STOCK MARKET WATCH, Tuesday 7 June

[ozymandius]

Tuesday June 7, 2005

COUNTING THE DAYS
DAYS REMAINING IN THE * REGIME 3 YEARS, 228 DAYS
DAYS SINCE DEMOCRACY DIED (12/12/00) 4 YEARS, 170 DAYS
WHERE'S OSAMA BIN-LADEN? 3 YEARS, 233 DAYS
DAYS SINCE ENRON COLLAPSE = 1290
Number of Enron Execs in handcuffs = 19
ENRON EXECS CONVICTED = 2
Other Arrests of Execs = 54


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




AT THE CLOSING BELL WHEN BUSH TOOK OFFICE on January 22, 2001
Dow - 10,578.24
Nasdaq - 2,757.91
S&P 500 - 1,342.90

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON June 6, 2005

Dow... 10,467.03 +6.06 (+0.06%)
Nasdaq... 2,075.76 +4.33 (+0.21%)
S&P 500... 1,197.51 +1.49 (+0.12%)
10-Yr Bond... 3.96% -0.02 (-0.43%)
Gold future... 428.40 +2.60 (+0.61%)

GOLD, EURO, YEN, Dollars and Loonie




PIEHOLE ALERT

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

For information on protests and other actions Citizens For Legitimate Government

[ozymandius]

1. WrapUp by Rob Kirby

WHAT'S IN STORE FOR US?

Having listened to Jim’s Radio Show this past weekend and having the utmost respect for one of Jim’s guests, Mike Bolser, I couldn’t help but get stuck on where Mike Bolser’s head is. Bolser is as adept a market technician as I have ever come across. He understands the manner in which markets are manipulated by officialdom. Heck, he has even devised proprietary analytical tools and methods to detect the interference and hopefully benefit financially from it.

Bolser is a hard money advocate, yet he feels that the price of gold is headed lower. He feels that a great many technical indicators are being consciously coerced to “trap” investors on the wrong side of the dollar trade, the interest rate complex as well a precious metals. Bolser suggests that conventional T/A would lead chartists to assume that the price of gold is headed higher, the U.S. dollar headed lower and interest rates headed higher. Bolser likes the other side of the above trades, at least in the near term.

-cut-

So what does it all mean? Most of us lead complicated and busy lives. Staying informed is as important to your financial health as a trip to the doctor or dentist is to your medical health. We live in a fluid and rapidly changing world. The global economy has many currents and cross currents that seldom seem to run in the same direction for very long. Make sure you are sampling information from multiple and varied sources. While it’s important to have a plan, keep an open mind to change – change will occur whether or not you see or accept it. Good advice is hard to come by. If you are already receiving and acting on valued advice, keep looking and listening.

more...

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

[UpInArms]

2. daily dollar watch

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

Last trade 87.40 Change -0.20 (-0.23%)

Dollar Bull Lost Its Horns

http://www.dailyfx.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1437&Itemid=39

EUR/USD – Euro bulls managed to push their way deeper into the dollar held territory with the latest move about to break above the 1.2300 figure. As the euro longs continue to recapture some of the previously lost territory the move toward the 1.2500 figure will be a critical development for the single currency, but a break above 1.2500 will most likely will be capped by the 1.2700-30 range a strong resistance which marked the previous 2005 low. Also traders should expect quiet a few exotic option strike barriers to be placed around the 1.2500 figure, making it a perfect target for the institutional traders to aim for. Indicators signal a maturing trend with ADX (DMI) on the daily chart is at 46.3. Stochastic remains oversold on the daily chart at 14.86, which is indicative of a strong trend. The Stochastic on the dealer (4HR) chart is neutral at 34.42. RSI is treading above oversold on the daily chart at 30.19 with the 4-hour chart RSI neutral at 45.28. MACD remains deep below the zero line on the daily chart and is sloping upward toward the zero line on the dealer 4(HR) chart. In case the reversal fails greenback longs will most likely resume their advance and push the pair toward the psychologically important 1.2000 figure.

<snip>

USD/JPY – Japanese Yen broke through the 107.00 figure with little resistance from the dollar bulls, but decided to take a break from the action and continued to consolidate its gains around 106.80. As the Japanese Yen traders continue to push the pair toward 106.00 figure, a break below will most likely be limited to 104.00 figure as the pair was unable to break below during the last yen rally. Indicators signal trend reversal, with ADX (DMI) dropping to 19.45. Stochastic is sloping downward above the overbought line on the daily chart at 75.03, supporting a view that a trend might be weakening. The Stochastic on the 4-hour chart is treading below the oversold line at 29.91, thus providing dollar bulls with a chance to mount a counterattack. RSI is neutral at 45.79 on the daily chart, with dealer (4HR) chart RSI slopping downward toward the oversold line at 35.08. MACD is making a bearish crossover above the zero line on the daily chart, with MACD on the 4-hour chart crossing below the zero line. If the yen bulls retreat, a move to the upside will most likely see the USD/JPY rocket through 109.00 and target the 110.00 figure, with a breakout targeting the 115.00.

...more...

Trading This Week Could Be Quieter With The Only Important Pieces Of Data Not Due Until Friday.

http://www.dailyfx.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1427&Itemid=39

As if giving us some time to contemplate the meaning of Friday’s non-farm payrolls release, there was nothing significant on the US calendar today. This gave dollar bulls a perfect chance to take profits on their long trades and euro bears to cover shorts. After last week’s extensive movements, trading this week could be quieter with the only important pieces of data not due until Friday.

As if giving us some time to contemplate the meaning of Friday’s non-farm payrolls release, there was nothing significant on the US calendar today. This gave dollar bulls a perfect chance to take profits on their long trades and euro bears to cover shorts. After last week’s extensive movements, trading this week could be quieter with the only important pieces of data not due until Friday. In the meantime, the market will be turning its focus onto Greenspan’s speeches later this evening and Thursday. The topics are particularly interesting, as the Chairman will be speaking about China to global central bankers today and then on the US economy to the Joint Committee later this week. According to Wall Street Journal Fed Watcher Greg Ip, Greenspan isn’t likely to “corroborate” the remarks made by Fed Dallas President Fisher. Last week, Fisher had said that the Fed is "clearly in the eighth inning of a tightening cycle." Ip argues that Greenspan has been putting the risk of inflation ahead of the possible slowdown in growth. With oil prices hovering above $54 a barrel, the Fed could see higher energy costs as a big concern in the months ahead. A rate hike later this month is completely priced into the futures market, but a hike in September is less certain. The October Fed Funds contracts tell us that there is now a 75%-80% probability that rates will be at 3.50% by then. One particular sector of the market that is receiving a tremendous amount of attention lately by both Fed officials and the press is the housing market. In recent weeks, there have been a tremendous amount of articles covering the red-hot housing market. This morning we talked about how the press seems to be the perfect contrarian indicator, as exemplified by Newsweek’s infamous “The Incredible Shrinking Dollar” article in March. This week, on the cover of Time Magazine is an article titled “Home Sweet Home” and “Why we are going gaga over real estate.” It makes us wonder if the housing market is destined for the same fate.

The Dollar Benefited from the Uncertainty Out of Europe Last Week

http://www.dailyfx.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1425&Itemid=39

The dollar benefited from the uncertainty out of Europe last week. Both France and the Netherlands voted NO in independent referendums on the EU constitution. Polls conducted in Germany showed that an overwhelming number of Germans favored a return to the Deutschmark over the Euro. And an Italian minister was quoted in the press saying that Italy should consider dropping out of the single currency and returning to the Lira. A demise of the EU albeit far-fetched has been garnering much more attention since the NO votes out of France and the Netherlands and the cumulative uncertainty is likely to continue to weigh on the EUR.

Despite a disappointing Non-Farm Payrolls figure released on Friday (May jobs increased by 78,000, well below market expectations), the USD has been able to hold its own. Following the release of NFP, EUR/USD traded to a high of 1.2340 but by the end of the day, we saw a return back down to 1.2216.

The economic calendar for the week ahead is relatively light, which will make price action centered upon speeches by Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan. He is scheduled to speak on both Tuesday and Thursday. On Friday we see the release of April trade data where we are expecting to see another narrowing figure. Both the Bank of England and the Reserve Bank of Australia will be holding monetary policy meetings this week. The G7 meeting begins on Friday and it is likely we shall see renewed calls for China to revalue the Yuan.

...more...

Have a Great Day Marketeers!

[UpInArms]

7. Has-Been Partisan Hack fumbles for his Goldilocks wig

Dollar Drops; Greenspan Signals Yield to Stay Near 14-Month Low

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000101&sid=a6dewIn2QJSQ&refer=japan

June 7 (Bloomberg) -- The dollar fell for a second day against the euro after Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan suggested yields on 10-year U.S. Treasury notes may remain near a 14-month low.

The 10-year note yield traded below 4 percent for a sixth day, the longest stretch since March 2004, diminishing the attractiveness of U.S. debt to foreign investors. The dollar has lost 1.2 percent since reaching an eight-month high on June 1.

``When bond yields are so low that's going to undermine the yield advantage that investors can get from U.S. assets and therefore that paints a negative picture for the dollar,'' said Carsten Fritsch, a currency strategist at Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt.

<snip>

``Greenspan's comment that yields will be staying low provides no help for the dollar at all,'' said Adam Myers, a currency strategist at Societe Generale SA in London. ``The market got far too bullish on the dollar last week and now we're in for a bit of a retracement.''

...more...

[54anickel]

27. This Time it is Different

Last entry in the credit bubble bulletin page

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

snip>

This Time Economic Output Is Different. And I do feel comfortable with the insight that the Character of Inflationary Manifestations is today as Different as the change in the nature of output. If it were today possible to calculate a legitimate consumer price inflation rate, it would still represent only one facet of inflationary processes. And I have no confidence that it is possible to successfully analyze contemporary “output” and worker hours to accurately differentiate “productivity” and quality enhancements from “inflation.” Are doctors, attorneys, real estate agents, mortgage brokers, investment bankers, and hedge fund managers more productive these days, or is it more a case of atypical inflation dynamics prominently at play? As I explained last week, I do not believe there is a “general price level” – hence the notion of “real GDP” is an anachronism from a bygone – tangible output - era. “Real GDP” should be downplayed, with the focus on sectoral and nominal outputs.

Recognizing the changed nature of output does not set the analytical world on fire. Things do, however, heat up when the debate moves on to ponder the ramifications as they relate to the Financial Sphere. This Time It Is Different – the nature of economic output (i.e. services, medical, admin, finance, digital, virtual and media) does profoundly impact the capacity for the economy to “produce” increased “output” (and income) without engendering traditional inflationary pressures (especially for CPI). Importantly, the New Paradigmers contend (mistakenly crediting the Fed for having achieved “price stability”) that the new inflation environment affords the system the luxury of low Fed and market rates. As they see it, there is today little risk associated with extended periods of generally loose monetary conditions. It is my contention that the changing nature of economic output – and the capacity for seemingly non-inflationary expansion – ironically beckoned for judicious monetary caution and restraint.

The financial sector indulges in unrestrained expansion, with basically limitless capacity to create “money” and Credit to fund output growth and the asset markets. And while contemporary output expands quiescently with each year of rising GDP, the associated Credit creation invariably inflates the Financial Sphere and the available pool of (global) finance. Unconstrained financial sector expansion creates the extraordinary capacity to satisfy heightened borrowing demands without the normal corresponding market-based increase in the cost of finance (higher rates).

While Bank Credit growth has been robust, non-bank “money” and Credit creation has been historic. The ABS market has expanded 185% in seven years to $2.9 Trillion, while MBS has almost doubled to $3.5 Trillion. Total GSE Assets have increased 160% over this period to $2.9 Trillion. Broker/Dealer Assets are up 135% to $1.8 Trillion. Outstanding primary dealer repurchase agreements now exceed $3.3 Trillion, while global derivative positions now surpass $220 Trillion. Investments in hedge funds now exceed $1 Trillion. While the analytical focus remains on the seemingly innocuous expansion of GDP, the expanding pool of global speculative finance grows only more unmanageable.

snip>

And while U.S. markets were this week enamored with notions of sinking interest rates and financial and economic paradise, there were some unsettling developments. French and Dutch voters this week sent a message that they are increasingly impatient with the current economic and financial arrangement. The faltering dollar, rising energy prices and an over-liquefied Asia have taken a toll on Europe. And while a wounded euro will be interpreted by the goldilocks crowd as a positive development for the dollar, as well as the U.S. markets and economy generally, I would be cautious. Any loss of euro confidence is an unwelcome blow to a global currency “system” already tottering over its unsound dollar foundation. Moreover, perceptions of a weakened euro appear to be pressuring global interest rates lower, while taking some pressure off the dollar. These are problematic developments in today’s profligate environment, certain to only exacerbate U.S. Mortgage Finance and Credit Bubble excesses.

snip>

And perhaps the Fed is ready to declare quick victory, pack their briefcases and cheekily celebrate after nine effortless little baby-step innings. Yet little do they appreciate that it is a best-of-seven series, and their wily opponent has been happy to spot them game one. The current interest rate, liquidity, speculation, economic and global backdrops are conducive to only greater Monetary Disorder and unwieldy imbalances - both at home and abroad. Would $70 crude, spiking commodities prices and a long, hot summer housing mania catch the Fed’s attention?

Well, I’m sticking with the view that the Fed will be forced to step up and play ball. And it is when times get tough – when unstable markets turn uncooperative – that everyone will be reminded as to why it is so important for a central bank not to fall so far behind the curve. This Time it is Different: In an extraordinarily uncertain and problematic environment, the Fed somehow telegraphed to an extremely leveraged and speculative marketplace that there was nothing to worry about.

more...

