STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday 7 November

[ozymandius]

Wednesday November 9, 2005

COUNTING THE DAYS
DAYS REMAINING IN THE * REGIME 3 YEARS, 74 DAYS
DAYS SINCE DEMOCRACY DIED (12/12/00) 1784 DAYS
WHERE'S OSAMA BIN-LADEN? 1483 DAYS
DAYS SINCE ENRON COLLAPSE = 1445
Number of Enron Execs in handcuffs = 19
ENRON EXECS CONVICTED = 2
Other Arrests of Execs = 54


U.S. FUTURES & MARKETS INDICATORS
NASDAQ FUTURES-----------------------------S&P FUTURES




AT THE CLOSING BELL WHEN BUSH TOOK OFFICE on January 22, 2001
Dow - 10,578.24
Nasdaq - 2,757.91
S&P 500 - 1,342.90
Oil - $27.69/bbl
Gold - $266.70/oz.

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON November 8, 2005

Dow... 10,539.72 -46.51 (-0.44%)
Nasdaq... 2,172.07 -6.17 (-0.28%)
S&P 500... 1,218.59 -4.22 (-0.35%)
10-Yr Bond... 4.57% -0.07 (-1.60%)
Gold future... 462.30 +1.90 (+0.41%)






GOLD, EURO, YEN, Dollars and Loonie


PIEHOLE ALERT

Heads Up!
Preliminary info on appearances by Bush & Co. throughout the country. Details & links are added as they become available so check back. And if you know more, are organizing something, or would like to, contact [email protected]

For information on protests and other actions Citizens For Legitimate Government

[ozymandius]

1. WrapUp by Ike Iossif - WEEKLY CHARTS

WEEKLY CHARTS

After last week's rally, and considering the chart pattern of the major indices, the percentage of price gains, the pattern of the technical indicators, and their respective readings, it appears that the major indices are in the process of repeating the same "script" from earlier in the year, following the May lows. At the same time, it seems that in addition to the equity markets, bonds, the dollar, oil, and gold are also following the same script! In fact, as of Friday's close, the current chart pattern of the major indices, the percentage of price gains, the pattern of the technical indicators, and their respective readings are almost identical to the ones we had on 5/25/05 (see chart/table below). If the SP continues to rally for another two months--as it did from 5/25/05 until 7/28/05 when the advance was aborted at 1245--which is apparently the current view among the majority of market participants, by the time it tops out around the end of December it would be in the 1280-1290 zone. Assuming that the current trends will continue in the same direction--which is far from certain--over the same time, oil will reach $80 and the yield on the 10-year treasuries will be close to 5%. Consequently we have a very interesting question to consider. If in July the $60 level for oil, and the 4.29% level for yield on the 10-year were able to put the breaks on the SP's rally at 1245, what is the merit behind investors' current conviction that the SP can continue its ascent towards the 1300 level with both the price of oil and bond yields at significantly higher levels than the ones which previously proved to be formidable obstacles to overcome by the equity markets?

Does it make sense for investors to harbor such expectations based upon their most recent experience with the same set of circumstances just 3 months ago? Probably not! However, we know too well that just because something doesn't make sense, it doesn't necessarily mean it can not happen. Also keep in mind that the assumptions we are making may prove to be incorrect, oil prices may come down, and interest rates may also come down, both of which will be supportive of higher equity prices.

So what is the point of the above exercise? Well, here it is: the equity market is giving a rather bullish account of itself, and if it is examined in a "vacuum" without taking into consideration its correlation to other asset classes, it is reasonable to expect the current rally to continue higher for several more weeks, especially if the energy and credit markets behave themselves. However, if all asset classes act the same way they did following the Spring lows, one ought to at least consider the possibility that higher energy prices and higher interest rates will kill the rally just like they did in mid-Summer.

more...

http://www.financialsense.com/Market/wrapup.htm

[ozymandius]

2. Crude Oil Futures Little Changed

SINGAPORE - Oil prices were nearly flat Wednesday ahead of the release of a weekly U.S. petroleum inventories report expected to show an increase in crude and product stocks.

Light, sweet crude for December delivery rose 6 cents to $59.77 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange in Asian electronic trading. The contract rose 24 cents Tuesday to settle at $59.71 a barrel.

-cut-

Oil prices had come under selling pressure earlier in the week amid balmy weather in the U.S. Northeast, the world's biggest heating oil market.

But the front-month contract settled higher Tuesday as the U.S. Energy Information Administration's upward revision of its U.S. gasoline demand forecast for the fourth quarter and next year.

more

[ozymandius]

3. Eyes -- and ears -- on oil

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Eyes will be on energy Wednesday as oil company CEOs appear before a Senate hearing into high oil prices and record profits.

The government's weekly report on inventories of oil and gasoline could also move oil prices, as well as stocks.

-cut-

Strong oil industry profits due to recent record highs for oil and gasoline have prompted criticism by Democrats and even some Republican friends of big oil in Congress. Some elected officials have called for a windfall profit tax and anti-gouging actions against oil companies.

short blurb

[ozymandius]

4. Oil executives in the hot seat

Senate hearing on oil pricing, record profits set; will normally friendly Republicans turn hostile?

The hearing, before members of both the Senate Energy and Commerce committees, will hear from CEO's of the nation's three largest oil companies -- Exxon Mobil (Research), Chevron (Research), ConocoPhillips (Research), as well as the heads of the U.S. units of BP (Research) and Shell Petroleum (Research).

The five will be forced to defend strong industry profits that followed the spike in gasoline prices in recent months. The executives could face hostile questioning from Republican lawmakers, who are usually their allies on Capitol Hill.

The profits of the oil and gas companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose about 62 percent in the third quarter to about $25.9 billion, excluding special items, compared to a year ago, according to earnings tracker First Call. Exxon Mobil reported the largest profit in U.S. corporate history during the quarter.

-cut-

The executives testimony happens as millions of Americans face sharply higher home heating bills this winter. One Republican set to hear testimony and ask questions, Olympia Snowe of Maine, called on the major oil companies to voluntarily contribute to a federal program that helps low-income families pay part of their winter heating bills.

more...

http://money.cnn.com/2005/11/07/news/economy/oil_hearing/index.htm

[Dogmudgeon]

7. This is the only thing that will keep oil prices down this winter

The market forces, though, continue to push oil prices higher. At least the oil industry won't be able to get far richer as the energy economy lurches into a "post-Peak" footing.

--p!

[54anickel]

38. Nuttin but a dog and pony show. They are attempting to toss their

constituents a bone and steer attention away from from Cheney's boon-doggle energy bill that the idgits passed.

[UpInArms]

39. Chevron CEO: US needs to open restricted areas to drilling

10:01am 11/09/05 CHEVRON: INVESTMENT GOES TO AREAS OF 'GREATEST OPPORTUNITY'

10:02am 11/09/05 CHEVRON CEO: U.S. NEEDS TO OPEN RESTRICTED AREAS TO DRILLING



http://aztlan.net/oiltanker.htm

Condoleezza Rice was a Chevron Director from 1991 until January 15, 2001 when she was transferred by President George Bush Jr. to National Security Adviser. Previously she was Senior Director, Soviet Affairs, National Security Council, and Special Assistant to President George Bush Sr. from 1989 to 1991.

Another Chevron Corporation giant in the Bush administration is Vice President Dick Cheney. Vice President Cheney was Chairman and Chief Executive of Dallas based Halliburton Corporation, the world’s largest oil field services company with multi-billion dollar contracts with oil corporations including Chevron. Lawrence Eagleburger, a seasoned Bush counselor who held top State Department posts under George Bush Sr., is a director of Halliburton Corporation.

Halliburton's global network of investments includes projects in politically volatile areas including the Caspian Sea region. Dick Cheney was instrumental in negotiating a Caspian Sea pipeline for Chevron. The crude oil pipeline is a 900-mile project stretching from western Kazakhstan to the Black Sea that will primarily benefit Chevron by connecting the Tengiz oil field to the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk in Russia. Chevron, the largest oil company member of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, holds a 55 percent ownership interest with the Republic of Kazakhstan in Tengizchevroil. The 40-year, $20 billion joint-venture company was formed in 1993 to develop the Tengiz field. Tengiz is one of the world’s largest oil fields with 6 to 9 billion barrels of recoverable oil.

Also, there are allegations that the Bush Administration declared war in Afghanistan, not necessarily to combat terrorism, but to make it possible for U.S. oil interests to construct gas and oil pipelines from the Caspian Sea through Afghanistan to Pakistani harbors on the Indian Ocean. The first phase, now accomplish, was to install a friendly "puppet" regime in Kabul. La Voz de Aztlan has a report on this subject at: http://aztlan.net/judwatch.htm

...more...

[54anickel]

50. Heh-heh, "greatest opportunity". Sounds like a challenge -

"Make it worth our while to re-invest...open ANWR, all state and national forests, all privately held lands" (guess the SCOTUS actually did that with eminent domain :eyes:).

They will invest where they can get the most bang for their buck with little risk - be it from environmental laws, fair labor laws or unexpected cost over-runs. That's just "sound" business as usual, that's their job. Their belief is that it's the legislature's job to remove as many obstacles and risks as possible, NOT to regulate and protect the best interests of their constituents. After all, isn't that what lobbying is all about?

This Congress has been brought to you (bought and paid for) by the corporate elitists.

[UpInArms]

40. Conoco CEO: We do not condone price gouging

10:09am 11/09/05 CONOCO CEO: WE DO NOT CONDONE PRICE GOUGING

10:04am 11/09/05 CONOCO CEO: CURRENT HIGH ENERGY PRICES UNLIKELY TO CONTINUE

[UpInArms]

43. BP CEO: 2005 'Unusual and Challenging Year'

10:17am 11/09/05 BP: HURRICANES TO CUT PRODUCTION 160,000 B/D IN 4TH QUARTER

10:15am 11/09/05 BP CEO: 2005 'UNUSUAL AND CHALLENGING YEAR' FOR OIL INDUSTRY

Is the challenge just how much to screw everyone?

[UpInArms]

45. Shell CEO: 'We do not set or control' the price of oil

10:24am 11/09/05 SHELL CEO: 'WE DO NOT SET OR CONTROL' THE PRICE OF OIL

[54anickel]

63. Meanwhile - The Big Bad Budget: Has Anyone Noticed?

I believe this is up for a vote tomorrow, yet it's barely being covered.

http://www.etalkinghead.com/archives/the-big-bad-budget-has-anyone-noticed-2005-11-08.html

Last August, New Orleans suffered the wrath of one of the worst hurricanes in the history of our country. Hurricane Katrina blew into town without apology and quite literally huffed, puffed and blew houses down. Only more disturbing than that childhood story scenario coming true, was the façade of the Bush administration’s projected American dream of a place where peace and equality prevail crumbling to show the ugly face beneath. Immediately the following storm, CNN began airing shocking footage of hundreds of thousands of Louisiana residents, mostly black and poor, trapped in squalid conditions outside the Superdome without food, water or medical attention for nearly a week.

