBL: news, chart, profile) said that Chief Executive said Michael Lawrie agreed to resign immediately. He was replaced by longtime board member George Shaheen, a former Andersen Consulting CEO who also presided over Webvan, the pioneering online grocer that epitomized the flameout of Internet-era startups.

Chairman Tom Siebel, who had relinquished the top executive post to Lawrie as part of a turnaround effort, said in a written statement: "George is the logical choice to take Siebel Systems to the next level of success and deliver strong and consistent results."

Shaheen, 60, has been a member of San Mateo, Calif.-based Siebel's board since 1995. He left Webvan in 2001 and the company later was liquidated after burning through billions of dollars in capital raised in a public offering.

...more...

[UpInArms]

68. Siebel shares drop during conference call

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.5310093171-834121119&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Siebel Systems Inc.'s stock (SEBL) fell by as much as 4% as the company's newly named chief executive, George Shaheen, discussed his focus in his new job during a conference call. In recent trading, the shares were off 24 cents, or 2.7%, at $8.73. Some investors were apparently expressing their disappointment that the new CEO stopped short of outlining detailed plans for the company's use of its $2.2 billion cash balance. Shaheen said the company is evaluating options for the best use of the cash pile. However, the executive quickly added, "I am not here today to announce what that final answer is."

[UpInArms]

50. (More Warnings) Compuware warns of shortfall

Shares fall 10% on warning results will miss estimates

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B0F770ED2%2D12E2%2D4B7E%2D9B41%2D6E9CBC5A1456%7D&siteid=mktw

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) - Compuware Corp. slid more than 12 percent Wednesday after the software firm forecast that quarterly revenue and earnings would fall from a year earlier and trail Wall Street estimates.

The company's shares fell 82 cents to $5.99 in early trading after earlier touching a low of $5.73.

The Detroit based company (CPWR: news, chart, profile) that makes testing, development and management software, forecast earnings of 6 to 8 cents a share for its fiscal fourth quarter that ended on March 31.

...more...

[UpInArms]

54. Foundry falls on warning; telecoms off

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BBBBB522C%2DCAFC%2D48C8%2DB456%2D51D6A6D2A21C%7D&siteid=mktw

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Telecommunications stocks mostly declined in Wednesday action, spearheaded by a more than 3 percent drop in Foundry Networks.

The network-equipment maker warned Tuesday that first-quarter results will miss forecasts. Foundry (FDRY: news, chart, profile) shares fell 38 cents to $9.07. See full story.

Foundry was one of 12 stocks in the American Stock Exchange's networking index to tack lower. One stock in the index, Adtran Inc. (ADTN: news, chart, profile) , rose a few pennies, and the remaining two were unchanged.

Similarly, 13 of the 20 largest stocks in the Nasdaq Telecommunications Index decreased in value, with the overall index slipping 0.4 percent.

...more...

[UpInArms]

51. 11:08 EST numbers and blather (knees jerking)

Dow 10,478.78 -29.19 (-0.28%)
Nasdaq 1,990.56 -14.84 (-0.74%)
S&P 500 1,182.43 -5.33 (-0.45%)
10-Yr Bond 4.364 +0.04 (+0.09%)

NYSE Volume 589,425,000
Nasdaq Volume 530,661,000

11:00AM: Major indices spike higher following better than expected oil inventories data, but the recovery effort is short-lived, as stocks retrace earlier lows... Crude oil supplies climbed for a ninth consecutive week, rising 3.6 mln barrels versus a more modestly anticipated rise of 400K barrels, and gasoline inventories rose 800K barrels amid higher output from refineries, versus forecasts which called for levels to remain unchanged...

The news initially pushed crude oil futures to their lowest levels of the morning to around $50.30/bbl (-3.0%), but the knee-jerk buying interest in stocks was over nearly as fast as it began, as the commodity's influence on equities remains weak in the face of today's disappointing retail sales data and a growing emphasis on corporate earnings... NYSE Adv/Dec 1279/1664, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1085/1598

[UpInArms]

53. NASD sanctions former First Command broker (unsuitable recommendations)

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.4683897801-834117090&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=symb&value=&categories=&

BOSTON (MarketWatch) - The National Association of Securities Dealers Wednesday said it has imposed a 10-month suspension and a $25,000 fine against Louis Stough, a former broker with First Command Financial Planning tied to a series of "unsuitable" recommendations and sales involving liquidation of investments in the firm's Systematic Investment Plans. First Command is a Fort Worth, Texas, broker-dealer specializing in sales to military personnel, NASD said.

[54anickel]

55. Moral Hazard Insurance (Mogambo)

http://www.kitco.com/ind/daughty/apr132005.html

snip>

Like waking up in the morning and looking in the mirror, this is the ugly fact of the matter: The Social Security debate is NOT about saving the Social Security welfare program in the future by boosting some mythical "credit balances" in the "trust fund", because there is no freaking money in the trust fund and there never will be. Some is spent by giving it to the current Social Security beneficiaries, and the rest is spent by Congress, which thinks that (and this is proof of their incompetence) because they put a "special IOU" in the "trust fund", that it is as good as money! Hahahaha! Even President George Bush, who has every incentive to lie, admitted "The trust fund is just an empty IOU, just a piece of paper. You pay your payroll tax; we pay for the people who have retired, and if there's any money left over, we spend it on government. That's how it works."

So where is the crisis? The "crisis" is, therefore, that this glorious "surplus" will be gradually reduced, year after year, as more and more seniors start collecting their Social Security welfare checks, and fewer and fewer worker contribute a larger and larger portion of their wages. At this point, if you think that this is still not a crisis, then you are right! Allow you gaze to follow the Mogambo Pointing Finger (MPF) to the real "crisis", which is that the Congress will then have less and less to spend on themselves, their friends, and their socialist idiocies, as year after year they will have even less and less to spend. Then, finally, after the forty or fifty years have passed, they will have nothing, zero, zip, zilch to spend, because that is when the "surplus" disappears.

snip>

It is, instead, all about letting the Congress have lots of money to spend as they try to buy our love and our votes, such as more malignant expansion of the size and scope of government, which distorts the economy more and more, as if this is a good thing, which it is not. In fact, it is a very bad thing, as we are about to find out. And it gets worse than this; not only is all that Social Security "surplus" spent on on-going programs, but it is completely insufficient to pay for the wants and needs of government, as they are already on track to borrow another $700 billion's worth of "budget deficit" this year alone! And the cost of all the programs and deficit-spending to date has produced the National Debt of close to $7.9 trillion dollars!

