Weekday NEWS to Comfort the Disturbed and Disturb the Comfortable.
Mon 01.04.2009
What could go wrong in 2010 At the start of 2009, who could have imagined that we'd actually have reasons to look back at the year fondly? It began with much to be worried about -- the health of Citigroup, Bank of America, AIG and other big financials; looming bankruptcies at GM and Chrysler; a stock market at its lowest point since 1997; and a labor market hemorrhaging jobs. But heading into the year's final days, optimism reigns supreme. The S&P 500 is up 23.5% this year, the worst appears to be over for big banks and Detroit and many economists are even predicting growth for the overall economy and job market in 2010.
U.S., China locked in trade disputes BEIJING -- Trade disputes between Beijing and Washington over exports of tires, chickens, steel, nylon, autos, paper and salt are multiplying and further damaging the already tense relationship between the two economic powers. The Obama administration says it only aims to protect the country's rights, but the Chinese counter that the United States started the whole thing by launching an unprovoked attack. The current tensions began in September, when the United States imposed a staggering 35 percent import fee on tires from China.
2010 Full of Uncertainty But Economic Knowledge Can Help Bob Chapman Rewards for incompetence again, few writers bearish anymore, unprecedented borrowing, conditions for business not improving, Wall Street backed up for next time, duties on steel entering China, Blackwater trial whitewashed, back to Glass-Steagall to bring order to the markets The move to give Fannie, Freddie and GMAC unlimited funds and outrageous salaries and bonuses as rewards for incompetence is disgusting, but to be expected from our government. This was the brainchild of our esteemed leader Mr. Obama.
String of investment bubbles marked 2000-09 A string of exploding investment bubbles that started with the dot-coms and ended with mortgages and oil dominated the years from 2000 to 2009. And it looks like the next decade will be no different. It doesn't seem to matter to many hedge fund traders and other professional investors that the Standard & Poors 500 index has turned in its first losing performance over the course of a decade, having fallen 23 per cent from 1,469.25 at the start of 2000 to its current 1,126.20.
Economic Aspects Of The Pension Problem, Deflation Threat and Ponzi Pensions Deliberate Dollar Debasement In 1950 Mises looked at the pension problem from the point of view of the shrinking purchasing power of the dollar, a consequence of what he called the deliberate policy of currency debasement by the U.S. government. In 1950 a pension of $100 per month was a substantial allowance, he noted. Shelter could be rented for a month for less than $30 in most parts of the country. (In 2010, $100 hardly buys one night's stay at a decent hotel.) In 1950 the Welfare Commissioner of the City of New York reported that 52 cents would buy all the food a person needed to meet his daily caloric and protein requirements. (In 2010, $100 barely buys a cup of coffee and a muffin for every day of the month.)
Printing money is a game with potentially dangerous results In just a few weeks, at its meeting in February, the Bank of England's monetary policy committee has to decide whether to continue with quantitative easing, writes George Trefgarne. If you were one of the 12 million people who reportedly went to the sales on Boxing Day, then you might be thinking this recession has not been so bad after all. Unemployment is not rising as fast as expected, interest rates remain low and the stock market is up by more than half since March. The truth is, though, that we have been living in an economic La La Land, induced by perhaps the biggest policy undertaken during the Labour Government's period in office: printing money, or quantitative easing, to use its economically correct but unlovely name.
United States to Wage War Throughout the World 2010 January 1 will usher in the last year of the first decade of a new millennium and ten consecutive years of the United States conducting war in the Greater Middle East. Beginning with the October 7, 2001 missile and bomb attacks on Afghanistan, American combat operations abroad have not ceased for a year, a month, a week or a day in the 21st century.
China and the other Brics will rebuild a new world economic order Five emerging nations – and booming countries across Asia – are set to overtake America and Europe As the past decade slips away, it is easy to remember it economically as one which began with the dotcom boom and ended with the "Great Implosion" that left Britain, the US and other industrialized nations struggling with the most painful recession in the postwar period. But a deeper shift has been going on – the rise and rise of China and other key economies grouped under the banner of "emerging". Indeed, the growing political and economic muscle of China was highlighted by its recent intransigence at the Copenhagen climate talks, where it refused to be forced into any binding agreement to reduce its emissions.
Gold wavers near $1,095 in cautious trade Gold prices traded narrowly around $1,095 an ounce on Monday in a cautious start to the year after ending 2009 with their biggest absolute annual gain in three decades.
Gold prices to rise in 2010 Gold prices are expected to rise this year, according to Gold Traders Association president Jitti Tangsithpakdi's forecast. The gold market in 2010 should be lively after gold prices rose continually and surged to a new high last year, he said. "However, the gold market is not expected to be very lively yet as gold traders are still celebrating during the New Year's holiday," Mr Jitti said.
Upward Trend for Precious Metals Seen Expect an upward trend for precious metals because of the global printing of money, says Peter McGuire, MD of CWA Global Markets, speaking to CNBC's Oriel Morrison and Sri Jegarajah.