It seems outrageous that the Bush administration and Congress would step forth only shortly after desperately trying to redeem their goodwill image to again legislate in a manner that can only be described as callous. Yet, the only unfathomable thing is that no one has taken much notice.

The Budget Reconciliation Bill, due to be voted on this month, will cut billions of dollars in Medicaid, food stamps, TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) and student federal aid. In addition to the $34.7 billion in original cuts posted to the bill, a new push would raise that figure by an extra $15 billion, equaling approximately $50 billion in cuts. The truly exceptional facet of the bill is how the $50 billion in entitlement spending cuts are juxtaposed with $70 billion in tax breaks for the wealthy. The bill has been tagged by MoveOn.org as the “reverse Robin Hood bill”—robbing from the poor to provide for the rich.

MoveOn.org is one group of more than a dozen contributing to The Emergency Campaign for America’s Priorities, or ECAP. Among many other member groups, ECAP most notably includes the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the United States Student Association (USSA) and ACORN. ECAP is a temporary coalition of those concerned with human needs and is headed by the same people who opposed President Bush’s Social Security reform plan. Though the group has had little time to form their opposition, they already have grassroots in 30 states across the country and have been collating working class constituents, including displaced Katrina victims, to meet with Congress members and urge them against the Budget Reconciliation Bill. The best hope ECAP has is to sway those moderate Republicans who sympathize with the working class and labor unions and are disenchanted with the tilting of the Houses to the iron-clad conservative right.

However, despite the momentum of this movement, appropriation committees have been studiously assembling the budget package. On October 26th, the House Agriculture Committee approved $3.7 billion in cuts to their portion of the FY2006 budget reconciliation package. Of this figure, $844 million will be cut from food stamps, depriving 300,000 food stamp recipients their benefits and denying 40,000 low-income children their automatic eligibility for free school lunches and breakfasts. The amendment passed with a 24-19 vote, ironically the same day that the Agriculture Department released a report showing that an estimated 38 million Americans in 2004 suffered from hunger because of financial problems. Also included in the Committee cuts were $1 billion to commodity programs and $760 million to conservation programs.

Agriculture Committee Chairman Goodlattee, hailed the cuts, saying that they adhered to “the long-standing tradition that agriculture has always been willing to do its part to ensure the fiscal well-being of the nation”.

more...

[UpInArms]

64. agriculture has always been willing to do its part

About 2.7 million bushels of corn is piled 60 feet high on the ground beside full elevators at an agricultural cooperative in Ralston, Iowa.

from the DU thread

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1912088

excerpt:

But this season's bumper crop is too much of a good thing, underscoring what critics call a paradox at the heart of the government farm subsidy program: America's efficient farmers may be encouraged to produce far more than the country can use, depressing prices and raising subsidy payments. In other words, because the government wants to help America's farmers, it essentially ends up paying them both when they produce too much and when their crop prices are too low.

[UpInArms]

9. Is It Still The Grand Oil Party?

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_46/c3959080.htm?chan=db

When it comes to having a nose for changing political winds in Washington, your prototypical oil industry CEO bears an uncanny resemblance to Alfred E. Neuman. Only a week after two normally reliable and pliant Republicans -- House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (Ill.) and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (Tenn.) -- leveled rhetorical broadsides at Big Oil for record third-quarter profits, sky-high prices, and failure to commit to new refineries, many energy executives are brushing aside the barbs as mere cover-your-tail rhetoric from fretful friends. After all, Republicans received more than $20 million from energy interests in the last election, and the two oilmen who run the White House have never gotten tough with their political benefactors. So you can understand why Big Oil's response to Republican potshots is: What, me worry?

<snip>

But with voters seething over energy prices and GOP leaders under an ethical cloud, Republicans up against a political wall might, for the first time, take action against an industry that funnels 80% of its political contributions their way. "House Republicans have acted" by giving the industry tax breaks, Hastert says. "Now the oil companies need to do their part."

<snip>

Bottom line: The politics of oil has changed fundamentally. An Oct. 12-24 Pew Research Center poll found that oil companies, never high atop the corporate hit parade, have reached an all-time ratings low with the public: Only 20% have a favorable impression. With support for the Republican Congress dipping below 30%, the party leadership seems serious about opening up some distance from its longtime oil-patch allies.

...more at link...

[Sven77]

26. Authors Debate ‘Peak Oil Vs. Deep Oil’ on CNBC

Which do you believe ? That the world is running out of oil or the earth is creating more.
AUTHORS DEBATE ‘PEAK OIL VS. DEEP OIL’ ON CNBC

The Oil Drum - Abiotic Snake Oil

Energy Bulletin - CNBC hosts 'Deep Oil vs. Peak Oil' debate

it is possible(not that im a chemist) if you believe this >
The genesis of hydrocarbons and the origin of petroleum

[AnneD]

42. Morning Marketeers,

:donut: I know how expensive it is to find, drill, and process oil. I am not opposed to making a profit-I do understand business. However, I am opposed to the gouging that the industry has been engaged in. The trade calls exposed in the Enron case only add to the public distrust of oil companies.
The Bush admin were quick to kiss up to the oil industry when they held that secret meeting with oil execs and supress/refused to disclose minutes of the meeting.
Hope when the Dems get in office they really start pushing renewable resources.....
Happy hunting, and watch out for the bears

[UpInArms]

37. Dec Crude @ $59.55 bbl - Dec NatGas @ $11.79 mln btus

10:01am 11/09/05 DEC CRUDE FALLS 16C AT $59.55/BRL AHEAD OF U.S. SUPPLY DATA

10:01am 11/09/05 DEC NATURAL GAS NEAR FLAT AT $11.79/MLN BTUS

[UpInArms]

48. Dec Crude @ $59.20 bbl - Dec Unleaded Gas @ $1.54 gal

10:31am 11/09/05 DEC CRUDE DROPS 51C TO $59.20/BRL ON SUPPLY RISE

10:31am 11/09/05 DEC UNLEADED GAS DOWN 1.4% AT $1.54/GAL

[UpInArms]

65. Dec Crude @ $59.85 bbl - Dec Heating Oil @ $1.81 gal

11:53am 11/09/05 DEC HEATING OIL CLIMBS, LEADS CRUDE FUTURES HIGHER

11:53am 11/09/05 DEC HEATING OIL UP 3.15C, OR 1.8%, AT $1.81/GAL

11:53am 11/09/05 DEC CRUDE RISES 14C AT $59.85/BRL AFTER $58.50 LOW

[UpInArms]

94. Dec Crude closes @ $58.93 bbl - Dec Heating Oil @ $1.7896 gal

2:56pm 11/09/05 DEC HEATING OIL CLIMBS 1.11C, OR 0.6%, TO END AT $1.7896/GAL

2:54pm 11/09/05 DEC CRUDE CLOSES UNDER $59 FOR FIRST TIME SINCE JULY 21

2:54pm 11/09/05 DEC CRUDE FALLS 78C TO END AT $58.93/BRL AFTER $60.45 HIGH

2:53pm 11/09/05 DEC NATURAL GAS FALLS 1.1% TO END AT $11.669/MLN BTUS

[UpInArms]

93. Gasoline price gouging laws unwise, FTC chief says

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38665.6141598611-849638174&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- A federal law to outlaw price gouging in the gasoline market would be unworkable and counterproductive, the head of the Federal Trade Commission testified Wednesday. "Price gouging laws that have the effect of controlling prices likely will do consumers more harm than good," said Deborah Platt Majoras, chairman of the FTC. "While no consumers like price increases, in fact, price increases lower demand and help make the shortage shorter-lived than it otherwise would have been." Majoras said enforcement of current antitrust laws are a better way to protect consumers, adding that her agency scrutinizes the gasoline industry "like no other." Majoras was testifying at a joint hearing of the Senate Energy and Commerce Committees.

[ozymandius]

5. Today's Reports

10:00 AM Wholesale Inventories for Sep
Briefing Forecast 0.4%
Market Expects 0.3%
Prior 0.5%

10:30 AM Crude Inventories

[UpInArms]

36. Wholesale Inventories rise to 0.6%

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38665.4167656597-849589760&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=symb&value=&categories=&

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Inventories at U.S. wholesalers tightened in September to the leanest level in 16 months as sales jumped 2.4% while inventories climbed 0.6%, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. The inventory-to-sales ratio fell from 1.17 in August to 1.15 months in September, the lowest since the record-low 1.14 in May 2004. Inventories for nondurable goods were the tightest ever. Sales of durable goods rose 0.5%, while sales of nondurables increased a record 4.3%. Inventories of durable goods rose 0.3%. Inventories of nondurables increased 1.2%.

10:00am 11/09/05 U.S. SEPT. NONDURABLE INVENTORY-SALES RATIO RECORD LOW 0.84

10:00am 11/09/05 U.S. SEPT. WHOLESALE INVENTORY-SALES RATIO FALLS TO 1.15

10:00am 11/09/05 U.S. SEPT. WHOLESALE PETROLEUM INVENTORIES UP 3.8%

10:00am 11/09/05 U.S. SEPT. WHOLESALE SALES UP 2.4%

10:00am 11/09/05 U.S. SEPT. WHOLESALE INVENTORIES RISE 0.6% VS. 0.4% EXPECTED

[UpInArms]

47. DOE Petroleum Inventories Report:

10:30am 11/09/05 U.S. CRUDE STKS UP 4.5 MLN BRLS LAST WK: ENERGY DEPT

10:30am 11/09/05 U.S. GASOLINE STKS UP 4.2 MLN BRLS: ENERGY DEPT

10:30am 11/09/05 U.S. DISTILLATE STKS DOWN 100,000 BRLS: ENERGY DEPT

[UpInArms]

51. API Report (vast difference on the distillate inventory from DOE)

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38665.4426562731-849597159&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- The American Petroleum Institute said crude inventories rose 4.7 million barrels for the week ended Nov. 4. Motor gasoline inventories were up 4.1 million barrels, the API said. Distillate stocks were down 2.8 million barrels, compared with the 100,000-barrel decline posted by the government.

[JNelson6563]

6. Big oil lining up for lube jobs by Congress

Should be interesting to see.

Hard to think of little else besides our many victories last night. We had one in our city, our gal was the top vote getter for city commission. Took more votes than the incumbent. haha It's our second win here since our demoralizing experience last Nov. The tide is turning.

As to Stocks, hell, nevermind them, it's Treasuries that seem to be the big story lurking....have you seen the range for the last several sessions? Holy cannolli!

Will check back in when not working on overthrow. These victories tend to get the folks fired up and you have to make the most of that while it's fresh. ;-)

Cheers to you Marketeers!

Julie

[AnneD]

44. We had a good night here in Houston...

we had a low voter turnout. That was good because everyone saw it as a sign that everyone was happy. Bill White won a whopping 91% of the vote-gotta love the guy. Most votes by an incumbant in our history. More Dems than Gop won. The big dissappointment was the prop that stated marriage is between man and woman-but it was no surprise, this is Texas afterall. Houston has become my blue oasis.

