STOCK MARKET WATCH, Thursday, May 5, 2011

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Thursday, May 5, 2011

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Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold

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Bush Administration Officials Convicted = 2
Names: David Safavian, James Fondren
Dishonorable Mention: former House majority leader, Tom DeLay

Bush Administration Officials Charged = 1
Name(s): Richard Lopez Razo

Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 = 11

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This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.

Read more: du

May 05 08:30 Initial Claims 04/30 400K 400K 429K
May 05 08:30 Continuing Claims 04/23 3650K 3638K 3641K
May 05 08:30 Productivity-Prel Q1 1.3% 1.0% 2.6%
May 05 08:30 Unit Labor Costs Q1 0.5% 0.8% -0.6%

Read more: http://www.briefing.com/Investor/Public/Calendars/EconomicCalendar.htm#ixzz1LTUQQgnw

New claims for unemployment aid rise unexpectedly
Eight-month high; spring break layoffs, emergency benefits program cited


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42912797/ns/business-stocks_and_economy/

msnbc.com news services
updated 6 minutes ago


BREAKING NEWS

NEW YORK — New U.S. claims for unemployment aid unexpectedly rose last week to touch their highest level in eight months, pushed up by factors ranging from spring break layoffs to the introduction of an emergency benefits program, a government report showed on Thursday.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 43,000 to a seasonally adjusted 474,000, the highest since mid-August, the Labor Department said

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims dropping to 410,000. The prior week’s figure was revised up to 431,000 from the previously reported 429,000.



The four-week moving average of unemployment claims, a better measure of underlying trends, increased 22,250 to 431,250, the highest since November.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spring break?

I'm surprised they didn't include Easter....of course, with nobody working, Easter sales were probably nothing to write home about...

Anomalies?


The number of claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week, pushed up by auto-plant shutdowns and other unusual events that seasonal variations failed to take into account, the Labor Department said.
more...
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-05/jobless-claims-in-u-s-unexpectedly-jump-due-to-special-factors.html


Is spring break an anomaly?

But, I don't pay very close attention.

The spin is getting worse (and more desperate).

never mind.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-hit-by-surprise-rise-in-jobless-claims-2011-05-05?dist=markets

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks fell on Thursday, extending losses into a fourth day for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, as equities and commodities were hit again after a surprise rise in jobless claims.

“A litany of potentially bearish data points is mounting,” wrote Richard Ross, global technical strategist at Auerbach Grayson & Co., who cited among other indicators “textbook ‘blow-off’ tops” in gold, silver and crude oil.

“History has shown that when (Treasury) yields, stocks and commodities fall simultaneously, it can actually be an ominous signal that the market is picking up subtle signs of the destructive deflation we saw in 2008, rather then the healthy disinflation which is emblematic of a strong bull market, Ross wrote in an emailed note.

Down for the third session this week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average /quotes/comstock/10w!i:dji/delayed DJIA -0.19% fell as much as 120 points, and was lately off 84.99 points at 12,638.59.

SINGAPORE – Oil prices hovered above $109 a barrel Thursday in Asia as investors mulled whether slowing U.S. economic growth will undermine crude demand.

Benchmark crude for June delivery was down 10 cents at $109.14 a barrel at late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract lost $1.81 to settle at $109.24 on Wednesday.

In London, Brent crude for June delivery was up 45 cents to $121.64 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

Crude has fallen from a 2 1/2-year high above $114 late last week as traders eye signs U.S economic growth is faltering.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/oil_prices

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/us-markets-oil-idUSTRE72D01W20110505

(Reuters) - Brent crude fell by more than $3 to below $118 a barrel on Thursday, as fund managers and traders pulled money from across the commodities sector as concerns about interest rate rises and demand destruction began to bite.

At 1131 GMT, Brent crude futures for June were down $3.41 to $117.78, after dipping to an intraday low of $117.62. U.S. crude for June was down $2.85 to $106.39 a barrel after falling more than $3 to $106.20.

Oil had been trending down all morning following bearish inventory data from the U.S. and discouraging economic indicators, but the real selling kicked in when Brent crashed through an important technical level at $120 a barrel.

"It's a bit of an exodus," said Rob Montefusco, an oil trader at Sucden Financial.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Japan/ME06Dh01.html

OKYO - Two months after the March 11 tsunami, the disaster area in northeastern Japan still looks like a series of about 50 Hiroshimas strung along a tattered coastline.

Given the enormous scale of the destruction, a newly-appointed government panel says it might take more than 10 years to rebuild. But already, as they meet with local leaders and survivors, they are espousing a radical new vision for the area, which they say could be a springboard for a new Japan based on green energy and decentralization of power.

Jun Iio, a political scientist in charge of a working group appointed to brainstorm ideas for the reconstruction effort, is calling for a radical overhaul of thinking and public policy in Japan. He said


that the ongoing crisis in the northeast "very well proved" that "Japan's way of doing things was inadequate to meet the challenges of this disaster."

"The way things were done before in Japan needs to be reviewed in its totality," he said, citing a matrix of regulations and subsidies. "Most people in Japan realize we have reached a turning point, where we have to change directions.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China_Business/ME06Cb02.html

The appointment earlier this month of Su Shulin, Chinese Communist Party (CCP) secretary and general manager of Sinopec, as acting governor of Fujian province highlighted the growing clout of the "Energy Faction" in Chinese politics.

Senior executives of the Big Three yangqi (or centrally controlled firms) in the oil-and-gas sector - Sinopec, China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) - have frequently been named to top-level provincial positions throughout the past decade.

Jiang Jiemin, 55, general manager and party boss of CNPC, deemed the "big brother" among the three monopolies, is about to


be made governor of Yunnan province.

Su and Jiang, who are both alternate members of the CCP's ruling Central Committee, had in earlier parts of their careers served in important provincial slots. Su, 49, was a member of the CCP Committee of Liaoning province from 2006 to 2007. He is a ranking member of China's Sixth-Generation cadre corps - a reference to up-and-coming officials born in the 1960s. Jiang, 55, who started his career as an oilfield technician in 1972, was vice-governor of Qinghai Province from 2000 to 2004.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China_Business/ME06Cb01.html

AIPEI - Shiseido Taiwan, part of the world's fourth-largest cosmetics company, did little to tart up its own grim industrial face when, in the run-up to Workers' Day on May 1, it told employees they should give up their one-day public holiday. In return, they would be allowed to leave work two minutes early for 250 days.

The company's attitude towards its staff is indicative of the other side to Taiwan's awe-inspiring economic recovery after the global financial meltdown.

Taiwan's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 10.5% last year, just outpacing even mainland China, and unemployment dropped to 4.64% in March, continuing a 19-month fall. Yet for Taiwanese


who are not their own bosses or cling to the iron rice bowl of officialdom, there is no end in sight of dire times.

Often unlawful long hours and little time for sleep at home are demanded, for little pay. While overwork-related deaths increasingly appear on the news, average wages rose by a mere 1.47% in the year to February. The small gain is quickly being eroded by inflation, predicted to grow at a rate of between 1.78% and 2.48%.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-05-05/renren-surges-in-trading-after-raising-743-4-million-in-ipo.html

(Adds shares of rivals in sixth paragraph.)

May 5 (Bloomberg) -- Renren Inc., China’s biggest social- networking website by page views, surged 29 percent in New York Stock Exchange trading after raising $743.4 million in its initial public offering.

The Beijing-based company sold 53.1 million American depositary receipts at $14 each, the high end of the proposed range, according to a company statement yesterday. The stock rose $4.01 to $18.01 as of 4 p.m. yesterday. Including the sale of 7.97 million ADRs sold through an overallotment option with underwriters, Renren’s IPO raised $855 million.

At its $14 initial price, Renren would be valued at 72 times last year’s sales, compared with 25 times for social- networking site Facebook Inc. as valued by Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s investment in the U.S. company. Renren commands a premium because China’s economy may grow three times faster than the U.S. and about two-thirds of the population isn’t online.

“Worldwide internet players that leverage social networks and monetize them well will have a very good chance at high growth and a chance to go public,” said David Chao, co-founder of the Menlo Park, California-based venture capital firm DCM, who says his fund has given Renren about $20 million. “This is a really good time for a lot of companies in China that have been growing very well because the overall market in China is growing very rapidly.”

http://blogs.forbes.com/russellflannery/2011/05/05/chinas-renren-soars-recalling-1990s-internet-mania-insiders-sell-update/

Chinese social media site Renren climbed by 28.6% on its U.S. trading debut Wednesday, leaving the money-losing company with a valuation of $7 billion and perhaps destined to enter a lore of mania akin to that of the U.S. Internet frenzy of the 1990s.