China's insatiable appetite helps metals shine David Tepper, the Wall Street trader whose hedge fund made $7bn (£4.3bn) investing in British and US collapsed banking stocks this year, is undoubtedly feeling very smug as he welcomes in 2010. With returns of 120pc over the last 12 months, he clearly spotted an unrivalled money-making opportunity from the ashes of Lloyds Banking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland. But was it quite the pinnacle of investment achievement as markets started to look up?
China's 2010 Gold Rush The collapse in India's gold demand during 2007-09 might seem good reason to question the fundamental strength of gold buying worldwide. After all, if the world's No.1 gold buyers can't keep up with record-high gold prices, who can…? But the plain fact, as BullionVault first forecast in spring 2009, is that China has overtaken India as the number one private gold buyer this year. The typical Chinese New Year gold rush has already begun (thanks in part to 3% discounts at major retailers), and robust demand looks likely to continue through 2010 if not beyond.
Gold is cheap to buy at $1,100/oz: Marc Faber Global investing guru and publisher of the famous Gloom, Boom and Doom report Marc Faber says gold is cheap at $1,100 per ounce and it will be prudent if investors buy the yellow metal at this rate so that they can reap rich dividends in 2010. In his first New Year comment on the price of gold, dollar and commodities investing, Faber said that the most interesting currency that people should invest now is gold as the US dollar is on a bearish run.
Marc Faber 2010 Stock Market 20% Plunge and U.S. Treasuries Bear Market
Who's rigging the gold markets? Ever wondered about the economics of gold trading? Why is it that the commercials are always the biggest shorts? Or why it is that the commercials are always acting opposite to the speculators? Conspiracy theories aside, which may or may not be true, and which cannot be proven or disproved. To a large extent these rely on inexplicable anomalies and the attribution of “hidden motives”. Let's see if we can shed some light that at least helps clarify some of those inexplicable anomalies. Arbitrage trading must be happening in gold for prices to be in alignment in the various gold futures exchanges, contract expiry months and the physical markets, right? So let's see how this would pan out in the COT numbers.
Gold prices seal biggest yearly gain in 3 decades Gold prices sealed their biggest yearly gain in three decades with a small advance on Thursday, rising for an unprecedented ninth consecutive year as dollar-hedging traders and central banks joined the rally even as safe-haven buying subsided. At the informal spot-market close of $1,096.20 an ounce, gold gained $218 this year, a sum eclipsed in recent history only by 1979's $286 surge -- gains that proved fleeting as bullion relapsed two years later. On a percentage basis gold rose 24.8 percent, short of 2007's 31 percent rise.
Gold Is Heavy But Could Rebound Here Although December’s heavy sell off in the Gold (and Silver) market confirmed a significant set of monthly and weekly cycle highs, highs that may take this metal some time to meet/exceed, there now appears to be plenty of credible technical evidence to suggest that Gold may be ready to mount a minor rebound rally back up toward the $1,125 to $1,135 price zone. There are a couple of key market analysis tools that we can rely on to see if we can both confirm and then capitalize on a possible swing back up to a major Fibonacci resistance zone. Let’s take a closer look right now.
Gold may scale even higher peaks this year After showing a 25 per cent rise in prices in 2009, gold is all set to rise further this year. The yellow metal enjoyed a strong 2009 as continued investment demand from institutional and retail investors looking to preserve their wealth helped to partially offset the relative weakness in jewelry demand. Many of the drivers of demand and supply behind gold's eight-year bull market still remain in place, analysts say. Industry pundits forecast standard gold prices to cross Rs 20,000 per 10 grams in 2010. "With inflation set to rise, gold prices are set to scale new levels," said a market source. Gold had hit Rs 18,000 in 2009.
Gold will be the next bubble if we don't learn our lesson The best thing about the start of a new year is the sense of infinite possibility it brings. Nearly everyone has a plan. We are all going to stop smoking and learn to scuba-dive. Or pay off our debts and get a new job. Broadly, these resolutions fall into two categories: things we have been doing but want to stop and things we haven't been doing but intend to start. A cursory review of the last decade furnishes plenty of material for a business "not-to-do" list. After years of bubbles, excessive borrowing, weak monetary policy, failed regulation and banking crises, here are some suggestions for New Year's resolutions, which, if observed for longer than the month and a bit most of us manage, could mean a more financially stable and economically fruitful future for us all.
Vietnam pulls the plug on gold trading Fearing a major collapse, the Vietnam government has ordered the closure of all gold trading floors by March end. The business, which turns over $1 billion a day, will come to a stop in March as the government fears that it will spin out of control. According to a government press note, both the owners of the gold-trading floors and traders are doing their transactions on a fragile foundation that lacks legal, economic and technical frameworks and knowledge.