[UpInArms]

8. daily dollar watch

http://quotes.ino.com/chart/?s=NYBOT_DXY0

Last trade 91.60 Change +0.23 (+0.25%)

Profit Taking And Yuan Speculation Fuel Yen

http://www.dailyfx.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4722&Itemid=39

Dollar Weakness
Additionally lending to the directional shift, traders pared back long dollar positions, taking profits from recent strength. Notably, there has been increased bid interest of U.S. denominated assets. On the session, 10-year notes were higher as the yield reached 4.66 percent. Since then interest has bucked the three week downtrend pushing the yield lower to 4.56 percent.

...more...

[UpInArms]

10. Credit Suisse gets subpoenas over Refco

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T021557Z_01_N08673854_RTRIDST_0_FINANCIAL-CREDITSUISSE-SUBPOENA.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Credit Suisse Group Inc. (CSGN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research), one of three underwriters for Refco Inc.'s (RFXCQ.PK: Quote, Profile, Research) initial public offering, on Tuesday said it received regulatory subpoenas regarding the commodities and futures broker, which sought bankruptcy protection in October.

Switzerland's second largest bank said its Credit Suisse First Boston LLC unit and affiliates received subpoenas and information requests from various regulators, including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, regarding Refco. The company said it is cooperating.

Credit Suisse disclosed the subpoenas in a quarterly report filed with the SEC. It did not immediately return calls seeking further comment.

The subpoenas show that investigations concerning Refco's collapse are expanding. Credit Suisse underwrote Refco's $583 million IPO in August with the U.S. investment banking units of Bank of America Corp. (BAC.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS.N: Quote, Profile, Research).

Brad Hintz, a Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. analyst, last month said Refco's bankers might face up to $188.7 million of costs from their former client's collapse.

...more...

[UpInArms]

54. Refco's flameout ends history of ups, downs

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/brokerage/2005-11-08-refco-usat_x.htm

During the Vietnam War, Army Lt. Thomas Dittmer served the military as a social liaison to the White House, where he attended state dinners and made small talk with politicians and visiting businessmen and danced with their daughters.

Fresh off the Midwest plains, Dittmer used his White House connections to pay his stepfather a favor that otherwise would have been beyond either's reach. The man Dittmer called Pop was an obscure Sioux City, Iowa, businessman named Ray E. Friedman, who had been convicted more than a decade earlier of selling substandard chickens to Army troops during the Korean War. Friedman served two years in federal prison for that offense. (Story: Dittmer to unveil new trading venture)

In June 1966, President Lyndon Johnson pardoned him. Last week, Dittmer, in a rare interview, confirmed to USA TODAY that he had helped rehabilitate his late stepfather's criminal record.

LBJ's intervention might have been the last time the reclusive Dittmer and the flamboyant Friedman welcomed Washington's influence. By the time of the presidential pardon, Friedman was on the rise again, amassing a fortune at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. He traded cattle futures at a raucous new market there, launched in November 1964, that was prone to traders' excesses.

Dittmer left the Army in 1966 and moved to Chicago to learn the commodities trade. Three years later, he and Friedman formed a partnership called Ray Friedman & Co. Eventually, the firm moved to New York, was renamed Refco and grew into a global trading powerhouse. Along the way, Friedman and Dittmer created riches for themselves and select clients while frequently clashing with regulators and less-fortunate investors.

...more...

[UpInArms]

55. Refco scandal called 'significant blow' to industry

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9971364/

The scandal surrounding Refco has had clear negative impact on the sector, one of the industry's most senior regulators said on Tuesday.

Sharon Brown-Hruska, a commissioner at the US Commodities Futures Trading Commission and until recently its acting chairman, said: "The loss of reputation was also a significant blow to the industry" following the accounting scandal at what had then been the largest independent futures broker.

New York-based Refco is due on Thursday to auction its regulated futures arm in a bid to salvage value for creditors after the revelation last month that Phillip Bennett, its former chief executive, had concealed $430m (£247m, €365m) in bad debts ahead of an initial public offering in August.

"My answer is 'bad'," answered Ms Brown-Hruska, when asked at an industry conference about the impact of the broker's rapid collapse.

...more...

[UpInArms]

56. Refco's Collapse Marks Onset of Outrage Fatigue: Mark Gilbert

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000039&refer=columnist_gilbert&sid=aDGb3CKmEqH8

As the vultures pick over the carrion of Refco Inc., nobody seems particularly indignant about the collapse of what was the fourth-largest U.S. futures broker before its bankruptcy. The 14th-biggest failure in U.S. history doesn't seem to be arousing the kind of anger that accompanied previous scandals.

Just as donor fatigue saps people's charitable giving after what feels like one famine, one tsunami or one hurricane too many, maybe the surplus of corporate scandals in recent years has deadened our sensitivity to financial shenanigans.

I've been wondering. If you're former Refco Chief Executive Officer Phillip Bennett or Parmalat SpA founder Calisto Tanzi or former Enron Corp. Chairman Kenneth Lay, how do you break the news to your spouse that you're likely to be spending more time at home, so long as you make bail? How does that conversation go?

``You're home early, honey. Did you have a good day at the office?'' asks the spouse. ``Not my best,'' answers the executive, shucking off an expensive overcoat. ``I got hammered hiding hundreds of millions of dollars of losses, torched the stock price, and I'll probably spend the rest of my days sharing a cell with a bodybuilder called Bubba who says I'm his special friend. Oh, and go easy on the credit card this weekend.''

Cooking the Books

It takes a lot to compete with the likes of Parmalat, the Italian dairy company that falsely claimed to have $4.9 billion tucked away in a rainy-day bank account; or Enron, which had a market value of more than $68 billion before its December 2001 bankruptcy; or Freddie Mac, which had to restate three years of income for a margin of error of $5 billion.

Even so, the story of Refco is a doozy. It's not so much the allegation that CEO Bennett was slithering $430 million of debt between a series of different accounts to keep it off Refco's books. That kind of sleight-of-hand is so common these days they're probably planning to add it to the Master of Business Administration syllabus at Harvard Business School.

...more...

[ozymandius]

82. He's right. I wonder why this does not register higher on economic radar.

This has all the trappings of the S&L scandal of the '80s plus a carload of collateral damage. The additional damage looks to be found in all the companies that have exposure to Refco - which is plenty. Plenty of back room deals have been whispered to be at the core of this case. That tidbit implicates some culpability among institutions like Goldman Sachs that made the illegal operations feasible.

And, pray tell, who owns Wall Street?

[AnneD]

89. Boy Ozy...

I keep looking at Refco and thinking the same thing. I said way back when Val Plame was outed that the whole affair had a Watergate feel to it. I just knew in my gut it was a big story and here we are 2 yrs later and I still feel we have a way to go. Now up pops Refco and it has felt bigger than Enron, more like the S&L. The S&L was what caused our RE market here in Houston to go belly up. I think we are soon to experience impact tremours, but the mag 8 earthquake is on the way.
When the afterhours trading became known, I figured there was another game going on in the next room and while it would effect me, I wasn't invited to play cause I was not a high roller.

[UpInArms]

57. REFCO Assets Frozen Today in France

http://www.marketwire.com/mw/release_html_b1?release_id=100718

NEW YORK, NY -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 11/09/2005 -- At the request of plaintiff Maitre Bertrand JEANNE, a French Public Officer representing the interests of Gerard SILLAM, three 30 million euros Court orders were entered yesterday in the Paris High Court by French Judge Eric VIVIAN.

The assets of REFCO OVERSEAS Ltd. in France have been seized today in Paris, in the following financial institutions:

EURONEXT, BCC, BNP PARIBAS, SOCIETE GENERALE, PAREL, REFCO SECURITIES S.A.

The assets of REFCO SECURITIES S.A. in France have been seized today in Paris, in the following financial institutions:

EURONEXT, BCC, BNP PARIBAS, SOCIETE GENERALE, PAREL.

A Court order ordering a Court surety of 30 million euros against the business assets of REFCO SECURITIES S.A. has also been entered yesterday.

...more...

[UpInArms]

87. Bank of America gets SEC subpoena on Refco

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T191802Z_01_N09425989_RTRIDST_0_FINANCIAL-BANKOFAMERICA-REFCO-UPDATE-1.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Bank of America Corp. (BAC.N: Quote, Profile, Research), one of three underwriters for Refco Inc.'s (RFXCQ.PK: Quote, Profile, Research) $583 million initial public offering, on Wednesday said it has been subpoenaed by regulators about the commodities and futures broker, which sought bankruptcy protection in October.

The No. 2 U.S. bank has received regulatory inquiries regarding Refco, including a subpoena from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, spokesman Timothy Gilles said.

Charlotte, North Carolina-based Bank of America disclosed the actions one day after Credit Suisse Group (CSGN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research), which also underwrote the IPO, said it had received subpoenas and information requests from the SEC and other regulators.

It wasn't immediately clear whether Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the third IPO underwriter, had also been subpoenaed. Goldman Sachs spokesman Michael DuVally declined to comment. SEC spokesman John Heine also declined to comment.

The subpoenas show that investigations into Refco's collapse, just two months after its August IPO, are expanding.

...more...

[UpInArms]

11. AIG to restate financial results (derivatives)

http://today.reuters.com/investing/FinanceArticle.aspx?type=businessNews&storyID=2005-11-09T114018Z_01_DIT941958_RTRUKOC_0_US-FINANCIAL-AIG.xml

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Insurer American International Group Inc. (AIG.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Wednesday it will delay filing its third-quarter results until November 14, giving it time to correct errors as it addresses previous accounting weaknesses.

The world's largest insurer by market value has already been the subject of state and federal investigations into its accounting practices after errors were discovered this year.

AIG warned investors not to rely on its prior financial statements. It did, however, estimate it made a net profit in the third quarter of $1.7 billion despite big losses from the hurricanes in the United States.

<snip>

It said it will restate previously reported financial results since 2002, mainly related to derivatives and hedges. AIG said it believes its hedging activities were effective, but that they do not qualify for hedge accounting treatment.

...more...

[UpInArms]

12. US cos., workers growing apart on retention-survey

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=reutersEdge&storyID=2005-11-08T140322Z_01_MAR850570_RTRIDST_0_PICKS-SERVICES-JOBS-RETENTION-DC.XML

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. companies, laboring under stiff overseas competition, resorting to outsourcing to cut costs and struggling against high energy prices, may not be doing enough to hold onto their strongest employees, a survey showed on Tuesday.

Only 44 percent of U.S. workers believe their companies are taking steps to retain them, and 31 percent believe there is already a turnover problem at companies at which they work, according to a survey on Tuesday from job placement company Spherion Corp. (SFN.N: Quote, Profile, Research).

The survey also showed that in the next year employers expect only 14 percent of their workforce to leave while nearly 40 percent of workers said they intend to find new jobs.