The latest in a string of successful yet high-priced Chinese Internet offerings, Renren lost approximately a dollar for every dollar of business that it did last year. Revenue totaled $76 million, compared with a loss of $64 million, according to its prospectus. At its closing price on the first day of trading, Renren’s market cap was more than 90 times its 2010 sales. The company listed overnight at the New York Stock Exchange, where no doubt relatively few of its investors can even read Renren’s Chinese-language content.

U.S. retail investors are being lured into China Internet offerings in part by global investment banks that, no surprise, were active during the 1990s Internet bubble, too, such as Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse. Non-Chinese-reading bloggers and non-China dwellers from the planet over took to the web to opine about Renren’s IPO. Like the U.S. bubble in the 1990s, today’s China Internet story has global reach.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/markets-hongkong-china-stocks-idUKL3E7G51LW20110505

HONG KONG, May 5(Reuters) - Hong Kong shares closed lower for a seventh straight session on Thursday on persistent weakness in the energy sector while the drop in May futures suggests further weakness in the cash market in the coming weeks.

The benchmark Hang Seng fell 0.2 percent to the its lowest level in five weeks falling below a chart support level led by and over 2 percent decline for oil majors Petrochina and CNOOC .

Futures on the Hang Seng index HSIc1 also closed at a near 1-percent discount to the cash market, signalling further weakness that could take the benchmark all the way down to its 200-day moving average, currently around 22,865.

The benchmark index closed below the 50 percent retracement level of its entire move up from the March low following the Japan earthquake to the 2011 peak of 24,468.6 on April 8.

http://blogs.hbr.org/hbr/hbreditors/2011/05/chinas_coming_fdi_offensive.html

A report released today by The Asia Society's Center on U.S.-China Relations along with the Kissinger Institute on China and the U.S. may well mark the return of a national debate last bruited in the US two decades ago: Should we worry about or welcome massive inflows of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from a major economic competitor?

The last time around it was Japan that had politicians and pundits decrying that country's growing stake in the US economy. This time China is set to take center stage as it begins the inevitable transformation from being the developing world's biggest market for FDI to becoming a major source of foreign capital. The report estimates that China's outward FDI will total $1-2 trillion by 2020, and notes that its investment in the US is already doubling annually — albeit from a very low base.

It will come as no surprise to anyone who has been paying attention to China analysis over the past 20 years that the institutions that authored this report warn against letting worries about this rapid growth lead to the creation of new barriers to Chinese investments in the US:

"We conclude that China's impacts can be managed under existing U.S. FDI doctrine: welcome the economic benefits and competition from foreign direct investment ... screen out all deals with specific negative security implications; and handle more general concerns about Chinese behavior under domestic law rather than expecting the inward investment review process to carry that weight."

http://blogs.forbes.com/russellflannery/2011/05/05/add-this-to-your-list-of-china-growth-trends-divorce/

Add this to your list of growth trends in China this year: divorce.

The number of couples that formally notified the government of the end of their marriage increased by 17% in the first three months of 2011 from a year earlier to 465,000, according to a report in today’s Beijing Times, a Chinese-language daily.

The article, which cited government statistics, didn’t give a reason for the increase. However, authorities have made it easier for married couples to split since 2001 by changing a requirement that they get employer approval.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-05/03/c_13857398.htm

BEIJING, May 3 (Xinhua) -- China will continue to put stabilizing consumer prices and managing inflation expectation as a top priority for macro regulation, the People's Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank, said Tuesday

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-05/05/c_13860816.htm

GUANGZHOU, May 5 (Xinhua) -- The 109th Canton Fair, held in south China's Guangdong Province and a barometer of China's trade, closed Thursday with a growth in trade volume despite some setbacks.

Contrary to predictions that the number of businessmen to the fair could drop by 5 percent, a record high of 207,000 foreign traders came and struck deals worth more than 36.86 billion U.S. dollars, up 5.8 percent year on year, said Liu Jianjun, the fair's spokesman.

"The growth was better than expected. It indicates a good start for China's trade, which is likely to perform well throughout the year," Liu said.

However, instability in the Middle East dragged down trade conducted at the fair with the region by more than 11 percent in terms of volume.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/business/2011-05/05/c_13860634.htm

HANOI, May 5 (Xinhua) -- Economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region will reach 7.3 percent in 2011, lower than 8.8 percent in 2010, said an U.N. report released Thursday.

The Gross Domestic Production (GDP) in the East and Northeast Asia will expand by 7.9 percent this year, and the GDP growth for the North and Central Asia, the South and West-South Asia, and the Southeast Asia, will stand at 4.8 percent, 6.8 percent, and 5.5 percent, respectively, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) said in the report issued at a press briefing here.

According to the report, countries with the fastest growth included China with 9.5 percent, India with 8.7 percent and Indonesia with 6.5 percent.

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2935821

HANOI, Vietnam - Yoon Jeung-hyun, the Korean finance minister, yesterday urged stronger regional cooperation in a speech at the Asia Development Bank as he also confirmed his decision to step down.

“Asia’s remarkable growth to date has been attributed to its exports to major advanced economies. However, growth in advanced countries has slowed in the aftermath of the financial crisis, and the center of gravity of the global economy is shifting toward emerging and developing economies. Against this backdrop South-South cooperation appears all the more important,” Yoon said.

The finance minister said Asia led the global economic recovery from the 2008 global financial crisis, but added that “we must say to ourselves that it is too early to pop the champagne yet. We have to go the extra mile for Asia’s present and future,” Yoon said.

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2935838

The United States has gotten closer to ratifying a free trade agreement with Korea after the Barack Obama administration persuaded a key holdout in the Senate by pledging stronger efforts to promote American beef in Korea.

The White House said Wednesday that it was ready to send the long delayed trade deal to Congress for approval. Trade pacts with Colombia and Panama were also to be sent. The first step in the process is technical discussions between the government and congressional committees.

Senator Max Baucus, a Democrat from the ranching state of Montana and head of the Senate Finance Committee, has resisted the FTA with Korea, complaining about dissatisfactory access to the Korean beef market. After Washington promised to consult with Seoul to gain wider access, Baucus offered his backing for the deal.

In his letter to the senator, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk made the pledge that the U.S. government will ask for consultations with the Korean government on the beef issue after the FTA goes into effect.

Stocks fell for a third day after earnings from Lloyds Banking Group Plc (LLOY) and Societe Generale SA disappointed investors. The yen strengthened, oil declined and silver extended its steepest drop since 1983.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slid 0.9 percent at 6:50 a.m. in New York, and Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures lost 0.4 percent. The yen appreciated against its 16 major peers, gaining 0.8 percent versus the dollar. The two-year German note yield climbed as much as four basis points to 1.94 percent, the highest since December 2008. Spanish five-year bonds fell as the government sold less than the maximum planned. Silver futures dropped 1.3 percent, decreasing 20 percent in four days. Crude oil retreated 2.6 percent.

Lloyds, the biggest U.K. mortgage lender, reported a loss after setting aside 3.2 billion pounds ($5.3 billion) for improperly sold loan insurance, and Societe Generale (GLE)’s profit was less than analysts estimated. A report today may show U.S. jobless claims fell last week, economists said a day before monthly payrolls data.

“All eyes will be on Trichet’s post-ECB meeting press conference,” Jim Reid, head of fundamental strategy at Deutsche Bank AG in London, wrote in a report. “The language and Trichet’s tone at the conference will decide whether a hike is more likely in June or July.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-05/oil-metals-fall-as-slowing-global-growth-drags-down-stocks-euro-climbs.html

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/markets-precious-idUSL3E7G503Y20110505

SINGAPORE, May 5 (Reuters) - Spot silver prices dropped
almost 2 percent on Thursday, down 22 percent from a record hit
a week ago, after another hike in margin requirements for U.S.
silver futures squeezed some of the speculative froth out of the
market.

Gold held steady, with traders hesitant to take positions
before the European Central Bank's rate decision due later in
the day.

The CME Group set successive hikes on COMEX silver
futures margins, effective on Thursday and next Monday, which
combined with three other increases in the past two weeks has
raised the margin requirement by 84 percent, effectively
increasing the cost of trading the metal.

Investors are also scrambling out of silver, with holdings
in the world's largest silver-backed exchange-traded fund,
iShares Silver Trust, down nearly 5 percent on Wednesday, the
second sharpest one-day fall since the fund launched in 2006.

