STOCK MARKET WATCH, Wednesday 14 June

[ozymandius]

Wednesday June 14, 2006

COUNTING THE DAYS
DAYS REMAINING IN THE * REGIME 952 DAYS
DAYS SINCE DEMOCRACY DIED (12/12/00) 1999 DAYS
WHERE'S OSAMA BIN-LADEN? 1699 DAYS
DAYS SINCE ENRON COLLAPSE = 1660
Number of Enron Execs in handcuffs = 19
ENRON EXECS CONVICTED = 6
Other Arrests of Execs = 54


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




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

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON June 13, 2006

Dow... 10,706.14 -86.44 (-0.80%)
Nasdaq... 2,072.47 -18.85 (-0.90%)
S&P 500... 1,223.69 -12.71 (-1.03%)
Gold future... 566.80 -44.50 (-7.85%)
30-Year Bond 5.01% -0.02 (-0.44%)
10-Yr Bond... 4.96% -0.03 (-0.52%)






GOLD, EURO, YEN, Loonie and Silver


PIEHOLE ALERT

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

For information on protests and other actions Citizens For Legitimate Government

[libnnc]

1. you know you've been up too late......

when you're the first to reply to the Stock Market thread....

whew!

[ozymandius]

5. Good morning libnnc.

:donut:

Or should I say good night?

:hi:

[libnnc]

7. I am soooo losing my shirt re: 401-k

lost over 1,300 in the last 3 days. I'm wondering if I should put some in bonds.

[markam]

38. "I'm wondering if I should put some in bonds."

Yea, 2 weeks ago.

[modrepub]

42. Checked out T-Bill rates yesterday

Was shocked to see you could get 4.9+% for a 91-day T-bill. At least you weren't one of the gold bugs who bought when gold was $700+/once a few weeks ago (ouch). I bought some when it was <$300 but not enough to brag. Bernanke wants commodities down, he's got them all running for the hills (except oil).

http://wwws.publicdebt.treas.gov/AI/OFBills

[mike923]

91. If you are going to retire in the next 1 to 3 years, you shouldn't...

have 401k set up with too much invested in mutual funds.

If you are going to retire 20 to 30 years from now, the normal daily rise and fall of the market shouldn't be cause for concern.

[spotbird]

96. Say Mike,

I absolutely agree with you, but I'd like some authority on that for my parents.

Do you know of a site that tells retirees to stay out of mutual funds?

[mike923]

98. I'm not expert....

but as you get closer to retirement, it only makes sense that you should gradually reduce the riskiness of your investments. There are safer mutual funds then others, but as we see the market fluctuate the last few months, it still is on the riskier side.

A young person should be invested in the medium to high risk, as there is time to ride out the fluctuations.

[fasttense]

21. Yes, I've had the same thought some times. Good night libnnc. n/t

[nolabels]

66. Jebus, I looked at the thread count an thought it was Tuesday's

:yoiks:

[ozymandius]

2. WrapUp by Ike Iossif - WEEKLY CHARTS

Last week we said, "All of the indicators we follow are at the top of their range, and they have stalled. Moreover, price is close to resistance. Consequently, the odds favor a pullback early on in the week. The magnitude of the pullback will tell us whether this is the last pullback before a multi-week advance lasting for the better part of summer, or whether last week's advance was the last chance to get out!."

Currently, all of the indicators we follow have diverged positively, which normally means that last week's price weakness shouldn't last beyond Tuesday of this week, unless some exogenous event changes the dynamics of the markets. Thus, given that the indices have continued to decline into this week, we are looking for an exhaustion of the downside momentum by the end of the day on Tuesday or Wednesday, followed by an upside reversal.

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

[ozymandius]

3. Today's Reports

8:30 AM Core CPI May
Briefing Forecast 0.2%
Market Expects 0.2%
Prior 0.3%

8:30 AM CPI May
Briefing Forecast 0.3%
Market Expects 0.4%
Prior 0.6%

10:30 AM Crude Inventories 06/09
Prior 1146K

2:00 PM Fed's Beige Book

[UpInArms]

39. U.S. May core CPI rises 0.3% on higher shelter costs

8:30 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. MAY CPI AIRLINES UP 2.6%

8:30 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. MAY REAL WEEKLY EARNINGS FALL 0.7%

8:30 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. MAY CPI OWNERS' EQUIVALENT RENT UP 0.6%

8:30 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. MAY CPI ENERGY PRICES UP 2.4%

8:30 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. CORE CPI UP 2.4% IN PAST YEAR

8:30 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. CPI UP 4.2% IN PAST YEAR

8:30 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. MAY CORE CPI U 0.3% VS. 0.2% EXPECTED

8:30 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. MAY CPI UP 0.4% AS EXPECTED

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7BC60DA831%2DD5E3%2D431E%2DB810%2D8ED1C432D5D2%7D&dist=newsfinder&symbol=&siteid=mktw

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. core inflation increased 0.3% for the third month in a row in May, putting pressure on the Federal Reserve to keep raising interest rates. The consumer price index increased 0.4% in May, the Labor Department said Wednesday, led by higher energy and shelter costs. The increase matched expectations. Core prices - which exclude volatile food and energy costs - increased 0.3%, ahead of the 0.2% gain expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. The core rate was boosted by a 0.6% gain in owners' equivalent rent, which accounts for nearly one-fourth of the CPI. In the past year, the CPI has risen 4.2%. The core CPI has risen 2.4%, the fastest year-over-year growth since February 2005.

[Roland99]

40. REAL WEEKLY EARNINGS FALL 0.7%

Couple that with rising prices and it's no wonder people aren't optimistic about this "healthy" economy!

And I guess it's a good thing I signed on to a 15-month lease if rents are going up like that.

[stop the bleeding]

41. mixed non-positive news? yes?

8:30 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. MAY CORE CPI U 0.3% VS. 0.2% EXPECTED

[UpInArms]

83. DOE Petroleum Inventories Report:

10:31 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. CRUDE SUPPLY DOWN 900,000 BRLS LAST WK: ENERGY DEPT.

10:31 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. DISTILLATE SUPPLY UP 2.1 MLN BRLS: ENERGY DEPT.

10:31 AM ET 6/14/06 U.S. GASOLINE SUPPLY UP 2.8 MLN BRLS: ENERGY DEPT.

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7B16E83761%2D6135%2D4670%2D9443%2D2539DDE3BDF3%7D&dist=newsfinder&symbol=&siteid=mktw

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- The Energy Department said motor gasoline inventories rose 2.8 million barrels for the week ended June 9 to total 213.1 million. They've climbed over 12 million barrels in seven weeks, but are still 1.2% below the year-ago level, the government data showed. Crude stocks fell 900,000 barrels to total 345.7 million barrels. Distillate supplies rose 2.1 million barrels to 122.8 million. July crude fell 16 cents to $68.40 a barrel. July unleaded gas lost 2.18 cents to $2.03 a gallon and July heating oil was at $1.918 a gallon, down 1.36 cents.

[UpInArms]

84. API Petroleum Inventories Report (lots of variance with DOE)

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7B030EECE9%2D69A1%2D4A1D%2D88EF%2D8ED4B8872B98%7D&dist=newsfinder&symbol=&siteid=mktw

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- The American Petroleum Institute said motor gasoline supplies rose 2.9 million barrels for the week ended June 9, nearly matching the 2.8 million increase reported by the Energy Department. Crude inventories were up 3.3 million barrels, contrary to the government's reported 900,000-barrel decline. Distillate stocks fell 181,000 barrels, the API said, though the government data showed an increase of 2.1 million.

[UpInArms]

120. Fed's Beige Book sees signs of slowdown

2:00 PM ET 6/14/06 BEIGE BOOK: WAGES, CONSUMER PRICES RISING MODERATELY

2:00 PM ET 6/14/06 BEIGE BOOK: GROWTH IN RETAIL SALES WEAKENING

2:00 PM ET 6/14/06 BEIGE BOOK: HOUSING SLOWING IN MOST REGIONS

2:00 PM ET 6/14/06 BEIGE BOOK: PRICE PRESSURES MOUNTING

2:00 PM ET 6/14/06 BEIGE BOOK: MANUFACTURING, SERVICES REMAIN HEALTHY

2:00 PM ET 6/14/06 BEIGE BOOK SITES HEALTH ECONOMY, SIGNS OF SLOWING

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7BFBAE90AE%2D1E57%2D4A9E%2DB0A5%2DDA7EE690083F%7D&dist=newsfinder&symbol=&siteid=mktw

Fed report highlights dilemma: Higher prices and softer economy WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The economy continued to expand in most regions of the country in May and early June, but there are signs of a slowdown, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday in the Beige Book report on economic conditions. Price pressures were rising in most regions, but there was limited success in passing higher prices along to consumers, the Fed said. Wage pressures were said to be moderate. "Economic activity continued to expand" in all 12 Federal Reserve districts, "but there were signs of deceleration," the Beige Book said. In most regions, the economy could be summed up simply as "Healthy, but ..."

You do know that when you add a 'but' to a sentence, it negates all the words in front of it?

So - The Economy can be summed up simply as "Sick".

[ozymandius]

4. Oil prices rebound after 2-day decline

1 minute ago

SINGAPORE - Oil prices rose Wednesday, reversing a two-day decline as traders shrugged off previous concerns that rising inflation and interest rates could cause an economic slowdown and depress demand for oil.

The persistent uncertainty about whether the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise increase interest rates spurred Tuesday's sell-offs in commodities, including crude, and stocks around the world.

"Oil is less affected by inflation fears than other commodities," said Victor Shum, energy analyst with Purvin & Gertz in Singapore, on the sudden spike in prices. "It faces its own supply and demand fundamentals."

"The overall tightness in the energy complex provides a floor to how low oil prices can go," Shum said.

more

[UpInArms]

68. Oil and gas shares gain as crude opens higher

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7B2F927510%2DC6C7%2D40F5%2DA97A%2DAFD3405AC8EE%7D&dist=newsfinder&symbol=&siteid=mktw

HOUSTON (MarketWatch) -- Crude opened higher Wednesday pulling oil and gas shares forward but the gains could prove fleeting as U.S. supply data later today is expected to show another rise in inventories of oil and its products in the latest week. The Amex Oil Index ($XOI : 1,024.82, +18.14, +1.8% ) rose 1.1% to 1,017.37 points led by European refiners Repsol (REP : 26.02, +0.63, +2.5% ) and Total (TOT : 59.96, +1.74, +3.0% ) , which each rose over 2%. The Amex Natural Gas Index ($XNG : 378.53, +6.80, +1.8% ) added 0.8% to 374.71 points and the Philadelphia Oil Service Index ($OSX : 91.22, +5.41, +2.9% ) gained 1.6% to 188.84 points.

[UpInArms]

72. API: Gasoline demand down - Diesel demand up

10:01 AM ET 6/14/06 MAY U.S. GASOLINE DEMAND DOWN 3.3% VS. YR AGO: API

10:01 AM ET 6/14/06 MAY U.S. DIESEL DEMAND UP 1.2% VS. YR AGO: API

U.S. gasoline demand falls in May: API

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7B14079CFF%2D4789%2D49ED%2DAEDA%2D71019AD1BF32%7D&dist=newsfinder&symbol=&siteid=mktw

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- May U.S. gasoline deliveries, a proxy for demand, fell 3.3% from the same period a year ago on the heels of a 35% rise in retail prices, according to a monthly report from the American Petroleum Institute Wednesday. At the same time, the report showed that diesel deliveries rose 1.2%, compared with the same time a year ago, reflecting a "significant" amount of around 400,000 barrels per day of ultra-low sulfur diesel for the first time. That figure should continue to rise given that from June 1, "refiners and importers are required by law to produce or import enough of this cleaner fuel to provide 80% of on-highway diesel," the API said.