[UpInArms]

28. I think I'm going to need some ammonia capsules

to revive me after I pass out -

global derivative positions now surpass $220 Trillion

[54anickel]

37. Heh-heh, thought that might catch your eye. Here's an interesting

thought on China - if they start sending money to boost their own consumerism, who's gonna boost ours?

China Plans to Spur Consumption, Eliminate Trade Gap

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000086&sid=ann78ASMBdCs&refer=latin_america

June 7 (Bloomberg) -- China will introduce measures to spur consumer spending to reduce a trade surplus that's fueling tensions with the U.S. and Europe, People's Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said.

``We haven't seen much increase in consumption, but rather we saw rapid growth in exports,'' he said at a conference in Beijing. ``This isn't something we want to see. Our policies are to cut the trade surplus to zero if possible. We want to use new policies to increase consumption.''

A pickup in consumer spending on imports would help ease pressure on China to scrap the yuan's decade-old peg to the U.S. dollar and limit inflows of foreign exchange that are hampering monetary policy, Zhou said. He said the central bank won't raise benchmark interest rates ``for the time being.''

snip>

High Savings Rate

Exports rose 32 percent from a year earlier in April, twice as fast as the nation's imports. Retail sales increased 12 percent, which was the smallest gain in more than a year, excluding the distortion to January's data caused by changes in the timing of the Lunar New Year holiday.

Zhou said the nation's savings rate is ``pretty high'' and the government will encourage households to spend more freely. That might be achieved by boosting welfare spending, said Qu Hongbin, an economist at HSBC Holdings Plc in Hong Kong.

``One reason for high household savings is concern about social welfare, pension funds, medical care, education,'' Qu said. Diverting more money to these areas would ``help to address public anxiety over these things,'' he said.

more...

So, who's gonna be our new banker?

[54anickel]

38. U.S. Bid to Change China Currency Disputed (DOH!)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/07/AR2005060700157.html

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration's effort to increase pressure on China to overhaul its currency regime got less than rave reviews from Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and key central bankers from China, Europe and Japan.

Greenspan disputed the contention of U.S. manufacturers that a revaluation of China's yuan would make a significant impact on America's soaring trade imbalances.

Zhou Xiaochuan, the head of China's central bank, rejected the administration's contention that China was ready to move immediately to a more flexible currency. And Jean-Claude Trichet, the head of the European Central Bank, and Toshiro Moto, deputy governor of the Bank of Japan, both said the timing of any move should be left up to China.

snip>

The Bush administration in recent weeks has intensified the pressure on China to stop linking the yuan at a fixed rate to the dollar, a practice that American manufacturers say has undervalued the yuan and given China a huge trade advantage.

[UpInArms]

59. Congress should back call for more flexible currency - GOP Thomas says

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B4D0ED3A3%2D1F55%2D4238%2D8F72%2DB86B02686899%7D&siteid=mktw

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - China has become an "all-purpose scapegoat" in the debate over U.S. trade policy, but lawmakers may need to take action to support President Bush's push for a more flexible exchange rate between the yuan and the dollar, a key U.S. congressman said Tuesday.

"People look at as a fundamental problem," House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Thomas, R-Calif., told a U.S. Chamber of Commerce forum. And that means lawmakers "have to deal with it" in order to move forward on other trade issues, he said.

Thomas is attempting to shepherd the Central American Free Trade Agreement through the House of Representatives, and hopes to begin legislative efforts to ratify the treaty later this month.

Thomas said it is important for Congress to demonstrate "from a legislative position" that it backs the Bush administration's exhortations to China to loosen the peg between the yuan and the dollar.

...more...

[ozymandius]

61. What, me worry?

[RawMaterials]

92. The Chinese are so smart, and The US is not so smart

``One reason for high household savings is concern about social welfare, pension funds, medical care, education,'' Qu said. Diverting more money to these areas would ``help to address public anxiety over these things,'' he said.

why should we worry about stuff like this, we are the biggest baddest country around and everyone just wants our money because our sh!t smells like rose's

[punpirate]

62. And, if I read correctly a week or two ago...

... US interests hold fully one-third of that paper.

Nobody hiccup, okay?

[UpInArms]

64. it's the sneeze that will kill it

[UpInArms]

26. Dollar lower on cross-trading impact

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.3773132755-836363421&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - The dollar was lower against the euro and yen early Monday, pushed down by cross-trading impact after the euro struck an 11-month low against the yen. Overnight Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan reiterated his view that it was in China's best interests to loosen the yuan's peg to the dollar, but that such a move might not greatly reduce the U.S.' current account deficit. In recent trades the euro was up 0.2% at $1.2282 and the dollar down 0.2% at 106.68 yen.

[UpInArms]

3. Has Been Partisan Hack Suffers from Addled Brain Disorder

Greenspan: Long-term rate puzzler

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BCA055EEA%2D25C4%2D454C%2DA9AF%2D8D0F8F0C3E65%7D&siteid=mktw

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The decline of long-term interest rates over the past year despite the Fed's steady tightening remains a conundrum, said Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan.

"We've never run into anything like this before," Greenspan said at an American Bankers Association conference in Beijing Tuesday.

In his remarks, Greenspan dismissed the four leading Wall Street theories of why global long-term interest rates are so low.

"The economic and financial world is changing in ways that we still do not fully comprehend," Greenspan said.

Some economists have argued that low rates are signaling economic weakness.

...more...

10:14pm 06/06/05 GREENSPAN: CERTAIN CHINA WILL MOVE ON YUAN SOON

9:54pm 06/06/05 GREENSPAN NO CHANGE SOON IN LOW LONG-TERM BOND RATES

9:02pm 06/06/05 GREENSPAN REPEATS WARNING AGAINST RISE OF PROTECTIONISM

9:02pm 06/06/05 GREENSPAN: HEDGE FUND INVESTORS MAY BECOME LESS WEALTHY

9:02pm 06/06/05 GREENSPAN: GLOBAL ECONOMIC CHANGES NOT WELL UNDERSTOOD

9:02pm 06/06/05 GREENSPAN REJECTS LEADING LONG-TERM BOND DROP THEORIES

9:02pm 06/06/05 GREENSPAN: LOW RATES NOT SIGNAL OF ECONOMIC WEAKNESS

9:02pm 06/06/05 GREENSPAN SEES NO EASY ANSWER TO CONUNDRUM OF LOW RATES

[UpInArms]

4. Has the Fed given in to the 'conundrum'?

Commentary: If Greenspan surrenders, stocks may too

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B91F6E0A6-5D75-459D-AC75-B2A8B11EB107%7D&siteid=google

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- If you can't understand it, join it.

It appears the Federal Reserve has brought out the white flag, and is ready to bow to the power of the bond market.

Just like the way irrational exuberance gave way to a new economy, a conundrum may be entering the eighth inning.

Despite the inability of Treasury yields to sustain any gains and the continued forays of the benchmark 10-year yield ($TNX: news, chart, profile) below 4%, there are still many that believe in their hearts that yields will eventually rise.

When the Fed raises interest rates, and tells us that heading off inflation is a priority, bond yields are supposed to go up. And they did a couple times over the last year, but the gains never lasted very long.

...more...

[UpInArms]

5. Today's Report:

http://biz.yahoo.com/c/e.html

Jun 7	3:00 PM	Consumer Credit		Apr	-	$9.0B	$7.5B	$5.5B	-

[UpInArms]

110. Consumer Driven Economy Dead :U.S. April consumer credit rises $1.3 billio

U.S. April consumer credit rises $1.3 billion

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.6251604282-836379191&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=symb&value=&categories=&

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. consumer credit rose in April at an annual rate of 0.7%, or $1.3 billion, the Federal Reserve said Tuesday. The increase was much less than expected. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch were expecting consumer credit to rise by $7.4 billion. Credit card debt decreased 0.6% in April, while nonrevolving credit like auto loans rose 1.5%.

3:00pm 06/07/05 U.S. APRIL CONSUMER CREDIT RISES $1.3 BILLION

3:00pm 06/07/05 U.S. APRIL CONSUMER CREDIT BELOW FORECAST

[UpInArms]

6. Citibank uses unsecured UPS carrier for your private financial info

Records lost on 4 million
UPS says it can't find CitiFinancial tapes

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-0506070278jun07,1,2684384.story?coll=chi-business-hed

In the latest breach of consumer computer security, United Parcel Service Inc. confirmed Monday that it has lost the financial data of nearly 4 million Citigroup Inc. customers.

Citigroup said UPS cannot account for computer tapes containing the names, Social Security numbers, account numbers and payment history of 3.9 million of its CitiFinancial customers. The courier service was transporting the financial firm's tapes to a credit bureau when they disappeared.

<snip>

"It is outrageous for a bank to lose unencrypted information months after another bank lost unencrypted information," said Edmund Mierzwinski, who follows consumer financial security issues for the Illinois Public Interest Research Group.

Mierzwinski was referring to Bank of America Corp.'s loss of financial data on 1.2 million government workers, among them Sen. Pat Leahy (D-Vt.), that was disclosed in late February. The computer tapes disappeared during shipment to a backup center.

<snip>

Just last month, customers of Wachovia Corp. were notified that their financial records may have been stolen, and Time Warner Inc. said computer tape records on 600,000 present and past employees were lost by a computer storage company.

...more personal information security "losses" at link...

Why are these companies selling our personal information to begin with? These tapes were on their way somewhere else - away from the place where you had agreed it to be - and it was not secured nor protected.

:argh:

[UpInArms]

8. Pension gap said to be growing

Report: Troubled plans have a $354B difference between assets and promised benefits, up 27%.

http://money.cnn.com/2005/06/07/news/economy/pensions_shortfall/


The Washington Post reported that the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC), the government agency that insures the funds, says the 1,108 weakest pension plans were short by an aggregate $353.7 billion at the end of last year.

That figure, which covers the 1,108 weakest pension plans whose assets are at least $50 million below the value of the benefits promised, is up 27 percent from the end of 2003.

"Despite a strong economy, pension plans are reporting even larger shortfalls than last year. Clearly we need new rules that will require companies to fund the pension promises they make," PBGC Executive Director Bradley Belt said Monday, according to the Post.

...more...

So I guess the plan is that there is no plan. No retirement funds for anyone with a pension fund or social security. No health care - in Missouri - no Medicaid. Will we see a rise in paupers' funerals? Will we see the aged and infirm sitting on corners selling pencils?

I do so hope that all the people that cast their votes for "the culture of life" find themselves in a position to witness the fruits of their actions.

:argh:

[Zynx]

14. That's going to be one huge check when we have to bail them out.

[UpInArms]

21. how the giant corp's dump their pension and environmental liabilities

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T122643Z_01_WEN2889_RTRIDST_0_CHEMICALS-SOLUTIA-URGENT.XML

NEW YORK, June 7 (Reuters) - Bankrupt chemicals company Solutia Inc. (SOLUQ.OB: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Tuesday it has reached an agreement with its former parent Monsanto Co. (MON.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and an unsecured creditors committee on a plan to reorganize the company.

The specialty chemical and performance films maker said the "agreement-in-principle" provides for $250 million in new investment in the reorganized Solutia, and Monsanto's equity interest in the company may be as high as 52.5 percent.

Solutia, which was spun off from Monsanto in 1997, filed for bankruptcy protection in 2003, overwhelmed by huge liabilities related to environmental lawsuits and employee benefits it has said were forced upon it by Monsanto.

...very short newsblurb...

[54anickel]

45. Pension Loopholes Helped United Hide Troubles

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/07/business/07pension.html?pagewanted=1&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1118152932-oOv0RQcmO1hvw9yX1bd2HQ

Loopholes in the federal pension law allowed United Airlines to treat its pension fund as solid for years, when in fact it was dangerously weakening, according to a new analysis by the agency that guarantees pensions. That analysis is scheduled to be presented at a Senate Finance Committee hearing today.

A second report, by the comptroller general, found that most companies that operate pension funds are using the same loopholes. Those loopholes give companies ways - all perfectly legal - to make their pension plans look healthier than they really are, reducing the amount of money the companies must contribute.

snip>

"We saw similar practices and events at Enron, but unfortunately, this time it's perfectly legal," said Senator Charles E. Grassley, the Iowa Republican who is chairman of the finance committee. He said he had scheduled today's hearing because he wanted to find ways to keep pension disasters like the $10 billion failure at United from happening at other companies.

"The rules are full of serious holes that need to be fixed as soon as possible," Senator Grassley said. "No one should make the mistake that this is an airline-only problem. The reality is that companies everywhere have used the same arcane pension-funding rules" to shrink their contributions.

snip>

Senator Grassley said he believed many companies were "booking phony investment gains to hide that workers' pensions are going down the tubes."

He said he hoped the hearing would lead to legislation that would eliminate the loopholes that made such maneuvers possible.

more...

[UpInArms]

55. U.S. pension shortfall rises to $354 billion in 2004

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.4266634491-836366567&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. companies with underfunded pension plans had an aggregate shortfall of $354 billion at the end of 2004, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. said Tuesday. In 2003, the pension shortfall was $279 billion. The 1,108 underfunded plans have $787 billion in assets to cover more than $1.14 billion in liabilities, PBGC Executive Director Bradley Belt told the Senate Finance Comittee.

