Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) showed that its government demands for private information about customers from December 1, 2012, to May 31, 2013, was between 4,000 and 5,000, and 9,000 to 10,000 accounts or devices were specified in those requests. That is a total figure and represents the requests from federal, state and local authorities, and it includes both criminal investigations and national security issues. Here is our full coverage with more detail.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) shows on an official blog post that for the six months ended December 31, 2012, it received between 6,000 and 7,000 criminal and national security warrants, subpoenas and orders affecting between 31,000 and 32,000 consumer accounts from local, state and federal U.S. government entities.

Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) said in an online post that for the six months ending December 31, 2012 it had user-data requests from all government entities for between 9,000 and 10,000.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) did not reveal the number of security requests, nor did AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T). Verizon has its weekly security blog post from Friday June 14, 2013, showing its latest security issues.

Industrial production came in flat for the month of May rather than a 0.2% expected gain. The reading on capacity utilization posted an unexpected drop to 77.6%, versus a Bloomberg expectation for a 0.1% gain to 77.9%. To make matters worse, the 77.8% from April was revised to 77.7%. The peak cycle was 78.3% in March, which makes things look even worse. Now for the really bad news: the Federal Reserve chart shows that this 77.6% rate for May of 2013 was even lower than May of 2012 at 77.8%.

Manufacturing was static at 75.8% in May, versus 75.8% in April and 75.8% in May of 2012. Unfortunately (again) manufacturing had peaked above 76% in prior months. The point is that the United States is just not in any position resembling a great economy. Hopefully this is just a seasonal slowing for summer.

What the public needs to understand is that the 1988 to 1989 high cycle showed that capacity utilization peaked at 85.2%. It then reached 85.0% on average from the 1994 to 1995 high peak (a time when interest rates rose). To show just how bad things were, this fell to a low of 66.9% in 2009 during the peak of the recession.

A long-term chart from the St. Louis Federal Reserve tracks all of this through time, going back to the 1960s. If the United States wants an economy where we are really back at 6.5% and much lower unemployment, with growth averaging closer to 2.5% to 3% and with payrolls being created north of 250,000 or so, that will appear in the capacity utilization figures. Unfortunately, we are going the wrong way again, and that is not resembling anything healthy for the economy.

If you want a really healthy economy, the United States needs to get back above 80% capacity. It also has to stay above 80%.

Phenix is based in Riom, France, and it designs, manufactures and sells proprietary Direct Metal 3D Printers that can print chemically pure fully dense metal and ceramic parts from very fine powders with the granularity of 6 to 9 microns. The shares are traded on the French market’s Alternext system, and the buyout is listed as 13 euros per share.

This acquisition is said to strengthen 3D’s offerings, and it also immediately positions 3D Systems at the heart of the aerospace, automotive, defense and patient specific health care manufacturing opportunities. Materials include stainless steel, tool steel, super alloys, non-ferrous alloys, precious metals and alumina for a variety of aerospace, automotive and patient specific medical device applications. We are looking also for a fast close here as the companies signaled that the merger is expected to close in July 2013.

After regulatory and other conditions have been met and after the acquisition closes, 3D Systems did say that it intends to launch a takeover bid for the remaining 20% of the shares of Phenix Systems. The maximum price payable by 3D Systems for the 80% block is 13 euros per share.

Phenix currently is listed under the Alternext ticker of ALPHX, and the last level was listed as 5.79 euros. The company’s shares are very thinly traded and some days there have been no shares trading at all.

3D Systems is trading up 0.8% at $46.81 shortly after the open on Wednesday, against a 52-week range of $18.33 to $51.94.

What matters here is that no bidders surfaced for Depa. If Greece cannot privatize certain assets, then there is going to be yet another budget hole that was expected to be filled under the existing bailouts for the nation. The real risk is that Greece has to opt for more austerity measures rather than raising capital, and the ramification of that is that the Greek public does not want to absorb any more sacrifice on top of the cuts it has already seen.

The so-called sister company of Depa is Desfa, the gas-grid operator. It was said to have received only one bid. We were looking for more than 1 billion euros to come from the privatizations based upon past comments that Greece was hoping these assets would generate somewhere in the vicinity of half of the 2.6 billion euros that the nation needs to raise. We were not as optimistic as the half, but getting a billion euro or even close to it would have been a solid start and a show that long-term infrastructure buyers are at least willing to look at Greece again.

We would remind the public that the OPAP state-run gambling entity came down to a single bid and then the entity posted a loss after the deal closed. Infrastructure buyers are likely concerned that they would have to keep providing services in some manner even if the public cannot pay or if the public refuses to pay. Unfortunately, that is a risk when it comes to dealing with the public.

