STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday December 6

[ozymandius]

Wednesday December 6, 2006

COUNTING THE DAYS
DAYS REMAINING IN THE * REGIME 775 LONG DAYS
DAYS SINCE DEMOCRACY DIED (12/12/00) 2170 DAYS
WHERE'S OSAMA BIN-LADEN? 1876 DAYS
DAYS SINCE ENRON COLLAPSE = 1837
Number of Enron Execs in handcuffs = 19
ENRON EXECS CONVICTED = 7
Enron execs conveniently deceased = 3
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
Oil - $27.69/bbl
Gold - $266.70/oz.

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON December 5, 2006

Dow... 12,331.60 +47.75 (+0.39%)
Nasdaq... 2,452.38 +3.99 (+0.16%)
S&P 500... 1,414.76 +5.64 (+0.40%)
Gold future... 647.90 -3.00 (-0.46%)
30-Year Bond 4.57% +0.02 (+0.44%)
10-Yr Bond... 4.44% +0.01 (+0.20%)






GOLD, EURO, YEN, Loonie and Silver


PIEHOLE ALERT

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

For information on protests and other actions Citizens For Legitimate Government

[ozymandius]

1. WrapUp by Ike Iossif

WEEKLY CHARTS

-lotsa charts-

SUMMARY

Currently, most of the indicators are pointing down while seasonality is highly positive. NASDAQ offers the best forecasting "picture" for the following week, and thus, we have chosen it as our "proxy" for what we ought to expect. The three most possible scenarios--and their probabilities as calculated by our system--are illustrated below.

-more charts-

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

[ozymandius]

2. Today's Report

10:30 AM Crude Inventories 12/01
Briefing Forecast NA
Market Expects NA
Prior -360K

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

[Ghost Dog]

30. Energy shares rise after U.S. supply data

http://biz.yahoo.com/cbsm/061206/136736bda03c4574a139028cd0b7ffad.html?.v=1

HOUSTON (MarketWatch) -- Energy shares climbed after U.S. supply data Wednesday revealed a drop in oil, gasoline and distillate inventories.

The Amex Oil Index was up 0.5% to 1,228.54 points as crude for January delivery rose 9 cents to $62.52 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The Amex Natural Gas Index rose 0.2% to 474.14 points as natural gas added 0.1% to $7.69 per million British thermal units. The Philadelphia Oil Service (Philadelphia:^OSX - News) added 0.3% to 210.77 points.

The Energy Department said crude supplies fell for a second week, down 1.1 million barrels to 339.7 million for the week ended Dec. 1. Motor gasoline supplies also fell 1.1 million barrels to 200 million. Distillate inventories stocks fell for a ninth-straight week, down 400,000 barrels to total 132.4 million barrels.

/..

[ozymandius]

3. Oil prices little changed

LONDON - Oil prices were little changed Wednesday ahead of the release of weekly U.S. petroleum inventory data, which is expected to show higher supplies.

But the possibility of more production cuts by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries kept a floor under prices, as recent comments from key members of the cartel suggest it will push for another cut when it meets Dec. 14 in Nigeria. OPEC says it is concerned about ballooning worldwide crude oil inventories.

Light, sweet crude for January delivery fell 10 cents to $62.33 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange by midday in Europe. The contract had fallen a penny Tuesday.

-cut-

Crude inventories are expected to reverse their recent decline, according to a Dow Jones Newswires survey of energy analysts. Six of the 10 analysts surveyed expect a build of 900,000 barrels to 2.3 million barrels, while four see a draw of 1 million barrels to 1.25 million barrels. The estimates averaged to a build of 560,000 barrels.

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

[ozymandius]

4. Oil field delays mean higher 2010 crude price: EIA

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government's top energy forecaster on Tuesday said it raised its estimate for world crude prices in 2010 by about 20 percent to near $60 a barrel due to delays bringing new oil fields on line.

African producers like Angola and Nigeria and Latin American states like Brazil will be slower than initially projected in ramping up production from new projects, putting a squeeze on world supply, said Guy Caruso, administrator of the Energy Information Administration.

"It's clearly going to take longer now to bring on the new supplies and to have an impact on price than we were thinking a year ago," Caruso told reporters.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061205/bs_nm/usa_energy_projection_price_dc_1

..smells fishy...

[ozymandius]

5. Stock futures point to weaker start

LONDON - U.S. stock market futures pointed to weaker start on Wednesday, with energy inventory data and Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news)'s management shake-up set to be market themes.

Dow Jones futures were recently down 4 points, S&P 500 futures slipped 0.9 of a point and Nasdaq futures eased off 3 points.

On Tuesday, the Dow industrials advanced 47 points, the Nasdaq Composite rose nearly 4 points and the S&P 500 ended 5.6 points higher. Data showed services sector growth and weaker-than-expected inflation.

With the key nonfarm payrolls report out on Friday, investors may take a look at ADP's own forecast for employment growth, though that hasn't always served as an accurate indicator of the U.S. government's numbers.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061206/ap_on_bi_st_ma_re/wall_street

[Ghost Dog]

6. Tokyo shares close higher on optimism about economy

http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2006/12/06/afx3231379.html

TOKYO (XFN-ASIA) - Share prices closed higher after the release of the index of leading economic indicators for October, which made investors more optimistic about the economy, dealers said.

The index of leading economic indicators jumped to 50.0 points in October from a revised 25.0 in September, matching market expectations, preliminary data from the Cabinet Office show. A reading above 50 points to economic expansion over the subsequent six months, while a figure below 50 suggests contraction.

The blue-chip Nikkei 225 Stock Average closed 105.52 points or 0.65 pct higher at 16,371.28, after touching a high of 16,401.31.

The broader TOPIX index of all first-section issues closed 16.28 points or 1.02 pct higher at 1,615.17, off a high of 1,618.00.

Gainers beat decliners 1,251 to 360, with 96 issues flat.

Volume fell to 1.66 bln shares from 1.84 bln shares yesterday.

/...

[Ghost Dog]

10. JGB futures slide further from nine-month highs

http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20061206:MTFH94285_2006-12-06_07-39-45_T149037&type=comktNews&rpc=44

TOKYO, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Japanese government bond futures slid further from nine-month highs on Wednesday after the second Bank of Japan board member in as many days suggested the central bank is ready to raise interest rates in the near term.

Short-term bonds took a hit, with the two-year yield pushing back towards a four-month high after BOJ board member Kiyohiko Nishimura said the central bank can decide to change monetary policy even if its views do not match those of the markets.

Nishimura's comments came a day after fellow board member Atsushi Mizuno said the BOJ could raise rates without waiting for all economic indicators to be strong.

Solid gains in domestic shares and a drop in U.S. Treasuries the previous session also put pressure on JGBs. The Nikkei average <.N225> climbed 0.65 percent to hit a one-month high.

"With Nishimura's remarks and other comments from the BOJ in the past, the possibility of a rate hike before year-end is looking higher," said Hiroyoshi Sandaya, a JGB strategist at Goldman Sachs.

Yen overnight index swaps <JPONI=TRDT> are pricing in as much as a 60 percent chance of rate rise at the Dec. 18-19 policy meeting, up from about 40 percent earlier this week.

/...

[Ghost Dog]

13. Dollar nears 4-mth low vs yen on rates outlook

http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20061206:MTFH93522_2006-12-06_06-58-57_T268430&type=comktNews&rpc=44

TOKYO, Dec 6 (Reuters) - The dollar slipped towards a four-month low against the yen and inched nearer a 20-month trough versus the euro on Wednesday on expectations that the U.S. currency's interest rate advantage is set to erode further.