[UpInArms]

47. US Pension Shortfall RISES to $354 BILLION

10:06am 06/07/05 U.S. PENSION SHORTFALL RISES TO $354B VS. $279B: PBGC

[UpInArms]

67. Delta and Northwest Airlines threaten BANKRUPTCY to avoid funding pensions

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T145933Z_01_N07614918_RTRIDST_0_CONGRESS-PENSIONS-UPDATE-1.XML

excerpt:

Top executives at Delta Air Lines (DAL.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Northwest Airlines (NWAC.O: Quote, Profile, Research) told lawmakers the companies could go bankrupt and terminate their pensions if Congress does not act immediately on legislation that would allow the airline industry to stretch out contributions to severely underfunded retirement plans.

Financed by premiums paid by corporations, the PBGC is facing a $23.3 billion deficit fueled by having to take over the pension plans of troubled companies, most recently airlines.

PBGC recently agreed to guarantee $6.6 billion of pension obligations at bankrupt United Airlines (UALAQ.OB: Quote, Profile, Research), the largest pension default in U.S. history.

PBGC Executive Director Bradley belt told the Senate Finance Committee that United had been able to go for years without making any cash contributions to the plans or paying additional premiums to the agency.

<snip>

Gerald Grinstein, Delta's chief executive and Douglas Steenland, president and CEO of Northwest, told the Senate hearing that pensions covering more 150,000 current and former employees and retirees at both companies are unmanageable and could lead to insolvency.

...more...

[AnneD]

99. Why do I hear

the theme from Titanic. The rats are scurring off the ship as fast as their little legs will cary them. This is just the first few floors taking on water.

[UpInArms]

100. I could swear I saw Pickles rearranging the deck chairs ... eom

[AnneD]

108. PLEASE PLEASE

tell me Dubya was cutting up his jacket to show her how it worked (cause we know he'll never surrender his sorry ass culture of life seat to a woman pregnant or not). I hear steerage is nice, hardly any rats. I bet they have plenty of jobs in China.

[UpInArms]

9. Sears Holdings swings to loss on accounting charge

(wow! That merger certainly did wonders :eyes: )

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.3175786806-836360146&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Sears Holdings Corp. (SHLD) , the company formed from the merger of Kmart Holding Corp. and Sears, Roebuck and Co., swung to a first-quarter ending April 30 loss of $9 million, or 7 cents a share, hurt by a $90 million or 72 cent per share impact from accounting changes. Excluding the accounting move, earnings slowed to 65 cents a share from 94 cents a share, with revenue rising to $7.63 billion from $4.63 billion, the company said in a filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The results for the first quarter include approximately five weeks of Sears results and 13 weeks of Kmart's results. On a proforma basis as if the companies had been merged at the beginning of 2004, it swung to a $78 million, or 48 cents a share, loss, with revenue flat at $12.76 billion.

[Zynx]

12. Actually, the merger hasn't been that bad.

The company had a number of special expenses in conjunction with the merger and is slated to have very strong earnings growth over the next couple years. If you were a shareholder you have seen your stock price go through the roof with very few signs of slowing down since the company trades at a low PE multiple.

[UpInArms]

15. I am not fond of "pro-forma" accounting

and prefer GAAP - but that's just me :eyes:

Glad to see you here at the SMW Zynx :hi:

[Zynx]

19. By any measure, SHLD is set to make a significant profit this year.

[UpInArms]

20. here's more information:

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=marketsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T123613Z_01_N07155221_RTRIDST_0_RETAIL-SEARS-EARNS-UPDATE-2.XML

excerpt:

Kmart's purchase of Sears was completed in the middle of the reporting period, so the retailer said its results were not representative. Had Sears results been included for the whole quarter, the combined company would have lost $78 million, which includes the $90 million accounting charge.

Quarterly revenues were $7.6 billion, or $12.8 billion including results from Sears for the full quarter.

The retailer said quarterly sales fell 2.3 percent at Kmart stores, which it blamed on poor weather that curbed demand for spring merchandise. Revenue from merchandise sales and services rose 0.5 percent at U.S. Sears stores, largely because of a jump in its home service business that made up for weak clothing, and lawn and garden equipment sales.

The report shows a steep drop in cash and a rise in inventory because of Kmart's purchase of Sears. The company had $1.6 billion of cash and cash equivalents as of April 30, down from $7.4 billion before the deal closed.

...more...

[Zynx]

24. When you get a financier running a retailer, they don't seem to care about

sales.

[patcox2]

58. Not that bad? KMart reminds me of a soviet department store

And Sears is soon to follow. I am serious. KMart, despite its image, was a cool store at one time; it had an optical-camera department with a store brand product line that was actually very good quality, telescope fanatics will tell you that an old "Focal" telescope can be good quality. You could find a wide selection of tools, hardware, sporting goods.

Now walking into a KMart is like walking into a huge dollar store with empty shelves and only a few products in each line. Ite really dismal. It is like a store in the old soviet union (anyone remember the 70s, one of the things about the soviet union was a real scarcity of consumer goods, the stores there simply had nothing to sell, when they got something in, they'd get mobbed.)

I find it hard to believe that the merger will not destroy Sears, which is a fantastic store, its tools, hardware, and appliance departments are the best in the world. I doubt that will last.

[UpInArms]

63. our future?

[RawMaterials]

65. Hope they remember to keep

The Vodka Cheep, cause we are going to need it.

[UpInArms]

69. especially when the heat gets turned off

[ozymandius]

78. Gods. I hope not. But then, this image still retains memorable clarity.

[UpInArms]

83. here's an excellent site

A Photo Essay on the Great Depression

http://www.english.uiuc.edu/maps/depression/photoessay.htm


During the Great Depression, unemployment was high. Many employers tried to get as much work as possible from their employees for the lowest possible wage. Workers were upset with the speedup of assembly lines, working conditions and the lack of job security. Seeking strength in unity, they formed unions. Automobile workers organized the U.A.W. (United Automobile Workers of America) in 1935. General Motors would not recognize the U.A.W. as the workers' bargaining representative. Hearing rumors that G.M. was moving work to factories where the union was not as strong, workers in Flint began a sit-down strike on December 30, 1936. The sit-down was an effective way to strike. When workers walked off the job and picketed a plant, management could bring in new workers to break the strike. If the workers stayed in the plant, management could not replace them with other workers. This photograph shows the broken windows at General Motors' Flint Fisher Body Plant during the Flint sit-down strike of 1936-37.


The photograph that has become known as "Migrant Mother" is one of a series of photographs that Dorothea Lange made in February or March of 1936 in Nipomo, California. Lange was concluding a month's trip photographing migratory farm labor around the state for what was then the Resettlement Administration. In 1960, Lange gave this account of the experience:

I saw and approached the hungry and desperate mother, as if drawn by a magnet. I do not remember how I explained my presence or my camera to her, but I do remember she asked me no questions. I made five exposures, working closer and closer from the same direction. I did not ask her name or her history. She told me her age, that she was thirty-two. She said that they had been living on frozen vegetables from the surrounding fields, and birds that the children killed. She had just sold the tires from her car to buy food. There she sat in that lean- to tent with her children huddled around her, and seemed to know that my pictures might help her, and so she helped me. There was a sort of equality about it. (From: Popular Photography, Feb. 1960).


Part of the daily lineup outside the State Employment Service Office. Memphis, Tennessee. June 1938. Photographer: Dorothea Lange.

[UpInArms]

10. DIARY-U.S. Treasuries, Tuesday, June 7

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T112019Z_01_N07262546_RTRIDST_0_DIARY-U-S-TREASURIES-TUESDAY-JUNE-7.XML

Federal Reserve Board Governor Susan Schmidt Bies speaks
before the American Bankers Association CFO Exchange conference,
Chicago, Illinois, 9 a.m. EDT (1300 GMT).

Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Jack Guynn speaks
at a luncheon hosted by the Atlanta Society of Financial
Analysts. Atlanta, Georgia, 12:30 p.m. (1630 GMT)

Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Richard Fisher
participates in "Riding the Waves of the Global Economy"
education workshop for high school faculty, Dallas, Texas,
approximately 1 p.m. (1700 GMT)

Federal Reserve Board Governor Edward Gramlich speaks on the
"Community Reinvestment Act Proposal" at the Community
Development Forum in Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 8 p.m.
(0000 GMT)

<snip>

ABC News/Washington Post releases consumer confidence index for
the week ended June 5 versus the prior week, 5 p.m. (2100 GMT).
In the previous week, the index read -13.

...more at link...

[UpInArms]

31. US Fed's Bies-home equity loan risks rising

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T130623Z_01_WBT003294_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-FED-BIES-URGENT.XML

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - U.S. bank regulators have observed slippage of loan underwriting standards for home equity lending and commercial real estate loans, a worry for banks if house prices drop, Federal Reserve Board Gov. Susan Bies said on Tuesday.

"There is concern that banks' home equity loan portfolios may be vulnerable to a rise in interest rates and a decline in home values," she said in remarks prepared for delivery to an American Bankers Association conference in Chicago.

Bies did not discuss the economy or the outlook for interest rates in her speech, which the Fed distributed in Washington.

Bank regulators and analysts are increasingly concerned that fast-rising U.S. home values may decline in some regions as interest rates rise.

...please go and read the last paragraph...

[UpInArms]

68. Fed's Bies says aggression in some housing lending

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T145106Z_01_WBT003300_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-FED-BIES-RATES-URGENT.XML

CHICAGO, June 7 (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Governor Susan Bies said on Tuesday the United States is seeing aggressive housing lending in some communities, particularly on the east and west coasts.

"We are seeing bubbles in a couple of practices in selected communities," she told reporters after a speech before the American Bankers Association.

Bies said the Fed had noticed the emergence of unsound banking practices "on the fringes and edges" of the industry.

Of the low level of long-term interest rates in the face of eight rises in short-term rates by the Fed -- a trend helping to fuel strong U.S. housing gains -- Bies said she regarded this as a "puzzle" that could have several explanations. She said she was "not losing sleep" over the trend.

...very short article...

So now the "conundrum" is a "puzzle" :eyes:

[54anickel]

74. Oh, now that's troublesome. When the Fed sees unsound banking

practices "on the fringes and edges" you just know damned well that river has gotta run pretty freakin' deep. Old "Bubbles and Company" are sooooo near-sighted.

[UpInArms]

36. Fed adds reserves through 2-day system RPs

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T133235Z_01_N07342864_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-FED-OPERATIONS.XML

NEW YORK, June 6 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve said on Tuesday it added temporary reserves to the banking system through two-day system repurchase agreements.

Fed funds last traded at 3.00 percent, matching the Fed's current target for the rate on overnight loans between banks.

Further details of the operations are available at: http://www.ny.frb.org/markets/omo/dmm/temp.cfm

[UpInArms]

73. Treasury official: Rates won't jump on yuan revaluation

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.4905307407-836370820&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. interest rates probably wouldn't rise very much if Asian central banks stopped buying Treasurys, acting U.S. Treasury Undersecretary Randal Quarles said Tuesday. Quarles told senators that private buyers would step in if official buying slowed. The Chinese central bank has been buying Treasurys to hold down the value of the renimbi, which has also kept U.S. interest rates very low. The Treasury has been pressuring China to adopt a more "flexible' exchange rate.

[UpInArms]

88. US's Quarles says debt holdouts key in IMF talks

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T163100Z_01_N07437731_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-ARGENTINA-QUARLES-UPDATE-1.XML

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - Developing a strategy to deal with Argentina's outstanding defaulted debt will be a key issue in talks on a new loan accord with the International Monetary Fund, a top U.S. Treasury official said on Tuesday.

Acting Treasury Undersecretary for International Affairs Randal Quarles said Argentina also needs policies to support sustained growth, so it can meet its financial obligations after an economic crisis and debt default in 2002.

"Argentina has continued to perform strongly on its macroeconomic targets," Quarles said in remarks prepared for delivery to a Senate Banking panel. "However, concerns remain regarding the implementation of its structural policy commitments under its IMF program," he added.

Buenos Aires recently completed a historic debt restructuring and swapped new bonds for defaulted debt last week. Creditors who refused the offer still hold some $20 billion of the defaulted debt.

The Argentine government has said it it will not reopen the debt exchange, but the IMF -- and its biggest shareholder, the United States -- are prodding the government to work it out with creditors.

...more...

The Argentinian utility sector is complaining - just remember that GWB pushed Argentina to sell their private sector utilities to Enron.

google for enron+bush+argentina for more info

[UpInArms]

90. Speech by Fed's Guynn to echo May 25th address

the echo chamber effect?

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T165029Z_01_N07439816_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-FED-GUYNN.XML

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - Atlanta Federal Reserve President Jack Guynn's speech on Tuesday will largely echo one he gave on May 25, the Atlanta Fed said on Tuesday.

Guynn was to speak before the Atlanta Society of Financial Analysts in Atlanta.

...very short newsblurb...

[UpInArms]

96. Wages bear watching, not yet big worry-Fed's Guynn

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T175000Z_01_WBT003307_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-FED-GUYNN-WAGES-URGENT.XML

ATLANTA, June 7 (Reuters) - Unit labor costs are not a big worry in the United States now, although some sectors are starting to see competition for workers and wages bear watching, Atlanta Federal Reserve President Jack Guynn said on Tuesday.

"Unit labor costs so far have been of less concern than I might have expected a couple of years ago. Productivity gains have certainly helped," Guynn said in answer to audience questions at a luncheon hosted by the Atlanta Society of Financial Analysts.

...very short newsblurb...

:eyes: How about those CEOs compensation packages, stuffed to overflowing while the minimum wage stagnates at $5.15 hour?