The Athens Stock exchange’s general index was down over 6% at one point, but closed down over 4% on Monday. The National Bank of Greece SA (NYSE: NBG) was down 4.5% at $5.25 in New York ADR trading in mid-afternoon trading, although this could be continued worries over its banking operation in Turkey. In Turkey, both the iShares MSCI Turkey Investable Market Index (NYSE: TUR) and Turkish Investment Fund Inc. (NYSE: TKF) were each down another 1% or so as the prime minister again called for an end to the demonstrations. Back over Greece, the Global X FTSE Greece 20 ETF (NYSE: GREK) ETF was down 3.7% at $17.27 on last look.

We wonder if Fitch would have still issued last month’s credit rating upgrade for Greece if the nation’s privatization efforts were expected to come with no outside interest in buying the assets.

MidAmerican will pay $23.75 per share in cash and both companies have said that their respective boards of directors have unanimously approved the deal. The transaction is currently expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2014.

NV Energy NV Energy provides services to roughly 2.4 million citizens of Nevada and nearly 40 million tourists annually. MidAmerican Energy will have assets of approximately $66 billion and its regulated electric and gas utilities will serve 8.4 million customers after this deal is closed upon.

As a part of MidAmerican, NV Energy will gain access to additional operational and financial resources. It will have the opportunity to combine MidAmerican’s management experience in renewable energy with Nevada’s renewable resources. The company will operate as a separate corporate subsidiary of MidAmerican Energy and will continue to be headquartered in Las Vegas.

Warren Buffett was quoted saying, “This is a great fit for Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-B), and we are pleased to make a long-term investment in Nevada’s economy. Through MidAmerican, we have found in NV Energy a great company with similar values, outstanding assets, and a superb management team.”

NV Energy’s market cap was of the close was $4.54 billion and its closing price of $19.28 compared to a 52-week trading range of $16.90 to $21.63. Shares are trading up around $23.80 in the after-hours, but we would warn merger-arbitrage investors that Mr. Buffett and his team almost never pay more than the original terms agreed to even if others believe a company is worth more money.

NV Energy’s dividend yield as of the closing price on Wednesday was about 3.8%.

Analyst downgrades in the sector are only magnifying what investors have to fear. These downgrades were seen in Exelon Corp. (NYSE: EXC) and FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) and have reminded investors of the risks in what have been considered to be the safe haven stocks in the electric utility and power generation stocks. For simplicity, we have not segregated the actual utilities with retail customers from the companies who specialize in power generation and transmission.

Utility sector investors have to worry about a long-term trend of rising interest rates. A short-term spike will have little impact, but if rates rise rapidly or if they rise steadily over a long period it really hurts utilities. The risk is also not just that investors may prefer to go after more steady bond yields. Utilities have high operating costs and they borrow heavily to pay for infrastructure investments in power generation and power transmission via power lines.

As utilities invest for trends based 10-years, 20-years, and longer in the future, they tend to borrow funds based on 10-year to 30-year maturities. A rise of 200 basis points in a two-year Treasury notes can swing up and down rapidly, but locking in borrowing at 100 basis points or 200 basis points higher for a period of 20 to 30 years really alters a utility’s ability to invest.

The Utilities Select Sector SPDR (NYSEMKT: XLU) is down almost 1% at $38.46 so far on Tuesday against a 52-week trading range of $$33.85 to $41.44. Yahoo! Finance represents its dividend yield as 3.72%. Keep in mind that this yield is still currently 160 basis points higher than the 10-year Treasury. Now if you want to consider the risks, the peak cycle yield on the 10-year Treasury back in just 2011 and that yield is close to the same as where the 10-year Treasury yield was. If you want to know what risk this leaves you as a utility investor, the Utilities Select Sector SPDR (NYSEMKT: XLU) was around $31 per share at the start of 2011 and the yields in utility stocks at that point were often 5%.

We once wrote that utility stocks were becoming the new equivalent of bank CDs for investors. The risk now is that those investors will have to panic out of utilities for safer dividend yields elsewhere. Now compare the yields of today knowing that many of these utilities yielded well over 5% in 2011:

American Electric Power Co. (NYSE: AEP) was yielding over 5% in early 2011 versus about 4.1% now. AEP shares are down about 2.5% at $46.52 with a $22.6 billion market cap against a 52-week range of $38.15 to $51.60.

Exelon Corp. (NYSE: EXC) is trading down 7.5% at $32.06 with a yield of 3.6% and a 52-week trading range of $28.40 to $39.82.

FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) is trading down 7.3% at $39.50 against a 52-week range of $38.26 to $51.14. Its yield is now 5.2%.

PPL Corp. (NYSE: PPL) is trading down 2% at $29.97 and now yields 4.8% with a 52-week trading range of $27.10 to $33.55.

NextEra Energy Inc. (NYSE: NEE) is down only 0.4% at $77.00 today against a 52-week range of $64.31 to $82.65. its yield is only 3.4%.