...

Key also to the low-yielding yen's rise against the dollar was its rebound against other major currencies, after having fallen to eight-year lows against sterling last week and a succession of record troughs versus the euro.

If the yen were to rebound in sync against the likes of the euro and sterling, "that's when there could be a bit of a riot in the market," said Luke Waddington, head of forex trading at Royal Bank of Scotland in Tokyo.

By 0620 GMT, the dollar slipped around 0.2 percent to 114.60 yen <JPY=>, closing in on the four-month low of 114.43 yen struck on electronic trading platform EBS in the previous session. The euro fell to 152.75 yen <EURJPY=R>, well off a record high of 154.18 yen hit earlier in the week. Sterling slipped 0.3 percent to 225.95 yen <GBPJPY=R>, moving further away from the eight-year high struck around 229 yen on Friday.

/...

[Ghost Dog]

20. Hong Kong dollar rises on fund inflows

http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20061206:MTFH91799_2006-12-06_04-48-29_HKG237680&type=comktNews&rpc=44

HONG KONG, Dec 6 (Reuters) - The Hong Kong dollar extended gains against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, buoyed by a steady flow of funds into the territory.

The currency <HKD=> had risen to 7.7662/65 against the U.S. dollar by 0408 GMT, its highest level since early July and up from Tuesday's close of 7.7687/90.

"There has been some (U.S.) dollar selling since yesterday afternoon, perhaps related to the IPOs," one trader said.

Another dealer said the local currency's gain was likely in response to the general weakness in the U.S. dollar and expectations of faster yuan appreciation.

China Coal Energy Co. aims to raise up to US$1.7 billion in a Hong Kong initial public offering. The company opened the share sale to retail investors on Wednesday, with a trading debut set for Dec. 19.

The Hong Kong dollar is pegged at 7.80 to the U.S. dollar but can trade between 7.75 and 7.85.

China's yuan <CNY=CFXS> was trading at 7.8237 per U.S. dollar at 0346 GMT, approaching parity with the Hong Kong dollar.

Hong Kong's exchange rate link with the U.S. dollar remains the "appropriate" monetary arrangement for the territoy, despite a rise in the Chinese yuan, the International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday.

/...

[Ghost Dog]

21. IMF says HK dollar peg remains appropriate

http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20061206:MTFH91257_2006-12-06_03-38-15_T265949&type=comktNews&rpc=44

HONG KONG, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Hong Kong's exchange rate link with the U.S. dollar remains the "appropriate" monetary arrangement for the territory, despite a rise in the Chinese yuan, the International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday.

The gradually appreciating yuan <CNY=CFXS> is expected to reach parity with the Hong Kong dollar <HKD=> at 7.8 to the U.S. dollar within the next few months. It would be the first such occurrence since 1992.

However, Paul Gruenwald, the IMF's representative in Hong Kong, said that would not affect the territory's currency stability.

"Hong Kong's traditional strengths would remain even after the "crossing" and the factors accounting for the currency board's past success would continue to apply," Gruenwald said in a statement. "The present monetary arrangement, with its link to a fully convertible currency, remains appropriate and we strongly support the authorities' commitment to the linked exchange rate system."

Gruenwald said the Hong Kong dollar peg, which was introduced in 1983, had worked well because of the territory's highly flexible wages and prices.

"Underpinning confidence in the system are strong public finances and a well regulated financial system," he said. "Central to this success has also been the complete absence of capital account restrictions, which has allowed Hong Kong to develop into a major international financial centre."

The yuan's rise has led some speculators to bet that Hong Kong could link its currency to the yuan rather than the U.S. dollar.

/...

[Ghost Dog]

7. European Bonds May Drop on Signs Pace of Growth Is Accelerating

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601009&sid=addbc.3HqRPY&refer=bond

Dec. 6 (Bloomberg) -- European government bonds may fall for a second day on evidence the pace of expansion in the $10 trillion economy is accelerating.

Benchmark debt extended yesterday's drop after a Bloomberg purchasing managers index showed retail-sales growth quickened in the region for a third month in November, giving the European Central Bank more scope to lift interest rates in 2007. A separate government report showed German factory orders climbed 10 percent from a year earlier in October.

``The euro-region economy is still growing robustly, and there's a lot of strength and demand in the industrial sector,'' said Elwin de Groot, a market strategist at Rabobank Groep in Utrecht, the Netherlands. ``Yields on shorter dated bunds are going to rise from here.''

The yield on the benchmark two-year note, which is more sensitive to changes in rate expectations than longer-dated debt, rose 2 basis point to 3.65 percent by 11:22 a.m. in London. The price of the 3.5 percent security due September 2008 fell 0.03, or 30 euro cents per 1,000 euro ($1,333) face amount, to 99.74. Bond prices move inversely to yields.

``The orders data point to good prospects for dynamic industrial output in the fourth quarter,'' wrote Jodie Saul, a European economist at CIBC World Markets in London.

An index of retail sales in the euro region rose to an adjusted 53.7, the highest in four months, from 52.8 in October, a survey of more than 1,000 retail executives compiled for Bloomberg LP by NTC Economics Ltd. showed today. A level above 50 indicates growth.

...

Euro region retail sales rose 0.3 percent from a revised drop of 1 percent in September, Eurostat, the European Union's statistics office, said. Economists forecast a rise of 0.2 percent, a survey showed.

/...

[Ghost Dog]

8. German October Factory Orders Unexpectedly Drop, Led By Cars

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601068&sid=aeFkH68xnEvs&refer=economy

Dec. 6 (Bloomberg) -- German factory orders unexpectedly dropped for a second month in October, led by a slump in domestic demand for cars and trucks.

Orders fell 1.1 percent from September when they declined 3 percent, the Economy and Technology Ministry in Berlin said today. Economists expected an increase of 1.1 percent, the median of 39 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey shows. From a year earlier, orders advanced 10 percent.

Today's report contrasts with evidence that the German economy is expanding the most in six years. Business confidence matched a 15-year high in November and the Bloomberg purchasing managers index today showed retail sales increasing the most since May. The European Central Bank is poised to raise interest rates for the sixth time in a year tomorrow to quell inflation.

``The monthly figures are very volatile,'' Dominic White, an economist at ABN Amro Holding NV in London, said before the report was released. ``The outlook is still strong, both for Germany and the euro area.''

The Ministry said in its statement that while orders for vehicles dropped, ``domestic demand for other important investment goods such as plant and machinery continues to point higher.''

Orders from the dozen nations sharing the euro gained 4.3 percent last month, led by goods such as plant and machinery, rising 4.7 percent. Consumer goods gained 1.8 percent.

/...

[Ghost Dog]

15. U.K. Manufacturing Unexpectedly Declined in October

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601068&refer=economy&sid=akXZYvmF_AxA

Dec. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Factory production in the U.K. unexpectedly fell the most in a year in October, crimped by a stronger currency and a slowdown in the U.S.

Factory output declined 0.4 percent after failing to grow in September, the Office for National Statistics said today in London. Economists had expected an increase of 0.2 percent, according to the median of 32 forecasts in a Bloomberg survey.

The pound's surge to a 14-year high against the dollar last week has made British goods more expensive in export markets including the U.S., where economic growth is already cooling. A slowdown in U.K. exports may ease pressure on the Bank of England to raise borrowing costs, now at a five-year high.

``Today's report doesn't augur well for manufacturing's contribution to growth and will provide modest support to the view that interest rates have peaked in the U.K,'' said Richard McGuire, an economist at RBC Capital Markets in London. ``We expect the pound to hit $2.''

