Why is there so much of doom and gloom about International economics now like there was irrational exuberance when the bubble was expanding.
This is not the first time world economy has gone bust and like all previous recessions, this one too has its own peculiar nature and as always this one will pass too. Some countries will go down, some will go up but no one knows for sure which countries would rise.
Who could have predicted few months back that oil will hit $50 before the end of 08 or that the real estate market will fall flat on its face?
This is just a passing phase and will go away in few years and we again will be on a trip to new bubble.
Life goes on....
Global Economy
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Actually there was one member of this forum who had predicted price to be around 50 to 60 with proper reasoning.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
good news - F1 is dying.
Global crisis ends Honda F1 dream
Takeo Fukui made an emotional announcement
Honda is pulling out of Formula One, blaming the world economic crisis for plans to sell its team.
Sources told BBC Sport the team were "optimistic" they would continue, but an investor had not yet been found.
The decision leaves Englishman Jenson Button and 2009 team-mate Rubens Barrichello without drives, with only a few mid-ranking seats still available.
Honda, which spent more than £300m a year on F1, said it would also no longer supply the sport with engines.
A deadline of January has been set to find a buyer but workers at Honda's Brackley base have been told to expect redundancy letters before Christmas.
"Honda Motor Co. has come to the conclusion that we will withdraw from all Formula One activities, making 2008 the last season for participation," said Honda president Takeo Fukui at an emotional press conference.
"This difficult decision has been made in light of the quickly deteriorating operating environment facing the global auto industry... and the sudden contraction of the world economies," he added.
Honda were the lowest-placed of the points-scoring teams in 2008
"Honda must protect its core business activities and secure the long term as widespread uncertainties in the economics around the globe continue to mount."
According to the Reuters news agency, team bosses Ross Brawn and Nick Fry told a meeting of the Formula One Teams' Association: "They have a month to find a buyer, otherwise they are closing the team."
If no buyer is found, Honda's decision will leave F1 with just 18 cars on the grid next season.
Honda said next year's Japanese Grand Prix at its Suzuka circuit would go ahead as planned.
Honda appointed Brawn, the man who masterminded seven world titles for Michael Schumacher at Benetton and Ferrari, as their team principal prior to the start of the 2008 season.
His arrival was seen as the signal for the start of a concerted push for success by the company after several seasons as also-rans.
The company returned to F1 as a team owner and car builder in 2005, having spent five years as an engine supplier to the British American Racing team.
But they have struggled to make an impact at the top levels of the sport.
Their sole victory of the modern era came with Button's win at the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2006.
But they have been uncompetitive in the last two seasons.
Honda's decision could also spell the end of Barrichello's 16-year F1 career.
The 36-year-old winner of nine Grands Prix was competing with his novice compatriot Bruno Senna, the nephew of F1 legend Ayrton Senna, for a seat at Honda in 2009.
Honda recently cut road vehicle production as a response to the global economic crisis - the company's sales in its key US market were down 30% last month.
F1 is a notoriously expensive sport in which to compete, and teams have spent recent months in intensive discussions over cost-cutting measures.
Max Mosley, president of world motorsport governing body the FIA, recently urged teams to find ways to reduce costs.
"Formula One is becoming unsustainable," said Mosley in July.
"The major manufacturers are currently employing up to 1,000 people to put two cars on the grid. This is clearly unacceptable at a time when all these companies are facing tough market conditions."
In October, a deal was reached to reduce costs for smaller teams in 2009 and 2010.
Considered a major player within F1, Honda bankrolls more than 800 staff at the team's Northamptonshire base and had one of the largest budgets in the sport.
"I am told that for £1 you can now buy the Honda F1 team," said BBC sports news correspondent Adam Parsons.
BBC Radio 5 Live's F1 commentator, David Croft, said Honda's withdrawal could have profound consequences for the sport.
...........
"It's the start of the sport as a whole feeling the pinch. Williams are reported to be in financial difficulties, Toyota are trimming down their budget as well.
"Honda are a car company whose sales have dropped by 41% in the last quarter, they're closing their Swindon factory for two months at the start of next year, and obviously feeling the pinch on a global scale."
In November, Honda announced it would build fewer cars in Japan, Europe and the US to reflect bleak economic prospects in the vehicle manufacturing industry.
Sales of new cars in the UK suffered their biggest monthly drop in 28 years, while car makers Ford, GM and Chrysler have asked the US Congress for multi-billion dollar loans to guarantee their survival.
The last team to leave F1 were Honda-backed minnows Super Aguri, which folded for financial reasons in April.
Honda's own F1 team endured a deeply disappointing 2008 season on the track, earning just 14 points, leaving them the lowest of the nine points-scoring teams.
Button found himself ranked 18th in the drivers' list, contributing only three points.
Only four drivers, each without a point to their name, ranked below him. Barrichello earned the remaining 11 points - more than half of them earned with a third place in the wet British Grand Prix.
Global crisis ends Honda F1 dream
Takeo Fukui made an emotional announcement
Honda is pulling out of Formula One, blaming the world economic crisis for plans to sell its team.
Sources told BBC Sport the team were "optimistic" they would continue, but an investor had not yet been found.
The decision leaves Englishman Jenson Button and 2009 team-mate Rubens Barrichello without drives, with only a few mid-ranking seats still available.
Honda, which spent more than £300m a year on F1, said it would also no longer supply the sport with engines.
A deadline of January has been set to find a buyer but workers at Honda's Brackley base have been told to expect redundancy letters before Christmas.
"Honda Motor Co. has come to the conclusion that we will withdraw from all Formula One activities, making 2008 the last season for participation," said Honda president Takeo Fukui at an emotional press conference.
"This difficult decision has been made in light of the quickly deteriorating operating environment facing the global auto industry... and the sudden contraction of the world economies," he added.
Honda were the lowest-placed of the points-scoring teams in 2008
"Honda must protect its core business activities and secure the long term as widespread uncertainties in the economics around the globe continue to mount."
According to the Reuters news agency, team bosses Ross Brawn and Nick Fry told a meeting of the Formula One Teams' Association: "They have a month to find a buyer, otherwise they are closing the team."
If no buyer is found, Honda's decision will leave F1 with just 18 cars on the grid next season.
Honda said next year's Japanese Grand Prix at its Suzuka circuit would go ahead as planned.
Honda appointed Brawn, the man who masterminded seven world titles for Michael Schumacher at Benetton and Ferrari, as their team principal prior to the start of the 2008 season.
His arrival was seen as the signal for the start of a concerted push for success by the company after several seasons as also-rans.
The company returned to F1 as a team owner and car builder in 2005, having spent five years as an engine supplier to the British American Racing team.
But they have struggled to make an impact at the top levels of the sport.
Their sole victory of the modern era came with Button's win at the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2006.
But they have been uncompetitive in the last two seasons.
Honda's decision could also spell the end of Barrichello's 16-year F1 career.
The 36-year-old winner of nine Grands Prix was competing with his novice compatriot Bruno Senna, the nephew of F1 legend Ayrton Senna, for a seat at Honda in 2009.
Honda recently cut road vehicle production as a response to the global economic crisis - the company's sales in its key US market were down 30% last month.
F1 is a notoriously expensive sport in which to compete, and teams have spent recent months in intensive discussions over cost-cutting measures.
Max Mosley, president of world motorsport governing body the FIA, recently urged teams to find ways to reduce costs.
"Formula One is becoming unsustainable," said Mosley in July.
"The major manufacturers are currently employing up to 1,000 people to put two cars on the grid. This is clearly unacceptable at a time when all these companies are facing tough market conditions."
In October, a deal was reached to reduce costs for smaller teams in 2009 and 2010.
Considered a major player within F1, Honda bankrolls more than 800 staff at the team's Northamptonshire base and had one of the largest budgets in the sport.
"I am told that for £1 you can now buy the Honda F1 team," said BBC sports news correspondent Adam Parsons.
BBC Radio 5 Live's F1 commentator, David Croft, said Honda's withdrawal could have profound consequences for the sport.
...........
"It's the start of the sport as a whole feeling the pinch. Williams are reported to be in financial difficulties, Toyota are trimming down their budget as well.
"Honda are a car company whose sales have dropped by 41% in the last quarter, they're closing their Swindon factory for two months at the start of next year, and obviously feeling the pinch on a global scale."
In November, Honda announced it would build fewer cars in Japan, Europe and the US to reflect bleak economic prospects in the vehicle manufacturing industry.
Sales of new cars in the UK suffered their biggest monthly drop in 28 years, while car makers Ford, GM and Chrysler have asked the US Congress for multi-billion dollar loans to guarantee their survival.
The last team to leave F1 were Honda-backed minnows Super Aguri, which folded for financial reasons in April.
Honda's own F1 team endured a deeply disappointing 2008 season on the track, earning just 14 points, leaving them the lowest of the nine points-scoring teams.
Button found himself ranked 18th in the drivers' list, contributing only three points.
Only four drivers, each without a point to their name, ranked below him. Barrichello earned the remaining 11 points - more than half of them earned with a third place in the wet British Grand Prix.
-
abhischekcc
- BRF Oldie
- Posts: 4277
- Joined: 12 Jul 1999 11:31
- Location: If I can’t move the gods, I’ll stir up hell
- Contact:
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
ss_roy,
It would be very nice if you could share some of your info with us.