Read Also: Mortgage REITS Under Threat of Treasury Bear Market

At least one electric and gas utility is not getting taken under the water today. PG&E Corp. (NYSE: PCG) is up 0.2% at $46.24, although its yield is under 4% now and its 52-week range is $39.40 to $48.50. Dynegy Inc. (NYSE: DYN) is also bucking the trend under its restructured operations and its shares are up 1.6% at $24.33 on the day.

There is at least some good news here. The price of the underlying stocks might not actually go back and retest the formal prices of just over two years ago. This would be because most utilities have raised their dividend payments for several years in a row now. That would create a situation where a yield-adjustment might not be as bad for utility holders relative to price performance might keep investors from getting crushed.

As far as how high Treasury yields can go, the risk is that they can rise forever even if that risk seems minimal. The old saying is that high prices often cure high prices, and the same can occur in higher bond yields if investors think that they can just get a safe yield in long-term Treasury notes and bonds.

In some metro areas, the number of poor people living outside the city proper has jumped even more rapidly. In the Atlanta, Ga., suburbs there are roughly 480,000 more people living below the poverty line than there were in 2000, an extraordinary 158% increase in the number of the suburban poor. Based on data collected by the Brookings Institution as part of a comprehensive study on suburban poverty, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 10 cities with the biggest increases in suburban poverty between 2000 and 2011.

Click here to see the 10 cities where suburban poverty is skyrocketing

Most of the metropolitan areas where suburban poverty has grown the most in the past decade also have had the largest overall increases in population. The U.S. population grew by 9.7% between 2000 and 2010. The population of eight of these 10 metro areas grew by at least 15%, and the population of six of the 10 grew by more than 25%. The population of Las Vegas increased by 41.8%, more than any metro area in the country.

Substantial job opportunities in these areas can explain the sizable increase in the populations of these places, according to Brookings Institution fellow and study author Elizabeth Kneebone. Several of these cities, including Las Vegas and Phoenix, have increased employment by more than 10% between 2000 and 2011. Austin increased the number of people with jobs by 23.4% during that time.

The rising population and increased job opportunities both led to a major increase in home prices. This pushed poorer residents living in the city — as well as low-income new residents moving to the metro area from another city — to the city’s outskirts. Kneebone said, “as some of these really rapidly developing places have grown, families will drive until they qualify, they’ll move outwards until they can find a home they can afford.”

While the increase in population and rising home prices have clearly been a factor in the rising numbers of poor people outside of cities, Kneebone cautioned that this is not the only factor affecting suburban poverty. “It is also,” she noted, “long-term residents that have been hit hard by the economy in the last decade. The recession clearly has a role in this trend.”

While the recession had an impact by increasing suburban poverty even in the healthiest economies, it was especially the case in cities like Detroit and Minneapolis. These are cities where the population has either not kept pace with national grown or declined, and where new jobs have not been added. In these areas, the suburban poverty problem is increasingly due to declining the manufacturing and construction sectors — problems only worsened by the recession.

It should be noted that while these cities have rapid rises in the number of poor people living in the suburbs, in several cases these metro areas remain below the U.S. average for suburban poverty. If rates continue to go up at this astronomic rate over the next 10 years, however, that may soon change.

To determine the cities where poverty increased the most between 2000 and 2011, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed figures published by the Brookings Institution’s report, “Confronting Suburban Poverty in America.” Brookings also provided information on poverty rates and the number of impoverished residents at both the suburban and city levels for 95 of the nation’s 100 largest metro areas. Five were not considered in the report because they did not have complete data available. Additionally, 24/7 Wall st. considered figures on population growth between 2000 and 2010 published by the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2012 Statistical Abstract. Information on five-year change in home prices, through the first quarter of 2013, are from the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Home Price Index. Unemployment rates are from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

These are the cities where suburban poverty increased the most between 2000 and 2011.

The analyst team said that it overestimated the potential impact from competitor Philips flexing its muscles at lighting agents. The analyst team then said that it had a math error because it factored in agents and retail only. This completely ignored sales through distribution, national accounts and direct, and its mail catalog sales. It also added, “Importantly, management had already factored agent churn in its June quarter revenue guidance.”

The firm’s original anticipation was that the churn at lighting agents would impact 15% to 20% of sales, assuming that two-thirds of its agents would transition away from Cree. Now the firm estimates that the impact of agent churn will be less than 5% of sales. It said, “While our checks suggest that agents in San Francisco and LA have chosen Philips over Cree, agents in New York and Boston have chosen Cree over Philips.”

Stern Agee now sees earnings at $1.28 EPS versus a prior cut to $1.24 EPS for 2013, while annual sales were adjusted up to $1.38 billion from $1.37 billion. For 2014, the firm raised estimates to $1.85 EPS from $1.64 and raised revenue to $1.65 billion from $1.51 billion. The firm’s previous $59 target was 30-times its 2014 projection of $1.97 EPS and the new target is based upon 30 to 35 times its new 2014 targets.