The pound fell against the dollar to $1.9648 as of 10:23 a.m. in London from $1.9714 before the report. It reached $1.9848 on Dec. 1, the highest since 1992, and has risen 14 percent so far this year.

Higher interest rates in the U.K. may also weigh on industrial output. The central bank raised its benchmark rate to 5 percent on Nov. 9, a second increase since August. All 61 economists in a Bloomberg News survey expect the bank to leave its benchmark rate unchanged at its Dec. 7 decision.

/...

[Ghost Dog]

18. European shares edge down, oil sector weighs

http://investing.reuters.co.uk/news/articleinvesting.aspx?type=eurMktRpt&storyID=2006-12-06T122321Z_01_L06798734_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-EUROPE-STOCKS-UPDATE-2.XML

FRANKFURT, Dec 6 (Reuters) - European shares edged down in midday trade on Wednesday, weighed down by telecoms shares such as Vodafone (VOD.L: Quote, Profile , Research) and a weak oil and gas sector, while banking shares such as Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L: Quote, Profile , Research) gained.

Shares in Norway's second-biggest oil and gas producer, Norsk Hydro (NHY.OL: Quote, Profile , Research), fell 3.1 percent. The industrial group said its oil and gas production through 2010 would be lower than earlier foreseen due to production constraints widely affecting the industry.

The FTSEurofirst 300 <.FTEU3> index of leading European shares dropped 0.05 percent to 1,439.15 points at 1210 GMT.

Around Europe, London's FTSE 100 index .FTSE was flat, the French CAC 40 <.FCHI> was down 0.2 percent and Germany's DAX <.GDAXI> inched down 0.04 percent.

"There are no clear trends in the markets at the moment," said Heinz-Gerd Sonnenschein, a strategist at Germany's Postbank "There is a restrained calm around as everyone is waiting for Friday," he said.

Friday's U.S. non-farm payrolls report should give clues to the scope of a slowdown in the world's biggest economy.

/...

[Ghost Dog]

29. European stocks end flat despite bank gains

http://investing.reuters.co.uk/news/articleinvesting.aspx?type=eurMktRpt&storyID=2006-12-06T172422Z_01_L06874729_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-EUROPE-STOCKS-UPDATE-5.XML

LONDON, Dec 6 (Reuters) - European shares ended little changed on Wednesday as gains for banking shares were offset by weaker retail and technology stocks as Wall Street dipped ahead of key jobs data at the end of the week.

The FTSEurofirst 300 Index <.FTEU3> closed steady at 1,440 points on solid turnover of around 2.7 billion shares, holding year-to-date gains at around 13 percent.

With markets expected to wind down in the lead-up to the Christmas and New Year holidays, investors were shaping their forecasts for 2007. Many see broadly similar conditions for markets, with an expected U.S. slowdown offset by improving growth elsewhere.

"Global growth next year should be better balanced with the strengthening European and Japanese economies offsetting the slowing U.S. economy," said Mike Turner, head of global strategy and asset allocation at Aberdeen Asset Management.

"Although we don't exclude the possibility of a correction, we don't expect a bear market in the near future either."

...

Around Europe, London's FTSE 100 .FTSE closed 0.1 percent firmer, while Paris's CAC-40 <.FCHI> ended down 0.2 percent. In Zurich, the SMI <.SSMI> rose 0.7 percent and Frankfurt's DAX <.GDAXI> was 0.05 percent lower.

/...

[ozymandius]

9. Yahoo shakes up leadership

Yahoo announced a big shake-up late Tuesday, addressing critics who for months have questioned the search giant's ability to effectively compete with other, more nimble Internet companies.

The company said two of its top executives will leave and two others will take on additional responsibilities as the Internet pioneer attempts to regain lost agility and focus. The company also said it would recast itself into three main business units: one focused on its audience, one on technology and one on advertisers and publishers.

``The Internet is continuing to grow and evolve at a rapid pace, and we're reshaping Yahoo to be a leader in the transformation,'' Chief Executive Terry Semel said in the statement.

Sue Decker, the chief financial officer, is being promoted to head the advertiser and publisher business group, which will help advertisers connect to targeted consumers across the Internet. Yahoo said Decker will continue to serve as chief financial officer while it hires a replacement. Decker has been rumored to be a replacement for Semel, and this new job gives her control over much of the company's revenues.

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/16175062.htm

[UpInArms]

11. daily dollar watch

http://quotes.ino.com/chart/?s=NYBOT_DX&v=i

Last trade 82.70 Change +0.19 (+0.23%)

Is a Short Term Dollar Bottom In Place?

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/dailyfx_reports/daily_technicals/Is_a_Short_Term_Dollar_1165408648886.html

EURUSD – The EURUSD is currently testing the 12/4 low at 1.3281. The dip below 1.3281 argues that a top is in place at 1.3367 and that the next move of consequence is towards the 1.3130 level. RSI and CCI on the daily remain overbought and warn of the pending correction. A move to 1.3130 could be a 4th wave that would be followed by a rally in a 5th wave to above 1.3367 before a much larger corrective move lower takes place.

<snip>

USDJPY – The consolidation from the 114.42 low yesterday appears to be tracing out a triangle. Triangles are terminal patterns, meaning that they typically result in a move in the direction of the previous trend to complete that trend. If this is indeed a triangle, then expectations are for a decline below 114.42 to lower areas of support and the forming of a bottom. Support resides at the 8/4 low of 113.95. 115.17 needs to hold for the terminal thrust from the triangle to play out – so upside risk is limited at the current juncture.

<snip>

GBPUSD – Cable appears to be nearing the end of a 5 wave bullish sequence from 1.7046. The 5th wave of this advance began on 10/11 at 1.8515 and is likely near the end of its 3rd wave. Thus, what is left is a corrective move lower (which looks to be occurring now) and perhaps one more high above 1.9846 before a multi month decline begins to correct the advance from 1.7046 . Fibo support begins at the 38.2% of 1.8834-1.9846 at 1.9461. Support at that area is reinforced by the 11/27 gap opening high at 1.9463.

...more...

Dollar Rebound Continues, Data Hammers the Pound

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/dailyfx_reports/daily_brief/Dollar_Rebound_Continues__Data_Hammers_1165405664058.html

A quiet, consolidating session in foreign exchange markets tonight as the greenback continued to receive a boost from better than expected ISM Services report yesterday. After being grossly oversold, the buck was due for a bounce as both the euro and the pound ran into major resistance at the 1.3300 and 1.9800 levels respectively. Soon however, attention will turn to Friday’s NFP report which as always will be critical to determining the next course of action on FX. For the time being the market appears to have absorbed most of the negative US fundamental data and has stabilized around current levels. For the dollar to fall further, traders will need to see additional evidence of weakness in the US economy. On the other hand if the US job picture proves resilient, the EUR/USD may well retrace to the 1.3100 level.

Meanwhile the news from UK was not positive as both Manufacturing and Industrial Production plunged with the former falling -0.4% against expectations of a 0.2% rise. The result was understandable given both the rise in cable which weighed on the export sector, and the overall fall off in UK consumer demand. Although the country’s services sector continues to grow at a healthy pace, the appreciation in the currency may have finally caught up with UK industry and could lead to a material slowdown in manufacturing sector next year. Although services clearly rule the UK economy, if manufacturing falters badly, the BoE may be forced to move to a neutral rather than a tightening stance, much to the surprise of many sterling bulls counting on further rate hikes from the central bank. One data point does not a trend make, but as we’ve argued repeatedly over the past week UK economic news has not been supportive of the units parabolic run to 14 year highs. None of this may matter if US data continues to disappoint, but the pound could begin to under perform against both the euro and the yen if the bad news continues.

