Kraven Moorehead

By Lynn Adler

NEW YORK, June 10 (Reuters) - Spiking U.S. mortgage rates drove down total home loan applications last week as demand for refinancing shriveled to the lowest level since November, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday.

The swift rate rise crimps affordability, likely cutting offer prices on home sales and prolonging a housing turnaround.

Borrowing costs have soared as bond yields have risen, even as the Federal Reserve has sopped up hundreds of billions of dollars in bonds to keep rates low and stimulate the housing market.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate jumped 0.32 percentage point in the June 5 week to 5.57 percent. That was nearly a full point, about 100 basis points, above the record low rate of 4.61 percent in March, the trade group said.

"Clearly, 50 or 100 basis points more on mortgage rates is enough to matter. It effects what people can afford to buy," said Bill Cheney, chief economist at John Hancock Financial Services in Boston.

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MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif (Reuters) - Google Inc is closing in on its goal of producing renewable energy at a price cheaper than coal, the company's so-called green energy czar, the engineer in charge of the project, said on Tuesday.

But the United States needs to raise government-backed research significantly and take much bigger risks if it wants to make alternative energy mainstream, executive Bill Weihl told Reuters in an interview.

Google, known for its Internet search engine, in late 2007 said it would invest in companies and do research of its own to produce affordable renewable energy -- at a price less than burning coal -- within a few years.

Continue reading "Google closing in on cheap renewable energy" »

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By Kevin Krolicki and John Crawley

DETROIT/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - General Motors Corp filed for bankruptcy on Monday, forcing the 100-year-old automaker once seen as a symbol of American economic might and dynamism into a new and uncertain era of government ownership.

The bankruptcy filing is the third-largest in U.S. history and the largest ever in U.S. manufacturing.

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New York.

Natalie Dylan is back on the auction block after an Australian businessman pulled out of his contract to take her virginity. The man, who agreed to pay $3.8 million for the honor of deflowering Dylan, says he can no longer go through with the deal - because his wife says no.

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PERTH, Australia (AP) — An Australian student worried about her parents' money problems rifled through a pile of her lottery tickets Thursday and discovered that she had won 13 million Australian dollars ($10 million) 10 months ago, a state lottery agency said.

The student, living in the west coast city of Perth, received the winning ticket for a draw on July 22 last year as a gift from her father, Western Australia state agency Lotterywest said.

She had been unaware that it would have expired after 12 months, it said in a statement.

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updated 4:10 p.m. PT, Wed., May 27, 2009

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - If AIG was too big to fail, how about the world's eighth-largest economy?

In a move with only one modern-day precedent, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic lawmakers are pressing the Obama administration and members of Congress for federal loan guarantees to help the state out of a desperate, multibillion-dollar jam.

California is not asking for cash, like the tens of billions given to AIG, General Motors or Morgan Stanley. Instead, the state with the worst credit rating in the nation is asking that Washington act as a sort of co-signer on the state's borrowing, to be backed up with money from the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Continue reading "California to U.S.: Back us up for new loans" »

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Summer associate jobs have traditionally been filled with parties and perks designed to lure the students into full-time employment. No more. As law firms adjust their programs, taking a no-frills approach, students need to adjust as well, law school career counselors say.

At a seminar at Stanford Law School, students were told to volunteer for work and to watch their etiquette, Forbes magazine reports. They also learned it’s not a good idea to be a no-show after signing up for social programs. And summer associates need to lose the attitude, says Susan Robinson, Stanford’s associate dean for career services.

"One complaint firms had in the past two years was that the students had a sense of entitlement," she told Forbes. "Around lunchtime, they would start trolling for associates to take them out to eat. I tell the students that should be the least of their worries. In no way, shape or form should they focus on lunch."

"In past years, firms' partners would put up with behavior they might not tolerate from their own kids, because they wanted to get those top students,” Robinson added. “This year, the students need to earn their offers."

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SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The United States may emerge from recession as early as this summer, though further job losses mean a "depressed economy" could last as long as five years, Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman said Tuesday.

"I think it's quite possible that industrial production in the United States and perhaps in the world as a whole will bottom out sometime in the next few months, that GDP growth in the United States will be positive in the second half of the year and maybe a little bit later than that in Europe," Krugman told a global financial conference in Seoul.

Krugman said that he would not be surprised if the U.S. recession, which began in December 2007, ended in August or September this year. But job losses were likely to continue into 2011, meaning "the period of a depressed economy" could last until 2013 or 2014, he said.

Krugman, who teaches at Princeton University, won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences last year for his analysis of how economies of scale can affect international trade patterns. He also writes columns for The New York Times.

Continue reading "Nobel economics laureate Paul Krugman sees no quick end to US 'depressed economy'" »

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Microsoft Corp.'s fiscal third-quarter net income fell 32% amid weakness in the global personal computer market, as the software giant also recorded $710 million in charges.

The software giant reported its quarterly revenue fell from the previous year for the first time in its 23-year history as a public company, as it struggled with lower sales in four of its five

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Worse-than-expected news on U.S. unemployment and home sales Thursday dampened optimism that a broad economic recovery might be near.

The Labor Department said initial claims for unemployment compensation rose to a seasonally adjusted 640,000, up from a revised 613,000 the previous week. That was slightly more than analysts' expectations of 635,000.

Economists are closely watching the unemployment compensation data because they believe a sustained decline in the number of initial claims could signal the end of the recession is nearing. Jobless claims have historically peaked six to 10 weeks before recessions end, according to a report by Goldman Sachs. Initial claims reflect job cuts by employers.

But the latest report shows job losses remain high. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out volatility, dropped slightly to 646,750, about 12,000 below the peak in early April. Goldman Sachs economists have said a decline of 30,000 to 40,000 in the four-week average is needed to signal a peak.

Continue reading "they say........Jobless claims up more than expected and homes sales drop, defying hopes for recovery" »

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By Helen Chernikoff

NEW YORK (Reuters) - More U.S. consumers are falling behind on their mortgages, an indication that the housing market has yet to hit bottom, a top credit bureau executive told Reuters.

Dann Adams, president of U.S. Information Systems for Equifax Inc, reported that 7 percent of homeowners with mortgages were at least 30 days late on their loans in February, an increase of more than 50 percent from a year earlier.

He also said 39.8 percent of subprime borrowers were at least 30 days behind on their home mortgage loans, up 23.7 percent from last year.

"I'm trying to find optimism in these numbers, but I'm pretty hard pressed to do that," Adams said, despite a recent burst of relatively positive news that has fueled hope that the U.S. housing market has turned a corner.

Late last month the Commerce Department reported that sales of newly built U.S. single-family homes rose to a 337,000 annual pace in February, the highest in 10 months.

Continue reading "Mortgage delinquencies soar in the U.S. Tue Apr 7, 2009 3:55pm EDT" »

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By Bob Burgdorfer

CHICAGO (Reuters) - This year's Easter ham may be smaller and guests may be asked to bring a dish, as cash-strapped consumers spend less to celebrate the Christian holiday.

"I think people are more cognizant that we don't need these elaborate bashes," said Brian Leonard, whose Easter plans have shrunk to include only his family of five, down from previous years, when 30 were on the guest list.

"Sunday we are going to have a small family meal; normally we have a large family meal," said Leonard, who lives on Chicago's west side.

The ongoing recession, 8.5 percent unemployment, and 10 percent of Americans using food stamps have changed the country's eating habits and food buying decisions.

Continue reading "Smaller hams may grace Easter tables" »

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April 6 (Bloomberg) -- Joseph Ramelo gave up searching for work in January to return to school, two months after he was laid off as a San Francisco election clerk. Antonio Poe is struggling to get by doing part-time landscaping in Greensboro, North Carolina, after losing his job as an electrician.

While such workers are feeling real pain from the recession that began in December 2007, they’re not represented in the 8.5 percent unemployment rate the Labor Department reported last week. They are part of a broader group that includes those who want a job but have stopped looking for work and those who want full-time positions but have to settle for part-time employment.