On the other hand, the idea to force Personal Savings Accounts down the ravenous maw of the gluttonous American population is a blatant attempt to force people to put money into the stock and bond markets. And it will be done, one say or the other. If we do not, then these two ridiculously overpriced markets will "revert to the mean" and fall to their true values, which would wipe out the entire American economy, as financial services and government ARE the economy nowadays.

This point is not lost on Alan Abelson, as he notes, in his "Up and Down Wall Street" column in Barron's, that "Earnings of financial companies now account for some 40% of all corporate earnings, up from a mere 4% two decades ago, and they represent 25% of total stock market capitalization, versus 5% in the 'Seventies." They make a whopping 40% of all earnings, and their shares are a quarter of the entire stock market? Wow! See how important they are? Now you know why Bush is pushing this idea so hard!

snip>

So, when you cut through the lies, stupidities and outright frauds, the entire "Saving Social Security" exercise is to 1) get at least the same, and hopefully more, money for the Congress to spend since the Social Security program will be throwing off smaller and smaller "surpluses", and 2) funneling lots of money into the financial services sector of the economy, since it already produces 40% of the corporate earnings in the whole freaking country. That is all there is to it. Simple, huh?

more...

[UpInArms]

59. Weak (Treasuries) lose strength ahead of auction

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B8ECA536C%2D1739%2D45DA%2D9474%2DFD952E4E57A7%7D&siteid=mktw

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Long-term Treasurys fell late Wednesday morning, pushing yields higher as investors lightened holdings ahead of an afternoon auction of five-year notes that will be watched closely for news of foreign central bank purchases.

In recent trading, the 10-year bond was down 3/32 at 97 3/32 with a yield of 4.37%, after touching a seven-week low of 4.43% earlier in the day.

The five-year note was unchanged at 99-27/32 with a yield of 4.03% and the 30-year bond down 12/32 at 110 11/32 with a 4.68% yield.

This afternoon the Treasury will auction $15 billion in five-year notes this afternoon.

The five-year bond is preferred by many central banks, but lately the Treasurys market has been undermined by fears that these institutions are diversifying their reserves into the euro and shedding dollar-denominated assets

In March about 43% of the purchasers were "indirect bidders," a category that includes foreign central banks, according to Morgan Keegan bond analyst Kevin Giddis.

...more...

[UpInArms]

62. 12:09 EST numbers and blather

Dow 10,492.90 -15.07 (-0.14%)
Nasdaq 1,992.38 -13.02 (-0.65%)
S&P 500 1,183.37 -4.39 (-0.37%)
10-Yr Bond 4.349 -0.11 (-0.25%)

NYSE Volume 827,881,000
Nasdaq Volume 736,633,000

12:00PM: Market remains under pressure midday as disappointing retail sales data and earnings warnings continue to overshadow falling oil prices amid better than expected oil inventories data...March retail sales rose 0.3% and sales ex-autos grew a modest 0.1%, but both figures checked in well below expectations of 0.8% and 0.5%, respectively... Sure, the disappointing sales data may heighten fears about continued strength in consumer spending, which has subsequently kept a lid on buying interest across the board; but the numbers are not expected to greatly alter Q1 GDP estimates of 3 1/2%...

Not even a modest rally in Treasurys following the downside sales surprise, which pushed yields on the 10-yr note as low as 4.326%, has been enough to bring back buyers to extend yesterday's late-day gains... The benchmark 10-year is currently unchanged yielding 4.35%... An earnings warning from Harley-Davidson (HDI 48.73 -10.04), which actually beat Q1 estimates by a penny, as well as downside guidance from the likes of Compuware (CPWR 5.75 -1.06) and Foundry Networks (FDRY 9.07 -0.38), have increased nervousness before week one of earnings is even in the books...

Meanwhile, crude oil futures have been weak all morning, extending yesterday's 3.4% decline, amid better than expected builds of 3.6 mln barrels (consensus 400K) and 800K barrels (analysts expected levels to remain unchanged) in crude oil supplies and gasoline inventories, respectively... Lower oil, however, has failed to translate into gains for equities, as an increased focus on corporate earnings and activity in Treasurys continue to set a more definitive tone for overall trading...

[54anickel]

64. US firms reduce pension payments

http://www.nytimes.com/financialtimes/business/FT20050412_29144_374534.html?

Uncertainty over the direction of US pension reform is leading some companies to scale back their contributions despite a deficit of more than $100bn among the top 100 schemes.

Milliman, a firm of actuaries, said a number of companies had privately admitted postponing voluntary payments for fear they would lose flexibility over their contributions in future.

This comes as Congress considers rule changes to make companies more responsible for their pension promises to employees.

Changes to accounting standards are also expected to give investors more visibility of pension liabilities.

Schemes which promise a guaranteed percentage of salary at retirement are on the wane in the US. But anecdotal evidence from actuaries suggests that attempts to reform the system can introduce further disincentives for companies.

more...

[UpInArms]

65. Exxon Mobil CEO receives pay boost ($38 MILLION)

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B23901F6E%2D9F9B%2D4D4D%2DB75B%2D02216B63E664%7D&siteid=mktw

DALLAS (MarketWatch) - Banner results from all of Exxon Mobil Corp.'s businesses led to record profit in 2004 that boosted the compensation of the top executive of the world's largest oil company.

In a proxy filing Wednesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Exxon Mobil (XOM: news, chart, profile) reported that Chairman and CEO Lee Raymond took home $38 million in compensation in 2004.

His salary increased to $3.6 million from $3.25 million the year before, and his bonus totaled $3.92 million compared with $3.56 million in 2003.

Restricted stock awards rose to $28 million, up from $17.9 million in 2003.

As of Dec. 31, Raymond held 2.71 million shares of restricted stock worth $138.9 million.

Long-term incentive plan payouts amounted to $2.16 million, down from $2.7 million in the prior year. Other annual compensation, including club memberships and use of the company jet, totaled $179,382.

...more...

:wow: $38 MILLION

As you pump your gas, just think of the financial difficulties of Lee Raymond. :sarcasm:

[UpInArms]

66. AXA unit subpoenaed by Spitzer, SEC in finite probe (insurance)

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.5093547338-834118974&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Axa Re, a reinsurance unit of giant French insurer Axa SA (AXA) , has been subpoenaed by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and the Securities and Exchange Commission as part of their investigations into finite risk, or non-traditional, reinsurance. Spitzer and the SEC want information about transactions between Axa Re and bond insurer MBIA (MBI) relating to the 1998 bankruptcy of Pennsylvania non-profit hospital group Allegheny Health, Education and Research Foundation (AHERF), Axa said in a statement. The Paris-based company plans to cooperate fully with the subpoenas, which also seek general information on non-traditional products, Axa added.

