STOCK MARKET WATCH, Monday July 21

[ozymandius]

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Monday July 21, 2008

COUNTING THE DAYS
DAYS REMAINING IN THE * REGIME 184
DAYS SINCE DEMOCRACY DIED (12/12/00) 2738 DAYS
WHERE'S OSAMA BIN-LADEN? 2463 DAYS
DAYS SINCE ENRON COLLAPSE = 2754
Number of Enron Execs in handcuffs = 19
ENRON EXECS CONVICTED = 10
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.
$1 USD = EUR 1.06678
$1 USD = JPY 116.6200

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON July 18, 2008

Dow... 11,496.57 +49.91 (+0.44%)
Nasdaq... 2,282.78 -29.52 (-1.28%)
S&P 500... 1,260.68 +0.36 (+0.03%)
Gold future... 958.00 -12.70 (-1.33%)
30-Year Bond 4.66% +0.02 (+0.52%)
10-Yr Bond... 4.08% +0.04 (+1.06%)




http://futures.tradingcharts.com/chart/CO/88

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

---

Read more: du

[ozymandius]

1. Market WrapUp: Elephant Talk

BY BRIAN PRETTI

Talk, It’s Only Talk

Do you remember the old adage, “watch what is done, not what is said”? Well, it’s time to trot it out one more time as being very important to our current circumstances. Why? As you know, over close to the past month or so our favorite merry pranksters at the Fed have been running around thumping their collective chests and talking tough about inflation. Not only is this type of dialogue and message about as disingenuous as the day is long, this tough talk is coming from the folks that make up the very institution responsible for the ravages of monetary inflation and domestic currency devaluation in the first place in the US.

How folks can believe what this crew has to say about being vigilant about inflation is tough to comprehend, but what is important is not the ranting and raving about the Fed, but rather investor behavior and actions in response to recent commentary from the FOMC members about their intent to focus on inflation. As you know, post Bernanke and Geithner jawboning about their newly found inflation fighting fervor (no problem, it only took a 700% increase in the price of crude to get their attention decade to date), consensus talk has revved up regarding the outlook for Fed Funds rate increases prior to year end.
.....

Let’s get to the point at hand. As we look back over historical experience, there are many relationships between macro economic statistics/anecdotes and the Funds rate that have stood the test of time. Unless we are about to rewrite history in our current circumstances, these relationships strongly suggest that there is no way the Fed is about to raise the Fed Funds rate any time soon. Let’s look at a few real world anecdotes that speak directly to this little supposition. And why is this important? It’s clear as per the action in the Fed Funds futures market as of late that the Fed has in part actually been shaping investor perceptions and expectations with its recent commentary. Looking ahead, if indeed global inflationary pressures continue to express themselves AND the Fed does not act, as its recent comments suggest it will, then financial markets will move to reprice financial assets that have responded in recent weeks to the Fed get tough on inflation proclamations; assets such as the US dollar, gold, and a good number of global commodities whose primary trading unit is the dollar.

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

[ozymandius]

2. Today's Report

10:00 Leading Indicators Jun
Briefing -0.3%
Consensus -0.1%
Prior 0.1%

http://www.briefing.com/Investor/Public/Calendars/EconomicCalendar.htm

[ozymandius]

12. U.S. Leading Economic Indicators Index Probably Fell in June

July 21 (Bloomberg) -- The index of U.S. leading economic indicators may have fallen in June for the first time in four months, economists said before a private report today.

The Conference Board's gauge dropped 0.1 percent after increasing by the same amount in May, according to the median of 50 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey. The measure points to the direction of the economy over the next three to six months.

.....

The Conference Board, a New York-based research group, is scheduled to issue its report at 10 a.m. Survey estimates ranged from a drop of 0.4 percent to a 0.3 percent gain.

Seven of the 10 indicators that make up the leading index are known ahead of time: stock prices, jobless claims, building permits, consumer expectations, the yield curve, supplier delivery times and factory hours. The Conference Board estimates the remaining three: new orders for consumer groups, bookings for capital equipment and the money supply.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601068&sid=axQqT3KVk60A&refer=economy

[UpInArms]

74. U.S. June leading indicators down 0.1%

08. U.S. June leading indicators down 0.1%
10:00 AM ET, Jul 21, 2008

[ozymandius]

3. Crude oil back above $130 a barrel

Oil prices rose back above $130 a barrel Monday on concerns that the threat of new sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program may escalate tensions in the oil-rich Middle East.

A slightly weaker dollar and concerns about a storm in the Gulf of Mexico also contributed to higher prices.

By midday in Europe, light, sweet crude for August delivery was up $1.73 to $130.61 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Last week, Nymex crude fell more than $18 from a trading record of $147.27 hit on July 11. The contract settled at $128.88 on Friday, down 41 cents.

In London, September Brent crude rose $1.67 to $131.86 a barrel by midday on the ICE Futures exchange.

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

[ozymandius]

4. Paulson braces public for months of tough times

WASHINGTON - Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson sought to reassure an anxious public Sunday that the banking system is sound, while also bracing people for more troubled times ahead.

"I think it's going to be months that we're working our way through this period — clearly months," he said.

Paulson said the number of troubled banks will increase as they struggle to cope with big losses on bad mortgages. The government this month took over IndyMac after a run led it to become the largest regulated thrift to fail.

"Of course the list is going to grow longer given the stresses we have in the marketplace, given the housing correction. But again, it's a safe banking system, a sound banking system. Our regulators are on top of it. This is a very manageable situation," he said in broadcast interviews.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080721/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/paulson_economy

[Dr.Phool]

6. I didn't know he had a night gig at the Improv!

"The regulators are on top of it".:rofl:

"This is a very manageable situation".:rofl:

This guy is killing me.

[ozymandius]

8. He wore clown shoes. And he used sound effects.

"The regulators are on top of it".

<<GONG!>>

"This is a very manageable situation".

<<ahooogah!>>

[ozymandius]

9. Paulson Says Fannie-Freddie Plan Critical to Confidence in U.S.

uly 21 (Bloomberg) -- Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson suggested that U.S. lawmakers must pass his rescue plan for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to avert a slide in confidence in U.S. financial markets.

International ``investors need to know that we in the United States understand how important these institutions are to the capital markets,'' Paulson said yesterday on CNN's ``Late Edition'' program. He separately declined to reject Democrats' calls for a second fiscal-stimulus package, as the effects of the first initiative wane.

Paulson's remarks, on the eve of a two-day visit to Wall Street, indicate he's raising the stakes for lawmakers debating his proposed rescue. He reiterated his optimism that Congress will enact the plan, including potentially unlimited government investment in the firms that account for almost half the $12 trillion U.S. home-loan market.

.....

The Treasury chief is pushing Congress to authorize the Treasury to purchase equity stakes in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and expand government-backed credit lines to them. He also said he wants the legislation to include a measure that gives ``real teeth'' to the companies' regulator, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601068&sid=aoXgLo6UXOvI&refer=economy

[ozymandius]

10. Bernanke, Paulson Pressed to Seek Big-Government Bank Bailout (Great Depression talk - AGAIN)

July 21 (Bloomberg) -- Ben S. Bernanke and Henry Paulson are under pressure to embrace the big-government policies of America in the 1930s, or Sweden in the 1990s, to contain the conflagration engulfing the U.S. housing and financial markets.

Among the ideas: Using taxpayer money to shore up the capital of loss-ridden Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, setting up new agencies to buy and refinance mortgages in default, even taking over failing financial institutions.

.....