[UpInArms]

79. July Crude @ $68.90 bbl - July NatGas @ $6.42 mln btus

10:16 AM ET 6/14/06 JULY CRUDE UP 34 CENTS AT $68.90/BRL AHEAD OF SUPPLY DATA

10:16 AM ET 6/14/06 JULY NATURAL GAS RISES 25.7 CENTS, OR 4.2%, TO $6.42/MLN BTU

[Roland99]

99. Gas inventories up, crude down below $69, why is my gas still $2.95????

Should be about $2.60 at most.

[UpInArms]

130. July Crude closes @ $69.14 bbl - July NatGas @ $6.59 mln btus

2:53 PM ET 6/14/06 JULY CRUDE CLOSES AT $69.14/BRL, UP 58 CENTS

2:53 PM ET 6/14/06 JULY NATURAL GAS UP 7%, ENDS NEAR 2-WK HIGH OF $6.59/MLN BTU

[ozymandius]

6. Goldman Sachs clinches port takeover

LONDON - Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said Wednesday that its consortium had reached an agreement to acquire Associated British Ports Holdings PLC in a deal valued at 2.5 billion pounds (euro3.7 billion; US$4.6 billion).

However, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein jumped into the market Wednesday and began buying AB Ports' shares. The bank had no comment on its intentions or who it might be representing.

The announcement of a deal came after Goldman Sachs raised its bid to 810 pence (euro11.85 US$14.90) a share, after AB Ports in March rejected a bid of 730 pence a share.

more

[ozymandius]

8. FTSE recovers after weak start

London equities were very volatile in early trade on Wednesday as a recovery in the mining sector struggled to offset falls for BAE Systems and Cable & Wireless.

Leading the blue-chip fallers, BAE was hit by news of fresh delays in the delivery of the Airbus A380. The delays could cost European aerospace giant EADS EU2bn in 2007 just as it looks to buy out Airbus stakeholder BAE, leading to concerns it may try to renegotiate its price.

Shares in BAE were down 4.5 per cent at 332¾p in early trade.

more

[ozymandius]

9. Weak start expected for Europe

A weak start was expected for European equities markets following overnight falls on Wall Street as the sell-off across global equity markets continued. Investors were braced for further turbulence with key US inflation data due for release later in the session. Increased concern about inflationary pressures and the outlook for interest rates has been one of the main factors behind the increase in volatility across all asset classes recently.

Spread betting companies in London were caling for the FTSE 100, German Dax and French CAC 40 to open between 13 and 29 points lower.

more

[Ghost Dog]

13. European stocks bounce, dollar slips pre-CPI

http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?type=comktNews&storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20060614:MTFH18244_2006-06-14_09-00-44_L14482994&pageNumber=0&imageid=&cap=&sz=13&WTModLoc=HybArt-C1-ArticlePage2
Wed Jun 14, 2006 5:00am ET

LONDON, June 14 (Reuters) - European stocks bounced off six-month lows on Wednesday, tracking a modest rally in Japan, while bargain hunting helped buoy copper prices.

The dollar pulled backed from recent seven-week highs against the euro and yen as markets remained edgy ahead of closely watched U.S. inflation data due at 1230 GMT.

By 0829 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst index <.FTEU3> of 300 leading shares was up 0.4 percent at 1,244.1 points, bolstered by firmer U.S. futures and a rebound in mining stocks.

"I'd imagine this is the start of some sort of upwards correction but only because we've very much oversold, not because fundamentally anything has changed," said Philippe Gijsels, senior equity strategist at Fortis Bank.

"We've tried for a bounce and once it gets going I'd say it could last for a while, 3, 4, 5 percent."

The index closed Tuesday's session at its lowest in more than six months and is around 12 percent below its near five-year highs reached a month ago.

In Tokyo, Asia's biggest stock market, the benchmark Nikkei stock average <.N225> eked out a modest gain of 0.6 percent, partly recovering from its biggest one-day percentage fall in two years on Tuesday.

Other Asian stock markets gained support from the firmer tone in Tokyo. South Korea's benchmark KOSPI <.KS11> rose 1.5 percent and Taiwan's key index <.TWII> added 2.1 percent.

/more...

[Ghost Dog]

85. European stocks fall as US CPI lifts inflation fears

http://investing.reuters.co.uk/investing/MarketReportArticle.aspx?type=eurMktRpt&storyID=2006-06-14T124447Z_01_L14544020_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-EUROPE-STOCKS-URGENT-REPEAT.XML
Wed Jun 14, 2006 1:44 PM BST

LONDON, June 14 (Reuters) - European stocks slid to a seven month intraday low on Wednesday after U.S. core inflation prices came in sharper-than-expected, raising concerns about the pace of interest rate rises.

The FTSEurofirst 300 index <.FTEU3> was down 0.6 percent at 1,231.7 points by 1235 GMT, its lowest since mid-November 2005, tracking U.S. stock futures which erased their gains after the May consumer prices report.

"The CPI report was the same catalyst that hit markets about a month ago, and the number has again disappointed today," said a trader. "It increases the likelihood of the Fed raising rates."

Around Europe, London's FTSE 100 <.FTSE> index lost 0.6 percent, Paris's CAC 40 <.FCHI> slipped 0.8 percent and Frankfurt's DAX <.GDAXI> fell 0.5 percent.

/(... but, apparently recovered now (1 hour later))...

FTSE 5530.3 +0.19%
CAC 40 4622.18 +0.10%
DAX 5315.35 +0.44%

[Ghost Dog]

100. European shares end up in choppy trade; EADS plunges

http://investing.reuters.co.uk/investing/MarketReportArticle.aspx?type=eurMktRpt&storyID=2006-06-14T154818Z_01_L14053002_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-EUROPE-STOCKS-URGENT.XML
Wed Jun 14, 2006 4:48 PM BST

LONDON, June 14 (Reuters) - European stocks closed higher in volatile trade on Wednesday, with takeover speculation boosting UK drugmaker Astrazeneca (AZN.L: Quote, Profile, Research) and Vinci (SGEF.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) among other stocks, but interest rate worries persisted after a U.S. inflation report.

French construction and infrastructure group Vinci rallied 8 percent on speculation that environmental services group Veolia Environnement (VIE.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) was likely to bid for the group. Veolia said it would issue a statement later in the day and its shares ended 8 percent lower.

European aerospace group EADS (EAD.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) plunged 26 percent after saying late on Tuesday that it expected delays in the planned deliveries of the A380 superjumbo.

The FTSEurofirst 300 index <.FTEU3> rose 0.2 percent to a provisional close of 1,241.2 points, off a seven-month intra-day low and paring a 2 percent fall struck in the previous session.

Bayer (BAYG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) jumped 7 percent after it won control of Schering (SCHG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) for an increased price as rival Merck (MRCG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) bowed out and sold its stake to Bayer.

/buy or put some EADS tomorrow morning (or even better, grey-market, overnight), maybe...

(ed: formatting...)

[Ghost Dog]

16. EADS shares plunge after Airbus announces new delay in A380 deliveries

http://asia.news.yahoo.com/060614/afp/060614085332eco.html

PARIS (AFP) - Shares in the European aerospace and defence company EADS plunged in early trading on the Paris stock market after an overnight profit warning as its Airbus unit announced fresh delays in deliveries of the A380 super-jumbo.

The stock was down 19 percent to 20.59 euros at 0800 GMT.

Airbus told clients Tuesday that deliveries of its A380 would again be delayed by six to seven months because of a production problem.

Only nine of the aircraft would be delivered in 2007, seriously affecting the financial results of the parent group, the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company, EADS said in a statement.

EADS currently owns 80 percent of Airbus, while BAE Systems of Britain holds 20 percent but has signed an agreement to sell it to EADS.

EADS warned that operating profit would be cut by "about 500 million euros" (625 million dollars) per year during the period 2007-2010.

"Possible contract terminations under the new timetable have not been taken into account in this estimate," it added.

The group expects to make an operating profit of 3.2-3.4 billion euros this year.

Airbus said the delay, the second time the program has been set back by six months, was for industrial reasons only.

/more...

[ozymandius]

10. NYSE fines UBS, Goldman, Credit Suisse

NEW YORK - The regulatory arm of the New York Stock Exchange fined investment banks UBS AG, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Credit Suisse Group a combined $1.4 million for proxy-handling violations in corporate elections.

NYSE Regulation fined UBS Securities LLC $600,000; Goldman Sachs Execution & Clearing LP $500,000 and Credit Suisse Securities LLC $250,000, the exchange said Tuesday. The firms were charged with "operational deficiencies and supervisory violations concerning the submission of proxy votes." All three firms settled their cases without admitting or denying guilt.

NYSE rules require that member firms pass proxy materials to stockholders and collect and transmit to their issuer any voting instructions given by the shareholders. All three firms, according to NYSE Regulation, did not reconcile their list of current shareholders with the lists used to distribute of proxy materials and solicit votes. Incorrect lists can lead to some shareholders voting greater, or fewer, shares than they truly own.

more

[Ghost Dog]

73. Mmmm. This is one reason why some people pay for

what is known as 'private banking'.

[ozymandius]

11. Asia claws back from stock rout

(CNN) -- Asian share markets clawed their way back Wednesday from the previous day's global stock rout as investors foraged for value.

Taiwan and South Korea were two of Asia's best performers, rising 2 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively.

But the gains still left markets well adrift of the week's starting point as fears of a U.S. rate rise and economic slowdown continued to hang over the region.

http://edition.cnn.com/2006/BUSINESS/06/14/asianstox.wednesday/

[Ghost Dog]

14. Nikkei gains 0.6 pct in bounce after sell-off

http://asia.news.yahoo.com/060614/3/2lw2r.html

TOKYO (Reuters) - The Nikkei average rose 0.64 percent on Wednesday on gains in Softbank Corp. and others whose shares were seen as having fallen too much, helping the benchmark recover somewhat from its worst one-day percentage fall in more than two years.

Analysts said it is still unclear whether the Nikkei has bottomed out after the sell-off that wiped 103.4 trillion yen ($897.7 billion) off the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section market value between its high in early April and the close of trade on Tuesday.

"It looks to me like it's a technical rebound following an overdone sell-off here yesterday. Visibility is low on whether U.S. stocks will stop falling and recover," said Yoshinori Nagano, chief strategist at Daiwa Asset Management.

"The rout (in global markets) this month is rooted in the United States, although falls in U.S. stocks have been relatively small compared with falls in other markets," he added.

The Nikkei ended the day up 90.96 points at 14,309.56 after falling 4.14 percent on Tuesday in its biggest one-day loss since May 10, 2004.

The TOPIX index ended the day 0.54 percent higher at 1,466.14.

/more...

[Ghost Dog]

17. JGBs edge up but gains limited as stocks rebound

http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20060614:MTFH17476_2006-06-14_08-21-56_T310542&type=comktNews&rpc=44
Wed Jun 14, 2006 4:21am ET

TOKYO, June 14 (Reuters) - Japanese government bond prices edged up on Wednesday, but gains were limited as Tokyo share prices picked up after a recent selloff that led some to doubt whether the Bank of Japan would lift interest rates more than once this year.

Market players still expect the BOJ to end its zero interest rate policy next month, or by September at the latest, but the recent share slide put a question mark over further rate hikes.

"With share prices down this much, I think (the BOJ will raise rates) probably just once in July-September," said Akitsugu Bando, senior strategist at Okasan Securities.

