The world is looking for a currency other than the dollar, without much success. Every time there is even a hint of trouble in world markets, the dollar surges, reminding the euro and the yen that they are nowhere near the Almighty. That has not prevented Russia from joining the ranks of those aspiring for global acceptance of their currencies. Gold keeps rising and slipping on and off, though some insist it can only go up. China has reportedly decided to let the yuan appreciate to some extent. Meanwhile, US keeps admonishing other countries for fiscal and external deficits and surplus.
Moody’s cut Greece’s rating to near junk last week and the euro surged to over 1.23. The future of Europe and the euro continues to be viewed as uncertain. Austerity plans are being followed up with higher taxes and increases in retirement age. EU, as well as the euro zone do not have significant external deficits and the austerity wave can only help restore fiscal balance. Europe was generally less boisterous than the Americans during the heydays of 2003-2008 and seems to have started settling down with its own new-normal, i.e. lower living standards. If that is what Soros calls a prolonged recession, well, so be it.
What is happening in the US economy remains unclear but it is absolutely clear that US (and Japan) have no intention of raising rates in the foreseeable future. Both continue to look at government spending as the only way to boost employment and keep the economy going. There is little hope of any drastic changes in the financial system as thousands of lobbyists are registering silent successes in blunting most of the proposed amendments. The real problem is that America wants to do nothing more than managing other people’s money.
Switzerland has finally agreed to provide details of 4450 clients suspected of tax evasion to the US. Greece continues to face flak for profligacy, particularly pensions (only 1.7 workers per pensioner) which add up to an eighth of GDP.
Ghana’s economic woes appear to be peaking and considering the increasing attention Africa as a whole is receiving from investors, it may be in for massive investments. Afghanistan’s estimated mineral wealth includes iron ore and copper deposits worth $421 bn and $273 bn, respectively, besides significant deposits of gold, molybdenum and silver. Chinese firms have already committed investment of $ 4 bn in copper mines.
Taiwan has drawn a billion dollar plan to develop its own cloud computing. Romania is asking its citizens to donate cash for keeping deficit within limits agreed with IMF under a $25 bn aid package. Russia has developed a new fighter jet that it plans to produce jointly with India. Putin says it matches F-22 of US and will cost less than a third.
Obama fumed and fretted from the Oval office last week, vowing to make BP pay, but the very next day BP’s CEO Hayward used “I don’t know” 66 times when deposing before the US Congress. Nobody knows how and when the spill estimate rose from 5,000 to 60,000 barrels a day as media, politicians, lobbyists, bankers, investment firms and even oil companies are having a field day figuring out ways of making money from the disaster. Nothing is clear, except that continued gushing of oil in the Gulf of Mexico has fathomed crude prices successfully, at least for the time being.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which together either own or have guaranteed about three fourth of all US housing mortgages ($10 tn plus) continue to receive significant government aid for writing off bad loans. One reason is that foreign governments own their bonds to the extent of over $900 bn. Citi plans to raise $3 bn for funding PE and hedge businesses. AgBank of China (24,000 branches) is once again preparing to launch its massive $23 bn IPO, the biggest ever in the world.
Facebook surprised markets last week by announcing 2009 revenue of $800 mn; its COO Sheryl Sandberg insists email is on the road to extinction as only 11% of teens use email, the rest opting for texting. Apple sold 600,000 units of its new iPhone4 on the very first day. Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft are upbeat on prospects of video games and are now talking in terms of cloud gaming which would let consumers hire, instead of buying.
Boehringer has been refused approval for its female version of Viagra by the US FDA. Nestle is suing Sara Lee for patent infringement. Genting, debt free Malaysian casino operator having $1.7 bn in cash, is planning to set up shop in US. Toyota has suspended production at its main unit in China because of a strike at a parts supplier. NewsCorp controls BskyB but wants full control and is willing to pay $12 bn for the remaining 61% stake. FedEx says healthcare and pension costs will pinch profits in 2011; revenue rose 20% to $9.43 bn last quarter.