Trying to envision what steps Washington might have to take, economists hearken back to the last time the country faced a nationwide decline in house prices, during the Great Depression. In response to those travails -- which were far worse than today's -- President Franklin D. Roosevelt adopted a radical, multipronged approach with a much bigger government role than anyone is proposing now.

.....

Taxpayer Money

Treasury Secretary Paulson took a step toward committing taxpayer money when he asked Congress last week to give Treasury the power to invest in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac if necessary to keep the largest U.S. mortgage-finance companies operating.

Like Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke's rescue of Bear Stearns Cos. in March, Paulson's plan hasn't convinced investors that other institutions won't fail. Nor have recession alarms been silenced by the Fed's interest-rate cuts or President George W. Bush's $168-billion stimulus package.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601068&refer=economy&sid=ajKgUAmJ3Rfo

[Demeter]

20. For Dissenting Opinions From Practically Everyone

see my thread The Weekend Economist:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=114x40807

which was shuffled off to the Economy Section by the LBN moderator.

[Ghost Dog]

28. Ah yes. Perhaps if we made this an 'official' SMW request

- perhaps with a title like: STOCK MARKET WATCH: Weekend Edition

this would be permitted in LBN.

Edit to add: Lots of people have more time for this stuff at the weekends.

[Hugin]

70. We need a list of charts which are active on the weekends.

Then we can throw it together in a template for the "Weekender's Edition."

Like the futures charts and I'm sure world wide there is some sort of market open.

I'm ambivalent about having it over in the Economy forum. That's okay as long as we could encourage posters
of Weekend Economic News on the LBN to cross post into the Weekender Thread.

[UpInArms]

22. Bringing in another clown: Goldman's Wilson to advise Paulson on banking: report

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080721/bs_nm/goldman_paulson_dc

Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc's (GS.N) Ken Wilson will temporarily leave the firm to advise U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson on how to resolve the country's banking crisis, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Goldman's most senior financial-institutions banker, who has played a big role in capital raisings and reorganizations across the banking sector, will join Paulson to address issues from a more macro perspective, the paper said.

The move comes as the Treasury and Federal Reserve grapple with issues including the threat of bank failures, alarming capital levels and crises of confidence in important institutions such as Fannie Mae (FNM.N) and Freddie Mac (FRE.N).

U.S. President George W. Bush made a personal call to Wilson in recent days, asking him to assist Paulson, the paper said.

Wilson is expected to serve without pay in a period through January, the paper said, citing people familiar with the matter.

...more...

since he's "serving without pay", I wonder which part of the country they will carve out for him to rule?

[Ghost Dog]

31. ... but not without benefit to his employer,

one presumes.

[DemReadingDU]

54. Perhaps Wilson gets a huge bonus in February

if he keeps the economy from imploding

[ozymandius]

5. Freddie Mac May Slow Purchases of Mortgages, Bonds (Update2)

July 21 (Bloomberg) -- Freddie Mac, the second-largest U.S. mortgage-finance company, may cut purchases of home loans from banks and bonds backed by housing debt to shore up its capital amid record delinquencies.

The government-sponsored company is also considering selling securities and reducing its dividend while it prepares to issue $5.5 billion of stock, McLean, Virginia-based Freddie Mac said in a July 18 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. JPMorgan Chase & Co. analyst Matthew Jozoff said in a report last week that growth in mortgage holdings of Freddie Mac and the larger Fannie Mae will be ``weak.''

.....

The Bush administration and Congress are depending on the companies to help pull the U.S. out of the housing slump because they buy mortgages from banks, providing money to make new loans. Instead, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson was forced to seek Congressional approval last week to extend more credit to the companies and buy their shares after Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae tumbled this year in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=aHbvAGbeGyco&refer=home

---

``They were teed up to be saviors of the mortgage crisis, but now they've got their own capital issues.''

[Tansy_Gold]

41. AlterNet: Are Fannie and Freddie Screwed? Bush Hopes So

(thanks to marmar for posting this over in GD. I rarely go over there but saw this on the headlines page. And I haven't yet read the entire piece, but after a lengthy discussion with the BF yesterday about the hypothetical possibility that TPTB are intentionally destroying the economy, I found this headline apropos. -- Tansy Gold)



Are Fannie and Freddie Screwed? Bush Hopes So

By Scott Thill, AlterNet. Posted July 21, 2008.

Bush has set about destroying the decades-old lenders for good, plunging his knife into the backs of programs that helped normal Americans.




President Bush made it his sub rosa mission to end the hegemony of these two Democrats-in-waiting companies. I don't even think he understood what the guarantee was or what they were supposed to do. -- Jim Cramer, "An Elegy for Fannie and Freddie"

In January, I wrote a cultural analysis of the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, more casually known as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and how the Bush administration might be trying to take them down. Ex-CEO Franklin Delano Raines was in court and accusing Bush of what the Washington Post described as "a coordinated plan within the Bush administration to depress Fannie Mae's stock price," which would have gotten more play in the press were it not for the fact that Raines was accused by Fannie Mae's overseer, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), of skimming millions off the top for himself. The soap opera thickened under the weight of the fact that OFHEO director James B. Lockhart was not only a Bush contributor but a loyalist who went to school with him at Yale. And while the two parties, and their political parties, waged war with each other over control of two government-sponsored entities, the housing meltdown caught serious fire.

It has since cratered.

But my piece fell on deaf ears, except for those belonging to motivated professional and armchair economists who love to explore the nether regions of history, finance and hyperreality. Because hyperreality is exactly what the rampant securitization of the debt and housing markets has wrought since George W. Bush took office and, paraphrasing popular stock blowhard Jim Cramer, set about destroying the decades-old lender for good, plunging yet another knife into the back of not Franklin Delano Raines, but Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and his New Deal.

So here we are, months later, and the shit has hit the fan. The world, it seems, has awoken to the fact that Fannie and Freddie own trillions in worthless debt, which will need to be owned, which is to say bought, by the government rather than the shareholders who ditched them. And although CNN fool Glenn Beck may still want to attack FDR for nationalizing finance, it is neither his nor the American people's fault that the banks pimped corrupt schemes like CDOs and SIVs. It is those banks, and their accessories in the real estate and finance markets, that logged trillions in inflated debt without checking to see if the money was going to ever really come in. ......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.alternet.org/workplace/91765 /

[ozymandius]

45. Greenspan lobbied Congress to dismantle Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

He said that there's nothing the government-sponsored mortgage lenders do that private banks couldn't do at less cost to taxpayers, with less threat to the financial system.

There's a small chronology of Greenspan blunders here

---

A piratization shill he is.

[Demeter]

77. Then The Ship of Fools Has Overreached For the Last Time

There will be no recovery for the GOP, the Bush dynasty, Ayn Rand or Greenspan....they are toast.
Burnt toast.

[ozymandius]

7. Earnings Preview: Wachovia 2Q results (fugly numbers)

NEW YORK (Associated Press) - Wachovia Corp. reports second-quarter financial results on Tuesday. The following is a summary of key developments and analyst opinion related to the period.

OVERVIEW: Wachovia's woes don't appear to be easing.

.....

EXPECTATIONS: Analysts, on average, expect Wachovia to lose 78 cents per share during the second quarter on revenue of $8.37 billion, according to a survey by Thomson Financial.

ANALYST TAKE: Oppenheimer & Co. analyst Meredith Whitney last week cut her rating on the national bank.

"We're increasingly convinced that the outlook is bleak for equity shareholders," of Wachovia, Whitney wrote in a research note.

http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/apwire/738aea6fa182974d9168f560a2e5b063.htm

[ozymandius]

23. Wachovia, WaMu Struggle to Match Citigroup, JPMorgan Results

July 21 (Bloomberg) -- Investors who plowed money into Wachovia Corp. and Washington Mutual Inc. last week after competitors posted better-than-expected quarters may find out tomorrow if that was a good idea when the two lenders report their own results.