Why America banned gold ownership in 1933 For 5,000 years man has sought gold. It has been said that as much as three-quarters of the earth’s land surface was first explored because of man’s insatiable desire for gold. Since the dawn of time, one of the major uses for gold was as adornment. It made (and still makes) spectacular jewelry. But very quickly, gold began to assume its primary role – that is, as a reliable and predictable store of value. In other words, as money.
Gold and Guns In his extraordinary book Democracy: The God that Failed, Hans Hermann Hoppe points out that the process of civilization is stopped when government continually violates property rights. The natural process of civilization comes through delaying consumption, saving, and building capital. Undoing it leads to higher societal time preference. When natural disasters strike or a gunman robs you in an alley, "the effect of these on time preference is temporary and unsystematic," Hoppe explains. Victims are entitled to defend themselves against the individual aggressor and prepare themselves for the calamities of the occasional act of God. Resources will be reallocated to defend one against potential robbers, and provisions will be made for potential natural disasters.
Learn from the rich man Richard Russell snippet And what will history say about the year 2009? Oh, that was the year when the Masters of the Universe on Wall Street who were "too big to fail" got even bigger, even as they gulped down billions in taxpayers' money and passed out bonuses. And that was the year when the US public got shafted (meaning they didn't get a damn thing). It was also the year when President Obama, coached by his Wall Street advisors, never had a clue as to what was going down. As I've said before, this is a one-term President. And what gifts do the Republicans have in store for us? Perhaps Sarah Palin? God bless debt-choked America.
Forward With Caution After Exposing The Fed Bob Chapman Currencies to continue to fall against gold, dollar rally unsustainable, Fed audit a good move, credit crisis for America and England, small gains in some places, plunges elsewhere, The rally in the dollar and the problems for other currencies prove what we have been saying and that is all currencies will continue to fall vs. gold. The impetus for the dollar rally originates as usual with the government and is added to by the disarray in the economies worldwide, particularly in Europe. One of the things central banks have never learned is that financial engineering only works for a short duration, after that the problem worsens. Even the world's strongest currencies, the Swiss, Canadian, Aussie and Norwegian, are only holding their own versus gold. The reason why is almost all central banks have done the same thing and that is create money and credit recklessly at the behest of the US government.
Pakistan has gold reserves worth trillions of dollars . . . . Speaking on the occasion, Dr Samar gave wake-up call to the national scientists, saying Pakistan is extremely rich in minerals especially coal, copper and gold and what it needed is indigenous technology for exploitation of these resources. We should not let the foreigners to exploit our resources and pay us peanuts in form of royalty. The nuclear scientist said that Pakistan had gold and copper reserves of trillions of dollars in Balochistan. The gold will become so cheap in Pakistan if we mine it indigenously. He also highlighted the importance of Thar coal projects.
Concern as China clamps down on rare earth exports Neodymium is one of 17 metals crucial to green technology. There’s only one snag – China produces 97% of the world’s supply. And they’re not selling Britain and other Western countries risk running out of supplies of certain highly sought-after rare metals that are vital to a host of green technologies, amid growing evidence that China, which has a monopoly on global production, is set to choke off exports of valuable compounds. Failure to secure alternative long-term sources of rare earth elements (REEs) would affect the manufacturing and development of low-carbon technology, which relies on the unique properties of the 17 metals to mass-produce eco-friendly innovations such as wind turbines and low-energy light bulbs.
Is the dollar rising? Al Greenspan, appointed by Ronald Regan, has been rightly criticized for keeping interest rates too low for too long between 2000 and 2006. Greenspan's low interest rates and very easy money policies created our asset bubble that took the Dow from 14,000 to 7,000 and in the process created our current epochal financial mess.
Sovereign Debt Crisis Could Cripple the Euro During 2010 For the better part of 2009 the U.S. dollar was the world’s most hated currency. But it’s looking increasingly likely the tables could turn in 2010. And the euro could take over that unenviable title. n recent weeks we’ve seen a surge in scrutiny over sovereign debt. First, it was announced that Dubai would be “restructuring” its debt (i.e. default). And then the focus quickly turned toward the Eurozone’s weakest link — namely Greece. This type of scrutiny can snowball quickly. Now other weak spots in the Eurozone, such as Spain, Italy, Ireland and Portugal are getting more attention. All of these countries are running massive budget deficits, many have huge debt burdens and all have muted prospects for growth.
The Drive for a World Central Bank (Part 1 of 3)
The Drive for a World Central Bank (Part 2 of 3)
The Drive for a World Central Bank (Part 3 of 3)
House Bill Authorizes $4 Trillion for Next Bailout, but Tells Congress to Shut Up Legislation intended to reform Wall Street and protect consumers is currently waddling along in the House of Representatives, moving as best a 1,200-page document can. Bloomberg columnist David Reilly decided to read all of HR 4173 (the "Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act") and found plenty of "gristle" among its provisions that could make any taxpayer ill. For instance, the bill authorizes the Federal Reserve to provide up to $4 trillion in emergency funding if the financial sector collapses again. Representing more than twice as much that the federal government spent on the current crisis, the money would not be released unless "there is at least a 99% likelihood that all funds and interest will be paid back."