It is not usual at all for an analyst team to reverse a downgrade of that magnitude. It is even more rare for a team to admit that its methodology and assumption calculations were wrong. Cree shares are up 2.5% at $61.35 but the stock did hit a new 52-week high of $53.51 earlier in the trading day.

Some key takeaways are that Immelt said the U.S. economy is getting a little better every day. GE Capital was shown to have ended the first quarter of 2013 with $402 billion in assets, and the goal is to get those assets down to $300 billion to $350 billion by the end of 2014. GE sees the U.S. at 45% of its industrial revenue, 35% for its growth markets, followed by 20% for Japan and Europe.

GE said that there is no change in the framework projected in 2013. The company has taken heat for not growing in total, but cutting GE Capital down in size is the reason here. 2013 industrial segment revenue in 2013 is expected to be 2% to 6% organic growth, while GE Capital revenues are projected to be -5% to flat in 2013. Earnings growth in the industrial segment is put at double-digit growth. GE also expects to return about $18 billion worth of cash back to its shareholders.

IMMELT’S FULL PRESENTATION HERE

Whatever the expectations are, GE is continuing on its recovery path. Shares just hit a post-recession high and 52-week high of $24.13 on the day, and the current gain is 1.8% to $24.08, against a consensus analyst price target of $25.40. GE still outyields most DJIA components and conglomerates with a 3.2% dividend for its common stock.

Investors need to understand that MLPs are technically “units” rather than shares, as these are partnership interests rather than shares of stock. The largest MLP conference of the year is on tap, and the mood is expected to be considerably more festive this year than last year. Fundamentals remain strong, particularly in the oil production area, though pipeline additions are contributing to falling basis. Natural gas liquids (NGL) production continues also to surprise to the upside, especially in the Marcellus and Utica shale plays.

Here are Credit Suisse’s top MLPs to buy now for the next 12 months.

Williams Companies Inc. (NYSE: WMB) is the top stock to buy at Credit Suisse. The company’s strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its good cash flow from operations, expanding profit margins and increase in stock price during the past year. The Credit Suisse price target for the stock is $49. The Thomson/First Call estimate is $40.50. Shareholders receive a 3.60% distribution. Remember, MLP distributions can contain return of principal.

QR Energy L.P. (NYSE: QRE) may be a stock to buy for yield-hungry investors. QR Energy recently has expanded into the Permian Basin, and it now makes up 35% of production and proved reserves. Credit Suisse has a $20 price target, and the consensus is at $20 as well. Investors are paid a whopping 11.20% distribution.

Cheniere Energy Inc. (NYSEMKT: LNG) is the operator of the coveted Sabine Pass LNG terminal and is the leader in the export of the product. Credit Suisse has a $38 price target, but the consensus target is much lower at $32. The company does not pay a distribution.

Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE: TRGP) recently completed a $625 million senior note offering to reduce current borrowing costs. Credit Suisse has an $82 target on this top name. The consensus is much lower at $73. Shareholders are paid a 2.90% distribution.

Cheniere Energy Partners L.P. (NYSEMKT: CQP) is a subsidiary of Cheniere Energy. This is the Cheniere entity that actually owns and operates the Sabine Pass LNG terminal. Credit Suisse has a $31 target for the stock. The consensus is $26, which is below its current trading level. Shareholders are paid a solid 6.00% distribution.

Crosstex Energy L.P. (NASDAQ: XTEX) engages in gathering, transmission, processing and marketing natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and crude oil primarily in the north Louisiana, north Texas and Ohio River Valley. Credit Suisse has a $22 price objective, while the consensus is at $21. Shareholders receive a very nice 6.40% distribution.

Access Midstream Partners L.P. (NYSE: ACMP) is one of the MLP names to buy. The company has established a large-scale position in all the key unconventional basins in the United States. Credit Suisse’s $46 price target is right in line with the consensus target. Investors are paid a 4.30% distribution.

Genesis Energy L.P. (NYSE: GEL) announced it will expand its existing rail terminal in Natchez, Miss., designed to handle straight and minimally diluted bitumen delivered by the Canadian National Railway, and construct a new unit train loading facility in the heart of the Powder River Basin of the Niobrara Shale Play. Credit Suisse has posted a $53 price target. The consensus is at $51. Investors are paid a 3.80% distribution.

The Credit Suisse team has stressed and continues to emphasize a more defensive posture, and they are focusing their attention on large, relatively liquid, investment grade MLPs or affiliates with exposure to the coming crude oil production boom in North America. Given the solid run by MLP names so far this year, that advice makes good sense for investors.