<snip>

The lead September 10-year JGB futures contract <2JGBv1> rose 0.10 point to 133.20.

The benchmark 10-year yield <JP10YTN=JBTC> fell at one point to 1.745 percent, its lowest level since late March, but pulled back to 1.770 percent as of 0753 GMT, down half a basis point.

/more...

[Ghost Dog]

15. Metals stocks push down China shares

http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20060614:MTFH18227_2006-06-14_08-59-39_SHA201785&type=comktNews&rpc=44
Wed Jun 14, 2006 4:59am ET

SHANGHAI, June 14 (Reuters) - China shares lost 1.11 percent on Wednesday as investors dumped metals stocks following a commodities sell-off in global markets on the previous day.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index <.SSEC> finished at 1,531.327 points, after falling 0.28 percent on Tuesday. Turnover in Shanghai A-shares came to a moderate 17.35 billion yuan, down from 18.2 billion on Tuesday.

"The metals counters are melting down today," said Zhou Lin, an analyst with Huatai Securities. "A turnaround is unlikely unless precious metals recovered globally."

Major gold miner Zhongjin Gold Co. Ltd. (600489.SS: Quote, Profile, Research), which resumed trading on Wednesday after a near two-month suspension, dived 49.06 percent to 14.62 yuan. It had suspended trading from April 22 to get shareholders' approval to deal with an overhang of untraded state-held shares in the company.

Yunnan Chihong Zinc & Germanium Co. Ltd. (600497.SS: Quote, Profile, Research), a leading zinc producer based in south China, fell 10 percent to 29.83 yuan.

Sinopec Corp. (600028.SS: Quote, Profile, Research) (0386.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) (SNP.N: Quote, Profile, Research) lost further ground on Wednesday, finishing down 2.63 percent at 5.55 yuan. Its shares shed 7.5 percent between June 6 and Tuesday, after the oil refiner dismissed speculation that it would soon take its unit Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co. Ltd. (0338.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) private.

/more...

[ozymandius]

12. DOE computers hacked; info on 1,500 taken

JUN. 10 9:03 P.M. ET A hacker stole a file containing the names and Social Security numbers of 1,500 people working for the Energy Department's nuclear weapons agency.

But in the incident last September, somewhat similar to recent problems at the Veterans Affairs Department, senior officials were informed only two days ago, officials told a congressional hearing Friday. None of the victims was notified, they said.

The data theft occurred in a computer system at a service center belonging to the National Nuclear Security Administration in Albuquerque, N.M. The file contained information about contract workers throughout the agency's nuclear weapons complex, a department spokesman said.

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/tech/D8I5MO180.htm?sub=apn_home_up&chan=db

[ozymandius]

18. Big media: Adapt or die

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - The media business is getting hit by massive technological change, and executives from top media companies said industry executives had better get used to it.

"The challenge is pretty clear. It's the digital transition. We would like to say we look at it as an opportunity. Every single part of our business is going through extraordinary technological change," Peter Chernin, president and chief operating officer of News Corp., said at a media conference in California monitored by Webcast.

http://money.cnn.com/2006/06/13/news/companies/media/index.htm

[ozymandius]

19. Small businesses see slowing growth

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Small-business owners expect U.S. economic growth to slow from the first quarter of 2006 as they foresee weakening business conditions during the next six months, according to a private sector survey.

The National Federation of Independent Business reported on Tuesday that its index for small business optimism shed 1.6 points, falling to 98.5 in May.

"It's hard to beat the first-quarter performance, so a 'slowdown' is definitely going to happen," William Dunkelberg, NFIB's chief economist, said in a statement. "The only question is how far and how fast."

http://money.cnn.com/2006/06/13/smbusiness/economy_forecast.reut/index.htm

[Ghost Dog]

20. (Bears vs. Bulls): Global equity meltdown costs investors $2 trillion

http://yahoo.reuters.com/business/newsArticle.aspx?type=ousiv&storyid=2006-06-14T012037Z_01_N13404346_RTRIDST_0_BUSINESSPRO-MARKETS-EQUITIES-GLOBAL-DC.XML&WTmodLoc=HybArt-R3-MostViewedBiz-1

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The month-long slide in global stocks has wiped out at least $2 trillion in wealth, leaving investors few alternatives to preserve their holdings aside from bonds and money markets.

Investors have been dumping stocks, commodities and emerging market assets on growing concerns that economic growth will suffer from higher inflation and interest rates.

"It is essentially one consistent story worldwide, starting here in the U.S. There is a fear that the Fed's repeated commitment to limiting inflation demonstrates a willingness to risk economic activity," said Christopher Low, chief economist at FTN Financial in New York.

Stock markets have been punished since the U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates for 16th time in a row on May 10 and issued a hawkish statement saying it may need to do so again to fight inflation. Investors had expected some sign of an end to the tightening cycle.

Global markets have suffered since, and strategists show little agreement about how deep and how long the sell-off will go. Bonds have been the most direct beneficiary of the equities route, with benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasuries <US10YT=RR> staging their longest rally of the year since mid-May.

/more...

[Ghost Dog]

22. For individuals, long-term investing is better

http://today.reuters.com/summit/summitarticle.aspx?type=summitNews&summit=InvestmentOutlookSummit06&storyid=2006-06-13T114148Z_01_N12349876_RTRUKOC_0_US-FINANCIAL-SUMMIT-INDIVIDUALS.xml&show=all&src=061306_1027_FEATURES_investment_outlook_summit
Tue Jun 13, 2006 7:42 AM ET
By Emily Chasan

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Even though stocks have fallen sharply in recent weeks and Wall Street thinks the stock market is in a funk, individual investors who focus on picking stocks for the long-term are still poised for growth.

By focusing on the long term investments, instead of following the latest fad, individual investors could be doing better, strategists say.

"Individual investors have a monstrous advantage, in that institutional investors time horizons have shortened so dramatically," Rich Bernstein, Merrill Lynch's chief investment strategist, said at the Reuters Investment outlook summit in New York.

"Individuals can take positions, find undervalued assets and wait 2-6-8 years for the investments to build ... For an individual investor to build wealth you've actually got the leg up on institutions."

/uh huh?...

[Ghost Dog]

23. Stock rout could worsen: JPMorgan

http://today.reuters.com/summit/summitArticle.aspx?type=summitNews&storyID=2006-06-13T194858Z_01_N13414013_RTRUKOC_0_US-FINANCIAL-SUMMIT-JPMORGAN-CHAKRABORTTI-1.xml&archived=False&summit=InvestmentOutlookSummit06
Tue Jun 13, 2006 3:49 PM ET
By Vivianne Rodrigues

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A global sell-off in stocks that started in May is not over and may only be just starting, Abhijit Chakrabortti, global equity strategist at JPMorgan Chase & Co., said on Tuesday.

"This is nothing compared with what we may see late in the summer and early October -- once slower growth finally sinks in and expectations for higher benchmark rates, at 6 percent or even more, come out," Chakrabortti told the Reuters Investment Outlook Summit in New York.

Chakrabortti said the market correction may exceed 10 or even 15 percent before it abates. In some sectors, such as materials, commodities and certain consumer staples, including Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Procter & Gamble Co. (PG.N: Quote, Profile, Research), declines may surpass 30 percent.

"Sectors most dependent on growth and the companies most dependent on volume and price declines, which also includes tech companies, should be avoided," he said.

JPMorgan's model asset allocation portfolio is recommending clients to invest 20 percent of their holdings in cash and 25 percent in bonds. The remaining 55 percent is distributed among equities in the United States, the UK, Western Europe and Japan. Still, the portfolio is underweight in U.S. stocks.

/more ideas...

[Ghost Dog]

24. More downside seen hounding US stocks

http://today.reuters.com/summit/summitArticle.aspx?type=summitNews&storyID=2006-06-13T195831Z_01_N13422664_RTRUKOC_0_US-FINANCIAL-SUMMIT-TECHNICALS.xml&archived=False&summit=InvestmentOutlookSummit06
Tue Jun 13, 2006 3:58 PM ET
By Ellis Mnyandu

NEW YORK (Reuters) - If history is any guide, U.S. stock investors may have to brace themselves for what could prove to be a prolonged downbeat market as major indexes test key technical support levels, a leading market technical analyst said on Tuesday.

Louise Yamada, founder and managing director of Louise Yamada Technical Research Advisors, told the Reuters Investment Outlook Summit in New York that major U.S. stock indexes could well see further downside.

"You've already broken a three-year uptrend, which suggests that support levels are going to be more critical," she said.

Even if the stock market entered a period where it could be deemed to be in oversold territory, Yamada said there was a possibility for more selling pressure to jolt stocks before stocks attempted another breakout higher.

"During a bull market you can get away with saying, 'Oh, the market is oversold, you want to buy.' Oversold conditions are holding a little longer than they have for the past three years. So we have to stay alert to the fact that we may be in for a more corrective trend," said Yamada.

"At a minimum we suspect that we're going to experience a corrective trend, but whether or not we go to a bear market, which you define as 20 percent or more down off the highs, it isn't clear yet. It's a possibility. We can go to a cyclical bear market, within a structural bear environment."

/more...

[ozymandius]

102. Bonddad covers this too - along with metals.

-excerpt-

Since early May, Brazil (EWZ) dropped 32% from $47 to $31.92; Honk Kong (EWH) dropped 15.97% from $14.77 to $12.41; Malaysia (EWM) dropped 13.91% from $8.12 to $6.99 and Singapore (EWS) lost 17.43% from $9.75 to $8.05. Yesterday alone Columbia lost 9.8%, Russian lost 9.4% and India lost 4.4%. Here is a more in-depth reason for the sell-off

Global fund managers have slashed their expectations of economic growth and are shifting investments out of emerging markets into more resilient U.S. stocks out of fear that central banks will remain hawkish on inflation, according to a survey released Tuesday.
About 61% of respondents to Merrill Lynch's June survey said they expect the global economy to weaken over the next 12 months, compared with 43% of respondents in May.

Merrill Lynch described the events of the past month as a "negative growth shock." The company said growing inflation risk may have prompted fears that central banks will engineer a period of below-trend growth to be sure that inflation doesn't accelerate.

http://dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/6/14/85813/4520

[UpInArms]

25. daily dollar watch

http://quotes.ino.com/chart/?s=NYBOT_DX&v=i

Last trade 86.19 Change -0.18 (-0.21%)

Tomorrow's Economic Releases: Buildup to US CPI

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/calendar/key_events/Tomorrow_s_Economic_Releases__Buildup_to_1150236592952.html

US Consumer Price Index (YoY) (MAY) (12:30 GMT; 08:30 EST)

(Headline) (Core)

Consensus: 3.9% 2.3%

Previous: 3.5% 2.3%



Outlook: The Consumer Price Index, the US’s primary measure of inflation, is expected to report a 0.4% increase on the month when it comes out on tomorrow. The increase this past month will likely be moderate, as May oil and commodities prices fell off somewhat from the record levels marked in April. This moderate increase will likely correlate with the Producer Price Index numbers that came out yesterday, which revealed a lower than expected 0.2% increase for the month of May. The increase in that index, which measures the inflation from the sellers perspective, is expected to be mirrored in the consumer basket as manufacturers begin to pass on their elevated production costs to a more accepting end consumer. Retail sales numbers this month rose only 0.1%, however, leaving open the possibility of a decrease in demand and subsequent easing in inflation – if not this month then maybe even a month or two in the future. With oil prices still close to record highs and Bernanke warning that the Fed remains “vigilant” in its attempt to avoid entrenched inflation, the continual upward trend in the CPI is likely to induce the Fed to raise interest rates at its meeting near the end of June.