[UpInArms]

71. Regulators probing deals with MBIA, French insurer says

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B4DD4E8A6%2D3B22%2D4AB7%2DB480%2DA85E7FCDC4B3%7D&siteid=mktw

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- French insurer Axa SA has been subpoenaed by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and the Securities and Exchange Commission as part of their investigations into finite risk, or non-traditional, reinsurance.

The regulators want information about transactions between Axa Re, a reinsurance unit of Axa, and bond insurer MBIA Inc. (MBI: news, chart, profile) relating to the 1998 bankruptcy of Pennsylvania non-profit hospital group Allegheny Health, Education and Research Foundation (AHERF), Axa said in a statement.

...more...

[UpInArms]

67. Mattel CEO 2004 total pay $3.6M less options

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B6C27B093%2D53A5%2D4DEE%2D898A%2DB1FC9EBD1245%7D

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Mattel Inc. (MAT) said Wednesday that Chairman and Chief Executive Robert A. Eckert received total 2004 compensation of $3.6 million excluding stock options, compared with about $12.85 million in 2003.

The 2004 figure includes a salary of $1.25 million, a bonus of $984,344 and "all other compensation" of about $1.37 million. The 2003 figure includes a salary of $1.25 million, a bonus of $633,998 and "all other compensation" of $10.96 million.

According to a definitive proxy filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the El Segundo, Calif., the toy manufacturer said "all other compensation" for 2004 includes $1.23 million relating to taxes on loan forgiveness under the terms of loans that were forgiven in 2003, the filing said.

The company said the purpose of the loan was to help ensure that Mattel retained the services of key executives during a time of management transition and business challenges. Each loan was designed to provide incentives for the executive to remain employed by Mattel for the full term of the loan.

Also, Mattel said it granted Eckert 375,000 stock options for 2004, unchanged from the previous year. The latest stock options had a value of about $3.02 million, according to the filing.

...more...

That's a bunch of chinese-made barbies!

[54anickel]

70. Hail to the Robber Baron?

http://mathaba.net/x.htm?http://mathaba.net/0_index.shtml?x=180585

Thirty years ago, President Bush was my student at Harvard Business School. In my class, he called former president Franklin D. Roosevelt, Class of 1904, a “socialist” and spoke against Social Security, unemployment insurance, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and other New Deal innovations. He refused to understand that capitalism becomes corrupt without democratic civic values and ethical restraints.

In those days, Bush belonged to a minority of MBA students who were seriously disconnected from taking the moral and social responsibility for their actions. Today, he would fit in comfortably with an overwhelming majority of business students and teachers whose role models are celebrated captains of piracy. Since the 1980s, as neo-conservatives have captured the Republican Party, America’s business education has also increasingly become contaminated by the robber baron culture of the pre-Great Depression era.

Bush is the first president of the United States with a Master’s of Business Administration (MBA). Yet, he epitomizes the worst aspects of America’s business education. To privatize Social Security, he is peddling a colossal lie about its solvency. Furthermore, Bush, along with today’s business aristocrats, shows no compassion for working Americans, robbing them to benefit big business and the very rich. Last year, due to Bush’s tax cuts, over 80 of America’s most profitable 200 corporations did not pay even a penny of their federal and state income taxes. Meanwhile, to pay for his additional tax cuts for the very rich, Bush is drastically cutting back several social services, such as federal lunch programs for poor children.

Business education has also produced former Enron CEO Jeff Skilling and other MBAs behind the malfeasances of Tyco, HealthSouth, Haliburton, AIG, and WorldCom. Many executives of corporate America who hold MBAs have also been engaged in the unethical acts of raiding their corporate treasuries at the expense of employees and stockholders. Emulating President Bush’s hubris, a multitude of CEOs in corporate America give themselves obscenely large bonuses that have little to do with their performance. In 1980, the CEOs of Fortune 500 large corporations received, on average, 70 times larger annual compensations than their average employees. Under the Bush Administration, comparable CEOs have come to give themselves 600 to 1,000 times larger annual compensations than their rank-and-file employees whose pay has stagnated. To pay for such self-dealt compensations, corporate aristocrats layoff their workers, cut ordinary employees’ health benefits, and outsource jobs abroad. Under the Bush Administration, over five million Americans have lost their health benefits, and the U.S. has lost over 2.7 million quality manufacturing jobs. President Bush and his rapacious “captains of piracy” of corporate America are destroying America’s democracy built up since Roosevelt’s New Deal era.

more...

[UpInArms]

72. thanks for that article 54anickel

I don't think this can be said loudly enough:

Bush is the first president of the United States with a Master’s of Business Administration (MBA). Yet, he epitomizes the worst aspects of America’s business education. To privatize Social Security, he is peddling a colossal lie about its solvency. Furthermore, Bush, along with today’s business aristocrats, shows no compassion for working Americans, robbing them to benefit big business and the very rich. Last year, due to Bush’s tax cuts, over 80 of America’s most profitable 200 corporations did not pay even a penny of their federal and state income taxes. Meanwhile, to pay for his additional tax cuts for the very rich, Bush is drastically cutting back several social services, such as federal lunch programs for poor children.

[54anickel]

80. The brainwashing of America is nearly complete. Most, including

many Dems, believe the lie that "What's good for American Corporations is good for me, my family and my neighbors" (America in general). :eyes:

IMO, this started catching on in a big way in the 80's. Prior to that, many folks in management worked their way up the ladder into management, as they knew the "product-line" and quality assurance inside out. But for the most part they also had an eye out for the interests of the rank-and-file workers. Can't have those competing interests at heart in management, now can we?

Sh*t, now you can't claw your way into middle management without the re-programming of a BA or MBA. Expertise in marketing and finance is all that is needed - you just have to be able to make a mangy dog of a corporation look good long enough to take investor's money or attract the attention of a bigger fish looking to buy you out.

[barb162]

81. I think it is complete. For those few who aren't brainwashed, there

are neither the means nor the methods to get the message out to those that are brainwashed. The administration and corporations have combined in such a perfect way that enough people are brainwashed to vote their way no matter how much they are voting against their own interests.

[54anickel]

84. Heh, and let's not forget the Patriot Act, just in case anyone TRY to

get the message out. :patriot: :puke:

[barb162]

88. You got it.

Every so often I think of writing a letter to Shrub and/or his gang in Congress and tell them what I think, until I realize I will be on some FBI or Homeland Security list.