Last August, it sold for $18.50/ounce. In 9 crazy months, it went to $48, a rise of 159%. Promoters of silver funds took out full page ads. And . . . ker-plop.

We need a good bubble song for situations like this. Ghost Dog, any ideas?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6IQ_FOCE6I

Disclaimer. I didn't write, produce or play on the song. I just like it.

THAT'S PUTTING THE CART BEFORE THE HORSE, DON'T YOU THINK?

http://www.adnkronos.com/IGN/Aki/English/Business/Switzerland-Suspected-Gaddafi-funds-frozen_311970032139.html

Switzerland has said it located the equivalent of 416 million euros of possibly illegal assets connected to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and two other former North African leaders: former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarack and Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, Tunisia's former president.

The Swiss foreign ministry on Monday said 360 million Swiss francs was traced to Gaddafi and close associates, while around 410 million Swiss francs is suspected to belong to Mubarack and 60 million Swiss francs may be connected to Ben Ali, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lars Knuchel told Reuters.

Tunisa and Egypt have asked Switzerland for assistance in finding funds their former leaders may have stashed in secret bank accounts. Swiss authorities have already agreed to freeze such accounts.

In 2008 Libya withdrew more than 5 billion dollars from Swiss bank accounts after the neutral alpine nation arrested Gaddafi's son Hannibal on charges of abusing two domestic employees...

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article28017.htm

..Muammar Gaddafi has been an Officially Designated Enemy of the US longer than any living world leader except Fidel Castro. The animosity began in 1970, one year after Gaddafi took power in a coup, when he closed down a US air force base. He then embarked on a career of supporting what he regarded as revolutionary groups. During the 1970s and '80s, Gaddafi was accused of using his large oil revenues to support — with funds, arms, training, havens, diplomacy, etc — a wide array of radical/insurgent/terrorist organizations, particularly certain Palestinian factions and Muslim dissident and minority movements in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia; the IRA and Basque and Corsican separatists in Europe; several groups engaged in struggle against the apartheid regime in South Africa; various opposition groups and politicians in Latin America; the Japanese Red Army, the Italian Red Brigades, and Germany's Baader-Meinhof gang.

It was claimed as well that Libya was behind, or at least somehow linked to, an attempt to blow up the US Embassy in Cairo, various plane hijackings, a bomb explosion on an American airliner over Greece, the blowing up of a French airliner over Africa, blowing up a synagogue in Istanbul, and blowing up a disco in Berlin which killed some American soldiers. 7

In 1990, when the United States needed a country to (falsely) blame for the bombing of PanAm flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, Libya was the easy choice.

Gaddafi's principal crime in the eyes of US President Ronald Reagan (1981-89) was not that he supported terrorist groups, but that he supported the wrong terrorist groups; i.e., Gaddafi was not supporting the same terrorists that Washington was, such as the Nicaraguan Contras, UNITA in Angola, Cuban exiles in Miami, the governments of El Salvador and Guatemala, and the US military in Grenada. The one band of terrorists the two men supported in common was the Moujahedeen in Afghanistan.

And if all this wasn't enough to make Gaddafi Public Enemy Number One in Washington (Reagan referred to him as the "mad dog of the Middle East"), Gaddafi has been a frequent critic of US foreign policy, a serious anti-Zionist, pan-Africanist, and pan-Arabist (until the hypocrisy and conservatism of Arab governments proved a barrier). He also calls his government socialist. How much tolerance and patience can The Empire be expected to have? When widespread protests broke out in Tunisia and Egypt, could Washington have resisted instigating the same in the country sandwiched between those two? The CIA has been very busy supplying the rebels with arms, bombing support, money, and personnel...

It may well happen that the Western allies will succeed in forcing Gaddafi out of power. Then the world will look on innocently as the new Libyan government gives Washington what it has long sought: a host-country site for Africom, the US Africa Command, one of six regional commands the Pentagon has divided the world into. Many African countries approached to be the host have declined, at times in relatively strong terms. Africom at present is headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany. According to a State Department official: "We've got a big image problem down there. ... Public opinion is really against getting into bed with the US. They just don't trust the US." Another thing scarcely any African country would tolerate is an American military base. There's only one such base in Africa, in Djibouti. Watch for one in Libya sometime after the dust has settled. It'll be situated close to the American oil wells. Or perhaps the people of Libya will be given a choice — an American base or a NATO base.


GEE, I WONDER WHY?

Everything's losing value - stocks, bonds, commodities, the U.S. dollar.... So where is all of that money going?

My guess? I take the cynical, alarmist view that the big financial players are beginning to shift foreign currencies.

What's your take?

To their new Billionaires, mostly, but also some dribbles down on the regular folk.

maybe using their gains to buy precious metals, other currencies, something to hold value for awhile waiting for the markets to finish declining.

(OVER the old debt limit of 14.294-trillion dollars by 38-billion dollars. Good day.)
Sleepy, better hurry.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 9,698,303,861,133.10 + 4,633,488,579,764.66
UP 283,435,714.90 + UP 10,859,349,090.26

Source: Debt to the penny:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 312-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.21 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,205.88 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.62, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 311,926,592 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $45,946.04.
A family of three owes $137,838.13. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 21 reports in the last 30 to 32 days.
The average for the last 21 reports is 3,838,948,789.97.
The average for the last 30 days would be 2,687,264,152.98.
The average for the last 32 days would be 2,519,310,143.42.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 146 reports in 215 days of FY2011 averaging 5.28B$ per report, 3.58B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 628 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 15.2 and 17.6T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
05/03/2011 14,331,792,440,897.76 BHO (UP 3,704,915,391,984.68 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +0,770,169,410,006.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,307,496,905,359.02 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
04/13/2011 +000,216,450,469.86 ------------********
04/14/2011 +004,827,508,513.07 ------------*********
04/15/2011 +021,566,615,397.70 ------------**********
04/18/2011 +000,320,133,441.47 ------------******** Mon
04/19/2011 +000,498,845,624.51 ------------********
04/20/2011 +000,031,154,878.79 ------------*******
04/21/2011 -029,604,944,039.31 -
04/22/2011 +000,169,463,975.78 ------------********
04/25/2011 +000,297,069,525.13 ------------******** Mon
04/26/2011 +000,207,526,568.97 ------------********
04/27/2011 -002,332,483,455.54 --
04/28/2011 -007,710,203,842.40 --
04/29/2011 +013,870,888,452.00 ------------**********
05/02/2011 +043,070,259,587.79 ------------********** Mon
05/03/2011 +000,283,435,714.90 ------------********

45,711,720,812.72 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4838271&mesg_id=4838934

He was on the Thom Hartmann show and he said because of our current economic situation - the lack of jobs, the trade deficit, the cuts in state budgets, the tax cuts for the rich - that when the federal budget deficit starts declining, there would be another crash and economic decline.

While I find that Ravi Batra's timing may be off, his predictions are accurate.

Let's say you have a family budget, but your previous manager borrowed a bundle each month. Now, if you say no more borrowing, results can be disastrous. Prior debts leave you payments to make. If you fail, you lose the house. Do you keep eating? How about medicines? How about the house?

If you tighten the belt, get an extra job or two, you can slowly dig your way out. But, you can't do it this way if you quit eating or have no place to shower in the morning, or you'd lose a couple of those jobs and what would work would then fail.

It's a problem of cutting too much too quickly.

When we set a budget, we should intrinsically set the deficit and debt with that decision. Setting the debt, ignoring our current budget, can lead to disaster, a second crash.

I'd bet that is what he is saying.

(OVER the old debt limit of 14.294-trillion dollars by 40-billion dollars. Good day.)
Have a pizza kit and a neighborly meeting.
(Debt under Obama seems to jump up big then drop slowly maybe up a little and down a little for days--repeat.)
= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 9,698,384,234,058.33 + 4,635,429,256,577.71
UP 80,372,925.23 + UP 1,940,676,813.05

Source: Debt to the penny:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 312-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.21 THAT'S 1B$, and $3,205.81 makes 1T$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.62, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 12 seconds we net gain another American, so at the end of the workday of the report, there should be 311,933,792 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html ON 10/04/2010 04:37 -> 310,403,677
Currently, each of these Americans owe $45,951.46.
A family of three owes $137,854.38. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 22 reports in the last 30 days.
The average for the last 22 reports is 4,085,542,109.98.
The average for the last 30 days would be 2,996,064,213.98.