Previous: Consumer prices in April jumped to a three-month high of 0.6%, marking the fastest pace of inflation at the start of a year since 1990 and putting the country on pace for 5.1% inflation this year. Much of the growth for the month was attributable to the increase in oil prices, which reached an all-time high of over $75 a barrel. Additionally, oil prices were finally showing more influence on consumers’ wallets than just at the gas pump and in heating bills, as revealed by the core CPI figures 0.3% advance. With higher energy prices leaking into consumer goods, the second round inflation effects expected since last August could finally be materializing. Furthermore, a hefty contributor to the increase in the core CPI was in home rental prices, as higher interest rates made mortgages more expensive and Americans began to look at the cheaper alternative of renting.

...more...

[UpInArms]

51. Dollar edges lower after CPI report

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?dist=newsfinder&siteid=mktw&guid=%7B7E7C2F39%2DC2DA%2D4A28%2DBB06%2D9C981461E2A1%7D&symbol=

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - The dollar edged lower against the euro and yen early Wednesday as traders viewed hotter-than-expected core inflation data as not strong enough to extend the dollar's recent rally.

The consumer-price index increased 0.4% in May, led by higher energy and shelter costs, the Labor Department said Wednesday. The increase matched expectations. However, core prices -- which exclude volatile food and energy costs -- increased 0.3%, ahead of the 0.2% gain expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. See full story.

"The core number raised the odds of a Fed rate hike in June and may actually bring in speculation that the Fed won't be finished in June," said Mike Malpede, a senior currency analyst at Man Global Research.

"The dollar should maintain a little bit of the bid, but there isn't any great incentive to take it higher because the markets had already priced in anticipation of today's number. That's why the markets are relatively calm," he said.

<snip>

However, Ashraf Laidi, chief currency analyst at MG Financial Group, noted that the latest dollar rally "has been the manifestation of mainly exogenous factors rather than a reflection of strengthening fundamentals in the U.S. economy."

...more...

[UpInArms]

59. Peeking at the buck

Last trade 85.86 Change -0.51 (-0.59%)

Settle Time 15:01 Open 86.38

Previous Close 86.37 High 86.48

Low 85.76 2006-06-14 09:42:47, 30 min delay

[UpInArms]

104. Fleeing the Dollar: Central banks to add MBS, agencies, gold-report

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T160955Z_01_N14210743_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-CENTRALBANKS-RESERVES.XML

NEW YORK, June 14 (Reuters) - Central banks are planning to diversify foreign exchange reserves away from U.S. government debt into higher-yielding assets, including mortgage bonds, through 2007, according to a UBS Securities survey.

Almost all of the 90 central banks polled by the unit of the world's biggest wealth manager now have the authority to spend reserves on bonds other than Treasury debt, the poll found. Just 3 percent said they only invest in Treasuries, down from 31 percent four years ago, it said.

Sixty-one percent said they plan to purchase more bonds with higher yields, led by mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, and so-called agency debt of government-sponsored enterprises such as Fannie Mae (FNM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) the recent poll said.

The survey's results "suggest that central banks are moving more aggressively into spread product," UBS mortgage analysts led by Laurie Goodman in New York said in a report on Tuesday. Parent UBS AG (UBSN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research) is based in Zurich.

Rising trade surpluses with the United States have filled foreign central bank coffers with dollars. Inverstor concerns that central banks will begin to look outside U.S. borders for investments were reinforced slightly, with 18 percent of the banks planning to cut dollar assets outright, the poll said. Fourteen percent will increase assets denominated in the U.S. currency, it said.

About $2.7 trillion of the $4.3 trillion in foreign exchange reserves are in dollar assets. The percentage should remain constant this year, the analysts said.

...more...

[NC_Nurse]

26. Bust ahead?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x217107

This article looks interesting!

[UpInArms]

36. g'morning and thanks, NC_Nurse!

from carincross's DU thread:

The Mark of the Bust

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/14/opinion/14mayer.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

(free registration or try www.bugmenot.com)

excerpt:

What the number announces is the quantity of government and agency securities held "for foreign official and international accounts" — that is, for foreign central banks and finance ministries — by the federal reserve banks. It is important because over time it measures the demand for American assets by private enterprise in the world's creditor nations. It is important also because it is very large — last week, about $1.63 trillion. Three years ago, just before the invasion of Iraq, it was about $900 billion. The week George W. Bush took office, it was $693 billion.

<snip>

This produces the argument most closely associated with the new Federal Reserve chairman, Ben Bernanke (though Alan Greenspan believed it, too), that our trade deficit is caused by a surplus of savings that can't be profitably invested in the home countries of our trading partners. Financing for our trade deficit comes before — and actually causes — the deficit itself.

If instead of investing their dollars in the United States, foreign exporters want to take the proceeds of their sales in their own currency, their central banks will in effect sell them that currency for their dollars. Back in the late 1960's, when Great Society deficits and the Vietnam War prompted the first serious sell-off of dollars (and forced the United States to abandon the gold standard because too many holders of dollars, led by President Charles de Gaulle of France, wanted gold), those central banks lent those dollars into the new Eurodollar market, where they traded somewhat separately from domestic dollars.

<snip>

Today, the Fed continues as custodian of the "foreign official holdings" of such government obligations. During the Clinton administration, the Fed agreed to invest in federally guaranteed housing securities for those foreign central banks that wanted a better yield on their dollar reserves than they would get from government bonds, and now more than half a trillion dollars of the total official holdings are invested in agency paper. Foreign official holdings of government paper is a miner's canary number. It tells you if there is big trouble ahead. The most common worry is that the number will shrink suddenly, with foreign governments dumping their dollar holdings, driving down the dollar's value and driving up American interest rates, but that's not a real danger. If the price of our government securities dived, the foreign central banks would have to bear the loss. This would be a budget item for their governments, whose leaders would not like it at all.

What we have to watch out for is a sudden and drastic increase in foreign official holdings. Rapid growth in this number in the late 1960's and 1970's forecast the recessions of the early 1970's and 1980's, and it could happen again.

...more...

[Ghost Dog]

81. Japanese poised for return to US real estate

http://yahoo.reuters.com/business/newsArticle.aspx?type=ousiv&storyid=2006-06-13T232742Z_01_N1311842_RTRIDST_0_BUSINESSPRO-PROPERTY-JAPANESEINVESTMENT-DC.XML&WTmodLoc=HybArt-R3-MostViewedBiz-3
Tue Jun 13, 2006 7:27pm ET
By Ilaina Jonas

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Japanese investors are testing the U.S. commercial real estate market after a 13-year hiatus, industry experts said on Tuesday, as they seek higher returns than they can get in their own reviving economy.

"They're raising the money," said Dan Fasulo, director of Real Capital Analytics, a real estate investment research firm. "There is money that is focused on the U.S. for the first time in years."

From 1985 through 1993, Japanese investors went on a U.S. real estate buying binge, pouring $77.3 billion into the United States, according to a 1997 Ernst & Young report.

But when the bottom dropped out of the U.S. real estate market in the early 1990s, Japanese investors lost billions. Mitsubishi Estate Co. Ltd. was caught short on a $1.3 billion mortgage for Rockefeller Center. The property was later put into bankruptcy.

With their own economy faltering at the time, many Japanese investors were forced to move their money back home.

This time, Japanese investors aren't looking to directly own the real estate and hold large mortgages on their companies' balance sheets, said Mark Grinis, global real estate partner at Ernst & Young. Instead, Japanese investors are putting money in funds that will own the properties.

"It's not a lot of groups," Cushman & Wakefield broker Scott Latham said. "It's very, very few of them. They're kicking tires."

/...

[UpInArms]

27. US home loan demand rises first time in 4 weeks - on refinancings

http://today.reuters.com/misc/PrinterFriendlyPopup.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T110140Z_01_N14280440_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-MORTGAGES-UPDATE-1.XML

NEW YORK, June 14 (Reuters) - U.S. mortgage applications rose for the first time in four weeks, due to a surge in demand for home refinancing loans, an industry trade group said on Wednesday.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications for the week ended June 9 increased increased 10.6 percent to 1,499.4. A year earlier the index stood at 2,967.4.

<snip>

However, the purchase index, which is considered a timely gauge of U.S. home sales, was substantially below its year-ago level of 529.3.

<snip>

Fixed 15-year mortgage rates averaged 6.27 percent, up from 6.23 percent the previous week. Rates on one-year adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) increased to 6.09 percent from 6.05 percent.

...more...

[UpInArms]

28. Time running out for GM Portugal plant

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=businessNews&storyid=2006-06-14T093546Z_01_L14252272_RTRUKOC_0_US-AUTOS-GM-EUROPE.xml&src=rss

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - A General Motors (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) assembly plant in Portugal teetered on the brink of closure on Wednesday as the U.S. carmaker held 11th-hour rescue talks that labor leaders have dismissed as mere lip service.

"We are still in talks with labor representatives and the Portuguese government and we have nothing new to report," a company spokesman said from Portugal, declining to give more details.

<snip>

GM has said it would decide by mid-June what to do with the Azambuja plant and a source familiar with the situation said an announcement could come as soon as later on Wednesday.

Workers at the plant went on strike on Tuesday as concerns grew that the carmaker would shut the factory to cut costs. The plant, about 50 km (30 miles) northeast of Lisbon, employs around 1,100 staff and makes Combo delivery vans.

European labor leaders at GM plan a wave of strikes to protest what they say is a drive to shift output and jobs away from expensive western European plants.

...more...

[UpInArms]

29. Honda to recall 561,594 cars at cost of $24 mln - mostly in Japan

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=businessNews&storyid=2006-06-14T091952Z_01_T306391_RTRUKOC_0_US-AUTOS-HONDA-RECALL.xml&src=rss

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Honda Motor Co. (7267.T: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Wednesday it would recall and repair a combined 561,594 units of the Odyssey, CR-V and Step Wgn models globally to fix a faulty ignition switch that could cause the engine to stop.

The recall and repairs would cost the company around 2.73 billion yen ($23.70 million), a spokeswoman said.

Of the total, 483,185 units are in Japan and were built between October 1994 and May 1997, Honda said in a filing with Japan's transport ministry.

...more...

[UpInArms]

30. Global equity meltdown costs investors $2 trillion

http://today.reuters.com/misc/PrinterFriendlyPopup.aspx?type=businessNews&storyID=2006-06-14T091655Z_01_N13404346_RTRUKOC_0_US-MARKETS-EQUITIES-GLOBAL.xml

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The month-long slide in global stocks has wiped out at least $2 trillion in wealth, leaving investors few alternatives to preserve their holdings aside from bonds and money markets.

Investors have been dumping stocks, commodities and emerging market assets on growing concerns that economic growth will suffer from higher inflation and interest rates.

"It is essentially one consistent story worldwide, starting here in the U.S. There is a fear that the Fed's repeated commitment to limiting inflation demonstrates a willingness to risk economic activity," said Christopher Low, chief economist at FTN Financial in New York.

<snip>

Since its year high hit in early May, the MSCI World Index <.MSCIWO> of global stocks has lost $1.9 trillion in market capitalization, nearly 12 percent of its value and more than the economic output of the United Kingdom.

<snip>

The global sell-off, however, is not over and may only be just starting, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s global equity strategist Abhijit Chakrabortti.

"This is nothing compared with what we may see late in the summer and early October -- once slower growth finally sinks in and expectations for higher benchmark rates, at 6 percent or even more, come out," Chakrabortti told the Reuters Investment Outlook Summit in New York.

...more...

