STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Wednesday, 15 May 2013

[Tansy_Gold]

[font size=3]STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday, 15 May 2013[font color=black][/font]

SMW for 14 May 2013

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON 14 May 2013
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Dow Jones 15,215.25 +123.57 (0.82%)
S&P 500 1,650.34 +16.57 (1.01%)
Nasdaq 3,462.61 +23.82 (0.69%)


[font color=red]10 Year 1.97% +0.08 (4.23%)
30 Year 3.17% +0.09 (2.92%) [font color=black]


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[font size=2]Market Conditions During Trading Hours[/font]
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[font size=2]Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold[center]

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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Market Data and News:[/font][/font]
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Economic Calendar
Marketwatch Data
Bloomberg Economic News
Yahoo Finance
Google Finance
Bank Tracker
Credit Union Tracker
Daily Job Cuts
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Economic Blogs:[/font][/font]
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The Big Picture
Financial Sense
Calculated Risk
Naked Capitalism
Credit Writedowns
Brad DeLong
Bonddad
Atrios
goldmansachs666
The Stand-Up Economist
The Automatic Earth
Wall Street on Parade
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Essential Reading:[/font][/font]
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Matt Taibi: Secret and Lies of the Bailout


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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Government Issues:[/font][/font]
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LegitGov
Open Government
Earmark Database
USA spending.gov
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[font color=black][font size=2]Handy Links - Videos:[/font][/font]
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Charlie Rose talks with Roubini
Charlie Rose talks with Krugman
William Black: This Economic Disaster
Bill Moyers with Kevin Drum and David Corn
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[font color=red]Partial List of Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 [/font][font color=red]
2/2/12 David Higgs and Salmaan Siddiqui, Credit Suisse, plead guilty to conspiracy involving valuation of MBS
3/6/12 Allen Stanford, former Caribbean billionaire and general schmuck, convicted on 13 of 14 counts in $2.2B Ponzi scheme, faces 20+ years in prison
6/4/12 Matthew Kluger, lawyer, sentenced to 12 years in prison, along with co-conspirator stock trader Garrett Bauer (9 years) and co-conspirator Kenneth Robinson (not yet sentenced) for 17 year insider trading scheme.
6/14/12 Allen Stanford sentenced to 110 years without parole.
6/15/12 Rajat Gupta, former Goldman Sachs director, found guilty of insider trading. Could face a decade in prison when sentenced later this year.
6/22/12 Timothy S. Durham, 49, former CEO of Fair Financial Company, convicted of one count conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, 10 counts of wire fraud, and one count of securities fraud.
6/22/12 James F. Cochran, 56, former chairman of the board of Fair, convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, one count of securities fraud, and six counts of wire fraud.
6/22/12 Rick D. Snow, 48, former CFO of Fair, convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud, one count of securities fraud, and three counts of wire fraud.
7/13/12 Russell Wassendorf Sr., CEO of collapsed brokerage firm Peregrine Financial Group Inc. arrested and charged with lying to regulators after admitting to authorities he embezzled "millions of dollars" and forged bank statements for "nearly twenty years."
8/22/12 Doug Whitman, Whitman Capital LLC hedge fund founder, convicted of insider trading following a trial in which he spent more than two days on the stand telling jurors he was innocent
10/26/12 UPDATE: Former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta sentenced to two years in federal prison. He will, of course, appeal. . .
11/20/12 Hedge fund manager Matthew Martoma charged with insider trading at SAC Capital Advisors, and prosecutors are looking at Martoma's boss, Steven Cohen, for possible involvement.
02/14/13 Gilbert Lopez, former chief accounting officer of Stanford Financial Group, and former controller Mark Kuhrt sentenced to 20 yrs in prison for their roles in Allen Sanford's $7.2 billion Ponzi scheme.
03/29/13 Michael Sternberg, portfolio mgr at SAC Capital, arrested in NYC, charged with conspiracy and securities fraud. Pled not guilty and freed on $3m bail.
04/04/13 Matthew Marshall Taylor,fmr Goldman Sachs trader arrested, charged by CFTC w/defrauding his employer on $8BN futures bet "by intentionally concealing the true huge size, as well as the risk and potential profits or losses associated."
04/04/13 Matthew Taylor admits guilt, makes plea bargain. Sentencing set for 26 June; faces up to 20 years in prison but will likely only see 3-4 years. Says, "I am truly sorry."
04/11/13 Ex-KPMG LLP partner Scott London charged by federal prosecutors w/passing inside tips to a friend in exchange for cash, jewelry, and concert tickets; expected to plead guilty in May.