It would be very nice if you could share some of your info with us.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
US Companies cut 533K jobs in Nov. This will make it harder for the government not to bailout the auto companies. More tax payer essentially being pissed away.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081205/ap_ ... l_meltdown
WASHINGTON – Skittish employers slashed 533,000 jobs in November, the most in 34 years, catapulting the unemployment rate to 6.7 percent, dramatic proof the country is careening deeper into recession.
The new figures, released by the Labor Department Friday, showed the crucial employment market deteriorating at an alarmingly rapid clip, and handed Americans some more grim news right before the holidays. The net loss of more than a half-million jobs was far worse than analysts expected.
As companies throttled back hiring, the unemployment rate bolted from 6.5 percent in October to 6.7 percent last month, a 15-year high.
"These numbers are shocking," said economist Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economics Advisors. "Companies are sharply reacting to the economy's problems and slashing costs. They are not trying to ride it out."
The unemployment rate would have moved even higher if not for the exodus of 422,000 people from the work force. Economists said many of those people probably abandoned their job searches out of sheer frustration. In November 2007, the jobless rate was at 4.7 percent.
The U.S. tipped into recession last December, a panel of experts declared earlier this week, confirming what many Americans already thought.
Since the start of the recession, the economy has lost 1.9 million jobs, the number of unemployed people increased by 2.7 million and the jobless rate rose by 1.7 percentage points. More evidence that the labor pain is far from over came Friday when General Motors Corp. said it will lay off another 2,000 workers as it cuts shifts at three car factories starting in February due to slowing demand for their products.
President George W. Bush, who used the word "recession" for the first time to describe the economy's state, pledged Friday to explore more efforts to ease housing, credit and financial stresses.
"There is still more work to do," Bush said. "My administration is committed to ensuring that our economy succeeds."
President-elect Barack Obama said the dismal job news underscored the need for forceful action, even as he warned that the pain could not be quickly relieved.
"There are no quick or easy fixes to this crisis ... and it's likely to get worse before it gets better," Obama said. "At the same time, this ... provides us with an opportunity to transform our economy to improve the lives of ordinary people by rebuilding roads and modernizing schools for our children, investing in clean energy solutions to break our dependence on imported oil, and making an early down payment on the long-term reforms that will grow and strengthen our economy for all Americans for years to come."
To provide relief, the Bush administration will continue to concentrate on ways to bust through a credit jam that is feeding prominently into the economy's problems, Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez told The Associated Press in an interview. "We're going to stay focused on that like a laser," he said.
Elsewhere Friday, the Mortgage Bankers Association said a record one in 10 American homeowners with a mortgage were either at least a month behind on their payments or in foreclosure at the end of September. The percentage of loans at least a month overdue or in foreclosure was up from 9.2 percent in the April-June quarter, and from 7.3 percent a year earlier.
On Wall Street, stocks slid. The Dow Jones industrials were down 130 points in afternoon trading.
Job losses last month were widespread, hitting factories, construction companies, financial firms, retailers, leisure and hospitality, and others industries. The few places where gains were logged included the government, education and health services.
The loss of 533,000 payroll jobs was much deeper than the 320,000 job cuts economists were forecasting. The rise in the unemployment rate, however, wasn't as steep as the 6.8 percent rate they were expecting. Taken together, though, the employment picture clearly darkening.
The job reductions were the most since a whopping 602,000 positions were slashed in December 1974, when the country was in a severe recession.
All told, 10.3 million people were left unemployed as of November, while the number of employed was 144.3 million.
Gary Cope, 33, this week lost his communications job at Roanoke, Va.-based high-tech research and development company Luna Innovations Inc.
Cope was called into a meeting first thing Thursday morning with two administrators and a human resources representative. Their message: He was being laid off, for financial reasons, effective immediately.
He left with a box of his belongings and about two months' severance. As Cope walked out the door, all he could think was, "I have a 3-year-old son and I'm a single dad."
"I came home and did my initial pity party, then I got myself together, talked to my family and went right to work" rewriting his resume and sending it out, Cope said. "My family has been very supportive, they've let me know I'll get through this and they won't let me drown."
Job losses in September and October also turned out to be much worse. Employers cut 403,000 jobs in September, versus 284,000 previously estimated. Another 320,000 were chopped in October, compared with an initial estimate of 240,000.
Employers are slashing costs as they cope with sagging appetites from customers in the U.S. and in other countries, which are struggling with their own economic troubles.
The carnage — including the worst financial crisis since the 1930s — is hitting a wide range of companies.
In recent days, AT&T Inc., DuPont, JPMorgan Chase & Co., as well as jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp., and mining company Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. announced layoffs.
Fighting for their survival, the chiefs of Chrysler LLC, General Motors and Ford Motor Co. returned to Capitol Hill Friday to again ask lawmakers for as much as $34 billion in emergency aid.
Workers with jobs saw modest wage gains. Average hourly earnings rose to $18.30 in November, a 0.4 percent increase from the previous month. Over the year, wages have grown 3.7 percent, but paychecks haven't stretched that far because of high prices for energy, food and other items.
Worn-out consumers battered by the job losses, shrinking nest eggs and tanking home values have retrenched, throwing the economy into a tailspin. As the unemployment rate continues to move higher, consumers will burrow further, dragging the economy down even more, a vicious cycle that Washington policymakers are trying to break.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is expected ratchet down a key interest rate — now near a historic low of 1 percent — by as much as a half-percentage point on Dec. 16 in a bid to breathe life into the moribund economy. Bernanke is exploring other economic revival options and wants the government to step up efforts to curb home foreclosures.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, whose department oversees the $700 billion financial bailout program, also is weighing new initiatives such as tapping the second half of that rescue money to ease the economic crisis.
Obama, who takes office on Jan. 20, has called for a massive economic recovery bill to generate 2.5 million jobs over his first two years in office. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has vowed to have a package ready on Inauguration Day for Obama's signature.
The measure, which could total $500 billion, would bankroll big public works projects to create jobs, provide aid to states to help with Medicaid costs, and provide money toward renewable energy development.
At 12 months and counting, the recession is longer than the 10-month average length of recessions since World War II. The record for the longest recession in the postwar period is 16 months, which was reached in the 1973-75 and 1981-82 downturns. The current recession might end up matching that or setting a record in terms of duration, analysts say.
The 1981-82 recession was the worst in terms of unemployment since the Great Depression. The jobless rate rose as high as 10.8 percent in late 1982, just as the recession ended, before inching down.
Given the current woes, the jobless rate could rise as high as 8.5 percent by the end of next year, some analysts predict. Still, the unemployment rate often peaks after a recession has ended. That's because companies are reluctant to ramp up hiring until they feel certain the recovery has staying power.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081205/ap_ ... l_meltdown
WASHINGTON – Skittish employers slashed 533,000 jobs in November, the most in 34 years, catapulting the unemployment rate to 6.7 percent, dramatic proof the country is careening deeper into recession.
The new figures, released by the Labor Department Friday, showed the crucial employment market deteriorating at an alarmingly rapid clip, and handed Americans some more grim news right before the holidays. The net loss of more than a half-million jobs was far worse than analysts expected.
As companies throttled back hiring, the unemployment rate bolted from 6.5 percent in October to 6.7 percent last month, a 15-year high.
"These numbers are shocking," said economist Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economics Advisors. "Companies are sharply reacting to the economy's problems and slashing costs. They are not trying to ride it out."
The unemployment rate would have moved even higher if not for the exodus of 422,000 people from the work force. Economists said many of those people probably abandoned their job searches out of sheer frustration. In November 2007, the jobless rate was at 4.7 percent.
The U.S. tipped into recession last December, a panel of experts declared earlier this week, confirming what many Americans already thought.
Since the start of the recession, the economy has lost 1.9 million jobs, the number of unemployed people increased by 2.7 million and the jobless rate rose by 1.7 percentage points. More evidence that the labor pain is far from over came Friday when General Motors Corp. said it will lay off another 2,000 workers as it cuts shifts at three car factories starting in February due to slowing demand for their products.
President George W. Bush, who used the word "recession" for the first time to describe the economy's state, pledged Friday to explore more efforts to ease housing, credit and financial stresses.
"There is still more work to do," Bush said. "My administration is committed to ensuring that our economy succeeds."
President-elect Barack Obama said the dismal job news underscored the need for forceful action, even as he warned that the pain could not be quickly relieved.
"There are no quick or easy fixes to this crisis ... and it's likely to get worse before it gets better," Obama said. "At the same time, this ... provides us with an opportunity to transform our economy to improve the lives of ordinary people by rebuilding roads and modernizing schools for our children, investing in clean energy solutions to break our dependence on imported oil, and making an early down payment on the long-term reforms that will grow and strengthen our economy for all Americans for years to come."
To provide relief, the Bush administration will continue to concentrate on ways to bust through a credit jam that is feeding prominently into the economy's problems, Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez told The Associated Press in an interview. "We're going to stay focused on that like a laser," he said.
Elsewhere Friday, the Mortgage Bankers Association said a record one in 10 American homeowners with a mortgage were either at least a month behind on their payments or in foreclosure at the end of September. The percentage of loans at least a month overdue or in foreclosure was up from 9.2 percent in the April-June quarter, and from 7.3 percent a year earlier.