There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 174 reports in 253 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 7.33B$ per report, 5.07B$/day so far.
There were 249 reports in 365 days of FY2009 averaging 7.57B$ per report, 5.16B$/day.
There were 251 reports in 365 days of FY2010 averaging 6.58B$ per report, 4.53B$/day.
There were 147 reports in 216 days of FY2011 averaging 5.25B$ per report, 3.57B$/day.
Above line should be okay

PROJECTION:
There are 627 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 15.2 and 17.6T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
05/04/2011 14,333,813,490,636.04 BHO (UP 3,706,936,441,722.96 so far since Obama took office.)

FISCAL YEAR DEBT CHANGE, Sep 30 prior year to Sep 30 named year:
(One "* " for each 40B$ reached)
FY1994 +0,281,261,026,873.94 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1995 +0,281,232,990,696.07 ------------* * * * * * * WJC
FY1996 +0,250,828,038,426.34 ------------* * * * * * WJC
FY1997 +0,188,335,072,261.61 ------------* * * * WJC
FY1998 +0,113,046,997,500.28 ------------* * WJC
FY1999 +0,130,077,892,735.81 ------------* * * WJC
FY2000 +0,017,907,308,253.43 ------------WJC
FY2001 +0,133,285,202,313.20 ------------* * * C&B
01-WJC +0,053,598,528,417.78 ------------* WJC 31% of FY, 40% of FY-Debt
01-GWB +0,079,686,673,895.42 ------------* GWB 69% of FY, 60% of FY-Debt
FY2002 +0,420,772,553,397.10 ------------* * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2003 +0,554,995,097,146.46 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2004 +0,595,821,633,586.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2005 +0,553,656,965,393.18 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2006 +0,574,264,237,491.73 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2007 +0,500,679,473,047.25 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2008 +1,017,071,524,649.92 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB
FY2009 +1,885,104,106,599.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * B&O
09GWB +0,602,152,152,000.60 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GWB 31% of FY, 32% of FY-Debt
09-BHO +1,282,951,954,598.70 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO 69% of FY, 68% of FY-Debt
FY2010 +1,651,794,027,380.00 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
FY2011 +0,772,190,459,744.30 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO
Endof11 +1,304,858,878,734.58 ------------* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * BHO

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
04/14/2011 +004,827,508,513.07 ------------*********
04/15/2011 +021,566,615,397.70 ------------**********
04/18/2011 +000,320,133,441.47 ------------******** Mon
04/19/2011 +000,498,845,624.51 ------------********
04/20/2011 +000,031,154,878.79 ------------*******
04/21/2011 -029,604,944,039.31 -
04/22/2011 +000,169,463,975.78 ------------********
04/25/2011 +000,297,069,525.13 ------------******** Mon
04/26/2011 +000,207,526,568.97 ------------********
04/27/2011 -002,332,483,455.54 --
04/28/2011 -007,710,203,842.40 --
04/29/2011 +013,870,888,452.00 ------------**********
05/02/2011 +043,070,259,587.79 ------------********** Mon
05/03/2011 +000,283,435,714.90 ------------********
05/04/2011 +000,080,372,925.23 ------------*******

45,575,643,268.09 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008 while Bush was in power JUST BEFORE fiscal year end.
Bush admin borrowed $962,245,245,654.01 in those last 124 days in office crossing two fiscal years.
$360,093,093,653.42 in last 12 days of FY2008, and $602,152,152,000.59 in subsequent 112 days before leaving office.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
DUer primer on National debt

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4839948&mesg_id=4839973

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_20/b4228029534552.htm

New Jersey is granting Panasonic (PC) a $102.4 million tax credit to move its North American headquarters—nine miles. The incentives, announced on Apr. 20, will help defray the cost of leasing a new high-rise office tower to be built in Newark to replace Panasonic's digs in Secaucus, which the Japanese electronics maker has outgrown.

The company concedes that its decision to stay in New Jersey, where it employs 800 workers, was swayed by the tax break. Peter Fannon, vice-president of technology policy at Panasonic North America, says the company fielded "quite competitive" offers from Atlanta, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Brooklyn, N.Y., among others. Says Fannon: "We would not be in New Jersey without ." Officials in the town of Secaucus don't see it as a win for their state, though. "We shouldn't be using tax dollars to play one municipality off of another," says town administrator David Drumeler.

State and local governments eager to recover some of the more than 8 million jobs lost during the recession are giving away $70 billion in annual subsidies to companies, according to calculations by Kenneth Thomas, a political scientist at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. States have long relied on fiscal incentives to lure businesses, or keep existing employers from decamping to other locales. Such largesse is coming under renewed scrutiny during this time of strapped budgets. State deficits could reach a combined $112 billion in the fiscal year starting July 1. "The tragic irony of it is that in order to pay for these things, they're cutting other areas that really are the building blocks of jobs and economic growth," says Jon Shure, director of state fiscal strategies for the Washington-based Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.



& the people still get screwed by then having to underwrite the 'privilege' of having a job.

but that doesn't stop our governator from trying.

For businesses, it's an investment--this much in donations for that much in tax breaks. All that blather about jobs is for selling it to the rubes. That would be us.

It put a headline on the front page about the killing of Bin Landen....

Seriously.

Seriously.

Most aspects of my life are a bad joke....unfortunately.

well you are in good company then.

bitter old queen that i am.

aspects of life & jokes -- a thing i am well acquainted with.

:grouphug:

In it, the lookalike would say, "Of course, the lying CIA will claim this video is a fake."

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-05-05/brazil-banks-beat-wall-street-as-itau-shows-jpmorgan-who-rules.html

May 5 (Bloomberg) -- Gerdau SA, the largest steel producer in the Americas, chose three Brazilian banks to manage a $3.5 billion share sale last month. U.S. firms JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc., which led previous deals for the company, weren’t in the mix.

When Magazine Luiza SA, an electronics and furniture retailer, held an initial public offering in April that raised $586.7 million, it asked Banco Itau BBA SA, the investment- banking unit of Brazil’s largest lender, to lead the deal. Foreign banks weren’t invited.

“It’s a sign of the times,” Jean-Marc Etlin, vice president for investment banking at Itau BBA, which also worked on the Gerdau share sale, said April 19 in an interview in Sao Paulo. “Brazilian companies and entrepreneurs are learning that they don’t need a foreign bank to help them with their financing needs. Local banks have got what it takes to do even the most sophisticated deal.”

Foreign firms pursuing investment-banking fees in Brazil, where an emerging middle class and rising commodity prices are propelling one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, face stiff competition. Local players have a greater capacity to finance deals, improved relationships with investors, experienced executives and the ability to provide services once offered only by large global banks.

even you can be replaced by foreign workers.

Leading hedge fund managers were caught out by a pause in the swift rise in gold, volatile prices, and a resilient stock market in the first quarter.

The correction in the gold price early in 2011 underscored how much many hedge fund managers – including John Paulson and Greenlight Capital’s David Einhorn – relied on gold for their strong performance last year.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/FG6LAA/M9YZNM/87I64/QFI7PB/M9K68E/HK/t?a1=2011&a2=5&a3=5

WELL GEE, MAYBE THEY SHOULD BE IN SOME OTHER BUSINESS--SOMETHING LESS SPECULATIVE.

The era of widespread offshoring of manufacturing from the US to China is coming to an end, according to a study that forecasts a renaissance for American production industries over the next five years.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/LVA6WW/5C8RYW/Z87P0/C5C1IF/40HKXY/FW/t?a1=2011&a2=5&a3=4

WHERE'S TANSY WITH THAT STAMP?

Edited to add --

Couldn't read the article -- registered a long time but can't remember password, no time to look it up -- but wanted to say I caught some of Stiglitz on tv last night (Maddow? O'Donnell? can't remember) and it was so refreshing to hear someone who actually made feet-in-the-ground, head-NOT-in-the-clouds common sense.

If there is a turn-around in the US mfg economy, it's only because the aristos corporations see higher profits in doing so. It doesn't make any difference WHY there would be higher profits -- lower wages, higher sales, etc. -- but IF there are profits to be made, the changes will also be made.




TG

I think the folly of "Globalism" has run its course.

When Detroit can't build autos because they outsourced their critical parts suppliers to JAPAN, after shutting down all the parts suppliers here in Michigan, including the plant next town over from here, then all the smartest guys in the room look like the a--holes they are.

And the radioactivity of said Japanese parts is just icing on the cake.

And wages are back in the $10/hour range for more than just thee and me....so it's all good.

just Google the title of the article, US set to regain industrial crown, and then it can be read via the Google!