A Telling Week for Treasury The coming week will set the tone for trading in U.S. Treasury debt in early 2010, with a hefty slate of economic data culminating in the December jobs report. After a sell off in December, Treasury yields have risen to levels that could prove attractive to buyers returning from the holiday break. But good news on the jobs front could keep buyers at bay. A positive number, which some economists expect, would mark the first time more jobs have been created than have been lost since December 2007, adding to evidence the economic recovery is gaining traction. Treasury yields, which move inversely to prices, would likely rise further as a result, even after December's hefty bump up.
The Federal Reserve Needs More Money The Federal Reserve needs more money to continue purchasing US government debt, the aggregate amount of which is soaring because of ballooning deficits. But the Fed has a problem. The US government doesn’t pay its bills with ‘cash currency’, the green paper Americans carry around in their pocket. So the Fed cannot crank up the printing press like central banks did in Weimar Germany in the 1920s, or in recent years, in Zimbabwe.
Firms Fight Banks Over Billions in Frozen Notes Hundreds of businesses are fighting to recover billions of dollars tied up in frozen auction-rate securities, a year after Wall Street firms agreed to $60 billion in settlements over the collapsed market for the investments. Some 400 companies that sank their free cash into the investments -- from retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co. to tiny Nanophase Technologies Corp. -- hold more than $20 billion of auction-rate securities that can't be sold or are sharply reduced in value. That is forcing the holders to restrain their spending, thus creating yet another drag on the economy as it struggles to recover.
Bernanke Blames Weak Regulation for Financial Crisis Regulatory failure, not lax monetary policy, was responsible for the housing bubble and subsequent financial crisis of the last decade, Ben S. Bernanke, the Federal Reserve chairman, said in a speech on Sunday. "Stronger regulation and supervision aimed at problems with underwriting practices and lenders' risk management would have been a more effective and surgical approach to constraining the housing bubble than a general increase in interest rates," Mr. Bernanke, whose nomination for a second term awaits Senate confirmation, said in remarks to the American Economic Association.
Bernanke warns about creating new bubbles Says regulation key to halt speculation that could put economy in new crisis Stronger regulation is the best way to prevent financial speculation from getting out of hand and throwing the economy in a new crisis, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Sunday. But he didn't rule out higher interest rates to stop new speculative investment bubbles from forming. The Fed chief's remarks were his most extensive on the subject since the housing market's tumble led to the gravest financial crisis since World War II - and perhaps the worst in modern history, in his view.
MOVE YOUR MONEY
Fiscal Policy Cannot Stimulate the Economy, Redux Fiscal policy, the attempt to use government outlays and revenue to better the economy, simply does not work either a priori or in practice. But just ask any undergraduate student in Macroeconomics 101 about fiscal policy. They know the "correct" answer: If the economy is "too slow," the government should lower interest rates and increase government spending. If the economy is "overheated," the government should raise interest rates and decrease government spending.
The Future of the United States Systemic Fraud, Corruption and Financial Instability As we close out 2009 and look forward into 2010 and beyond, this has been a year of near financial catastrophe and monumental change, none of which benefited America or ordinary Americans. Late in 2008 and throughout 2009, events have happened in the US which would have been labeled unfathomable just a few short years ago, and yet already these monumental changes are expected to be filed into the memory hole and Americans are expected to believe nothing has changed.
Social Unrest and Global States of Combustibility 2010 The Economist says that 2010 could be a year the sparks unrest in the Global Tinderbox: “IF THE world appears to have escaped relatively unscathed by social unrest in 2009, despite suffering the worst recession since the 1930s, it might just prove the lull before the storm. Despite a tentative global recovery, for many people around the world economic and social conditions will continue to deteriorate in 2010. An estimated 60m people worldwide will lose their jobs. Poverty rates will continue to rise, with 200m people at risk of joining the ranks of those living on less than $2 a day. But poverty alone does not spark unrest—exaggerated income inequalities, poor governance, lack of social provision and ethnic tensions are all elements of the brew that foments unrest.“
States scramble for funds in crunch If you thought state budgets were in bad shape last year, just wait: 2010 promises to be brutal for lawmakers — many facing re-election — as they scramble to find enough money to keep their states running without raising taxes. Tax collections continue to sputter. Federal stimulus dollars are about to dry up. Rainy-day funds have been tapped. And demand for services — like Medicaid, food stamps and unemployment benefits — is soaring.
Egyptian banks to accept real estate for debt National Bank of Egypt NBEGPT.UL (NBE) and Banque Misr, the country's first and second biggest banks by assets, said they had agreed to accept real estate in exchange for hundreds of millions of dollars in public sector debt. Egypt has reduced the debts the firms owed to state banks, accrued since nationalization in the 1960s, to 8 billion Egyptian pounds ($1.5 billion) from 32 million only a few years earlier. "There has been an agreement ... with the public sector companies that we would take assets as settlement for the public sector debt," Banque Misr's Vice-Chairman Mohamed Ozalp told Reuters on Sunday. National Bank of Egypt's Chairman Tarek Amer confirmed in an e-mail that his bank had also agreed to the real estate for debt exchange.