On Wall Street, stocks slid. The Dow Jones industrials were down 130 points in afternoon trading.
Job losses last month were widespread, hitting factories, construction companies, financial firms, retailers, leisure and hospitality, and others industries. The few places where gains were logged included the government, education and health services.
The loss of 533,000 payroll jobs was much deeper than the 320,000 job cuts economists were forecasting. The rise in the unemployment rate, however, wasn't as steep as the 6.8 percent rate they were expecting. Taken together, though, the employment picture clearly darkening.
The job reductions were the most since a whopping 602,000 positions were slashed in December 1974, when the country was in a severe recession.
All told, 10.3 million people were left unemployed as of November, while the number of employed was 144.3 million.
Gary Cope, 33, this week lost his communications job at Roanoke, Va.-based high-tech research and development company Luna Innovations Inc.
Cope was called into a meeting first thing Thursday morning with two administrators and a human resources representative. Their message: He was being laid off, for financial reasons, effective immediately.
He left with a box of his belongings and about two months' severance. As Cope walked out the door, all he could think was, "I have a 3-year-old son and I'm a single dad."
"I came home and did my initial pity party, then I got myself together, talked to my family and went right to work" rewriting his resume and sending it out, Cope said. "My family has been very supportive, they've let me know I'll get through this and they won't let me drown."
Job losses in September and October also turned out to be much worse. Employers cut 403,000 jobs in September, versus 284,000 previously estimated. Another 320,000 were chopped in October, compared with an initial estimate of 240,000.
Employers are slashing costs as they cope with sagging appetites from customers in the U.S. and in other countries, which are struggling with their own economic troubles.
The carnage — including the worst financial crisis since the 1930s — is hitting a wide range of companies.
In recent days, AT&T Inc., DuPont, JPMorgan Chase & Co., as well as jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp., and mining company Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. announced layoffs.
Fighting for their survival, the chiefs of Chrysler LLC, General Motors and Ford Motor Co. returned to Capitol Hill Friday to again ask lawmakers for as much as $34 billion in emergency aid.
Workers with jobs saw modest wage gains. Average hourly earnings rose to $18.30 in November, a 0.4 percent increase from the previous month. Over the year, wages have grown 3.7 percent, but paychecks haven't stretched that far because of high prices for energy, food and other items.
Worn-out consumers battered by the job losses, shrinking nest eggs and tanking home values have retrenched, throwing the economy into a tailspin. As the unemployment rate continues to move higher, consumers will burrow further, dragging the economy down even more, a vicious cycle that Washington policymakers are trying to break.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is expected ratchet down a key interest rate — now near a historic low of 1 percent — by as much as a half-percentage point on Dec. 16 in a bid to breathe life into the moribund economy. Bernanke is exploring other economic revival options and wants the government to step up efforts to curb home foreclosures.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, whose department oversees the $700 billion financial bailout program, also is weighing new initiatives such as tapping the second half of that rescue money to ease the economic crisis.
Obama, who takes office on Jan. 20, has called for a massive economic recovery bill to generate 2.5 million jobs over his first two years in office. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has vowed to have a package ready on Inauguration Day for Obama's signature.
The measure, which could total $500 billion, would bankroll big public works projects to create jobs, provide aid to states to help with Medicaid costs, and provide money toward renewable energy development.
At 12 months and counting, the recession is longer than the 10-month average length of recessions since World War II. The record for the longest recession in the postwar period is 16 months, which was reached in the 1973-75 and 1981-82 downturns. The current recession might end up matching that or setting a record in terms of duration, analysts say.
The 1981-82 recession was the worst in terms of unemployment since the Great Depression. The jobless rate rose as high as 10.8 percent in late 1982, just as the recession ended, before inching down.
Given the current woes, the jobless rate could rise as high as 8.5 percent by the end of next year, some analysts predict. Still, the unemployment rate often peaks after a recession has ended. That's because companies are reluctant to ramp up hiring until they feel certain the recovery has staying power.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Oil is very close to breaking below the $40 level. Saudis/Opec will likely cut production to try and lift the price. It would be better for them in the long term if they didn't, but who ever looks at the long term?
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Personal anecdote. Most of my savings were in a couple of accounts at a local bank called Downey Savings. Last week, I saw a story which said the bank had failed. Today, I got a letter in the mail saying US Bank had taken them over and my deposits are safe.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
History will tell you that before WWII the BRitish trading system was the framework for International trade. After the WWII, US took over this trading system in exchange for bailing out Britian by giving loans ($3B). What the British did was to retain the global financial center in London and kep lot of keys of the world trade. US did not get all the details of the international trade and it has resulted in the current situation.ss_roy wrote:I am not sure that most of you comprehend the full extent of this self-inflicted disaster. If you do, I am sorry for repeating it.
The facts-
1] The entire western banking system is insolvent- not illiquid, just plain insolvent. Extensive government intervention is the only reason banks are still operating in the western world.
-
abhischekcc
- BRF Oldie
- Posts: 4277
- Joined: 12 Jul 1999 11:31
- Location: If I can’t move the gods, I’ll stir up hell
- Contact:
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Acharya, could you give more details about that?
My email is bushlovesosama at-de-rate gmail dawt com.
My email is bushlovesosama at-de-rate gmail dawt com.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Where are you nowadays. Which cityabhischekcc wrote:Acharya, could you give more details about that?
My email is bushlovesosama at-de-rate gmail dawt com.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
With low price and lowering of production......................they are putting themselves on the wall. Who will pay for the things they import ?Oil is very close to breaking below the $40 level. Saudis/Opec will likely cut production to try and lift the price. It would be better for them in the long term if they didn't, but who ever looks at the long term?
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
airbus has released a comprehensive doc on the problems of 787 program
http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/fligh ... learnt.pdf
we already know EU and US indulge in no holds barred industrial espionage with
PRC and Israel also joining the fray.
the delays have given airbus crucial time to progress on its A350 program.
http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/fligh ... learnt.pdf
we already know EU and US indulge in no holds barred industrial espionage with
PRC and Israel also joining the fray.
the delays have given airbus crucial time to progress on its A350 program.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
The economic contraction has begun
Its called Big Bank theroy.
the Asset deflation is slowly showing signs
Wages will fall
US economy will become competetive in terms of manufacturing and services, which means less outsourcing (or India PRC have to price below cost)
Its called Big Bank theroy.
the Asset deflation is slowly showing signs
Wages will fall
US economy will become competetive in terms of manufacturing and services, which means less outsourcing (or India PRC have to price below cost)
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2008/12/bo ... nce-blogs/
Very cool article in the Sunday Boston Globe: A field guide to economics and finance blogs:
“As the bailout plan unfolded, the bloggers offered historical context along with cutting critiques of the proposal. More important still, they offered counterproposals: direct capital injections into banks, for example, or direct purchases of mortgages. Many of their readers began badgering their senators and representatives to oppose the plan. A few weeks later, Congress rebuffed Paulson, sending shockwaves through global financial markets.
Though it’s still unclear how much credit the blogs can take for shaping Washington’s response to the crisis, it’s already evident that policy makers charged with monitoring and fixing the markets are no longer operating alone. A fast-moving, highly informed economics blogosphere now tracks and critiques their every move. The result is that this may be the first national crisis to be hashed out by experts in full public view.
The blogs offer a rolling crash course in economics as authoritative as any textbook, but far more accessible. It’s a conversation that’s simultaneously esoteric and irreverent, combining technical discussions of liquidity traps and yield curves with profane putdowns and heckling headlines. In the process, the bloggers have helped to democratize policy making, throwing open the doors on the messy business of everything from declaring a recession to structuring the most expensive government bailout in history.”
And here’s the list of blogs discussed:
The Big Picture
ritholtz.com/blog
Brad Setser’s Follow the Money
blogs.cfr.org/setser
Calculated Risk
calculatedrisk.blogspot.com
Credit Slips
www.creditslips.org/creditslips
Economist’s View
economistsview.typepad.com
Freakonomics
freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com
Marginal Revolution
www.marginalrevolution.com
Naked Capitalism
www.nakedcapitalism.com
Nouriel Roubini’s Global Econo-Monitor
www.rgemonitor.com/blog/roubini
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Out of those, I follow calculatedrisk regulary. Todays post makes a plausible argument that oil producing countries will increase production as a response to the fall in oil prices.
Another I follow regularly is http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/
Another I follow regularly is http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Sure, however you should understand a few things-
1] Bill McBride (http://calculatedrisk.blogspot.com) is a good general blog, but it is somewhat conservative in it's assessments.
2] Mish Shedlock (http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com) has made good predictions, but implementing his ideas would destroy civilization.
3] Yves Smith (http://www.nakedcapitalism.com) is a good blogwriter, but the writer believes that there too many people (non-whites).
4] Nouriel Roubini (http://www.rgemonitor.com/blog/roubini) was another good commentator, but he is now part of the main-stream.
