Gizmodo Rumor: Apple’s (AAPL) Jobs Health Failing
Because of the number of rumors about the health of Apple (AAPL) CEO Steve Jobs, it is hard to know which has any validity. Jobs has suffered from islet cell neuroendocrine tumor a malignant…
Archive
Year: 2008
All Year: 2008 Articles
Newest first · Page 2Holiday Retail Worst Since 1970
The two most brutal recessions in recent memory are those that hit in 1973 and 1981. It appears that holiday retail sales for 2008 were worse than they were in either of those downturns.…
Russia and Ukraine: Energy Battle, Round Two
Platts is reporting this morning that Russian gas monopoly Gazprom will turn off gas supplies to Ukraine unless the former Soviet republic signs a natural gas export contract by January 1st. According to Gazprom,…
SEC Changes the Rules on Oil Reserves
The Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday announced that it has approved new rules to "modernize its oil and gas company reporting requirements." Well, modernization, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. The…
Standard & Poor’s Downgrades Dow Chemical’s (DOW) Credit Rating to ‘BBB’
Yesterday evening, Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services lowered its corporate credit and senior unsecured ratings on Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE: DOW) to ‘BBB’ from ‘A-‘. The long-term ratings on Dow Chemical and the ‘A-2’…
Consumer Confidence Goes Fall Into The Inferno’s Ninth Circle
The Ninth Circle of Hell in Dante’s Inferno. The home of traitors to their own kind. The Conference Board today reported that consumer confidence hit 38 for the month of December, the lowest level…
Home Prices Down 18%, Recovery Improbable
According to S&P/Case Shiller, home prices fell 18% in October compared with the same month last year. Home prices are now back to March 2004 levels. The index for the top ten cities is…
As Tension In Nigeria Worsens, Oil Eyes $50 For Early 2009
Drops in consumer and corporate spending are about to compounded by high fuel prices as crude is likely to move to $50 or better early in 2009. Both sides in the Gaza conflict have…
Early Analyst Calls (AF)(AXYS)(FEED)(YUM)
Astoria (AF) remains "underperform" at FBR. Axsys (AXYS) upped to "buy" at Morgan Joseph. Yum! (YUM) upgraded to "buy" at Argus. AgFeed (FEED) downgraded to "neutral" at Global Hunter. Sources: Briefing.com and wire services.…
Old News, New Wrapping: Car Industry Bad Next Year
Thanks for this. Reuters reports that "The auto sector is expected to be the most financially troubled industry in the United States next year, taking the top spot from the homebuilding group, according to…
Consumer Confidence Is The Opposite Of Consumer Spending
The Wall Street Journal makes the point that consumer confidence does not mean much if it does not go hand-in-hand with consumer spending. As the paper reports "Gasoline is still getting cheaper, retailers and…
Ford (F) And The Self-Parking Car Debacle
"Baby, you can drive my car /yes, I’m gonna be a star/ Baby you can drive my car /And maybe I’ll love you."–The Beatles. The matchless idiocy which has defined the fall of the…
Looking To “The Land Of The Rising Sun” For US Economic Future (SNE)(TM)
The Japanese stock market has closed down about 42% for the year. The US markets may do a little better than that, off by 38% or so. For people with money in the market,…
GMAC’s $7 Billion Deal: Too Little, Too Late
GMAC finally got its designation as a commercial bank. That allowed the firm to get $6 billion in federal money, $5 billion of which comes from the Treasury Department in exchange for preferred notes.…
Media Digest 12/30/2008 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg (GM)(TM)(HMC)(DOW)(F)
According to Reuters, GMAC will get $6 billion from the government with $1 billion coming through GM (GM). Reuters reports that violence in Gaza intensified. Reuters writes that Japan is looking at a program…