[54anickel]

94. Phfft! Another 1st for Bush. Add it to the worst poll numbers on record.

[54anickel]

76. Home run: Bush made millions off baseball team

Good grief, I didn't realize the Idiot Son of a a$$hole was going to be tossing out the first pitch tomorrow.

http://www.sunherald.com/mld/thesunherald/news/world/11359053.htm

snip>

Much to the chagrin of local baseball fans, the Washington Senators fled to Texas after the 1971 season in search of the almighty dollar. The franchise, rechristened as the Texas Rangers, found dollars by the bucketful in their new home.

About 15 million of them wound up in the pocket of a politician's kid who, three team sales after the move, became managing general partner of a group that bought the team for $89 million in 1989 and sold it for $250 million in 1998.

snip>

It is against that backdrop that Bush will take the mound Thursday when the new Washington Nationals play their first home game. For the president, a man who made a fortune off the team many locals still believe was stolen from them, it will be a rare public appearance in front of a crowd not controlled by the White House.

So when he throws the first pitch will he be greeted as a local baseball fan celebrating the game's return to Washington?

Or will he be received as a Texas robber baron who eventually pocketed a bundle from the demise of the beloved Senators?

more...

[54anickel]

92. Senate Talks May Lead to Compromise on Estate Tax

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-tax13apr13,0,3840476.story?coll=la-home-nation

snip>

It is far from certain that a compromise can be struck to get estate tax repeal through the Senate. But the fledgling negotiations — between Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), a stalwart proponent of repealing the tax, and Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), tapped by Democratic leaders for the job — are the first sign of movement on the issue in years.

The talks raise the prospect that Congress will summon a rare show of bipartisanship to end the uncertainty that has shadowed estate planning for many families, especially in California and other states where high property values have swollen inheritances.

snip>

Republicans are divided by the push for a compromise by Kyl and other party leaders. Some anti-tax activists, including the influential small-business lobby, oppose compromising. And some GOP strategists would rather use the issue against Senate Democrats in the 2006 campaign and, they hope, build a stronger majority for abolishing the tax.

"The smart move for Republicans," said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, a tax-cut advocacy group, is to schedule a Senate vote on repeal and then, "win, lose or draw," target the Democrats who voted against it.

snip>

Some Democrats facing reelection in 2006 are wary of the issue, recognizing that many voters support a repeal.


more...

OK, and just HOW many estates are hit by this now? Let's repeal the WHOLE damned thing because it adversely effected a few estates it shouldn't have. Meanwhile, the still do NOTHING regarding the Alternative Minimum Tax.

[UpInArms]

73. Financial markets predict less aggressive Fed

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.5437412384-834122500&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Financial futures markets lowered their expectations for the scope of future rate hikes by the Federal Reserve on Wednesday after release of tepid retail sales figures. The federal funds futures market at the Chicago Board of Trade is now pricing in the equivalent of five more quarter-point rate hikes this year with six FOMC meetings to go. The fed funds rate, now 2.75%, will likely average 3.86% in December, down from the predicted 3.93% on Tuesday. The FOMC minutes revealed that policymakers concluded that interest rates will ultimately have to rise higher than previously assumed to keep inflation under control.

[UpInArms]

74. 1:08 EST numbers and blather

Dow 10,494.37 -13.60 (-0.13%)
Nasdaq 1,991.55 -13.85 (-0.69%)
S&P 500 1,183.36 -4.40 (-0.37%)
10-Yr Bond 4.344 -0.16 (-0.37%)

NYSE Volume 1,044,751,000
Nasdaq Volume 901,364,000

1:00PM: More of the same as the major averages continue to drift sideways and a bearish bias remains intact...Decliners on the NYSE hold an 19 to 12 advantage over advancers while declining issues on the Nasdaq outpaced advancing issues by a 9 to 5 margin... The ratio of down to up volumes, however, reflects a much more negative tone to trading on both the Big Board and the Composite, as total volume on the NYSE is slightly heavier than yesterday...

Meanwhile, both the S&P and Nasdaq have failed to find initial support near key technical levels of 1185 and 1995, respectively, while the Dow has found support above the 10475 level but has failed to break through resistance near the 10530 mark...NYSE Adv/Dec 1264/1911, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1049/1835

12:30PM: Indices continue to languish near their lows of the session as buying interest remains scarce across the board... Drug stocks (+1.2%), however, have attracted buyers in a down market, spiking much higher within the last hour after Merck (MRK 35.14 +1.33) said that it now expects Q1 EPS to be $0.62 (consensus $0.56), due to ongoing cost management, the favorable impact of foreign exchange and overall revenue performance...

Also providing a boost to the group has been a rally in shares of Eli Lilly (LLY 55.38 +1.56), amid optimism that a U.S. District Court's long awaited decision (5:50 ET) may show that the patent on LLY's drug Zyprexa is valid and that challenges brought by generic drug makers are without merit...NYSE Adv/Dec 1251/1884, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1034/1800

[UpInArms]

82. 1:38 EST numbers and blather (Treasuries in trouble)

Dow 10,468.36 -39.61 (-0.38%)
Nasdaq 1,985.54 -19.86 (-0.99%)
S&P 500 1,179.72 -8.04 (-0.68%)
10-Yr Bond 4.384 +0.24 (+0.55%)

NYSE Volume 1,168,588,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,007,124,000

1:30PM: Stocks extend their reach into negative territory, as a disappointing bond auction renews selling interest in Treasurys... Yields on the benchmark 10-year note (-8/32) have recently climbed to their highest levels of the day (4.38%), as indirect bidder participation (foreign demand) for today's $15 bln 5-year note auction came in at a dismal 28.2% and the bid-cover ratio of 1.86 checked in at the lowest since June 2003...

While still below a more unnerving 4.50% level on the benchmark 10-year, investors have had little else in the way of market moving catalysts to influence the direction of trading... As such, an increase in borrowing costs has only weakened an already negative sentiment...NYSE Adv/Dec 1342/1862, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1110/1824

[54anickel]

86. Heh, I think they'd get better demand for deeds to swamp land in FL

these days.

Check out today's repos, a cool 8 billion.

http://www.321gold.com/fed/temp_bank_res.html

Looks like the big repos are coinciding with the auctions again. Does that mean Greenspin's buying them back? :shrug:

http://www.treas.gov/offices/domestic-finance/debt-management/auctions/auctions.pdf


U.S. NATIONAL DEBT CLOCK
The Outstanding Public Debt as of 13 Apr 2005 at 06:10:27 PM GMT is:



The estimated population of the United States is 295,874,984
so each citizen's share of this debt is $26,354.47.