"You do have in some industries this idea of knowledge walking out the door," said Eric Lesser, a consultant with International Business Machines Corp.'s (IBM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) Human Capital consulting unit.

In the 1990s, employees could move between jobs with some ease because the market was so strong, and companies became accustomed to being able to quickly find talented people, experts said.

...more...

[UpInArms]

13. Merck says received subpoena from Ill. AG

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-08T214706Z_01_WBT004224_RTRIDST_0_HEALTH-MERCK-SUBPOENA-URGENT.XML

WASHINGTON, Nov 8 (Reuters) - U.S. drugmaker Merck & Co. (MRK.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Tuesday that it received a subpoena from the Illinois Attorney General in September seeking information related to the repackaging of prescription drugs.

Merck disclosed the subpoena in a quarterly report filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

[UpInArms]

14. Stone Energy to restate financials, finds lapses

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T013049Z_01_WEN3970_RTRIDST_0_ENERGY-STONEENERGY-URGENT.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Stone Energy Corp. (SGY.N: Quote, Profile, Research), a Louisiana-based oil and gas company, on Tuesday said it will restate results from 2001 through the second quarter of 2005, and said it has learned of possible lapses in reserve booking.

The Lafayette-based company said the Davis Polk & Wardwell law firm, which had been retained by the audit committee of Stone's board of directors, on Nov. 4 issued a preliminary report critical of past reserve estimate and review practices. Stone said early findings suggest "inadequate training and understanding" of regulatory requirements for reserve booking, and the law firm said management appeared to have set "a tone of optimism and aggressiveness" regarding that matter.

...more...

[UpInArms]

15. Smurfit-Stone to close plants, may sell unit

http://today.reuters.com/investing/FinanceArticle.aspx?type=mergersNews&storyID=URI:urn:newsml:reuters.com:20051109:MTFH22578_2005-11-09_12-22-31_N09504008:1

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. (SSCC.O: Quote, Profile, Research) on Wednesday announced a restructuring intended to reduce annual costs by $600 million within three years while taking advantage of opportunities in the market to increase revenue by $650 million.

The program includes the closure of up to 20 percent of its corrugated container facilities by 2008 and a shift to an "agency model" that would see the company coordinate functions like design and packaging for customers.

Smurfit-Stone said it plans to invest about $400 million to implement its initiatives. It also said it was evaluating options for its consumer packaging unit, and proceeds from the sale of all or part of those businesses would fund the initiatives.

...more...

[UpInArms]

16. Mills Corp. misses expectations; FFO dips 54%

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B68257487%2DE29E%2D4021%2D83B4%2DB3C699609159%7D&siteid=mktw

BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Mills Corp. before the opening bell Wednesday said a key profitability measure came in well below analyst expectations in the third quarter, leading it to lower its 2005 forecast.

The Arlington, Va.-based real estate investment trust (MLS) said funds from operations, a commonly used metric to measure REIT performance, fell 54% to 45 cents a share from 97 cents in the year-ago period.

Analysts polled by Thomson First Call had expected funds from operations of $1.06 a share. Funds from operations (FFO) excludes gains or losses on the sale of assets and non-cash charges for depreciation.

Last week the company, which owns mall and entertainment facilities, pushed back its earnings release and conference call, saying it anticipated third-quarter results would be "substantially below expectations." In a statement, the firm said the delay was to "allow the company additional time to evaluate the accounting for several items in its third-quarter results," which triggered a one-day 14% drop in the company's shares.

...more...

[UpInArms]

17. Delphi reports sharply wider quarterly loss

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T134153Z_01_WEN4018_RTRIDST_0_AUTOS-DELPHI-EARNS-URGENT.XML

CHICAGO, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Delphi Corp. (DPHIQ.PK: Quote, Profile, Research) on Wednesday said its net loss shot wider in the quarter before the auto parts maker filed for bankruptcy, pressured by production cuts at former parent General Motors Corp. (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and high materials costs.

The loss widened to $788 million, or $1.40 per share, in the third quarter, from $119 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier, Delphi said. Revenue fell 5.4 percent to $6.28 billion from $6.64 billion.

Delphi, the largest U.S. auto parts supplier, on Oct. 8 filed the biggest bankruptcy protection case in U.S. automotive history, blaming high wage costs for choking North American operations and masking strong performances in other regions.

...more...

[UpInArms]

52. Delphi loss widens seven-fold

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B52A1B8C5%2DF1F2%2D4B88%2D9C1D%2D82D7BB7D7B9A%7D&siteid=mktw

AN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Bankrupt auto-parts giant Delphi Corp., ravaged by rising raw-material prices, lower vehicle production and mounting retiree costs, said Wednesday its third-quarter loss widened almost seven times over.

Shares of the Troy, Mich.-based company (DPHIQ), which are no longer listed on the New York Stock Exchange, fell as low as 40 cents, down 3 cents, in over-the-counter trades. The stock changed hands above $9 at the beginning of the year.

Delphi reported a net loss of $788 million, or $1.40 a share, vs. a loss of $119 million, or 21 cents a share, a year ago.

<snip>

"The sizeable loss in this quarter only underscores the urgent need to address our U.S. labor-cost issues," said Chairman and CEO Robert Miller. "Delphi can not continue indefinitely to operate our facilities in the U.S., which lose a substantial amount of money, without being able to adjust our cost structure."

Delphi, led by bankruptcy veteran Miller, is trying to slash wages and benefits and cut holiday entitlement in an attempt to stem the bleeding.

...more...

[UpInArms]

59. General Motors hits 13-yr. low

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38665.4688002199-849604042&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Shares of General Motors (GM) hit a 13-year low in intraday trading amid concerns over a labor strike at parts supplier Delphi Corp. (DPHIQ) . The stock, a component of the Dow industrials, was last down 86 cents, or 3.3%, at $25. It hit a low of $24.65 earlier in the session, the lowest price seen since November 1992. Deutsche Bank analyst Rod Lache believes there is no question that GM would fare badly from a Delphi strike, which he now feels "is a very real possibility." He estimates that GM would use up about $13 billion in cash if a Delphi strike were to last for an entire quarter. Separately, the Wall Street Journal reported that whatever GM raises from a sale of its consumer finance arm, the agency that guarantees defined-benefit pension plans could demand that a portion of the proceeds go to GM's pension funds.

11:04am 11/09/05 GENERAL MOTORS HITS 13-YR. LOW OF $24.65 IN INTRADAY TRADE

11:02am 11/09/05 GENERAL MOTORS DOWN ALMOST 4% AT $24.88


Ah'm gonna pick up whar' ma daddy lef' off ~~GWB campaign 2000

[UpInArms]

70. Fitch cuts GM's debt rating deeper into junk

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T170953Z_01_WNA2852_RTRIDST_0_AUTOS-GENERALMOTORS-FITCH-URGENT.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Fitch Ratings on Wednesday cut its ratings on General Motors Corp. (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) deeper into junk territory and said it may cut them again, citing concerns about possible costs the automaker may incur to ensure its supplier Delphi Corp. (DPHIQ.PK: Quote, Profile, Research) reaches an agreement with its union.

Any extended labor disruption at Delphi would have an immediate impact on GM's ability to operate and would quickly reduce liquidity, Fitch added.

Fitch said the ratings of GM's finance arm, General Motors Acceptance Corp. were not affected but remain under review. GM has announced plans to sell a controlling stake in GMAC, and lack of progress or clarity on a sale by the first quarter of 2006 would likely result in a downgrade, Fitch said.

Fitch cut GM's issuer default and senior unsecured debt rating two notches to "B-plus," the fourth-highest junk rating, from "BB." Rating downgrades usually raise borrowing costs.

...more...

[Tace]

18. MOGAMBO GURU: 'We're Morons With Nuclear Weapons!'

Richard Daughty -- the angriest guy in economics
email: [email protected]

-- I hope you don't mind talking to me through the mail slot in the door, but I am not in the mood to open the damned door right now, as I am being driven crazy crazy crazy by alarm bells and alarm buzzers going clang clang clang and buzz buzz buzz respectively, and the Mogambo Economic Seismograph (SES) is literally flopping (flop flop flop) on the table from the financial tremors being detected.

It wasn't always this way. Why, I sort of remember this morning when I got up, smiling as the sun was coming up and little birds were singing sweetly to me from the treetops. And this morning the wife was still asleep so she wasn't already yelling at me, "Are you going to get up off your lazy butt and do something around here today?" (No).

But then my idyllic morning was shattered when the alarms starting going off after I learned that Total Fed Credit shot up by $3.955 billion dollars last week, which is scary enough in itself, because this means that all of this instant increase in credit was used to create more debt for somebody, and with the reserve multiplier of almost 100! I notice that you did not say "Yikes!" at that, so you are probably very hungover and thinking only of how your head hurts, and your stomach hurts, and your hair hurts, and there is a bad taste in your mouth, and somebody has peed in your pants, and you are therefore blissfully unaware of what this means. So, showing off my mathematical and calculator wizardry, I finally manage to turn the calculator on. With a self-satisfied smugness, I key in the number $3.955 billion with surgical precision, and then multiply that by 100, and after a few tries, I announce that most of the answers I got were $395.5 billion. That is how much potential new debt was created LAST FREAKING WEEK! In one week!

So the next thing I know, I am trying to explain to this stupid policeman that the obvious reason that I am riding my bicycle down the road this early in the morning, wearing nothing but an adult diaper and a wedding veil while screaming, "It's time for stupid Americans to wake up and prepare to be economically killed, you morons!" is that all this torrent of new debt means we are even MORE freaking doomed! And especially since all this new debt means all this new money in the system, and all this new money means all this new inflation in the money supply, and all this new inflation in the money supply means price inflation is coming to kill our money, our economy and us. To make sure that he comprehended the crucial importance of this basic fact, I even helpfully pointed out to him, as tactfully as The Mogambo can, that if he can't get it through his thick Neanderthal skull that my heroic actions, sort of like Paul Revere only more comfortably dressed, are fully justified, then he was just another stupid fascist pig cop. The next thing I said was, "Before you hit me with that nightstick again, are you telling me that you agree with the stupid idea that a nation can go into so much debt, and then print the money to pay the debts, that we will all end up rich?"

more

http://worldnewstrust.org/modules/AMS/article.php?storyid=1643

[UpInArms]

19. NYSE fines firm (Wall Street Discount) $30,000 for overstating capital

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38665.3628656597-849577693&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Wall Street Discount Corp. was fined $30,000 for overstating its net capital, the regulatory arm of the New York Stock Exchange said Wednesday. The NYSE said the company overstated net capital by 46%, or $118,600, in September 2001, and failed to adequately supervise brokers in 2001 and 2002. Wall Street Discount neither admitted or denied the charges.

[UpInArms]

20. US home loan applications information

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T121437Z_01_N09672720_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-MORTGAGES-UPDATE-1.XML

excerpt:

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity for the week ended Nov. 4 increased 2.3 percent to 661.3.