5] Ben Jones (http://thehousingbubbleblog.com/index.html) is probably the best blog on the real estate scandal in north america
But above all, remember this-
All of these commentators and most of their blog readers are unwilling to accept the obvious demise of the west. They are all looking for magical ways to prop up a rapidly aging population that has lost the will to innovate and take risks. Their system cannot survive without new consumers. This is why it is important for indians to drive very hard bargains with the west. They are going to be collapse anyway- if they do not cooperate with emerging economies they will implode in less than 2-4 years. If they cooperate they will fade away in 20-30 years.
I wish that India had more youthful leaders that did not scrape and bow to the ailing west.
1] Bill McBride (http://calculatedrisk.blogspot.com) is a good general blog, but it is somewhat conservative in it's assessments.
2] Mish Shedlock (http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com) has made good predictions, but implementing his ideas would destroy civilization.
3] Yves Smith (http://www.nakedcapitalism.com) is a good blogwriter, but the writer believes that there too many people (non-whites).
4] Nouriel Roubini (http://www.rgemonitor.com/blog/roubini) was another good commentator, but he is now part of the main-stream.
5] Ben Jones (http://thehousingbubbleblog.com/index.html) is probably the best blog on the real estate scandal in north america
But above all, remember this-
All of these commentators and most of their blog readers are unwilling to accept the obvious demise of the west. They are all looking for magical ways to prop up a rapidly aging population that has lost the will to innovate and take risks. Their system cannot survive without new consumers. This is why it is important for indians to drive very hard bargains with the west. They are going to be collapse anyway- if they do not cooperate with emerging economies they will implode in less than 2-4 years. If they cooperate they will fade away in 20-30 years.
I wish that India had more youthful leaders that did not scrape and bow to the ailing west.
----abhischekcc wrote:ss_roy,
It would be very nice if you could share some of your info with us.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
I do not think anyone is at the steering wheel. This "thing" is beyond anyones control. UK is a shadow of its past.
Acharya wrote:History will tell you that before WWII the BRitish trading system was the framework for International trade. After the WWII, US took over this trading system in exchange for bailing out Britian by giving loans ($3B). What the British did was to retain the global financial center in London and kep lot of keys of the world trade. US did not get all the details of the international trade and it has resulted in the current situation.ss_roy wrote:I am not sure that most of you comprehend the full extent of this self-inflicted disaster. If you do, I am sorry for repeating it.
The facts-
1] The entire western banking system is insolvent- not illiquid, just plain insolvent. Extensive government intervention is the only reason banks are still operating in the western world.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
I am talking about financial market and how it has developed with UK being the center for a long time.ss_roy wrote:I do not think anyone is at the steering wheel. This "thing" is beyond anyones control. UK is a shadow of its past.
Acharya wrote: History will tell you that before WWII the BRitish trading system was the framework for International trade. After the WWII, US took over this trading system in exchange for bailing out Britian by giving loans ($3B). What the British did was to retain the global financial center in London and kep lot of keys of the world trade. US did not get all the details of the international trade and it has resulted in the current situation.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
I thought so.. and you are right in that UK was the center of world finance for a very long time, but it lost a lot of control after WW2. It did gain some control back in the 1980s, but recent events have destroyed its position.
I think if India played its cards right, it could seize some part of the emerging control mechanisms. But we have to first get rid of our chamchas who will bow to anyone with a white skin.
I think if India played its cards right, it could seize some part of the emerging control mechanisms. But we have to first get rid of our chamchas who will bow to anyone with a white skin.
I am talking about financial market and how it has developed with UK being the center for a long time.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
That is correct. UK lost control only in Mid 1980s during the jehad war in afghanistan. But Recent crisis was also triggered by the invisible hand from the London banking system. i.e. George Soros.ss_roy wrote:I thought so.. and you are right in that UK was the center of world finance for a very long time, but it lost a lot of control after WW2. It did gain some control back in the 1980s, but recent events have destroyed its position.
I think if India played its cards right, it could seize some part of the emerging control mechanisms. But we have to first get rid of our chamchas who will bow to anyone with a white skin.
I am talking about financial market and how it has developed with UK being the center for a long time.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Red Alert: Gold Backwardation
http://www.professorfekete.com/
Antal Fekete wrote:
By Antal Fekete
December 2, 2008, was a landmark in the saga of the collapsing international monetary system, yet it did not deserve to be reported in the press: gold went to backwardation for the first time ever in history. The facts are as follows: on December 2nd, at the Comex in New York, December gold futures (last delivery: December 31) were quoted at 1.98% discount to spot, while February gold futures (last delivery: February 27, 2009) were quoted at 0.14% discount to spot. (All percentages annualized.) The condition got worse on December 3rd, when the corresponding figures were 2% and 0.29%. This means that the gold basis has turned negative, and the condition of backwardation persisted for at least 48 hours. I am writing this in the wee hours of December 4th, when trading of gold futures has not yet started in New York.
According to the December 3rd Comex delivery report, there are 11,759 notices to take delivery. This represents 1.1759 million ounces of gold, while the Comex-approved warehouses hold 2.9 million ounces. Thus 40% of the total amount will have to be delivered by December 31st. Since not all the gold in the warehouses is available for delivery, Comex supply of gold falls far short of the demand at present rates. Futures markets in gold are breaking down. Paper gold is progressively being discredited.
Already there was a slight backwardation in gold at the expiry of a previous active contract month, but it never spilled over to the next active contract month, as it does now: backwardation in the December contract is spilling over to the February contract which at last reading was 0.36%. Silver is also in backwardation, with the discount on silver futures being about twice that on gold futures.
As those who attended my seminar on the gold basis in Canberra last month know, the gold basis is a pristine, incorruptible measure of trust, or the lack of it in case it turns negative, in paper money. Of course, it is too early to say whether gold has gone to permanent backwardation, or whether the condition will rectify itself (it probably will). Be that as it may, it does not matter. The fact that it has happened is the coup de grâce for the regime of irredeemable currency. It will bleed to death, maybe rather slowly, even if no other hits, blows, or shocks are dealt to the system. Very few people realize what is going on and, of course, official sources and the news media won’t be helpful to them to explain the significance of all this. I am trying to be helpful to the discriminating reader.
Gold going to permanent backwardation means that gold is no longer for sale at any price, whether it is quoted in dollars, yens, euros, or Swiss francs. The situation is exactly the same as it has been for years: gold is not for sale at any price quoted in Zimbabwe currency, however high the quote is. To put it differently, all offers to sell gold are being withdrawn, whether it concerns newly mined gold, scrap gold, bullion gold or coined gold. I dubbed this event that has cast its long shadow forward for many a year, the last contango in Washington ― contango being the name for the condition opposite to backwardation (namely, that of a positive basis), and Washington being the city where the Paper-mill of the Potomac, the Federal Reserve Board, is located. This is a tongue-in-cheek way of saying that the jig in Washington is up. The music has stopped on the players of ‘musical chairs’. Those who have no gold in hand are out of luck. They won’t get it now through the regular channels. If they want it, they will have to go to the black market.
I founded Gold Standard University Live (GSUL) two years ago and dedicated it to research of monetary issues that are pointedly ignored by universities, government think-tanks, and the financial press, centered around the question of long-term viability of the regime of irredeemable currency. Historical experiments with that type of currency were many but all of them, without exception, have ended in ignominious failure accompanied with great economic pain, unless the experiment was called off in good time and the authorities returned to monetary rectitude, that is, to a metallic monetary standard. It is also worth pointing out that the present experiment is unique in that all countries of the world indulge in it. Not one country is on a metallic monetary standard, under which the Treasury and the Central Bank are subject to the same contract law as ordinary citizens. They cannot issue irredeemable promises to pay and keep them in monetary circulation through a conspiracy known as check-kiting. Not one country will be spared from the fire and brimstone that once rained on the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah as a punishment of God for immoral behavior.
In all previous episodes there were some countries around that did not listen to the siren song and stayed on the gold standard. They could give a helping hand to the deviant ones, thus limiting economic pain. Today there are no such countries. If you want to be saved, you must be prepared to save yourself.
You cannot understand the process whereby a fiat money system self-destructs without understanding the gold and silver basis. The Quantity Theory of Money does not provide an explanation, because deflation may well precede hyperinflation, as it appears to be the case right now.
For these reasons I placed the study of the gold and silver basis on the top of the list of research topics for GSUL. These can serve as an early warning system that will signal the beginning of the end. The end is approaching with the inevitability of the climax in a Greek tragedy, as the heroes and heroines are drawn to their own destruction. The present reactionary experiment with paper money is entering its death-throes. GSUL has had five sessions and could have established itself as an important, and even the only, source of information about this cataclysmic event: the confrontation of the Titanic (representing the international monetary system) with the iceberg (representing gold and its vanishing basis) as the latter is emerging from the fog too late to avoid collision.
Unfortunately, this was not meant to be: GSUL has to terminate its operations due to a decision made by Mr. Eric Sprott, of Sprott Asset Management, to terminate sponsoring GSUL, saying that “results do not justify the expense.”
I sincerely regret that our activities did not live up to the expectations of Mr. Sprott, but I am very proud of the fact that our research is still the only source of information on the vanishing gold basis and its corollary, the seizing up of the paper money system that threatens the world, as it does, with a Great Depression eclipsing that of the 1930’s.