[UpInArms]

75. Layoffs announced at GM plant

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny-brf--gmlayoffs0413apr13,0,1228176.story?coll=ny-region-apnewyork

MASSENA, N.Y. -- General Motors will lay off about 90 workers beginning later this month at its Powertrain plant here, officials said.

The layoffs will begin April 25. The company has not decided how long the layoffs will last, said Otie McKinley, a GM spokesman.

<snip>

At its peak, the plant employed about 1,600 workers before layoffs in the mid-1980s led to the loss of 1,000 jobs.

...more at link...











The cuts will affect every section of the plant, he said.

[UpInArms]

77. GM's minority supplier buys down 8.3% to $6.6B

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.5488120949-834122689&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- General Motors (GM) said Wednesday that its 2004 purchases from minority suppliers was down 8.3% to $6.6 billion, from a year ago. The automaker said that its Tier 1 minority spending of $4.2 billion was the same as 2003's, while Tier 2 spending dropped $3 billion to $2.4 billion. GM said that it was the first car maker to establish a supplier diversity program, spending about $51 billion with minority-owned businesses since 1968.

[UpInArms]

78. Massive job cuts likely at MGM (M&A casualties)

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/0d2e2d62-ac3a-11d9-bb67-00000e2511c8.html

subscription only site - so this is all we get :(

MGM, one of the most venerable Hollywood film studios, is expected to offer early redundancy to the majority of its staff following the company's acquisition by a consortium including Sony Corporation of America, Comcast and a group of private equity firms.

MGM has already laid off nearly 200 of its roughly 1,400 employees, according to people familiar with the matter, since the $5bn deal formally closed last Friday.

...more for subscribers only...

[naderzenithnow]

79. hey all you smart folks! what happens when oil starts back up?

Oil down 10% and stocks stay flat or slump? Is it time to sell everything??? We all know that oil will redouble it's climb shortly and if stocks are slumping now, what happens then? I'm afraid and thinking I should take what I have off the table before the big houses take it all. Are we in a holding pattern just waiting for the proper excuse for the massive sell off to take all the suckers to the cleaners again?

[UpInArms]

87. Welcome to DU naderzenithnow!

We don't give advice here - none of us are investment advisors (tmk).

We just watch what's going on economically/politically and attempt to make whole cloth of it :)

:hi:

[UpInArms]

85. 2:07 EST numbers and blather

Dow 10,440.52 -67.45 (-0.64%)
Nasdaq 1,981.72 -23.68 (-1.18%)
S&P 500 1,176.95 -10.81 (-0.91%)
10-Yr Bond 4.382 +0.22 (+0.50%)

NYSE Volume 1,296,523,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,108,912,000

2:00PM: Sellers show some resolve as the major indices fail to find support near key technical levels... A renewed wave of selling interest, initiated in part by a sell off in Treasurys, has prevented the Dow, S&P and Nasdaq from finding support near 10435, 1182 and 1984, respectively... Overall sentiment has also deteriorated, as decliners on both the NYSE and the Nasdaq now hold a nearly 2 to 1 edge over advancers...NYSE Adv/Dec 1175/2068, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 976/1957

1:30PM: Stocks extend their reach into negative territory, as a disappointing bond auction renews selling interest in Treasurys... Yields on the benchmark 10-year note (-8/32) have recently climbed to their highest levels of the day (4.38%), as indirect bidder participation (foreign demand) for today's $15 bln 5-year note auction came in at a dismal 28.2% and the bid-cover ratio of 1.86 checked in at the lowest since June 2003...

While still below a more unnerving 4.50% level on the benchmark 10-year, investors have had little else in the way of market moving catalysts to influence the direction of trading... As such, an increase in borrowing costs has only weakened an already negative sentiment...NYSE Adv/Dec 1342/1862, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1110/1824

[54anickel]

90. We don’t pop no stinkin’ bubbles

http://www.prudentbear.com/randomwalk.asp

snip>

The Federal Reserve is just as redundant, although at a lower volume. Just a few days ago Fed Governor Edward Gramlich told attendees at an economic conference that it’s not the Fed’s job to worry about asset prices. According to Bloomberg’s John Berry, the Fed Governor said that Fed action to arrest asset bubbles “…would be a bad mistake” and that it qould “…often be destabilizing.”

snip>

Bloomerg’s Berry deserves credit for his fine reporting because he did locate one conference attendee who said that it was possible to identify bubbles because, after all, there are all sorts of economic distortions associated with the darn things. That heretic was Stephen G. Cecchetti, a former (emphasis on former) research director at the New York Federal Reserve Bank. Now that Cecchetti is no longer bound by the “No Prick Oath”), he wondered if consumers could get a “false impression of wealth” and load up on debt.

snip>

Speaking of irresponsible behavior, more than one-third of mortgage applications these days are of the adjustable variety. And according to Freddie Mac’s figures, the latest 1-year ARM rate of 4.23%, while still low, looks steep compared to the 3.55% rate of February 2004. The reason February 2004 is so special is because that’s when the Fed Chairman chastised those stodgy Americans who were refusing to get hip to the new financial era by sticking with old school fixed rate mortgages:

“Indeed, recent research within the Federal Reserve suggests that many homeowners might have saved tens of thousands of dollars had they held adjustable-rate mortgages rather than fixed-rate mortgages during the past decade… American consumers might benefit if lenders provided greater mortgage product alternatives to the traditional fixed-rate mortgage. To the degree that households are driven by fears of payment shocks but are willing to manage their own interest rate risks, the traditional fixed-rate mortgage may be an expensive method of financing a home.”

Fed research also showed that if Americans would have purchased Microsoft in 1987 they wouldn’t even need a mortgage.

more...

[UpInArms]

91. Treasurys down after 5-yr. auction - Foreign central bank purchases seen

as weak

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B8ECA536C%2D1739%2D45DA%2D9474%2DFD952E4E57A7%7D&siteid=mktw

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Long-term Treasurys fell in afternoon trade, pushing yields higher, amid disappointment that the U.S. Treasury's $15 billion auction of new five-year notes featured an apparently weak showing by foreign central banks and a low bid-to-cover ratio.

In recent trades, the five-year note was down 3/32 at 99-24/32 with a yield of 4.05%, while the 10-year bond traded off 9/32 at 96-28/32 with a yield of 4.39%.

The two-year bill was unchanged at 100-4/32 with a 3.67% yield.

The 30-year bond fell 21/32 to 110-2/32 with a yield of 4.70%.