Continue reading " Americans Feel 15.6% Unemployment as Underemployment Surges ......thanks Arlo" »

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BY CARRIE MASON-DRAFFEN | carrie.mason-draffen@newsday.com
10:45 PM EDT, April 3, 2009
The country's longest-running postwar recession continues to wreak havoc on the national job market. The U.S. economy lost 663,000 jobs in March and the unemployment rate shot up to a 26-year high of 8.5 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

That jobless rate rose from 8.1 percent in February, and 5.1 percent in March of last year.

A revised January number of 741,000, up from 655,000, shows even faster month-to-month deterioration in the job market than first thought. Though initial Bureau of Labor Statistics reports can impact stock markets, the data are almost always revised.

Continue reading "U. S. unemployment rate in March highest in 26 years" »

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the Depression is over as of 4-2-09 @ 8:00 am
He made the announcement on MSNBC

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By Pedro Nicolaci da Costa

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. home prices plunged at a record pace in January while consumer confidence held just above record lows in March, according to data on Tuesday that showed no signs of a bottom for the lengthy recession.

Home prices nationwide have lost around 30 percent of their value from their peak in 2006, according to the S&P/Case Shiller index, with regional variations making for much steeper declines in places like Florida and Nevada. In the year to January alone, prices plunged a record 19 percent.

Continue reading "Record drop in home prices keeps U.S. consumers glum" »

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TOKYO (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co (7267.T) said it would cut production in North America by 62,000 vehicles by shutting down factories for 13 days starting in May and said it would cut pay for salaried and factory workers.

Honda's shares gained 7.3 percent in morning trade in Tokyo on Wednesday as the yen lost ground, outperforming a 5.3 percent rise in Tokyo's transport sector subindex .ITEQP.T. The news was announced on Tuesday in the United States.

Japan's No.2 automaker, which like its rivals has been hit by the sharp downturn in auto sales, said it will cut pay for salaried and factory workers and also offered buyouts and early retirement incentives to most of its 32,400 workers in the United States and Canada.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — More states logged double-digit unemployment rates in February, with North Carolina and Rhode Island seeing their rates hit record highs.

The U.S. Labor Department's report, released Friday, showed the terrible toll the recession, now in its second year, is having on workers and companies alike.

Seven states have unemployment rates that topped 10 percent last month. That's up from four states in January.

The U.S. unemployment rate, released earlier this month, rose to 8.1 percent in February, the highest in more than 25 years. Economists predict the national jobless rate will hit 10 percent by year end even if the recession were to end later this year as some hope.

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CARSON CITY, Nevada: For nearly three decades, most U.S. states have dealt with lawbreakers in two ways: Lock more of them up for longer periods, and build more prisons to hold them. Now many governments, out of money and buried under mounting prison costs, are reversing many of those policies and practices.

Continue reading "The latest victim of financial crisis: U.S. jails" »

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Top hedge fund managers do well in a down year
By Louise Story
Published: March 25, 2009

The financial crisis may have turned much of Wall Street's wealth into dross, but a select group of hedge fund managers has managed to maintain a golden touch that might make King Midas blush.

As major markets and economies careened downward last year, 25 top managers reaped a total of $11.6 billion in pay by trading above the pain in the markets, according to an annual ranking of top hedge fund earners by Institutional Investor's Alpha magazine, which comes out Wednesday.

Continue reading "and the pigs eat more" »

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WASHINGTON: The Federal Reserve sharply stepped up its efforts to bolster the economy on Wednesday, announcing that it would pump an extra $1 trillion into the financial system by purchasing Treasury bonds and mortgage securities.

Having already reduced the key interest rate it controls nearly to zero, the central bank has increasingly turned to alternatives like buying securities as a way of getting more dollars into the economy, a tactic that amounts to creating vast new sums of money out of thin air. But the moves on Wednesday were its biggest yet, almost doubling all of the Fed's measures in the last year.

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Lawmaker says 13 firms receiving government bailout money owe more than $220M in back taxes

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER | Associated Press Writer
9:40 AM EDT, March 19, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) — At least 13 firms receiving billions of dollars in bailout money owe a total of more than $220 million in unpaid federal taxes, a key lawmaker said Thursday.

Rep. John Lewis, chairman of a House subcommittee overseeing the federal bailout, said two firms owe more than $100 million apiece.

"This is shameful. It is a disgrace," said Lewis, D-Ga. "We are going to get to the bottom of what is going on here."

The House Ways and Means subcommittee on oversight discovered the delinquent taxes in a review of tax records from 23 of the firms receiving the most money, Lewis said as he opened a hearing on the issue.

Continue reading "and more money " »

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AIG is to date the most expensive corporate bailout in American history, requiring $180 billion in government funds. But it may soon have competition. Last week mortgage giant Freddie Mac said it had lost $50 billion in 2008 alone. A look at the company's books suggests the government will have to spend at least triple that much to save the financial firm from collapse. If the housing market worsens, the tab could be even larger.

Continue reading " Freddie Mac: Government's New Black Hole?" »

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Can Marijuana Help Rescue California's Economy?
By Alison Stateman / Los Angeles Friday, Mar. 13, 2009
california medical marijuana
Mario Anzuoni / Reuters / Corbis

Could marijuana be the answer to the economic misery facing California? Democratic state assemblyman Tom Ammiano thinks so. Ammiano introduced legislation last month that would legalize pot and allow the state to regulate and tax its sale — a move that could mean billions of dollars for the cash-strapped state. Pot is, after all, California's biggest cash crop, responsible for $14 billion a year in sales, dwarfing the state's second largest agricultural commodity — milk and cream — which brings in $7.3 billion a year, according to the most recent USDA statistics. The state's tax collectors estimate the bill would bring in about $1.3 billion a year in much needed revenue, offsetting some of the billions of dollars in service cuts and spending reductions outlined in the recently approved state budget.

Continue reading " Can Marijuana Help Rescue California's Economy?" »

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AIG is to date the most expensive corporate bailout in American history, requiring $180 billion in government funds. But it may soon have competition. Last week mortgage giant Freddie Mac said it had lost $50 billion in 2008 alone. A look at the company's books suggests the government will have to spend at least triple that much to save the financial firm from collapse. If the housing market worsens, the tab could be even larger.

"Freddie's portfolio of [mortgage] insurance is more risky than the market was led to believe," says Paul Miller, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets. Sister company Fannie Mae lost even more last year, with $58.7 billion of red ink. But Fannie was better capitalized than Freddie going into the credit crunch. So even though Freddie by many measures is smaller than Fannie, the problems at Freddie will probably end up costing more.

Continue reading " Freddie Mac: Government's New Black Hole?" »

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SPIN METER: Shocked, shocked! Washington knew AIG details for months, rises in anger only now

WASHINGTON (AP) — Cue the outrage.

For months, the Obama administration and members of Congress have known that insurance giant AIG was getting ready to pay huge bonuses while living off government bailouts. It wasn't until the money was flowing and news was trickling out to the public that official Washington rose up in anger and vowed to yank the money back.

Why the sudden furor, just weeks after Barack Obama's team paid out $30 billion in additional aid to the company? So far, the administration has been unable to match its actions to Obama's tough rhetoric on executive compensation. And Congress has been unable or unwilling to restrict bonuses for bailout recipients, despite some lawmakers' repeated efforts to do so.

The situation has the White House and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on the defensive. The administration was caught off guard Tuesday trying to explain why Geithner had waited until last Wednesday to call AIG chief executive Edward M. Liddy and demand that the bonus payments be restructured.

Continue reading "A surprise????" »

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Under fire for bonuses, AIG says over $90 billion of its bailout money went to other banks

Under fire for bonuses, AIG says over $90 billion of its bailout money went to other banks

By JENNIFER MALLOY ZONNAS | AP Business Writer
8:33 AM EDT, March 16, 2009

NEW YORK (AP) — American International Group Inc. used more than $90 billion in federal aid to pay out foreign and domestic banks, some of whom had received their own multibillion-dollar U.S. government bailouts.