<snip>

Even though the purchase index rose for the first time in three weeks, home purchase applications remain 3.6 percent below their-year ago level, Jay Brinkmann, MBA's vice president of research and economics, said in a statement accompanying the data. MBA data shows that the 30-year-rate stood at 5.69 percent one year ago.

<snip>

The group's index of refinancing applications dropped 3.4 percent to 1,798.8. its third consecutive weekly decline.

With the latest drop, the refinancing index has slid to its lowest level since early April.

The indices were all seasonally adjusted, the MBA said.

...more...

[UpInArms]

21. Treasurys slip ahead of Fed speeches, auction

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38665.3698773264-849579257&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Treasurys eased slightly Wednesday as some caution emerged ahead of a flurry of Federal Reserve speeches and the second leg of the government's quarterly debt auctions. Tuesday's sale of 3-year notes drew the strongest overall demand since 2003 but featured slim participation by foreign central banks, posing some uncertainty for the outcome of Wednesday's 5-year note auction. The benchmark 10-year note was trading down 3/32 at 97 15/32, yielding ($TNX) 4.58% vs. 4.57% Tuesday.

[UpInArms]

31. Printing Press Report:Fed adds temporary reserves via overnight system RPs

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T144335Z_01_N09349095_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-FED-OPERATIONS.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve said on Wednesday that it was adding temporary reserves to the U.S. banking system through overnight system repurchase agreements.

The benchmark federal funds rate last traded at 4.00 percent, the Fed's target for the overnight lending rate.

Further details of the operations are available at: http://www.ny.frb.org/markets/omo/dmm/temp.cfm

[UpInArms]

79. US Treasuries extend losses before 5-year auction

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T173208Z_01_N09439734_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-BONDS-UPDATE-1.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury debt prices eased on Wednesday as traders cheapened prices ahead of the second part of the U.S. Treasury's $44 billion quarterly refunding and three Federal Reserve speakers.

The auction of $13 billion in five-year notes loomed as the biggest factor, with traders braced for whatever the Fed has to say about the risks of inflation and the central bank's inclination to raise interest rates to fight it.

On Tuesday, bond prices rallied for a second straight day as the market took a break from two months of selling that had brought 10-year yields to seven-month highs and two-year yields to 4-1/2-year highs.

Tuesday's action also reflected maneuverings related to a heavy day of corporate debt issuance that tightened swap spreads and put upward pressure on Treasuries. Wednesday's action was in many ways an unraveling of that action, traders said.

<snip>

That relatively poor demand from foreign bidders could be a cause for concern for the five- and particularly 10-year auctions, because foreigners traditionally show more interest in debt with shorter maturities.

"There is a strong tendency for foreign participation to be strongest in the front end of the curve, suggesting that the strength of the five-year and 10-year auctions rests on domestic investors," a research note for BNP Paribas said.

...more...

[UpInArms]

80. Ohio should embrace economic change-Fed's Pianalto

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T173901Z_01_WAT004348_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-FED-PIANALTO-URGENT.XML

STRONGSVILLE, Ohio, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Industrial restructuring can be a painful process, but embracing change is the best way to ensure future prosperity, a top U.S. central banker said on Wednesday.

"We can foresee economic change that opens the way toward a future every bit as prosperous as our past, if we prepare for it, if we plan for it, and if we summon the resolve to embrace new opportunities," Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank President Sandra Pianalto told the Strongsville Chamber of Commerce.

Pianalto, who rotates into the roster of voting members of the Fed's policy-setting committee next year, did not discuss the current outlook for the national economy or for monetary policy in her speech, focusing instead on the wrenching changes faced by industrial workers in Northeastern Ohio.

What kind of drivel was that? :crazy:

[UpInArms]

85. US consumers have managed debt well-Fed's Pianalto

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T182615Z_01_WBT004230_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-FED-PIANALTO-CONSUMERS-URGENT.XML

STRONGSVILLE, Ohio, Nov 9 (Reuters) - U.S. consumers have managed growing debts well but the Federal Reserve will have to keep its eyes open to see if rising interest rates lead them into trouble, a top U.S. central bank official said on Wednesday.

"As we start to see an increase in interest rates will that cause the consumer problems?" Cleveland Fed Bank President Sandra Pianalto asked rhetorically as she took audience questions after speaking to a business group. "I think it depends on whether that's gradual and how consumers adjust to that."

"In the past several years consumers ... have been very diligent in managing some of their debt in terms of refinancing to lower rates, but we'll have to ... keep our eye on this situation as the conditions change," she said.

[UpInArms]

84. Oopsie! Treasuries fall on weak indirect bid in 5-yr sale

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T181134Z_01_NYG000091_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-BONDS-AUCTION-URGENT.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 8 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury debt prices extended early losses on Wednesday afternoon after a $13 billion auction of new five-year notes drew poor demand from indirect bidders, the second weak showing in as many days.

The notes were sold at a high yield of 4.525 percent, and drew bids 2.61 times per dollar of debt on offer, above the 2.51 average of the 10 previous five-year note auctions in 2005.

But indirect bidders, which include customers of primary dealers and foreign central banks, took home only $2.69 billion, or 20.7 percent of the deal, well below the 39.2 percent at the previous 10 five-year note auctions this year.

Existing five-year notes were trading 8/32 lower for a yield of 4.53 percent, compared with 4.48 percent on Tuesday.

[UpInArms]

88. Treasuries slide as foreigners missing in auction

http://today.reuters.com/PrinterFriendlyPopup.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=uri:2005-11-09T190040Z_01_N09482485_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-BONDS-UPDATE-2.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury debt prices extended losses on Wednesday after early technical selling was compounded by worries about meager foreign participation in the second leg of the U.S. government's quarterly debt refunding.

The $13 billion in new five-year notes were sold at a high yield of 4.525 percent, and received 2.61 times the number of bids per dollar of debt on offer.

Such interest was better than a recent average of 2.51 times, but that was overshadowed by scant participation from indirect bidders, a category that includes foreign central banks.

"Maybe we're finally getting to the point where the foreigners are demanding really high compensation for our budget and current account deficits," said Mary Ann Hurley, a senior Treasury market trader at D.A. Davidson & Co.

<snip>

Foreign investors have already held back at Tuesday's three-year sale, with post-auction data showing indirect bidders had been abnormally unaggressive about securing their bids. Analysts were now worried that they would hold back for a third day running.

...more...

[UpInArms]

98. Fed's Poole untroubled by current account gap

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/print_story.asp?print=1&guid={3D61B8C2-FA7B-4708-A53C-FEFAAFFE0813}&siteid=mktw

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The U.S. growing current account deficit is not troubling, said William Poole, the president of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank, on Wednesday.

Some experts have warned that there could be a sharp decline in the value of the dollar if foreign investors began to view the deficit as too large and bailed out of dollar assets.

Poole said an adjustment is inevitable, but a hard landing "is very unlikely" provided U.S. authorities pursue proper economic policies.

"I believe that the current account adjustment will be fairly slow and orderly and that it may not begin for quite some time," Poole said in a speech at Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Mo.

The U.S. current account deficit could reach 7% of GDP at the end of 2006, according to a recent report on the U.S. economy from the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development.

"There is no inherent reason that such changes would lead to a financial market crisis: as a stable, diversified and growing economy, the United States is not likely to suffer from a sudden lack of confidence by investors," Poole said.

...more...

[UpInArms]

22. (Louisiana) 160 face layoff from Tembec (on X-mas Eve)

http://www.2theadvocate.com/stories/110905/bus_biz002.shtml

The Tembec paper mill in St. Francisville has informed the state Department of Labor that it will fire 160 workers beginning Christmas Eve.

Bonnie McKneely, the department's rapid-response manager, said Tembec filed its mandatory 60-day WARN notice notifying the state the last day at work will be Dec. 24.

The layoffs will involve maintenance and operations personnel, as well as some administrative, professional, supervisory and sales positions, she said.

The mill, which primarily makes paper for magazines but also for coffee filters and other products, employs about 700 people.

The layoffs would cut its work force by just under one-quarter.

...more...

[UpInArms]

23. Marvel (toy maker) cuts forecast, stock plunges

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7BCE3BB4A4%2D2780%2D4604%2D8F02%2DBDBB8C02084E%7D&siteid=mktw

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Shares of Marvel Entertainment Inc. sank as much as 24% in premarket trades after the licensor of comic-book characters reported a steep decline in third-quarter profit and warned of a sharp profit pullback for 2006.

<snip>

The 2006 forecast reflects management's expectations for "a difficult year for both toys and licensing," Chairman Morton Handel said. Marvel's licensing division is expected to generate about 60% of total sales for 2005.

Against that backdrop, Marvel's board approved committing an additional $250 million to buy back stock, with half of the funds to come from a newly negotiated $150 million credit line.

<snip>

The company's quarterly sales also fell, dropping to $81.1 million from $135.2 million in a reflection of a big drop in both licensing and toy contributions. Operating income dropped to $35.4 million from $62.1 million.

...more...

Hmmm.... Buying stocks with borrowed money? Isn't that what was going on just before the Great Depression?

[UpInArms]

24. Celanese shareholders selling 20 million shares

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38665.3856823611-849582441&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=symb&value=&categories=&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Celanese Corp. (CE) said certain shareholders were offering to sell 20 million common shares. The sellers are also expected to grant the underwriters of the offering options to buy up to an additional 3 million shares to cover over-allotments. The industrial chemicals company's stock closed Tuesday down 55 cents at $17.75.

:wtf:

[UpInArms]

25. Equity hedge funds worst performers in Oct -Edhec

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T141033Z_01_L09777204_RTRIDST_0_FINANCIAL-HEDGE-EDHEC.XML

LONDON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Hedge funds lost money overall in October, while strategies that trade equities fared the worst as stock prices fell, French business school Edhec said.

Long/short equity hedge funds which buy and short sell -- sell a security on the expectation of buying it back cheaper at a later date -- lost 2.41 percent on average in October, knocking their year-to-date returns down to 2.13 percent.

That compares with losses of 1.98 percent in October for the MSCI index of world stocks and gains of 7.10 percent in the 10 months since January.

"The month of October was characterised by the poor performance of global stock markets," Edhec said in a statement.

"Value and small cap stocks performed even worse than the broad stock market. Stock market volatility rose."

The Chicago Board Options Exchange's Market Volatility Index, also known as the fear gauge and a benchmark measure of U.S. stock market volatility, hit a five-month peak of 17.19 on October 13, but has since slipped to around 13.

...more...

[UpInArms]

27. First Data may sell its credit card issuing business

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38665.3946661458-849584477&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- First Data Corp. said Wednesday it has hired Morgan Stanley to help it decide what to do with its U.S. credit card issuing business, which is a drain on the entire company's financial results, Chairman and CEO Charlie Fote in a statement. First Data said it expects revenue growth and operating margins in 2006 to be in-line with 2005. "Based on the timing of any actions within the Card segment, Card is expected to continue to negatively impact First Data's consolidated growth rates through the middle of 2006," the company said. First Data also warned it would earn $2.14 to $2.16 a share in 2005, less than the $2.29 a share analysts polled by Thomson First Call had expected.