Women’s groups in France are aggressively moving to raise the number of women on company boards; some wore fake beards last week to tell a French water company that they resent the board having only one woman. Soccer continued to dominate lives last week. Lightning destroyed a 62 foot Jesus statue in Ohio last week.
Russia banned consumption of vodka at a top conference last week; only wine was allowed. A convict was executed by a firing squad in Utah in response to his own wish. A recent survey found that obesity results in less sex, more sexual diseases and more unplanned pregnancies. Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, together worth about 100 bn, are asking other American billionaires to give away at least one half of their wealth to charities under a campaign they call the Giving Pledge. A management guru says the ability to sleep in planes is a major prerequisite for success in the corporate world.
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Showing posts with label apple. Show all posts
Showing posts with label apple. Show all posts
Even as Obama vowed not to bail out any bad boys in future and threatened to veto any bill that doesn’t police derivatives, movie box-office futures were cleared by CFTC despite one commissioner calling it “popcorn prediction,” and in Europe one Centaur Galileo fund announced plans to launch a sports betting fund. The only conclusion one can draw is that US and UK aren’t about to get off the poker table. 2+2=3 was the graphic headline of a Swedish daily last week after the govt revised a figure from +2.4 to –2.2 (billion kronors). In US, it should be 1+2=12 and it applies not only to economic recovery related stats but also to what the St keeps telling all to collect money.
Habitual of treating natural disasters as localized events having local impact, humanity was jolted last week as a relatively small volcanic eruption in tiny Iceland is making airlines lose over $200 mn a day.
US trade deficit and imports of consumer goods have stopped declining and surplus in technology products too has started losing steam. US Fortune500 slashed 821K jobs last year as sales plunged 8.7%, even as profits zoomed 200%. NBER (US) has to determine the date on which recession ended, for posterity. It is dilly-dallying because some members aren’t sure if it is really over.
China reported a stunning 11.9% growth for Q1 when industrial output rose over 18%, car sales zoomed 76%, and urban investment rose 26.4%, though China also registered a trade deficit. Besides mining companies, China is also stepping up purchases of farmland in countries such as Australia. The real estate boom, however, is now being seen as possibly a real bubble. New measures have been announced to cool property market, including higher margins and interest rates.
Japan’s GDP shrank 5.2% last year. A third of workers are now part-time, contract or freelance, and every fourth Japanese is over 65. Vietnam has firmed plans for a $56 bn high speed bullet train project with Japanese technology. After a record trade surplus of $17 bn last year, Argentina is offering to settle part of the $95 bn of debt it defaulted in 2001, and India, worried by persistent inflation, is being assured by Wal-Mart that if it is allowed to come in, it would cut inflation by two percentage points.
Twitter created some waves last week by announcing intent to carry ads, Google’s long term prospects are beginning to be questioned by analysts, and doubts about iPad persist. However, PC shipments rose 27% to nearly 85 mn units last year, suggesting the tech sector is live and kicking.
Citic of China is planning a JV with Credit Agricole of France, AIG has sold 53 passenger jets to Macquarie of Australia for $2 bn in cash, and Morgan Stanley’s real estate business is set to lose $8.8 bn. Since 1991 it has bought property worth $174 bn, raising the money from pension funds and universities endowments in several cases. As banks continue to fail (50 this year) in US, troubled assets continue to be lapped by the cash rich playing for the long haul, like Starwood Capital. Dubai World is offering 1% interest to its lenders against 5% they demand.
Taizinai (yoghurt, China) never sold anything contaminated but has collapsed because the organized dairy sector has lost trust of consumers in China. Nestle was approached but declined. EBX of Brazil says it will go for an IPO only after the group is valued at $100 bn or more. BP is to shift solar panels manufacturing from US to China/India.
Apple says iPad has sold better than expected in US, forcing it to delay overseas shipments, though Israel has started asking visitors not to carry iPad because its technology interferes with frequencies. Straddled with massive inventories of unsold smartphones, Palm is looking for a buyer and Huawei of China has shown some interest.