The embattled insurer's disclosure on Sunday came amid outrage on Capitol Hill over its payment of tens of millions in executive bonuses, and followed demands from lawmakers that the names of trading partners who indirectly benefited from federal aid to AIG be made public.

The company, now about 80 percent owned by U.S. taxpayers, has received roughly $170 billion from the government, which feared that its collapse could cause widespread damage to banks and consumers around the globe.

"The ability of AIG to meet its obligations is important to the stability of the U.S. financial system and to getting credit flowing to households and businesses," Federal Reserve spokeswoman Michelle Smith said.

Continue reading "double dippers???" »

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NBC Universal CEO Jeff Zucker calls CNBC, business media attacks 'out of line'

By Associated Press
9:47 AM EDT, March 18, 2009

NEW YORK (AP) — Jeff Zucker, the chief executive of NBC Universal, is calling comedian Jon Stewart's attacks on business network CNBC "incredibly unfair."

At a media conference Wednesday in New York, Zucker said the "Daily Show" host's recent rips on CNBC, its "Mad Money" host Jim Cramer and business media in general were "completely out of line."

Stewart has had strong words for CNBC, making the point that reporters who cover Wall Street should have done more to warn of the financial meltdown through critical reporting, instead of acting like market cheerleaders.

Zucker says that while "everyone wants to find a scapegoat," to suggest that the business media or CNBC was responsible for the economic meltdown is "absurd."

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Has a Comedian Just Saved America?
By PAM MARTENS
As testimony to how Orwellian life has become under the outrages of Wall Street hubris, last week saw a comedian, who poses as an anchor on a fake news show, grab the reins of the Wall Street investigation from the actual investigators in Congress.
Either Jon Stewart is the smartest man in America or he has incredible instincts. In a week’s time, he has zeroed in, like a heat-seeking missile, on the core of Wall Street’s malady. How insightful of Stewart, host of Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show,” to rationalize that the core of Wall Street’s corruption might well be the same core that it has drawn the darkest curtain around: trading.
Stewart is the son of an educational consultant mother (Marion Leibowitz), physicist father (Donald Leibowitz) and trading technology guru brother (Larry Leibowitz) an executive at the New York Stock Exchange. He’s got a smart family and he’s equally smart, advancing the national debate on a comedy channel.

Continue reading "Jon says it all for us.thanks Mike" »

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U.S. jobless claims up, continued claims hit record

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose 9,000 last week and so-called continued claims notched a fresh record as a year-long U.S. recession continued to slam the labor market, data on Thursday showed.

The Labor Department said initial claims for state unemployment insurance benefits increased to a seasonally adjusted 654,000 in the week ended March 7 from a revised 645,000 the week before.

Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast 645,000 new claims versus a previously reported count of 639,000 the week before.

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Mexican drug lord 'El Chapo' Guzman makes Forbes' list of billionaires

By MARK STEVENSON | Associated Press Writer
9:37 PM EDT, March 11, 2009

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Who says crime doesn't pay? A suspected drug lord who is Mexico's most-wanted fugitive made the Forbes list of billionaires on Wednesday with a fortune described as "self made."

The magazine estimates Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman's worth at $1 billion — No. 701 on the list, right between a Swiss oil-trading tycoon and a U.S. chemical heir. Dozens of other people were also tied for the spot.

It is unclear what Guzman thinks of the distinction. Forbes senior editor Luisa Kroll notes that "unfortunately ... Guzman could not be reached for comment."

Often described as Mexico's most powerful cartel kingpin, Guzman has been on the run with a $5 million reward on his head since 2001, when he escaped from prison apparently hidden in a laundry truck.

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IMF chief says global economy will shrink this year as world enters 'a Great Recession'

By Associated Press
1:31 PM EDT, March 10, 2009

PARIS (AP) — The global economy will shrink this year as the world enters "a Great Recession," the head of the International Monetary Fund said Tuesday.

Speaking in a taped interview with French television channel France 24, Dominique Strauss-Kahn said economic data has worsened since January, when the IMF forecast global growth in gross domestic product of 0.5 percent this year.

"Since then the news hasn't been good," Strauss-Kahn said. "I think that we can now say that we've entered a Great Recession."

Strauss-Kahn didn't make a precise forecast for global economic decline this year.

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Report: Unemployment Near Depression Highs

Monday, March 9, 2009 10:38 AM

Article Font Size

The U.S. unemployment rate would be 19.1 percent, close to the level during the Great Depression, using the methodology that prevailed 80 years ago, according to Shadowstats.com.

According to the official Labor Department figures, the jobless rate jumped to a 25-year high of 8.1 percent in February.

However, John Williams, from ShadowStats, argues that measurement changes implemented over the years make it impossible to compare the current unemployment rate with that seen during the Great Depression, when unemployment peaked at 25 percent.

"Such would be my best estimate of a rate that would be comparable to the Great Depression readings," said Williams of the 19.1 percent reading.

Still, he noted that the Depression peak itself may have been underestimated because it was restricted to "non-farm" payrolls at a time when agricultural labor still represented more than a quarter of the economy

Unemployment

Chart of Unemployment Rate. U-3, U-6, SGS
The SGS Alternate Unemployment Rate reflects current unemployment reporting methodology adjusted for SGS-estimated "discouraged workers" defined away during the Clinton Administration added to the existing BLS estimates of level U-6 unemployment.

Last Updated: Mar 6, 2009

Employment Data Series

The SGS Alternate Unemployment Rate reflects current unemployment reporting methodology adjusted for SGS-estimated "discouraged workers" defined away during the Clinton Administration added to the existing BLS estimates of level U-6 unemployment.

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unemployment numbers just out

Unemployment number
Jan.
7.6%

Feb.
8.1%

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AP Business

*
British government takes controlling stake in Lloyds banking group
Updated: 6:26 a.m.
*
ArcelorMittal to suspend operations at Cleveland plant, leaving 950 steelworkers out of work
*
Former Qwest CEO Nacchio argues newly discovered evidence warrants new trial
*
Receiver orders bulk of workers from investment firm Stanford terminated without severance

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If bank failures multiply, as some knowledgeable observers have forecast, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) which insures depositors funds could go broke.

This was the dire prediction of FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair, writing in a letter to banking industry executives.

Due to "rapidly deteriorating economic conditions" a large number of bank failures are possible, wrote Bair.

If that happens, according to Bair, "...current projections indicate that the fund balance will approach zero or even become negative.”

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

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) may be the next subject of a federal bailout — if General Motors Corp. (GM) doesn't get its own speedy injection of Uncle Sam's cash.

GM's own auditors doubt the survival potential of the auto giant. What's more, GM concedes that on top of money to cover operations, it needs to make $12.3 billion in pension contributions by 2014. Is GM the looming iceberg that will sink the already swamped Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)?

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Evans-Pritchard: Dow 4,000 by Summer

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Anheuser-Busch InBev 4Q profit down 95 percent as beer sales go flat or fall

By AOIFE WHITE | AP Business Writer
6:39 AM EST, March 5, 2009

LEUVEN, Belgium (AP) — Brewing giant Anheuser-Busch InBev's fourth quarter profit plunged 95 percent as it paid the costs of the takeover that formed it last year and as beer sales went flat or fell, the company said Thursday.

The world's largest brewer said it would now focus on reducing the massive debt from InBev's $52 billion takeover of Anheuser Busch — and would aggressively shave costs and sell off some $7 billion in assets.

AB InBev said profits fell to euro49 million ($61 million) from euro900 million a year earlier.

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General Dynamics cuts production of business jets, to lay off 1,200 workers; lowers guidance

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Factory orders fall for record sixth straight month in January although dip less than expected
Mar 05, 2009 10:30 -0500

Updated: 22 minutes ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — Orders to U.S. factories fell for a record sixth straight month in January as demand declined across a wide cross-section of industries.

