GM Sells Ton Of High Mileage Cars
It is a sign of the times in which gasoline prices have raced toward $4 and could go higher as summer travel season approaches, or trouble in the Middle East boosts oil. As it…
All Work
Douglas A. McIntyre
Economic Confidence Reaches Three Year High
There are a number of measure of consumer and economic confidence. One comes from the Conference Board, and another from the University of Michigan. Gallup has its own, and the most recent version showed…
Ford Sales Up Tiny Amount
Ford (NYSE: F) posted a very modest sales gain of 5% in March compared to the same month last year. The company said, however, that the number represents the best March in five years.…
The Most Oil-Rich States
As gas prices reach record highs across many parts of the country, Americans have been blaming oil companies. But as much as they are disliked, the oil and gas industry is also an indispensable…
No Hope for China Relations with the U.S.
The Brookings Institute’s sponsored “Addressing U.S.-China Strategic Distrust” report received a great deal of media coverage recently. At the heart of the analysis are the differences between the drive of each nation to become the…
Airlines: An Industy Where Poor Ratings Are Good
AMRThe Airline Quality Report reached its 22nd anniversary when it was issued recently. Its rankings are based on an extremely complex system, but the outcome for 2011 was easily described: The Airline Quality Rating industry…
What’s Important in the Financial World (4/3/2012) CEO Pay Rises, $4 Gas
The hole into which Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN) has fallen has gotten even deeper. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Securities and Exchange Commission has begun to examine the firm’s first quarterly report as a public…
Media Digest (4/3/2012) Reuters, WSJ, NYT, FT
Apple’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPad is the number one tablet PC in a new Consumer Reports survey. (Reuters) CEO pay jumps for last year as stock options rise. (Reuters) Avon (NYSE: AVP) turns down a…
SEC Hit Groupon
The hole into which Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN) has fallen has gotten even deeper. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Securities and Exchange Commission has begun to examine the firm’s first quarterly report as…
Oil Still High
Improvements in the U.S. economy and ongoing fear of supply interruptions in the Middle East kept Brent crude near to $125 a barrel. Many experts continue to argue that the level is so high…
CEO Pay Higher
CEO pay rose considerably last year, according to an analysis by Reuters. The 10% rise of the compensation of chief executives at large companies was caused mostly by stock options. The good news is…
Yahoo Lay-Offs Today?
If press rumors are to be believed, today is the day that thousands of Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) employees will be laid off. That likely will be followed by more next week. CEO Scott Thompson…
Is Groupon a Takeover Target?
Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) made a $6 billion offer for Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN) late in 2010. The rumor then was the Groupon had revenue of $2 billion that year. It turned out not to be true, and Wall St.…
Home Construction Spending Hammered Down
Construction spending dropped 1.1% in February, according to the Commerce Department. The numbers were a disappointment to most analysts In all probability, builders continue to watch a drop in home prices which was most…
Nine US Cities Where Jobs Are Booming
According to a recent survey, the recovery is in full swing in America’s largest cities. Last week, Gallup released results of its Job Creation Index for the 50 largest metropolitan regions in the United…
Time to Fire Groupon’s CFO
Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN) has been humiliated by several financial mistakes that have rattled investor confidence to the core. The responsibility belongs at someone’s feet, and that someone is Groupon’s chief financial officer, Jason Child. Child has…
America’s High Corporate Tax
Many members of Congress and business executives voiced alarm when the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s 2012 Statutory Corporate Tax Rates were released. Of course, some of the alarm was too great. Many…
Petroleum Pains: London Bridges Falling Down
The British government announced this week that greenhouse gas records indicate the country was leading the way in efforts to combat climate change. London reported that carbon dioxide emissions fell close to 10% in…
JCPenney’s Shameless Board Rewards Departing CEO
JCPenney’s (NYSE: JCP) former chief executive, Myron E. Ullman, III, was pushed out of the company. As a reward for an awful performance in his job, the the retailer’s board gave him a parting gift…
What’s Important in the Financial World (4/2/2012) Pinnacle Air Chapter 11, Record Europe Unemployment
The unemployment rate of the eurozone reached 10.8% in February, up from 10.0% a year ago according to EuroStat. Unlike the in United States, the trend is in the wrong direction. The lowest rates were…