Banks Tread Water as China Makes a Splash At this rate, it is going to take several global financial crises to change the banking landscape meaningfully in Asia. Two years on, it still is difficult to spot significant changes in the competitive positions of Asian banks. Instead, the crisis has been marked by consolidation of already-strong positions. Those looking to capitalize on the misfortune of peers have found themselves frustrated by cross-border complications, hefty price tags and clashing cultures. Those that have gained prominence have done so thanks to the region's most important emerging market, China.
This Is The Government: Your Legal Right To Redeem Your Money Market Account Has Been Denied When Henry Paulson publishes his long-awaited memoirs, the one section that will be of most interest to readers, will be the former Goldmanite and Secretary of the Treasury's recollection of what, in his opinion, was the most unpredictable and dire consequence of letting Lehman fail (letting his former employer become the number one undisputed Fixed Income trading entity in the world was quite predictable... plus we doubt it will be a major topic of discussion in Hank's book). We would venture to guess that the Reserve money market fund breaking the buck will be at the very top of the list, as the ensuing "run on the electronic bank" was precisely the 21st century equivalent of what happened to banks in physical form, during the early days of the Geat Depression.
U.S. Loan Effort Is Seen as Adding to Housing Woes The Obama administration's $75 billion program to protect homeowners from foreclosure has been widely pronounced a disappointment, and some economists and real estate experts now contend it has done more harm than good. Since President Obama announced the program in February, it has lowered mortgage payments on a trial basis for hundreds of thousands of people but has largely failed to provide permanent relief. Critics increasingly argue that the program, Making Home Affordable, has raised false hopes among people who simply cannot afford their homes.
Scary Shadow Inventory Numbers OK, this factoid is just San Diego, one of the epicenters of the housing implosion. But the flip side is conventional wisdom is that the worst hit locales are bottoming first….right? Maybe not. Again, generalizing based on one data point is not advisable, but this one is so striking that I can’t help but think that even a much lesser version of this pattern elsewhere would mean housing has a ways to go on the downside. That would be consistent with historic norms, since per Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff, in severe financial crises, real estate takes over five years from its peak (which in our case was 2Q 2006) to hit the trough. And this is the year when Option ARMs hit the wall in a big way too…
California's scary sneak preview We Californians pride ourselves on the crystal-ball quality of our state. Auto emissions regulations, the tech boom and bust, Ronald Reagan, Hispanic immigration, the anti-tax revolt, the mortgage bubble, the struggle for gay rights, most movies, the popularity of Richard Nixon, the unpopularity of Richard Nixon, plastic surgery, and Tiger Woods's marital problems were all tested in the Golden State before being released to audiences nationwide.
Believe It Or Not, They Have Found Another Way To Blame Poor People University of Texas at Dallas economist Stan J. Liebowitz drops a huge bomb on conventional wisdom about the real estate bubble: This has not been a "subprime" mortgage crisis at all. In fact, subprime mortgages in some categories are still not defaulting at record-high levels. Instead, by far the most important determinant of default -- and the common feature of nearly all defaults since 2006 -- is whether the mortgage has an adjustable interest rate: The mortgage data do not suggest that subprime loans went bad first, followed by Alt-As and then prime loans. Instead, the data suggest that adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) went bad first, with the rise occurring at about the same to for both prime and subprime ARMs. Foreclosure rates on fixed rate mortgages (FRMs), both prime and subprime, barely participated in the foreclosure outbreak, having much smaller and much later increases in foreclosures.
1.8 Million California Mortgages Underwater. In 2008 100,000 Renters were added. 2010 California Housing Market Trends. How Banks Hoodwinked the Public into Believing the Bailouts were to help the Housing Market. As we wind the year down the California housing market is entering a new chapter in its bubble saga. 2009 brought many new factors to consider in how the housing correction will play out. One major trend was the growing number of moratoriums. These programs largely failed at preventing foreclosure and only pushed the inevitable down the road creating a cryogenic toxic mortgage. The growing number of shadow inventory has been mounting as well. A few articles appeared in the L.A. Times and O.C. Register discussing this topic. Hopefully we’ll see some opinion pieces discussing how shady bank practices are when banks claim housing numbers look good when they know that the numbers on the books state otherwise. As of today, on the eve of a new year, roughly 1,800,000 mortgages in California sit underwater. That is, the home backing the mortgage is not even worth the current balance.