Treasurys slipped into negative territory after news that indirect bidders, a category that includes foreign central banks, slipped to 28% from 43% at the most recent five-year bond auction.

In the past the five-year bond was considered a favorite holding of many foreign central banks. But lately the Treasurys market has been undermined by fears that these institutions are diversifying their reserves into the euro and shedding dollar-denominated assets

...more...

[MARALE]

96. The Faeries must be tired from yesterday

or maybe something else:

The bottle is light as a feather. It's contents are sweet, and oh, the taste! So wonderful going down, it tingles like magic. But too strong for the human heart.


:beer: :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer:

:party: :smoke:

[UpInArms]

102. fairies definitely playing hookie today - now under 10,400 ..eom

[UpInArms]

98. Conn AG: MetLife-Travelers deal not in public interest (Well, DUH!)

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BF2FCD96B%2D71EF%2D4B4C%2D8CAB%2DC256A2DE1855%7D

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said he will oppose MetLife's pending acquisition of Travelers Life & Annuity, saying that the deal goes against the public interest.

In a statement Wednesday, Blumenthal said the acquisition will "destroy jobs, damage our economy and disadvantage families."

Blumenthal said MetLife will cut almost 800 jobs at Hartford-based Travelers Life & Annuity due to the acquisition.

"My message to MetLife is simple: Keep jobs in Hartford or keep your hands off Travelers," he said.

MetLife spokesman John Calagna declined to comment on the attorney general's statement. But he said MetLife plans to eliminate 600 jobs within the year, while 100 jobs in Connecticut will be moved elsewhere.

...more...

And can anyone tell me the last time a corporation did something in the "public interest"?

A corporation's only tenet is profits.

[UpInArms]

99. 3:03 EST numbers blather

Dow 10,402.67 -105.30 (-1.00%)
Nasdaq 1,975.15 -30.25 (-1.51%)
S&P 500 1,173.60 -14.16 (-1.19%)
10-Yr Bond 4.386 +0.26 (+0.60%)

NYSE Volume 1,551,654,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,320,309,000

3:00PM: Market continues to deteriorate heading into the final hour of trading, showing little reaction to another dubbing in oil... Crude oil futures ($50.25/bbl -$1.61) have recently closed, nearly matching yesterday's 3.4% decline... But even though the commodity has now fallen roughly 13% from all-time highs reached just last week, its impact on trading continues to be eclipsed by economic data and activity in the bond market...NYSE Adv/Dec 1092/2168, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 937/2059

2:30PM: Major indices continue to chalk up losses, spearheaded by a broad-based selling in technology... In the spotlight today have been Apple Computer (AAPL 41.31 -1.35) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD 17.06 -0.17), both of which report quarterly earnings after the bell tonight... Apple, which has surpassed analysts' EPS forecasts by an average of $0.03 over the last 8 quarters, has been under pressure amid uncertainty that the company, notwithstanding iPod's soaring popularity, can deliver blowout results for the third quarter in a row...

AMD, which had traded higher most of the day amid speculation the chip maker may finally distance itself from its underperforming flash business, has recently followed the recent market downturn... Previews of both Apple's and AMD's upcoming earnings reports can be found in the archive for Briefing.com's Looking Ahead page... NYSE Adv/Dec 1105/2147, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 921/2039

[54anickel]

100. Ouch!!! Getting within 50 points of support again on the DOW.

Edit to add:

5 on the NAS and 10 on the S&P

Calling all faries!!! Code blue!

[54anickel]

101. Wanna bet the pixie dust shows up before the S&P and NAS hit support?

[UpInArms]

103. 3:20 EST numbers (within a whisker on the Nasdaq support)

Dow 10,392.18 -115.79 (-1.10%)
Nasdaq 1,973.40 -32.00 (-1.60%)
S&P 500 1,172.88 -14.88 (-1.25%)
10-Yr Bond 4.374 +0.14 (+0.32%)

NYSE Volume 1,646,860,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,405,882,000

[AnneD]

124. what do you mean by

pixie dust and faeries???

[54anickel]

132. UpInArms got that one started, with the "clap if you believe in fairies"

line UIA used during the Raygun years.

A person must believe in magic, pixie dust and/or fairies to buy into the "explanations" given in the blather and MSM for some of the "non-sensical" movement in the markets.

Some call it the PPT (plunge protection team). It's officially known as the President's Working Group on Financial Markets created by the Raygun administration after the October '87 "crash".

[AnneD]

135. Thanks....

:rofl: I learned about the PPT yesterday ( ok, I vaguely remember hearing about it years ago after 10/87 crash).
:dunce: I feel so foolish. All this time I thought the stock market was controlled by economic factors when it is really all about pixie dust and faeries.....I feel so foolish. Thanks for setting me straight 54anickel.

[54anickel]

137. You're welcome. The President's Working Group on Financial Markets

have had nearly 20 years to perfect their art, lulling Americans into the belief that the markets will "always" go up in the long-term. Remember all the talk of the "new economy". It is that "art" that was threatened and nearly lost on 9-11-01.

IMO, that is what they are referring to when they make the statement that 9-11 changed "everything". They nearly lost that control over the markets they've held for those nearly 20 years.

OBL said "he" would reduce the US to a mere shadow of itself. "He" did succeed in one aspect when you look at the liberties we've lost. Phase 2 appears to coming in the form of a economic collapse, made so much easier by Bubbles Greenspin's inflationary policies of nearly 20 years.

Is OBL and individual or an entity? I dunno. Does the PPT really exist or is this some urban legend? I can't say one way or the other. Either way, we're all screwed in the end.


http://www.dailyreckoning.com/Writers/Pugsley/Articles/102303.html

snip>

After the stock market crash in October 1987, Ronald Reagan created the President's Working Group on Financial Markets, now nicknamed the "Plunge Protection Team" (PPT). Composed of the Chairmen of the Federal Reserve, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, plus the Secretary of the Treasury, this group is charged with devising plans to stabilize financial markets in the wake of sudden stock market meltdowns.

Rumors are that when a wave of selling hits the stock market, the PPT orders the Treasury or the Fed to purchase derivative contracts on the major stock indexes, thereby preventing a market panic. No smoking gun with fingerprints has ever been found that proves the rumor. Nor has anyone in government admitted intervening. John Mauldin contends: "The plunge protection team does not exist. It is an urban myth."

Others argue that in the past few years, immediate market rebounds after sudden sell-offs are hard evidence that the PPT does intervene. They claim, rightly so, that government would never confess to such intervention, as an admission would trigger an even greater market sell-off.