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Stewart Turns CNBC Into A Pile of Steaming Goo
by Edgewater Joe
Wed Mar 04, 2009 at 08:45:50 PM PST
You see THE DAILY SHOW tonight?
Oh, man, you HAD to see THE DAILY SHOW tonight, above all nights.
If the Emmys gave an award for balls, truth, and hilarity, they'll retire the award after tonight.
If you hadn't heard, CNBC blowhard Rick Santelli was supposed to be Stewart's guest - but was pulled, apparently at the behest of his bosses.

Bad decision. Really bad decision. REALLY bad decision.

* Because that is where Jon Stewart and his writers drew their knives, measured up CNBC, and proceeded in a series of bits through the entire show to expose CNBC as the empty, dumbassed shills for corporate power and Wall Street that we all knew they were.

From showing report after report about rosy scenarios at Bear Stearns and AIG to the absurdity of using the Dow Jones as a reliable barometer of what the Obama Presidency was all about, to a simple but devastating slam of Ponzi schemer Alan Stafford, THE DAILY SHOW was in rare, angry, truth-telling form.

If you didn't see it, you MUST. And when it goes viral, show it to your friends. It'll be cathartic and it will be funny, and once again Jon Stewart proves why he is not only one of the funniest men on the planet, but has more journalistic cajones than pretty much all of cable newsdom.

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This story began back in 1996.
Rick a 31 year old dutchman met an american girl while she was visiting Amsterdam, they fell madly in love and he moved to the U.S. to marry his love.
In 1997 they married.
Rick restored antiques for a living and wanted to open his own shop fixing and selling antiques and used furniture.
In 1998 he went to the bank and told them of his plans and applied for a $15,000 loan.
The banker told him that because of his credit record it would be wiser to applu for $25,000 and that way he may get the $15,000.
Lo and behold, he got his $25,000
Rick opened his shop ( 800 sq.ft.) in Norwood and proceeded to eek out a living. The store next door became vacant in the next year and his landlord made him a deal he didn't want to refuse but he needed more cash so......back to the bank he went and got an additional $25,000 which he used to expand and hire 2 people.
2 years later more space became available and he rented that also but.......he needed more cash.
Off to the bank he went and got an additional $50,000
He and his wife divorced but he continued on his quest of making himself a Millionaire
By 2002 he had 5 employees and was cash strapped so off to the bank again and got another $50,000 but business was tight so he began using his business credit lines with very generous amounts given to him.
He now had a 6000 sq ft store
In 2006 his ex wanted to reunite but first she wanted him to buy a house for them ( everyone had one).
He found a place in Westwood for $309,000 but very run down which he bought with zero down and zero interest.
When he applied for the mortgage his debt was at around $500,000+. He got the loan! They never remarried.
4 months later he went back to the bank and applied for a home improvement loan of $91,000 which he also got.
He realized that he was now over a million dollars in debt and his business was failing so.........knowing he could never repay it, even if the interest was frozen he'd have to pay$50,000 a year until he was in his 60"s
He took the $91,000 flew to Houston bought himself a used Jaguar drove it back to Norwood
Now Rick was 41, he decided to leave the country behind and flee to the Bahamas
Before he left, he went to Sears to buy stuff for his trip and upon entering the store was approach by a woman offering a Sears credit card with an instant $600 limit ( he took it) he bought himself a nice digital camera
He then walked into Home Depot and the scene was repeated with a $300 limit which he also took, went outside the store and sold it to the first person who came up with $100
He got a job in the Bahamas as a cowboy taking tourist for horse rides along the beach. Today he has a better Tan than I could ever dream of and has no fears of ever being tracked down.

Who's at fault? The bank that should have seen his debt and his inability to repay the money or him for taking

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 11:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

On monday the gov. will report the amount of people who lost their jobs in Feb.
Jan. we lost 583,000 ( unrevised)
Dec. almost 500,000+
Nov. 300,000+

Feb. could be as high as 750,000

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 11:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Sunday Times May 21, 2006

Markets ‘are like 1987 crash’
David Smith, Economics Editor



CONDITIONS in the financial markets are eerily similar to those that precipitated the “Black Monday” stock market crash of October 1987, according to leading City analysts.
A report by Barclays Capital says the run-up to the 1987 crash was characterised by a widening US current-account deficit, weak dollar, fears of rising inflation, a fading boom in American house prices, and the appointment of a new chairman of the Federal Reserve Board.

All have been happening in recent months, with market nerves on edge last week over fears of higher inflation and a tumbling dollar, and the perception of mixed messages on interest rates from Ben Bernanke, the new Fed chairman.

“We are very uncomfortable about predicting financial crises, but we cannot help but see a certain similarity between the current economic and market conditions and the environment that led to the stock-market crash of October 1987,” said David Woo, head of global foreign-exchange strategy at Barclays Capital.

Apart from the similarities in economic conditions, during the run-up to the 1987 crash there was a sharp rise in share prices worldwide and weakness in bond markets, Woo pointed out. “Market patterns leading to the crash of 1987 resemble the markets today,” he said.

Equity markets settled on Friday after sharp mid-week falls, with all the main American stock-market measures recording small gains on the day. But nerves remain.

Gerard Lyons, head of research at Standard Chartered, said: “The volatility is explained by tighter liquidity conditions, markets pricing in more for risk and dollar vulnerability. But people forget that this is not a case of emerging-market economies being in trouble as in 1997-8. They’re in good shape.”

The vulnerability of stock markets is likely to add to the case for a prolonged pause before the Bank of England hikes interest rates, analysts believe.

While one member of its monetary policy committee (MPC) voted for a rate hike earlier this month, some recent data, notably subdued labour market conditions, suggest few signs of inflationary pressure.

Base rate is unlikely to rise until next year, according to a survey of analysts by Ideaglobal.com, a financial-research consultancy. It finds a median expectation that the rate, currently 4.5%, will rise in February next year.

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Social Security, Medicare to run out sooner
Revision in trustees' annual report considered small, based on changes in interest rate and demographic assumptions.
By Jeanne Sahadi, CNNMoney.com senior writer
May 1, 2006: 4:07 PM EDT

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - The trustees of Social Security and Medicare now estimate that the Social Security trust fund will be exhausted in 2040 while the Medicare trust fund will be depleted in 2018, slightly sooner than previously forecast.

Those projections are part of the trustees' 2006 annual report, which was released Monday afternoon, roughly a month after its original due date.

In their annual report last year, the trustees estimated the trust fund for Social Security would run out by 2041 and the one for Medicare in 2020.

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China 'may cut US debt holdings'

US-Chinese trade relations are coming under increasing strain
China may reduce the amount of US bonds it holds as part of its foreign exchange reserves, an influential official has reportedly said.
The remarks, made by Parliamentary vice-chairman Cheng Siwei, triggered a fall in the US dollar against leading currencies in European trading.

China is a major funder of US debt, holding about £260bn (£149bn) in US Treasury bonds - second only to Japan.

Any reduction in China's dollar assets could hit the US economy.

Should China cut its US dollar holdings, this could drive up long-term yields on US bonds, which could in turn put pressure on interest rates.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 08:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Oil pushes trade gap to record in January
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — The U.S. trade deficit widened more than expected in January to a record $68.5 billion, as record imports fueled by high oil prices outstripped record exports propelled by stronger foreign demand, a Commerce Department report showed Thursday.
The monthly trade gap swelled 5.3% from a revised estimate of $65.1 billion in December. It also surpassed a median forecast of $66.5 billion by analysts.

The biggest ever monthly deficit follows a record annual trade deficit of $723.6 billion in 2005. The trade gap would exceed $800 billion in 2006 if it continued to run at the pace set in the first month of the year.

Another report said the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week to 303,000, the highest level since the start of the year.