Wachovia and Washington Mutual may have combined second- quarter losses of $3.8 billion, according to analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Wachovia, the nation's fourth-biggest bank by assets, and Washington Mutual, the largest saving and loan, rank among the top providers of ``option-ARM'' and subprime mortgages that now have some of the highest default rates.

.....

Washington Mutual, known as WaMu, is likely to report its third straight loss, which may total $1.23 billion, the average of three analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The announcement may also be CEO Kerry Killinger's first opportunity to address shareholders since he was stripped of the chairman's position last month.

The bank has been burned by foreclosures in California, home to half of its loans. At the end of the first quarter, WaMu had $15 billion of subprime loans on its balance sheet as well as $40 billion of hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages, $56 billion of option-ARMs and $63 billion of home-equity loans and lines of credit, according to Credit Suisse analyst Moshe Orenbuch.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601084&refer=stocks&sid=aoLxoAhtHDbM

[Roland99]

30. It's all about BoA and Roche/Genentech, though.

*sigh*

We'll be back to 12,000 soon enough.

[UpInArms]

11. dollar watch

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

Last trade 72.147 Change -0.026 (-0.04%)

Dollar: Ready to Rebound?

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/topheadline/Dollar__Ready_to_Rebound_1216621624748.html

At the start of trade this week the greenback was caught against the ropes and looked like it was ready to collapse as the panic over the GSE bailout pushed EURUSD to all time highs at 1.6040. But no sooner had the pair reached that lofty level than the hysteria receded as Wells Fargo reported better than expected numbers, oil dropped by more than $15/bbl and capital markets were pacified for the time being about credit worthiness of GSE debt.

In short a slew of positive macro factors cushioned the greenback’s decline and by the end of Friday the buck was trading up on the week. Is the worst behind us? Certainly the FX markets think so and the relief rally in the Dow is being mirrored by the relief rally in dollar. If crude continues to drip lower next week it could provide yet another reason for a dollar counter trend rally, however the focus should also return to more mundane micro matters as both US and EZ calendars contain decidedly more event risk than this week.

On the economic front Wednesdays’ Beige Book and Friday’s Durable Goods data should be of most interest to currency traders. The market is still in a debate over whether US economy is in a mere slowdown or an actual recession and the Beige Book analysis of economic conditions in various Fed districts could shed more light on that issue.

Finally the jobless claims numbers have been surprisingly strong for the past two weeks printing well below the 400K levels that signify recession. Analysts have noted that some of the improvement may be due to seasonal factors. However if this week’s data also proves better than expected it would suggest a positive trend with respect to the labor market and would go a long way to making the case that the economy is in a slowdown rather than a full blown contraction. -BS



...more...

US Dollar: New Week, Same Drivers

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/bio1/US_Dollar__New_Week__Same_1216412152124.html

It has been a very volatile week for the US dollar, even though compared to the beginning of the week, the exchange rate for the EUR/USD and USD/JPY has remained virtually unchanged. On Monday, the EUR/USD was trading at 1.5922 while USD/JPY was trading at 106.26, not far from current levels, but of course these rates masks what can only be likened to a rollercoaster ride in the financial markets. There was a number of event risks and economic data released over the past week, yet the drivers of the financial market volatility can be boiled down to 2 things; the health of the financial sector and oil prices. We have come a long way since traders first speculated about the possible demise of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Federal Reserve and the Treasury have offered different solutions to avert more serious problems while Freddie Mac has announced plans to raise capital by selling as much as $10 billion in new shares to investors. Based upon the 600 point recovery in the Dow off of Tuesday’s intraday low, for the time being traders believe that this could be enough. JPMorgan and Citigroup have reported better than expected earnings even though Merrill Lynch disappointed; 2 out of 3 appears to keep the markets happy for the time being. As for economic data, we learned that inflation remains hot but consumer spending is beginning to falter. With the US economic calendar considerably lighter next week, the health of the financial sector, oil and the stock market will continue to set the tone for the FX markets. Earnings season is in full swing. Bank of America will be releasing their earnings report on Monday and for the rest of the week there will be a number of regional banks reporting. Leading indicators, durable goods, the final July UMich consumer confidence numbers, new and existing home sales are due for release along with the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book report. We will be keeping a particular close eye on the Beige Book report because it will serve as a temperature gage for how the US economy is really doing and how businesses and consumers may coping with the latest developments in the stock and commodity markets.

...more...

[Ghost Dog]

13. GLOBAL MARKETS-Asia stocks surge but financial fears linger

HONG KONG, July 21 (Reuters) - Asian stocks rose by more than 3 percent on Monday, the most in four months, helped by results from Citigroup that reassured about the financial sector's stability, though the U.S. dollar slid ahead of more results from banks this week.

...

But analysts were reluctant to call an end to the fall in global stocks, which are still down nearly 20 percent from their peak late last year, saying much depended on how quarterly earnings look at banks such as Bank of America Corp (BAC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) or industrial companies such as Caterpillar Inc (CAT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Honda Motor Co (7267.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

"It is too premature to assume that the bull market is coming back," said Albert Hung, chief investment officer at Alleron Investment Management in Sydney.

"There are some concerns that the earnings growth forecast for fiscal 2009 is still too high so there may be some earnings revision downwards."

The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific shares outside of Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS was up 3.1 percent on the day, the biggest single-day gain since March 25.

...

Markets in Japan were closed for a public holiday, thinning liquidity in the region.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng .HSI rose 3 percent, with HSBC (0005.HK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) leading the way after The Sunday Telegraph reported China's sovereign wealth fund was in talks to buy shares in the bank in the open market.

South Korea's benchmark KOSPI jumped 3.5 percent, led by gains in the shares of index heavyweights Samsung Electronics (005930.KS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and the world's fourth-largest steel maker POSCO (005490.KS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

Immediate concerns about the global impact of a weak U.S. financial sector have eased after Citigroup (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), the largest U.S. bank, reported a second-quarter loss of $2.5 billion, which was smaller than expected.

All eyes continue to be on Wall Street for indications of any stress, which could reverberate globally. The correlation between the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index and the KBW Bank index .BKX, which includes 24 major bank stocks, has risen to 0.95 in the last three months, up from 0.54 over the last year, according to Reuters data.

BANKS COULD KEEP PUSHING UP STOCKS

However, the picture painted by higher-than-expected results from JPMorgan (JPM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Citigroup and IBM (IBM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) was tainted somewhat by lower-than-forecast results from technology sector bellwethers such as Google Inc (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

In addition, food and energy prices -- though well off their peaks -- continue to fuel inflation at a time when the global economy is slowing down.

Global asset-allocation strategists with JPMorgan said they are staying overweight countries that have done a lot to control inflation such as Mexico, Taiwan and Thailand against those that have not done enough, including India and Brazil.

"Given extreme bearish positions and a positive tone from earnings reports, it is quite likely that equities will see a further upmove in coming weeks on shortcovering. Into August, though, economic news will likely remain negative," they said in a note sent to clients.

/... http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idINSP23785220080721?rpc=44&sp=true

[Ghost Dog]

14. Europe stocks snap 3-session rally; commods gain

PARIS, July 21 (Reuters) - European stocks retreated in early trade on Monday, snapping a three-session recovery, but gains in the mining and energy sectors helped cushion the fall.