9:21am 11/09/05 FIRST DATA SEES 2005 EARNS $2.14-2.16

9:22am 11/09/05 FIRST DATA 2005 FIRST CALL EST $2.30

9:20am 11/09/05 FIRST DATA SAYS CARD BUSINESS DAMPENING GROWTH

9:21am 11/09/05 FIRST DATA SEES CARD OPS NEGATIVELY IMPACTING GROWTH IN 2006

9:19am 11/09/05 FIRST DATA HIRES MORGAN STANLEY TO ADVISE ON CARD OPS

[UpInArms]

28. US Airways Group third-quarter loss widens

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T142905Z_01_WEN4029_RTRIDST_0_BA-AIRLINES-USAIR-EARNS-URGENT.XML

CHICAGO, Nov 9 (Reuters) - US Airways Group Inc. (LCC.N: Quote, Profile, Research), which merged with America West Airlines in September, on Wednesday reported a wider third-quarter loss.

The airline reported a net loss of $87 million, or $5.04 per diluted share, compared with $29 million, or $1.92 per diluted share, a year earlier.

The consolidated results include just four days of America West operations.

[UpInArms]

29. 9:39 EST numbers and pre-opening blather

Dow 10,535.80 -3.92 (-0.04%)
Nasdaq 2,171.04 -1.03 (-0.05%)
S&P 500 1,218.55 -0.04 (-0.00%)
10-Yr Bond. 4.594 +0.29 (+0.64%)

NYSE Volume 92,327,000
Nasdaq Volume 96,530,000

9:16AM: S&P futures vs fair value: -0.5. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -0.5.

8:59AM: S&P futures vs fair value: -0.6. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: flat. Futures trade continues to suggest a flattish open for the indices. Aside from the latest crude inventory report, due out at 10:30 ET, the economic calendar features just one item today. At 10:00 ET, September wholesale inventory data (consensus +0.3%) will be released. Separately, the Treasury market is back on negative turf after two sessions of improvement and ahead of today's auction and Fed speak. Fed Presidents Santomero, Pianalto, and Poole are each scheduled to speak today. The 10-year (-05/32) currently yields 4.57%.

8:30AM: S&P futures vs fair value: -1.0. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +0.5. Stocks remain poised for a lackluster start today. Along with early pullbacks in energy prices, some positive news within the Discretionary sector may direct some focus there. Federated (FD) surpassed analysts' Q3 expectations by a dime, and Limited (LTD), Linens 'N Things (LIN), and Home Depot shares (HD) were each upgraded.

8:02AM: S&P futures vs fair value: flat. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +1.0. The cash market is set to open flat to modestly higher as traders await the EIA's latest energy inventory report. A dip in the price of crude (-$0.30$59.41/bbl) and an analyst upgrade on Home Depot (HD) shares have lent some early upside, but American International Group's (AIG) announced delay and restatement of Q3 earnings serves as an offsetting effect.

[UpInArms]

32. blather update

9:40AM: As futures trade had presaged, the stock market opened in rather lackluster fashion; each of the major indices are hovering around the flat line. A dearth of market-moving news on either the corporate or economic fronts leaves traders lacking a strong catalyst, but expectations for the EIA to report builds in crude, gasoline, and distillates supply has sparked a dip in the price of oil that keeps futures contracts below $60.00 per barrel. Along with that, some positive news items amid Consumer Discretionary opened the sector higher and may help direct some buying action there. Home Depot (HD), Limited (LTD), and Linens 'N Things (LIN) enjoy analyst upgrades, and Federated (FD) beat Q3 earnings estimates by a dime per share. Separately, weakness within the Treasury market may serve as somewhat of an overhang today; the 10-year is off 11 ticks and yielding 4.60%.

[UpInArms]

30. Dec Gold @ $463 oz

9:39am 11/09/05 DEC GOLD CLIMBS 70C TO $463/OZ IN MORNING NY TRADE

9:39am 11/09/05 DEC SILVER UP 5.5C AT $7.68/OZ AFTER 1-WK HIGH OF $7.72

[UpInArms]

76. Dec Gold @ $468.30

12:27pm 11/09/05 DEC GOLD JUMPS $6 TO $468.30/OZ AFTER 1-WK HIGH OF $469

[UpInArms]

86. Dec Gold closes @ $467.50 oz

1:50pm 11/09/05 DEC GOLD CLOSES NEAR A TWO-WEEK HIGH, UP $5.20 AT $467.50/OZ

[ozymandius]

33. FOR THE RECORD: This is the SMW for 9 November 2005

Slow early morning brain cells and sloppy fingers to blame.

[AnneD]

49. Hey Ozy.....

you're typos are better than some peoples 'facts'. Hope you were celebrating a few Dem wins in your home town.

[ozymandius]

34. 9:55 numbers

Dow 10,528.92 -10.80 (-0.10%)
Nasdaq 2,169.64 -2.43 (-0.11%)
S&P 500 1,217.42 -1.17 (-0.10%)
10-Yr Bond 45.96 +0.31 (+0.68%)

NYSE Volume 202,340,000
Nasdaq Volume 191,162,000

[UpInArms]

35. PepsiCo plans restructuring on costs pressures

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T145455Z_01_N09713574_RTRIDST_0_FOOD-PEPSICO-OUTLOOK-UPDATE-3.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - PepsiCo Inc. (PEP.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the world's second-largest soft drink maker, on Wednesday said it plans to cut costs in some of its operations and take a restructuring charge of up to $85 million.

Pepsi's shares were little changed in early morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

The company, which also makes Doritos snacks and Quaker granola bars, said the charges of $65 million to $85 million, or 3 cents a share, will cut 2005 earnings per share to $2.38 to $2.39, from the previously forecast $2.41 to $2.42 a share.

<snip>

The company said that expense reductions will take place throughout the 2005 fourth quarter as plans are finalized.

"They are looking at ways to manage the cost environment, which is still going to be challenging and in operations of their scale there is always opportunity to cut costs," said UBS analyst Caroline Levy. "I would expect some plant closures and job cuts."

<snip>

In recent years, health-conscious consumers have shunned traditional soft drinks. Coca-Cola Co. (KO.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the world's largest soft drink maker, has been retooling over the past year and a half as sales slowed in its core soft-drink brands. The moves initiated by its new management team have started to gain some traction, and it has ramped up marketing spending.

...more...

[UpInArms]

74. Frito-Lay Division to lay-off 200-250 workers

12:23pm 11/09/05 PEPSICO'S FRITO-LAY DIVISION TO LAYOFF 200-250 WORKERS

[ozymandius]

41. no 10am bounce today

10:19
Dow 10,529.95 -9.77 (-0.09%)
Nasdaq 2,167.64 -4.43 (-0.20%)
S&P 500 1,217.78 -0.81 (-0.07%)
10-Yr Bond 45.94 +0.29 (+0.64%)
NYSE Volume 339,709,000
Nasdaq Volume 302,381,000

[UpInArms]

46. bounce delayed until 10:30 EST

Dow 10,536.68 -3.04 (-0.03%)
Nasdaq 2,169.40 -2.67 (-0.12%)
S&P 500 1,218.96 +0.37 (+0.03%)
10-Yr Bond 4.606 +0.41 (+0.90%)

NYSE Volume 416,078,000
Nasdaq Volume 362,191,000

check out the straight up "snapback"

(edited for html)

[UpInArms]

53. JohnsonDiversey plans job cuts, plant closures (cost of oil)

http://milwaukee.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/stories/2005/11/07/daily23.html?jst=b_ln_hl

JohnsonDiversey Inc. plans to cut about 10 percent of its worldwide workforce and close a number of plants in response to the rising costs of crude oil and natural gas.

The Sturtevant-based commercial cleaning products and services provider said in regulatory filings Tuesday that its board approved the restructuring plan Monday, the day before it reported a profit of $2.2 million for the third quarter.

The restructuring is expected to occur over the next two to three years and includes a "redesign" of the company's organizational structure. The firm is also considering divesting its Johnson Polymer and other non-core or underperforming businesses that combined have provided a total of $500 million in net sales over the past 12 months, the company said.

...more...

[UpInArms]

58. 11:15 EST numbers and blather

Dow 10,535.64 -4.08 (-0.04%)
Nasdaq 2,167.60 -4.47 (-0.21%)
S&P 500 1,217.69 -0.90 (-0.07%)
10-Yr Bond 4.614 +0.49 (+1.07%)

NYSE Volume 683,677,000
Nasdaq Volume 545,790,000

10:55AM: The market's energy inventory-induced spike has kept the Dow and S&P higher, but the Nasdaq is still submerged. The 1.4% slide in crude's price has somewhat helped the overall market, but, at the same time, the subsequent 1.1% decline in the Energy sector weighs heavily upon it. On the other side of the aisle, Financials' 0.4% gain serves as the strongest source of support. Despite weakness in the Treasury market that has pushed the 10-year down 14 ticks and to a 4.61% yield, banks extend a 0.6% gain. American International Group (AIG 65.82 -0.03) is the sector's sorest spot, declining after announcing accounting errors that have led to a delay in the filing of its third quarter 10-Q with the SEC. NYSE Adv/Dec 1435/1467, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1284/1364

10:35AM: Recently crossing the wires is the EIA's data. Last week, crude supply rose more than twice as much as expected - by 4.5 million barrels versus the expected 2 million barrel build. Gasoline inventory increased 4.2 million barrels versus the 1.2 million rise analysts had estimated. Distillates, however, unexpectedly declined 100K barrels; analysts expected a 700K build. Separately, a report at the top of the hour showed that wholesale inventories jumped 0.6% in September (consensus +0.3%). The much better than expected crude and gasoline stats have sparked a 1.3% fall in the price of oil ($58.90 per barrel). The indices have cleared the flat line in the report's immediate wake.NYSE Adv/Dec 1353/1471, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1205/1415

[54anickel]

60. SEC probes company pension plans -WSJ

Agency investigating plans of major U.S. employers including GM, Boeing and Ford.

http://money.cnn.com/2005/11/09/news/sec_pensions.reut/index.htm

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Securities and Exchange Commission is probing whether companies have tweaked their pension plan assumptions to please shareholders rather than protect the interests of retirees, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Pension assumptions are used to calculate the size of a plan's future pension obligations. The SEC's interest in the pension plans has been known for months and details about the probe continue to surface, the paper said.

Small changes, such as a quarter-point increase in the interest rate used to calculate total liability -- can change a company's pension obligation by billions of dollars, the paper said.

It said General Motors (Research) is one company under review. Boeing (Research), Delphi, Ford Motor (Research), Navistar International (Research) and Northwest Airlines have disclosed SEC inquiries about their pension plans. The SEC has not accused any company of wrongdoing.

The SEC is also looking at pension accounting issues that do not involve assumptions but can boost reported earnings, the newspaper reported.

more...