The 8,000 increase in initial claims for jobless aid in the week ended March 4 took them above 300,000 for the first time since the Jan. 7 week, the Labor Department said.

The increase pushed the four-week moving average of claims, which smooths weekly volatility to provide a better picture of underlying trends, up by 6,250 to 293,500? a level economists still associate with a healthy job market.

High prices for imported oil helped push the trade gap to a record. The United States ran an $8.4 billion deficit with the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, up 11.6% from December.

The monthly trade gap with China widened 9.9% to $17.9 billion in January. The persistent deficit with China, the United States' largest with any single country, has fueled charges in Congress that China is an unfair trader that manipulates its currency to gain a trade advantage. Manufacturers and politicians have demanded that Beijing revalue its yuan currency.

Overall imports were $182.9 billion, up 3.5% from December. Imports set records in several categories, including food, feeds and beverages, industrial supplies and materials, capital goods, autos and auto parts and consumer goods.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Indebted
By Karen Rutzick
krutzick@govexec.com

Federal employees once again are bailing the United States out of a sticky debt situation. Treasury Secretary John Snow told Congress last week that the country was perilously close to reaching its debt ceiling, forcing him to dip into federal employee retirement savings to keep government operations running.

Specifically, until Congress raises the $8 trillion federal debt limit, Snow is freezing some reinvestments of the Thrift Savings Plan's government securities (G) fund.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 12:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Average American Family Income Declines
Feb 23 9:57 AM US/Eastern
Email this story

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON

The average income of American families, after adjusting for inflation, declined by 2.3 percent in 2004 compared to 2001 while their net worth rose but at a slower pace.

The Federal Reserve reported Thursday that the drop in inflation- adjusted incomes left the average family income at $70,700 in 2004. The median, or point where half the families earned more and half less, did rise slightly in 2004 after adjusting for inflation to $43,200, up 1.6 percent from the 2001 level.

The median, or midpoint for net worth rose by 1.5 percent to $93,100 from 2001 to 2004. That growth was far below the 10.3 percent gain in median net worth from 1998 to 2001, a period when the stock market reached record highs before starting to decline in early 2000.

The Fed's results were published in the 2004 Survey of Consumer Finances, a document which provides a comprehensive view of how Americans are faring on such pocketbook issues as incomes and net worth.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 12:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pastor Gets 18 Months for Selling Church

MANTECA, Calif. (AP) -- A pastor accused of selling the town's oldest church pleaded guilty to embezzlement on Monday and agreed to 18 months in prison, court officials said.

Randall Radic, 53, entered his plea as part of a deal in which prosecutors agreed to drop nine other charges.

Radic had preached at First Congregational Church in Ripon for nearly a decade before he sold the church last October for $525,000, allegedly using the money to buy a BMW. He also faked documents that gave him possession of his house, which was owned by the church, then used the property to take out loans, authorities said.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Trade deficit hits another all-time high
WASHINGTON (AP) — The trade deficit unexpectedly rose 4.4% in October to $68.9 billion, an all-time high, as oil shipments soared and the United States set deficit records with China, Europe, Canada and Mexico, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.
So far this year, the gap between what America sells overseas and what it imports is running at an annual rate of $718 billion, far surpassing last year's $617.6 billion imbalance. Critics say the soaring deficit is evidence that President Bush's policy of pursuing free trade deals around the world is not working.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 04:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Consumer prices surge
From wire reports
WASHINGTON — Consumer prices surged in September by the largest amount in more than 25 years as Hurricanes Katrina and Rita sent energy prices soaring at the fastest pace on record.
The Labor Department reported Friday that inflation jumped 1.2% last month. It said that 90% of that increase came from a record-setting 12% surge in energy prices which reflected gasoline prices that briefly topped $3 a gallon last month after widespread shutdowns of refineries and oil and natural gas platforms along the Gulf Coast.

Outside of energy and food, inflation was more moderate, rising just 0.1%, the sixth straight month of benign readings in the so-called core rate of inflation. However, economists and officials at the Federal Reserve are worried that the energy jolt from the Gulf Coast hurricanes could start causing more widespread inflation problems.

The increase in the consumer price index — the largest since March 1980 — outstripped forecasts for a 0.9% gain, but the rise in the so-called core price index came in a touch below the 0.2% expected.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Bankruptcy filings surge as law looms
Mass. debtors seek protection before complex, costly change
By Robert Gavin, Globe Staff | October 13, 2005

Struggling debtors are rushing to file for bankruptcy before Monday, when a new law that makes it more complex and costly to gain protection from creditors goes into effect.

In the first 11 days of October, more than 2,500 new bankruptcy cases were filed in Massachusetts, compared to 464 during the same period a year ago, according to the clerk's office at US Bankruptcy Court in Boston. More than 1,000 new cases were filed over the long Columbus Day weekend alone.

Bankruptcy Court Clerk James Lynch said he expects the deluge to continue through the weekend. Over the last few weeks, local bankruptcy lawyers say they are filing up to five times as many cases as they normally would.

The new law, passed by Congress and signed by President Bush in April, represents the first major overhaul of the bankruptcy code in more than a quarter-century. Pushed by banks, credit-card companies, and retailers, the changes make it harder for higher-income families -- in Massachusetts, a family of four with income of $85,000 or above -- to wipe out debts through bankruptcy; require debtors to seek credit and financial counseling, for which debtors have to pay; and boost filing fees.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 10:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Delphi bankruptcy hits GM
By Associated Press | October 11, 2005

DETROIT -- General Motors Corp. has been negotiating with the United Auto Workers for months in an attempt to lower its skyrocketing healthcare costs, but those talks could be jeopardized by Delphi Corp.'s bankruptcy, analysts said yesterday.
Uncertainty over GM's situation caused its shares to fall $2.81, or nearly 10 percent, to $25.48 on the New York Stock Exchange. Shares of auto supplier Delphi, which filed for bankruptcy on Saturday, fell 79 cents, or 70.5 percent, to 33 cents.

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services also lowered GM's credit rating one level deeper into ''junk" status yesterday, from BB to BB-, a move that could make it harder for the struggling automaker to borrow money. GM, which is Delphi's former parent and largest customer, will likely face price increases from Delphi and is at risk of disrupted supply if there is labor strife at Delphi plants, S&P said.

GM and the UAW have been talking since spring about ways to cut GM's annual healthcare bill, which will grow to $5.6 billion this year. GM has suggested, among other measures, that hourly workers should pay as much for their healthcare as salaried workers do. The UAW has said it will consider some ways to help GM but won't reopen its contract with the automaker, which is scheduled to expire in September 2007.

Some industry analysts said the UAW may be less willing to make concessions to GM because the automaker didn't prevent Delphi from declaring bankruptcy, putting the supplier's 24,000 UAW-represented hourly workers at risk of massive pay cuts.

GM spun off Delphi in 1999 but left it with high labor costs. The supplier is now expected to seek cuts in wages and healthcare.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Gates, Ballmer earned $1 million each in FY05
Billionaire Microsoft executives got 11 percent raises, filing shows

Updated: 1:14 p.m. ET Sept. 29, 2005
REDMOND, Wash. - Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer each earned $1 million last year, an 11 percent raise over the previous fiscal year, Microsoft Corp. reported in a regulatory filing Wednesday.

Gates, the software company’s chairman, and Ballmer, its chief executive, each earned a salary of $600,000 and a bonus of $400,000 for the company’s 2005 fiscal year ended June 30.

Ballmer also received $6,300 in matching 401(k) contributions and $2,773 in other benefits. Gates received $2,469 in other benefits, the company said.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 10:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Gas prices had consumer spending ailing before storms
WASHINGTON (AP) — Consumer spending in August plunged by the largest amount since 2001, according to a government report Friday that also showed a surprise decline in income caused by Hurricane Katrina.
Consumer spending dropped a larger-than-expected 0.5%, the biggest fall since November 2001.