Among the biggest losers, Swiss drugmaker Roche (ROG.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) shed 3.3 percent after offering to acquire all outstanding shares in its U.S. partner Genentech Inc (DNA.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) for $43.7 billion. Genentech's shares traded in Frankfurt were up 10 percent.

British lender HBOS (HBOS.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) was also on the down side, losing 3.4 percent after saying shareholders subscribed for just 8.3 percent of shares in its 4 billion pound ($8 billion) rights issue, leaving its underwriters to try to sell almost 3.8 billion pounds of stock. At 0827 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 0.5 percent at 1,158.93 points. The index gained around 3.2 percent last week, rallying after quarterly results from Citigroup (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Wells Fargo (WFC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) calmed fears over banks' balance sheets.

"There is, hanging over the market, the idea that the real cyclical companies haven't yet had major profit warnings whereas we know that the economy is slowing down," said Arthur van Slooten, strategist at Societe Generale, in Paris. "There is still a part of the market that is very likely to at least push its forecast lower," he said.

Mining shares gained ground, rallying along with most base metal prices. Rio Tinto (RIO.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) added 1.4 percent, BHP Billiton (BLT.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) rose 2.7 percent and Xstrata (XTA.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) gained 1 percent.

Energy shares climbed as oil recovered from a recent sharp fall. U.S. crude oil futures CLc1 were up $1.57 at $130.45 a barrel, with oil traders keeping an eye on Tropical storm Dolly, the first storm of the 2008 Atlantic hurricane season that could disrupt oil production in the Gulf of Mexico.

Total (TOTF.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) gained 2.3 percent, BP (BP.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) added 1.2 percent and Repsol (REP.MC: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) rose 0.4 percent.

...

Around Europe, Germany's DAX index .GDAXI was down 0.6 percent, UK's FTSE 100 index .FTSE down 0.5 percent and France's CAC 40 .FCHI down 0.4 percent.

/... http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idCAL2156291020080721?rpc=44&sp=true

[Ghost Dog]

35. European shares jump on Bank of America results

LONDON, July 21 (Reuters) - European shares extended gains to hit their day's highs on Monday after results from Bank of America (BAC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was up 1.1 percent at 1,177.42 points, having hit a day high of 1,178.77 after the Bank of America results.

/. http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idCAL2188095420080721?rpc=44

[Ghost Dog]

15. Another Ambrose E-P rant: The global economy is at the point of maximum danger

The global economy is at the point of maximum danger

By Ambrose Evans- Pritchard
Last Updated: 6:53am BST 21/07/2008

It feels like the summer of 1931. The world's two biggest financial institutions have had a heart attack. The global currency system is breaking down. The policy doctrines that got us into this mess are bankrupt. No world leader seems able to discern the problem, let alone forge a solution.

/Read on, with comments... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2008/07/21/ccview121.xml&CMP=OTC-mostviewedrss

[ozymandius]

43. This is commonly accepted insanity.

The financial tools that got us into this mess are the exact tools and thought processes being used to resolve this mess. They don't work. Yet these so-called great thinkers, these "serious people", are going ahead anyway.

[Ghost Dog]

47. I enjoyed this alternative approach (found in the Weekend Economist thread):

...

The simplest from of euthanasia for Fannie and Freddie would be a takeover by the Office of Federal Housing Oversight (OFHEO), their regulator, on the grounds that they were no longer able to operate independently. In Freddie's case that could be carried out at any time, since the company has failed to follow through on a promise to OFHEO to raise $5.5 billion in new capital - which at Thursday's closing share price would dilute existing shareholders by 55%. In any case, further declines in their share prices and withdrawal of funding by the bond markets are likely to cause a sufficient crisis in the next few weeks to make such a takeover inevitable if a rescue is not organized (which it shouldn't be.)

Following a takeover, Fannie and Freddie would need to continue performing their current functions of guaranteeing home mortgages, as without such guarantees home mortgages are currently impossible to obtain. However, changes must be made to recognize the revised nature of the business.

Since the new guarantees would be direct government obligations (OFHEO being an arm of the government) rather than simply implied obligations, the fees for obtaining them should be jerked sharply upwards, perhaps to 1.5% per annum on the outstanding amount of the mortgage. That would allow mortgage finance to remain available at a cost that is still reasonable in current markets (Fannie Mae paper already pays a 0.75% premium over the government for its borrowings), but as markets recovered it would make Fannie/Freddie guaranteed mortgages highly uncompetitive against direct home loans, by far the healthiest way for housing to be financed.

Together with the salary reductions outlined below, it would also begin to reimburse the unfortunate taxpayer for the gigantic costs of this non-rescue operation.

Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson has called for "covered bonds" similar to the German pfandbriefe to be used to finance housing. Since pfandbriefe, bonds issued by German banks to finance housing, remain on German bank balance sheets and retain the bank guarantee, allowing the banks only to escape the funding risk of lending for 30 years at a fixed rate, they avoid the moral hazards of the securitization markets, and are thus an attractive alternative.

To encourage their use, and to reduce the capital cost to banks of holding mortgages on balance sheet, the Basel 1 bank regulations, currently being phased out, should be retained; they allowed mortgages to carry only a 4% capital charge as against 8% for regular loans. By this and other means, the private banking sector would be encouraged to make sound home loans directly, without the unnecessary Fannie/Freddie guarantees.

The objective would be over a five-10 year period for Fannie and Freddie to become insignificant participants in the mortgage market, after which they could be closed altogether. Meanwhile, costs in Fannie and Freddie could be cut drastically, particularly on the staffing side.

Since Fannie and Freddie staff would now be government employees, they should be paid on the GS (government) payscale, with the chief executive, as a GS-15, receiving appropriate remuneration between $115,317 and $149,000, according to his years of service. Even if the chief executive officer was able to argue himself onto the SES (senior executive service) pay scale - after all, he has excellent congressional contacts - he would be limited to about $205,000 in the Washington area.

Naturally, many Fannie/Freddie employees would be outraged at this cut in their living standards and would attempt to find alternative better-paid employment; I venture to suggest that few would succeed in doing so. That way, redundancy payments would be avoided while salary costs were slashed.

There would be a devastating effect on the Northern Virginia housing market, where many senior Fannie/Freddie employees have overextended themselves with giant home mortgages for vulgar McMansions, but that problem too is probably survivable. More important, the now-disgruntled employees would perform their job poorly, making applying for a Fannie/Freddie guarantee a bureaucratic and uncertain process, similar to negotiating with the Inland Revenue Service. That too should hasten the disappearance of the firms from the housing market.

/... http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=114x40807#40810

[ozymandius]

16. U.S. Stock Futures Gain After Bank of America Beats Estimates (clown alert)

July 21 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures rose after Bank of America Corp. became the fourth top American bank in as many days to exceed analysts' estimates, assuring investors that the worst of the subprime crisis may be over. (Cue the clown car.)

Bank of America, Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. led financial shares higher. Genentech Inc. gained after Roche Holding AG offered to buy the rest of the company for $43.7 billion. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac increased, extending last week's surge, after Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said he's optimistic lawmakers will pass his rescue plan for the biggest U.S. mortgage companies.

....

Bank of America gained 8.8 percent to $29.90 today. The lender reported adjusted second-quarter profit of 75 cents a share, beating the average analyst estimate in a Bloomberg survey by 40 percent. That's the biggest surprise since at least 2004, Bloomberg data show.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601084&sid=aRlclknt1UMQ&refer=stocks

[Demeter]

17. So Maybe They Can Winkle Out One Quarter With Sleight of Hand

but the next one will be telling--just in time for the traditional American October event--total collapse of the stock markets.