Lufthansa says it isn’t insured against losses from the Iceland volcano, and Carrefour is buying back 6% of its shares and plans to seek acquisitions in Brazil, China and Spain. Mattel sales rose 12% to $880 mn last quarter when Sony’s PlayStation3 also jumped 44%. HP’s former CEO Carly Fiorina is facing flak for bribes HP paid for a contract in Russia during her tenure, and BP’s CEO is facing flak for a 41% hike in pay as earnings fell 22% in 2009.
Schools in southern US states are being accused of continuing segregation in a back-handed way by concentrating white students in some classes. Americans, Indians and Italians have been identified as those who lose temper at sporting events when their kids don’t achieve.
Larry King it seems has been far more sophisticated than Tiger Woods – he has filed for his eighth divorce from his seventh wife; he remarried one after divorce and then divorced her again. The moral is why have an affair if you can do it legally.
Clothes that can trim torsos are being hawked by somebody in partnership with a former investment banker and Somali pirates are acquiring the latest technologies, per some reports. Effectiveness of individual drugs is to be measured under a program that is a part of Obama’s healthcare plan, which some say would virtually pave the way for rating drugs. Meanwhile, Michelle Obama seems to be succeeding in persuading food firms to cut sugar and salt in their products; the lofty objective is to cut obesity in one generation. US continues to account for more than a fourth of all drugs sold worldwide.
If Goldman Sachs can short and hawk a financial product (Abacus) at the same time and Deutsche can persuade a French municipality to speculate on dollar-SFr rates until 2042, where does one go? Learn from former Lehman broker Stone, who went to prison a decade ago for a penny stock scam, set up his own firm after that and is now running Wakabayashi Fund in Japan. Says what’s wrong in sending emails recommending a stock?
xxxxx
Habitual of treating natural disasters as localized events having local impact, humanity was jolted last week as a relatively small volcanic eruption in tiny Iceland is making airlines lose over $200 mn a day.
US trade deficit and imports of consumer goods have stopped declining and surplus in technology products too has started losing steam. US Fortune500 slashed 821K jobs last year as sales plunged 8.7%, even as profits zoomed 200%. NBER (US) has to determine the date on which recession ended, for posterity. It is dilly-dallying because some members aren’t sure if it is really over.
China reported a stunning 11.9% growth for Q1 when industrial output rose over 18%, car sales zoomed 76%, and urban investment rose 26.4%, though China also registered a trade deficit. Besides mining companies, China is also stepping up purchases of farmland in countries such as Australia. The real estate boom, however, is now being seen as possibly a real bubble. New measures have been announced to cool property market, including higher margins and interest rates.
Japan’s GDP shrank 5.2% last year. A third of workers are now part-time, contract or freelance, and every fourth Japanese is over 65. Vietnam has firmed plans for a $56 bn high speed bullet train project with Japanese technology. After a record trade surplus of $17 bn last year, Argentina is offering to settle part of the $95 bn of debt it defaulted in 2001, and India, worried by persistent inflation, is being assured by Wal-Mart that if it is allowed to come in, it would cut inflation by two percentage points.
Twitter created some waves last week by announcing intent to carry ads, Google’s long term prospects are beginning to be questioned by analysts, and doubts about iPad persist. However, PC shipments rose 27% to nearly 85 mn units last year, suggesting the tech sector is live and kicking.
Citic of China is planning a JV with Credit Agricole of France, AIG has sold 53 passenger jets to Macquarie of Australia for $2 bn in cash, and Morgan Stanley’s real estate business is set to lose $8.8 bn. Since 1991 it has bought property worth $174 bn, raising the money from pension funds and universities endowments in several cases. As banks continue to fail (50 this year) in US, troubled assets continue to be lapped by the cash rich playing for the long haul, like Starwood Capital. Dubai World is offering 1% interest to its lenders against 5% they demand.