The fall in spending came as energy prices pushed consumer inflation up 0.5%, the largest jump since September 1990, the Commerce Department said.

Adjusting for inflation, consumer spending skidded a hefty 1%, matching a plunge in September 2001 that was the largest since January 1987, as consumers pinched by soaring gasoline prices cut back in spending in other areas.

The sharp drop in spending raises concerns about consumers' staying power in the face of soaring energy bills. Consumer spending is closely watched because it accounts for two-thirds of the economy.

Analysts said the toll from Katrina and Hurricane Rita, which struck in September, is likely to depress economic activity for several months.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - In a sign that things may be returning to normal in New Orleans, strip shows are back in the city's famous French Quarter.

Erotic dancers and strippers are entertaining crowds of police, firefighters and military personnel instead of the usual audiences of drunken conventioneers and tourists in Bourbon Street's Deja Vu club, which reopened this week.

It's the first strip joint to resume business, three weeks after Hurricane Katrina struck in the worst natural disaster ever to hit the United States.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 11:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Northwest, Delta File for Bankruptcy Protection

By Sara Kehaulani Goo
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, September 15, 2005; Page A01

Delta Air Lines and Northwest, the nation's third- and fourth-largest carriers, filed for bankruptcy protection yesterday as skyrocketing fuel costs accelerated the carriers' financial decline.

With the filings, an unprecedented four of the nation's seven largest carriers will be operating under bankruptcy protection, marking a low point for an industry that many analysts said had shown signs of turning a corner this year -- if not for the run-up in jet fuel prices.

A Delta Airlines jet sits parked next to two Northwest Airlines jets earlier this year at Sea-Tac International Airport in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren) (Ted S. Warren - AP)

Struggling Airlines
The airline industry, facing rising fuel prices, sharp competition, an inflexible market for ticket prices and the lingering fear of terrorism, is in the midst of its most critical period in decades.
Analysts expect Dulles-based Independence Air's parent, Flyi Inc., to soon join the pack of bankrupt carriers. Two carriers in bankruptcy protection, UAL Corp.'s United and US Airways Group Inc., have indicated plans to emerge in the coming months. AMR Corp.'s American Airlines, Continental Airlines Inc. and Southwest Airlines Inc., the other three major carriers, posted profits last quarter.

Airline workers, whose wages and benefits have been cut aggressively, are likely to face further hardship. The airlines are likely to further trim their workforces to become smaller, more efficient businesses. Older carriers, such as Delta Air Lines Inc. and Northwest Airlines Corp., are saddled with hefty obligations to pension funds that could be turned over to the federal government
under bankruptcy protection, diminishing workers' retirement benefits.

The airlines beat next month's launch of a new bankruptcy law, which makes it more difficult for executives to collect retention pay. The new law also requires carriers to emerge from bankruptcy within 18 months.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 08:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

US doing little on high gas prices
August 17, 2005

AS OIL PRICES continue to go through the roof we hear nothing from the Bush administration but hype about how great the economy is doing. Why couldn't this president at least show some concern and suggest driving a little slower and cutting back on fuel consumption? Any president worth his salt would have addressed the American people and reassured them that measures were being taken to ease the problem. There has not been one word from him asking Americans for a little sacrifice to ease the pinch. Besides summer gasoline prices being out of control, the cost of heating a home this winter will be a nightmare.

Right now his ''Stay the course" policy on oil is like the one in Iraq: It means ''We have no plan."

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 08:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

US doing little on high gas prices
August 17, 2005

AS OIL PRICES continue to go through the roof we hear nothing from the Bush administration but hype about how great the economy is doing. Why couldn't this president at least show some concern and suggest driving a little slower and cutting back on fuel consumption? Any president worth his salt would have addressed the American people and reassured them that measures were being taken to ease the problem. There has not been one word from him asking Americans for a little sacrifice to ease the pinch. Besides summer gasoline prices being out of control, the cost of heating a home this winter will be a nightmare.

Right now his ''Stay the course" policy on oil is like the one in Iraq: It means ''We have no plan."

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 08:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Senior Chinese Banker Gets Suspended Death Sentence in Embezzlement Scandal

By Joe McDonald Associated Press Writer
Published: Aug 12, 2005

BEIJING (AP) - A former president of state-owned Bank of China's Hong Kong branch received a suspended death sentence Friday for embezzlement in an apparent effort by Beijing to help restore faith in its scandal-plagued banks as they prepare to sell shares abroad.
Liu Jinbao was fired in May 2003 in a scandal that jolted efforts by Chinese leaders to present their banking industry to foreign investors as modern and well-regulated.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Senior Chinese Banker Gets Suspended Death Sentence in Embezzlement Scandal

By Joe McDonald Associated Press Writer
Published: Aug 12, 2005

BEIJING (AP) - A former president of state-owned Bank of China's Hong Kong branch received a suspended death sentence Friday for embezzlement in an apparent effort by Beijing to help restore faith in its scandal-plagued banks as they prepare to sell shares abroad.
Liu Jinbao was fired in May 2003 in a scandal that jolted efforts by Chinese leaders to present their banking industry to foreign investors as modern and well-regulated.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Retail sales surge 1.8% on car sales; jobless claims dip
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — U.S. retail sales surged 1.8% last month as buyer incentives led to the biggest gain in auto sales since just after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, when carmakers the flag put in place zero percent financing deals, a government report showed Thursday.
A separate report showed a surprise drop in claims for jobless benefits last week that took a key gauge on the pace of layoffs down to its lowest level since late February.

July's retail-sales jump, which fell short of Wall Street forecasts, followed a similarly healthy 1.7% rise in June, the Commerce Department said.

Auto sales shot up 6.7%, their sharpest rise since October 2001, as Ford and DaimlerChrysler joined General Motors in extending employee discounts to all consumers. The unusual sales incentives led the department to alter the way in which it usually smooths the data for seasonal factors.

Excluding autos, retail sales rose a modest 0.3% last month — below forecasts for a 0.6% gain.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Retail sales surge 1.8% on car sales; jobless claims dip
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — U.S. retail sales surged 1.8% last month as buyer incentives led to the biggest gain in auto sales since just after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, when carmakers the flag put in place zero percent financing deals, a government report showed Thursday.
A separate report showed a surprise drop in claims for jobless benefits last week that took a key gauge on the pace of layoffs down to its lowest level since late February.

July's retail-sales jump, which fell short of Wall Street forecasts, followed a similarly healthy 1.7% rise in June, the Commerce Department said.

Auto sales shot up 6.7%, their sharpest rise since October 2001, as Ford and DaimlerChrysler joined General Motors in extending employee discounts to all consumers. The unusual sales incentives led the department to alter the way in which it usually smooths the data for seasonal factors.

Excluding autos, retail sales rose a modest 0.3% last month — below forecasts for a 0.6% gain.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tech firms slash jobs amid shifts
Changes in markets drive prices down, fuel unpredictability
By Robert Weisman, Globe Staff | July 20, 2005

Even in a growing economy with a recovering technology sector, high-tech companies from Hewlett-Packard Development Co. to Teradyne Inc. continue to pare their payrolls in response to falling technology prices and a more unforgiving attitude on Wall Street.
HP yesterday said it will lop off 14,500 jobs, about 10 percent of its worldwide workforce, including an unspecified number of employees in Massachusetts. Teradyne last week said it will eliminate 400 jobs,

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 10:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tech firms slash jobs amid shifts
Changes in markets drive prices down, fuel unpredictability
By Robert Weisman, Globe Staff | July 20, 2005

Even in a growing economy with a recovering technology sector, high-tech companies from Hewlett-Packard Development Co. to Teradyne Inc. continue to pare their payrolls in response to falling technology prices and a more unforgiving attitude on Wall Street.
HP yesterday said it will lop off 14,500 jobs, about 10 percent of its worldwide workforce, including an unspecified number of employees in Massachusetts. Teradyne last week said it will eliminate 400 jobs,

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 10:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Delta warns of loss, possible Chap. 11 filing
By Associated Press | May 11, 2005

ATLANTA -- Delta Air Lines Inc. shares plunged 10 percent yesterday after the nation's third-largest carrier warned it will record a substantial loss for the rest of the year and will need to file for bankruptcy if its cash reserves fall too low or lenders seek immediate payment.