[ozymandius]

39. Bank of America profit tumbles 41% (but not as bad as it could have been - yippee!)

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Bank of America became the latest bank to report better-than-expected earnings, even as it revealed Monday that its profits plunged 41% during the most recent quarter.

The Charlotte, N.C.-based company reported earnings of $3.41 billion, or 72 cents a share, during the second quarter. That was down 41% from $5.76 billion, or $1.28, a year earlier.

.....

Wall Street cheered the news as Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500) shares gained more than 11% in pre-market trading on the news.

.....

Having recently completed its purchase of Countrywide Financial, Bank of America said the troubled mortgage lender lost $2.33 billion during the quarter. But Bank of America offered some encouraging news, saying it expects the acquisition to help profitability this year. When the deal was first announced in January, the company said it expected the deal to be earnings-neutral for the remainder of the year.

http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/21/news/companies/bank_of_america/index.htm?postversion=2008072108

[radfringe]

18. Bush Tours America To Survey Damage Caused By His Disastrous Presidency

http://www.theonion.com/content/video/bush_tours_america_to_survey

enjoy!

[ozymandius]

33. That is a classic. Real news footage too.

And sadly - video of people who clearly suffer after their lives were swept away by Mother Nature and Bush's incompetence.

[Royal Oak Rog]

53. That's really outstanding

They pretty much nail it on how the media apologizes for this bufooon.

[DemReadingDU]

60. That's great!

[UpInArms]

19. This one really sucks - FDIC in mess over subprime loans-WSJ

http://www.reuters.com/article/bondsNews/idUSBNG25521020080721

July 21 (Reuters) - The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, a regulator of U.S. banks, is itself embroiled in a mess related to subprime mortgages, the Wall Street Journal said on Monday, citing court documents.

The U.S. government gave out high-interest, subprime mortgages, according to government documents filed in federal court, the newspaper said.

The Journal said federal officials seized Superior Bank FSB, a national subprime lender based in Illinois, in 2001, and the FDIC continued to run the bank's subprime-mortgage business for months as it looked for a buyer.

Superior funded more than 6,700 new subprime loans worth more than $550 million, according to federal mortgage data, the newspaper said, and the FDIC sold a big chunk of the loans to another bank.

The Journal also said Texas-based Beal Bank SSB bought a portfolio of Superior loans, about half of which originated under the FDIC.

Beal sued FDIC in 2002 and is seeking to recover damages arising from the regulator's alleged breaches of contract regarding subprime mortgage portfolios the bank bought from it, according to court documents.

...more...

The idiots are way too stoopid to be in the banking bizness - we're gonna have a lot more "Brownies" doing a heck of a job

:scared:

[Demeter]

21. OMG!

Too stupid, or too crooked?

[ozymandius]

27. The FDIC is _supposed_ to be a rock solid insurer.

Now Beal Bank says that the FDIC has been playing footsie with thick-headed banks who underwrote crap? Jeebus!

[high density]

32. In 2001 there was nothing sinister about subprime loans according to conventional wisdom

And if the FDIC is planning to sell the bank and recover some money, it seems wise to keep it operating. It's easy to look in the mirror and say, "Wow that was dumb," but everybody was doing the dumb thing at that point and it was standard operating procedure.

[UpInArms]

34. well, now, that all depends

on why the bank was put into receivership in the first place and what practices the loan officers were doing at the time of receivership.

If the FDIC just went in and did not start putting better loan compliance rules into place and just continued the practices that put the bank in receivership in the first place and then sold the bank with assurances, this is not a matter of just "looking in the mirror".

:hi:

[high density]

37. It still seems like standard operating procedure in 2001 terms

Why it got to the point of receivership isn't public knowledge AFAIK.

Feb 26, 2002

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has announced the sale of the servicing rights for and residual interests in $3.7 billion of securitized subprime mortgage loans from the former Superior Federal Bank, FSB, Hinsdale, Illinois.

The assets were sold to EMC Mortgage Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Bear Stearns & Co., Inc.. The FDIC recovered $517 million (net) from the residual interest portfolio since Superior's failure on July 27, 2001, including $471 million in sales proceeds. The transfer of the servicing rights to EMC Mortgage Corporation is expected to be completed by the end of June.

http://www.fdic.gov/news/news/press/2002/pr2102.html

Wheeee!

[ozymandius]

36. Then-Chairman Greenspan said this type of loan was a Superior idea.

(pardon the pun)

"I really didn't get it until very late in 2005 and 2006." - Greenscam admitting his full-throttle stupidity on the subprime mortgage/lending crisis.

[UpInArms]

24. Economists: 2nd half growth likely to be anemic (promised rebound no longer in sight)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080721/ap_on_bi_ge/economy_caution_ahead

WASHINGTON - Call it the big fizzle. The hoped-for second-half economic rebound is looking to be lethargic, with the country straining under high energy prices and fallout from the housing and credit debacles.

Forty-five percent of economists believe the economy won't log any growth or will clock in at a feeble 1 percent pace in the final six months of this year, according to a survey being released Monday by the National Association for Business Economics, which is known by the acronym, NABE. And, 10 percent think economic activity could actually contract during the period.

"Forecasters are approaching the second half with a lot of caution," Ken Simonson, point person on the survey and chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, said in an interview. "Most forecasters are suggesting the outlook will be sluggish, but not desperate. I'm afraid we're stuck on the ground floor of growth."

Thirty-two percent, meanwhile, think the economy growth's during the second half could be between 1 and 2 percent, which would mark a plodding performance. The more bullish are clearly in the minority camp: 11 percent think growth will come in between 2 and 3 percent. Only 1 percent expect growth to surpass 3 percent.

The economy's growth slowed sharply in the final quarter of 2007 and remained stuck in a rut in the first quarter of this year. Tax rebates, which have energized shoppers, should help lift the country out of the doldrums somewhat in the second quarter. The government releases its estimate of the second-quarter's economic performance at the end of this month. However, as the bracing force of the rebates fade, some analysts fear the economy could hit another rough patch near the end of this year.

Earlier this year, many thought that the first half of this year would be difficult and the second half would be stronger, lifted by the government's $168 billion stimulus, including tax rebates for people and tax breaks for businesses. With the rebates kicking in earlier than some expected, the second half could turn sluggish.

Many have "abandoned the notion of seeing a rebound," Simonson said.

...more...

[UpInArms]

25. Fortress mortgage fund down about 30 percent: WSJ

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080721/bs_nm/fortress_fund_dc

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A Fortress Investment Group LLC (FIG.N) fund, the Fortress Mortgage Opportunities Fund, is down about 30 percent three months after the firm raised funds for it, the Wall Street Journal reported on its website on Sunday.

Fortress raised $560 million for a fund this spring by buying triple-A-rated residential mortgage-backed securities, the paper said.

The fund uses three-times leverage, owns only triple-A residential mortgage-backed securities and investors are locked in for three years, the paper said, citing unnamed sources.

...more...

[UpInArms]

26. U.S. retailer Mervyn's fights for survival: WSJ

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080721/bs_nm/mervyns_dc

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Department store chain Mervyn's LLC is fighting for survival after a lender pulled financing and some vendors stopped shipments, the Wall Street Journal reported on its website on Sunday.

The company has been trying to persuade vendors to send shipments for the back-to-school season, but if they don't agree, the chain may have to file for bankruptcy soon, the paper said in a report citing unnamed sources.

A private investment group including Sun Capital Partners Inc, Cerberus Capital Management, Lubert-Adler and Klaff Partners LP bought Mervyn's from Target Corp (TGT.N) in 2004.

CIT Group Inc (CIT.N) stopped providing financing to the retailer in the spring, the paper reported.