Let me summarize the salient points of discussion during the last two sessions of GSUL for the benefit of those who wanted to attend but couldn’t. The gold basis is the difference between the futures and the cash price of gold. More precisely it is the price of the nearby active futures contract in the gold futures market minus the cash price of physical gold in the spot market. Historically it has been positive ever since gold futures trading started at the Winnipeg Commodity Exchange in 1972 (except for some rare hiccups at the triple-witching hour. Such deviations have been called ‘logistical’ in nature, having to do with the simultaneous expiry of gold futures and the put and call option contracts on them. In all these instances the anomaly of a negative basis resolved itself in a matter of a few hours.)
In the commodity futures markets the terminus technicus for a positive basis is contango; that for a negative one, backwardation. Contango implies the existence of a healthy supply of the commodity in the warehouses available for immediate delivery, while backwardation implies shortages and conjures up the scraping of the bottom of the barrel. The basis is limited on the upside by the carrying charges; but there is no limit on the downside as it can fall to any negative value (meaning that the cash price may exceed the futures price by any amount, however large).
Contango whereby the futures price of gold is quoted at a premium to the spot price is the normal condition for the gold market, and for a very good reason, too. The supply of monetary gold in the world is very large relatively speaking. Babbling about the ‘scarcity of gold’ reflects the opinion of uninformed or badly informed people. In terms of the ratio of stocks to flows the supply of gold is far and away greater than that of any commodity. Silver is second only to gold. It is this fact that makes the two of them the only monetary metals. The impact on the gold price of a discovery of an extremely rich gold field, or the coming on stream of an extremely rich gold mine, is minimal ― in view of the large existing stocks. Paradoxically, what makes gold valuable is not its scarcity but its relative abundance, which evokes that superb confidence in the steadiness of the value of gold that will not be decreased by a banner production year, nor can it be increased by withdrawing gold coins from circulation. For this reason there is no better fly-wheel regulator for the value of currency than gold. The same goes, albeit to a lesser degree, for silver.
Here is the fundamental difference between the monetary metal, gold, and other commodities. Backwardation will pull in stocks from the moon as it were, if need be. The cure for the backwardation of any commodity is more backwardation. For gold, there is no cure. Backwardation in gold is always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon: it is a reminder of the incurable pathology of paper money. It dramatizes the decay of the regime of irredeemable currency. It can only get worse. As confidence in the value of fiat money is a fragile thing, it will not get better. It depicts the paper dollar as Humpty Dumpty who sat on a wall and had a great fall and, now, “all the king’s horses and all the king’s men could not put Humpty Dumpty together again.” To paraphrase a proverb, give paper currency a bad name, you might as well scrap it.
Once entrenched, backwardation in gold means that the cancer of the dollar has reached its terminal stages. The progressively evaporating trust in the value of the irredeemable dollar can no longer be stopped.
Negative basis (backwardation) means that people controlling the supply of monetary gold cannot be persuaded to part with it, regardless of the bait. These people are no speculators. They are neither Scrooges nor Shylocks. They are highly capable businessmen with a conservative frame of mind. They are determined to preserve their capital come hell or high water, for saner times, so they can re-deploy it under a saner government and a saner monetary system. Their instrument is the ownership of monetary gold. They blithely ignore the siren song promising risk-free profits. Indeed, they could sell their physical gold in the spot market and buy it back at a discount in the futures market for delivery in 30 days. In any other commodity, traders controlling supply would jump at the opportunity. The lure of risk-free profits would be irresistible. Not so in the case of gold. Owners refuse to be coaxed out of their gold holdings, however large the bait may be. Why?
Well, they don’t believe that the physical gold will be there and available for delivery in 30 days’ time. They don’t want to be stuck with paper gold, which is useless for their purposes of capital preservation.
December 2 is a landmark, because before that date the monetary system could have been saved by opening the U.S. Mint to gold. Now, given the fact of gold backwardation, it is too late. The last chance to avoid disaster has been missed. The proverbial last straw has broken the back of the camel.
I have often been told that the U.S. Mint is already open to gold, witness the Eagle and Buffalo gold coins. But these issues were neither unlimited, nor were they coined free of seigniorage. They were sold at a premium over bullion content. They were a red herring, dropped to make people believe that gold coins can always be obtained from the U.S. Mint, and from other government mints of the world. However, as the experience of the past two or three months shows, one mint after another stopped taking orders for gold coins and suspended their gold operations. The reason is that the flow of gold to the mints has become erratic. It may dry up altogether. This shows that the foreboding has been evoked by the looming gold backwardation, way ahead of the event. Now the truth is out: you can no longer coax gold out of hiding with paper profits.
If the governments of the great trading nations had really wanted to save the world from a catastrophic collapse of world trade, then they should have opened their mints to gold. Now gold backwardation has caught up with us and shut down the free flow of gold in the system. This will have catastrophic consequences. Few people realize that the shutting down of the gold trade, which is what is happening, means the shutting down of world trade. This is a financial earthquake measuring ten on the Greenspan scale, with epicenter at the Comex in New York, where the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center once stood. It is no exaggeration to say that this event will trigger a tsunami wiping out the prosperity of the world.
Stay tuned.
References
By the same author:
The Rise and Fall of the Gold Basis, June 23, 2006
Monetary and Non-Monetary Commodities, June 25, 2006
The Last Contango in Washington, June 30, 2006
Gold, Interest, Basis, March,7, 2007
Gold Vanishing into private Hoards, May 31, 2007
Opening the Mint to Gold and Silver, February 5, 2008
Antal E. Fekete
Gold Standard University
December 5, 2008.
http://www.professorfekete.com/
Professor Antal E. Fekete is a renowned mathematician and monetary scientist. This site will illuminate some of his important ideas in the areas of:
* Fiscal and Monetary Reform
* Gold Standard University
* Real Bills Doctrine
* Basis
* Discount versus Interest
* Gold and Interest
In 1974 Professor Fekete delivered a talk on gold in Paul Volker’s seminar at Princeton University. Later, Professor Fekete was Visiting Fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research and Senior Editor for The American Economic Foundation. In 1996 his essay, Whither Gold?, was awarded first prize in the international currency essay contest sponsored by Bank Lips, the Swiss bank.
For many years an expert on central bank bullion sales and hedging, and their effects on the gold price and the gold mining industry itself, he now devotes his time to writing and lecturing on fiscal and monetary reform with special regard to the role of gold and silver in the monetary system.
At this moment, when the world’s monetary system appears increasingly shaky, Prof Fekete details why the current paradigm is flawed and how the problems must be dealt with. This is almost taboo in the main stream financial media. Prof Fekete explains it as a gold crisis, not a dollar crisis. Those who doubt it would do well to recall that every fiat* money system ever tried – and history is littered with examples – failed.
* Money that is not backed by, or convertible to, any specific commodity and whose only value is that determined by government.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Meanwhile, an interesting site:
Pension Watch
Pension Watch
MORE ON THOSE OVERGENEROUS / UNDERFUNDED PUBLIC PENSION PLANS: Pittsburgh retirement plan’s value has decreased $124 million this year. “That leaves the fund with just 29 percent of what it should ideally hold to cover its long-term commitments, according to state standards.”
Meanwhile, look at the situation in California. It’s gotten so bad that some people are even suggesting that public employees will have to share the pain.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
IIRC, I read that dollar is being artificially propped up. If that is correct, how is that being done? Thanks.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Talking of blogs...I follow this one: http://emsnews.wordpress.com/
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Arya Sumantra
- BRFite
- Posts: 558
- Joined: 02 Aug 2008 11:47
- Location: Deep Freezer
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
If only Indian companies bought up some of these shut down factories and equipment from recession hit Japanese and Korean Cos and set them up in India to manufacture latest consumer electronics like plasma displays, game consoles, LCD displays, dvd players etc. Our manufacturing presence in swadeshi consumer electronics is zilch. Why waste money on white elephant acquisitions like JLR?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008 ... y-job-cuts
Sony to cut 8,000 jobs worldwide
• Sources refuse to rule out redundancies in UKJustin McCurry in Tokyo guardian.co.uk,
Tuesday December 9 2008 13.45 GMT Article history
Sony said today it would cut 8,000 jobs worldwide and close several factories to try to save $1.1bn (£745m) a year as new figures showed Japan's economy heading for its longest slump since the war.
The Japanese corporate giant, the latest to be forced into taking crisis measures amid a dramatic decline in global sales, also said it would stop employing another 8,000 contractors, taking the total cut to 16,000 positions.
It said the job losses, the biggest announced by an Asian firm so far in the current crisis, will come in its core electronics division, but did not offer a country breakdown of the cuts.
About 160,000 of Sony's global workforce of 185,000 are employed in the division, which has been hardest hit by plummeting consumer demand for flat-screen televisions, personal audio players and digital cameras.
Sony said the redundancies would be completed by the end of March 2010 along with a 10% reduction of global manufacturing sites from the current total of 57. The firm also plans to slash investment in electronics operations by 30% from its mid-term plan.
The job cuts announced today comprise about 5% of the company's electronics division, the driving force behind Sony's once-dominant position in consumer electronics.
Sony has already lowered inventories and cut production, in line with other Japanese exporters hit by weak demand from the US and Europe, and the strength of the yen against all other major currencies.
It recently said it would end production at a factory in France that makes tape and other recording media, and would shift more electronics production to lower-cost areas.