...more...

[ozymandius]

12. Yawning gap remains between assets of rich and poor — report

LONDON: The richest 2 percent of adults still own more than half of the world's household wealth, perpetuating a yawning global gap between rich and poor, according to research published Tuesday.

The report from the Helsinki-based World Institute for Development Economics Research shows that in 2000 the richest 1 percent of adults — most of whom live in Europe or the United States — owned 40 percent of global assets.

The richest 10 percent of adults accounted for 85 percent of assets, according to the report from the institute, which is part of the United Nations University.

By contrast, the bottom 50 percent of the world's adult population owned barely 1 percent of the world's wealth.

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/05/business/EU_GEN_Britain_Global_Wealth.php

[Ghost Dog]

31. Tax Evaders: Multinationals are Selling the Country Short

http://www.alternet.org/story/45019/
By Peter Rost, AlterNet. Posted December 6, 2006.

The biggest tax scam on earth has a very innocent sounding name. It is called "transfer prices." That almost sounds boring. It is, however, anything but boring. Abuse of transfer prices is a key tool multinational corporations use to fool the U.S. and other jurisdictions to think that they have virtually no profit; hence, they shouldn't pay any taxes.

Corporations involved in this scam are "model corporate citizens," or so they would like us to believe. The truth is that they rob us all blind. The money we lose can be estimated in the tens of billions, or possibly hundreds of billions of dollars every year. We all end up paying higher taxes because rich corporations make sure they don't.


/read on...

See also DU thread here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x2866453

[ozymandius]

14. Toll Bros. posts 44% decline in profit

Luxury home builder Toll Bros. Inc. reported a 44% drop in quarterly profit Tuesday but signaled that the worst might be over for the sagging housing market.

Hopes for an end to the decline in housing sent Toll shares up 3%.

The market was "dancing along the bottom for a couple of months," Chief Executive Robert Toll said in a conference call with analysts. "It appears that we are now off the bottom."

The executive, one of the first leaders in the home-building sector to report a slowing in certain hot markets in the summer of 2005, said conditions appeared to be stabilizing in Washington's northern Virginia suburbs, certain markets in Florida and Northern California.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-toll6dec06,1,801334.story?coll=la-headlines-business

Their plan is hope?

[ozymandius]

16. Good revenues in bad times

Toll Brothers, the luxury homebuilder based in Horsham, produced record revenues this year, despite a 44 percent drop in fourth-quarter earnings.

The company said it sees some signs of stabilization in the slumping housing market and raised its forecast for first-quarter 2007 home deliveries when Toll officials presented the company's fourth-quarter and fiscal year-end report Tuesday.

Shares of Toll Brothers rose $1.36 to close at $32.87 in trading Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.

-cut-

Cancellations of home orders slashed the company's fourth-quarter net income to $173.8 million, or $1.07 per share, compared to a fourth quarter net income record of $310. 3 million or $1.84 per share in 2005, the report said.

http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/147-12062006-752020.html

[ozymandius]

17. FCC Chair Schemes to Undermine Net Neutrality (opinion)

The Nation -- The Federal Communications Commission is supposed to be made up of five independent members who serve in the public interest.

But FCC chair Kevin Martin, a Bush White House retainer who reportedly entertains notions of running for the governorship of his native North Carolina with a campaign war chest full of telecommunications-industry contributions, is now attacking the basic structures of the FCC in order to deliver for the corporations he hopes will someday be his political benefactors.

Martin has ordered the commission's lawyers to come up with a scheme that would force another Republican commissioner, Robert McDowell, to "unrecuse" himself from a voting on a massive merger between telecommunications giants AT&T and BellSouth.

-cut-

Martin's move has already drawn rebukes from members of Congress who follow telecommunications issues. "I believe that forcing a Commissioner to participate in a proceeding in which he or she would otherwise be recused is an extraordinary notion for an independent, impartial regulatory agency," said Representative Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, a key player on the House Energy and Commerce Committee who is seeking the chairmanship of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. "Agency Commissioners must exercise independent, impartial, and unbiased judgment in matters before the Commission."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/thenation/20061206/cm_thenation/1145574

[ozymandius]

19. Where Is the Economy Headed?

The U.S. economy can't seem to make up its mind.

It keeps showing strength and weakness, with fresh data yesterday providing still more mixed signals -- and fueling a debate over whether the housing slump is dragging the nation into a recession.

The conflicting data could be a sign that the economy is turning, with what was at first a mild growth slowdown about to give way to a harsher downturn, some analysts said. But others echoed the Federal Reserve, countering that the worst news is still coming from businesses involved in housing and automobile production while the rest of the economy is holding up.

-cut-

The recent figures all confirm that the economy has lost momentum this year, expanding at a rapid 5.6 percent annual rate in the first three months, at a moderate 2.6 percent pace in the second quarter and at a 2.2 percent pace in the third.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/05/AR2006120501424.html

[Demeter]

22. dupe

[Demeter]

23. Please Say You Posted This Article for Its Comic Appeal!

The economy has been in death throes for so long, it's amazing it can speak at all, but what it's saying recalls Magaret Hamilton of Wicked Witch of the West fame: "I'm melting! Melting!"



This might be a more valuable bit of newsprint....

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/06/business/06leonhardt.html?_r=1&ref=business&oref=slogin
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

December 6, 2006
Economix
What Statistics on Home Sales Aren’t Saying
By DAVID LEONHARDT


The truth is that the official numbers on house prices — the last refuge of soothing information about the real estate market on the coasts — are deeply misleading. Depending on which set you look at, you’ll see that prices have either continued to rise, albeit modestly, or have fallen slightly over the last year. But the statistics have a number of flaws, perhaps the biggest being that they are based only on homes that have actually sold. The numbers overlook all those homes that have been languishing on the market for months, getting only offers that their owners have not been willing to accept.

In reality, homes across much of Florida, California and the Northeast are worth a lot less than they were a year ago. The auction in Naples may have exaggerated the downturn in the market there, but not by much. Tom Doyle, a Naples real estate agent, estimated that a typical house there, sold in the normal way, would go for about 20 percent less than it did the previous fall.

In the Boston area, prices have fallen about 10 to 15 percent since the middle of 2005, estimated Chobee Hoy, who owns a real estate brokerage firm in Brookline. Jerome J. Manning, who runs the Massachusetts-based auction company that conducted the Naples sale, told me he thought that values had dropped about 20 percent around Boston. (The government, meanwhile, says the average price rose 1 percent from last summer to this summer. But here’s all you need to know about how well the government tracks the Boston market: the index excludes any mortgage larger than $417,000.)

The market in northern Virginia is similar: prices are down 10 to 15 percent, according to an analysis by Mr. Lawler, a former Fannie Mae executive who’s based there. In Portland, Me., the typical house has lost about 10 percent of its value in the last year and a half, said Bill Trask, the former head of the local Realtors’ board.

In New York City, where co-op boards generally bar the door to absentee speculators and creative mortgages, prices seem to have slid a bit in the last few months, but only to roughly their 2005 levels. In the New York suburbs, though, values have fallen perhaps 10 percent or more since last year. Prices also appear to be down in Sacramento and San Diego.

Then there are the people who bought their homes in the last couple of years and made almost no down payment. Many of them may now be underwater, owing more on their mortgages than their houses are worth....Most worrisome, growing numbers of these families are falling behind on their mortgage payments, and they won’t be able to bail themselves out by refinancing or selling their homes. “We’re now going to combine a high amount of debt with falling home values,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist of Economy.com...Over the last few decades, the world’s financial system has endured a crisis roughly once every three or four years. There was the stock market crash of 1987, the Asian and Mexican meltdowns in the 1990s, the dot-com implosion of 2000 and, most recently, the aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001. We may now be living on both borrowed money and borrowed time.