...more...

looks like another one of those buyouts that gutted the bizness and saddled it with debt - now it's dying dead

[ozymandius]

29. In the Atlanta area Mervyns stores have been dropping like flies in a hail storm.

[ozymandius]

38. early futures

08:27 ET S&P futures vs fair value: +3.4. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +7.0.

Futures continue to suggest a modestly higher start to the trading day. Crude oil is trading up 1.9% at $131.29 per barrel. Merck (MRK) and Schering-Plough (SGP) are delaying their earnings reports until after the stock market close instead of this morning, according to Reuters.com. The delay will allow the companies to provide an update regarding a new study of the cholesterol drug Vytorin.

08:05 ET

S&P futures vs fair value: +2.0. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +5.8.

Futures suggest a higher open to the trading day. In earnings news, Bank of America (BAC) reported earnings of $0.72 per share, which is $0.19 better than the consensus estimate. Yahoo! (YHOO) reached an agreement with Carl Icahn regarding the pending proxy fight. Under the agreement, Carl Icahn will be appointed to the board, and Icahn will withdraw his nominees for other board spots. In deal news, European pharmaceutical company Roche Holdings offered to acquire the remainder of Genentech (DNA), around 44%, for $43.7 billion, or $89 per share in cash.

[Dr.Phool]

40. I'm rich, Bitch!!!! Honk-honk!

Apologies to Dave Chappell.

I was flying up to the Northern Territories for a wedding over the week-end, and decided to stop and buy a few cartons of smokes for my buddy in Cleveland who always gets me a really good rate at the Holiday Inn. I noticed the Lotto was up to $20mil, and decided to invest $5. There was a new clerk at the gas station, who was a little confused, and she gave me a ticket for Mega Money by mistake.

Their was a line forming behind me, and I kept the ticket and didn't say anything.

I just checked the ticket. I won $406.

Maybe next month I'll play again.

[Hugin]

69. Yesssss!

Remind me not to play cards with you for a couple of days.

That's HAWT!

[AnneD]

75. Congrats to my new best friend.....

:spray: May you continue to have such mistakes.

[Alcibiades]

42. I had thought that Bush's tax cuts

were supposed to break the business cycle and create permanent prosperity.

Yet another epic fail. Go figure.

[radfringe]

44. tax cuts were suppose to

generate massive quantities of money for the wealthy, who in turn would invest, this would then tRickle down on us little people

obviously a typo - we are just getting TINKLED on

or as another way to put it:

[Dr.Phool]

46. Tax cuts achieved exactly what they were really intended to do.

Pretty much bankrupt the country so that there's no money to spend on any type of social programs. And saddle the economy with so much debt, that it will take years and years to recover. I think it will take a generation or better.

On a week-end trip, I was reading Kevin Phillips' "Bad Money" on the way up, and bought a copy of Harpers, with a great article by Thomas Frank, to read on the flight back.

Interesting reading.

[Alcibiades]

55. Will anyone call them out on this?

If tax cuts for the richest spurred the economy, we would be living in a golden age, not standing at the brink of a global depression.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/jul/14/economy.useconomicgrowth

[Dr.Phool]

65. No they won't.

Democrats are in their "repeat the republican mantra" mode. More tax cuts. They're even thinking about another round of tax rebates.

Unless Captain Obvious buys a newspaper or a cable news channel, "low information voters", aka, dumbfucks will think it's just cyclical downturn. You know, "whats a deficit"? National debt, huh?.

Happiness is just around the bend.

[ozymandius]

62. Meanwhile the Air Force has marked $235 million of equipment to be discarded.

All this stuff is heading for the dumpster just as soon as it arrives from the manufacturer. Yes - that's right. They'll throw it away just as soon as they take receipt of this junk: all $235 million dollars of it.

...

“The idea that over $200 million in spare parts that has not yet come into the Air Force is already marked for disposal!” said Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. “They’re planning to get rid of it and it hasn’t even come in!”

Sanders wants Congress to cut Air Force funding if it doesn't get a serious grip on its inventory problem.

For example, the Air Force already has hundreds of aircraft ducts they don't need (that’s 214, at $6.9 million). But more are on order. It has thousands of unneeded aircraft blades, and thousands more on the way - 7,460 at $2 million, to be precise.

It costs up to $30 million dollars a year just to store the stuff they don't need.

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/news/record.cfm?id=289876

[Pale Blue Dot]

48. Layoffs 7/21

Sorry I'm late today. I'm going to have to make myself up a spreadsheet to keep track of this. I could just make it easier on myself and just post daily that anyone in transporation, newspapers, or local government is in deep, deep trouble.

City of Leesburg, Fl - 41 jobs lost total

LEESBURG - City officials arranged for employee layoffs to help meet budget constraints after other workers decided this week to accept early retirement buyouts.

The city received notifications Thursday from 12 who chose to take early retirement. The option included reduced penalties for drawing on pensions early and extended health-care coverage, City Manager Jay Evans said.

"It helps us determine the number of layoffs needed to balance the budget," said Evans, referring to this week's early retirement announcements.

The layoffs, estimated at nine, were planned late this week. In addition, 20 vacant positions will be eliminated and three other employees will move into new positions.

Portland Press Herald - Portland, ME - ?? jobs lost (4th round of layoffs)

The Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram announced today it would have to cut more employees to compensate for a projected $1.2 million shortfall in advertising revenue in the second half of the year.

This would be the fourth round of layoffs the papers have undergone in the last year. The last round was announced in May and took effect July 1.

In that round, the paper cut 36 jobs. Of those, 25 employees accepted voluntary severance packages, six employees were laid off and another five jobs vacated by prior resignations were left unfilled.

Publisher Charles Cochrane said the decline in ad revenue has proven to be greater than was projected when the last round of cuts was planned.

"The economy has continued to worsen, and our business results are reflecting that. June advertising volumes were even worse than we had forecast, and it is now certain that July will also come in below expectations," said Cochrane in a company-wide memo.

Baltimore Sun - Baltimore, MD - 100 jobs lost

BALTIMORE: The (Baltimore) Sun completed its latest round of job cuts Friday by eliminating about 100 positions.

Fifty-five of those jobs were in the newsroom, according to union leaders, but the mass layoffs feared by many there were largely averted.

Judy Berman, a spokeswoman for the Baltimore Sun Media Group, declined to give an exact number of eliminated jobs but said the company had met its goal for cutting the work force by about 100 with a minimum of layoffs.

The 171-year-old newspaper, owned by Chicago-based Tribune Co., had about 280 newsroom employees before this round of cuts.

Howell Township - Howell, NJ - 8 jobs lost

By a vote of 3 to 0, the Township Council adopted the 2008 municipal budget last week. The budget calls for zero tax rate increase, keeping the municipal tax rate stable at 26.6-cents per $100 of assessed property value.

Though the $43.76 million budget is a little over $1 million more than last year, eight township employees have already had their jobs eliminated.

Mayor Joseph DiBella, Deputy Mayor Mike Howell and Councilman Robert Walsh all voted in favor of the budget, while Councilwomen Cynthia Schomaker and Angela Dalton were absent from the meeting.

Abbott Laboratories - North Chiocago, IL - "very small number" of jobs lost

NORTH CHICAGO -- Abbott Laboratories will lay off a "very small number" of employees in coming weeks as part of what a company spokesman termed a departmental restructuring.
Abbott spokesman Kurt Ebenhoch, while declining to say how many employees will be affected, said Friday that the company is "making a few changes in our diagnostics unit (to) improve our business efficiency."
The cuts will include management-level employees at Abbott Park.
Late last year, the company laid off some 1,200 people from manufacturing jobs in California and Ireland. That number represented less than 2 percent of Abbott's global work force of 65,000.
News of the latest cuts came two days after the company announced strong worldwide sales and net income during the second quarter, which ended June 30.

