Another Cloud Over British Air
British Airways has been through a year of record losses in 2009, work stoppages which have cut into its flight schedules, a pension fund which is billion of dollar underfunded, and a tentative merger…
All Work
Douglas A. McIntyre
EU Speaks Of Deflation, As Inflation Looms
The European Union’s economy commissioner says that the 16-country region faces deflation if financial reforms are not made in most of the nations in the alliance. According to the AP, Olli Rehn said “it wasn’t…
Foreclosure Rates Hit All-Time High In March
New data show that during Q1 2010, foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — were reported on 932,234 properties in the first quarter, a 7% increase from the previous quarter…
Subprime Payment Rates Improve — For How Long?
The credit ratings service Fitch says that payment rates on subprime montages improved for the first time in four years. “The share of subprime loans that were at least 60 days past due or…
China GDP Surges 11.9% In Q1, US Trade Issues Lurk
China’s first quarter GDP growth rate was a sizzling 11.9%. The improvement was the best in three years and shows that the economy in the People’s Republic has returned to pre-recession growth rates. The…
Media Digest 4/15/2010 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg
Reuters: An 11.9% growth in China during the first quarter has caused the government to look at tightening. Reuters: Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE: TM) is testing all of its SUVs after problems with one…
Global PC Sales: HP Rolls, Dell Leaks Oil
Dell Corporation (NASDAQ:DELL) is still having trouble in its race for global PC market share. Its number for the first quarter of 2010 was 13.3%. Taiwan manufacturer Acer had a worldwide share of 13.6%…
Criminal Investigations Of HP Get Ugly But Sales Rise
The Russian and German investigations of potential bribes made by Hewlett-Packard Co (NYSE: HPQ) turned vicious today. German prosecutors are examining evidence that HP paid “about €8 million ($10.9 million) in bribes to win a €35…
Dell Ups its Stake in the Mobile Market, Sort Of
In one of the more ho-hum announcements in recent memory, Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) and Spain’s Telefonica S.A. (NYSE :TEF) today announced a strategic alliance to “develop future products and services designed around enhanced data-first…
Today’s Biggest Index Movers: Kidney Dialysis, Platinum, and Semiconductors
Kidney Dialysis and Treatment Stocks Up 7.8% today This otherwise inert sector is being buoyed by the announced $112 million acquisition of the Dialysis Corporation of America (NASDAQ: DCAI) by U.S. Renal Care, a privately…
The Ultimate JPMorgan Chase Earnings Cheat Sheet
JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) announced earnings that beat expectations and in the process said that its investment banking business was critical to its improved numbers. The big bank earned $3.3 billion and had EPS of $.74…
Smartphone Competition to Cut RIM’s Shares in Half
Less than two years ago Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) was a $150 stock. Recently, however, pressure from new smartphones, particularly the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone, taken together with the general market sell-off…
Apple Will Delay Overseas Launch Of iPad Until End Of May
Apple, Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) has done too good a job marketing its iPad in the US. Or, it underestimated the number of units it would need to start to sell the product overseas. It is…
The Twitter-24/7 Wall St. Stock Market Report 4.14
Twitter has, by most estimates, 75 million visitors a month, which makes it one of the largest social networks in the world. All major media companies are on Twitter and some have more than…
Mortgage Applications Plunge
It could be the continued drop in home prices or the fear that the economy will not recover. It would be that the end of federal government tax credits for home buyers are ending…
JPMorgan Earnings Show Value Of Trading Operations
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) said its earnings in the last quarter rose 57% to $3.3 billion. The earnings period ended in March. The number topped Wall St. estimates. They also showed how important…
Breaking The Banks With A New “Sin Tax”
Regulators in the US and Europe are still sifting through a variety of programs that would create a tariff on large banks to create a pool of money that could be used if one of…
The $3,000 Laptop No One Needs
Apple Inc’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) new Macbook Pro can cost as much as $2,299 with a 17 inch monitor. That is not with additions that can push the price to more than $3,000. The computer uses…
Charges Of Racial Discrimination In Census Hiring
Several groups have sued the The U.S. Census Bureau for discriminating as it hires workers for the 2010 survey. According to The Wall Street Journal, “In the suit, job applicants claimed the Census Bureau…
The 300 Billion Euro Greek Problem
Greece will have to raise 12 billion euros in the next two months to relieve its sovereign debt obligations and cover deficits. That is a relatively small part of the 54 billion euros it will need…