Lower home appraisals appear to be up Deals get killed as foreclosure, short sales makes valuing property difficult LOS ANGELES - It wasn't the first time that Katherine Scheri ruined a real estate agent's day with a low property appraisal. Scheri, a real estate appraiser, had sized up a three-bedroom, two-bath house in Santa Ana, Calif., for $30,000 less than what the buyers offered to pay. A typical deal-killer for a seller. The agent urged the lender to force Scheri to consider several other properties that could back up the original $310,000 sale price. Then he tried good old-fashioned guilt, telling Scheri her appraisal was going to ruin the buyers' shot at the American Dream.
Real Estate in Cape Coral Is Far From a Recovery FELLOW adventurers, refugees from winter and armchair archaeologists, we are here on this shiny green tour bus to embark on a safari of sorts. We'll be exploring the local habitat, as upended and reconfigured by an epochal real estate fiasco. Our guide, Marc Joseph, stalks wildlife of the white-elephant variety. A real estate agent, he specializes in houses that proved financially disastrous for someone - the banker, the homeowner, the American taxpayer, often all three. Mr. Joseph's bus is emblazoned with red letters spelling the name of this thrill ride: http://ForeclosureToursRUs.com.
Later Payments Are Jamming the Economy's Gears What's one sign of a weak economy? People take longer to pay their bills. As a result, those who await payment have less money to pay their bills, and a cycle of slowness sets in, gumming up the economic works. An analysis by Sageworks, a financial information company, shows that a range of privately held businesses waited longer for payment last year than in 2008 or 2007.
Retailers to report Dec. sales numbers this week Most are expected to show better figures after abysmal 2008 performance Top U.S. retailers will give investors the most detailed picture yet of holiday sales this week, with most expected to show better sales after an abysmal 2008 performance. The retailers will report sales at stores open at least a year, data that may also shed light on their positions heading into the spring season. Wall Street is predicting a tougher environment as consumers return to saving money.
$50 Billion in New Credit Card Fees? Lenders React to CARD Act Last year, a new law went into effect that's intended to improve the lives of everyone who uses credit cards. The Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (the Credit CARD Act) limits the rate that credit card companies can charge you in fees and penalties, and restricts the ways in which they can raise interest rates. But the Act is having unintended -- if unsurprising -- consequences: According to The Wall Street Journal, it's driving those companies to find new fees to charge you to offset the $50 billion in revenues they'll lose due to the consumer-friendly restrictions.
Will latest jobs bill really produce jobs? When the Senate takes up a jobs bill later this month or early in February, the debate will center on whether it really will create jobs and be worth plunging the government tens of billions of dollars further into debt. Republicans scoff at the "Jobs for Main Street Act" title that House Democrats put on their $174 billion package last month. They refer to it as "son of the stimulus," the $787 billion economic recovery plan of nearly a year ago that they say was ineffective at producing jobs. In its last vote of 2009, the House narrowly passed the bill, 217-212, without a single Republican supporter.
Record 20 Million-Plus Collect Unemployment in 2009 A record 20 million-plus people collected unemployment benefits at some point in 2009, a year that ended with the jobless rate at 10 percent. As the pace of layoffs slows, the number of new applicants visiting unemployment offices has been on the decline in recent months. But limited hiring means the ranks of the long-term unemployed continues to grow, with more than 5.8 million people out of work for more than six months.
Cheapest vodka doubles in price as Russia tackles heavy drinking Minimum prices for vodka have been introduced as part of President Medvedev's campaign to combat alcoholism at a time when Russians traditionally drink heavily. The price of the cheapest half-litre vodka bottle will nearly double to a minimum of 89 roubles (£1.82). Shops in Moscow carry a wide selection of vodka, with luxury brands priced at more than ten times the new minimum. Elsewhere, the cheapest vodka can be bought for 51 roubles.
China will soon have the power to switch off the lights in the West The recent hanging of Briton Akmal Shaikh in China proves that Beijing has no need to worry about what Britain thinks, argues Con Coughlin. The year is 2050, and a diplomatic dispute between China and Britain risks escalating into all-out war. But rather than launching a barrage of ballistic missiles and jet fighters to destroy key British targets, Beijing has a far simpler plan for defeating its enemy. It simply turns off the lights. At the flick of a switch elite teams of Chinese hackers attached to the People's Liberation Army (PLA) launch a hi-tech assault on Britain's computer systems, with devastating consequences. Within minutes the country's power stations, water companies, air traffic control, government and financial systems are totally shut down.
A Data Explosion Remakes Retailing MOST people think of the grand challenges in computing as big science projects, like simulating nuclear explosions or protein folding. But with the holiday shopping season just ended, consider another: retail marketing. Retailing is emerging as a real-world incubator for testing how computer firepower and smart software can be applied to social science - in this case, how variables like household economics and human behavior affect shopping.
The US virtual economy is set to make billions Paying real money for products that do not exist is big business Virtual goods such as weapons or digital bottles of champagne traded in the US could be worth up to $5bn in the next five years, experts predict. In Asia, sales are already around the $5bn mark and rapidly growing. For many, virtual goods are one of the hottest trends in technology and are fuelling huge growth in the social gaming sector. "This is just an exploding part of the gaming business right now, said venture capitalist Jeremy Liew. "It is the most exciting area in gaming," he said.