[UpInArms]

11. U.S. weekly (or is that weakly?) retail chain store sales rose 0.4%

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.323652037-836360326&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Sales at major U.S. retail chain stores rose 0.4% last week after declining the previous three weeks, the International Council of Shopping Centers reported Tuesday. Sales were up 3.3% year-over-year, up from 3.1% the week before. For all of June, same-store sales are expected to rise 3% to 4%, said ICSC Chief Economist Mike Niemira.

:wow: 0.4%! Let's Party! :party:

[Zynx]

13. That's .4% week to week.

However, 3.3% year over year is not that good at all.

[UpInArms]

23. US chain store sales fall in first week of June (party cancelled)

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=economicNews&storyID=2005-06-07T125516Z_01_NAT001627_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-RETAIL-REDBOOK-URGENT.XML

NEW YORK, June 7 (Reuters) - U.S. chain store sales fell in the first week of June, as unseasonal weather cooled down the demand for seasonal apparel, a report said on Tuesday.

Sales in June to-date were down 0.5 percent compared with May. Sales at major retailers rose by 3.3 percent on a year-over-year basis for the week ended June 4, said Redbook Research, an independent company.

"Unseasonably cold and rainy weather in the West and Midwest areas continued to be a factor in sales of spring and summer goods," Redbook said.

"Sales performance was somewhat mixed. The latest week's sales, which included the Sunday and Monday of the Memorial Day weekend promotions helped department stores, which met or exceeded plan while discounters fell slightly behind plan," Redbook added.

...more...

When all else fails, blame the weather. What a crock of shit - I was out there this past weekend - weather was wonderful - people not spending money :grr: because confidence and economy are in the toilet.

[UpInArms]

16. Con-Agra (mega food conglomerate) report

ConAgra lowers quarterly earnings expectations by 10c

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.3534149306-836361976&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=symb&value=&categories=&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - ConAgra Foods (CAG) Tuesday said its fourth-quarter earnings per share result will be 10 cents below the company's prior estimate, citing weak packaged meats profits. Previously ConAgra said its fourth-quarter earnings would modestly exceed those of the third quarter, when it earned 32 cents a share, excluding 2 cents a share of items that impact comparability. The company said it is not providing a specific fourth-quarter profit estimate because the results are not yet final. The Thomson First Call analysts' average estimate is for earnings of 36 cents a share. ConAgra also said a headcount reduction program will save it $100 million in annual costs. On Monday shares of the Omaha packaged foods seller rose 7 cents to $25.89.

How 'bout that "headcount reduction" term! A new way of phrasing it once again!

8:22am 06/07/05 CONAGRA EXPECTS JOB CUTS TO SAVE $100M ANNUALLY

8:22am 06/07/05 CONAGRA EXPECTS SEVERANCE CHARGES IN Q4

8:21am 06/07/05 CONAGRA CUTTING 'SEVERAL HUNDRED' SALARIED JOBS

8:20am 06/07/05 CONAGRA INSTALLS NEW TEAM AT PACKAGED MEAT OPERATIONS

8:19am 06/07/05 CONAGRA Q4 FIRST CALL ESTIMATE AT 36C

8:17am 06/07/05 CONAGRA GUIDES Q4 ANALYSTS' ESTIMATES LOWER BY 10C

8:16am 06/07/05 CONAGRA SEES Q4 PACKAGED MEAT NET 10C BELOW ESTIMATE

8:14am 06/07/05 CONAGRA BLAMES WEAK PROFIT IN PACKAGED MEAT

8:14am 06/07/05 CONAGRA SEES Q4 EARNINGS LOWER THAN EXPECTED

(edited to add link and blurb)

[54anickel]

17. Sometimes They Ring a Bell (Great toon Ozy!)

http://www.prudentbear.com/archive_comm_article.asp?category=Guest+Commentary&content_idx=43611

There has been a lot written on the housing bubble recently. On May 20, Alan Greenspan, Chairman of the Federal Reserve made the statement that there is no national housing bubble, but then stated, “There are a lot of little bubbles around the country”. Chairman Greenspan went on to tell the Economic Club of New York, “Without calling the overall national issue a bubble, it’s pretty clear that it’s an unsustainable pattern”. This is not the normal “Fed speak” The chairman is apprizing the investment community of the Fed’s concern in pretty plain language. There is evidence that the Fed has begun to move to contain the housing bubble using credit standards in place of interest rates. With a little noticed memo, several Federal regulatory agencies have begun a major crackdown on excessive home equity lending. In an unusual joint release issued on May 16,2005 by the Federal Reserve Bank, Controller of Currency, FDIC, Office of Thrift Supervision and the National Credit Union Administration. http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/press/bcreg/2005/20050516/default.htm. Entitled “Agencies Issue Credit Risk Management Guidance for Home Equity Lending,” the Federal agencies laid the groundwork for a tightening of lending standards for home equity loans and lines of credit. At present there are over $880 billion of the loans outstanding according to the Federal Reserve. It should be noted that these are mainly second loans not primary mortgages, although I suspect that primary mortgages maybe next on the list. In speaking with several of these agencies my impression is that there is concern that lending standards have slipped and the agencies would like to see them tightened. In addition, as many of these loans are floating rate loans, they would like to see the loans vetted for inherent vulnerability to rising interest rates. Consumers have used these loans to buy more real estate, pay off credit cards and maintain consumer spending at the expense of saving. In addition to cooling down the real estate market this will further slow down consumer spending. We believe this is a major move by the Federal Reserve to control the bubbles in the real estate markets, We also think that there will be other moves to get slow the lending and thereby cool the home market down.

Michael Mandel at Business Week recently produced an excellent piece on the housing bubble, writing that “Residential investment has become a black hole, absorbing a staggering 5.8% of gross domestic product. That’s the highest level since the late 1940s and early ‘50s, when an entire generation of returning soldiers was setting up families and expanding into newly built suburbs. This time, Americans are building second homes and enlarging current ones at a record pace.

By comparison, the tech boom of the ‘90s was at worse a baby bubble. Starting in 1991, business investment in information technology and communications began a steady climb going from 3.1% to a peak of 4.8% in 2000 before collapsing.

more...

[UpInArms]

18. United Defense Indus. wins $376 Navy contract

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.3481496991-836361768&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=symb&value=&categories=&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- United Defense Industries (UDI) said it won a $376 million contract to continue designing, developing and testing advanced gun systems for the Naval Sea Systems Command. The gun systems included the fully automated gun, magazine and long range land attack projectile used on the Navy's new destroyer. Work for the contract is expected to be completed by September 2010. The stock closed Monday up 6 cents at $74.56.

http://www.publicintegrity.org/pns/report.aspx?aid=424&sid=200

Investing in War
The Carlyle Group profits from government and conflict

WASHINGTON, November 18, 2004 — The Carlyle Group, a Washington, D.C.-based private equity firm that employs numerous former high-ranking government officials with ties to both political parties, was the ninth largest Pentagon contractor between 1998 and 2003, an ongoing Center for Public Integrity investigation into Department of Defense contracts found.

A dozen companies in which Carlyle had a controlling interest netted more than $9.3 billion in contracts.

Overall, six private investment firms, including Carlyle, received nearly $14 billion in Pentagon deals between 1998 and 2003. (See related report, "The Sincerest Form of Flattery.")

From its founding in 1987, the Carlyle Group has pioneered investing in the defense and national security markets, and through its takeover of companies with billions of dollars in defense contracts became one of the U.S. military's top vendors, ranking among better known defense firms like Lockheed Martin, Boeing Co., Raytheon Co., Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics.

<snip>

It was under the leadership of former Defense Secretary Frank Carlucci—first as a managing director, from 1989 to 1993, and as chairman from 1993 to 2003—that Carlyle grew from a small private equity to a global investment giant, and became a major player among defense contractors.

Other former government officials who have recent or current ties to the firm include former British Prime Minister John Major and former Philippines President Fidel Ramos; former Office of Management and Budget director Richard Darman; former Clinton chief of staff Thomas F. "Mack" McLarty; former Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Arthur Levitt and former Federal Communications Commission chairman William E. Kennard. Former Secretary of State James Baker works for the firm, as did his former boss, President George H.W. Bush, who was an adviser for the firm's Asian investment funds until he left Carlyle in 2003.

<snip>

Though none are placed as closely as the president's father, Carlyle's other Washington insiders have ties to current Bush administration officials. Current Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Carlucci went to college together, for example, and Secretary of State Colin Powell was Carlucci's deputy on the National Security Council in the mid-1980s.

...more...

[UpInArms]

22. Are we too poor to afford medication?

Rite Aid May same-store sales fell 0.4%

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.3696314468-836362847&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Rite Aid Corp. (RAD) said Tuesday same-store sales for the five weeks ended May 28, fell 0.4% from a year earlier. The company said pharmacy same-store sales decreased 1.4%, while "front-end" same-store sales rose 1.3%. Total drugstore sales in May dropped by 0.6% to $1.62 billion. For the first quarter ended May 28, same-store sales, or sales in stores open at least one year, fell 0.3% from a year earlier. First-quarter pharmacy same-store sales fell 1.2% and "front-end" same store decreased 1.4%. Total drugstore sales for the quarter fell 0.6% to $4.2 billion from $4.23 billion. Shares of Rite Aid closed Monday at $4.07.

[UpInArms]

25. Treasury prices rise after Greenspan remarks

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.3722766319-836362990&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Treasury prices were higher early Tuesday, pressing down yields, after Federal Reserve chief Alan Greenspan failed to refute a theory that the current cycle of rate tightenings could be nearing an end. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note slid to 3.923% from 3.96% late Monday. Overnight in a satellite appearance at a Beijing monetary conference, Greenspan largely stayed away from a debate sparked by other Fed officials last week that the Fed could be near the end of a rate hikes cylce, according to Michael Wallace, an economist with Action Economics. The Fed chief also said he does not foresee a change soon for yields, which are currently near 14-month lows.

[UpInArms]

29. GOP future in Utah has been secured

9:14am 06/07/05 DIEBOLD GETS UTAH VOTING-SYSTEM PACT

9:15am 06/07/05 DIEBOLD SEES AT LEAST $20M REVS IN 2 YEARS ON UTAH PACT

[UpInArms]

44. Diebold gets Utah voting-system pact; est over $20M rev

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.4111714699-836365728&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Diebold Inc., (DBD) the North Canton, Ohio, provider of integrated self-service delivery systems and services, said a unit received a contract from Utah to provide a voting system utilizing touch-screen technology. "Utah counties are expected to purchase in excess of $20 million in equipment and services over the next two years," the company said in a statement. Diebold shares are trading up 1.7% at $50.45.

[UpInArms]

30. pre-opening blather

briefing.com

9:15AM: S&P futures vs fair value: +3.5. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +3.5.

9:00AM: S&P futures vs fair value: +3.4. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +3.5. Futures trade still hovering above fair value, setting the stage for the cash market to open on an upbeat note... Companies in focus this morning following some notable ratings changes include upgrades on ATI, BBY, WM and WFT while AFL, BMC, CMS, NVDA and PRU have been downgraded

8:30AM: S&P futures vs fair value: +3.4. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +4.0. Still shaping up to be higher open for the indices as futures indications hold steady above fair value... Falling oil prices ($54.12/bbl -$0.37), better than expected Q1 earnings from Albertson's (ABS), reaffirmed Q4 and FY05 guidance from Procter & Gamble (PG) and optimism ahead of Texas Instruments' (TXN) mid-quarter update (16:00 ET) have also underpinned a positive sentiment that could carry over yesterday's modest gains...

While there are no notable economic data scheduled for this morning, General Motors' (GM) annual meeting begins at the top of the hour

8:00AM: S&P futures vs fair value: +3.1. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +3.5. Futures market versus fair value suggesting a higher open for the cash market as lower bond yields provide a floor of early buying support for stocks following comments from Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan... Yields on the 10-year note (+11/32) have fallen to 3.90% after Greenspan said he expects long-term rates to stay low and that the flattening spread between long-term and short-term rates does not necessarily indicate a slowing economy

ino.com

The June NASDAQ 100 index closed lower on Monday and below the 10-day moving average crossing at 1550.85 confirming last Friday's key reversal down. June is consolidating below the 62% retracement level of this year's decline crossing near 1554.62 and the mid-range close sets the stage for a steady opening on Tuesday. Stochastics and the RSI are overbought and are turning bearish signaling that a short-term top is in or is near. Multiple closes below the 10-day moving average crossing at 1550.85 would signal that a short-term top has been posted. If June extends the rally off April's low, the 75% retracement level of this year's decline crossing near 1588.27 is the next upside target.

The June S&P 500 index closed slightly higher on Monday due to short covering as it consolidates above the 10-day moving average crossing at 1197.65 and the 62% retracement level of this spring's decline crossing at 1196.55. The high- range close sets the stage for a steady to higher opening on Tuesday, as additional short covering gains are possible. However, stochastics and the RSI are overbought and are turning neutral to bearish hinting that a short-term top might be in or is near. Closes below the 10-day moving average crossing at 1197.65 would signal that a top has been posted. If June extends this spring's rally, the 75% retracement level of the March-April decline crossing at 1209.52 is the next upside target.

The Dow closed lower on Monday as it extends last Friday's breakout below the 10-day moving average crossing at 10,513. The high-range close sets the stage for a steady to higher opening on Tuesday. Stochastics and the RSI are overbought and are turning neutral to bearish hinting that a short-term top might be in or is near. Closes below the 20-day moving average crossing at 10,423 are needed to confirm that a short-term top has been posted. If the Dow renews this spring's rally, the 62% retracement level of the March-April decline crossing at 10,610 is the next upside target.