[AnneD]

95. So....

are we suppose to be suprised? Any company that cheats their employees out of the pension they have spent a lifetime to accumulate by declaring bankruptcy (as a tool to improve their bottom line) is the same company to play fast and loose with their interest figures. They had no integrity to begin with.

[UpInArms]

61. What America Exports: Paper, Waste and Jobs

http://counterpunch.org/roberts11082005.html

The October payroll jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows employment growth for the month essentially at a standstill.
The economy created only 46,000 private sector jobs. The bulk of those--33,000--were in construction.

The domestic service sector of the economy, which has been the source of net new jobs in the 21st century, experienced no job growth in October.

In the 21st century the US economy has ceased to generate net new jobs in middle and upper middle class professions. This is a serious economic, social and political problem that receives no attention.

There is a great deal of meltdown inside the US economy.
Manufacturing is hollowed out. The decline in manufacturing means decline in the engineering and other professions that serve it.
Knowledge jobs are also being lost to offshore outsourcing and to H-1b, L-1, and other work visas. In October, there were 81,301 corporate layoffs.

The government does not keep records of the US jobs lost to offshore outsourcing and to work visas for foreigners. With so few jobs available in the educated professions, the future of US universities would seem to be bleak.

<snip>

In recent years, offshore outsourcing has caused the US trade deficit to explode. Offshore outsourcing means that the production of goods and services for the US market is shifted from America to foreign countries. This turns goods formerly produced in the US into imports. Between 1997 and 2004 the US trade deficit increased six fold. Since 1997 the cumulative US trade deficit (including $700 billion estimate for 2005) is $3.5 trillion. The outsourcing of America's economy is a far greater threat to Americans than terrorists.

...more...

[AnneD]

97. Who is this numb nuts....

"In the 21st century the US economy has ceased to generate net new jobs in middle and upper middle class professions. This is a serious economic, social and political problem that receives no attention."

I guess they had their head up their ass so far that they weren't listening to the last presidential election. I remember Kerry addressing this topic in one of the debates. Perhaps this clueless idiot that presumes to be an economist has either been watching only FOX and attending only GOP fundraisers. What a Johnny come lately. I can teach an ignorant/naive person-but I can't do a dang thing for stupid. It is getting harder to suffer fools..

[54anickel]

62. Goodbye Obsolete G-7, Meet the Relevant G-20

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000039&refer=columnist_pesek&sid=as.3ecp66xtY

snip>

The G-7 is, let's face it, becoming irrelevant. Those seeking evidence of this impotence need look no further than this year's surge in energy prices. The mightiest economies could do little more than issue useless press releases and communiques. Why? Demand from economies beyond the G-7's purview now plays a major role in determining global prices.

snip>

More Than Fair

It's not just a matter of fairness. The G-7 includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.K. and the U.S. The G-20 consists of those countries plus Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey and the European Union.

The G-20 covers about two-thirds of the world's population and more than 80 percent of global output. Not only does it include the world's most populous and fastest-growing nations, but also some of its most important oil producers and voracious consumers of commodities.

Granted, getting seven economies to agree on anything is a chore in the best of times, never mind 20. If economic leaders are to have any leverage in this globalized world of ours, they're going to have to open their clubby little world.

Since those holding power are always reluctant to give it up, it's more likely the G-7 would prefer to add a couple of members than let the G-20 take over. That would be a mistake. It would mean cherry picking economies it likes, rather than honestly respecting the emerging new global order.

more...

[UpInArms]

66. Toll Bros. execs avoid some pain (insiders sold shares during summer)

http://money.cnn.com/2005/11/09/news/fortune500/toll_brothers_stock/

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Toll Bros. stock took a hit this week, but executives at the company were able to avoid some of the pain through stock sales earlier in the year, a newspaper reported Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the luxury homebuilder warned that new home deliveries and earnings next year would probably fall short of its expectations, and Toll Brothers (down $5.50 to $33.91, Research) shares tumbled 14 percent on the news.

The Horsham, Pa.-based homebuilder cut the number of homes it expects to complete next year to 9,500 to 10,200 homes. The company had earlier forecast 10,200 to 10,600 homes.

The warning took Wall St. by surprise. CEO Robert Toll had said as recently as last month that housing market fundamentals looked strong through 2010. "That's pretty good moving and grooving," he told USA Today in an interview on Oct. 3.

Fortunately for some executives, some summertime selling helped cushion the blow from Tuesday's sell-off, USA Today reported Wednesday.

...more...

[UpInArms]

67. MetLife subpoenaed; may face college plan charge (kickbacks)

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T165920Z_01_N09721906_RTRIDST_0_FINANCIAL-METLIFE-SUBPOENA.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - MetLife Inc. (MET.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the largest U.S. life insurer, on Wednesday said it received a subpoena from federal prosecutors in California for documents about an insurance broker, and may separately face regulatory charges over sales of Section 529 college savings plans.

The company did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

In its quarterly report filed with securities regulators, New York-based MetLife said the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California has asked for documents concerning an insurance broker, Universal Life Resources.

MetLife, like many other insurers and insurance brokers, faces several regulatory probes and lawsuits into whether insurance business was steered to certain companies in exchange for kickbacks.

...more...

[54anickel]

68. Grassley 'pessimistic' about Social Security change before 2009

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/business/20051108-1414-socialsecurity.html

WASHINGTON – It will be 2009, after the next presidential election, before lawmakers seriously consider overhauling Social Security, the chairman of the Senate panel overseeing the program said Tuesday.
Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, said he's "very pessimistic" that lawmakers can act before the end of President Bush's second term on Social Security ideas that Bush made the centerpiece of this year's legislative agenda.

"I'm pessimistic that it could come up before 2009," Grassley told an audience at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. "Doesn't mean that I won't try to bring it up before 2009."

Between now and 2009, the political environment will heat up for midterm congressional elections and then the next presidential election.

Bush acknowledged at a press conference last month that Congress has little appetite for taking on the issue this year, even after he made dozens of speeches nationwide.

"I did make some progress convincing the American people there was a problem," Bush said. "And I'm going to continue talking about the problem because I strongly believe that the role of those of us in Washington, one role is to confront problems."

Heh-heh, yeah, that's one role. Second to creating problems. :evilgrin:

[54anickel]

69. Record for CEO Turnover in 2005

http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/5134282/c_5134299?f=home_todayinfinance

So far this year, 1,110 CEOs have left their jobs, surpassing even the dotcom exodus of 2000; turnover among top management in general has picked up, too.

Stephen Taub, CFO.com
November 09, 2005

More chief executive officers have left their jobs in 2005 than in any other year, according to a study conducted by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas and reported by CNN/Money.

So far this year, 1,110 CEOs have left their jobs, surpassing even the dotcom exodus of 2000, according to the website. October saw 96 departures, 113 percent higher than during October 2004, including 15 health-care CEOs and a dozen chief executives from the technology sector.

But it's not CEOs alone who are feeling the heat. Turnover among top management in general has been occurring at a furious pace since the beginning of August, according to a separate study of U.S. public companies by Liberum Research.

Liberum reported that in July, top management changes — arrivals, internal moves, and departures ૼ totaled 763, but by last month they had soared to 2,056. Liberum's October tally includes 218 changes of status for CEOs, including 67 departures. The most active area was in the boardroom, where Liberum counted 477 changes in October, including 103 departures.

more...

[Roland99]

71. Fairies on steroids - 12:23pm

DJIA 10,573.30 +33.60
Nasdaq 2,176.22 +4.15
S&P 500 1,224.13 +5.54
Russell 2000 660.04 +3.81
CBOE Volatility 12.60 -0.48
30 Yr Bond 4.81 +0.05
10 Yr Bond 4.61 +0.05

[UpInArms]

73. WHEE!

[Roland99]

75. Sen. Hagel was on Insanity yesterday and let some lies slide.

Hannity was spewing that unemployment was at near-record lows, that the average household income was about $44,000 (or so), and the 3.8% economic growth even in the face of Katrina were all signs that the economy is just robust and healthy as all get-out!

Hagel just let it slide. Couldn't believe it.

Unemployment is based on a survey. If someone's employed part-time, they're not unemployed. The household income has been flat for a few years now and some reports indicate real wages are dropping. And, the 3.8% GDP growth would be how much w/o the government's deficit spending?

The collapse is coming and no amount of spin can save it.

[UpInArms]

77. 12:29 EST and still spiking like there's no tomorrow

Dow 10,589.75 +50.03 (+0.47%)
Nasdaq 2,179.74 +7.67 (+0.35%)
S&P 500 1,225.60 +7.01 (+0.58%)
10-Yr Bond 4.610 +0.45 (+0.99%)

NYSE Volume 1,059,822,000
Nasdaq Volume 802,286,000

[UpInArms]

78. spinners speechless

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/pulseone.asp?dateid=38665.5209236111-849616560&siteID=mktw&scid=0&doctype=806&property=symb&value=&categories=&

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - U.S. stocks threw off morning weakness and rallied at midday Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) was up almost 49 points at 10,590, with 25 of its 30 components in positive territory. The &P 500 ($SPX) was up almost 7 points at 1,225.55 and the Nasdaq Composite (COMPX) up 8 points at 2,180.

12:17pm 11/09/05 <$SPX> S&P 500 UP 1.55 PTS AT 1,220.14

12:17pm 11/09/05 <$INDU> DOW JONES INDUSTRIALS UP ALMOST 3 PTS AT 10,542

[UpInArms]

81. U.S. stocks rise as Exxon rebounds with oil prices (new spin)

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T173838Z_01_N09728513_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-STOCKS-UPDATE-6.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday as Exxon Mobil Corp. shares rebounded with oil prices, offsetting a drop in General Motors Corp. on concern about earnings in the automotive sector.

Exxon Mobil, the world's largest publicly traded oil company, jumped 1 percent to $58 as U.S. oil futures rebounded from a $1 drop in the morning on oil inventory data. Exxon lifted both the Dow and the Standard & Poor's 500.

<snip>

"It's not really clear there's any strong fundamental reason for the rally. The only conclusion is that there was a comment by the Exxon head that oil prices may be near a peak," said Michael Panzner, head of sales trading at Rabo Securities in New York.

<snip>

In midday trading, though, NYMEX December crude rebounded and was up 24 cents at $59.95 as dealers shrugged off swelling crude stockpiles and focused on tightening supplies of heating oil leading into the winter.

...more...

[UpInArms]

90. U.S. stocks advance on hopes of year-end rally (more spin)

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T192017Z_01_N09637648_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-STOCKS-UPDATE-7.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks gained on Wednesday as investors bought stocks across a wide range of sectors on hopes of a year-end rally.

Of the 30 industrial stocks in the Dow, all but six rose. United Technologies Corp. (UTX.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Alcoa Inc. (AA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) gave the blue-chip average its biggest lifts.

"There's an incentive to try to collectively move prices higher at the end of the year," said Steve Goldman, market strategist at Weeden & Co. in New York. "Investors don't want to be caught short."