"These initiatives are in response to the sudden and rapid changes in the global economic environment," Sony said in a statement.
The measures are a blow to attempts by Sir Howard Stringer, the firm's first foreign chief executive officer, to reverse its waning fortunes after the first Sony shock of 2003, when poor earnings results wiped 27% off its share price.
Though Sony executives are reportedly evaluating manufacturing operations around the world before deciding where the job cuts will be made, sources refused to rule out redundancies among employees in the UK.
Sony's 1,750 employees in the UK, including about 600 staff at the Sony UK Technology Centre, a digital camcorder assembly plant in Pencoed, south Wales, now face an anxious wait about their future.
Some analysts doubted if the measures would be enough to improve Sony's balance sheet. It recently suffered a 90% drop in quarterly profits, and warned full-year profits would be down 58% from the previous year.
"The number sounds big, but this staff reduction won't be enough," Katsuhiko Mori at Daiwa SB Investments told Reuters. "Sony doesn't have any core businesses that generate stable profits. After the workforce reduction, the next thing we want to see is what is going to be the business that will drive the company."
With Japanese electronics firms resigned to a miserable Christmas shopping season - usually their most lucrative period - others said Sony had no choice but to act.
"Like automakers, Sony and rival consumer electronics makers are suffering a disastrous October-December period, including the Christmas shopping season," said Fujio Ando, senior managing director at Chibagin Asset Management. "The outlook for the global economy suggests that things would become tougher for Sony next year, and it cannot expect a recovery without these restructuring measures."
Today's Sony thunderbolt came on the same day as government figures showing that Japan's economy shrank faster than expected during the third quarter, raising the spectre of a deep and prolonged recession in the world's second biggest economy.
GDP contracted at an annual rate of 1.8% in the three months up to the end of September, far worse than the initially estimated 0.4%, according to the cabinet office.
The grim figures have all but dashed hopes that Japan, whose economy is heavily dependent on exports to the US, China and Europe, will emerge from the financial crisis relatively unscathed.
A further expected contraction in the first quarter of next year would mark four straight quarters of decline for the first time since the end of the second world war.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008 ... y-job-cuts
Sony to cut 8,000 jobs worldwide
• Sources refuse to rule out redundancies in UKJustin McCurry in Tokyo guardian.co.uk,
Tuesday December 9 2008 13.45 GMT Article history
Sony said today it would cut 8,000 jobs worldwide and close several factories to try to save $1.1bn (£745m) a year as new figures showed Japan's economy heading for its longest slump since the war.
The Japanese corporate giant, the latest to be forced into taking crisis measures amid a dramatic decline in global sales, also said it would stop employing another 8,000 contractors, taking the total cut to 16,000 positions.
It said the job losses, the biggest announced by an Asian firm so far in the current crisis, will come in its core electronics division, but did not offer a country breakdown of the cuts.
About 160,000 of Sony's global workforce of 185,000 are employed in the division, which has been hardest hit by plummeting consumer demand for flat-screen televisions, personal audio players and digital cameras.
Sony said the redundancies would be completed by the end of March 2010 along with a 10% reduction of global manufacturing sites from the current total of 57. The firm also plans to slash investment in electronics operations by 30% from its mid-term plan.
The job cuts announced today comprise about 5% of the company's electronics division, the driving force behind Sony's once-dominant position in consumer electronics.
Sony has already lowered inventories and cut production, in line with other Japanese exporters hit by weak demand from the US and Europe, and the strength of the yen against all other major currencies.
It recently said it would end production at a factory in France that makes tape and other recording media, and would shift more electronics production to lower-cost areas.
"These initiatives are in response to the sudden and rapid changes in the global economic environment," Sony said in a statement.
The measures are a blow to attempts by Sir Howard Stringer, the firm's first foreign chief executive officer, to reverse its waning fortunes after the first Sony shock of 2003, when poor earnings results wiped 27% off its share price.
Though Sony executives are reportedly evaluating manufacturing operations around the world before deciding where the job cuts will be made, sources refused to rule out redundancies among employees in the UK.
Sony's 1,750 employees in the UK, including about 600 staff at the Sony UK Technology Centre, a digital camcorder assembly plant in Pencoed, south Wales, now face an anxious wait about their future.
Some analysts doubted if the measures would be enough to improve Sony's balance sheet. It recently suffered a 90% drop in quarterly profits, and warned full-year profits would be down 58% from the previous year.
"The number sounds big, but this staff reduction won't be enough," Katsuhiko Mori at Daiwa SB Investments told Reuters. "Sony doesn't have any core businesses that generate stable profits. After the workforce reduction, the next thing we want to see is what is going to be the business that will drive the company."
With Japanese electronics firms resigned to a miserable Christmas shopping season - usually their most lucrative period - others said Sony had no choice but to act.
"Like automakers, Sony and rival consumer electronics makers are suffering a disastrous October-December period, including the Christmas shopping season," said Fujio Ando, senior managing director at Chibagin Asset Management. "The outlook for the global economy suggests that things would become tougher for Sony next year, and it cannot expect a recovery without these restructuring measures."
Today's Sony thunderbolt came on the same day as government figures showing that Japan's economy shrank faster than expected during the third quarter, raising the spectre of a deep and prolonged recession in the world's second biggest economy.
GDP contracted at an annual rate of 1.8% in the three months up to the end of September, far worse than the initially estimated 0.4%, according to the cabinet office.
The grim figures have all but dashed hopes that Japan, whose economy is heavily dependent on exports to the US, China and Europe, will emerge from the financial crisis relatively unscathed.
A further expected contraction in the first quarter of next year would mark four straight quarters of decline for the first time since the end of the second world war.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Remember how I keep posting about the 3month T-bill yield and how people are paying the US government for the privilege of holding on to their money? Well it literally came true today with T-bill yields turning negative.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid= ... GXsWKEI6F4
If you invested $1,000 in three-month bills today at a negative discount rate of 0.01 percent, for a price of 100.002556. At maturity you would receive the par value for a loss of $25.56.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid= ... GXsWKEI6F4
If you invested $1,000 in three-month bills today at a negative discount rate of 0.01 percent, for a price of 100.002556. At maturity you would receive the par value for a loss of $25.56.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Nandu from that article:
Please note that the numbers are only until Sep 2008. I could not find the latest figures for India.
That made me realize how much India holds with respect to US treasuries. From http://www.treas.gov/tic/mfh.txt India's holdings seem to be more or less constant in the range of 10-15B. Now look at the numbers of Chinese and Japanese, man they are asking US to take money for free.Indirect bidders, a group that includes foreign central banks, bought 47.2 percent of the four-week bills, compared with 31.7 percent in the prior auction. Primary dealers bought 52.1 percent, while direct bidders such as individual investors purchased 0.7 percent.
Please note that the numbers are only until Sep 2008. I could not find the latest figures for India.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
For a realistic picture, the Chinese and Japanese data would be better viewed if their aggregate holdings of US debt are estimated - i.e. treasury securities + govt bonds + Fannie/Freddie etc. For example, China holds $400 billion of the latter. Combined, the two hold well over $1 trillion of US debt, each. Neither of them really have a 'nuclear option' at this point, since the prices of the holdings will rapidly unravel as they sell - even more so under the current conditions. Besides who's going to buy them. The US will essentially continue to erode the value of outstanding debt as the inflationary cycle starts when the stimulus packages start flowing into the economy.
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abhischekcc
- BRF Oldie
- Posts: 4277
- Joined: 12 Jul 1999 11:31
- Location: If I can’t move the gods, I’ll stir up hell
- Contact:
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
This is supposed to be the email that Andy Xie had sent, which got him fired from Morgan Stanley.
http://www.littlespeck.com/content/econ ... 061005.htm
http://www.littlespeck.com/content/econ ... 061005.htm
He even signed it ??I participated in the panels on Commodity (sic) and China-India and in some obligatory dinner parties. On Friday night the Singapore prime minister invited the speakers at the meeting that the Singapore government organised. Trichet, Larry Summers, Paul Volker (sic) Chuck Price, the finance ministers of ASEAN countries were there. No government official from China was there …guess I was there to make it look like China was represented.
The dinner was turned into an Oprah with PM Lee Hsein Long (sic) at the center. The topic was on the future of globalization. People fawned him like a prince. Of course, he is. There are two reigning princes in the world that the Davos crowd kiss up to, Jordan and Singapore. The Davos crowd are Republican on economic issues and democratic on social issues. Somehow they manage to put aside their moral misgivings and kiss up to Lee Hsein Long and Abdullah.
I tried to find out why Singapore was chosen to host the conference. Nobody knew. Some thought it was a strange choice because Singapore was so far from any action or the hot topic of China and India. Mumbai or Shanghai would have been a lot more appropriate. ASEAN has been a failure. Its GDP in nominal dollar terms has not changed for 10 years. Singapore’s per capita income has not changed either at $25,000. China’s GDP in dollar terms has tripled during the same period.
I thought the questioners were competing with each other to praise Singapore as the success story of globalisation. Actually, Singapore’s success came mainly from being the money laundering center for corrupt Indonesian businessmen and government officials. This is the quote that got him fired. Indonesia has no money. So Singapore isn’t doing well. To sustain its economy, Singapore is building casinos to attract corrupt money from China.