:hi:

"...While the productivity of the average Chinese factory worker has increased tenfold in the past 20 years, it is still less than a third of the comparable figure in the US – offsetting the fact that Chinese wage costs are typically a tenth of those in America.

Since employee costs typically account for 20 to 30 per cent of overall manufacturing expenses, with other costs such as covering equipment often no lower than elsewhere, by 2015 China is unlikely to have a cost advantage over US factories in making many products for the US market..."

Their "instant" feature slows my searches down unbelievably, and I have to do them for my day job. Bing's maps aren't as good, but I use Bing now for all other regular searching.

My apologies for not being here more lately. Life has kinda intervened, mostly in a good way. Will try to provide more details in a week or so.

Happy Mother's Day, all you moms!



TG, rediscovering some old dreams

:hi:

:hi:


(wish they had a bigger :hi: icon. )

Awe, how sweet. :)

if I understood TG correctly...and you.

I interpreted, "Life has kinda intervened, mostly in a good way." to mean "Mostly in a good way." That was the extent of my interpretation of the revival reference.

Old dreams are sometimes sweeter the second time around. ;)

Sometimes dreams are also better left alone lest they turn into nightmares the second (or in some cases the third) time around.


TG, who loves the "No one could have imagined" line because she can imagine just about anything

Heaven knows... I've done it enough. :crazy:

During my absence from regular posting... I've experienced some sort of an odd euphoria which has propelled my inner psyche toward the positive.

I know. I know. Almost, an unfathomable and inscrutable transformation. (Especially, since I continue reading as much and from the same sources as before.)

Personally, I find it rather disconcerting and it's annoying the beejezus out of my natural propensity for cynicism.

Am I losing my edge? Maybe.

Or maybe, I've found my Zen. ;)

I have personal experience....

Brazil faces the risk of “deindustrialisation” unless it imposes more extreme capital controls to rein in the surging local currency, the head of Siemens in the country has warned.

Adilson Antonio Primo, the Siemens chief executive for Brazil, told the Financial Times that the strong real was crushing the group’s export business in the country.

“We need wider measures, harsher measures. If the currency strengthens beyond 1.50 , that would be a real disaster for us,” Mr Primo said.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/UXDMSS/18TELW/VTVRG/A7O3VG/YH37O0/E4/t?a1=2011&a2=5&a3=4

SO, A GERMAN INDUSTRIAL BEHEMOTH DICTATES ECONOMIC POLICY TO BRAZIL?

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/food-inflation-quickens-to-853_540773.html

India's food price index rose 8.53% and the fuel price index climbed 13.53% in the year to April 23, government data on Thursday showed.

In the previous week, annual food and fuel inflation stood at 8.76% and 13.53%, respectively.

The primary articles price index was up 12.11%, compared with an annual rise of 12.08% a week earlier.

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/local-markets/bear-hug-costs-sensex-1392-pts8-sessions-hero-honda-zips-6_540834.html

The mood on Dalal Street has not improved yet after the key rates hike and hawkish tone set by the RBI governor Duvvuri Subbarao in a policy meeting on May 3. The Sensex shed nearly 259 points on Thursday, with continuing downtrend for eighth consecutive session.

Experts see earnings downgrade in the quarter ended June 2011 after the 50 basis points hike in repo and reverse repo rate. Interest cost of the companies will increase going ahead as banks have slowly been increasing their lending rates.

Deven Choksey of KR Choksey Shares & Securities feels that people basically want to sit on cash for a simple reason that there is a kind of possibility of earning downgrade happening going forward once this particular oil price hike is announced.

Inflation is a major cause of concern, says Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. "Food and oil prices are major inflation factors," he said. Food articles inflation for the week ended April 23 was at 8.53% as against 8.76% in previous week. Fuel group inflation was unchanged at 13.53% during same period. RBI governor has made the move to contain inflation without hurting country's growth.

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/udayans-comments/market-beaten-down-by-fii-selling-shorting-udayan_540854.html

At a day when one would have expected to see some bit of stability in the market after many days of a down dip, the market saw vulnerable trading session. It has not been a good day for the market.

For the first half of the day the market looked to get away with sideways session of trade but later the weakness came back. In the last few minutes of the trade on Wednesday, the market clawed back a little bit from 5450 to 5480, however it is not out of the woods yet.

“Many of the sectors that were trying to hold out in the morning like banking, started coming under pressure once again towards the end of the day’s trade,” says CNBC-TV18’s Udayan Mukherjee. At every 5500 plus level, the pressure seems to be coming back, he says.

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/ipo-listing-strategy/will-muthoot-finance-list-above-rs-200_540855.html

India's largest gold financing company Muthoot Finance is set to list its equity shares on Friday, May 6. It has fixed the issue price at the higher end of the price band of Rs 160-175 a share.

There were reports that the grey market premium for the stock is around Rs 25-30 over issue price.

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/hyatt-hire-10-000-staff-for-indian-expansion-397925.html

US-based hospitality group Hyatt Hotels & Resorts plans to hire 10,000 employees over the next few years to staff its expansion across India, a senior executive said Wednesday.

The company plans to open 38 properties across 15 cities in the Asian country, bringing its Indian property portfolio to 44 hotels by 2016.

“Focusing on…the emerging markets is a key element of our strategy,” Thierry Bertin, VP of worldwide sales for Hyatt International. “India has a very strong pipeline of hotel development.”

Online shopping grew by its fastest rate in nearly four years in the US last month as rising fuel prices prompted Americans to cut trips to malls and buy on the internet instead, according to MasterCard Advisors.

US consumers spent $13.8bn online last month, a 19.2 per cent jump from April last year, according to the SpendingPulse survey, which is based on spending on MasterCard credit cards and estimates of other forms of payment.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/9ULF66/9ZCNC8/204L2/YHNDBU/TPSCT2/SN/t?a1=2011&a2=5&a3=4

Ivan Glasenberg will control a 15.8 per cent stake in Glencore worth around $9.64bn after the company’s initial public offering, making the chief executive of the world’s largest commodities trading house one of the richest men in Europe.

The initial public offering, which values Glencore at $48bn-$58bn currently, will trigger large paper gains for the Switzerland-based group’s 485 partners. Following the issue of $7.9bn of new shares, the enlarged company will have a market capitalisation of $61bn at the mid-point of the flotation range.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/EB8122/UUF44K/204L2/YHNKX6/728IVG/FW/t?a1=2011&a2=5&a3=4

BERNIE MADOFF HAS BEEN REPLACED...

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/commodities/oil-metals-stocks-fallus-data-china-worry_540635.html

Crude oil and metals prices fell sharply on Wednesday, driving world stocks lower, as disappointing U.S. economic data and concerns about the slowdown of the Chinese economy prompted investors to scale back risky positions.

The U.S. dollar hit a three-year low against major currencies and Wall Street stocks fell as much as 1.0 percent after a batch of disappointing U.S. economic data for April -- including a surprise slowdown in the services sector and less hiring by the private sector.

The euro hit a 17-month high against the dollar with investors interpreting the economic data as the latest sign that the Federal Reserve will maintain its current monetary stimulus while euro zone rates go higher.

Signs of weakness in the U.S. economic recovery mounted as reports on Wednesday showed a sharp slowdown in the vast services sector and less hiring by private companies in April.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/markets-britain-stocks-idUSLDE7441AP20110505

LONDON, May 5 (Reuters) - Financial stocks weighed on Britain's FTSE 100, after disappointing updates from Lloyds (LLOY.L) and Schroders knocked confidence, while investors continued to drain profits out of commodity stocks.

The index showed little change after the Bank of England's monetary policy committee voted to keep British interest rates at an all time low of 0.5 percent.

Recent economic data further highlighted the fragility of the recovery as Britain's dominant service sector slowed more than expected in April.

Investors awaited interest rate decisions from mainland Europe at 1145 GMT.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/us-markets-europe-stocks-idUSTRE74321B20110505

(Reuters) - European shares hit a two-week low on Thursday as banks fell following disappointing earnings news, with Lloyds (LLOY.L) slipping on a surprise $5.3 billion provision and Societe Generale (SOGN.PA) missing profit forecasts.

A 6.6 percent rise in the Euro STOXX 50 volatility index .V2TX, one of Europe's main barometers of anxiety, suggested a decline in investors' appetite for riskier assets, while charts signaled further declines in the near-term, though analysts remained positive on the stock market's longer-term outlook.

At 1108 GMT the FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares was down 0.9 percent at 1,124.47 points after touching 1,122.31 -- the lowest since April 20. It hovered below its 50-day moving average -- a near-term bearish signal.