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[font size=3][font color=red]This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.[/font][/font][/font color=red][font color=black]

[Demeter]

1. In honor of the 100th anniversay of Hill Auditorium

and the 200th anniversary of Verdi's birth (May 14, 1813)

And the 20th year of Summer Sings,

Over 300 singers from SE Michigan gathered to read through Verdi's Requiem, a gigantic work Tuesday evening.

It was glorious. We had double pianos and the famous Hill organ and a bass drum for the Dies Irae, and 4 incredible soloists. The tenor could easily dub for Pavorotti.

I wish you all could have been there.

I'm going to have to come down to sleep tonight.

[Tansy_Gold]

2. Bravissimo!

[xchrom]

5. !!!

[Tansy_Gold]

13. And on a similar note

Thanks to polly7 in Videos & Media, but it fits in our thread, too.


http://www.motherjones.com/media/2013/05/landfill-harmonic-trash-orchestra-documentary

[DemReadingDU]

22. That is amazing!

and very nice music too!

[DemReadingDU]

21. I wish we could have been there with you!

[Demeter]

3. But you knew that already

[xchrom]

4. U.S. 2 Percenters Trade Down With Post-Recession Angst

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-15/u-s-2-percenters-trade-down-with-post-recession-angst.html

Jennifer Prentice, a medical-equipment saleswoman in Minneapolis, once had no qualms about dropping $600 or more for Gucci purses. Now she spends $300 for Coach Inc. (COH) bags and is filling in her Burberry wardrobe with pieces from J. Crew.

“The things we went through over the last couple of years definitely have an impact on what I am doing,” Prentice, 45, said in an interview. “I tend to be less frivolous now.”

While good times keep rolling for the super-wealthy, many Americans at the bottom end of the privileged group with incomes of $250,000 or more are thinking twice. These “two-percenters,” unnerved by the most recent recession, are trading down to less-expensive offerings from Coach Inc. and Ralph Lauren Corp. (RL) rather than pricier goods from Prada SpA (1913) and Giorgio Armani SpA. Even with the stock and real estate markets rebounding, they’re not draining their wealth again, and the shift may prove challenging for the highest-priced brands that can no longer lean on credit card-fueled aspirational customers.

“The rich have lost their exuberance,” said Pam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing, a luxury research firm. “They do not feel as wealthy. They increasingly feel that their wealth is threatened, real or not.”

[Hotler]

15. ..........

[Demeter]

19. Frivolous is anything not from Goodwill

Such a entitled b-----.

[xchrom]

6. Eurozone recession continues into sixth quarter

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22536201

The recession across the 17-nation eurozone has continued into a sixth quarter, figures show.

The bloc's economy shrank by 0.2% between January and March, according to official figures.

That left the region's economy 1% smaller for the period compared with a year ago.

Individual data for member countries showed nine were in recession, although Germany recorded weak growth of 0.1% in the period.

[xchrom]

7. UK unemployment rises to 2.52 million

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22536437

UK unemployment has risen to 2.52 million, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said.

ONS figures showed 15,000 more people were unemployed in the three months to the end of March, with the unemployment rate now at 7.8%.