If the PPT does exist, we would be smart to bet on the eventual financial storms ahead. Since governments are always committed to intervention, it is probably wise to assume they are intervening.

snip>

To the gullible public, the Fed is the knight on a white horse. Depositors don't need to worry about their bank going under, the banker has no fear of bank runs, and the economy seems insulated against recessions. In fact, by protecting banks and depositors, the Fed undermines the economy. Protecting participants from the consequences of risky deposits and loans encourages more risk taking. It leads to more losses. Doing it by creating money dilutes the money supply. This shifts losses from the risk-takers to the public through depreciation of the purchasing power of currency. It's a process that leads to ever-intensifying cycles of boom and bust.

snip>

The officials who are presiding over the current financial tangle will use any device they can dream up to prevent citizens from escaping the consequences of government manipulations. If the PPT is intervening in the markets, the intervention will only make the ultimate collapse more severe. If the PPT is an urban myth, it's only because the wizards in government can't figure out how to get away with it.

So, which is more foolish, believing in the PPT (which has you ROFL) or that the rather sharp drop today was suddenly stopped dead in its tracks about an hour before the closing bell by "economic factors"?

[54anickel]

104. 3:24 and the suspense is killing me

Dow 10,390.63 -117.34 (-1.12%) Support 10,350
Nasdaq 1,972.79 -32.61 (-1.63%) Support 1970
S&P 500 1,172.46 -15.30 (-1.29%) Support 1165
10-Yr Bond 4.374% +0.01
NYSE Volume 1,659,275,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,418,175,000

[RawMaterials]

105. very high volume also n/m

[54anickel]

110. Looks about the same as this time yesterday.

:shrug: That's one of the things I haven't paid close enough attention to to be able to distinguish a high to low volume day.

[RawMaterials]

118. Tuesday was the second highest day of the year interms of volume n/m

[54anickel]

123. Heh, yet at lunch time it was the slowest according to the blather -

that was a quick pick up in volume again then. Guess I gotta pay closer attention to those volume figures. So yesterday became the highest day on the heels of Monday being the lowest? Wow, Greenspin really can move mountains.

From yesterdays lunch blather -

However, lighter than usual volumes, on the heels of the lightest trading day of the year

[RawMaterials]

126. best info i can find dow daily volume avg

1.46 billion daily average for last year.

since Monday we have 2 day over 2 billion in volume, one day up the other down. i guess this is the best kind of market for the day traders, make money on the way up and down. buy and holders beware, the markets are still lower then they were on the day bush was appointed.

[DoBotherMe]

106. Stupid question here ...

what is this "support" of which you speak? Dana ; )

[RawMaterials]

107. post #1 and 16# should help n/m

[Tace]

109. Check The First Two Posts Of The Day

It refers to technical support levels based on historical turning points.

It occurs to me you're being facetious. : )

[UpInArms]

108. 3:30 clock is ticking

Dow 10,386.86 -121.11 (-1.15%)
Nasdaq 1,972.46 -32.94 (-1.64%)
S&P 500 1,172.32 -15.44 (-1.30%)
10-Yr Bond 4.374 +0.14 (+0.32%)

NYSE Volume 1,702,369,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,454,841,000

[54anickel]

111. Heh, looks like they are in suspended animation or something.

Working group happen to pull the plug a bit early today?

[RawMaterials]

112. 3:30 Blather

3:30PM: Bearish breadth figures and strong industry leadership to the downside continue to weigh heavily on the proceedings going into the close... In fact, of the six noteworthy companies out with earnings after the bell, only one - MGI Pharma Inc. (MOGN 25.82 +0.31) - has managed to attract buyers, arguably finding support from the only notable group also gaining ground on a day - Drug (+1.4%)... With regards to tomorrow, the bulk (12) of this week's 31 S&P components scheduled to report will post Q1 results...

Some notable names out before the bell include DJ, FDC, NYT, PEP, LUV, UIS and UNH while SUNW will report after the close... NYSE Adv/Dec 1002/2285, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 864/2170

[54anickel]

115. Check out the adv/dec numbers

Advances & Declines
NYSE Nasdaq
Advances 982 (28%) 858 (26%)
Declines 2311 (67%) 2184 (68%)
Unchanged 129 (3%) 139 (4%)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Up Vol* 345 (21%) 224 (16%)
Down Vol* 1252 (78%) 1159 (83%)
Unch. Vol* 8 (0%) 10 (0%)


Those don't exactly reflect market numbers in suspended animation!

[UpInArms]

114. are you being "punny" 54anickel?

suspended

:rofl:

I just wonder if any of their "friends" on the floor just happen to be MIA?

[54anickel]

116. SNARF!!! Never even thought of that! Good catch, UIA...eom

[UpInArms]

113. Dow drops triple digits, threatens sub-10,400 close

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.6364284028-834126073&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The Dow industrials ($INDU) was last down 108 points at 10,400, with 24 of 30 components contributing to losses. The last time the Dow closed with a triple digits loss was on Mar. 16, when the blue chip barometer fell 112 points. At its intraday low, the Dow was down as much as 110 points at 10,397. The last time the Dow closed below the 10,400 level was Jan. 24, when it closed at 10,368.61.

[Democrats_win]

119. Bushwacked Wednesday or springtime for Bush?

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/050413/economy.html?.v=14

Retail Sales Hurt by Rising Gas Costs

Consumers hit by higher gasoline costs cut back spending on clothes and many other items last month, raising concerns about whether the economy might be entering another "soft patch" similar to last year's slowdown.

The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that retail sales rose a disappointing 0.3 percent in March, far below expectations for a 0.8 percent rise.

[UpInArms]

117. 3:38 EST and someone's got their finger plugged in the NasDike

Dow 10,381.68 -126.29 (-1.20%)
Nasdaq 1,972.85 -32.55 (-1.62%)
S&P 500 1,171.70 -16.06 (-1.35%)
10-Yr Bond 4.374 +0.14 (+0.32%)

NYSE Volume 1,762,729,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,501,893,000

[54anickel]

120. How do they do that with the rapidly climbing volume numbers?

at 3:45

NYSE Volume 1,812,511,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,547,726,000

[Tace]

133. My Guess Is They Short It For A Spell On The Downside...

Then splurge with a series of carefully timed injections to shift the momentum. They could get a lot of leverage in the futures market that would affect the cash market.

[UpInArms]

121. 3:44 EST (music intro: Here they come to save the d-a-y)

Dow 10,396.23 -111.74 (-1.06%)
Nasdaq 1,975.03 -30.37 (-1.51%)
S&P 500 1,173.20 -14.56 (-1.23%)
10-Yr Bond 4.374 +0.14 (+0.32%)

NYSE Volume 1,813,554,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,547,650,000

fairy dust sprinkling around - will it hold?

