US Video Game Sales Down 21% In December
The improvement in holiday consumer sales did not help the video game industry. In December, total sales dropped 21% to $3.99 billion. Hardware sales were off by 28% to $1.32 billion. Software sales were…
All Work
Douglas A. McIntyre
Goldman Says Price Of Oil Could Surge Higher
Goldman Sachs has issued a report that oil prices could rise sharply next year. The usual fears of unrest in Iran and Nigeria are mentioned. However, a new wrinkle is that OPEC production may…
Bank Of America May Have To Leave Some Business–WSJ
Bank of America is already plagued by financial problems that have caused it to announced 30,000 layoffs, take $5 billion for Warren Buffett, and sell much of its stake in China Construction Bank Now…
Several Bids For AMR May Emerge
The Chapter 11 filing of AMR, the parent of American Air is barely two months old, and potential buyers are already considering a buyout. According to WSJ.com, Delta, US Air, and private equity firm…
Obama Asks For Debt Ceiling Increase
The battle over the national deficit and more specifically the national debt is about to be joined again. The President will ask Congress to increase the national debt ceiling . The increase would be…
Home Depot To Hire 70,000 Seasonal Workers
As Spring approaches, the time for home repairs and cleaning are little more than 90 days away. Home Depot (NYSE: HD) will prepare as it hires 70,000. That is enough to affect national employment…
Top Concerns Among Americans–Jobs, Debt, Politicians
Gallup has released a new survey on the top worries among Americans The poll shows Americans name jobs, the national debt, continuing economic decline, outsourcing, and politicians’ bickering — including President Obama and Congress…
Hyundai Top In Car Brand Loyalty–JD Power
Among 33 auto brands sold in the US, Hyundai has the highest customer loyalty–which JP Power calls “retention rate” One in three new-vehicle owners who switched brands say their previous brand didn’t make the type…
Mortgage Rates Hit Historic Lows
According to Freddie Mac, mortgage rates hit all-time lows last week. The agency released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey, showing mortgage rates easing to new all-time record lows for all products…
Student Loan Problems To Rise–FICO
A student loan fiasco may follow the one in housing, according to credit group FICO In a new report it says Student loan debt now exceeds credit card debt in the U.S., with experts…
ECB Keeps Rates Level–Statement
The European Central Bank kept rates the same From its statement: Based on its regular economic and monetary analyses, the Governing Council decided today to keep the key ECB interest rates unchanged, following the…
Today’s Best Market Rumors (1/12/2012) Opel Labor, Olympus M&A
Updated throughout the day Olympus may set a partial merger with Samsung (Reuters) GM (NYSE: GM) may shift more production to Europe to improve relationships with Germany unions which represent Opel workers (Reuters) Douglas A.…
PC Market Falters In 2011
PC sales faltered last year in the US. Some of the drop has been blamed on a parts supply interruption from Thailand factories hit by floods. Industry research firm IDC said that shipments fell…
Microsoft May Layoff Thousands
Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) may not be doing as well as CEO Steve Ballmer has sigalled. He says that video game sales at the firm are strong. Windows sales are also supposed to be robust.…
Sears Lender Balks At More Financing
It has become more difficult for embattled retail company Sears Holdings to raise money. It recently reported weak earnings and holiday same store sales. It also said it would close 100 to 120 KMart…
The Obama “Insourcing” Follies
The Obama Administration introduced its latest job creation plan with great fanfare. The president gathered business leaders and offered examples of how many of them had brought jobs sent overseas back into the U.S.…
Foreclosure News Is Finally Good
Flickr, Images of MoneyForeclosure rates are one of the proxies for the health of the housing market, along with housing starts, home prices and the number of underwater mortgages. During 2011, foreclosure rates improved…
LG: Even Third Place Is a Hard Place to Be
South Korean electronics firm LG is the third-largest manufacturer of wireless handsets in the world. Nevertheless, the company has struggled to make the business successful. It will not pull back from cellphone manufacturing, but it…
What’s Important in the Financial World (1/12/2012) China Car Sales, Foreclosures Fall
Foreclosures fell for the first time in four years, according to research firm Realtytrac. The firm said “Foreclosure filings were reported on 205,024 U.S. properties in December, a decrease of 9 percent from the previous…
Media Digest (1/12/2012) Reuters, WSJ, NYT, FT, Bloomberg
Olympus may partner with Samsung. (Reuters) RBS cuts 3,500 investment bank jobs. (Reuters) RealtyTrac reports that foreclosures reached a four-year low in 2011. (Reuters) International Monetary Fund senior executive Lipton sees no hard landing…