[UpInArms]

31. Pension funds suing companies on options (timing of options to execs)

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

WASHINGTON - Big pension funds in the United States, Europe and Australia are suing dozens of companies over the timing of stock options grants to their top executives, an attorney for a firm that is filing the suits said Tuesday.

The pension funds, which hold shares in the companies and include several union-employee funds in the United States, are using a prominent law firm specializing in class-action suits against public companies to bring their cases.

In expanding investigations, at least 39 companies are under scrutiny by the Securities and Exchange Commission or federal prosecutors for possible manipulation of the timing of options grants so that executives could reap a profit.

Pension funds "are completely beside themselves and outraged over the self-dealing that has gone on," said Darren Robbins, a partner in the San Diego-based firm Lerach Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP.

The suits target company directors for allegedly failing in their role as watchdogs. The aim is "to recover the monies that were diverted from the corporate till," Robbins said in a telephone interview.

...more...

[UpInArms]

32. Audit panel advisers voice backdating worries

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060613/bs_nm/accounting_options_pcaob_dc

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Advisers to the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board on Tuesday urged the U.S. watchdog panel to give auditors some guidance on the emerging stock option backdating probe at dozens of companies.

"We need to write some guidance for auditors on when they need to be suspicious," said Scott Taub, acting chief accountant at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and a member of the PCAOB's standing advisory group.

<snip>

Federal prosecutors, the SEC and the Internal Revenue Service are looking into possible manipulation of the grant dates and exercise prices of options given to executives.

Online security group RSA Security Inc. (Nasdaq:RSAS - news) said on Tuesday it had received a subpoena from the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York requesting records from 1996 to the present on the company's granting of stock options.

<snip>

In a practice known as backdating, grant dates and exercise prices of options are set retroactively to precede a run-up in the underlying shares to maximize the options' value.

In another possible abuse known as spring-loading, dates and prices are set ahead of news sure to boost options' value. Both of these practices can pose legal problems ranging from fraud to improper accounting to insider trading.

...more...

[stop the bleeding]

33. Good Morning everyone

the futures this morning seem to be on the robust side, I wonder if that is because of the "bounces" in the foreign markets and the fact that investors feel like the selling is a bit over done, especially when you account the 3 billion++ shares traded yesterday and the VIX is extremely high right now.

These CPI reports will be the helper/hurter on today's trading, if they come out with any kind of positive news then we may end the week on an uptick per my crystal ball.
:hi:

[Roland99]

37. *yawn*, mornin'

I figure with the small gains abroad, even a somewhat positive CPI report today will have the markets shooting skyward as it "finds footing in an optimistic direction" or something.

[UpInArms]

34. Gold rises as traders await CPI data

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?dist=newsfinder&siteid=mktw&guid=%7BB37E1815%2D9C39%2D41DE%2D93D0%2D47031720F5AD%7D&symbol=

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Gold futures rose Wednesday, as the dollar turned lower ahead of May consumer-inflation data viewed as key for the Federal Reserve as it decides whether to lift interest rates at its June 28-29 meeting.

Gold for August delivery was last up $3.10 at $569.90 an ounce in electronic trade. On Tuesday, the contract lost $44.50, or 7.3%, of its value, having been caught up in a sharp commodities sell-off. The dollar rallied, oil prices fell, and global equity markets tumbled on concerns about rising global interest rates

The rout was so severe that some analysts said the commodities rally that sent gold to a 26-year high above $730 an ounce in May is now over. But others disagree.

"We believe that higher oil prices, the approach of a peak in U.S. short-term rates, an increase in political tensions in the Middle East, and the expected increase in commercial demand for gold in Asia (as the price stabilizes) are catalysts for increased demand for gold," said Brian Tang, analyst at Fundamental Research Corp.

However, with the dollar now expected to appreciate in the third and fourth quarters, gold prices may weaken in 2006 before starting to rise again in 2007, he said.

...more...

[UpInArms]

117. Gold closes @ $566.50 - Silver @ $9.735 - Copper @ $3.056

1:54 PM ET 6/14/06 AUGUST GOLD ENDS SLIGHTLY LOWER AFTER A $575.50 HIGH

1:54 PM ET 6/14/06 AUGUST GOLD CLOSES AT $566.50/OZ, DOWN 30 CENTS FOR THE DAY

1:45 PM ET 6/14/06 JULY SILVER CLOSES AT $9.735/OZ, UP 11 CENTS, OR 1.1%

1:45 PM ET 6/14/06 JULY COPPER ADDS 4.55 CENTS, OR 1.5%, TO END AT $3.056/LB

[UpInArms]

35. Herley (military co) says some facilities suspended from federal contracts

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=businessNews&storyid=2006-06-13T193854Z_01_WNAS0927_RTRUKOC_0_US-ARMS-HERLEYINDUSTRIES.xml&src=rss

(Reuters) - Herley Industries Inc. (HRLY.O: Quote, Profile, Research) on Tuesday said some of its operations have been suspended from receiving new contract awards from the U.S. Government, pending the outcome of legal proceedings.

The affected operations include facilities in Lancaster, Pennsylvania; Woburn, Massachusetts and Chicago besides Herley's subsidiary in Farmingdale, New York, the maker of microwave equipment for the defense and aerospace industries said in a statement.

background:

U.S. charges Herley, chairman with fraud

http://local.lancasteronline.com/4/23252

LANCASTER COUNTY, PA - Federal prosecutors Tuesday slapped a Manheim Township defense subcontractor and its chairman with a 35-count indictment that alleges the company defrauded the U.S. Department of Defense.


U.S. Attorney Patrick L. Meehan said Herley Industries and its chairman, Lee N. Blatt, reaped profits of up to 300 percent on more than $3.9 million in sales of electronic components used by the Air Force and Navy.

Blatt, 78, is the founder and former chief executive of Herley, which develops and manufactures microwave technology for the defense, aerospace and medical industries.

Blatt is accused of grossly inflating prices that brought Herley profits of between 200 and 300 percent on three component contracts between 2001 and 2002.

One contract -- completed in January 2001 -- was for the sale of voltage-controlled oscillators for Air Force F-16 fighter jets.

<snip>

The indictment charged Herley and Blatt with 29 counts of wire fraud, two counts of obstruction of a federal audit, three counts of making false statements to the government and one count of major fraud against the United States.

...more...

Herley chairman steps down
Blatt resigns days after indictment for alleged $3.1 million fraud

http://local.lancasteronline.com/4/23333

LANCASTER COUNTY, PA - Lee N. Blatt has resigned as chairman of Herley Industries Inc., just 48 hours after federal prosecutors charged he and the company defrauded the U.S. military of millions of dollars, the company reported Friday.

<snip>

In the letter, written Wednesday, Daniel. J. Donoghue, Discovery Group managing director, accused Herley's board of ignoring lucrative acquisition offers and criticized its governance skills in light of the 35-count indictment alleging Herley reaped profits of up to 300 percent on more than $3.9 million in sales of electronic components for which it was the only supplier.

<snip>

"You must be concerned that the allegations of cheating the government might preclude Herley from doing future business with the government and its contractors," Donoghue wrote.

Tuesday's indictment alleges Blatt misrepresented the company's manufacturing costs and was behind the creation of a fake bid to justify the prices charged to the government.

It includes charges of wire fraud, lying to the government, obstruction, aiding and abetting and major fraud against the United States.

...more...

[displacedtexan]

58. How will this news affect Lancaster County real estate value?

The inventory there is already gi-normous and seriously
plunging in value.

Will Herley revamp by cutting jobs? Or will it fold up?

[UpInArms]

60. seems Lancaster County defense contractors have a history of fraud

and I don't know how it affected them the last time:

from the 3rd article linked in my post:

The indictment against Herley is the third against Lancaster County defense contracting firms during the past two decades -- International Signal & Control and United Chem-Con also were charged with fraud.

Though the top executives at ISC and United Chem-Con pleaded guilty and served years in prison, Herley and Blatt have denied any wrongdoing and say they will "vigorously contest the charges."

The biggest and most complex of the three local cases involved ISC, once an apparently thriving firm that employed 1,800 here but then closed in the wake of the scandal.

[UpInArms]

43. 1,140 mortgage jobs in Orange County, CA cut since March

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/money/homepage/article_1179463.php

Mortgage companies cut 1,140 jobs in Orange County in the last three months, and now some are putting up huge blocks of office space for lease.

That leasing spurt comes just as a handful of developers are marketing office towers they plan to build over the next two years.

ACC Capital Holdings, the Orange-based parent of Ameriquest Mortgage and Town & Country Credit, had the largest number of layoffs at 836 in the county, state records show.

In May, the company said it was cutting 3,800 jobs nationwide but declined to say how many local workers would be out of work.

ACC's layoffs are effective July 7, although they were announced in May, according to the state's Employment Development Department and the company. Most cuts are in Orange and Anaheim, and more than 100 are in Irvine.

...more...

[Roland99]

44. They've gotten down to the bottom of the credit barrel

Rates are still pretty damn low, historically, but housing prices and the programs they're having to create (interest-only, 100% financing for people just out of BK, etc.) have just about been exhausted.

[OrangeCountyDemocrat]

88. They're All Over The Place Down Here

There are 3 firms in the hall I walk down to get to my office. Wonder when they're going to begin subtracting employees.

[stop the bleeding]

45. did the futures just take a tumble? n/t

[Roland99]

48. Apparently: CNNFN - Futures plummet on price report

http://money.cnn.com/2006/06/14/markets/stockswatch/index.htm

[UpInArms]

46. Treasurys fall as core CPI surprises on upside

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?dist=newsfinder&siteid=mktw&guid=%7B3156B44F%2DD049%2D41D8%2D889A%2DF405684E38F4%7D&symbol=

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Treasurys fell early Wednesday, sending yields higher, after a larger-than-expected rise in core consumer prices in May bolstered the case for the Federal Reserve to increase interest rates for a 17th time at its June 28-29 meeting.

The benchmark 10-year note was last trading down 9/32 at 100-30/32. Its yield, used in setting corporate and mortgage borrowing rates, rose to 5.001% from 4.96% late Tuesday, bringing it back above the current federal-funds rate of 5%.

<snip>

Energy prices increased 2.4% in May, marking the third straight month of 1%-plus gains. Food prices rose 0.1%.

<snip>

In the past year, the CPI has risen 4.2% -- and at a 5.2% annual rate so far in 2005. The core CPI has risen 2.4%, the fastest year-over-year growth since February 2005, and well ahead of the 1%-to-2% comfort zone that Fed officials have talked about. The core CPI has risen at a 3.1% annualized pace so far in 2006.

Federal fund futures were pricing in a 100% chance of a rate increase at the June meeting, and a 43% chance of a rise to 5.5% in August, said David Ader, analyst at RBS Greenwich Capital.

...more...

[UpInArms]

47. BoA's Levy: Fed Must Hike Rates to Maintain Credibility

8:43 AM ET 6/14/06 FED FUNDS RATE TO HIT 5.75% BY END-2006: BOA'S LEVY

8:43 AM ET 6/14/06 FED MUST HIKE RATES TO MAINTAIN CREDIBILITY: BOA'S LEVY

Credibility and the Fed in the same sentence? :rofl:

[UpInArms]

53. Fed funds futures now certain of June rate hike

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7B99E43C50%2DD647%2D4B0C%2D8A51%2D483AFE80FAE6%7D&dist=newsfinder&symbol=&siteid=mktw

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The fed fund futures market is now certain that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at the conclusion of its policy setting meeting at the end of month following a larger-than-expected rise in core consumer inflation during May. The July contract was last down 0.04 at 94.75, which implies a fed funds rate of 5.25%, and a 100% chance the Fed will lift its target on overnight rates by a quarter percentage point from its current target of 5%. On Thursday, fed funds futures priced in an 84% chance of a rate hike. The U.S. Labor Department said the core consumer price index, which excludes the volatile food and energy components, rose 0.3% in May, matching April's increase, but topping the average economist estimate compiled by MarketWatch of a 0.2% rise. The headline CPI number rose 0.4%, matching expectations.