These western people didn’t know what they were talking about. Aside from the nauseating pleasantries some useful information came out of it.(Oh lawd) Trichet sounded very bullish on euro-zone economy (sic). He noted that euro-zone was catching up with the US in growth rate (sic) and talked about further gain in 2007. His tone was much more bullish than our house view. As Japan is surprising on the downside, I don't see how the rise of euro-yen could be stopped.
Larry Summers and Paul Volker (sic) were very worried about the US economy. As you probably know, Alan Greenspan is talking the same way. At the CLSA conference last week, he talked like one of his critics. There is fear of a US collapse. Many Americans think that an RMB reval (sic) would save the US. This is just a dream, in my view.
Most were worried about the future of globalisation due to income inequality. As average workers in the west are not seeing wage increase (sic), they may vote against globalisation. I thought that they were understating the benefit from cheap consumer goods. However, as inflation comes back, it does diminish the benefits for western consumers.
No-one was worried about the growth outlook for China and India. The Indian Planning Minister was very bullish, talking about 9% forever.
My sense is that policymakers are relexed (sic) about the short-term economic outlook but anticipate a US collapse at some point. Americans think that RMB reval could save the US. So they would keep pressuring China."
Andy Xie
Morgan Stanley
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abhischekcc
- BRF Oldie
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Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
More from Xie, old stuff:
Andy Xie warns of China crash
Dated Apr 30, 2007
Andy Xie warns of China crash
Dated Apr 30, 2007
Interesting that he got it so early in the game.Xie, who attracted a wide following while he was at Morgan Stanley because of his often contrarian views on China's economy and stock markets, also warned that the global boom in equities would be over by 2008 and that this would coincide with a worldwide recession.
The recession would start from the United States and spiral down into Asia where exporters would be hit, Xie, 46, told Reuters in a telephone interview.
"I think it's going to be bust very soon," Xie said, adding that a combination of excess liquidity, rising inflation and rich valuations would result in a global crash soon.
"People will be surprised. When the end comes, it's going to be pretty bad," Xie added.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Sony is closing many plants and rifing 8-10k.
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Bade
- BRF Oldie
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Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Do we want these kinds of investors
After all the adulation and shastangs at the pan-IIT meets by worthies like Welch, this is what they have to say about India. 9/11 which was much worse in the scale of destruction did not deter the financial markets. So why should 26/11 which was on a much smaller scale. There is no dearth of India haters looks like among the moneybags or should it be scumbags.
After all the adulation and shastangs at the pan-IIT meets by worthies like Welch, this is what they have to say about India. 9/11 which was much worse in the scale of destruction did not deter the financial markets. So why should 26/11 which was on a much smaller scale. There is no dearth of India haters looks like among the moneybags or should it be scumbags.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122883842025491567.html
The Mattress Stuffers
By MARK PENN
With E. Kinney Zalesne
As the financial crisis swept across the nation these past few months, one of the first microtrend groups to emerge is the New Mattress Stuffers -- people who have lost their trust in the financial world, and are preparing for the next meltdown.
Just as 9/11 created a vast industry in building security, so the recession could create a big industry in personal financial security -- a new kind of survival kit. New Mattress Stuffers don't care about the 10% interest rate on GE preferred stock that Warren Buffett snapped up; they care about making it through if hard times get even worse. As a result, firms which can offer ironclad guarantees of safety will appeal to this new group. These are people who have lost their faith in the housing market, the stock market, their bank, their big corporate employer, their auto company, and their last president. What is left but themselves?
Forget about huge, sweeping megaforces. The biggest trends today are micro: small, under-the-radar patterns of behavior which take on real power when propelled by modern communications and an increasingly independent-minded population. In the U.S., one percent of the nation, or three million people, can create new markets for a business, spark a social movement, or produce political change. This column is about identifying these important new niches, and acting on that knowledge.
In the old days, Mattress Stuffers literally hid all their assets in their homes -- construction crews today are still discovering tin cans of cash in walls hidden 75 years ago by people who died without having told anyone about their nest eggs. The New Mattress Stuffers aren't crotchety misers, though -- they're active Baby Boomers who, until just a few months ago, were heading happily into their 60s with inflated assets, unlimited second-job opportunities, and IRAs crammed full of stocks.
Now, the shocks they are feeling are taking them into strange and uncharted territory. Most Americans are so far removed from holding physical assets that their first reaction is to stuff their money into Treasury Bills instead of into a tin can. But there are other ways they can calm themselves.
The price of gold is down as hedge funds unwind their positions, but the sale of gold coins is up -- because New Mattress Stuffers are stockpiling them for themselves and their children. And this was happening even before the crisis hit in full force. Between May and September of this year alone, sales of U.S. Mint gold coins grew by more than 600 percent. Over one million coins have been sold so far this year.
While almost every company in America is seeing a downturn, sales of home safes and vaults are surging. Sales of guns this year are up 8 to 10 percent.
And cash is the new plastic. Our own just-completed Holiday Spending Survey shows that most Americans are going to use more cash and charge less on their credit cards than in the past. Although most of us have lived in a plastic world so long we can barely remember people like my dad who carried around wads of bills, Americans are now seeing the first real dip in credit card sales in decades. Fear of credit and credit cards is a renewed emotion.
To take advantage of these trends, some of the dying post offices might want to open spots for safe deposit boxes instead of P.O. boxes. Investment advisers may start talking about return of your money instead of return on your money. And jewelers may start to tell you to "don't forget to stash away a diamond or two."
If the post-war economic expansion brought us the baby boom, this crisis may bring us a baby squeeze -- a sharp reduction in births nine months from now, as refraining from having kids is the ultimate consumer pull-back. And instead of staying home, the evidence shows that more couples are going to the movies, with attendance up for this relatively low-cost evening.
People don't talk much about their mattress-stuffing behavior. It kind of defeats the purpose if you tell people where your stash is. But there's a hunger out there for security hedges -- a gun, some cash, a little gold, a small safe in the bedroom -- in case all the ATMs suddenly shut down. The TV shopping channels could be hawking that "Safe Haven" combination right now, a complete home solution.
The Mattress Stuffers
By MARK PENN
With E. Kinney Zalesne
As the financial crisis swept across the nation these past few months, one of the first microtrend groups to emerge is the New Mattress Stuffers -- people who have lost their trust in the financial world, and are preparing for the next meltdown.
Just as 9/11 created a vast industry in building security, so the recession could create a big industry in personal financial security -- a new kind of survival kit. New Mattress Stuffers don't care about the 10% interest rate on GE preferred stock that Warren Buffett snapped up; they care about making it through if hard times get even worse. As a result, firms which can offer ironclad guarantees of safety will appeal to this new group. These are people who have lost their faith in the housing market, the stock market, their bank, their big corporate employer, their auto company, and their last president. What is left but themselves?
Forget about huge, sweeping megaforces. The biggest trends today are micro: small, under-the-radar patterns of behavior which take on real power when propelled by modern communications and an increasingly independent-minded population. In the U.S., one percent of the nation, or three million people, can create new markets for a business, spark a social movement, or produce political change. This column is about identifying these important new niches, and acting on that knowledge.
In the old days, Mattress Stuffers literally hid all their assets in their homes -- construction crews today are still discovering tin cans of cash in walls hidden 75 years ago by people who died without having told anyone about their nest eggs. The New Mattress Stuffers aren't crotchety misers, though -- they're active Baby Boomers who, until just a few months ago, were heading happily into their 60s with inflated assets, unlimited second-job opportunities, and IRAs crammed full of stocks.
Now, the shocks they are feeling are taking them into strange and uncharted territory. Most Americans are so far removed from holding physical assets that their first reaction is to stuff their money into Treasury Bills instead of into a tin can. But there are other ways they can calm themselves.
The price of gold is down as hedge funds unwind their positions, but the sale of gold coins is up -- because New Mattress Stuffers are stockpiling them for themselves and their children. And this was happening even before the crisis hit in full force. Between May and September of this year alone, sales of U.S. Mint gold coins grew by more than 600 percent. Over one million coins have been sold so far this year.
While almost every company in America is seeing a downturn, sales of home safes and vaults are surging. Sales of guns this year are up 8 to 10 percent.
And cash is the new plastic. Our own just-completed Holiday Spending Survey shows that most Americans are going to use more cash and charge less on their credit cards than in the past. Although most of us have lived in a plastic world so long we can barely remember people like my dad who carried around wads of bills, Americans are now seeing the first real dip in credit card sales in decades. Fear of credit and credit cards is a renewed emotion.
To take advantage of these trends, some of the dying post offices might want to open spots for safe deposit boxes instead of P.O. boxes. Investment advisers may start talking about return of your money instead of return on your money. And jewelers may start to tell you to "don't forget to stash away a diamond or two."
If the post-war economic expansion brought us the baby boom, this crisis may bring us a baby squeeze -- a sharp reduction in births nine months from now, as refraining from having kids is the ultimate consumer pull-back. And instead of staying home, the evidence shows that more couples are going to the movies, with attendance up for this relatively low-cost evening.