[UpInArms]

32. General Motors to Cut 25,000 Jobs

http://www.marketwatch.com/tools/quotes/newsarticle.asp?siteid=mktw&sid=2160&guid=%7BE84230C3%2D7474%2D4558%2D97F4%2D5B462830727F%7D&symb=

WILMINGTON, Del., Jun 07, 2005 (AP Online via COMTEX) -- Addressing shareholders at the company's annual meeting on Tuesday, General Motors Corp. Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoneer said it expects to close additional assembly and component plants over the next few years, and reduce the company's manufacturing employment levels in the U.S. by 25,000 or more people between 2005 and 2008.

Wagoneer said the company expects these capacity and employment actions will generate annual savings of about $2.5 billion.

...very short news release...

9:25am 06/07/05 GM TO CUT 25,000 U.S. JOBS BY 2008

9:25am 06/07/05 GM JOB CUTS TO GENERATE $2.5B IN YEARLY SAVINGS

9:25am 06/07/05 GM CLOSURES INCLUDE COMPONENTS AND ASSEMBLY PLANTS

(edited to add line information)

[UpInArms]

34. GM stock rises 1.6% on job cuts

9:31am 06/07/05 GENERAL MOTORS UP 1.6% AT $30.90

:banghead:

:argh:

:nuke:

Throw those freakin' Hummers in the junk!

[UpInArms]

54. General Motors leads advance in Big Three shares

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.4274743287-836366613&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- General Motors (GM) shares gained 2% to $31.05 in early trading Tuesday, after the company announced sweeping cost-cutting plans including 25,000 job cuts by 2008. Top U.S rival Ford Motor (F) added 1% to $10.06 and German-American carmaker DaimlerChrysler (DCX) rose nominally to $40.57. Japanese manufacturers traded mixed with Honda Motor (HMC) losing 1.1% to $24.73.

[UpInArms]

76. more info - must read

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=marketsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T154800Z_01_N07424837_RTRIDST_0_AUTOS-GM-UPDATE-3.XML

excerpt:

"The cost of a GM worker in China is about 10 percent the cost of a U.S. worker ... You just really can't compete with some of these foreign producers," Bee said.

GM, the world's largest automaker, lost $1.1 billion in the first quarter and is riding out its worst financial crisis in more than a decade. It has been closing and idling plants over the past four years and will have cut its annual North American assembly capacity from six million vehicles in 2002 to five million by the end of this year.

<snip>

Wagoner said GM had been in intense discussions with the United Auto Workers union about ways to reduce the company's massive health-care costs. He said it was not certain whether an agreement would be reached.

<snip>

Wagoner said, "Our $1,500 per (vehicle) health-care expense represents a significant disadvantage versus our foreign-based competitors. Left unaddressed, this will make a big difference in our ability to compete in investment, technology, and other key contributors to our future success."

...more...

Maybe they should start looking at why healthcare costs are soaring - have they been using AIG or other lying scalpers to underwrite the cost?

:banghead:

[UpInArms]

85. Analyst: GM must deliver more desirable cars and trucks

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.528103044-836373334&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=symb&value=&categories=&

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- KeyBanc Capital Markets analyst Brett Hoselton said Tuesday he believes General Motors' move to cut 25,000 jobs by 2008 must be accompanied by a product lineup that lures customers back to dealer showrooms. "GM can't simply come out with the same vehicle quality, the same vehicle design as, say for example, the Japanese," he said. "There has to be some compelling reason to draw customers away from the Japanese brands." Crucial for GM is the new lineup of GMT900 full-size trucks and sports utility vehicles slated for launch later this year, Hoselton said. In midday trading, shares of GM (GM) were up 1.7% at $30.93.

[UpInArms]

86. Analyst: GM's woes not temporary or cyclical

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.5144196759-836372475&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=symb&value=&categories=&

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Burnham Securities analyst David Healy said Tuesday that General Motors' move to cut 25,000 jobs by 2008 is a step in the right direction but more needs to be done. "General Motors North America has become structurally unprofitable," he said. "It's not temporary. It's not cyclical." He said GM's U.S. business has deteriorated to such a degree that "drastic action is required." GM needs to "cut its overhead massively" and also launch a series of new models that will attract the car-buying public -- a "tall order", according to Healy. At last check, shares of GM (GM) gained 1.7% to $30.94.

[UpInArms]

33. 9:33 EST numbers - sales down - jobs cut - market applauds!

Dow 10,488.76 +21.73 (+0.21%)
Nasdaq 2,079.60 +3.84 (+0.18%)
S&P 500 1,199.87 +2.36 (+0.20%)
10-Yr Bond 3.906 -0.56 (-1.41%)

NYSE Volume 38,463,000
Nasdaq Volume 55,666,000

[UpInArms]

35. Wall Street opens in the green

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.400804375-836365114&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=symb&value=&categories=&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks opened solidly higher Tuesday morning as investors found encouragement from comments by Federal Reserve chief Alan Greenspan. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) was up 26 points, or 0.3%, to 10,494 in the opening minutes of trade while the Nasdaq Composite Index ($COMPQ) lifted 4 points, or 0.2%, to 2,079 and the S&P 500 ($SPX) added 3 points, or 0.2%, to 1,200. Speaking at an American Bankers Association conference in Beijing, Greenspan said the decline of long-term interest rates over the past year despite the Fed's steady tightening cycle remains a conundrum. Peter Cardillo, chief market analyst and strategist at S.W. Bach, interpreted the remarks as meaning the Fed believes the economy is solid.

"the economy is solid"???????

I want some of what they're smoking!

[UpInArms]

39. 9:54 EST numbers and blather (YEEHAW!)

Dow 10,524.01 +56.98 (+0.54%)
Nasdaq 2,083.99 +8.23 (+0.40%)
S&P 500 1,203.49 +5.98 (+0.50%)
10-Yr Bond 3.908 -0.54 (-1.36%)

NYSE Volume 176,821,000
Nasdaq Volume 195,974,000

9:40AM: Decent follow-through buying interest seen in stocks, as the market opens higher following upbeat comments from Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan... Remarks from Greenspan suggesting that a flattening yield curve is not a sign of imminent disaster for the economy has sparked a rally in the Treasury market, knocking yields on the 10-year note (+13/32) to 3.89%... And since bonds simply do not provide as attractive an alternative to stocks when yields are low, the major indices have all inched higher in early trading...

[UpInArms]

40. not a sign of imminent disaster??????

not a sign of imminent disaster

:wtf:

[cthrumatrix]

42. yes....it's a delayed disaster (they need to get their $$$$ out first)

[UpInArms]

43. Inverted yield curve spells danger to economy

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B61D996A6%2D75FF%2D4529%2DABAB%2DE79814C7DC30%7D&siteid=mktw

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. (MarketWatch) -- It doesn't matter why long-term interest rates have gone down while the Federal Reserve's been boosting short-term rates. What's more important is what this "conundrum" means for the economic and financial outlook.

There are a number of theories behind the failure of long rates to follow short rates higher since the Fed began tightening almost a year ago. See my column of May 24. Fed chief Alan Greenspan dismissed four of them in his speech to an American Bankers Association conference in Beijing Tuesday. See full story.

<snip>

However, the spread between short-term and long-term rates has narrowed considerably over the past year, as long-term rates have fallen while the Fed has tripled short rates. This worries followers of the yield curve.

When the yield curve flattens, it tends to discourage banks from lending. And when the yield curve inverts - that is, when short-term rates go above long-term rates - bank lending virtually shuts down, causing the money supply to shrink, thus crimping economic activity.

Indeed, every time the yield curve has inverted in the past, regardless of whether the absolute level of interest rates was high or low, the economy has fallen into a recession.

...more...

[54anickel]

48. Well, the Fed does want to cool down the banks lending - I suppose

Greenspin's jaw-boning on flattening curves, could be an attempt to slow down the lending, while at the same time he's trying to alleviate any anxiety about the dreaded inverted yields.

Face it, all they've got left in that Fed bag o' tricks is hot air.

[54anickel]

41. Doubts Rising About a Venture to Import Chinese Cars

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/07/automobiles/07auto.html?

snip>

Two top executives said in interviews on Monday that they had recently left Visionary, a privately held company based in New York, after only short stays. After just three months on the job, Pierre Gagnon, the president and chief operating officer and the No. 2 executive at Visionary, said Monday that he had resigned that day. But he added that he had had a falling out six weeks ago with the head of Visionary, Malcolm Bricklin.

Mr. Bricklin is the brash businessman - often likened to an automotive version of P. T. Barnum - who first brought the Yugo and Subaru brands to the United States.

"Malcolm reneged on several agreements that affect my trust and willingness to be part of his organization," said Mr. Gagnon, formerly the top North American executive of Mitsubishi. "I still have high hopes for what it might be possible for Visionary Vehicles to achieve and wish him the best."

snip>

The second executive to leave was Andrew Stewart, who worked with Mr. Gagnon at Saturn and Mitsubishi and was the vice president of franchise development at Visionary. He said he left at the end of April and returned to Mitsubishi.

"I left one month after I started," Mr. Stewart said. "It became very, very clear, as much as I believe in what he's trying to do, it became clear he's not able to fulfill the promises necessary to create a viable company.

"The man doesn't have any money that I could see," he added. "He doesn't pay his employees on a regular basis, he doesn't reimburse expenses very well."

more...

[ozymandius]

46. I am looking at a 10am bounce.

Dow 10,531.10 +64.07 (+0.61%)
Nasdaq 2,086.06 +10.30 (+0.50%)
S&P 500 1,204.31 +6.80 (+0.57%)
10-Yr Bond 39.04 -0.58 (-1.46%)

NYSE Volume 257,330,000
Nasdaq Volume 280,428,000

10:00AM: Equities continue to climb in early trading, as all ten economic sectors trade in positive territory... Pacing the way higher has been the Materials sector while Energy, despite falling oil prices, has also benefited from continued weakness in the dollar... Interest-rate sensitive areas like Financial, Utilities, REITs and Homebuilding have also traded higher while strength in Drug and HMOs has helped Health Care post a strong gain... Technology has been strong across the board while Industrials and Consumer Discretionary have also been influential leaders to the upside... NYSE Adv/Dec 1758/738, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1518/818

Also note how few shares have been traded.

[UpInArms]

49. 10:15 EST - here's your "bounce"

Dow 10,551.58 +84.55 (+0.81%)
Nasdaq 2,091.98 +16.22 (+0.78%)
S&P 500 1,207.07 +9.56 (+0.80%)
10-Yr Bond 3.899 -0.63 (-1.59%)

NYSE Volume 312,306,000
Nasdaq Volume 341,889,000

[ozymandius]

51. Boy - that's some bounce.

Given that there's no major news today. No news means that everything's great. Don't you just love these markets? They're like bulls: you have to wallop them in the head with a steel girder to get their attention.

10:17
Dow 10,555.12 +88.09 (+0.84%)
Nasdaq 2,092.63 +16.87 (+0.81%)
S&P 500 1,207.20 +9.69 (+0.81%)
10-Yr Bond 38.99 -0.63 (-1.59%)
NYSE Volume 329,917,000
Nasdaq Volume 359,195,000

[UpInArms]

56. 10:31 EST numbers - still bouncing - 100+

Dow 10,569.89 +102.86 (+0.98%)
Nasdaq 2,094.83 +19.07 (+0.92%)
S&P 500 1,208.48 +10.97 (+0.92%)
10-Yr Bond 3.911 -0.51 (-1.29%)

NYSE Volume 411,499,000
Nasdaq Volume 445,249,000

[UpInArms]

57. 10:30 blather - chocolate rations increase

10:30AM: Bullish tone persists in stocks as the indices extend their reach to the upside following upbeat news from GM... General Motors (GM 31.00 +0.58), at its annual shareholder meeting, has said it will cut 25,000 manufacturing jobs and close assembly plants - an initiative expected to save the auto maker roughly $2.5 bln annually... GM, the best performing Dow component this morning, still trades about 36% below its 52-week high...NYSE Adv/Dec 2095/710, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1852/727

[54anickel]

50. U.S. refineries straining

Nation becomes more dependent on foreign gasoline

http://www.freep.com/money/business/refineries7e_20050607.htm

WASHINGTON -- America's unquenched thirst for gasoline is stretching the nation's refineries to their limits.

Even so, no refineries are likely to be built soon, and that helps ensure that gas prices will stay high as America becomes increasingly dependent on foreign-made gasoline.

High investment costs and low profits have discouraged the building of any U.S. refineries since 1976. Absent new refineries, rising demand for gas will outpace American refiners' ability to make it.

U.S. and global demand for gasoline is at an all-time high. American refineries are running at more than 90% capacity and at up to 96% in peak times. That's close to full throttle.

The soaring demand is highly profitable for refiners, who are squeezing out every gallon of gas they can. But their strain to meet the demand is one reason you're paying so much at the pump.

more...

[54anickel]

53. Alaska Oil Field's Falling Production Reflects U.S. Trend

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/06/AR2005060601742.html

PRUDHOE BAY, Alaska -- Oil keeps flowing through a maze of aging wells, pumps and pipelines that poke through the snow on this desolate North Slope tundra.

But this vast field is ailing: Output has fallen by nearly 75 percent from its peak in 1987 and is expected to continue dropping.

The Prudhoe Bay field sprawling over an area the size of Howard County still pumps more oil than any other site in the United States. But its shrinking production reflects a trend throughout the country: After years of pumping, fields in the U.S. are drawing less oil from the ground.

The implications for U.S. energy policy are profound. At a time when President Bush and members of Congress are talking about the need to be less dependent on foreign oil, the country is becoming even more dependent. As U.S. production declines, demand has been increasing.