Banks featured among the top losers, with the sector index .SX7P down 1.5 percent. Lloyds fell 8.7 percent after taking a huge charge to compensate consumers for mis-selling debt repayment insurance policies, while Societe Generale fell 4.8 percent after posting lower than expected first-quarter results.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/us-markets-forex-idUSTRE73O2YU20110505

Reuters) - The euro stayed steady versus the dollar on Thursday with markets on alert for signs the European Central Bank would raise interest rates again in June.

The euro showed little reaction after ECB's left interest rates on hold as expected, but the single currency stayed in positive territory against the dollar as markets awaited ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet's news conference at 1230 GMT.

The yen shot higher as investors slashed exposure to riskier assets, sparking concern about possible further intervention if the Japanese currency continues to rise sharply.

Analysts said the euro could rise if Trichet used the phrase "strong vigilance" on price pressures to signal a likely rate hike in June to follow last month's 25 basis point increase.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/markets-bonds-euro-idUSLDE7441IE20110505?type=bondsNews

May 5 (Reuters) - Euro government bond and interest rate futures rallied on Thursday after European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet made no reference to "strong vigilance", signalling a rate increase later than June.

After leaving interest rates unchanged at 1.25 percent as expected earlier, Trichet said the central bank will monitor very closely developments with respect to price stability. He omitted the words "strong vigilance" the market had been bracing for which would have flagged the central bank would raise borrowing costs again next month.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/ecb-rates-highlights-idUSECBNEWS20110505

May 5 (Reuters) - Following are comments by European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet at a news conference held after the bank's Governing Council kept interest rates at 1.25 percent on Thursday.

TO MONITOR PRICE RISKS "VERY CLOSELY"

"With interest rates across the entire maturity spectrum remaining low and the monetary policy stance still accommodative, we will continue to monitor very closely all developments with respect to upside risks to price stability."

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/markets-forex-eurofall-idUSN0526417920110505

May 5 (Reuters) - The euro fell below $1.47 on Thursday as traders unwound some bets in favor of the currency after comments form the European Central Bank President did not signal an imminent interest rate hike.

The euro fell to a session low of $1.4676 EUR=, down 0.9 percent on the day and off the session peak of $1.4899. It hit a 17-month high above $1.49 on Wednesday.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/deutschebank-legal-idUSWEA908720110505

May 5 (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) Chief Executive Josef Ackermann said U.S. lawsuits against the German lender were without foundation but said it as taking legal issues "extremely seriously".

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/lloyds-idUKLDE7432FG20110505

LONDON, May 5 (Reuters) - British bank Lloyds (LLOY.L) took a shock 3.2 billion pound ($5.3 billion) charge on Thursday to cover compensation for people sold insurance they could never claim or did not know they were buying.

The hefty charge signalled far higher than expected costs for the whole industry to resolve a mis-selling issue that has dogged it for years, sending shares in British banks into retreat.

Together with loan losses in crisis-hit Ireland and higher funding costs, the charge tipped the rescued bank into loss for the first quarter and raised fears about its recovery prospects.

Lloyds, 41-percent owned by the British government after a credit crisis bailout, made the provision against payment protection insurance (PPI) complaints after banks lost a British court case on the way policies were sold to millions of customers.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-05-05/lloyds-settles-insurance-claims-breaks-ranks-with-rivals.html

May 5 (Bloomberg) -- Lloyds Banking Group Plc, Britain’s biggest mortgage lender, set aside 3.2 billion pounds ($5.3 billion) to settle claims that clients were improperly sold loan insurance, breaking ranks with British competitors.

The decision helped push Lloyds into a first quarter net loss of 2.4 billion pounds compared with a profit of 169 million pounds in the year-earlier period, the London-based lender said in a statement today. Antonio Horta-Osorio, 47, chief executive officer since Eric Daniels departed two months ago, also broke tradition by releasing the bank’s first detailed quarterly earnings. The shares fell the most in almost a year.

“It’s refreshing to see a bank break ranks from its peers and do the right thing,”, said Which?, the British consumer- lobby group, in an e-mailed statement. “The rest of the U.K.’s banks must now follow suit.”

Lloyds’s decision suggests British banks may have to set aside about 8 billion pounds in total, according to Deutsche Bank AG research today, almost double the previous estimate. Last month, a U.K. court decided banks may have to pay compensation to customers improperly sold so-called payment protection insurance, used to cover payments on credit cards and mortgages in case of illness or unemployment.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-05-05/king-gains-ammunition-from-data-as-boe-keeps-rate-at-record-low.html

May 5 (Bloomberg) -- Bank of England Governor Mervyn King has gained more ammunition in his battle to keep interest rates at a record low after reports suggested the economy isn’t yet strong enough for a withdrawal of emergency stimulus.

The bank kept its benchmark rate at 0.5 percent today, as forecast by all 43 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. It also maintained its bond-purchase program at 200 billion pounds ($330 billion). King defeated calls last month from three policy makers to tighten policy to tame inflation that’s twice the central bank’s 2 percent target.

U.K. services and manufacturing growth slowed in April, and gross-domestic-product data last week showed the economy stagnated over the past six months. While the central bank forecasts that inflation may accelerate to at least 5 percent in the coming months, signs of a sluggish recovery have prompted investors to push back bets on the first interest-rate increase.

“We’ve had some disappointing numbers on the real economy and I think the Bank of England and most analysts would say it’s not clear whether this is a temporary blip,” Peter Dixon, an economist at Commerzbank AG in London, said in a telephone interview. “It makes sense for the bank to hold off making any decisions until it has a clearer idea of where we’re going.”

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/us-usa-economy-idUSTRE73D8GJ20110505

(Reuters) - New U.S. claims for unemployment aid unexpectedly rose last week to touch their highest level in eight months, pushed up by factors ranging from spring break layoffs to the introduction of an emergency benefits program, a government report showed on Thursday.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 43,000 to a seasonally adjusted 474,000, the highest since mid-August, the Labor Department said

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims dropping to 410,000. The prior week's figure was revised up to 431,000 from the previously reported 429,000.

The four-week moving average of unemployment claims, a better measure of underlying trends, increased 22,250 to 431,250, the highest since November.

5/4/11 Meredith Whitney Doubles Down On Her Call For An Epic Muni Catastrophe

Where are all the muni market disasters we're supposed to be getting this year? Why has it been so quiet. Why haven't munis fallen, like Meredith Whitney said they would? Fear not: she hasn't given up.

Speaking today at the Milken Conference in LA, she doubled down on her call for hundreds of billions of dollars worth of defaults saying, according to Bloomberg: "This municipal issue, you can criticize me for anything you want, I’m numb to it, because I have more conviction on this than I’ve had on any single thing in my career.”

http://www.businessinsider.com/meredith-whitney-calls-for-hundreds-of-billions-of-muni-defaults-2011-5

Here's the Bloomberg article...

5/4/11 Whitney Defends Her Prediction of ‘Hundreds of Billions’ in Muni Defaults

Meredith Whitney, the analyst who correctly predicted Citigroup Inc.’s 2008 dividend cut, defended her prediction of “hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth” of municipal-bond defaults.

Whitney, 41, speaking today at the Milken Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, said local governments in states such as California, Nevada, Arizona and Florida that are dependent on the housing and construction industries for higher tax revenue would continue to struggle financially.

“States have been spending at two-and-a-half times their tax receipts,” she said. “The states then are cutting off aid to their local governments which rely on them for over a third of their monies. The local municipalities have nowhere to go and their bias is to save their constituents before they save their bondholders.”

Whitney, who heads New York-based Meredith Whitney Advisory Group LLC, told CBS Corp. (CBS)’s “60 Minutes” on Dec. 19 that municipal-bond investors could “see 50 sizable defaults, 50 to 100 sizable defaults, more,” that “will amount to hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of defaults.”

Her prediction accelerated the flight of investors from municipal-bond funds and a decline in bond prices.

“There’s nothing controversial about that call, if you look at the numbers,” she said today, later adding: “This municipal issue, you can criticize me for anything you want, I’m numb to it, because I have more conviction on this than I’ve had on any single thing in my career.”

more...
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-04/whitney-defends-her-prediction-of-hundreds-of-billions-in-muni-defaults.html

I can't find him walking on thin air.

I seem to recall Looney tunes...but it must have been a while...

the collection of news in SMW today is a little cartoonish.
it's all over the place.

I will make it so. After all, I KNOW we did Mother's Day already; I can't find any proof of Looney tunes...

we're all a little looney....