[UpInArms]

62. Printing Press Hums: Fed adds reserves through overnight system repos

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T134826Z_01_N14349774_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-FED-OPERATIONS.XML

NEW YORK, June 14 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve said on Wednesday that it added temporary reserves to the banking system through overnight system repurchase agreements.

Fed funds traded at 5 percent, the Fed's target for the benchmark overnight lending rate, at the time of the operation.

For further details on the operation, see http://ftp.ny.frb.org/markets/pomo/display/index.cfm

[UpInArms]

118. Fed's Fisher Finds 'unacceptably high' Inflation (updated with link)

1:56 PM ET 6/14/06 FISHER SAYS HIS FAVORITE INFLATION GAUGE UNACCEPTEDLY HIGH

1:54 PM ET 6/14/06 FED'S FISHER: HIGH INFLATION EXPECTATIONS HURT GROWTH

1:55 PM ET 6/14/06 FISHER SAYS BEGINNING TO SEE U.S. ECONOMIC SLOWDOWN

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T175145Z_01_N14322770_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-FED-FISHER-UPDATE-1.XML

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas, June 14 (Reuters) - Some measures of inflation show it running at levels that cause discomfort and are unacceptable, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Richard Fisher said on Wednesday.

"We can ill afford to somehow encourage expectations that inflation might gain momentum. For in today's monetary realm, with markets so fluid and swift, expectations can quickly become reality," he told a community luncheon hosted by the San Antonio branch of the Dallas Fed.

Fisher noted that the Dallas Fed's own trimmed measure of inflation -- which excludes the most volatile components of the price index every month to plot the underlying trend -- had been running at 2.4 percent year-on-year. He also said that household surveys found that people expected prices to rise faster in the future.

"To me, this is more than discomforting. It is unacceptable. To perform the duty you expect of me, I need to be relentlessly bird-dogging inflation to prevent a debasement of your dollars," said Fisher, who is not a voting member of the Fed's interest-rate setting committee this year.

Data out earlier on Wednesday showed consumer inflation running at a faster-than-expected pace of 0.4 percent in May, pushed up by a steep increase in energy, while core inflation, which strips out energy and food prices, advanced 0.3 percent in the month and stands 2.4 percent higher year-on-year.

...more...

[UpInArms]

124. Lies from Bies: Fed doesn't want economy to "drop out of bed"

But the Dimson and his friends are pushing it into the gutter - they don't want it to "drop", they want it to die.

http://today.reuters.com/misc/PrinterFriendlyPopup.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T180555Z_01_N14224490_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-FED-BIES-UPDATE-2.XML

HALF MOON BAY, Calif., June 14 (Reuters) - The U.S. central bank wants to see the economy slow, but does not want to see it "drop out of bed," Federal Reserve Board Governor Susan Bies said on Wednesday.

Bies also reiterated her concern, expressed as recently as last week, that core measures of U.S. inflation were running at levels that made her "uncomfortable."

"Sustainable growth is probably somewhere around 3.5 (percent) or maybe a little less in the next few years," Bies said as she answered questions from the audience at a conference sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

"We've got to come from 4 percent plus down to say low 3 percent ranges," she added, referring to the average pace of growth over the past three years. "We clearly don't want to see it just drop out of bed."

<snip>

Bies told the group a cooler U.S. housing market could help achieve the goal of sustainable economic growth and said growth could be trimmed by 0.5 percentage points if U.S. household wealth did not grow at all.

"Given the slowing conditions in the housing market, spending for the construction of new housing is unlikely to be an important direct source of overall GDP (gross domestic product) growth this year, after having contributed close to one-half percentage point last year," Bies said in her prepared remarks.

...more...

:crazy: for how many years now have they relied upon the housing industry to prop up this market? and now - oh, well - it's not soooo important anymore :shrug:

and what will it be replaced with?

:hide:

[UpInArms]

131. Recession Alarms Ringing: Eurodollar futures signal Fed risks overshooting

http://today.reuters.com/misc/PrinterFriendlyPopup.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T185542Z_01_N13443905_RTRIDST_0_FINANCIAL-BONDS-EURODOLLAR.XML

NEW YORK, June 14 (Reuters) - Futures traders are adding to their bets that the Federal Reserve's fight against inflation will come at the expense of weaker economic growth in the second half of the year.

The risk of the Fed's overshooting with its cycle of interest-rate increases has risen in recent days, reflected in the growing price premium on 2007 Eurodollar futures over their 2006 counterparts, analysts say.

This steepening inversion of nearby and deferred Eurodollar futures is considered a market gauge of trader sentiment on when the Fed will end its cycle of rate increases.

At this point in the tightening cycle, Fed policy-makers are walking a fine line, aiming to curb inflation without tipping the economy into recession. A larger-than-expected 0.3 percent increase in May core inflation -- which excludes food and energy prices -- will force the Fed into another quarter-point increase at the end of this month, analysts say.

"This tightening is likely an overshoot," said John Herrmann, director of economic commentary at Cantor Viewpoint in New York. "That will be met by a rate cut next year."

<snip>

"The inversion of red Eurodollar is implying that the market believes the economy will slow down in 2007 and the Fed will have to reverse some of the tightening it is putting in place now," said Terry Belton, head of interest rates and derivatives strategy at J.P. Morgan Securities in Chicago.

...more...

[UpInArms]

49. PIEHOLE ALERT: Dimson to spew crap at 9:45 EST

9:04 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE AT 9:45 A.M. EASTERN

[Roland99]

55. Now what? The results of his marathon 5hr meeting in Baghdad?

:eyes:

[UpInArms]

56. Prolly going to tell us how great the economy is

:eyes:

[UpInArms]

61. Dimson: Terrists - Iraq - Pressure - Inspiration

9:47 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH SAYS U.S. WILL KEEP PRESSURE ON TERRORISTS IN IRAQ

9:46 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH SAYS HE WAS INSPIRED BY HIS TRIP TO IRAQ

[Roland99]

69. Did he talk to God over there or something? Maybe he's gonna convert!!

[UpInArms]

70. Dimson talked about Oil and Violence and got a giant woodie

9:58 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH SAYS HE WOULD LIKE VIOLENCE IN IRAQ TO DIMINISH

9:57 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH: TEAMS READY TO FIX IRAQ OIL INFRASTRUCTURE IF ATTACKED

[Roland99]

75. He would like? He would LIKE? HE WOULD LIKE?!?!?!

FUCK HIM!


:mad:

[wordpix2]

89. also said Saddam wrecked Iraq's infrastructure (!?). How about Der leader

himself?

[Ghost Dog]

86. Good place to go to get close to your God (of wrath), I reckon...

Christianity: Jewish heresy; Islam: Christian heresy.

(And as for Protestantism, etc, well... 'nough said).

Give me Zen every time. :hippie: Damn. I'm gonna get tombstoned, for once in my life.

[UpInArms]

67. Dimson: Iraq = Oil - 'Be Careful'

9:55 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH SAYS IRAQ SHOULD 'BE CAREFUL' WITH OIL ASSETS

9:54 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH SAYS NEW IRAQI GOVERNMENT TO INCREASE OIL PRODUCTION

[UpInArms]

74. Dimson: Inflation not his problem

10:05 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH: PAYING ATTENTION TO INFLATION 'IS BEN BERNANKE'S JOB'

10:04 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH SAYS FED WATCHING INFLATION INDEPENDENT OF WHITE HOUSE

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7B3160BB67%2D533A%2D4EF6%2D85EF%2D0A4BED95B6F9%7D&dist=newsfinder&symbol=&siteid=mktw

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- President Bush sidestepped a question on whether he was worried about inflation, saying prices are the province for an independent Federal Reserve. "Monetary policy will pay attention very carefully to inflationary signs, that's Ben Bernanke's job," Bush said at a press conference in the Rose Garden. Bush said there are still "a lot of positive things" pointing to a continued strong economy.

[UpInArms]

76. Dimson: Iraq = Oil

10:07 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH: IRAQ SHOULD USE ENERGY ASSETS TO UNITE THE COUNTRY

[UpInArms]

94. Dimson want share of Oil for Trust Fund Crowd

Iraqi oil money should be shared with people-Bush

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T152148Z_01_N14348490_RTRIDST_0_ENERGY-BUSH-UPDATE-1.XML

WASHINGTON, June 14 (Reuters) - The new Iraqi government should set up a trust fund to share the country's oil money with its people and is forming special repair teams to fix quickly energy sites that are attacked, President George W. Bush said on Wednesday.

Iraq wants up to $20 billion in investment to boost its oil production to 6 million barrels per day (bpd). Iraq hopes a new law designed to attract foreign cash in its oil sector will be approved this year, the country's oil minister said this month.

Bush said Iraq's people need to enjoy the benefits of the country's oil revenue.

"It's an interesting idea for them to consider, to basically say that no matter where you live in the country you have a stake in the future of your country because of your ownership in energy assets," Bush said at a news conference at the White House Rose Garden detailing his surprise visit to Baghdad Tuesday.

"I reminded the government that that oil belongs to the Iraqi people and the government has the responsibility to be good stewards of that valuable asset and valuable resource," he said.

...more...

Didn't Dimson and his cabal castigate Chavez (Venezuela) for saying this exact same thing?

[Roland99]

103. Why, yes. I do believe they did!

[UpInArms]

78. Dimson: Rigging of US elections will continue

10:14 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH: REPUBLICANS WILL HOLD HOUSE, SENATE IN FALL ELECTIONS

[UpInArms]

80. Dimson: Outing of Undercover CIA 'integral' WH Strategy

10:17 AM ET 6/14/06 BUSH SAYS KARL ROVE IS 'INTEGRAL' PART OF HIS TEAM

[Ghost Dog]

87. Does he have any idea of the meaning of the concept:

"Integrity"?

[UpInArms]

50. pre-opening blather

09:16 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -1.5. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -0.2. Futures trade weakens ahead of the opening bell, indicating stocks may have further to fall before a bottom can be reached and a bullish tone can re-emerge since investors still need to get a sense that the Fed has inflation under control.

09:00 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -0.8. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +3.0. Choppiness persists in pre-market trading as futures indications are now suggesting that the major averages could open mixed. While there's no denying that inflation is still at the high end of what policy makers deem desirable and today's worrisome core-CPI read fuels expectations of even more hikes at future FOMC meetings, some notable analyst upgrades (e.g. BA, INTC, AMD, and AMAT) are currently acting as an offset.

08:35 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -4.9. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -5.0. Even with investors fearing the worst, a stronger than expected read on core-CPI has futures indications now suggesting another weak start for stocks. Total CPI rose 0.4% in May, matching the consensus, but the closely watched core rate (ex-food and energy) rose a larger than expected 0.3% (consensus 0.2%) for the third straight month to leave a 2.4% annual rate and suggest the Fed will have to keep raising rates to fight inflation. Fed funds futures are now pricing in a 100% chance of a 1/4% hike on June 29th. Bonds, which were off slightly ahead of the report, have slipped further into negative territory. The 10-yr note is now down 5 ticks to yield 4.98 %.

08:00 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +4.5. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +5.2. Futures versus fair value are signaling a modest rebound in the wake of yesterday's sizable sell-off. While a sense that the market is due for a bounce given the scope of recent losses, as evidenced by modest recoveries in Asian markets overnight, the market remains focused on upcoming CPI data (8:30 ET) to set a more definitive tone for today's action since it will provide a more telling signal as to the direction of Fed policy.