E-mail: [e-mail]

[Ghost Dog]

24. Ha! Related: The Economy | Why data are full of surprises

http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/business/16172752.htm

Unexpectedly is suddenly the adverb of choice among economists (not so suddenly, actually - ed.), which tells you something about how uncertain and precarious the economy looks these days.

So far this week, we've learned that productivity growth was unexpectedly slow from July to September, that labor costs were unexpectedly revised down in the same period, and that growth in the service sector unexpectedly accelerated in November for the second month in a row.

And it's only Wednesday.

Last week, moreover, expectations were upended on several fronts.

Estimates of annual gross domestic product growth were raised to 2.2 percent from an earlier guess of 1.6 percent; November manufacturing output fell more than expected; and construction spending took its biggest dip in five years, including - unexpectedly - a fall in nonresidential construction.

Why, you may ask, are the economic data so full of surprises? Is something fogging up the insides of forecasters' crystal balls?

Global warming perhaps?

Or is it more a case of reality simply being particularly hard to predict at this point?

I would lean toward the latter.

If you read past the numbers, you can sense powerful crosscurrents tugging at the economy just now.

Unlike, say, early 2000, when we were clearly overdue for a slowdown, or after the recession, when there was nowhere to go but up, the current scene looks more like a crossroads.

/read on...

[Ghost Dog]

26. And also: President ignores the economy at his peril

http://www.newsday.com/news/opinion/ny-oppin055002910dec05,0,4310342.column?coll=ny-viewpoints-headlines

Remember the U.S. economy? It used to be a big issue in American politics - the biggest, in fact.

But, for now, economics plays second fiddle - more like fourth fiddle, actually - behind war and foreign affairs, various leaked memos and the next cycle of presidential politicking. But not for long. As Bill Clinton's campaign staff reminded everyone 15 years ago, it's still, ultimately, "the economy, stupid."

That is, the economy - jobs, paychecks, pensions - is always a big concern in the minds of voters. When times are good, the issue fades. But when politicians get neglectful, well, that's what elections are for. They give the voters a chance to reel the pols back in, close to bread-and-butter issues.

George W. Bush is Exhibit A when it comes to drifting away from voters' homey concerns. As befits a governor, he came into the White House with a domestic-oriented agenda of tax cuts and deregulation. And he achieved some of this agenda, mostly before 9/11.

But in the last five years the president has focused most of his attention on foreign affairs and national security. In March, according to author Bob Woodward, the outgoing White House chief of staff, Andrew Card, gave his replacement, Joshua Bolten, the rundown on priorities: "It's Iraq, Iraq, Iraq." Card added, "Then comes the economy."

/read on...

(Fly-by posts...)

[AnneD]

25. Morning Marketeers...

:donut: and lurkers. The housing market is so so here in Houston. The new home builders are offering all kinds of incentive packages and price reductions to boost their sales but we are heading to overbuild if things don't improve. Folks just aren't buying....

And speaking of buying-we are (as of yesterday), the proud owners of a nice travel trailer. Our total price was 3K. Our lot rent in the really nice place is $400 which includes water, sewage, wifi, and cable. We will have to check out insurance, and we will pay for electricity, but we are coming out ahead on this deal. We will be moving this Christmas Break but we are so happy about this.

The trailer is sound, insulated beyond our region's needs, and well maintained. I do not have an oven, but I have everything else. One of my daughter's decorator friends has said she would be happy to redo the interior for us (she says it will be a fun exercise for her). Our resort village has amenities that one would find in a pricey apartment complex. We are in a quiet semi permanent section.

Finally, our own portable paradise-and under our budget!

Happy hunting and watch out for the bears.

[Ghost Dog]

27. Not only that but this: An Economic Pillar on the Verge of Collapse

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/05/AR2006120501453.html

It's been more than a year since we've heard from those who denied there was a housing bubble.

Since then, the industry boosters, along with the "soft-landing" crowd over at the Federal Reserve, have coalesced around the idea that maybe the market got a bit frothy after all, but now the correction is almost complete, the unsold inventory's been worked off and the worst is behind us.

But just when you're feeling hopeful again, you get reports like yesterday's Wall Street Journal piece reporting that delinquency rates are suddenly soaring on all those loosey-goosey subprime mortgages. They are starting to cause real heartburn for pension funds and other investors who bought securities backed by those mortgages on the theory that they were no more risky than a Treasury bond.

"We are a bit surprised by how fast this has unraveled," Thomas Zimmerman, head of asset-backed securities research at UBS, told the Journal, removing his head from the sand. Trust me, Tom, you ain't seen nothin' yet. After the subprime loans come the 100 percent, interest-only loans, followed by the meltdown in the overbuilt multi-family housing sector.

But enough hand-wringing over the residential real-estate market. Not much anyone can do about that now. The new story is the bubble in the commercial real estate market -- offices, hotels and retail establishments -- which has generated spectacular returns for investors over the past few years.

Prices have risen to ridiculous levels, relative to the risk involved and the amount of income generated by these properties. But even those prices don't seem to scare away pension funds, university endowments and Arab investors, who continue to pour hundreds of billions of dollars into real estate investment trusts, private-equity real estate funds and hedge funds that specialize in real estate finance.

/read on...

[Ghost Dog]

33. Georgia foreclosures jump 99%; rate is nation's 3rd highest

http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/stories/2006/12/05/1206bizforeclose.html
Homeowners feel pain as climbing adjustable mortgage rates bite back

By MICHAEL E. KANELL
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 12/06/06

Hundreds of Georgians lost their homes Tuesday.

The houses, taken from debt-laden homeowners, were sold to bidders on courthouse steps statewide.
John Spink/Staff

(ENLARGE)
Investors crowd the steps of the Fulton County Courthouse on Foreclosure Day — the first Tuesday of every month — to bid on homes repossessed by mortgage lenders. One in every 449 households in Georgia faces foreclosure proceedings.

TOP TEN
States with highest foreclosure rates, Oct. 2006:
1) Colorado
2) Nevada
3) Georgia
4) Michigan
5) Illinois
6) Florida
7) Ohio
8) Tennessee
9) New Jersey
10) Utah
Source: RealtyTrac

RELATED
• Q&A on home foreclosures
• 2006 Metro Home Sales Report
• Find a home at ajchomefinder.com

The increasingly busy monthly auctions show that not all of the residential market is in decline.

Foreclosures are rising.

More than 115,000 properties across the country were in the foreclosure process in October — up 42 percent from the same month a year earlier, according to RealtyTrac, a California company that tracks foreclosures.

Foreclosures in Georgia are up a stunning 99 percent in the past year.

The state now has the nation's third-highest rate of foreclosures: One in every 449 households. In October, that meant 6,895 properties were in the foreclosure process.

Not all changed hands. Some homeowners came up with the needed payments; others couldn't afford the whole debt but lenders agreed to a delay while they worked out a payment plan. Still, hundreds were auctioned.

The taking of homes — generally because the owner hasn't been making mortgage payments — has always been brisk here because state laws are written for speed. Georgia is one of three states in which lenders can foreclose on houses in as few as 37 days.

Foreclosures ramped up in recent months as once-low introductory interest rates on adjustable mortgages edged up, making monthly payments unaffordable for some homeowners.

Qualified borrowers several years ago could get mortgages with rates below 4 percent, but at the end of the starter period, those rates could adjusted skyward by 2 or 3 percentage points. That would add more than $300 a month to a mortgage of $250,000.