Vance Air Force Base - OK - 42 jobs lost

The latest layoffs at Vance Air Force Base will mean 42 employees will lose their jobs Aug. 4.

Danny R. Ohnesorge, program manager for CSC Applied Technologies LLC, primary contractor at Vance, has confirmed the affected employees have been informed they will be laid off as of Aug. 4. He said the layoffs would occur across the board but would include positions in aircraft maintenance, civil engineering, information technology and community services, as well as what he called “the overhead portion of the contract,” involving employees in administrative positions.

Of the 42, three will involve salaried, non-union employees, Ohnesorge said. Of the 30 employees laid off during an earlier reduction in force in June, three also were salaried.

Ohnesorge said, as far as he knows right now, no further layoffs are planned.

Virginia Regional Medical Center - 41 jobs lost

A shortage of physicians is prompting job cuts at the Virginia Regional Medical Center.

According to our partners at the Timberjay Newspaper, nurses have been hit the hardest, with a total of 41 affected by full or partial layoffs.

In addition to the cuts, hospital administrators have asked nurses to voluntarily reduce their hours or take extra days off.

Meanwhile, hospital officials are working to boost revenues, which sharply dropped in March, and hope the layoffs will prove temporary.
http://www.northlandsnewscenter.com/news/local/25671454.html

City of Atlanta, GA - ?? jobs cut

ATLANTA (MyFOX Atlanta) – The mayor of Atlanta cut more jobs Friday and this time some high-ranking executives were among those city employees who got pink slips.

Most of those cuts axed un-filled positions. Franklin said the cuts ruined the dream of previous Mayor Campbell to have 2000 police officers in the city of Atlanta.

Atlanta's Fire Department was also hard hit.

Atlanta Fire Chief Kelvin J. Cochran said the department will decommission one fire station, eliminate 34 firefighter positions and layoff 27 fire recruits.
http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=7016510&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.1.1

[Pale Blue Dot]

49. Tech Job Cuts Forecast for 2009 (hint: it's not good)

CIOs plan sharp reductions in contract staff, professional services, and hardware -- and almost no investment in cloud computing

IT staff jobs are at increasing risk -- both for contractors and in-house workers -- according to a survey of top CIOs by Goldman, Sachs & Co released last week. Global services companies will also feel the pinch because of the slowing economy.

A second survey showed that basic PC and network hardware, as well as professional services providers, would bear the largest proportion of spending cuts. It also showed that CIOs planned to emphasize economizing measures over investments new technologies, with cloud computing emerging as the last item on their priority lists, despite the hype around it.

IT contractors to bear the brunt of cuts

"Demand for discretionary IT projects dropped to its lowest point" in the 41-study history of the Goldman Sachs staffing survey, which asked 100 managers with strategic-decision-making authority (mainly CIOs at multinational Fortune 1000 companies) about their about IT staffing plans for 2009.

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/148646/tech_job_cuts_forecast_for_2009.html

[radfringe]

51. might be easier to just post an article

entitled "SOME people still have jobs
But can't get to them because gas to too expensive"

[ozymandius]

50. Markets are open for bidness.

9:35
Dow 11,530.03 Up 33.46 (0.29%)
Nasdaq 2,288.67 Up 5.89 (0.26%)
S&P 500 1,264.43 Up 3.75 (0.30%)
10-Yr Bond 4.091% Up 0.01
NYSE Volume 93,377,171.875
Nasdaq Volume 51,670,285.156

[ozymandius]

56. updating for blather

9:46
Dow 11,545.26 Up 48.69 (0.42%)
Nasdaq 2,295.31 Up 12.53 (0.55%)
S&P 500 1,267.14 Up 6.46 (0.51%)

09:35 am : The stock market opens on a modestly higher note, getting a boost from another better-than-expected earnings report from a major financial company.

Bank of America (BAC 29.40, +1.91) reported a 43% year-over-year drop in second quarter earnings per share to $0.72, although the results easily topped Wall Street's forecast of $0.53 per share. The financial sector is outperforming with a 1.1% gain.

In corporate news, Yahoo! (YHOO 21.72, -0.73) and activist investor Carl Icahn have reached an agreement regarding their pending proxy contest. Under the deal, Ichan will be appointed to the board, and two more seats will be filled from a list of nine candidates recommended by Icahn. In turn, Ichan will withdraw his nominees for vote at the annual meeting.

European pharmaceutical company Roche Holdings offered to acquire the remainder of Genentech (DNA 93.04, +11.22) for $43.7 billion, or $89 per share in cash. Roche already owns roughly 56% of Genentech. Shares of DNA are trading higher than the offer price on speculation that Roche will have to raise its bid.DJ30 +37.29 NASDAQ +7.73 SP500 +3.60

[antigop]

52. Bill Moyers interview with William Greider on Wall Street

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07182008/transcript2.html

WILLIAM GREIDER: One of the reasons I think politics is going to change fairly dramatically is that the Federal Reserve, accompanied by the Treasury Department and I think will be accompanied by the Congress, has crossed a very dangerous line in their bailout. They have essentially said, "We will put money on the table, taxpayers' money on the table, for any financial institution or business that is too big to fail." That is, if it fails, it'll send dangerous ripples through the economy.

And we've got a list now of maybe 30, 40, depending on how you count them, that we will be there to save you. I regard that as profoundly dangerous for the American Republic because once you cross that line and you have this special club that's privileged, that has benefits from government that nobody else can get, where do you stop it?

I mean, if I were running a big manufacturing company, I would have quickly run out and buy a subsidiary that's a bank or a financial firm that looks like a bank. And I would then try to get myself on that list. Who wouldn't? What's going on right now it's gotten a little attention - the union SEIU is fighting it, is these private equity firms, which are huge money pots of investors that take over and change corporations and come away with huge profits. The private equity firms are trying to buy into the banks and financial firms.

BILL MOYERS: And what would that mean?

WILLIAM GREIDER: That would mean that this private unregulated equity fund would be participating behind the door, so to speak, in the management of our regulated banks. But it would also, in a pinch, if it's big enough, maybe have a tap into that federal guarantee that if you're too big to fail, we'll be there for you.

Link to video:
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07182008/watch2.html

[antigop]

58. Private equity seen near-term banking fix

In light of Greider's comments in the preceding post, I thought I'd post this article:

http://www.reuters.com/article/reutersEdge/idUSN2728520220080627

The U.S. Federal Reserve is considering adjusting current rules that generally make it hard for investors to buy more than 9.9 percent of a bank's shares without seeking permission from regulators.

Private equity firms like Carlyle Group CYL.UL are pushing regulators to loosen the rules.

But private equity firms typically invest limited amounts of capital for finite periods, which may not be ideal for a bank looking to assure depositors of its strength.

"Bank regulators like stable money," said Gregory Lyons, chair of the financial services group and banking practice at law firm Goodwin Procter.

However, banks are in dire need of capital, and in some cases they need it fast. That's where private equity can help -- they can quickly provide capital for five years or longer. In the meantime, the economy can improve, allowing banks to improve their financial footing, and other investors may step in to buy out private equity funds.

[Pale Blue Dot]

57. Asterisks Abound

Last week's deeply oversold condition allowed Treasury and SEC to orchestrate what BIll King called the mother of all short covering rallies.

That looks to continues this week.

