Daily Archives: February 16, 2009

Microsoft (MSFT) Adjusts Investor Expectation Down

msft1Wall St. is estimating that Microsoft (MSFT) will make $.40 a share in the current quarter and $1.77 for its fiscal year which ends in June. The company’s CEO is sending a signal that the firm won’t make those numbers. Read More »

Posted on: February 16, 2009 – 11:54 am in Economy, Hardware, PC Companies, Software, Technology Companies, , , , ,

What Each State Gets Under The Economic Stimulus Package

By Majorie Backman

Marjorie Backman    DailyFinance
Now that Congress has delivered to the president the economic-stimulus bill for his expected signature, how much aid will your state get in the final compromise package? The Center for American Progress, a progressive think tank updated an online map on February 13 to show state-by-state funding levels according to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Read more…

Posted on: February 16, 2009 – 10:17 am in Uncategorized

Tax Cuts Are Great, but They’re Also a Non-Sequitur

John Tamny, RealClearMarkets

Seeking to boost the economy, House minority leader John Boehner wrote in a recent op-ed for USA Today that our nation’s fix lies in “fast-acting tax relief that lets families, small businesses, home-buyers and job-seekers keep more of what they earn.” President Barack Obama has decried the GOP’s tax-cutting ways, recently arguing that “We can’t rely on a losing formula that offers only tax cuts as the answer to all our problems.”

The distance between the two major political parties raises the question as to which side is right. What’s odd in this strange economic environment is that both Boehner and Obama are seemingly missing the point.

Read more…

Posted on: February 16, 2009 – 8:06 am in Uncategorized

Sirius (SIRI): Firing The CEO Does Nothing

siriThe latest chess move in the game to get control of Sirius XM (SIRI) is that the creditors are threatening to fire CEO Mel Karmazin if he takes the company into Chapter 11.

The Wall Street Journal reports that “A group of Sirius XM Radio Inc. creditors says it is prepared to seek the ouster of Chief Executive Mel Karmazin and other senior executives if the company files for bankruptcy instead of cutting a deal with an investor that would allow it to remain solvent.”

The action will come a little late for creditors who will see most of the value of their debt destroyed in court proceedings.

Creditors do not seem to want to accept the inevitable.  Sirius is almost surely dead, certainly as a public company and perhaps as a viable entity of any kind.

The satellite radio company relies heavily on new car sales to build its subscription base and that means its years of growth may be at an end.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Posted on: February 16, 2009 – 7:38 am in Satellite,

Nokia (NOK) Goes After Apple (AAPL), Maybe

apple-logo1Nokia (NOK) is starting a software store for its handsets. According to MarketWatch, it will be “an online bazaar that will allow users to buy music or films as well as applications directly from their mobile phone.”

The Nokia project looks a great deal like Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone software business and another service which is growing rapidly to serve the the Google (GOOG) Android handset operating system. Read More »

Posted on: February 16, 2009 – 7:18 am in Consumer Electronics, Wireless, , , ,

In Japanese GDP, A Foreshadowing For The US?

jap2The US economy has a number of advantages over Japan. While Japan counts heavily on exports for its GDP growth, the US middle class consumes a great deal of what is produced in America.  Much of the fate of the US GDP is decided within its own borders.

Japan’s GDP is now contracting at an annual rate of 13%. The US economy may be heading in that direction. Read More »

Posted on: February 16, 2009 – 6:50 am in Economy, International Markets

Nationalize This!!

fdicThe advocates for nationalizing US banks have been out in force recently.  Senator Lindsay Graham, who almost certainly does not have a PhD in economics or finance, told ABC News that banks were in such deep trouble that government ownership of the institutions may be the only way to save the financial system. Economist Nouriel Roubini, who probably has several advanced degrees, wrote in The Washington Post that the Swedes set a precedent for bank nationalization nearly 20 years ago. The first counter to his argument is that it is dark over 20 hours a day in Sweden during the winter which causes a level of depression among the population that may undermine their judgment regarding any economic situation. If this theory is true, banks in Panama will never face being taken over by the government. Read More »

Posted on: February 16, 2009 – 6:31 am in Banking, Economy

Media Digest 2/16/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

newspaper6According to Reuters, Obama has dropped the idea of appointing a “car czar”.

Reuters reports that Japan’s GDP is dropping at an annual rate of over 13%.

Reuters reports that the Administration is trying to talk down the idea that the stimulus package will help the economy soon. Read More »

Posted on: February 16, 2009 – 4:51 am in Press Digest, , , , ,

Asia Markets And Europe Open 2/16/2009

brit2Markets in Asia were mixed. The Nikkei fell .4% to 7,750.

The Hang Seng dropped .7% to 13,456.

The Shanghai Composite rose 3% to 2,389.

At the open in Europe, the FTSE was down .6%. The Dax dropped .7% to 4,384. The CAC 40 dropped .8% to 2.975.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Posted on: February 16, 2009 – 4:25 am in International Markets