Health Care Insurance is NOT A RIGHT - Part 1 of 2
Health Care is NOT A RIGHT - Part 2 of 2
Afro-Cuban priests predict social unrest in 2010 Some of Cuba's leading Afro-Cuban priests are predicting social unrest in 2010 and have called on the older generation of leaders to step aside. The priests are from the influential Santeria religion, a mix of Catholicism and traditional African religions introduced by slaves. They made their annual forecast after conducting animal sacrifices. Their prediction is seen as politically contentious in a country still ruled by the aging Castro brothers.
Japan Risks a Third Lost Decade "We regret to inform you that nothing has been decided." This pretty much sums up Japan's story over the past two decades. Policy makers and corporate leaders have muddled through without conflict, innovation or having to take responsibility for tough decisions. The results speak for themselves. Japan marked the 20th anniversary of its asset bubble last week — with the Nikkei Stock Average of 225 companies ending 2009 at one-quarter of where it stood on Dec. 29, 1989. Nominal gross domestic product in yen terms is around the level it was shortly after the bubble popped.
Merkel Warns Germans of Tough Times in 2010 In her annual New Year's address, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has dampened expectations for a quick end to the global economic crisis. In an effort to prepare Germans for what she expects to be a difficult 2010 she said that, for some, things "will get worse before they can start to get better." In her year-end address to the nation on Wednesday night, German Chancellor Angela Merkel trod a fine and typically rational line between optimism and pessisim for the coming year, warning Germans that economic issues had not been resolved but also that there was plenty of hope for the future. Merkel warned Germany's citizens to prepare for difficult times ahead. "I tell you very openly: We cannot expect that the economic crisis will be over quickly," the chancellor said. "Some things will get more difficult in the new year before they can get better." However she added that there is well-founded hope "that Germany will master this crisis and that our country will be stronger going out of it than it was coming in, And that a crisis like this will never be repeated."
German Economy on Brink of Radical Restructuring The German economy coped astonishingly well with the global crisis in 2009. But in 2010 it will need to lay the foundations for a radical restructuring if it wants to cope with chronic overcapacity in its aging industries and fend off powerful new competitors from China and India. Does the country need a new business model? SPIEGEL provides an outlook for 2010. The ship-launching ceremony at the quayside of the German North Sea port of Emden was decidedly low-key. No one held a speech, and there was no orchestra as the container ship Frisia Cottbus slipped into the water shortly before Christmas. The mood was as somber as a funeral, which wasn't surprising because the launch marked the quiet end of a proud era -- it was the last container ship that will ever be launched by the Nordseewerke shipyard. Its 106-year history of shipbuilding is over.
Execution Underscores 'China's Contempt for the West' Coming on the heels of its efforts to derail climate change talks in Copenhagen and the stiff prison sentence handed over to a political dissident popular in the West, German newspapers see the handling of the prosecution and execution of a British citizen in China as the latest example of the country's "immature" behavior on the global political stage. Few issues are as sensitive in Europe than that of capital punishment. The death penalty is banned in each of the 27 European Union member states and media coverage is often highly critical of state-ordered executions in the United States and China. Tuesday's execution by lethal injection in China of Akmail Shaikh, a 53-year-old British national with an alleged history of mental illness who was busted in 2007 for smuggling 4 kilograms (around 9 pounds) of heroin, is no exception. But coming just days after China stalled global climate negotiations in Copenhagen and issued a stiff, 11-year sentence against Liu Xiaobo, a dissident well known in the West, tensions between Europe and China have clearly been exacerbated.
Beginning of a New Russian Empire Jan. 1, 2010, marks the start of a customs union between Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. This supranational alliance is an important step toward the creation of an even bigger and stronger Eastern alliance. Today marks the beginning of a new Russian empire. After a decade of discussion, Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan entered a common customs union on the first day of 2010, cementing Russia's control over two of its former Soviet satellites. Much like the creation of Europe's customs union back in 1957, it is a beginning step to the creation of a supranational alliance, with Russia calling the shots.
Putin says Russia will build weapons to offset planned US missile defences Prime minister warns defence system could erode deterrent value of Russia's nuclear forces Prime minister Vladimir Putin said today that Russia would build weapons to offset planned US missile defences and urged Washington to share detailed data about its missile shield under a new arms control deal. Putin's remarks, posted on the cabinet's website, set a defiant tone and signalled new difficulties in talks between the two nations on a successor to the 1991 strategic arms reduction treaty that expired on 5 December. Moscow and Washington had hoped to strike a deal before the end of the year.
School kids taught to praise Obama
Iceland petition against pay-out over Icesave collapse Almost a quarter of voters in Iceland have signed a petition against plans to repay money lost by foreigners when an Icelandic online bank collapsed. The petition urges the president to veto the bill that allows the move, and calls for a referendum on the issue. Iceland's parliament has approved the plans to reimburse 3.8bn euros (£3.4bn) lost by Dutch and British savers when the Icesave scheme failed in 2008. Many taxpayers say they are being made to pay for the bank's mistakes. The compensation amounts to some 12,000 euros for each citizen on the island nation of 320,000.