"We really haven't had any letup," said Ralph Goldberg, a Decatur attorney whose clients include many distressed homeowners. "We know, toward the end of the month, people are going to be coming in. The Friday and Monday before Foreclosure Day are always busy."

/more...

[Ghost Dog]

34. Profits soar. Growth tumbles. No wonder US economists worry

http://thebusinessonline.com/Document.aspx?id=5EBF803E-4946-4E45-B864-5D68821D451D

‘Seldom before can the US Bureau of Economic Analysis have thrown up
an estimate pockmarked with so many anomalies and glaring inconsistencies.’

A sharp fall in growth to the slowest pace in three years, but double digit growth in corporate profits; a tumbling housing market, but consumer confidence at a 15 month high; 17 consecutive rises in interest rates, but retail spending rising robustly.

Welcome to the war of statistics that has broken out over predictions that the world’s biggest economy slowed to at an annual growth pace of just 1.6% in the third quarter. This was well below the 2.6% rate recorded in the second quarter and well south of market expectations. Yet the estimate covers a period in which private sector wages have been growing strongly and real consumer spending grew at an annualised rate of 3.1%.

/read on...

[54anickel]

44. Aren't you just the ray of sunshine today? Seems they can longer

keep track of their lies and manipulated stats. What a tangled web we weave....

:hi:

[Ghost Dog]

46. Sorry. Just trying to reflect the (often painful) truth, here.

Tho, it's true I opened a bottle of fine island wine a while ago... (ed: :hippie: )

[Ghost Dog]

28. 12:42 at the crossroads

Dow 12,316.06 Down 15.54 (0.13%)
Nasdaq 2,447.20 Down 5.18 (0.21%)
S&P 500 1,413.81 Down 0.95 (0.07%)
10-Yr Bond 4.4680% Up 0.0260
NYSE Volume 1,367,490,000
Nasdaq Volume 998,179,000

12:30 pm : No real change in sentiment as the afternoon session gets underway. It is worth noting that the Telecom sector has recently inched into positive territory. However, as one of the least influential of the 10 economic sectors, its 0.2% advance is not having much impact on the broader market. Verizon Communications (VZ 34.99 +0.41) is now one of today's best performing Dow components after saying it expects this year's buyback program will reach $1.7 bln, about $200 mln more than anticipated.DJ30 -12.13 NASDAQ -6.16 SP500 -0.73 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1532/1309/942 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1671/1472/982 mln

12:00 pm : Stocks are struggling to regain upside traction midday as the absence of more convincing sector leadership leaves the door open for sellers to take some money off the table.

With nothing scheduled on the economic calendar, leaving the market in a guarded state until Friday's important jobs report hits the wires, a limited batch of news items has done little to keep the underlying bullish tone intact. That's especially true following two days of gains that left the Dow and S&P 500 already close to matching their average November performance of 1.4%.

With drug companies constantly in the news of late, the biggest announcement this morning has come from Merck (MRK 44.50 -0.51). Be that as it may, the Dow component merely reaffirming its full-year EPS outlook and guiding fiscal 2007 in line with Wall Street forecasts has given investors little to get excited about.

The other big headline has been a management shake-up at Yahoo! (YHOO 26.96 -0.47). However, investors aren't exactly applauding that news either, since the surprise resignation of three executives and promotion of its CFO adds to uncertainty already surrounding the tech laggard. Technology has been under even more pressure, though, from a nearly 5% sell-off in Oracle (ORCL 17.85 -1.01) after Lehman Brothers advised clients to sell it. Another area of weakness within the influential sector is Semiconductor Equipment, which is getting hit following an analyst downgrade on Novellus Systems (NVLS 33.27 -1.26). DJ30 -12.82 NASDAQ -6.12 SP500 -0.79 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1489/1318/830 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1591/1503/598 mln

11:30 am : The Dow has crept back above the unchanged mark, but there is little conviction behind the market's latest uptick as the bulk of sector leadership remains negative. Energy now pacing the way higher, among the four sectors posting gains, but it's 0.3% advance offers little in the way of influential leadership. More notably, though, is the rate-sensitive Financials sector's ability to again garner enough strength from some key components to overlook another rise in borrowing costs. After surging to a new 52-week high yesterday after issuing an encouraging outlook for 2007, Prudential Financial (PRU 86.50 +2.22) is tacking on another 2.4% gain after Goldman Sachs raised its target price target on the stock to $78 from $73. The 10-year note is down 7 ticks, lifting the yield to 4.46%. Bonds have been under pressure all morning after monthly ADP employment data suggested Friday's closely-watched Nov. jobs report will show a larger than expected rise in nonfarm payrolls, reducing expectations of a Fed rate cut in early 2007. DJ30 +1.56 NASDAQ -3.87 SP500 +0.37 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1529/1230/690 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1605/1417/496 mln

11:00 am : Recent recovery efforts are short-lived as today's weekly energy report fails to offer the catalyst bulls were hoping for to get buying efforts back on track. At the bottom of the hour, the E.I.A. reported an unexpected drawdown in crude inventories; but oil's response has been relatively muted as crude for January delivery is down only 0.1% at $62.36/bbl. DJ30 -11.04 NASDAQ -7.52 SP500 -1.16 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1449/1247/558 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1521/1426/370 mln

10:30 am : Major averages now trade in split fashion as buyers step back in to pare some losses. The Dow has turned positive, led by gains of more than 1.0% from Caterpillar (CAT 63.03 +0.88), which has helped the Industrials sector turn the corner, and Home Depot (HD 39.86 +0.49), which is largely responsible for returning upside leadership to the Consumer Discretionary sector. It is worth noting that both blue chips have been hit alongside the continued slowdown in the housing market. However, the Mortgage Banker's Association reporting earlier that mortgage applications rose 8.1% in the latest week, as mortgage rates dipped below 6.00% to a 14-month low, has restored some confidence among Homebuilders -- today's best performing S&P industry group (+2.4%).DJ30 +2.97 NASDAQ -3.58 SP500 -0.27 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1623/973/394 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1748/1144/226 mln

10:00 am : Equities remain on the defensive as eight out of 10 sectors are now in negative territory. Pacing the way lower is Technology as Semiconductor Equipment (-1.2%) gets hit following an analyst downgrade on Novellus Systems (NVLS 33.05 -1.48). Systems Software (-1.2%) is another weak spot as Oracle (ORCL 17.85 -1.01) plunges 5.4% after Lehman Brothers advised clients to sell the stock; Novell (NOVL 5.88 -0.45) tumbling 7% after issuing downside FY07 revenue guidance is contributing to the group's downturn. Yahoo! extending its early losses to more than 2.0% takes a toll on Internet Software & Services (-0.9%). The absence of leadership in Health Care, largely attributed to Merck's uninspiring outlook, is the other primary reason stocks are struggling early on.DJ30 -21.07 NASDAQ -11.99 SOX -0.8% SP500 -2.85 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1604/777/166 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1538/1020/68 mln

09:40 am : As expected, stocks stumble out of the gate as today's limited batch of news does little to keep the underlying bullish tone intact. Dow component Merck (MRK 44.45 -0.56) has merely reaffirmed its full-year EPS outlook and guided fiscal 2007 in line with Wall Street forecasts. On the Nasdaq, a management shake-up at Yahoo! (YHOO 27.00 -0.43) is the top story; but investors aren't exactly applauding the surprise resignation of three executives and promotion of its CFO as the stock is down 1.6%.DJ30 -10.24 NASDAQ -10.82 SP500 -2.09 NASDAQ Vol 78 mln NYSE Vol 38 mln

[Ghost Dog]

32. (UK) Brown plans 'green' future for Britain amid solid economic growth

http://www.afp.com/english/news/stories/061206160644.l1pegq3k.html

LONDON (AFP) - Britain's finance minister Gordon Brown has unveiled a series of measures aimed at tackling global warming and hiked his forecast for British economic growth in a key budget speech.