Jobseeker's Allowance claimants fell by 7,300 last month to 1.52 million.

But despite this an ONS spokesman told the BBC the figures suggested the recent period of falling unemployment "seems to have come to an end".

***on an island nation - even one as big as britain - what's the multiplier effect of such high unemployment?

[xchrom]

8. Fitch upgrades Greece credit rating on financial progress

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22533108

Ratings agency Fitch upgraded Greece's credit rating, citing progress in cutting its budget deficit and the risk of a eurozone exit receding.

Fitch up-rated Greece by one notch from CCC to B-, which is still junk status.

But Greece, seen by many last year as likely to leave the eurozone, recently won praise from the International Monetary Fund for progress in putting its finances in order.

Fitch also forecast a milder recession in Greece this year.

[xchrom]

9. New York Area Manufacturing Unexpectedly Contracts

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-15/new-york-area-manufacturing-unexpectedly-contracts.html

Manufacturing (EMPRGBCI) in the New York region unexpectedly shrank in May as factories received fewer orders and sales stagnated.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s general economic index declined to minus 1.4 this month from 3.1 in April. Readings less than zero signal contraction in New York, northern New Jersey and southern Connecticut. The median projection in a Bloomberg survey called for an increase to 4.

Less inventory building by companies and struggling global markets are restraining orders and slowing manufacturing, which accounts for about 12 percent of the economy. At the same time, sustained strength in housing and auto sales may help keep the industry from deteriorating further.

“Sales growth is less than inventory growth, and when you’re in that situation it tends to lead to flatness or declines in manufacturing,” Ken Mayland, president of Clearview Economics LLC in Pepper Pike, Ohio, said before the report. Mayland was the second-most accurate forecaster of the New York index in the past two years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “Manufacturing might see some regaining of momentum in the second half of the year.”

[golfguru]

20. Why is it unexpected?

What was done to encourage manufacturing exactly?
With Euro tanking and US $ stronger, exports were destined to be weak.

[xchrom]

10. EU Oil Manipulation Probe Shines Light on Platts Pricing Window

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-15/eu-oil-manipulation-probe-shines-light-on-platts-pricing-window.html

Two weeks after Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) and Platts changed the way more than half of the world’s crude is valued, the companies along with BP Plc (BP/) and Statoil ASA (STL) are being probed by European antitrust regulators about potential manipulation of oil prices.

The investigation by the European Commission shines a light on how price reporting companies including Platts, the energy news and data provider owned by McGraw Hill Financial Inc., help determine the cost of raw materials used in everything from plastic bags to jet fuel. The suspected violations are related to the Platts’ Market-On-Close assessment process, or so-called window, and may have been ongoing since 2002, Statoil said.

“The industry has developed a high degree of reliance, you can almost call it dependence, on price reporting agencies,” said John Driscoll, the managing director of JTD Energy Services Pte., a Singapore-based energy advisory, and former trading manager at GS Caltex. “They have tremendous discretionary power in their ability to interpret and publish prices.”

Platts has been assessing the cost of oil since at least 1923 when its founder, Warren Platt, started Platt’s Oilgram, a daily newsletter devoted to prices and market information. The influence of reporting companies has grown since the mid-1980s when the industry began using market prices instead of a system where they were set by international oil companies and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

[xchrom]

11. US WHOLESALE PRICES FALL 0.7 PCT., MOST IN 3 YEARS

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_WHOLESALE_PRICES?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-05-15-08-48-21

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sharp drops in fuel and food costs reduced a measure of U.S. wholesale prices in April by the most in three years. But outside those volatile categories, inflation stayed tame.

The producer price index, which measures price changes before they reach the consumer, fell a seasonally adjusted 0.7 percent in April from March, the Labor Department said Wednesday. It was the second straight monthly decline and the largest since February 2010.

The index declined largely because gas prices dropped 6 percent and the price of home heating oil fell by the most in almost four years. Food prices also declined 0.8 percent.