While there are some bright spots in U.S. oil production, such as discoveries in the Gulf of Mexico, the overall outlook points steadily downward and is expected to continue that way for the foreseeable future -- the result of a natural process of decline.

more...

[UpInArms]

52. OCA Inc. falls on need to restate results, delay filing

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.4239816898-836366453&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Shares of OCA Inc. (OCA) tumbled after the provider of services to orthodontist and pediatric dentists said it materially overstated patient receivables during the first 3 quarters of 2004 due to accounting errors. The company it would have to restate results, and would have to further delay the filing of its 2004 annual report as a result. OCA said it has received a waiver from its creditors and a capital infusion from its chief executive. To deal with the accounting issues, the company has appointed a special committee to review entries in the general ledger and certain alleged changes made in data. The stock was last down $1.51, or 37%, at $2.52.

OCA delays filing; erred on receivables; settles suits

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38510.4206473148-836366309&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- OCA Inc., (OCA) the Metairie, La., provider of business services to orthodontists and pediatric dentists, said it would delay filing its Securities and Exchange Commission Forms 10-K for 2004 and 10-Q for first-quarter 2005. The company's banks extended the deadlines within the company's senior credit line for filing the documents, the company said. To provide capital and liquidity, Chief Executive Bart F. Palmisano Sr. has committed to lending the company $2 million in an unsecured loan, OCA said. The Company also said the amounts of patient receivables reported at March 31, June 30 and Sept. 30, 2004 "were overstated by material amounts." The Company also said the board appointed a panel to review certain journal entries recorded in the general ledger. Pending the review, the company placed Bartholomew F. Palmisano Jr., chief operating officer, on administrative leave. The Company also agreed to settle lawsuits and disputes pending between its subsidiary, OrthAlliance, Inc., and 60 affiliated practitioners who represent 54 affiliated practices. The settlement will result in a non-cash loss-on-sale of assets estimated at $6.1 million, net of income tax benefit, for fourth-quarter 2004, OCA said. OCA shares are trading down 38% at $2.50.

[UpInArms]

60. check out the "Weak US Economy" banner ad

[UpInArms]

66. Treasury Spokesman farts out his mouth

US on right path to cut deficit-Treasury's Quarles

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T145112Z_01_WBT003301_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-DEFICIT-URGENT.XML

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - The United States is on the correct path to cut the deficit and is being responsible by narrowing the gap without necessarily closing it immediately, a top Treasury Department official said on Tuesday.

"We need to establish a credible path for shrinking the deficit, not to close it immediately," U.S. Treasury Undersecretary for International Affairs Randal Quarles told a Senate Banking panel.

"I think the path we're on is the responsible one."



:rofl:

[UpInArms]

70. Corrupt Pentagon Practices with Boeing

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=governmentFilingsNews&storyID=URI:urn:newsml:reuters.com:20050607:MTFH23352_2005-06-07_14-10-28_WBT003296:1

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - Senior Pentagon and Air Force officials failed to adhere to standard procedures in a doomed $20 billion-plus effort to acquire Boeing Co. (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) 767s as refueling aircraft, the Defense Department's chief inspector said in a report released Tuesday.

Inspector General Joseph Schmitz faulted, among others, the Pentagon's last two chief arms buyers, Edward Aldridge and his successor, Michael Wynne, who stepped down last week.

"These officials did not comply with federal procurement rules; instead they focused on supporting a legislative decision to allow leasing tanker aircraft from Boeing rather than developing objective acquistion information that would have questioned, as a matter of procedure, whether such a decision was appropriate for the situation," the report said.

...very short blurb...

I wonder how many military contracts have failed to follow the rules and regulations.

[UpInArms]

101. ALERT: U.S. arms buyers faulted for Boeing tanker push (Andrew Card involv

ed in negotiations

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=governmentFilingsNews&storyID=URI:urn:newsml:reuters.com:20050607:MTFH28934_2005-06-07_18-28-32_N07426671:1

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - Senior U.S. weapons buyers and Air Force officials bypassed normal procedures in an "inappropriate" rush to acquire $23.5 billion of Boeing Co. (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) aircraft as refueling planes, the Defense Department's chief inspector said in a report released on Tuesday.

Congress killed the deal last year after Darleen Druyun, the Air Force's ex-No. 2 weapons purchaser, pleaded guilty to negotiating a $250,000-a-year job at Boeing while still overseeing billions worth of the company's Air Force contracts.

The Pentagon and Air Force had sought to pin all blame for the doomed deal on Druyun, now serving a nine-month federal prison term. She has admitted to inflating proposed payments to Boeing as a "parting gift" before joining the Chicago-based aerospace company.

The report named the Pentagon's former top weapons buyer, Edward Aldridge, former Air Force Secretary James Roche and his chief weapons buyer, Marvin Sambur, along with Druyun, as the "primary decision makers" in the Pentagon and Air Force who let a flawed plan to lease and then buy the planes move forward.

<snip>

Andrew Card, President Bush's chief of staff, had served "simply as an honest broker to make sure that all views were represented," McClellan said at a news briefing.

...more...

WTF???? What was Andrew Card, Bush's Chief of Staff doing in an arms negotiation deal??????

[UpInArms]

107. Reuters "edited" Card out of the article -

here's one that puts him back in:

http://www.military.com/NewContent/0,13190,Galloway_033104,00.html

excerpt:

Boeing and the Air Force also lobbied for the deal, and President Bush designated his chief of staff, Andrew Card, as the point man on the issue.

The Office of Management and Budget and other independent agencies criticized the tanker deal as too expensive and unneeded.

Card intervened and ordered them to move ahead with the Boeing deal.

White House spokesman Claire Buchan said Card sought to mediate the contract dispute without taking sides.

...more...

Also, this one puts Idiotson right in the middle of this nefarious deal.

:argh:

[UpInArms]

71. Fidelity exec urges permanent tax cuts

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B8C36C25A%2D0B51%2D4FF4%2DB3F2%2DFCCF2447D59E%7D&siteid=mktw

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Congress should make cuts in dividend and capital gains taxes permanent as a way to bolster Americans' retirement security, a top executive from Fidelity Investments said Tuesday.

Too many Americans are "woefully unprepared" for retirement as men and women live longer, pay off credit card debt, save for their children's college educations and purchase homes, said Ellyn McColgan, president of Fidelity Brokerage Company.

In addition to tax relief, lawmakers should lift caps on employer retirement plan contributions and encourage employers to offer automatic enrollment options, McColgan said.

Strengthening retirement savings "has to be a national priority," she said, also urging Congress to offer incentives for retirement health care savings.

<snip>

The new "Fidelity Retirement Index" showed that the typical working American household has saved $18,750 for retirement, and is expecting to cover the majority of retirement expenses through Social Security and pension benefits.

...more...

Under the *Co plan, there will be no Social Security or pensions.

[ozymandius]

75. meaning (?)

the $12million in Enron stock Thomas White cashed in just before the company's implosion would have been tax-free? Will corporate malfeasance be rewarded through similar situations?

By saying this does McColgan expect retirees to refinance their mortgages while extracting equity to support themselves during the retirement years?

Does McColgan believe that Americans will reap the benefits of ever-rising property values in the tax-free sale of their homes, thus extracting capital gains?

[UpInArms]

94. Social Security, pension still mainstay: Fidelity index

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BEE1A4C6B%2D03C5%2D43AB%2DA83A%2D40BE8F716889%7D&siteid=mktw

BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- The typical working American household has saved just $18,750 for retirement, and expects to cover the majority of retirement expenses with Social Security and pension benefits, according to an index Fidelity Investments introduced Tuesday.

Fidelity, the biggest U.S. mutual-fund company, said its Fidelity Retirement Index also showed that the typical working American household -- whose primary decision makers are age 43, on average -- is on track to replace an estimated 59% of his or her projected income when they retire.

Boston-based Fidelity recommends replacing 85% or more of so-called preretirement income. But the index revealed that just 15% of typical American households are on track to achieve that goal.

"What this means, in effect, is that many Americans will take a significant pay cut in their retirement years, making it difficult for them to adequately prepare financially for rising medical costs and longer anticipated life spans," Jeffrey Carney, president of Fidelity Personal Investments, said in a statement.

The index showed that younger working American households -- those whose primary decision makers are ages 25 to 40 -- are typically on pace to replace an estimated 55% of projected preretirement income when they retire. That compares with 63% for households with midlife decision makers ages 41 to 54, and 62% for preretiree households with decision makers age 55 and older.

Overall, the index found that 16% of working Americans haven't started saving for retirement.

...more...

The GOP mantra of tax-cuts is not going to alleviate this problem.

[nolabels]

104. Citizens groups asking Congress to make Corporations null and void or else

Richard Sennett:
The Disorder of Anarchy as A Beautiful Pattern

Robert W. Lancaster

Often the best plan is to have no plan at all, or so the urban radical Richard Sennett tends to argue in his 1970's book The Uses of Disorder. The war in Viet Nam and the civil rights movements were the vanguard of social conscience by the adolescent in the 1960's. Sennett, in recognizing the disruptive control anarchy attained over the adolescent, didactically explains that the more we allow for orderly and planned interaction that serves to instill a strict definition of humanism within the realm of the community, while the very infrastructure of our social potpourri is then segregated and the individual is propelled to a higher level individualism without the need of the community. Affluence is the creature that forces the adult society to seek comfort in the form of rigid and planned interaction, and it is only through the new eyes of the adolescent that we can see affluence for the social wedge that it is, and the thread to repair society that it could be.

The counter-culture of the 1960's had a revolutionary effect on Sennett who would conclude that the chaos of true social disorder would offer the course of least resistance as a means to return individuals back to viable areas of social interaction, where the immediate emancipation of a modern society of formerly adolescent individuals would depend upon attaining "the freedom to accept and to live in disorder represents the goal which this generation has aimed for, vaguely and inchoately, in its search for 'community.'" (Sennett, p.xviii) Sennett, an opponent to the rigid structuring and order that the 'planned' city offers society, is a proponent of a high level of disorder that a society slovenly awashed in a high level of anarchy. Planned order is argued as the negative force creates the one dimensionality of the Marcusian 'I' and is behind the current selfishness of the individual in society. The 'We' of the whole, that constitutes the positive force that recreates communities, is lost to a comfortable and complacent society of individuals. Sennett thus challenges the individual to seek out the "'otherness' of the people around them," to regain the 'we' lost through actual community participation, taken by "the repression of deviants" that concocted the 'them' in society; silently expunging the 'I' from society and casting them out those "communities whose people fee related to each other by virtue of their sameness...." (Sennett, p.38; p.44) But why search for a community of otherness when we have a society where the individual appears to have so much?

Anarchy, revolution against a legitimate government, is not an option; or at least that is what we are told 'by the powers that be.' However, as early as the 1920's, the pragmatist John Dewey who, when asked how democracy could be pursued without institutional change, would logically point out that in the 18th century, "The American revolution was a rebellion against an established government" and everyone seemed to logically agree with that outcome. (Dewey, p.87) But those revolutionary Colonials were a hungry bunch, rich in interaction but poor in the affluence that material abundance allowed. High levels of affluence in our contemporary society have brought so many individual comforts to so many, until the individualistic society is no longer hungry. The adolescent craves this hunger of interaction. Yet, this hunger is suppressed by the conventions of an adult individualistic society, forcing the adolescent to become first insulated, then complacent, to the needs of the growing community that surrounds. It is then that the metamorphosis is complete
(snip)
http://www.uky.edu/Classes/PS/776/Projects/Sennett/sennett.htm

[UpInArms]

72. 11:47 EST numbers and blather ("Fed's permission to rally"?)

Dow 10,561.54 +94.51 (+0.90%)
Nasdaq 2,090.55 +14.79 (+0.71%)
S&P 500 1,207.24 +9.73 (+0.81%)
10-Yr Bond 3.933 -0.29 (-0.73%)

NYSE Volume 745,474,000
Nasdaq Volume 781,413,000

11:30AM: Market continues to show resilience near key technical levels even as bonds slip to session lows... While the Treasury market has taken advantage of the Fed's permission to rally, spiking on Greenspan's belief that rates are not subject to change anytime soon, modest profit-taking in the 10-year note (+4/32) now has yields (3.93%) a bit closer to where they finished last night... NYSE Adv/Dec 2296/727, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1865/897

11:00AM: Stocks continue to hold their own and sport noticeable gains as buying remains widespread across most areas... One such area gaining momentum has been the Materials sector, assisted by a 7.4% surge in shares of Monsanto (MON 63.12 +4.32), which has issued upside Q3 EPS guidance of $1.05 per share(consensus $0.93) citing strong sales of biotech traits in the U.S... Minimizing even larger gains in the sector, however, has been weakness in several steel and gold stocks, after Goldman Sachs downgraded both industries to Neutral from Attractive...NYSE Adv/Dec 2260/688, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1861/833

Maybe it's more than just "permission" :eyes:

[UpInArms]

79. 12:15 EST numbers and noon blather

Dow 10,570.71 +103.68 (+0.99%)
Nasdaq 2,091.30 +15.54 (+0.75%)
S&P 500 1,207.92 +10.41 (+0.87%)
10-Yr Bond 3.911 -0.51 (-1.29%)

NYSE Volume 846,955,000
Nasdaq Volume 881,302,000

12:00PM: Major averages holding steady near session highs midday as Greenspan's upbeat comments about the economy provide a floor of buying support for stocks across the board... Last night, Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan said to a monetary conference in China that long-term yields may remain at current low levels and that investors should not automatically assume that a flattening yield curve would mean what it has meant in the past - a signal of economic weakness...