Brown, seen as favourite to replace Tony Blair as prime minister next year, doubled air passenger duty and ended a freeze on fuel tax in his tenth pre-budget report -- a curtain-raiser to Britain's official 2007/08 budget due in March.

The Scotsman promised also an extra 600 million pounds (888 million euros, 1.18 billion dollars) for Britain's military to help fund operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, while an additional 84 million pounds was being offered for intelligence and counter terrorism purposes.

In a speech lasting about 40 minutes, Brown said Britain's economy was set to grow by 2.75 percent this year compared with his previous estimate of 2.0-2.5 percent made in March. Analysts had forecast that Brown would hike his forecast to only 2.6 percent.

...

"Economies like ours must out-perform and out-innovate," Brown said, as he looked to tackle climate change in part with a target of making every new British home a zero-carbon dwelling within a decade. "We will be the first country ever to make this commitment," he added. Buyers of such homes would meanwhile be exempt from paying a tax currently levied on most properties bought in Britain.

Brown said he wanted to make London the world's leading centre for carbon trading -- a system that encourages countries to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide, which is widely blamed for causing global warming.

Blair and Brown see tackling global warming as a priority after a report in October warned it could cost the world more than World Wars I and II and the Great Depression of the 1930s combined. Former World Bank chief economist Sir Nicholas Stern's 700-page report, commissioned by Brown, put the cost of doing nothing at 3.68 trillion pounds.

/...

[Ghost Dog]

35. 14:30 spoonful by spoonful at the crossroads...

Dow 12,311.17 Down 20.43 (0.17%)
Nasdaq 2,447.61 Down 4.77 (0.19%)
S&P 500 1,413.17 Down 1.59 (0.11%)
10-Yr Bond 4.4830% Up 0.0410
NYSE Volume 1,927,960,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,397,452,000

2:30 pm : There still isn't a lot of trading excitement embedded in the current standing of the indices, which have made only modest moves today, primarily below the unchanged mark. With oil prices shaping up to close lower on the day, it remains to be seen if the Energy sector, which recently slipped into the red, can regain any upside momentum going into the close. Until then, oil's modest 0.2% pullback doesn't appear to be enough of a catalyst to renew investors' confidence in stocks after they've gone up so far so fast since bottoming out in mid July. DJ30 -12.10 NASDAQ -4.06 SP500 -0.53 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1495/1449/1.33 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1648/1588/1.0 bln

2:00 pm : The S&P 500 slips back below the flat line, but the major averages for the most part continue to trade within their tightest ranges all week. The market's holding pattern has been further evidenced in the A/D line, as advancers on the NYSE hold a slim 16-to-15 advantage over decliners while both advancing and declining issues on the Nasdaq remain evenly matched. The ratio of up to down volumes also paints a similarly mixed picture at the Big Board and the Composite, indicative of the sluggish fashion with which stocks have traded throughout the session. DJ30 -12.14 NASDAQ -3.60 SP500 -0.59 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1466/1435/1.21 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1560/1658/898 mln

1:30 pm : More of the same for stocks as the juggling act between Energy’s leadership and rising oil prices leaves the indices mixed. Crude oil prices are flirting with their highest levels of the day near $62.80/bbl, which has Refiners (+2.3%) and Drillers (+2.2%) among today's top performing S&P industry groups. Be that as it may, the commodity's potential to sustain inflation pressures is acting as more of an offset since the Dow and Nasdaq are struggling to turn positive.DJ30 -4.49 NASDAQ -2.50 SP500 +0.33 XOI +0.6% NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1458/1442/1.13 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1540/1660/842 mln

1:00 pm : The major indices are back to trading in split fashion, with the S&P 500 inching into the green. Renewed upside leadership from what was one of the main constraints during the morning session -- Health Care -- is behind the market's latest attempts to extend this week's winning streak to three. Aetna (AET 42.94 +0.68) recently touching its best levels in seven months is among the most noticeable reasons behind the sector's turnaround. Other notable gainers in the sector include BSX (+3.0%), CMX (+2.3%), HUM (+1.8%), WAT (+2.3%), and THC (+3.6%).DJ30 -3.76 NASDAQ -1.04 SP500 +0.75 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1507/1352/1.01 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1626/1552/746 mln

[Ghost Dog]

36. Today's proposed lyrics: Spoonful

By willie dixon

Could fill spoons full of diamonds,
Could fill spoons full of gold.
Just a little spoon of your precious love
Will satisfy my soul.

Men lies about it.
Some of them cries about it.
Some of them dies about it.
Everythings a-fightin about the spoonful.
That spoon, that spoon, that spoonful.
That spoon, that spoon, that spoonful.
That spoon, that spoon, that spoonful.
That spoon, that spoon, that spoonful.

Could fill spoons full of coffee,
Could fill spoons full of tea.
Just a little spoon of your precious love;
Is that enough for me?

Chorus

Could fill spoons full of water,
Save them from the desert sands.
But a little spoon of your forty-five
Saved you from another man.

Chorus

Cats squirrel (traditional)

(instrumental)

[Ghost Dog]

40. (Compare & Contrast):

"Easy Silence"

When the calls and conversations
Accidents and accusations
Messages and misperceptions
Paralyze my mind

Busses, cars, and airplanes leaving
Burning fumes of gasoline
And everyone is running
And I come to find a refuge in the

Easy silence that you make for me
It's okay when there's nothing more to say to me
And the peaceful quiet you create for me
And the way you keep the world at bay for me
The way you keep the world at bay

Monkeys on the barricades
Are warning us to back away
They form commissions trying to find
The next one they can crucify

And anger plays on every station
Answers only make more questions
I need something to believe in
Breathe in sanctuary in the

Easy silence that you make for me
It's okay when there's nothing more to say to me
And the peaceful quiet you create for me
And the way you keep the world at bay for me
The way you keep the world at bay

Children lose their youth too soon
Watching war made us immune
And I've got all the world to lose
But I just want to hold on to the

Easy silence that you make for me
It's okay when there's nothing more to say to me
And the peaceful quiet you create for me
And the way you keep the world at bay for me

The easy silence that you make for me
It's okay when there's nothing more to say to me
And the peaceful quiet you create for me
And the way you keep the world at bay for me
The way you keep the world at bay for me
The way you keep the world at bay


- Dixie Chicks

[54anickel]

37. An Entire Planet of Economic Knuckleheads (Mogambo)

http://www.kitco.com/ind/Daughty/dec062006.html

snip>

From Doug Noland we learn the enlightening news from Dow Jones that Richard Fisher, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, laughably said “If the U.S. Federal Reserve had been aware of actual inflation prior to its recent tightening cycle, policy would probably have been more restrictive sooner. If we had had the correct figures at the time, we probably wouldn’t have kept interest rates so low, for so long."

This is startling news, as he is admitting that inflation was higher than "the then-available data" showed, which is the data that he and his little friends at the Fed and government compile!

This is beyond fabulous! I love this! Now, the next time I have to trudge my Big Mogambo Fanny (BMF) up to the CEO's office to try to explain how my incompetence caused another annual loss, I can say with pride that it wasn't my fault! I was misled by those erroneous quarterly reports that showed everything was going so well all year!