Earnings are coming in weak -- however, they are not as bad as the worst case scenarios. As we noted previous to the rally, we covered our shorts and are playing this for bounce. But beyond the bounce, we continue to have concerns.

Asterisks abound in many of these earnings, from Wells Fargo to Wachovia to Bank of America. Why asterisks? Consider how this game is being played:

• Delinquencies and Foreclosures were previously marked on a 120 day basis; the bank extended its charge-off policy to 180 days, eliminating or postponing enormous losses to the future;

• Some paper is being moved to Level 2 or Level 3, again forestalling taking the actual loss;

• Borrowing at a modest rate from the discount window artificially lowers costs;

There's lots more of these asterisks, and until the crowd figures this out, you should expect the financial rally to run.

http://bigpicture.typepad.com/comments/2008/07/asterisks-aboun.html

[ozymandius]

64. This is the same tactic as ditching the M3 money supply report.

Until you run out of inventory you can keep hiding the dirty laundry under the bed.

[Dr.Phool]

66. In other words, they outsourced their economist jobs

And replaced them with PR people.

[ozymandius]

59. good quote

Have we, too, not suffered at the hands of what used to be called The Interests? Have the stewards of other people's money not made a hash of high finance? Did they not enrich themselves in boom times, only to pass the cup to us, the taxpayers, in the bust? Where is the people's wrath?

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121642367125066615.html

[Pale Blue Dot]

61. Small Business Administration...loans to Dell, Home Depot, other Fortune 500 Companies

During 2006 and 2007, DOI reported millions of dollars in contracts to Fortune 500 corporations such as Dell, GTSI, Home Depot, John Deere, McGraw-Hill, Ricoh, Sherwin Williams, Starwood Hotels, Waste Management Incorporated, Weyerhaeuser, World Wide Technology and Xerox Corporation as small business contracts.

The DOI Office of Inspector General's report is the latest investigation to contradict two Small Business Administration (SBA) press releases, which claimed that it was a "myth" that large businesses received federal small business contracts.

The General Accounting Office (GAO) first uncovered the diversion of federal small business contracts to Fortune 500 corporations in 2002. Since then, there have been approximately a dozen federal investigations that have all found Fortune 500 firms and other large corporations were the actual recipients of billions of dollars in federal small business contracts every year. Despite the series of federal investigations and over 400 stories in the press since 2002, no legislation has been passed to address the problem.

As opposed to adopting policies to stop the flow of federal small business contracts to Fortune 500 firms, former SBA Administer Steven Preston adopted a SBA policy in June of 2007 that will allow Fortune 500 firms to continue to receive federal small business contracts until the year 2012. Preston also removed all information from the government's Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database that could be used to determine if a firm was small or large. Additionally, Preston refused to release the specific names of all firms that received government small business contracts.

http://angrybear.blogspot.com/2008/07/small-business-administrationloans-to.html

[ozymandius]

63. Averages sinking to the unchanged mark

10:31
Dow 11,497.63 Up 1.06 (0.01%)
Nasdaq 2,287.36 Up 4.58 (0.20%)
S&P 500 1,262.68 Up 2.00 (0.16%)
10-Yr Bond 4.093% Up 0.012

10:00 am : The stock market extends its opening gains, with eight of the ten economic sectors in positive territory. Crude oil prices are unchanged at $128.89 per barrel, a substantial retreat from their session high of $132.05.

Buying interest is concentrated within the financial sector, which is benefiting from a strong 9.8% gain in shares of Bank of America (BAC 30.18, +2.69). Outside of financials, stocks are trading near the unchanged mark, considering healthcare (-0.2%) is the worst performing sector with only a slight loss.

According to the Conference Board, June leading indicators fell 0.1%, which is in-line with expectations. For the most part, the report is a collection of previously announced economic indicators, including jobless claims, money supply, average workweek, building permits and stock prices. As a result, the report typically has a limited impact on the market.DJ30 +44.62 NASDAQ +15.45 SP500 +6.28 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1524/185 mln/824 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1923/138 mln/876

[Dr.Phool]

67. Proposed song for the day.

I just got an ear worm in my head that won't go away. And fittingly, it's by Brian Auger and the Oblivion Express.

"Happiness is just around the bend".

[Hugin]

68. Spin that platter, Dr. Phool!

:thumbsup:


The cartoon today would be hilarious... If it weren't so true. :/




(Extra points for anyone who has a clue what "spinning a platter" has to do with music.)

[TalkingDog]

71. racks and racks of hits on wax....

What do I win?

[Hugin]

72. My undying admiration...

Which, if combined with Four Bucks might get you a coffee. (If you don't mention my name. If I'm mentioned it's around Eight Bucks. ;) )

[Dr.Phool]

73. I used to have that one on vinyl.

But, then again, that's all you could get back then.

[UpInArms]

76. end of the day numbers and blather

Dow 11,467.34 29.23 (0.25%)
Nasdaq 2,279.53 3.25 (0.14%)
S&P 500 1,260.00 0.68 (0.05%)
10-Yr Bond 4.067% 0.014

NYSE Volume 4,662,648,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,890,531,625

4:20 pm : The stock market posted a slight loss near the unchanged mark on Monday. A rise in oil prices and a steep drop in shares of two major pharmaceutical companies overshadowed a better-than-expected earnings report from one of the world's largest financial firms.

Bank of America (BAC 28.52, +1.03) reported a 43% drop in earnings per share to $0.72. However, the result easily topped Wall Street's forecast of $0.53 per share, due to a lower-than-expected write-down of $1.2 billion. BofA's CEO plans to recommend that the board leave the quarterly dividend at $0.64 per share (9.0% annual yield at current levels).

The financial sector climbed 2.8% shortly after the opening bell, but settled with a loss of 0.9% following some profit-taking efforts after last week's 11.4% surge.

In corporate news, pharmaceutical companies Merck (MRK 35.39, -2.29) and Schering-Plough (SGP 18.99, -2.45) tumbled 6.1% and 11% respectively, due to continued concerns over the cholesterol drug Vytorin. The companies delayed their earnings reports until after the market close to discuss a report that said Vytorin does not lower the risk of major heart valve problems.

European pharmaceutical company Roche Holdings offered to acquire the remainder of Genentech (DNA 93.69, +11.87) for $43.7 billion, or $89 per share in cash. Roche already owns a 56% stake in Genentech. Shares of DNA are trading higher than the offer price on speculation that Roche will have to raise its bid.

Yahoo! (YHOO 21.68, -0.77) and activist investor Carl Icahn have reached an agreement regarding their pending proxy contest. Under the deal, Icahn will be appointed to the board, and two more seats will be filled from a list of nine candidates recommended by Icahn. In turn, Icahn will withdraw his nominees for vote at the annual meeting.

Three of the ten sectors posted a gain. Energy stocks (+2.9%) led the way as crude prices climbed 2.1% to $131.56. The advance in oil prices came as a tropical storm entered the Gulf of Mexico.

Consumer discretionary (-1.3%), health care (-1.2%), and financials (-0.9%) were the main laggards.

On the economic front, June leading indicators fell 0.1%, which is in-line with expectations. For the most part, the report is a collection of previously announced economic indicators, and as a result it had a limited impact on the stock market. DJ30 -29.23 NASDAQ -3.25 NQ100 -0.2% R2K +0.7% SP400 +0.7% SP500 -0.68 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1579/1.84 bln/1238 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2034/1.20 bln/1115

[Pale Blue Dot]

78. After the close, American Express and Apple posted poor earnings.

Futures have dropped 100 points.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=adfHH7wZsJjY&refer=news

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=a0PUCZjXOywA&refer=news