The news, which sparked an early rally in Treasurys and knocked yields on the benchmark 10-year note to around 3.89%, has underpinned a bullish bias in stocks that has left all ten economic sectors trading noticeably higher... News that General Motors (GM 30.98 +0.56) - the best performing Dow component - might save as much as $2.5 bln annually by cutting 25,000 jobs and closing assembly plants has also given the market an additional boost of confidence...

Meanwhile, the Materials sector has paced the way higher, as a large gain in shares of Monsanto (MON 62.46 +3.66) - after issuing upside Q3 EPS guidance - has helped offset modest losses steel and gold, after Goldman Sachs downgraded both industries to Neutral from Attractive... Despite falling crude oil prices ($54.10/bbl -$0.39) ahead of tomorrow's inventories report, Energy has been strong, also getting a boost from a weaker dollar as well as reports that CNOOC is still considering a bid for Unocal (UCL 58.40 +0.91)... Interest-rate sensitive areas like Financial and Utilities have posted solid gains as benchmark yields remain near 14-month lows...

[ozymandius]

81. Ha! reaching for the same shiny coin again I see.

[UpInArms]

89. Hi Ozy!

she said as she rubbed her forehead :D

[UpInArms]

77. US job openings rose, hirings fell in April

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=economicNews&storyID=2005-06-07T151330Z_01_N07425329_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-JOBS-OPENINGS.XML

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - The number of U.S. job openings rose in April but fewer positions were filled, the Labor Department said on Tuesday.

The department said 3.664 million jobs opened in April, up 1.8 percent from 3.598 million in March. Payrolls grew in the trade/transportation/utilities, professional/business services and government sectors but fell in construction, manufacturing, and leisure/hospitality.

Total hirings fell 6.9 percent to 4.507 million from 4.841 million in March. Declines occurred in manufacturing, trade/transportation/utilities, professional/business services, leisure/hosptality and government. But more positions were filled in the construction and education/health services sectors.

Total April separations, which include voluntary resignations, layoffs, firings and retirements, rose 1.9 percent to 4.588 million from 4.502 million in March, with the vacancies occurring in construction, manufacturing and trade/transportation/utilities.

The monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey is more dated than other gauges of the job market, but it has improved as a measure since the U.S. Labor Department began adjusting the numbers for seasonal variations in its February 2004 data.

...more...

It's better now that the numbers are cooked :rofl:

[ozymandius]

80. just whisting along

12:17
Dow 10,570.56 +103.53 (+0.99%)
Nasdaq 2,091.49 +15.73 (+0.76%)
S&P 500 1,207.93 +10.42 (+0.87%)
10-Yr Bond 3.912 -0.50 (-1.26%)
NYSE Volume 852,525,000
Nasdaq Volume 886,552,00

12:00PM: Major averages holding steady near session highs midday as Greenspan's upbeat comments about the economy provide a floor of buying support for stocks across the board... Last night, Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan said to a monetary conference in China that long-term yields may remain at current low levels and that investors should not automatically assume that a flattening yield curve would mean what it has meant in the past - a signal of economic weakness...

The news, which sparked an early rally in Treasurys and knocked yields on the benchmark 10-year note to around 3.89%, has underpinned a bullish bias in stocks that has left all ten economic sectors trading noticeably higher... News that General Motors (GM 30.98 +0.56) - the best performing Dow component - might save as much as $2.5 bln annually by cutting 25,000 jobs and closing assembly plants has also given the market an additional boost of confidence...

Meanwhile, the Materials sector has paced the way higher, as a large gain in shares of Monsanto (MON 62.46 +3.66) - after issuing upside Q3 EPS guidance - has helped offset modest losses steel and gold, after Goldman Sachs downgraded both industries to Neutral from Attractive... Despite falling crude oil prices ($54.10/bbl -$0.39) ahead of tomorrow's inventories report, Energy has been strong, also getting a boost from a weaker dollar as well as reports that CNOOC is still considering a bid for Unocal (UCL 58.40 +0.91)... Interest-rate sensitive areas like Financial and Utilities have posted solid gains as benchmark yields remain near 14-month lows...

[54anickel]

82. The New Macro of Globalization (Roach)

http://www.morganstanley.com/GEFdata/digests/20050606-mon.html#anchor0

snip>

All of these macro anomalies reflect the telltale footprints of a new and powerful strain of globalization. Three new mega-forces are now at work in reshaping the world: First is what I have called the “global labor arbitrage” -- the increased integration of offshore employment pools that fundamentally alters the worldwide mix of job creation and wage determination (see my 5 October 2003 essay, The Global Labor Arbitrage). For most of the modern-day era, job and wage competition has been confined to the manufacturing, or tradable goods, sector. Now, courtesy of the Internet, real-time connectivity with offshore pools of low-wage, highly skilled knowledge workers has pushed the arbitrage into once sacrosanct services, or nontradable, sectors. The hyper-speed of this IT-enabled transformation of global nontradables is unlike anything seen in the past. Five years ago, it was concentrated at the low end of the value chain in data processing and call centers. Today, it is also occurring at the high end of the value chain -- software programming, engineering, design, and professionals in the legal, actuarial, medical, accounting, financial services, and a broad array of consulting occupations. Such offshoring activity is still small in terms of the absolute numbers of workers involved -- especially when scaled against the size of the developed world’s work force. But it is now growing and spreading rapidly -- underscoring a powerful change at the margin that is rewriting the rules of employment and wage determination.

A second force at work is the “global price arbitrage.” Gone are the days when inflation is driven by trends in domestic cost structures. As Dick Berner recently noted, the old cost mark-up models are relics of a once closed US economy and, as such, are hopelessly out-of-date; at work is what Dick calls a new “market-pricing paradigm” -- in effect, a price-setting mechanism that reflects the balance between global supply and demand (see Dick’s 3 June 2005 dispatch, “Inflation Model Uncertainty”). Little wonder that the US inflation rate has continually surprised on the downside. Are price setters (or wage-setters) at the margin still in America? Or do they now reside in Guangzhou and Bangalore? Here, again, the Internet has played an important role in redefining long-standing macro relationships. IT-enabled cost- and price discovery has spread like wildfire in goods and services, alike -- adding an entirely new element to the global price arbitrage.

The “global saving arbitrage” is a third new macro force that is turning our old models inside out. It reflects a world that is near desperate in its efforts to keep funding the excess spending of the income-short American consumer. At today’s level of the US current account deficit, that desperation takes the form of capital inflows into the US of approximately $3 billion per business day. Nor is this coming from private portfolio investors who are dying to get a piece of the excess returns of America’s high-productivity economy. The bulk of these flows are now “policy buying” of foreign central banks -- especially Asian authorities, who feel compelled to maintain undervalued currencies in order to keep their externally-led economies growing. Fed Governor Ben Bernanke argues that America is doing the world a favor by consuming this saving glut (see Bernanke’s 14 April 2005 speech, “The Global Saving Glut and the US Current Account Deficit,” available on the Fed’s website). I would maintain, instead, that the non-US world is asking for serious trouble by suppressing domestic consumption and fueling the excesses of the over-extended American consumer. This saving transfer breaks the mold of earlier globalization models. A global saving arbitrage that finds the consumption excesses of the world’s economic leader being funded by poor countries such a China is the mirror image of trends that prevailed in the late 1800s and early 1900s -- when rich nations ran current account surpluses and transferred wealth to the world’s “settlement” economies (see my 18 April 2005 essay, Enough!).

snip>

Unfortunately, for this Brave New World there is nothing stable about this arrangement. There are stresses and strains everywhere in the system, and the perils of political intervention are mounting. Rapidly escalating trade tensions between the US and China are the most obvious case in point. Washington ignores the new macro framework at great peril -- failing to appreciate that America’s current-account and trade deficits are an unfortunate outgrowth of an unwillingness to save. China, for its part, paints itself into an equally difficult political corner by dubbing its currency issue a matter of national sovereignty. Meanwhile, as the Airbus dispute indicates, there is nothing tranquil about US-European trade relationships. And Europe is still reeling over its own intra-regional political shock, with the demise of the EU constitution very much an outgrowth of the same fears of job and income insecurity that are plaguing high-wage workers elsewhere in the developed world.

The biggest risk of all is that the new global macro could well give rise to a backlash against globalization. Mounting trade tensions are a very visible manifestation of how the body politic has lost confidence in the gospel of free trade and comparative advantage long espoused by most economists, including yours truly. Persistently subpar employment and real wage growth in the world’s most powerful economy fuel that confidence loss. In effect, workers have lost patience with the promises of classic free-trade economics, and opportunistic politicians have seized on that angst. Globalization has met its demise in the past -- and the circumstance of that backtracking took the world right to the brink of World War I. Yes, history rhymes, rather than repeats. But the downside of a backlash against globalization is something we can’t afford to take lightly. It would be the ultimate comeuppance for ever-blasé financial markets.

more...

[KoKo]

93. Backtracking on Globilization ..."took world to brink of WWI!"

The biggest risk of all is that the new global macro could well give rise to a backlash against globalization. Mounting trade tensions are a very visible manifestation of how the body politic has lost confidence in the gospel of free trade and comparative advantage long espoused by most economists, including yours truly. Persistently subpar employment and real wage growth in the world’s most powerful economy fuel that confidence loss. In effect, workers have lost patience with the promises of classic free-trade economics, and opportunistic politicians have seized on that angst. Globalization has met its demise in the past -- and the circumstance of that backtracking took the world right to the brink of World War I. Yes, history rhymes, rather than repeats. But the downside of a backlash against globalization is something we can’t afford to take lightly. It would be the ultimate comeuppance for ever-blasé financial markets.

[54anickel]

84. Financial Market Physics (Willie)

http://www.321gold.com/editorials/willie/willie060605.html

In the past few years, a remarkable parallel can be seen emerging between financial markets and the laws which govern physical motion. In the world of science, we call this field physics. In most high schools and colleges familiar to me, even the word "physics" generates among students off all types pure fear and trembling, if not confusion and consternation. Without mathematics, chemistry, french, PhysEd, and physics, this here guy would have had a grade point average pulled to a much lower level. Heck, I loved physics, at least until we got to nuclear particles and fission crapp. There simply are not many fields where laws are inviolate. If you do violate, your airplane crashes, your kite fails to remain aloft, your tree house gets wrecked, your space craft misses the window for orbit re-entry, your baseball does not reach the outer wall, you fall off the ledge when balance is lost, your thrown snowball misses your buddy John's back. People cannot override laws of physics, which is reassuring. We will eventually learn that Economic Laws cannot be violated for too prolonged a period of time either, engineering or not.

My favorite basic physics problem of all time pertained to a cannon. It fires a ball at an angle of X with respect to the ground. For a given fixed velocity, and ignoring friction, at what angle would the ball travel the farthest from the point of origin, where the cannon was located? At angle zero, the ball travels zero, as it hits the ground immediately. At a vertical angle (90 degrees), the ball travels zero after rising and falling at the original point. The same problem can be framed for tossing a ball by a person, or shooting a ball from a slingshot, or firing an artillery shell on a battlefield. In the world of baseball, a favorite pastime in the USA, the question relates to the best angle off the bat for the longest fly ball. In the real world we cannot ignore friction, as heavy humid summer air impedes the flight of the ball. In Colorado, the high altitude lighter air has led to historically high home run counts (fly balls hit over the outfield wall). Ground balls off the bat involve an angle closer to zero. Pop up fly balls off the bat involve an angle closer to 90 degrees. It turns out that the distance traveled by the ball is proportional to a certain trigonometric function of X. The function is "sin(2X)" for total distance traveled, for those with math curiosity after a raft of impressive computation. Bear in mind concern is for the optimal trajectory angle. The answer is 45 degrees to achieve maximum flight length, for a given initial velocity. This problem's solution in high school sent pleasurable shivers down my spine in pure unadulterated inspiration. Call me strange, but be sure to know that other things also caught my fancy, like prisms, gyroscopes, spinning tops, a wicked curve ball, moons of Jupiter seen through a telescope, jet takeoffs, the rhyme of a poem, the turn of a phrase, clever symbols in a novel, lightning, rainbows, tornadoes, solar eclipses, the shape of a tree leaf, the leaning of a sprout toward the sun, the effect of a magnifying glass on ants under the sun, the parallel nature of blood and chlorophyll, the color in flowers, a child's smile, a woman's profile form, and especially a young woman's returned gaze. In high school, we used to razz the mediocre students by writing on the blackboards "PHYSICS IS FUN."

The appearances and evidence of physics is everywhere in financial markets. This should not be surprising, given how we in the United States constantly employ financial engineering. The gearing is usually applied in secretive sinister fashion to undermine free markets and to quash certain groups which point out constitutional compromise. What seems to receive very little deeper attention are the physics concepts in this engineering. Sir Isaac Newton would shudder to observe how we pretend to have advanced a pretentious science. His work on gravity and planetary orbit is fascinating. Too bad Wall Street still believes the world revolves around the NYSE. Charles Darwin might also shudder to observe how we as a nation might be ripe for the natural selection process. The US Economy has relied far too heavily upon inflation and leverage and financial machinery. Argentina collapsed in reaction to inflation and foreign flight, Darwinism at work.

For now, let's review some physics parallels in honor of the difficult field. A counter point of view might be told at a later date on whether our usage of engineering principles in the world of finance represents progress at all, and whether it is part of a serious cancerous aberration. Whether the immutable laws of physics are obeyed by the financial markets remains to be seen. If they prevail, we are in for a rough and deservedly unpleasant ride, a fate sure to be Mother Economic Nature's revenge and payback.

more...