Taizinai (yoghurt, China) never sold anything contaminated but has collapsed because the organized dairy sector has lost trust of consumers in China. Nestle was approached but declined. EBX of Brazil says it will go for an IPO only after the group is valued at $100 bn or more. BP is to shift solar panels manufacturing from US to China/India.
Apple says iPad has sold better than expected in US, forcing it to delay overseas shipments, though Israel has started asking visitors not to carry iPad because its technology interferes with frequencies. Straddled with massive inventories of unsold smartphones, Palm is looking for a buyer and Huawei of China has shown some interest.
Lufthansa says it isn’t insured against losses from the Iceland volcano, and Carrefour is buying back 6% of its shares and plans to seek acquisitions in Brazil, China and Spain. Mattel sales rose 12% to $880 mn last quarter when Sony’s PlayStation3 also jumped 44%. HP’s former CEO Carly Fiorina is facing flak for bribes HP paid for a contract in Russia during her tenure, and BP’s CEO is facing flak for a 41% hike in pay as earnings fell 22% in 2009.
Schools in southern US states are being accused of continuing segregation in a back-handed way by concentrating white students in some classes. Americans, Indians and Italians have been identified as those who lose temper at sporting events when their kids don’t achieve.
Larry King it seems has been far more sophisticated than Tiger Woods – he has filed for his eighth divorce from his seventh wife; he remarried one after divorce and then divorced her again. The moral is why have an affair if you can do it legally.
Clothes that can trim torsos are being hawked by somebody in partnership with a former investment banker and Somali pirates are acquiring the latest technologies, per some reports. Effectiveness of individual drugs is to be measured under a program that is a part of Obama’s healthcare plan, which some say would virtually pave the way for rating drugs. Meanwhile, Michelle Obama seems to be succeeding in persuading food firms to cut sugar and salt in their products; the lofty objective is to cut obesity in one generation. US continues to account for more than a fourth of all drugs sold worldwide.
If Goldman Sachs can short and hawk a financial product (Abacus) at the same time and Deutsche can persuade a French municipality to speculate on dollar-SFr rates until 2042, where does one go? Learn from former Lehman broker Stone, who went to prison a decade ago for a penny stock scam, set up his own firm after that and is now running Wakabayashi Fund in Japan. Says what’s wrong in sending emails recommending a stock?
xxxxx
The entire world seemed to be itching for a second global crisis last week as financial pundits said now that the US is on stronger terra firma, euro and Europe must go bust. Greece may sail through but there are Spain, Portugal, Ireland and Italy to contend with. The problem is that while consumers on both sides of the Atlantic are painfully trying to balance income and expenditure by cutting spending on such essentials as food, clothing and shelter, governments insist that champagne must keep flowing.
Fears of the euro collapsing may be exaggerated but popular sentiment in major EU countries like Germany seems to be in favor of putting Europe’s integration on the backburner. A German professor has even threatened to sue the govt if it decides to bail out Greece! Considering Germany’s foreign minister has publicly opposed the growing use of English, The question is whether it is only EU or the eurozone that is heading for disintegration, or is the process of globalization itself in jeopardy.
The scene is confusing. Goldman Sachs is being accused of having helped Greece hide the magnitude of its deficits. Citi says 24 eurozone banks (two third of the industry) will need to raise nearly a trillion dollars over the next three years. Analysts (and Greece) say a weaker euro is actually helping Germany boost its exports. WSJ says Spain, with 19% unemployment and an economy far bigger than Greece, will be the real problem.
Per WTO, world trade contracted by about 12% in 2009, though part of it must have been due to lower oil prices.
RBS has reported losses of $5.5 bn for 2009 while Lloyds, with a loans to deposit ratio of 169%, suffered bad loans of $37 bn last year. Some reports of some financial turbulence in Turkey came in last week.
Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae lost $26 bn and 60 bn, respectively, last year, and say a large wave of foreclosures is yet to come. One report says US sales of alcohol rose last year because of high unemployment but industry revenue remained flat because people bought cheaper drinks. Japan’s public debt is expected to rise to over 225% of GDP in 2010.