[stop the bleeding]

52. Thank you UIA

:)

[Roland99]

92. Just for you, stb: Short sellers: A rarer breed of investing

SPECIAL REPORT
Short sellers: A rarer breed of investing
Organized to thwart shorts, adversaries now make strategy more difficult
http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7B2202E518%2DB68A%2D41E4%2D84E3%2D9A1B828FF27D%7D&siteid=mktw&dist=

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- When asked if he knew of other leading firms specializing in short selling, the representative at the headquarters of Copper River Management LLC couldn't be very helpful.

"Where are the other three or four short sellers? If you can find them, give us a call," the person said, before declining to give his name and getting off the phone at the New Jersey-based investment firm.

...

What was already a difficult and sometimes gut-wrenching strategy has only gotten harder in recent years. Nowadays, more of the companies that short sellers target are fighting back with lawsuits. They also mount sophisticated public relations campaigns against shorts. And if that weren't enough, there's a new crop of newsletters designed to "squeeze" short sellers.

"The game has become so stacked against the short seller that it's just not worth the periodic emotional and monetary high that comes from being right with a bearish bet," Joe Feshbach, who used to specialize in short strategies, told newsletter Value Investor Insight earlier this year.

[stop the bleeding]

95. cool and thanks

seems like small fish like me don't and won't have any bearing on the market either long or short. If the market was trending in an up fashion which you know it isn't then I would be buying and selling Calls. Since the market is trending down, then my best option is to buy and sell Puts. I will take what the market gives anytime anywhere, these nets that companies are throwing out are only netting the big fish/market movers, little fish like us can easily swim through the holes to get to the prize, one thing as a little fish you have to make sure you are not someone else's lunch.

I know shorting is frowned upon in the market, but as stated before I will gladly take money out of the market whenever/however the opportunity presents itself. Keep this in mind as well, I only trade the options not the actual stocks, on top of that I never hold an option to expiration or even close I am just trying ride the Price movement of said option, just like if you were trading oil, turtles, gold or anything else.

I know Puts and Calls do have an affect on the market, but I would wager not as much as the buying and selling the actual stock, but I could be wrong like I have been many many many times in the past.

Thanks Roland99 ;)

[UpInArms]

54. 9:31 EST Markets embrace Interest Rate Hikes - Wheee!

Dow 10,724.07 +17.93 (+0.17%)
Nasdaq 2,076.52 +4.05 (+0.20%)
S&P 500 1,224.01 +0.32 (+0.03%)
10-Yr Bond 5.015 +0.54 (+1.09%)

NYSE Volume 44,944,000
Nasdaq Volume 64,196,000

[UpInArms]

57. 9:38 EST Still Rising

Dow 10,756.41 +50.27 (+0.47%)
Nasdaq 2,082.18 +9.70 (+0.47%)
S&P 500 1,228.28 +4.59 (+0.38%)
10-Yr Bond 5.007 +0.46 (+0.93%)

NYSE Volume 106,734,000
Nasdaq Volume 119,897,000

[UpInArms]

63. Cheerleaders' Report: U.S. stocks open higher as upgrades offset CPI

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T134109Z_01_N14289958_RTRIDST_0_MARKETS-STOCKS-UPDATE-4-URGENT.XML

NEW YORK, June 14 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks edged higher on Wednesday as brokerage upgrades on stocks such as Boeing Co. (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) outweighed a government report showing higher-than-expected inflation in May.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> was up 45.54 points, or 0.43 percent, at 10,751.68. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was up 4.92 points, or 0.40 percent, at 1,228.61.

The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> was up 11.22 points, or 0.54 percent, at 2,083.69.

[ALago1]

64. Odd

I have a feeling this little spike will start plummeting around 11:00 est

[UpInArms]

65. 9:53 EST Reaching for the Sky

Dow 10,777.53 +71.39 (+0.67%)
Nasdaq 2,086.53 +14.05 (+0.68%)
S&P 500 1,229.05 +5.36 (+0.44%)
10-Yr Bond 5.009 +0.48 (+0.97%)

NYSE Volume 248,419,000
Nasdaq Volume 242,524,000

09:40 am : Despite a disappointing core-CPI read putting pressure on the Fed to keep raising rates, stocks are showing some resilience at the onset and trading modestly higher. Total CPI rose the expected 0.4% but the all-important core component showed a strong 0.3% gain for a third straight month, seemingly nailing the lid on a 17th consecutive 1/4% rate hike on June 29 and raising concerns that at least two more rates hike are coming. Be that as it may, it appears investors may have priced in a worst case scenario since the Dow, SnP 500 and Nasdaq are down a whopping 6.3%, 5.3% and 7.0%, respectively, since the last disappointing read on core-CPI rocked stocks across the board on May 17th. DJ30 +40.09 NASDAQ +5.58 SP500 +2.15 NASDAQ Vol 122 mln NYSE Vol 86 mln

[Roland99]

90. Explaining the rise....

"Sometimes when a particular security or market stops going down on bad news, that's a positive sign that a large degree of that bad news may already be priced in," said Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist at Spencer Clarke LLC.


I was waiting for that one.

[spotbird]

71. That was a fright,

but since everything is going back up I guess I'll buy stocks again. ;)

[mike923]

93. buy them when the price is falling.

[UpInArms]

77. US 1st qtr service sector revenues fall 0.8 pct (technology loses - bedpan

changers gain)

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T140529Z_01_N14388759_RTRIDST_0_ECONOMY-SERVICES-URGENT.XML

WASHINGTON, June 14 (Reuters) - Revenues in key parts of the U.S. service economy fell 0.8 percent in the first quarter as a drop in the information sector more than offset a rise in health care services revenues, a government report showed on Wednesday.

The Commerce Department's Quarterly Services Survey showed combined sales in four key service sectors dipped to $851.08 billion from a slightly upwardly revised $857.98 billion in the fourth quarter of 2005. The decline follows a 4.9 percent rise in fourth quarter 2005 revenues.

First-quarter revenues in the information services sector -- which includes publishing, the motion picture and broadcast industries, along with telecommunications and data processing -- fell 3.8 percent to $249.18 billion after a 4.7 percent rise in the fourth quarter.

Revenues from hospitals, nursing and residential care facilities showed a 2.9 percent revenue increase in the first quarter to $202.95 billion after a 0.8 percent fourth quarter increase.

Revenues from professional, scientific and technical services fell 0.6 percent in the first quarter to $275.91 billion after an 8.7 percent surge in the first quarter, while administrative, support, waste management and remediation services fell 1.0 percent to $123.04 billion, following a 3.8 percent rise in the fourth quarter.

...more...

[Ghost Dog]

82. Carlyle raises $668 mln for deals in Asia

http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20060614:MTFH15850_2006-06-14_06-54-51_T289789&type=comktNews&rpc=44
Wed Jun 14, 2006 2:54am ET

TOKYO, June 14 (Reuters) - Global private equity firm The Carlyle Group said on Wednesday it has raised $668 million for investment in China, India, Japan and South Korea.

The fund, called Carlyle Asia Growth Partners III, invests in private companies at an expansionary stage with a track record of growth.

Three investments have already been made out of the new fund, including $20 million in Indian pharmaceutical firm Claris Lifesciences, $25 million in China credit company Credit Orienwise and $27.5 million in China's Anxin Flooring.

"Asia is a key focus of our global business," said David Rubenstein, Carlyle co-founder and Managing Director.

The Carlyle Group has $39 billion under management. Since 1987, the firm has invested $18.1 billion of equity in 463 transactions for a total purchase price of $73.2 billion.

[Roland99]

97. 12:19pm - Reached a plateau?

DJIA 10,778.73 +72.59 +0.68%
Nasdaq 2,084.25 +11.78 +0.57%
S&P 500 1,227.67 +3.98 +0.33%
Dow Util 403.43 -3.29 -0.81%
NYSE 7,768.93 +49.15 +0.64%
AMEX 1,813.84 +3.27 +0.18%
Russell 2000 677.46 +4.74 +0.70%
Semcond 439.38 +5.99 +1.38%
Gold future 571.00 +4.20 +0.74%
30-Year Bond 5.09% +0.08 +1.62%
10-Year Bond 5.05% +0.09 +1.87%

[ozymandius]

101. possibly a downside to today's peak

Dow 10,768.97 +62.83 (+0.59%)
Nasdaq 2,080.98 +8.51 (+0.41%)
S&P 500 1,226.39 +2.70 (+0.22%)
10-Yr Bond 50.50 +0.89 (+1.79%)
NYSE Volume 1,320,017,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,066,153,000

12:30 pm : More of the same for stocks as the market works its way through the New York lunch hour. Treasuries, however, have weakened as bond traders digest some more Fed speak. Even though Fed Governor Bies made no comments on interest rates or monetary policy in her prepared speech, debatable remarks about labor conditions and GDP growth have only exacerbated nervousness now that the CPI data all but confirmed accelerating inflation pressures.DJ30 +66.46 NASDAQ +12.10 SP500 +3.68 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1326/1567/1.02 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1395/1728/926 mln

12:00 pm : Despite a disappointing core-CPI read putting pressure on the Fed to keep raising rates, the indices are posting respectable gains midday as a market due for a technical bounce attracts some early bargain hunting interest.

Earlier, the Labor Dept. showed that core CPI was up a strong 0.3% for a third straight month to leave a 2.4% annual rate, which is clearly above the Fed's forecasted range of 1.75-2.00%. Not only did that all but clear the way for a 17th consecutive 1/4% rate hike at the next FOMC meeting in a couple of weeks but it also raises concerns that another hike after the June 28-29 meeting can't be ruled out either. Fed funds futures are now pricing in 100% certainty of a June rate increase and a 60% chance of another hike in August.

Notwithstanding continued uncertainty as to how far the Fed will have to go with its tightening efforts before it feels confident that inflationary pressures have been contained, which plays into our Neutral market view, six out of 10 economic sectors are trading higher. One can make a case that the bad news was already priced into the market since the Dow, SnP 500 and Nasdaq are down a whopping 6.3%, 5.3% and 7.0%, respectively, since the last disappointing core-CPI reading rocked stocks across the board on May 17th.

With regard to sector leadership, Energy (+1.8%) is pacing the way higher as oil prices recover some of yesterday's 2.5% pullback amid a decline in weekly crude supplies. Materials (+1.3%) is also surging as gold and copper regain some momentum following yesterday's sell-off across the metals complex. Technology (+1.0%), though, is providing the bulk of early leadership, benefiting largely from an upgrade-induced relief rally in the struggling yet influential semiconductor space. Follow-through buying in Intel Corp. (INTC 17.80 +0.68), which is surging 4% after Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock, is helping the tech-heavy Nasdaq record its first gain in nine days and hopefully stall talks of its longest losing streak since 1984.

With the yield on the 10-yr note back at 5.03% and the spread between the 2-yr note shifting deeper into inversion reflecting concerns about the pace of economic growth, the rate-sensitive Financials and Utilities sectors continue to struggle, which adds to the prevailing sense that today's rebound may be nothing more than a technical rally. DJ30 +56.37 NASDAQ +11.60 SOX +1.2% SP500 +2.57 XOI +1.2% NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1321/1538/926 mln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1368/1723/826 mln

[Roland99]

105. 1:13pm - starting to falter??