[UpInArms]

87. Crude oil expected to average $53 a barrel, DOE says

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?siteid=mktw&guid=%7B58D1EE72-44EA-459E-ADA4-749981234B2B%7D&

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The price of crude oil will average about $53 a barrel in the third quarter, up about $1 from last month's forecast, the Energy Department said Tuesday in its monthly short-term energy outlook. The department didn't change its forecast that retail gasoline would cost about $2.17 on average this summer. Looking ahead, the government said natural gas spot prices could touch $7.50 per thousand cubic feet by the end of the year. In 2005 and 2006, the government expects U.S. petroleum demand to rise 300,000 barrels a day, or about 1.5%, down from the 1.8% growth forecast a month ago.

Wasn't it just yesterday that they were predicting $40 bbl?

[cthrumatrix]

98. it's all spin anyway.... peak oil is a reality ..of course it will be

higher unless we stop using sooo much

[ozymandius]

91. 1:04 numbers et al

Dow 10,572.70 +105.67 (+1.01%)
Nasdaq 2,091.95 +16.19 (+0.78%)
S&P 500 1,208.00 +10.49 (+0.88%)
10-Yr Bond 39.12 -0.50 (-1.26%)

NYSE Volume 1,001,327,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,010,580,000

1:00PM: More of the same for stocks as a bullish bias remains firmly intact... Advancers on the NYSE hold an 11 to 4 advantage over decliners while advancing issues on the Nasdaq hold a 19 to 10 edge over declining issues... A roughly 3 to 1 ratio of up to down volume, however, reflects an even more positive tone to trading at both the Big Board and the Composite... Meanwhile, the Dow, S&P and Nasdaq continue to trade well above initial support levels, but the Nasdaq has run into some resistance around the 2100/2106 area... NYSE Adv/Dec 2284/877, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1906/1003

[UpInArms]

97. 2:15 EST numbers and blather (soma wearing off?)

Dow 10,517.06 +50.03 (+0.48%)
Nasdaq 2,074.80 -0.96 (-0.05%)
S&P 500 1,200.57 +3.06 (+0.26%)
10-Yr Bond 3.924 -0.38 (-0.96%)

NYSE Volume 1,244,351,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,273,681,000

2:00PM: Major indices pull back slightly, as some sellers return from the sidelines... Taking some steam out of Technology's strong performance has been a reversal in Computer Hardware (-0.2%)... The group has recently turned negative amid strong follow-through selling interest in Apple Computer (AAPL 36.82 -1.10) and a 6.2% drubbing in ATI Technologies (ATYT 12.83 -0.85), which has been downgraded after guiding Q3 and Q4 revenues below consensus estimates... NYSE Adv/Dec 2273/945, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1834/1115

1:30PM: Holding steady at sharply higher levels as blue chips continue to outpace their Nasdaq counterparts to the upside... On the Dow, Home Depot (HD 40.55 +0.70) now paces the way higher, extending gains spurred by the overturning of a $15 mln judgment by a New Mexico Appellate Court... General Motors (GM 30.90 +0.48) has been strong, amid upbeat details related to its ongoing turnaround effort, while 12 other components have surged more than 1.0% following Greenspan's upbeat comments about the economy...

McDonald's (MCD 30.10 -0.31), however, has been the only Dow component under pressure, extending early losses amid reports that the President of McDonald's Europe has quit... NYSE Adv/Dec 2299/888, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1907/1028

[ozymandius]

102. talk about pressure

2:40
Dow 10,533.69 +66.66 (+0.64%)
Nasdaq 2,077.69 +1.93 (+0.09%)
S&P 500 1,203.33 +5.82 (+0.49%)
10-Yr Bond 39.23 -0.39 (-0.98%)
NYSE Volume 1,359,178,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,409,123,000

2:30PM: Selling pressure intensifies, knocking the Nasdaq into negative territory and more than halving blue chip gains enjoyed an hour ago... Perhaps contributing to the quick reversal have been recent comments from Atlanta Fed President Guynn, who's remarks about being uncomfortable with speculation in some areas of the housing market have countered Greenspan's seeming complacency... NYSE Adv/Dec 2204/1022, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1614/1345

Did he really call Greenscam an incompetent asshole?

[UpInArms]

105. FauxSnews says to ask Bush about Greenspan successor Wed.

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T182556Z_01_N07447551_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-FED-BUSH.XML

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - Fox News will ask U.S. President George W. Bush about Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan's successor in an interview on Wednesday, the cable channel said on Tuesday.

It said it would also ask about Iraq and oil prices during the interview, which will air from 4 p.m.-5 p.m. EDT (2000-2100 GMT)

...very short blurb...

[AnneD]

95. Good Morining Marketeers

:donut: Oh Ozy that cartoon is the best, but it also has implications beyond Iraq esp in Wall Street. Happy hunting and watch out for the bears.

[ozymandius]

106. Hi AnneD.

Thanks for stopping by.

Ozy :hi:

[UpInArms]

103. Ford tests bond market with $1 bln JUNK BOND offering

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-06-07T174628Z_01_N07444691_RTRIDST_0_AUTOS-FORD-DEBT-UPDATE-1.XML


NEW YORK, June 7 (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co. (F.N: Quote, Profile, Research) on Tuesday plans to test investor appetite for its bonds for the first time since getting cut to junk status last month.

Ford Motor Credit Co. plans to sell $1 billion of three-year notes on Tuesday, dealers and a company spokeswoman said.

This is Ford's first unsecured debt offering since Standard & Poor's cut the No. 2 U.S. automaker to junk status in early May. The other two major ratings agencies still have investment-grade ratings on Ford.

"We're pleased to access the unsecured debt market with lessened volatility and improved spreads," said Christine Solie, Ford Motor Credit spokeswoman. "This is our first public offering ... since the downgrade."

Dan Zaldivar, senior analyst at RBC Dain Rauscher Inc. in Chicago, said Ford chose an opportunistic time to come back to the bond market and picked an instrument likely to attract strong demand.

...more...

Yeah, right - it's a "brave new world" :sheesh:

[Roland99]

109. What's Miliken doing these days?

[UpInArms]

111. prolly playing footsie with Charles Keating

and John McCain. :evilgrin:

[ozymandius]

115. Anybody wanna buy a bond to prop up my house?

[UpInArms]

116. LOL!

Would that be a $1.5 Billion non-secured bond?

:rofl:

[UpInArms]

112. U.S. consumer credit rose $1.3 billion in April ($7 Billion expected)

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=economicNews&storyID=2005-06-07T190611Z_01_WAT003194_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-FED-CREDIT-URGENT.XML

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - Consumers accelerated their borrowing by a less-than-expected $1.3 billion in April, as credit card borrowing declined for the second month in a row, a Federal Reserve report showed on Tuesday.

The Fed said total consumer credit outstanding climbed in April to a seasonally adjusted $2.131 trillion.

The increase followed a revised $6.9 billion increase in borrowing in March, up from the previously reported climb of $5.5 billion.

<snip>

Revolving credit, which includes credit and charge cards, fell by $426 million in April after a drop of $569 billion the previous month.

...more at link...

Consumers not spending???? Who would have thought it???

[Roland99]

114. Saving for Summer Vacations?

[ozymandius]

113. witching hour update

3:10
Dow 10,521.49 +54.46 (+0.52%)
Nasdaq 2,073.71 -2.05 (-0.10%)
S&P 500 1,201.81 +4.30 (+0.36%)
10-Yr Bond 39.22 -0.40 (-1.01%)
NYSE Volume 1,468,931,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,516,832,00

3:00PM: Indices rebounds nicely off recent lows, as the Nasdaq inches back above the flat line... Providing some leadership in Technology has been a modest recovery effort in chip stocks ahead of Texas Instruments' (TXN 27.91 +0.16) mid-quarter update after the bell... While TXN is a NYSE-listed stock, resilience in related Nasdaq-listed companies like Altera (ALTR 21.96 +0.12) and Linear Technology (LLTC 38.19 +0.06) has offered investors additional reassurance that TXN may narrow its Q2 sales forecast to the high end of its previous range of $3.0-3.24 bln... SOX +0.1, NYSE Adv/Dec 2151/1116, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1661/1322

[UpInArms]

117. 3:31 EST numbers (waking up to coyote-ugly?)

Will they chew off their hands?

Dow 10,497.48 +30.45 (+0.29%)
Nasdaq 2,069.66 -6.10 (-0.29%)
S&P 500 1,199.93 +2.42 (+0.20%)
10-Yr Bond 3.911 -0.51 (-1.29%)

NYSE Volume 1,563,531,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,601,134,000

Gotta run - will check back after the close :hi:

[ozymandius]

118. Bye UIA! I must run too. In the mean time...

3:36
Dow 10,503.76 +36.73 (+0.35%)
Nasdaq 2,069.70 -6.06 (-0.29%)
S&P 500 1,199.46 +1.95 (+0.16%)
10-Yr Bond 39.11 -0.51 (-1.29%)

NYSE Volume 1,605,229,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,644,911,00

[54anickel]

119. And the close - gee, that was a fun ride!

Dow 10,483.07 +16.04 (+0.15%)
Nasdaq 2,067.16 -8.60 (-0.41%)
S&P 500 1,197.26 -0.25 (-0.02%)
10-Yr Bond 39.11 -0.51 (-1.29%)
NYSE Volume 1,851,981,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,846,530,000

3:30PM: Range-bound trading persists going into the close, as investors digest today's only scheduled economic report... At the top of the hour, the Fed reported an April consumer credit figure of $1.3 bln, versus forecasts of $7.5 bln and an upward revision to March data - to $6.9 bln from $5.5 bln... However, since the data are released well after every other consumer spending indicator, the market has paid little attention to the report... NYSE Adv/Dec 2055/1198, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1605/1402

[RawMaterials]

120. Closing Blather

Close: The market closed in mixed fashion, as an early rally fueled by upbeat comments about the economy from Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan petered out into the close of trading... Last night, in prepared remarks sent via satellite to a monetary conference in China, Greenspan said that long-term yields may remain at current low levels, even as the Fed raises short- term rates...

Called a "conundrum" by Greenspan back on Feb. 16, investors weren't puzzled by the growing realization that a flattening yield curve would not mean what it has meant in the past - "a forward indicator for softening economic activity."... However, while such news sparked an early rally in Treasurys, knocking yields on the benchmark 10-year note down to around 3.89% and making stocks a more attractive alternative to bonds, late-day consolidation closed the indices well off their highs of the day as eight out of ten economic sectors struggled to close in positive territory...

Broad-based gains were more pronounced until around 2:00 ET, when a possible futures-related selling error in the Midcap 400, which had touched an all-time high intraday, coupled with diminishing leadership on the Nasdaq and a comment from Atlanta Fed President Guynn - "We've still not reached a neutral policy stance" - prompted afternoon profit-taking... With regard to sector strength and weakness, the Materials sector was the best performing sector, as a 5.0% surge in Monsanto (MON 61.73 +2.93), which issued upside Q3 EPS guidance, and strength in Paper helped offset modest weakness in the steel and gold industries, which were downgraded to Neutral from Attractive at Goldman Sachs... Health Care was the most influential leader to the upside, amid ongoing strength in HMOs and Drug...

Shares of UnitedHealth Group (UNH 51.71 +0.72) surged 1.4% amid reports that it will offer AARP-branded Medicare drug plan... Consumer Staples got a boost as Procter & Gamble (PG 55.41 +0.10) reaffirmed Q4 and FY05 guidance and helped minimize a 5.5% sell-off in shares of ConAgra (CAG 24.81 -1.08), which was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche after warning that Q4 earnings will disappoint due to weak profitability in the packaged meats operations... Consumer Discretionary also showed relative, benefiting from strength in Homebuilding, Retail, an upgrade on Best Buy (BBY 58.97 +1.49) and a 1.0% surge in GM shares...

General Motors (GM 30.98 +0.56) said it could save as much as $2.5 bln annually by cutting 25,000 jobs by the end of 2008 and closing assembly plants... The interest-rate sensitive Utilities also posted a respectable gain, as benchmark yields hovering near 14-month lows made dividend-paying stocks more attractive... But not even expectations that low interest rates may fuel demand for loans could help Financial, as a JP Morgan downgrade on AFLAC (AFL 41.80 -0.76), coupled with weakness in Brokerage and Banks, eventually took its toll on the influential sector...

Energy, however, paced the way lower as crude oil prices ($53.76 /bbl -$0.73) extended yesterday's losses ahead of tomorrow's inventories report... Of the 29 components in the S&P Energy Index, Unocal (UCL 58.07 +0.58) was the only oil stock that closed in positive territory, surging 1.1% amid reports that CNOOC may challenge Chevron's $16 bln offer for UCL... Technology was also weak, due in large part to a 1.1% sell-off in Semiconductor ahead of Texas Instruments' (TXN 27.32 -0.43) mid-quarter update...

Strong follow-through selling interest in Apple Computer (AAPL 36.54 -1.38) and a 5.0% drubbing in ATI Technologies (ATYT 13.00 -0.68), which has been downgraded after guiding Q3 and Q4 revenues below consensus estimates, also weighed on the sector... Separately, the Fed reported an April consumer credit figure of $1.3 bln, versus forecasts of $7.5 bln and an upward revised 6.9 bln in March; however, since indications on total consumer spending are already known well before this release, the market didn't react whatsoever to the report...DJTA -0.6, DJUA +0.3, DOT -0.7, Nasdaq 100 -0.9, Russell 2000 +0.1, SOX -1.1, XOI -0.6, NYSE Adv/Dec 1873/1391, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1437/1578