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/markets-stocks-idUSN0524134220110505

NEW YORK, May 5 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures edged lower on Thursday as commodities lost ground on worries about less demand after recent tepid economic data and ahead of Friday's key payrolls report.

U.S. crude futures CLc1 slumped 2.6 percent to $106.43 and ICE Brent futures LCOc1 shed 2.9 percent to $117.73, while silver was poised for its largest weekly fall in over 20 years. Mining company Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc (FCX.N) dipped 2 percent to $50.10 in premarket trade. For details, see

Investors awaited weekly jobless claims, with economists in a Reuters survey forecasting a total of 410,000 new filings, compared with 429,000 in the prior week.

Also coming are monthly retail sales, showing the extent of consumer spending. U.S. warehouse club operator Costco Wholesale Corp (COST.O) posted a better-than-expected 12 percent rise in April sales, helped by higher gasoline prices and strengthening foreign currencies.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/05/mexico-peso-idUSN0528459520110505

May 5 (Reuters) - Mexico's peso extended losses on Thursday before its official opening, after data showed U.S. jobless claims reached their highest since mid-August 2010.

http://blogs.reuters.com/financial-regulatory-forum/2011/05/04/u-s-chases-elusive-currency-detection-technology/

ST. LOUIS, May 4 (Thomson Reuters Accelus) – To combat money laundering and contain the drug war raging along the U.S.-Mexico border, U.S. authorities are seeking technology that can detect the hoards of cash that smugglers try to spirit abroad.

But as results come in on initial development efforts, it is uncertain whether the technology is within reach.

“Right now we don’t know if it’s even feasible to make it work,” said John Verrico, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s and Technology Directorate. “There is a whole lot that has to be considered before we can say we have viable technology.”

The 2007 National Money Laundering Strategy, produced by the Departments of Treasury, Justice, and Homeland Security, stated that the smuggling of bulk currency out of the United States is “the largest and most significant drug money laundering threat facing law enforcement.”



um -- they could do the obvious?

It'll never happen, but it should.

but i was thinking of ending the 'war on drugs'.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/money_co/2011/05/bofa-to-open-more-outreach-centers-for-delinquent-homeowners.html

Bank of America plans to triple the number of its assistance offices for homeowners in trouble on their mortgages, including adding seven of the new outreach centers in California.

The Charlotte, N.C.-based bank has been clobbered by losses on high-risk home loans inherited when it acquired Countrywide Financial Corp. in 2008. It planned to announce its latest effort to deal with that problem at 6 a.m. PDT Thursday.

Imperial Valley foreclosure sale BofA already has 12 such centers nationally, including Southern California outreach offices in Brea and Glendale.

The bank said that over the next two or three months it would open 28 more, including one to serve South Los Angeles and the South Bay, one for the west San Fernando Valley and east Ventura County, one in the Antelope Valley, one in the Inland Empire, and others in San Diego, Bakersfield and Modesto. The exact addresses weren't available.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/money_co/2011/05/john-williams-san-francisco-fed-speech-inflation-policy-bernanke.html

The Federal Reserve’s new top official in the West, in his first public speech, defended the central bank’s policy course and said that fears of serious inflation erupting from Fed stimulus programs were unrealistic.

John Williams, who was named president of the San Francisco Fed bank March 1, told a Town Hall Los Angeles forum Wednesday that he expected current inflation pressures to recede and that the Fed had an “unwavering commitment to price stability.”

He also said that he expected the U.S. economy to rebound in the current quarter from its weak first-quarter pace, and that the pace of growth should “build further strength” in 2011 and 2012. But if it doesn't, he signaled that he could be willing to support additional stimulus measures.

Williams’ comments showed he is closely aligned with the views of Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke rather than with so-called hawks on the central bank’s board who fear that the Fed has gone too far in trying to bolster the economy.





before or after it's 'unexpectedly' too late?:eyes:

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-pension-overhaul-20110505,0,7054972.story

Reporting from Sacramento—
Pension benefits for hundreds of thousands of state workers would be reduced 25% to 40% under two proposals that have become the focal points for what could become a costly and bruising ballot fight over retirement funding.

In a new financial analysis estimating the cutbacks, the nonprofit California Foundation for Fiscal Responsibility warned that rising costs of public employee pensions and retiree healthcare could overwhelm the ability of taxpayers to fund many basic health, welfare and public safety services.

"Public employees are getting far more benefits than those in the private sector," said Marcia Fritz, the foundation's president, adding that voters are "fed up."

"The upshot," she said, "is going to be a huge fight" — an initiative contest that will be followed closely nationwide.

as of 10:23AM ET 5/5/2011
DJIA
12645.85
-77.73
5/5/2011 10:23:00 AM
NASDAQ
2823.12
-5.11
5/5/2011 10:23:00 AM
S&P500
1340.7
-6.62

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-gm-earns-20110506,0,5125381.story

General Motors Co.'s profit more than tripled in a blockbuster first quarter as it reeled in $3.2 billion from improving U.S. sales.

In its fifth straight profitable quarter, the nation's largest automaker saw net income boom to $1.77 a share from 55 cents a share, or $900 million, in the first quarter of last year.

Revenue spiked to $36.2 billion, up $4.7 billion from the same period in 2010, GM said before the market opened Thursday.

"We are on plan … thanks to strong customer demand for our new fuel-efficient vehicles and a competitive cost structure that allows us to leverage our strong brands around the world and focus on driving profitable automotive growth," said Chief Executive Dan Akerson in a statement.

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/dubai-hits-three-week-low-markets-unfazed-by-msci-move-398072.html

Abu Dhabi bourse's announcement that the country has met all requirements for an MSCI emerging market upgrade fails to boost sentiment and Dubai hits a three-week low.

"The effect of an MSCI inclusion will only be felt in the medium-term, when international funds begin allocating," says Sleiman Aboulhosn, assistant fund manager at Al Masah Capital.

Dubai's index ended 0.7 percent lower at 1,607 percent, its lowest close since April 13.

Air Arabia fell 1.6 percent after first-quarter net profit missed analyst estimates and fell 14.6 percent.

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/uae-has-met-all-conditions-for-msci-upgrade-says-abu-dhabi-official-398034.html

The UAE has met all conditions for an upgrade to coveted emerging market status from influential index complier MSCI, a senior official at the Abu Dhabi exchange said on Thursday.

"The checklist that they (MSCI) had. We got ticked in all except DvP. Now that is ticked. We are positive," said Rashed Al Baloushi, deputy chief executive.

The index complier will announce in June whether it will upgrade Qatar and UAE from the 'frontier markets' category, a move that could open up the countries' bourses to multibillion dollar liquidity and drive index fund investments.

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/us-allow-libyan-rebels-access-gaddafi-s-frozen-33bn-398112.html

Libya’s rebels will be given access to part of the $33bn of Libyan state assets that have been frozen at US banks, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said.

Clinton’s announcement that the US is creating a legal framework for rebels to tap Muammar Gaddafi’s funds came as 22 foreign ministers from NATO and allied nations, most of which are taking part in Libyan operations, met in Rome to agree a mechanism to direct aid to the Transitional National Council, the Libyan rebel authority in the eastern city of Benghazi.

The Obama administration wants to use “some portion of those assets owned by Gaddafi and the Libyan government in the United States, so we can make those funds available to help the Libyan people,” Clinton said today in Rome. The Treasury Department said about $33bn of Libyan state assets were held in the US at the end of March.

I'll admit that when they announced the death of Bin Laden my first thought was "Hmmmm... I'll bet the economic news is going to be really bad this week."

:tinfoilhat: ...

from india to the u.s.

not really stellar from what i can tell.

I am doing the same on my predictions about silver. Holy fall down and go boom Batman.

A jobless recovery, just like I pctured it.

And guess what? The jobs people are getting--like my S/O--pay less and offer far less bennies.

30 years of trickle-on economics won't be easy to erase anytime soon.

http://blogs.forbes.com/benkerschberg/2011/05/04/apple-allegedly-at-center-of-employee-compensation-conspiracy-involving-google-intel-adobe-pixar-and-lucasfilm/

Apple found itself in the legal spotlight again today, allegedly at the center of an intricate “web of express agreements” among senior executives of some of the most prominent companies in the technology and film industries. The other defendants — Google; Intel; Adobe; Pixas; Lucas Films; and Does 1-200, a group of corporations that maintain their principal place of business in California — has ties to Apple’s board of directors. In some cases, these ties are direct and obvious. In other instances, they allegedly run through then-Google CEO Eric Schmidt and Arthur Levinson, who both sat on the boards of Apple and Google at the same time. Neither individual is alleged to have participated in the conspiracy, which may have been carried out by senior executives.




stay classy, apple.

http://blogs.forbes.com/briancaulfield/2011/05/05/bad-news-for-nvidia-qualcomm-and-texas-instruments-intel-is-still-coming/

Every few years Intel spends billions to make over its factories so they can crank out processors with ever smaller transistors. Smaller transistors use less power. Less power means those processors will work even better in ever smaller devices.