People don't talk much about their mattress-stuffing behavior. It kind of defeats the purpose if you tell people where your stash is. But there's a hunger out there for security hedges -- a gun, some cash, a little gold, a small safe in the bedroom -- in case all the ATMs suddenly shut down. The TV shopping channels could be hawking that "Safe Haven" combination right now, a complete home solution.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Financial crisis deepens in Russia
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/co ... +the+globe
The streets and shops are being spruced up with pine trees and tinsel. But for many Russian families, there will be precious little to celebrate this New Year. In Barnaul, a Siberian industrial city 1,800 miles east of Moscow, schoolteacher Tatiana Saveleva will be buying few presents for her family. In October Tatiana's husband, Dmitry, an engineer at a local railway repair factory, saw his and other employees' pay slashed by a third. By November the plant had switched to a four-day workweek. "A lot of people are suffering," Tatiana says. "It's all negative."
Russians of all ages and classes are struggling to understand the krisis. "It has spread to the regions much faster than could be expected," says Andrei Kuznetsov, a strategist at investment bank Troika Dialog. "Companies are complaining of low demand, payment arrears, and limited financing."
That's a sharp change from just a few weeks ago, when the Kremlin played down talk of a systemic problem and most Russians assumed the downturn was mainly an issue for Western economies. Then the freezing of international credit markets exposed the heavy dependence of Russian banks and companies on Western loans. Russia is also being hammered by the fall in commodity prices: Oil, gas, and metals account for some 80% of exports.
Now advertising banners and billboards offer "anti-crisis" discounts on everything from mattresses to Lada sedans. Nightclubs stage "anti-crisis" parties. Jokes about the crisis are legion: "Daddy, is it true we're facing a crisis?" "No, Son. It's the oligarchs who are facing a crisis. We are facing oblivion."
In a recent survey by Ernst & Young, a third of major companies in Russia said they were planning job cuts, while 11% had already made them. On Dec. 1, TNK-BP, an oil company 50%-owned by BP (BP), revealed that it was eliminating 390 of its head-office staff and leaving 200 job slots unfilled, equivalent to around 19% of head count.
The World Bank expects Russian growth of just 3% next year (chart), while others warn the economy could shrink. In November, Russia's Purchasing Managers' Index of business activity was just 39.8%, the worst level ever in the index's 11 years of existence. Yes, worse even than in 1998, the year of Russia's colossal financial meltdown.
Could history be about to repeat itself? In the space of just four months, Russia has burned its way through $150 billion, a quarter of its total reserves, to support the ruble. Although the government has been pumping cash into the banks and has extended $50 billion in emergency credit to large companies, the package is doing little to kick-start lending.
As the ruble slides, Russian banks, companies, and households are converting their cash into dollars. The capital flight may force a precipitous devaluation of the currency. "The markets have concluded the ruble is at the wrong level," says Rory MacFarquhar, chief economist at Goldman Sachs in Moscow (GS), who sees a 20% fall in the currency. A sharp devaluation would recall 1998 and risk an even more dramatic deterioration in confidence.
Is there any hope? "It's not going to change anyone's desire to be in Russia in the long term," says David Thomas, president of Volvo Cars in Russia. A lot depends, however, on factors outside of Russia's control, not least the price of oil. For families such as the Savelevs, the bleakness of the New Year may linger.
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/co ... +the+globe
The streets and shops are being spruced up with pine trees and tinsel. But for many Russian families, there will be precious little to celebrate this New Year. In Barnaul, a Siberian industrial city 1,800 miles east of Moscow, schoolteacher Tatiana Saveleva will be buying few presents for her family. In October Tatiana's husband, Dmitry, an engineer at a local railway repair factory, saw his and other employees' pay slashed by a third. By November the plant had switched to a four-day workweek. "A lot of people are suffering," Tatiana says. "It's all negative."
Russians of all ages and classes are struggling to understand the krisis. "It has spread to the regions much faster than could be expected," says Andrei Kuznetsov, a strategist at investment bank Troika Dialog. "Companies are complaining of low demand, payment arrears, and limited financing."
That's a sharp change from just a few weeks ago, when the Kremlin played down talk of a systemic problem and most Russians assumed the downturn was mainly an issue for Western economies. Then the freezing of international credit markets exposed the heavy dependence of Russian banks and companies on Western loans. Russia is also being hammered by the fall in commodity prices: Oil, gas, and metals account for some 80% of exports.
Now advertising banners and billboards offer "anti-crisis" discounts on everything from mattresses to Lada sedans. Nightclubs stage "anti-crisis" parties. Jokes about the crisis are legion: "Daddy, is it true we're facing a crisis?" "No, Son. It's the oligarchs who are facing a crisis. We are facing oblivion."
In a recent survey by Ernst & Young, a third of major companies in Russia said they were planning job cuts, while 11% had already made them. On Dec. 1, TNK-BP, an oil company 50%-owned by BP (BP), revealed that it was eliminating 390 of its head-office staff and leaving 200 job slots unfilled, equivalent to around 19% of head count.
The World Bank expects Russian growth of just 3% next year (chart), while others warn the economy could shrink. In November, Russia's Purchasing Managers' Index of business activity was just 39.8%, the worst level ever in the index's 11 years of existence. Yes, worse even than in 1998, the year of Russia's colossal financial meltdown.
Could history be about to repeat itself? In the space of just four months, Russia has burned its way through $150 billion, a quarter of its total reserves, to support the ruble. Although the government has been pumping cash into the banks and has extended $50 billion in emergency credit to large companies, the package is doing little to kick-start lending.
As the ruble slides, Russian banks, companies, and households are converting their cash into dollars. The capital flight may force a precipitous devaluation of the currency. "The markets have concluded the ruble is at the wrong level," says Rory MacFarquhar, chief economist at Goldman Sachs in Moscow (GS), who sees a 20% fall in the currency. A sharp devaluation would recall 1998 and risk an even more dramatic deterioration in confidence.
Is there any hope? "It's not going to change anyone's desire to be in Russia in the long term," says David Thomas, president of Volvo Cars in Russia. A lot depends, however, on factors outside of Russia's control, not least the price of oil. For families such as the Savelevs, the bleakness of the New Year may linger.
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Satya_anveshi
- BRF Oldie
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Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
a question....is there a website that tracks forex reserves of differnt countries on a month-on-month basis?
thank you.
==
added later:
I found this from IMF site: http://www.imf.org/external/np/sta/ir/8802.pdf
Please post if there are other sites tracking this.
thank you.
==
added later:
I found this from IMF site: http://www.imf.org/external/np/sta/ir/8802.pdf
Please post if there are other sites tracking this.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/510
The Myth of the Scandinavian Model
From the desk of Martin De Vlieghere on Fri, 2005-11-25 19:27
This article was written by Martin De Vlieghere, Paul Vreymans and Willy De Wit.
“America’s social model is flawed, but so is France’s,” the Parisian newspaper Le Monde recently wrote. According to Le Monde Europe should adopt the “Scandinavian model,” which is said to combine the economic efficiency of the Anglo-Saxon social model with the welfare state benefits of the continental European ones. On the eve of the EU’s Hampton Court Summit (October 27), one could even read that “Britain might be forced to discuss the advantages of Scandinavian models, which rely on more social security.”
The praise for the Nordic model comes from Bruegel, a new Brussels-based think tank, “whose aim is to contribute to the quality of economic policymaking in Europe.” The think tank is a Franco-German government initiative and is heavily funded by EU governments and corporations. In October Bruegel published a study “Globalisation and the Reform of European Social Models” [pdf] propagating the Nordic model.
A paper [pdf] from the economics department of Ghent University does the same. This paper, Fiscal Policy Employment and Growth: Why is the Euro Area Lagging Behind, was also subsidized by the government. In the selection of data comparing the performance of EU economies, the authors arbitrarily eliminated Ireland, Spain and Portugal (three of the four best performing EU economies) from their research and added oil-producing non-EU member Norway (which has a GDP more than 20% of which is based on income from oil). It is hardly imaginable that professors of one of Belgium’s major universities would not be aware of how this arbitrary selection must distort the results. Hence one must read their text as an ideological pamphlet rather than a scientific study.
However, despite Bruegel, distorted academic studies and the European media’s praise, the efficiency of the major Scandinavian economies is a myth. The Swedish and Finnish welfare states have been going through a long period of decline. In the early 1990s they were virtually bankrupt. Between 1990 and 1995 unemployment increased five-fold. The Scandinavian countries have not been able to recover.
The implosion of the welfare state
In 1970, Sweden’s level of prosperity was one quarter above Belgium’s. By 2003 Sweden had fallen to 14th place from 5th in the prosperity index, two places behind Belgium. According to OECD figures, Denmark was the 3rd most prosperous economy in the world in 1970, immediately behind Switzerland and the United States. In 2003, Denmark was 7th. Finland did badly as well. From 1989 to 2003, while Ireland rose from 21st to 4th place, Finland fell from 9th to 15th place.
Re: GLOBAL ECONOMY
Couple news items from the US economy.
1. Auto bailout seems to be dead until the new Congress. Senate Republicans have rebelled.
2. Total US household debt decreased last quarter. First time that ever happened since the Fed started tracking it in 1952.
1. Auto bailout seems to be dead until the new Congress. Senate Republicans have rebelled.
2. Total US household debt decreased last quarter. First time that ever happened since the Fed started tracking it in 1952.