Overall wholesale prices have increased just 0.6 percent over the past 12 months. That's the smallest yearly gain since July.

[xchrom]

12. MACY'S 1Q PROFIT RISES 20 PCT ON SOLID SALES

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_EARNS_MACYS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-05-15-08-23-31

NEW YORK (AP) -- Macy's Inc. is reporting a 20 percent increase in first-quarter profit as the department store chain saw solid sales despite cool temperatures that dampened shoppers' appetite for spring clothes.

The company, which also operates the upscale chain Bloomingdale's, is also raising its dividend to 25 cents from the current 20 cents. It also announced an additional $1.5 billion in stock buybacks.

Macy's, based in Cincinnati, says it earned $217 million, or 55 cents per share in the quarter ended May 4. That compares with $181 million, or 43 cents per share, a year ago.

Revenue rose 4 percent to $6.38 billion.

[xchrom]

14. FUTURES DIP AS FRANCE SLIPS INTO RECESSION

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_WALL_STREET_PREMARKET?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-05-15-08-52-38

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stock futures dipped Wednesday as another nation in Europe sank into recession and the economic contraction for the entire European Union stretched into its sixth straight quarter.

With France's second consecutive quarter of shrinking gross domestic product, the majority of the EU, the world's largest export market, is now in recession.

Dow Jones industrial futures fell 11 points to 15,164. The broader S&P futures gave up 1.8 points to 1,646.20. Nasdaq futures fell half a point to 2,994.755.

The economy in Europe could prove to be a drag on the U.S. recovery, which by all measures is still in recovery mode.

[xchrom]

16. Amazon UK pays $3.7 million tax on $6.5 billion sales

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/05/15/uk-amazon-britain-tax-idUKBRE94E0GE20130515

(Reuters) - Amazon.com's main UK unit paid taxes of $3.7 million (2.4 million pounds) on its 2012 income, despite group UK sales of $6.5 billion, its accounts published on Wednesday showed.

The company received 2.5 million pounds in government grants during the year.

Amazon.co.uk Limited reported the miniscule corporate income tax bill because all sales to British customers are routed through a Luxembourg affiliate, which pays the UK unit fees to cover its costs.

Amazon was not immediately available for comment but has previously said it follows the tax rules in every country where it operates.

[xchrom]

17. Germany can't stop euro zone from sinking into longest recession

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/05/15/uk-europe-economy-idUKBRE94E09D20130515


(Reuters) - Germany's economy crept back into growth at the start of the year but not by enough to stop the euro zone from contracting for a sixth straight quarter, and France slid into recession.

Falling output across the bloc meant the 17-nation economy is in its longest recession since records began in 1995.

It shrank 0.2 percent in the January to March period, the EU's statistics office Eurostat said on Wednesday, worse than the 0.1 percent contraction forecast by a Reuters poll.

"The misery continues," said Carsten Brzeski, a senior economist at ING in Brussels. "Almost all core countries bar Germany are in recession and so far nothing has helped in stopping this downward spiral.

[xchrom]

18. Late payment costs European companies 350 billion euros

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/05/14/uk-payment-idUKLNE94D00520130514

(Reuters) - European companies lost 350 billion euros last year due to late or unpaid bills, underlining fears that small businesses expected to drive economic recovery are faltering in a prolonged recession.

The figure amounted to 3 percent of all receivables and was a 7 percent increase on 2012, when companies wrote off 340 billion euros, Swedish credit management services group Intrum Justitia's (IJ.ST) European Payment Index showed on Monday.

Against the backdrop of the economic downturn and restricted bank lending in Europe, experts fear that the mountain of unpaid bills will drive up insolvency and job losses, reduce cross-border trade and snuff out any recovery.

Late or non-payment for services has long been a problem for Europe's smaller companies, especially in businesses such as supermarkets, which are renowned for driving hard bargains and squeezing suppliers.