Delta said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing that it continues to face significant challenges due to high fuel prices and low ticket fares.

Delta said it is considering more cost cuts and potential asset sales. But ''There can be no assurance that we will be able to implement any of these strategies or that these strategies, if implemented, will be sufficient," Delta warned.

Delta, which reported a nearly $1.1 billion loss in the first quarter, had $1.8 billion in unrestricted cash March 31. But the airline said it expects its cash level will be substantially lower by the end of the year if it can't increase revenue, cut costs, sell assets, or restructure debt.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Delta warns of loss, possible Chap. 11 filing
By Associated Press | May 11, 2005

ATLANTA -- Delta Air Lines Inc. shares plunged 10 percent yesterday after the nation's third-largest carrier warned it will record a substantial loss for the rest of the year and will need to file for bankruptcy if its cash reserves fall too low or lenders seek immediate payment.

Delta said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing that it continues to face significant challenges due to high fuel prices and low ticket fares.

Delta said it is considering more cost cuts and potential asset sales. But ''There can be no assurance that we will be able to implement any of these strategies or that these strategies, if implemented, will be sufficient," Delta warned.

Delta, which reported a nearly $1.1 billion loss in the first quarter, had $1.8 billion in unrestricted cash March 31. But the airline said it expects its cash level will be substantially lower by the end of the year if it can't increase revenue, cut costs, sell assets, or restructure debt.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 09:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

GM allowed to take up to $6B out of fund
By Sharon Silke Carty, USA TODAY
DETROIT — General Motors' (GM) soaring health care costs have created a tempting pool of money the automaker is considering dipping into.
The hitch: That money is squirreled away in a fund designed to ensure that retirees will have their health care paid for by the automaker. (Related: GM takes $1.1B hit in first quarter)

While discussing first-quarter results Tuesday, GM Chief Financial Officer John Devine said the company is considering tapping into the $20 billion Voluntary Employee's Beneficiary Association fund. The company is entitled to draw out cash equal to what it spent last year on health care and what it has spent so far this year.

That means GM could take $6 billion from the fund, Devine said, because its health care costs have been rising. For the first quarter alone, the company could account for $700 million in health care expenses. Once it takes money out of the fund, it is not required to replace it. And the money could be used for general business expenses, Devine said.

"It is a source of liquidity if we need it," he said. "We can extract it pretty aggressively, if we have to."

Health care costs are a concern for the automaker. It expects to spend $5.6 billion on health care for active and retired workers and their families this year, compared with $5.2 billion last year. That adds more than $1,000 to the price of each vehicle it produces, the company has said.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 03:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

GM allowed to take up to $6B out of fund
By Sharon Silke Carty, USA TODAY
DETROIT — General Motors' (GM) soaring health care costs have created a tempting pool of money the automaker is considering dipping into.
The hitch: That money is squirreled away in a fund designed to ensure that retirees will have their health care paid for by the automaker. (Related: GM takes $1.1B hit in first quarter)

While discussing first-quarter results Tuesday, GM Chief Financial Officer John Devine said the company is considering tapping into the $20 billion Voluntary Employee's Beneficiary Association fund. The company is entitled to draw out cash equal to what it spent last year on health care and what it has spent so far this year.

That means GM could take $6 billion from the fund, Devine said, because its health care costs have been rising. For the first quarter alone, the company could account for $700 million in health care expenses. Once it takes money out of the fund, it is not required to replace it. And the money could be used for general business expenses, Devine said.

"It is a source of liquidity if we need it," he said. "We can extract it pretty aggressively, if we have to."

Health care costs are a concern for the automaker. It expects to spend $5.6 billion on health care for active and retired workers and their families this year, compared with $5.2 billion last year. That adds more than $1,000 to the price of each vehicle it produces, the company has said.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 03:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

S&P cuts GM, Ford debt ratings to 'junk' status
NEW YORK (Reuters) — Standard & Poor's cut Ford Motor's (F) and General Motors' (GM) debt ratings to junk status Thursday in a move that will narrow the automakers' avenues for raising money as they struggle with global competition and rising healthcare costs.
Shares of both companies fell 5% or more after Thursday's downgrades, and the news sent the overall market lower.

The cuts almost surely will cause both companies' borrowing costs to rise as they have to offer higher yields to attract investors. The downgrades include the credit financing arms of both automakers.

The decision by one of the nation's most respected ratings agencies comes as the two iconic American automakers are losing market share at home to Asian automakers, seeing sales soften for their most profitable models and are facing enormous health care and post-retirement liabilities.

S&P said its downgrade of GM to non-investment-grade status reflects its conclusion that management's current strategies may not be effective in dealing with the automaker's competitive disadvantages, which include rising health care costs and billions of dollars in post-retirement liabilities. But it said the company should have no trouble meeting its cash requirements in the near term.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 03:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

S&P cuts GM, Ford debt ratings to 'junk' status
NEW YORK (Reuters) — Standard & Poor's cut Ford Motor's (F) and General Motors' (GM) debt ratings to junk status Thursday in a move that will narrow the automakers' avenues for raising money as they struggle with global competition and rising healthcare costs.
Shares of both companies fell 5% or more after Thursday's downgrades, and the news sent the overall market lower.

The cuts almost surely will cause both companies' borrowing costs to rise as they have to offer higher yields to attract investors. The downgrades include the credit financing arms of both automakers.

The decision by one of the nation's most respected ratings agencies comes as the two iconic American automakers are losing market share at home to Asian automakers, seeing sales soften for their most profitable models and are facing enormous health care and post-retirement liabilities.

S&P said its downgrade of GM to non-investment-grade status reflects its conclusion that management's current strategies may not be effective in dealing with the automaker's competitive disadvantages, which include rising health care costs and billions of dollars in post-retirement liabilities. But it said the company should have no trouble meeting its cash requirements in the near term.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 03:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dow sinks to 2005 low as inflation fears rise
NEW YORK (AP) — Blue-chip stocks tumbled to fresh 2005 year lows Wednesday as a jump in consumer prices fanned inflation fears and overshadowed better-than-expected earnings from companies such as Caterpillar and Intel.
According to preliminary results, the Dow closed down 115.05, or 1.14%, at 10,012.36. The Dow last closed below 10,000 on Oct. 26.

Broader gauges were also lower. The Standard & Poor's 500 index slid 15.28, or 1.33%, to 1,137.50. The Nasdaq composite index lost 18.60, or 0.96%, to 1,913.76.

With 1,200 companies releasing earnings this week, investors have plenty of corporate news to sift through, but the economy remains in the spotlight. Stocks sank after the release of the Federal Reserve's "Beige Book" survey, which reported expansion of business activity from late February to early April, but "uneven progress" in some parts of the country, and higher inflation.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 04:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dow sinks to 2005 low as inflation fears rise
NEW YORK (AP) — Blue-chip stocks tumbled to fresh 2005 year lows Wednesday as a jump in consumer prices fanned inflation fears and overshadowed better-than-expected earnings from companies such as Caterpillar and Intel.
According to preliminary results, the Dow closed down 115.05, or 1.14%, at 10,012.36. The Dow last closed below 10,000 on Oct. 26.

Broader gauges were also lower. The Standard & Poor's 500 index slid 15.28, or 1.33%, to 1,137.50. The Nasdaq composite index lost 18.60, or 0.96%, to 1,913.76.