And, thanks to the Federal Reserve setting this remarkable precedent, I don’t even have to admit that I fabricated the quarterly reports by exaggerating the good data, to make me look good, or how I "explained away" all the bad data, because they made me look so bad. And now, in keeping with this terrific new Official Federal Reserve Policy, I can escape all responsibility, censure and punishment because I was misled by errors in "the then-available data"! Hahaha! This is fabulous fabulous fabulous!

After filing away this handy technique for future reference, I also notice that while he has recognized that inflation was higher back then (as everybody else did back then, and everybody was laughing at him back then, because only he and his little friends at the Fed were the only ones who couldn't see it back then), he doesn’t mention the fact that price inflation is even higher now!

Perhaps this has something to do with FT.com reporting that the core personal consumption expenditure (PCE) index, "the central bank’s favoured inflation measure", rose 0.2 per cent in October. The article reminds us that the Fed has made clear that a 2.4% annual rate is considered "uncomfortably high".

more...

[54anickel]

38. Bretton Woods (Wiggin - since Mogambo brought it up)

http://www.prudentbear.com/archive_comm_article.asp?category=Guest+Commentary&content_idx=60861

The year was 1944. For the first time in modern history, an international agreement was reached to govern monetary policy among nations. It was, significantly, a chance to create a stabilizing international currency and ensure monetary stability once and for all. In total, 730 delegates from 44 nations met for three weeks in July that year at a hotel resort in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire.

It was a significant opportunity. But it fell short of what could have been achieved. It was a turning point in monetary history, however.

The result of this international meeting, the Bretton Woods Agreement, had the original purpose of rebuilding after World War II through a series of currency stabilization programs and infrastructure loans to war-ravaged nations. By 1946, the system was in full operation through the newly established International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD, the World Bank) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

What makes the Bretton Woods accords so interesting to us today is the fact that the whole plan for international monetary policy was based on nations agreeing to adhere to a global gold standard. Each country signing the agreement promised to maintain its currency at values within a narrow margin to the value of gold. The IMF was established to facilitate payment imbalances on a temporary basis.

This system worked for 25 years. But it was flawed in its underlying assumptions. By pegging international currency to gold at $35 an ounce, it failed to take into effect the change in gold’s actual value since 1934, when the $35 level had been set. The dollar had lost substantial purchasing power during and after World War II, and as European economies built back up, the ever-growing drain on U.S. gold reserves doomed the Bretton Woods Agreement as a permanent, working system.

This problem was described by a former senior vice president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York:

more...

[Ghost Dog]

39. Oh yeah.

:hi:

[AnneD]

41. Been missing ya....

54anickle. Everyone seems to be busy so the thread has been a little slim lately

[54anickel]

43. Yeah, I've noticed that. I still check in, though it may be long after the

closing bell. I've been busy helping my sister lately. Lots of health issues going on - all related to her diabetes. She's not doing well at all these days...organs are pretty well shot, now the neuropathy in her legs and feet is getting really bad. Put that on top of the usual holiday business and the snow removal detail from last week's storm - it's been pretty nuts around here. I still make sure I keep up with the market news though. Looks like the Ponzi scheme is holding together pretty well. The buck is still the key - the cat's sneaking outta the bag on that one now. Everything else is a distraction - the magician's "other hand". I still can't get over the complacency in the markets. Then again, where else is that year end fund money going to go?

[Ghost Dog]

42. Can't resist this Mogambo quote:

"Why Paulson Will Face Disappointment in China" by William Pesek of Bloomberg.com. He writes "All the excitement about China allowing its currency to rise versus the dollar ignores a basic fact: China's main focus is on creating millions of jobs, and that augers against a sharp rise in the yuan." To buttress that claim, he quotes Donald Straszheim, vice chairman of Roth Capital Partners "Central to China's growth and economic modernization is to maintain their currency at a level that allows them to export ever more manufactured goods to the developed world."

And this is true now, and will be true until the point where domestic demand gets big enough. Then they will want a strong yuan, so that imports of raw materials and other goods and services will be cheaper. (like, Europe, maybe? - gd) The only question is when. I say anytime they are ready, and all China needs is enough weaponry to fend off the United States, which has never shown any reluctance to invade any country it wanted, and kill as many people as it wanted, for as long as it wanted, if there was the least bit of a temporary advantage in doing so, mostly by Congress spending lots and lots of money on armaments and making their friends rich.

[Ghost Dog]

45. Closin': Lethargically humping, it seems...

Dow 12,309.25 Down 22.35 (0.18%)
Nasdaq 2,445.86 Down 6.52 (0.27%)
S&P 500 1,412.90 Down 1.86 (0.13%)
10-Yr Bond 4.4810% Up 0.0390
NYSE Volume 2,626,329,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,947,958,000

4:20 pm : With the S&P 500 closing at a fresh six-year high a day earlier and the Dow turning in a two-day gain nearly equivalent to last month's 1.2% performance, stocks struggled to get over the hump Wednesday. Contributing to the sense of lethargy that kept stocks in a relatively tight trading range throughout the session was simply a lack of market-moving data to keep the bulls on the buying track.

With drug companies a focal point of late, and the absence of any scheduled economic reports placing even more emphasis on corporate news, the biggest announcement today came from Merck (MRK 44.62 -0.39). However, with investors bidding up shares of the Dow component to the tune of 45% this year in anticipation of improving fundamentals, merely reaffirming its full-year EPS outlook and guiding fiscal 2007 in line with Wall Street forecasts gave investors little to get excited about.

Another notable headline was a management shake-up at Yahoo! (YHOO 26.85 -0.58). However, since the surprise resignation of three executives and promotion of its CFO added to uncertainty already surrounding the tech laggard, investors didn't exactly applaud that news either. Adding insult to injury within the Technology sector was a 5% sell-off in another one of its most influential components -- Oracle (ORCL 17.85 -1.01). After hitting a new 52-week high three weeks ago, Lehman Brothers told investors to take some profits.

Even though oil prices only closed slightly lower, Energy pacing with way to the downside among the six sectors losing ground removed some notable leadership as well. Not to mention, the sector's biggest disappointment happened to be the largest U.S. company by market capitalization -- Exxon Mobil (XOM 76.34 -1.72). The Dow component's 2.2% decline accounted for roughly two-thirds of the price-weighted index's 22-point pullback. DJ30 -22.35 DJTA -0.8% DJUA -0.7% DOT -0.6% NASDAQ -6.52 SOX +0.4% SP500 -1.86 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1627/1395/1.91 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1840/1454/1.47 bln

3:30 pm : Stocks finally break out of their narrow trading range, but to the dismay of the bulls, it's to the downside. While there's no particular news items to account for the recent spike lower for the indices, the fact that all three major averages have fallen in synch with each other, initially logging roughly the same percentage pullbacks (-0.3%), suggests that program trading may be behind the broad-based move lower.DJ30 -34.00 NASDAQ -9.15 SP500 -2.96 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1541/1421/1.54 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1701/1566/1.18 bln

3:00 pm : Stocks continue to trade sideways as both buyers and sellers, as evidenced by advancers and decliners being evenly matched on both the NYSE and Nasdaq, remain on the sidelines. With the S&P 500 closing at a fresh six-year high yesterday and the Dow turning in a two-gain nearly equivalent to last month's 1.2% performance, it's not all that surprising to see stocks take a breather. Lending to the lack of conviction from either side of the aisle has been below average volume, with the NYSE not seeing 1.0 bln shares trade hands until 30 minutes ago. DJ30 -15.99 NASDAQ -3.24 SP500 -0.96 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1485/1440/1.40 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1621/1630/1.06 bln