On Wednesday in San Francisco, Intel talked about its next big shift: to processors with features just 22 billionth of a meter wide. Intel prides itself on being a year or more ahead of rivals here – a big deal in the market for PC and server processors.

The surprise: Intel’s latest process technology could be enough to land its processors in the thick of the smart phone business, thanks to a new trick Intel is adding to its manufacturing process.

The trick is a 3-D transistor design that lets it wring better performance out of low voltage chips by reducing current leakage when the transistor is idle and reducing its voltage when it’s active. Intel says the new “tri-gate” technology will slash active power consumption in half, cut idle power consumption by 10x, and boost performance in low-power processors by 37%. It’s a feat Intel’s rivals may need 3 to 4 years to match, analysts say.

http://www.news.com.au/business/breaking-news/shares-up-after-negative-start/story-e6frfkur-1226050681030

THE Australia share market recovered from a negative start to close marginally firmer.

The local bourse today was boosted by better performances from the energy and resources sector and National Australia Bank.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index rose 13.6 points, or 0.29 per cent, to 4753.7 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index lifted 15.1 points, or 0.31 per cent, to 4828.9.

On the ASX 24, the June share price index futures contract was 27 points higher at 4752 points, with 36,683 contracts traded.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/business/breaking-news/shares-up-after-negative-start/story-e6frfkur-1226050681030#ixzz1LUfbA76V

http://www.news.com.au/business/breaking-news/news-corporation-third-quarter-profit-slumps-186-million/story-e6frfkur-1226050215015

NEWS Corporation has reported a slump in third quarter net profit, saying film revenue was lower after a record contribution by Avatar in the third quarter last year.

News Corporation reported a net profit of $US639 million ($585.22 million) for the three months to March 31, down from $US839 million in the prior comparable period.

Operating income was $US1.06 billion for the third quarter, compared with $US1.25 billion a year earlier.

"As we anticipated, News Corporations third quarter financial results faced challenging comparisons when set against last year's record Avatar contribution at our Filmed Entertainment business," Chairman and chief executive Rupert Murdoch said in a statement.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/business/breaking-news/news-corporation-third-quarter-profit-slumps-186-million/story-e6frfkur-1226050215015#ixzz1LUgA1Bsc

http://www.news.com.au/money/money-matters/retail-sales-moribund-in-march-with-5-per-cent-drop-on-february/story-e6frfmd9-1226050495792

RETAIL sales figures struggled again in March, dropping by 5 per cent as consumers kept a tight hold on their wallets.

The adjusted official figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed growth down five per cent on the February figure and are set to be a major disappointment to the industry, as most economists had predicted a five per cent rise.

The February figure was boosted by strong figures in Queensland, which was in immediate flood recovery mode, but these have tailed off and point to the economy strugling for growth overall.

The only consolation for stores continuing heavy discounting is that retail trade was slightly up on March 2010, increasing by a modest 0.8 per cent - not enough to bring the sector back to health.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/money/money-matters/retail-sales-moribund-in-march-with-5-per-cent-drop-on-february/story-e6frfmd9-1226050495792#ixzz1LUhJZsua

http://www.news.com.au/money/property/home-front-pressure-as-loan-defaults-rise/story-e6frfmd0-1226050238549

MORTGAGE customers are defaulting on their loans at a faster pace than at the height of the global financial crisis as soaring living costs stretch household budgets to breaking point.

Westpac, the nation's second-biggest home lender, revealed yesterday that mortgage delinquency rates had climbed above the peaks they reached late in 2008 as the crisis swept around the globe.

And chief Gail Kelly, unveiling the bank's record first-half profit yesterday, said they were likely to climb further - albeit off a low base - as households struggled with rising utility bills and other costs.

Customers accounting for about 1.5 per cent of Westpac's $275 billion home loan book were more than 30 days behind on their repayment schedule at the end of March, according to the data released yesterday.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/money/property/home-front-pressure-as-loan-defaults-rise/story-e6frfmd0-1226050238549#ixzz1LUhy1N4H

Big swings in everything. The PPT manfully trying to bail the boat, too, and keep the DOW on a even keel.

but i'm the last person to really understand any of this.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/benchmark-30-year-mortgage-rate-matches-2011-low-2011-05-05-104990

CHICAGO (MarketWatch) — The average rate on the 30-year mortgage matched its lowest level since mid-January this week, according to Freddie Mac’s weekly survey released Thursday.

The mortgage averaged 4.71% for the week ending May 5, down from 4.78% last week and 5% a year ago, according to the survey.

Meanwhile, the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.89% this week, the lowest since the beginning of the year. It averaged 3.97% last week and 4.36% a year ago.

Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 3.47% this week, down from 3.51% last week and 3.97% a year ago.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/easter-holiday-lifts-april-sales-results-2011-05-05

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Consumers, faced with rising gasoline prices and food costs, proved they will still spend money when given a reason like Easter, according to the latest batch of sales results released by retailers Thursday.

Same-store sales at such retailers as Victoria’s Secret parent Limited Brands Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!ltd/quotes/nls/ltd LTD +1.66% , Gap Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!gps/quotes/nls/gps GPS +0.36% and Costco Wholesale Corp. /quotes/comstock/15*!cost/quotes/nls/cost COST +0.96% topped analysts’ expectations for April.

Limited reported a 20% increase in same-store sales and raised its first-quarter forecast. Costco posted a 12% sales gain, boosted by gasoline sales and foreign currencies. Excluding those benefits, sales rose a better-than-expected 7%.

Teen retailers Hot Topic Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!hott/quotes/nls/hott HOTT +7.98% , Zumiez Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!zumz/quotes/nls/zumz ZUMZ -0.18% and Buckle Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!bke/quotes/nls/bke BKE +2.00% also beat estimates, with Hot Topic also boosting its first-quarter outlook.

I'm all for cutting the Banksters out of the picture. I wonder how the Fed feels about it?

http://www.springwise.com/financial_services/bitcoin/

Now in beta, Bitcoin bills itself as “the first digital currency that is completely distributed.” In essence, that means that it's managed collectively by a global network of users, so no bank or payment processor is required between buyers and sellers in any transaction. Users begin with Bitcoin by downloading its client program for Linux, Mac or Windows, thereby creating a digital wallet and associated Bitcoin address for themselves. Next, very small quantities of Bitcoins are available for free from the Bitcoin faucet, but to get larger ones, users can visit various currency exchanges and sites. They can also accept Bitcoins as payments for goods and services. Either way, once they have Bitcoins — abbreviated “BTC” — users can spend them at various participating online merchants for a wide variety of goods and services. It's free for merchants to accept Bitcoins, and there are no chargebacks or fees. Currently, there is no charge for processing Bitcoin transactions, but eventually a small fee of about one bitcent will be charged every transaction to one of many competing Bitcoin “miners,” who create Bitcoins in a controlled way by running a dedicated program. A video on YouTube explains the Bitcoin concept.

Bitcoins have rapidly appreciated in value over the past few months, going from USD 0.50 at the end of January to more than USD 1 in early February. Transactions worth the equivalent of some USD 30,000 in Bitcoins now take place every day, according to a report in Forbes. Is it any wonder? Given the global financial crisis, consumers have good reason to seek more control over the financial system. Bruce Wagner, organizer of New York's Bitcoin developer's meet-up, put it nicely in Forbes: “No banker can control it. No evil dictator tyrant can print zillions and destroy the value." One to get your business involved in?

http://www.weusecoins.com/

we will probably see a dead cat bounce in a day or two.

but I make more money melting it down and making jewelry with it.

Currently at 98.35

Oil down 10%. Silver and gold collapsing. Dow down significantly.

What do you think's going on? What are the long and short term implications? Is anyone worried that we're in the end game?

I need the SMW support group. :-)

Naw, it couldn't be....

DOW... -139
NASDAQ... -14
S&P 500... -12

We are surely observing orchestrated manoeuvres, amplified.

5/5/11
http://market-ticker.org/cgi-ticker/akcs-www?post=185534