With 1,200 companies releasing earnings this week, investors have plenty of corporate news to sift through, but the economy remains in the spotlight. Stocks sank after the release of the Federal Reserve's "Beige Book" survey, which reported expansion of business activity from late February to early April, but "uneven progress" in some parts of the country, and higher inflation.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 04:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dow sinks to 2005 low as inflation fears rise
NEW YORK (AP) — Blue-chip stocks tumbled to fresh 2005 year lows Wednesday as a jump in consumer prices fanned inflation fears and overshadowed better-than-expected earnings from companies such as Caterpillar and Intel.
According to preliminary results, the Dow closed down 115.05, or 1.14%, at 10,012.36. The Dow last closed below 10,000 on Oct. 26.

Broader gauges were also lower. The Standard & Poor's 500 index slid 15.28, or 1.33%, to 1,137.50. The Nasdaq composite index lost 18.60, or 0.96%, to 1,913.76.

With 1,200 companies releasing earnings this week, investors have plenty of corporate news to sift through, but the economy remains in the spotlight. Stocks sank after the release of the Federal Reserve's "Beige Book" survey, which reported expansion of business activity from late February to early April, but "uneven progress" in some parts of the country, and higher inflation.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 04:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Be careful not to call it outsourcing
March 21, 2005

When Ramnath Reddy uses the word outsourcing, his colleague Michael Fernandes quickly corrects him. We're sitting around a coffee table in the lobby of the Fairmont Copley Plaza hotel, during a biotechnology conference.

''You mean partnership, not outsourcing," says Fernandes, who like Reddy works for Sai Life Sciences, a company with offices in Cambridge, San Diego, and Mumbai that helps biotech companies send their chemistry drudge work -- such as testing whether newly discovered drugs are toxic in animals -- to India.

Outsourcing (aka offshoring) has become a dirty word in technology circles over the past two years, as programmers in the United States lose jobs to programmers in India, the Philippines, Russia, and other low-wage countries. As the life sciences industry gets more serious about sending some of the work of developing drugs and conducting clinical trials overseas, they're trying to avoid the dreaded ''O" words.

At a panel discussion at MIT last month, Nick Terrett, a Pfizer chemist who contributed to the discovery of Viagra, noted, ''We use the term 'strategic sourcing,' not outsourcing."

Even though a growing number of pharmaceutical and biotech companies are shifting work to India, China, and Eastern Europe, among other places, I don't see outsourcing in life sciences causing as much of a ruckus as it has in high-tech. There are some good reasons why it won't -- not including the industry's feeble attempts at linguistic jujitsu.

Biotech and pharma companies are looking east for two main reasons: They want to save money, and accelerate the process of getting new drugs into the market.

Indian chemists with doctorateswork at about a fifth of the cost of their US counterparts, says Reddy, a native of Hyderabad. And drug companies conducting clinical trials often have an easier time finding doctors to help run the trial and signing up patients in foreign countries.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Be careful not to call it outsourcing
March 21, 2005

When Ramnath Reddy uses the word outsourcing, his colleague Michael Fernandes quickly corrects him. We're sitting around a coffee table in the lobby of the Fairmont Copley Plaza hotel, during a biotechnology conference.

''You mean partnership, not outsourcing," says Fernandes, who like Reddy works for Sai Life Sciences, a company with offices in Cambridge, San Diego, and Mumbai that helps biotech companies send their chemistry drudge work -- such as testing whether newly discovered drugs are toxic in animals -- to India.

Outsourcing (aka offshoring) has become a dirty word in technology circles over the past two years, as programmers in the United States lose jobs to programmers in India, the Philippines, Russia, and other low-wage countries. As the life sciences industry gets more serious about sending some of the work of developing drugs and conducting clinical trials overseas, they're trying to avoid the dreaded ''O" words.

At a panel discussion at MIT last month, Nick Terrett, a Pfizer chemist who contributed to the discovery of Viagra, noted, ''We use the term 'strategic sourcing,' not outsourcing."

Even though a growing number of pharmaceutical and biotech companies are shifting work to India, China, and Eastern Europe, among other places, I don't see outsourcing in life sciences causing as much of a ruckus as it has in high-tech. There are some good reasons why it won't -- not including the industry's feeble attempts at linguistic jujitsu.

Biotech and pharma companies are looking east for two main reasons: They want to save money, and accelerate the process of getting new drugs into the market.

Indian chemists with doctorateswork at about a fifth of the cost of their US counterparts, says Reddy, a native of Hyderabad. And drug companies conducting clinical trials often have an easier time finding doctors to help run the trial and signing up patients in foreign countries.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Be careful not to call it outsourcing
March 21, 2005

When Ramnath Reddy uses the word outsourcing, his colleague Michael Fernandes quickly corrects him. We're sitting around a coffee table in the lobby of the Fairmont Copley Plaza hotel, during a biotechnology conference.

''You mean partnership, not outsourcing," says Fernandes, who like Reddy works for Sai Life Sciences, a company with offices in Cambridge, San Diego, and Mumbai that helps biotech companies send their chemistry drudge work -- such as testing whether newly discovered drugs are toxic in animals -- to India.

Outsourcing (aka offshoring) has become a dirty word in technology circles over the past two years, as programmers in the United States lose jobs to programmers in India, the Philippines, Russia, and other low-wage countries. As the life sciences industry gets more serious about sending some of the work of developing drugs and conducting clinical trials overseas, they're trying to avoid the dreaded ''O" words.

At a panel discussion at MIT last month, Nick Terrett, a Pfizer chemist who contributed to the discovery of Viagra, noted, ''We use the term 'strategic sourcing,' not outsourcing."

Even though a growing number of pharmaceutical and biotech companies are shifting work to India, China, and Eastern Europe, among other places, I don't see outsourcing in life sciences causing as much of a ruckus as it has in high-tech. There are some good reasons why it won't -- not including the industry's feeble attempts at linguistic jujitsu.

Biotech and pharma companies are looking east for two main reasons: They want to save money, and accelerate the process of getting new drugs into the market.

Indian chemists with doctorateswork at about a fifth of the cost of their US counterparts, says Reddy, a native of Hyderabad. And drug companies conducting clinical trials often have an easier time finding doctors to help run the trial and signing up patients in foreign countries.

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Just call me two willies

A BIKER who lost his manhood in a freak accident now has two willies — but no wife.
Michael Grueber, 40, is recovering in hospital from his 140th operation since the 1997 crash.

The latest was to graft another penis next to one formed from fat and muscle tissue after the prang that smashed his groin.

It functioned well enough to provide him and wife Bianca, 25, with a son, Etienne, a year ago.

But it has since stopped working — and his wife left. When the new willy is strong enough to operate on its own, the first graft will go.

“For now I am the man with two penises and no wife,” he moaned from his hospital bed near his home in Berlin.

“I just want a normal life.”

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 10:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Just call me two willies

A BIKER who lost his manhood in a freak accident now has two willies — but no wife.
Michael Grueber, 40, is recovering in hospital from his 140th operation since the 1997 crash.

The latest was to graft another penis next to one formed from fat and muscle tissue after the prang that smashed his groin.

It functioned well enough to provide him and wife Bianca, 25, with a son, Etienne, a year ago.

But it has since stopped working — and his wife left. When the new willy is strong enough to operate on its own, the first graft will go.

“For now I am the man with two penises and no wife,” he moaned from his hospital bed near his home in Berlin.

“I just want a normal life.”

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 10:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Just call me two willies

A BIKER who lost his manhood in a freak accident now has two willies — but no wife.
Michael Grueber, 40, is recovering in hospital from his 140th operation since the 1997 crash.

The latest was to graft another penis next to one formed from fat and muscle tissue after the prang that smashed his groin.

It functioned well enough to provide him and wife Bianca, 25, with a son, Etienne, a year ago.

But it has since stopped working — and his wife left. When the new willy is strong enough to operate on its own, the first graft will go.

“For now I am the man with two penises and no wife,” he moaned from his hospital bed near his home in Berlin.

“I just want a normal life.”

Posted by Kraven Moorehead at 10:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)