Asia is apparently fine, and determined to achieve what US-EU achieved last decade – greater financial innovation, lower savings and higher consumer spending. China’s household deposits, however, rose 19.3% to $3.9 tn last year also. Australia and China have resumed their free trade talks, perhaps because Australia has finally recognized that China is going to remain the biggest buyer of its natural resources.
US is considering auction of airwaves currently held by TV stations, to help overcome the spectrum crunch and meet demand for mobile Internet services.
Toyota chairman admitted before the US Congress that growth had taken priority over safety at his company. Three Japanese auto parts firms are being investigated by US anti-trust authorities.
Oil field services industry is getting consolidated in a big way; Schlumberger is to buy Smith International for $11.34 bn in stock while Baker Hughes is close to completing its $6 bn takeover of BJ Services.
Wal-Mart says it will expand organically, as well as through acquisitions in LatAm and may become more aggressive in China and India also, Macy’s same-store sales grew marginally last quarter, and Kmart former CEO has been fined $10 mn for misleading investors in 2002, when the company filed for bankruptcy. Coke is buying its bottler in North America for $15 bn to exploit synergy; Pepsi had done that last year.
Apple sold the 10 billionth song on iTunes last week. It says it will retain its growing cash hoard ($25 bn last year) and has banned pictures of bikini clad women on iPhones. China has made it compulsory for individuals to verify identities before setting up personal websites. India’s Bharti Airtel has arranged loans of $9 bn for buying African assets of Zain. While Google executives in Italy have been convicted for violation of privacy laws and probably face prison, its executives in China are being aggressively poached by MNCs like Microsoft and Chinese IT companies alike.
China’s Tengzhong has pulled out of race for Hummer unit and GM has started exploring alternate buyers, while BYD expects to match Toyota and GM in vehicle output in about 15 years.
Allianz has started investing aggressively in areas such as parking meters operators and wind energy, Blackstone has announced plans to invest $732 mn in Shanghai, GE is to sell its stake in Garanti Bank of Turkey, estimated to be worth $3.3 bn, and TCW (L.A. investment company) saw investors pulling out $25 bn after it fired its star bond fund manager.
Five top US airlines say they are open to consolidation by mergers and acquisitions, while Airbus is trying to salvage its A400M military plane project stalled because of disagreements among buyers. Lufthansa’s striking pilots were publicly offered jobs of chauffeurs by a car rental last week.
Bayer sales slipped last year to a little over $40 bn. MGM studio, bought for $5 bn by PE Partners in 2005 is up for sale again but offers haven’t exceeded $2 bn so far. Businesses owned by Berkshire of Warren Buffett shed 24,000 jobs in 2009.
US plans to fence its 2,000 miles border are coming to nought because of malfunctioning of radar sensors and other technical glitches. The US Air Force is, however, training more pilots for operating unmanned aircraft (drones) than fighter jets; drones in Afghanistan are operated from bases in the US.
Britain has apologized for having shipped 150,000 poor children abroad between 1920 and 1960 under its child migrant programme. Following Korean Air, All Nippon too has decided to have separate toilets for women passengers. A single rough diamond (507 carat) was sold for $35 mn last week.
You have attended classes for learning golf, music, language and dance. Now look for lessons in managing personal financial risk.
xxxxx
Fears of the euro collapsing may be exaggerated but popular sentiment in major EU countries like Germany seems to be in favor of putting Europe’s integration on the backburner. A German professor has even threatened to sue the govt if it decides to bail out Greece! Considering Germany’s foreign minister has publicly opposed the growing use of English, The question is whether it is only EU or the eurozone that is heading for disintegration, or is the process of globalization itself in jeopardy.
The scene is confusing. Goldman Sachs is being accused of having helped Greece hide the magnitude of its deficits. Citi says 24 eurozone banks (two third of the industry) will need to raise nearly a trillion dollars over the next three years. Analysts (and Greece) say a weaker euro is actually helping Germany boost its exports. WSJ says Spain, with 19% unemployment and an economy far bigger than Greece, will be the real problem.