...more...

[UpInArms]

72. 12:22 EST numbers "snapback!" and blather

Dow 10,576.38 +36.66 (+0.35%)
Nasdaq 2,176.45 +4.38 (+0.20%)
S&P 500 1,224.16 +5.57 (+0.46%)
10-Yr Bond 4.614 +0.49 (+1.07%)

NYSE Volume 1,008,790,000
Nasdaq Volume 766,972,000

12:00PM : Failing to find solid footing, the indices hover around the flat line as they head into the lunch hour. The market opened in lackluster fashion as traders lacked a real catalyst and awaited the latest energy inventory report from the EIA. The bullish read on crude and gasoline supply - the build in each was more than twice as much as expected - sparked a sharp decline in the price of oil and pushed the market onto positive ground. The bid was short-lived, though, as investors perhaps turned their attention towards the unexpected drop in distillate supply. Recently, crude futures have rebounded (+0.1%) and approach the $60 per barrel mark. The data increased profit-taking action within the Energy sector, pulling it to a 1% loss that serves as the broader market's biggest challenge. Industrials (-0.1%), Technology (-0.2%), and Healthcare (-0.2%) also extend losses that modest gains in the other six sectors have not been able to counter. With respect to Tech, Cisco (CSCO 17.75 -0.11) is sore spot ahead of its Q3 report this evening, and First Data (FDC 41.02 -1.42) exerts further pressure after issuing downside FY05 guidance this morning. A disappointing Q3 report and downside FY05 and FY06 outlooks from Marvell (MRVL 49.04 -0.01) have weighed on semis and left the Nasdaq underperforming today. Healthcare, meanwhile, is taken lower by a drop in healthcare services following an adverse court ruling in Maine for prescription benefit managers. While five sectors lend gains, leadership is absent. Despite the submerged Treasury market, which has pushed the benchmark 10-year note down 15 ticks and to a 4.61% yield, banks have boosted Financials (0.3%) to the top of the list. Limiting its advance, though, is American International Group (AIG 65.80 -0.05), which delayed the filing of its third quarter 10-Q due to accounting errors. Despite slashed guidance from Pepsi (PEP 58.19 -0.11), Consumer Staples has retained a 0.2% gain. An upgrade-induced rise in Home Depot (HD 40.92 +0.35) shares, alongside an upside Q3 report from Federated (FD 68.12 +4.21) and an upgrade on Limited Brands (LTD 21.29 +0.77), has offset McDonald's (MCD 33.62 -0.38) decline and kept the Discretionary sector above water. The latter issue has slid upon reports that an influential shareholder is urging an IPO of about 65% of the restaurant's company-owned stores. NYSE Adv/Dec 1486/1578, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1265/1526

11:35AM : Losses extended by Healthcare and Technology, each off 0.2%, team with Energy's 1.2% slide in dragging the indices lower. With respect to Healthcare, a 3.5% plunge in healthcare services pressures the sector following an adverse court ruling for the PBMs in Maine. In particular, Caremark Rx (CMX 47.96 -3.20) has given up 6.3%. Year-to-date, however, healthcare services has gained over 21% and stands as one of the S&P's best performing subgroups. Although Briefing.com maintains a Market Weight rating on the Healthcare sector, it is our view that prescription benefit managers like Caremark will continue to retain a leadership position. NYSE Adv/Dec 1364/1658, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1205/1513

[UpInArms]

83. JPMorgan sees $700 mln of more 4th-qtr charge-offs (credit card losses)

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T173929Z_01_N09528531_RTRIDST_0_FINANCIAL-JPMORGAN-CHARGEOFFS.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) increased to $700 million the amount of credit card losses it doesn't expect to recoup in the fourth quarter as bankruptcies spike higher, according to a securities filing on Wednesday.

That is $200 million more than the No. 3 U.S. bank first estimated in October.

Bankruptcy filings jumped in the weeks before the new bankruptcy legislation went into effect Oct. 17.

"It is currently estimated that total managed credit card net charge-offs in the fourth quarter of 2005 will be approximately $2.3 billion, up from $1.6 billion in the prior quarter," the bank said in its quarterly report with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

...more...

[UpInArms]

92. BofA sees $400-500 mln Q4 bankruptcy chargeoffs

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-09T194437Z_01_N09542356_RTRIDST_0_FINANCIAL-BANKOFAMERICA-BANKRUPTCY.XML

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Bank of America Corp. (BAC.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the No. 2 U.S. bank, on Wednesday said it expects last month's surge in bankruptcy filings to increase bad loans by as much as $500 million in the fourth quarter.

Charlotte, North Carolina-based Bank of America said it expects a $400 million to $500 million increase in net charge-offs, or loans it doesn't expect to be paid back. It attributed this to the rush to seek protection from creditors ahead of new bankruptcy laws that took effect on Oct. 17.

The bank said a portion of the increase reflects that many people filed sooner than they would have but for the new laws, which increased filing costs and requirements and made it tougher for many people to have their debts excused.

Bank of America said third-quarter net charge-offs totaled $1.15 billion, including $772 million related to credit cards.

...more...

[UpInArms]

91. 2:47 EST numbers and blather

Dow 10,569.43 +29.71 (+0.28%)
Nasdaq 2,178.11 +6.04 (+0.28%)
S&P 500 1,223.26 +4.67 (+0.38%)
10-Yr Bond 4.637 +0.72 (+1.58%)

NYSE Volume 1,616,007,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,215,512,000

2:30PM: Although fading from their session highs, the averages remain well above the unchanged mark. Crude's flip back to negative turf (-$0.74 $58.90 per barrel) has pared some of the Energy sector's gain, yet its 0.5% rise leaves it standing solid amid the nine other rising sectors. The positive stance of 23 out of 30 Dow components reflects the broad-based buying efforts. The best-performing blue chips today are Alcoa (AA 26.44 +0.45), United Technology (UTX 52.50 +0.97), and Walt Disney (DIS 25.53 +0.37). On the other side of the column, General Motors (GM 24.74 -1.12), McDonald's (MCD 33.48 -0.52), and DuPont (DD 42.50 -0.52) top the laggard list.NYSE Adv/Dec 1903/1300, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1686/1254

2:00PM: Rising for the fifth straight day against the euro, the dollar continues its longest winning streak since August. As the Fed continues to hike interest rates in the U.S. and euro zone rates have been held static, the greenback has gained nearly 13% on the euro this year. The dollar continues to benefit from speculation over the Fed's prolonged tightening policy, and, although traders foresee rising rates in Europe, amid policy makers' inflation speak, they are not likely to catch up to those in the U.S. anytime soon. The buck is also up versus the yen today. NYSE Adv/Dec 2037/1153, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1712/1205

[ozymandius]

96. 3:16 numbers and blather

Dow 10,560.40 +20.68 (+0.20%)
Nasdaq 2,176.65 +4.58 (+0.21%)
S&P 500 1,222.13 +3.54 (+0.29%)
10-Yr Bond 46.37 +0.72 (+1.58%)
NYSE Volume 1,769,179,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,322,903,000

3:00PM: More steam is taken from the market as it heads into the final trading hour. The Energy sector has given up its gain and returned to the red; while each of the other sectors hang onto gains, leadership is left to the Utilities sector (+1.0%), which accounts for just 3.6% of the overall market. The 0.5% gain in Financials serves as the market's most supportive crutch and allows the indices to remain on positive ground. Treasuries, meanwhile, sink lower; the 10-year is now off 20 ticks and up to a 4.63% yield. NYSE Adv/Dec 1969/1262, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1665/1285

[UpInArms]

99. closing numbers and blather

Dow 10,546.21 +6.49 (+0.06%)
Nasdaq 2,175.81 +3.74 (+0.17%)
S&P 500 1,220.65 +2.06 (+0.17%)
10-Yr Bond 4.635 +0.70 (+1.53%)

NYSE Volume 2,187,822,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,640,739,000

Close Dow +6.49 at 10546.21, S&P +2.06 at 1220.65, Nasdaq +3.74 at 2175.81: The market found its footing after lunch, taken higher by some broad-based buying efforts. Though the indices managed to close with modest gains, they were well pared during the final half hour of trading. Lacking much market-moving news, the corporate and economic fronts left investors without any strong catalysts. The EIA's latest energy inventory report sat center stage but had little effect on overall trading -- except for within the Energy sector, that is. Much better than expected builds in crude and gasoline initially sparked a sharp decline in crude futures contracts; in turn, the Energy sector fell to a market-dragging loss. The unexpected drawdown in distillate supply perhaps stole the focus, however, and reversed the sector's course. The paring of its loss lifted a lid off of the indices, but its late return to the red took the market back down. The absence of spirited leadership also kept gains in check. Joined by nine other sectors on positive ground, Utilities (+0.9%) led the way higher. A 0.5% gain extended by Financials, to the credit of brokers and banks, served as the market's strongest crutch. Although the Treasury market spent the session submerged and pushed the 10-year down 22 ticks and up to a 4.64% yield, rate-sensitive banks offered 0.7%. Technology clung to a 0.1% gain, supported by semiconductors but dragged by Cisco (CSCO 17.75 +0.11) ahead of its Q3 report due out this evening. First Data (FDC 40.50 -1.94), which issued downside FY05 guidance this morning, was the sector's sorest spot. In the early going, a disappointing Q3 report and downside outlooks from Marvell (MRVL 49.46 +0.41) bogged down semis and stunted the Nasdaq, but shares caught a bid after Broadcom (BRCM 46.13 +3.11), during its analyst day, favorably discussed its revenue forecast. Marvel is rumored to be eyeing Broadcom. An adverse court ruling in Maine for prescription benefit managers knocked Healthcare, but relative strength in Boston Scientific (BSX 25.90 +0.60) and Pfizer (PFE 22.16 +0.25) helped the sector climb 0.2%. The former issue announced FDA approval of a new spinal cord device today, while the latter won a Norwegian patent challenge over Lipitor. Despite slashed guidance from Pepsi (PEP 58.05 -0.05), Consumer Staples (0.3%) closed higher. A drop in General Motor (GM 24.63 -1.23) shares, pertaining to reports that the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. may demand a chunk of profits from a potential sale of GMAC, weighed upon the Discretionary sector. Weakness in McDonald's exerted further pressure; the stock fell on news that an influential shareholder is urging an IPO of about 65% of the restaurant's stores. However, upgrade-induced rises in Home Depot (HD 40.80 +0.24) and Limited (LTD 21.34 +0.82) shares, as well as an upside Q3 report from Federated (FD 68.85 +4.94), countered the challengers and left the sector 0.1% higher. NYSE Adv/Dec 1774/1507, Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1648/1350

[JNelson6563]

100. Holy cow! 10 yr yield up 8 basis pnts!

That is quite a jump in a day. And where did all the money go? Not in those relatively flat stock numbers I see for today.

I wonder what's in store for tomorrow. :scared: Those futures charts already have peaks big and sharp enough to put your eye out with. Yikes.

Julie