[UpInArms]

122. 3:47 EST (The captain requests all tray tables returned to their upright

positions)

Dow 10,402.37 -105.60 (-1.00%)
Nasdaq 1,975.01 -30.39 (-1.52%)
S&P 500 1,173.40 -14.36 (-1.21%)
10-Yr Bond 4.374 +0.14 (+0.32%)

NYSE Volume 1,840,179,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,568,449,000

smooth landing, guys!

back above 10,400!

[54anickel]

125. Absolutely "incredible"! eom

[RawMaterials]

127. Closing Numbers and Blather

Dow 10403.93 -104.04 (-0.99%)
Nasdaq 1974.37 -31.03 (-1.55%)
S&P 500 1173.79 -13.97 (-1.18%)
10-Yr Bond 4.374% +0.14

NYSE Volume 2,019,222,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,703,409,000


Close: Widespread selling, sparked by higher bond yields, disappointing retail sales data and downside guidance, closed virtually every sector in negative territory, as all the major indices lost at least 1.0%... Volatility in Treasurys again played havoc with market sentiment, except today's arguably modest swings in bonds to the downside more than erased yesterday's late-day rally in equities, which was ignited primarily by just the opposite - a bond swing to the upside...

Today, bonds initially found modest buying interest, following weaker than expected March retail sales data, but meager indirect bidder participation (28.2%) in today's $15 bln 5-year note auction knocked the benchmark 10-year note (-8/32) to session lows and yields to their highs of the day (4.38%), further strengthening a negative tone first ignited by the poor retail sales figures... The 10-year note eventually closed down 5 ticks to yield 4.37%... March retail sales rose 0.3%, but checked in well below expectations of 0.8%, while the retail sales excluding autos grew just 0.1%, also below forecasts (+0.5%), following a revised 0.6% rise a month earlier...

While the weaker than expected March data may raise doubts about the trend in consumer spending, the numbers are not expected to greatly alter Q1 GDP estimates, which currently stand at about 3 1/2%... Also weighing on the markets was an earnings warning from Harley-Davidson (HDI 48.79 -9.98), which actually beat Q1 estimates by a penny, as well as downside guidance from the likes of Compuware (CPWR 5.95 -0.86) and Foundry Networks (FDRY 8.99 -0.46), which trumped upside Q1 guidance from Merck (MRK 34.58 +0.77) and McDonalds (MCD 31.27 +0.37)... Nine out of 10 economic sectors closed lower...

Pacing the way to the downside was the Materials sector (-2.7%), amid widespread weakness in Steel, Aluminum and Paper... Energy (-2.3%) was not far behind, as oil prices fell 3.2% to a 7-week low... Crude oil futures ($50.22/bbl -$1.64) extended yesterday's 3.4% sell off, amid better than expected builds of 3.6 mln barrels (consensus 400K) and 800K barrels (analysts expected levels to remain unchanged) in crude oil supplies and gasoline inventories, respectively... Falling oil prices, however, failed to lift overall sentiment due to the growing emphasis being placed on economic data, bond yields and upcoming corporate earnings growth...

Financial (-1.4%), Consumer Discretionary (-1.4%), Industrials (-1.5%) and Technology (-1.7%) were also an influential leaders losing ground... Pacing losses in technology was Semiconductor (-2.7%), which was weak after ASML Holding (ASML 15.31 -1.00) forecasted a decline in Q2 orders and following a report that showed global sales of chip equipment fell 2.5% in Feb. - the first such decline in 19 months...

Weakness in shares of Apple Computer (AAPL 41.35 -1.31), ahead of its Q1 earnings report after the close, dragged Hardware (-1.3%) down while every other sub-sector showed losses in excess of 1.0%... Health Care (+0.5%), however, was the lone bright spot of the day, getting a boost from Merck's upside Q1 guidance and optimism that a U.S. District Court's long awaited decision may show that the patent on Eli Lilly's (LLY 55.38 +1.56) drug Zyprexa is valid and that challenges brought by generic drug makers are without merit...DJTA -2.7, DJUA -0.7, DOT -1.6, Nasdaq 100 -1.9, Russell 2000 -1.6, SOX -2.7, S&P Midcap 400 -1.4, XOI -2.2, NYSE Adv/Dec 969/2328, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 883/2198

[UpInArms]

128. Criminal Brokerages: SEC says Mass. adviser misappropriated client funds

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.6656290162-834127166&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

BOSTON (MarketWatch) - The Securities and Exchange Commission Wednesday said it has obtained a temporary restraining order, asset freeze and other emergency relief in a civil fraud action against Amit Mathur and Entrust Capital Management, his Worcester, Mass.-based investment advisory firm. The SEC's complaint, filed in Massachusetts federal district court, alleges that Mathur, through Entrust, misappropriated at least $3.1 million in client funds for personal gain, and misled investors about the performance and value of their accounts.

"Personal" Privatized Social Security Retirement Accounts

:rofl:

[54anickel]

130. Misappropriated, my A$$! - Stole, pilfered, robbed, swindled, bamboozled,

Let's call it what it is!

[UpInArms]

129. Criminal Brokerages: Suit reportedly filed against A.G. Edwards over funds

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38455.6652453241-834127150&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- A lawsuit filed on Tuesday in St. Louis city court on behalf of investors alleges broker A.G. Edwards, Inc. (AGE) had revenue-sharing agreements with fund firms without disclosing potential conflicts of interests to investors, according to a published report. In February, Massachusetts regulators charged A.G. Edwards with defrauding shareholders by permitting illegal rapid trading, or "market timing," in mutual funds by select customers. Shares of A.G. Edwards lost 1.3% to $41.78 in late afternoon trading Wednesday.

"Personal" Privatized Social Security Retirement Accounts

:rofl:

[54anickel]

131. Defrauding, my A$$ again!!! Sheesh, this is getting repetitious...n/t

[Robbien]

134. Ha! You will never get hired as a Headline Writer for the cheerleading

corporate media.

Thanks guys for always keeping us informed on the games these slimy crooks are playing.

[AnneD]

136. preach it

I enjoy trying to make my money grow by investing in the market, and if I can retire without Social Security, great. BUT I view it (SS) as basic insurance- just enough to supply me with canned tuna, sterno, and a parka when they put me on the ice floe if I lose everything. I would never ever want to gamble it all in the market. They have proven their 'integrity'.