Per WTO, world trade contracted by about 12% in 2009, though part of it must have been due to lower oil prices.
RBS has reported losses of $5.5 bn for 2009 while Lloyds, with a loans to deposit ratio of 169%, suffered bad loans of $37 bn last year. Some reports of some financial turbulence in Turkey came in last week.
Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae lost $26 bn and 60 bn, respectively, last year, and say a large wave of foreclosures is yet to come. One report says US sales of alcohol rose last year because of high unemployment but industry revenue remained flat because people bought cheaper drinks. Japan’s public debt is expected to rise to over 225% of GDP in 2010.
Asia is apparently fine, and determined to achieve what US-EU achieved last decade – greater financial innovation, lower savings and higher consumer spending. China’s household deposits, however, rose 19.3% to $3.9 tn last year also. Australia and China have resumed their free trade talks, perhaps because Australia has finally recognized that China is going to remain the biggest buyer of its natural resources.
US is considering auction of airwaves currently held by TV stations, to help overcome the spectrum crunch and meet demand for mobile Internet services.
Toyota chairman admitted before the US Congress that growth had taken priority over safety at his company. Three Japanese auto parts firms are being investigated by US anti-trust authorities.
Oil field services industry is getting consolidated in a big way; Schlumberger is to buy Smith International for $11.34 bn in stock while Baker Hughes is close to completing its $6 bn takeover of BJ Services.
Wal-Mart says it will expand organically, as well as through acquisitions in LatAm and may become more aggressive in China and India also, Macy’s same-store sales grew marginally last quarter, and Kmart former CEO has been fined $10 mn for misleading investors in 2002, when the company filed for bankruptcy. Coke is buying its bottler in North America for $15 bn to exploit synergy; Pepsi had done that last year.
Apple sold the 10 billionth song on iTunes last week. It says it will retain its growing cash hoard ($25 bn last year) and has banned pictures of bikini clad women on iPhones. China has made it compulsory for individuals to verify identities before setting up personal websites. India’s Bharti Airtel has arranged loans of $9 bn for buying African assets of Zain. While Google executives in Italy have been convicted for violation of privacy laws and probably face prison, its executives in China are being aggressively poached by MNCs like Microsoft and Chinese IT companies alike.
China’s Tengzhong has pulled out of race for Hummer unit and GM has started exploring alternate buyers, while BYD expects to match Toyota and GM in vehicle output in about 15 years.
Allianz has started investing aggressively in areas such as parking meters operators and wind energy, Blackstone has announced plans to invest $732 mn in Shanghai, GE is to sell its stake in Garanti Bank of Turkey, estimated to be worth $3.3 bn, and TCW (L.A. investment company) saw investors pulling out $25 bn after it fired its star bond fund manager.
Five top US airlines say they are open to consolidation by mergers and acquisitions, while Airbus is trying to salvage its A400M military plane project stalled because of disagreements among buyers. Lufthansa’s striking pilots were publicly offered jobs of chauffeurs by a car rental last week.
Bayer sales slipped last year to a little over $40 bn. MGM studio, bought for $5 bn by PE Partners in 2005 is up for sale again but offers haven’t exceeded $2 bn so far. Businesses owned by Berkshire of Warren Buffett shed 24,000 jobs in 2009.
US plans to fence its 2,000 miles border are coming to nought because of malfunctioning of radar sensors and other technical glitches. The US Air Force is, however, training more pilots for operating unmanned aircraft (drones) than fighter jets; drones in Afghanistan are operated from bases in the US.
Britain has apologized for having shipped 150,000 poor children abroad between 1920 and 1960 under its child migrant programme. Following Korean Air, All Nippon too has decided to have separate toilets for women passengers. A single rough diamond (507 carat) was sold for $35 mn last week.
You have attended classes for learning golf, music, language and dance. Now look for lessons in managing personal financial risk.
xxxxx
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