Asia Markets And Europe Open 10/5/2009
Markets in Asia were narrowly mixed. The Nikkei was down .6% to 9,674. The Hang Seng moved up .3% to 20,434. The market in Shanghai was closed. At the open in Europe, the FTSE…
All Work
Douglas A. McIntyre
Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) Medicine Is The Solution To The Health Care Crisis
Americans have known that we have had a health care crisis since our country was created. We have chosen to depend on doctors and nurses and hospitals to provide care in times of illness…
The Unusual Suspects (AA, MOS, YUM, CVC, CIT, LOCM, RVSN, WFC)
It is the weekend and that means a review of last week’s unusual suspects and a review for key stocks in the week ahead. Technically earnings season gets its first earnings report from a…
Bankruptcies Skyrocket In September
Personal bankruptcies posted a big increase in September, not a surprise as unemployment races toward 10%. The American Bankruptcy Institute reports that the September 2009 consumer filings total reached 124,790, a 41% increase from…
Bing Starts To Lose Market Share (GOOG)(MSFT)(YHOO)
Bing’s rapid ascent as a new favorite among web searchers may be over. The Microsoft (MSFT) product had picked up market share since it was launched in early June. The momentum of that progress…
52-Week High Club
Pepsi Bottling Group (NYSE: PBG) hit a yearly high of $37.37 today after PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) filed a proxy indicating it would complete its acquisition of Pepsi Bottling Group regardless of market conditions. Garrett…
Conoco Issues Cautious Update, While Exxon CEO Calls for More Taxes (COP, CVX, XOM)
Oil major ConocoPhillips Corp. (NYSE:COP) released its third quarter 2009 interim update this morning, and while the news was not altogether positive, the company’s share price is up nearly 2.5% in early trading on…
First Solar Makes a Sale (ENB, FSLR, YGE, TSL, STP)
Canadian oil and gas pipeline company Enbridge Inc. (NYSE:ENB) today announced that it would purchase a 20 megawatt solar generation plant from First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR). No purchase price was given for the plant,…
Today’s Best Market Rumors (10/2/2009) (AAPL)(GE)(BAC)(GOOG)(TWX)
Updates throughout the day. Update: Jeff Bewkes, CEO of Time-Warner (TWX) who says “Time, Inc. is not for sale.” (Atlantic First Draft of American History Conference) Update: John Paulson and Angelo Gordon may be buying…
US Unemployment Soars And IMF Sees Global Problem
The consensus expectations for September jobs were that another 167,000 people would lose their work. Goldman Sachs (GS) yesterday issued a much more pessimistic forecast of 250,000 jobs lost taking US official unemployment to 10%. The…
IBM (IBM) Goes After Google (GOOG) Apps Business
Google (GOOG) is trying to diversity beyond the search business. One of its most important attempts is to offer low cost applications for PCs. Its Google Apps includes e-mail, calendar, word processing, and presentation…
China GDP Could Pass US In Two Decades
The IMF expects China’s GDP growth to be nearly 9% next year and the growth in the US to be less than 2%. In 2008, US GDP was $14.2 trillion. China was in the…
Bloomberg On Its Way To Becoming Most Powerful Media Firm In US
Bloomberg is, according to several reports, the most likely buyer of the largest business magazine in America. BusinessWeek is being sold by McGraw-Hill (MHP) Bloomberg has the balance sheet and editorial staff to support…
A $125 Million Pay Day For Ken Lewis
When Ken Lewis finally leaves Bank of America (BAC) he will get a $125 million goodbye from the financial firm, unless the federal government’s pay czar decides to challenge the package. Most of the…
Media Digest (10/2/2009) Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg
Reuters: The retirement package for Ken Lewis of Bank of America (BAC) may be as high as $125 million. Reuters: US car sales plunged in September with Ford (F) up and GM down. Toyota…
Asia Markets And Europe Open (10/2/2009)
Markets in Asia were mostly lower. The Nikkei fell 2.5% to 9,732. The Hang Seng dropped 2.6% to 20,415. HSBC (HBC) fell sharply. PetroChina (PTR) and Sinopec (SNP) also fell. The Shangai Comsite was…
Chrysler May Not Make It Another Year
Rumors, credible rumors, are beginning to circulate in the car industry and the automotive press, that Chrysler may not make it another year primarily due to its falling sales and growing financial losses at partner…
Federal Reserve Governor Says Goodbye To Double Dip Recession
For the first time, a federal government official has said that that odds of a double recession are almost gone. Richmond Federal Reserve President Jeffrey Lacker, in an interview with Bloomberg TV, said that the…
Weak Economic News Sends Investors to Gold (ABX, KGC, GFI, GDX, GLD, RGLD)
This morning’s reports on unemployment (up), manufacturing (down), housing (sort of up), and consumer spending (up a little) have pushed the market down. Out of the gate this morning, gold miners and spot gold…
Alternative Energy Shares Troubled (YGE, SPWRA, TSL, ENER, AONE, CRTP)
This morning’s report on unemployment has cooled enthusiasm for shares across the board. Solar stocks are, for the most part, no exception. Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (YGE) is down nearly 3%, SunPower…