U.S., British embassies in Yemen close on Qaeda threat The United States and Britain closed their embassies in Yemen on Sunday over security concerns about possible militant attacks after the failed bombing of a U.S.-bound plane on Christmas Day. The U.S. Embassy said it had received a threat by al Qaeda, which U.S. intelligence agencies believe has a growing presence in the poor Arab country. A British Foreign Office spokeswoman cited security reasons for the embassy's closure but declined to say if any specific threat had been made. Yemen has already tightened security on its coastline to stop Islamist militants infiltrating from Somalia and held talks with a U.S. general on strengthening cooperation.
US shuts embassy as al-Qaeda 'plans attack in Yemen' The US has indications that al-Qaeda is planning an attack in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, President Barack Obama's top counter-terrorism adviser has said. John Brennan was speaking after the US and UK announced their embassies in Sanaa had temporarily closed. The US has accused a Yemen-based offshoot of al-Qaeda of being behind the alleged Christmas Day bomb attempt on a US jet flying to Detroit.
Britain, U.S. agree to fund Yemen police unit The United States and Britain have agreed to fund a counter-terrorism police unit in Yemen as part of stepped-up efforts to fight terrorism, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's office said on Sunday. The opposition Conservatives accused Brown of playing politics with the issue of terrorism after he conceded in a BBC interview that he had not held direct talks on Yemen with U.S. President Barack Obama and that the initiative had been in place for some time. The failed Christmas Day attack in which a 23-year-old Nigerian is accused of trying to blow up a U.S. passenger jet as it approached Detroit has focused attention on both sides of the Atlantic on the growing threat from al Qaeda in Yemen.
Afghan CIA bomber 'was courted as potential informant' The suicide bomber who killed seven CIA agents in Afghanistan had been courted by the US as a possible informant, US intelligence sources have said. They said he had not undergone the usual full body search before entering the base in Khost province, and so was able to smuggle in an explosive belt. The attack was the worst against US intelligence officials since the US embassy in Beirut was bombed in 1983.
Eight Americans killed in Afghan blast were CIA agents Eight American civilians who were killed in a suicide attack at a military base in ?eastern Afghanistan yesterday were CIA agents, US officials confirmed tonight. CIA officials in Washington were not immediately available for comment, and US officials said they could not provide details before the agents' families were informed.
2010 Must Be Showtime For Mideast Peace As 2009 draws to a close, we are bombarded by the annual litany of commentary features recapping the year in Hollywood movies to the year in international conflict, and everything in between. When it comes to the Middle East peace process, current conventional wisdom suggests the 2009 recap might go something like this: Despite committing his administration to achieve progress, appointing a special envoy in his first days in office and reaching out to the Muslim world in unprecedented fashion, President Obama has been unsuccessful in advancing the Middle East peace process. He was unable to secure a full Israeli settlement freeze or get the parties to begin negotiations, and he alienated - and angered - both Israelis and Palestinians in the process. The Arab states, led by Saudi Arabia, did not come through with confidence building measures as the president had proposed. Today, the Middle East peace process is stuck in the mud, with no clear way of getting out.
Hamas in final stage of Fatah reconciliation Hamas said on Sunday the Islamist group was in the final stages of reconciling with the rival Palestinian Fatah party after its leader met Saudi officials to try to narrow the rift. "We made great strides toward achieving reconciliation," Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal told reporters at the Saudi foreign ministry during a visit to Riyadh. "We are in the final stages now." An Egyptian proposal to promote reconciliation between Hamas and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah group has called for presidential and legislative elections to be held in the West Bank and Gaza Strip next June. Meshaal said Hamas still had some points to resolve in the Egyptian proposal.
Israel to issue gas masks to population Israel will begin distributing its entire population with gas masks in two months, though no reason has officially been given by the Israeli government. No indication or threat has been made against Israel from any country that an attack is planned. No country in the Middle East is believed to be likely to engage in chemical or biological warfare with Israel, either. The gas mask distribution has, however, raised questions as to Israel's potential plans to launch an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. Such an attack could cause an unconventional response from Iran. Iran's chemical and biological weapons capabilities are currently not known.
Israel acts like the world's "spoilt child": Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia said on Saturday said Israel was the world's "spoilt child" and got away with what Riyadh said were violations of international law and war crimes without punishment. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal also urged countries to adopt "a firm and serious stance to put an end to the policy of settlements in occupied Palestinian territories and in Jerusalem." "Not reaching solutions (for the Middle East conflict) is (the result of) the special treatment Israel gets," he said at a news conference with visiting Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu. "When they violate international law, other countries get punished but not Israel ... Israel has become like the spoilt child of the international community. "It (Israel) gets away with anything it does without accountability or punishment," he added.
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