DJIA 10,751.20 +45.06 +0.42%
Nasdaq 2,076.80 +4.33 +0.21%
S&P 500 1,224.09 +0.40 +0.03%
Dow Util 401.82 -4.90 -1.20%
NYSE 7,750.25 +30.47 +0.39%
AMEX 1,813.05 +2.48 +0.14%
Russell 2000 674.84 +2.12 +0.32%
Semcond 437.41 +4.02 +0.93%
Gold future 568.50 +1.70 +0.30%
30-Year Bond 5.09% +0.08 +1.64%
10-Year Bond 5.05% +0.09 +1.83%

10,750, 2,075, and 1,225 in jeopardy again?



Maybe not...some pixie dust sprinkled in the last couple of minutes. ;)

[UpInArms]

106. 1:14 EST numbers and blather

Dow 10,758.32 +52.18 (+0.49%)
Nasdaq 2,077.09 +4.62 (+0.22%)
S&P 500 1,224.32 +0.63 (+0.05%)
10-Yr Bond 5.050 +0.89 (+1.79%)

NYSE Volume 1,430,329,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,149,965,000

1:00 pm : Major indices continue to sport modest gains but the Dow is now outpacing its Nasdaq counterparts. Pacing the way among the blue chips is Boeing (BA 81.39 +4.41), which is soaring after receiving a $4.5 bln order which underscores Goldman Sachs' upgrade and amid delivery delays at rival Airbus. Intel Corp (INTC 17.73 +0.61) is also providing some noticeable support as bargain hunters, also helped by some positive commentary out of Goldman Sachs, continue to believe the worst is over for a chip giant still hovering at three-year lows. Other notable Dow components with gains of at least 1.0% include AA, DIS, MCD and XOM.DJ30 +67.79 NASDAQ +8.62 SP500 +3.14 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1394/1525/1.09 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1441/1704/996 mln

12:30 pm : More of the same for stocks as the market works its way through the New York lunch hour. Treasuries, however, have weakened as bond traders digest some more Fed speak. Even though Fed Governor Bies made no comments on interest rates or monetary policy in her prepared speech, debatable remarks about labor conditions and GDP growth have only exacerbated nervousness now that the CPI data all but confirmed accelerating inflation pressures.DJ30 +66.46 NASDAQ +12.10 SP500 +3.68 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1326/1567/1.02 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1395/1728/926 mln

[UpInArms]

107. Universal Corp. (Tobacco Co) probe: U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T170519Z_01_WAT005823_RTRIDST_0_FOOD-UNIVERSAL-SEC-URGENT.XML

WASHINGTON, June 14 (Reuters) - Tobacco leaf producer Universal Corp. (UVV.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Wednesday that it has been notified by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission of a formal investigation into possible violations of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

It said an investigation by an outside law firm hired by the company's board found that about $1 million were paid over a five-year period involving its tobacco subsidiaries.

In an annual financial report filed with the SEC, Universal said it voluntarily reported the activities to U.S. authorities and received the SEC's notice on June 6.

...more...

[UpInArms]

108. Finance: The pain of mortgage over-extension (flashing back to the 80s)

http://today.reuters.com/misc/PrinterFriendlyPopup.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T165953Z_01_N14444427_RTRIDST_0_COLUMN-FINANCE-SCHEDULED-WEEKLY-COLUMN.XML

WASHINGTON, June 14 (Reuters) - Be afraid. Be very afraid.

If you used an interest-only or so-called "option" mortgage to stretch into an unaffordable house in the last year or two, you could be facing some dark times.

<snip>

But now some of those buyers could have worse problems than missing out on the home of their dreams. As mortgage rates continue to rise and those creative mortgages move past their introductory teaser rates, the monthly payments on those mortgages are moving up fast. In many cases, they are moving up faster than the value of the home and faster than the owner's ability to keep up with payments.

<snip>

It wouldn't be the first time. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, housing markets as diverse as Houston and Boston saw homeowners trapped in houses they couldn't afford to carry -- or to sell. In oil-based Houston in particular, some homeowners simply walked away from their houses and mortgage obligations, losing their homes and their clean credit reports in the process.

<snip>

That's enough to cause concern for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. The group's president, Susan Keating, recently said she sees the $2-trillion in adjustable rate mortgages written in the last two years as indicative of a "growing crisis."

"Consumers are over-extended with their mortgages and many ... homes will be at-risk with rising interest rates," she said, adding that many consumers signed up for products they did not understand.

...more...

[UpInArms]

109. Big Lay-Off Coming: Intel looks set to shed staff, unprofitable units

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/06/14/BUG3KJDKL11.DTL

Intel Corp. may trim staff and jettison money-losing divisions to help boost its sagging stock and fend off competition from arch rival AMD, analysts say.

Speculation has been building about a possible shakeup at the chip-making giant. In recent days, publications in Oregon and India, home to portions of Intel's 100,000-person worldwide workforce, have run stories about local layoff jitters.

Intel had no comment, but a spokesman said management has promised investors the biggest top-to-bottom review of operations in 20 years -- which coincides with the mid-1980s, when it quit the money-losing memory chip business and instituted its last company-wide layoffs.

<snip>

Intel's last big cuts came after the dot-com crash, when it eliminated 11,000 jobs in less than two years to bring its headcount down to 79,000 in 2002. That was through attrition and buyouts. Its last massive job cuts occurred when it quit the memory business to focus on microprocessors -- and shrank from 25,400 employees in 1984 to 18,200 in 1986.

Exactly what Intel will do and when remains a guess. Its operations are so far-flung that any layoffs would be dispersed. A spokesman would not break out employee counts by business unit.

...more...

[barb162]

119. I am so fed up with these mass layoff stories

Usually the jobs resurface somewhere in Asia

[UpInArms]

122. me, too, barb162 -

It seems they have decided that 'Murka is only good for their subsidies and doesn't care that the non-working or underemployed people of this country are being killed by their greed and stupidity.

[barb162]

145. and that's why Asia will eat our lunch

We will be going downhill economically faster and faster

[UpInArms]

110. United plans at least 1,000 job cuts

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-060614united,1,3026088.story?coll=chi-business-hed

(free registration or try www.bugmenot.com)

United Airlines will lay off more than 10 percent of its management and other salaried workers, the company's chief executive told investment analysts Wednesday.

"We'll be eliminating at least 1,000 salaried and management positions out of approximately 9,400 by year's end," Glenn Tilton said during a presentation given at a Merrill Lynch global transportation conference.

The jobs will be cut by year's end, Tilton said. It is the first large-scale layoff for Elk Grove Township-based United since the carrier's exit from bankruptcy protection in February.

<snip>

Tilton originally announced plans to reduce costs after first quarter results were announced last month, but this was the first time he specified how much the management ranks will be thinned.

Before entering bankruptcy in December 2002, United had about 83,000 employees. The workforce shrank to about 50,000 over the next 38 months.

...more at link...

[UpInArms]

111. US congressman (Baker R-LA) asks for Fannie execs perjury probe

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T172957Z_01_N14244533_RTRIDST_0_CONGRESS-FANNIE-PERJURY.XML

WASHINGTON, June 14 (Reuters) - A top Republican lawmaker said on Wednesday he asked the U.S. Justice Department to investigate whether former Fannie Mae executives perjured themselves in testimony before his subcommittee in 2004.

Rep. Richard Baker of Louisiana delivered the formal referral on Tuesday, requesting an investigation and prosecution if appropriate of former Fannie Mae (FNM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) Chief Executive Officer Franklin Raines and former Chief Financial Officer Timothy Howard.

"The accounting fraud at Fannie was despicable and demands punishment, but these men also had an opportunity to come clean, swearing an oath to tell the truth, which I believe the evidence shows they clearly and arrogantly flouted," said Baker.

...more...

[UpInArms]

116. Fannie Mae to face Senate committee Thursday

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?dist=newsfinder&siteid=mktw&guid=%7BFCC85F90%2D2A9D%2D4DB2%2D80CD%2DD5AD4A6AB9FF%7D&symbol=

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Fannie Mae is likely to come in for another round of intense criticism when the Senate Banking Committee meets Thursday for a hearing about a stinging government report on the housing giant's accounting scandal.

Among the witnesses is Fannie's (FNM : ) CEO Daniel Mudd, who, according to the company's regulator, failed to take an opportunity to examine some accounting practices brought to his attention three years ago. Mudd was Fannie's chief operating officer before becoming CEO in 2004.

Congressional and Bush administration criticism of Fannie is heating up again following a May 23 report by the company's regulator, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. The report said executives manipulated earnings to reap bonuses. The company agreed to pay a $400 million fine for breaking accounting rules.

<snip>

Mudd is likely to explain to committee members his efforts to clean up Fannie's books and change the lender's corporate culture.

He's one of six witnesses invited to testify at Thursday's hearing. Also among those invited to appear are Ofheo's acting director James Lockhart, former Fannie CEO Franklin Raines -- who was ousted by the board in 2004 -- and Fannie board members Thomas Gerrity and Stephen Ashley.

...more...

[UpInArms]

132. Former Fannie CEO will not testify before Senate

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T190416Z_01_WAT005830_RTRIDST_0_CONGRESS-FANNIE-RAINES-URGENT.XML

WASHINGTON, June 14 (Reuters) - Former Fannie Mae Chief Executive Officer Franklin Raines will not testify at a U.S. Senate Banking Committee hearing on the mortgage finance giant's $11 billion accounting scandal, the panel said on Wednesday.

The committee has scheduled a hearing on Fannie's bad accounting for Thursday and asked Raines to appear along with federal regulators and Fannie's current CEO, Daniel Mudd.

Raines, however, told the committee he was unavailable, according to a panel spokesman.

...more...

[UpInArms]

112. 1:38 EST Losin' that Lovin' Feelin'

Dow 10,726.95 +20.81 (+0.19%)
Nasdaq 2,067.35 -5.12 (-0.25%)
S&P 500 1,220.15 -3.54 (-0.29%)
10-Yr Bond 5.054 +0.93 (+1.87%)

NYSE Volume 1,566,449,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,258,526,000

1:30 pm : Per usual with the market's modest efforts to find a market bottom, sellers show some resolve within the last 30 minutes and push the indices to session lows. The SnP 500 and Nasdaq have both turned negative. Further deterioration in the influential Financials sector has been the biggest source of weakness. Dallas Fed President Fisher recently saying that policy makers must be "relentlessly bird-dogging inflation," with inflation measures at a corrosive pace, and that economic growth will slow from Q1 pace, appear to be the latest catalysts adding to a prevailing sense of caution as investors also await the release of the Fed's Beige Book at 2:00 ET.DJ30 +35.57 NASDAQ -1.60 SP500 -1.80 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1529/1412/1.23 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1527/1653/1.12 bln

[Roland99]

113. House of the Rising Sons blog: Conservative thoughts on Corporate Welfare

http://risingsons.spaces.msn.com/blog/cns!1FF898EC70F0ED78!1370.entry

I just returned from an industry think tank involving investment professionals, most of whom, like me, are staunchly conservative when it comes to all matters concerning the U.S. Economy.

Everyone agrees that we are headed for some rough times, but surprisingly enough this group of 90% Republicans didn't have the time nor the inclination to blame everything on Democrats and Liberal policies. Unless you want to include President Bush's hardcore 'Liberal' spending.... These are wealthy business men, who don't have time to lay blame on appartions or misnomers. They call a spade - a spade. And so they agreed on our country going to hell in a handbasket, economically, as we speak.

The facts that we have to face- beyond all of either side's emotional hand wringing and red in the face yelling- are:

The listing of items almost exactly mirrors what I (and many others up here) have been saying for many months.

[UpInArms]

114. Well! That was refreshing!

1. America is in massive debt and CANNOT afford Tax cuts on ANY Level.

<snip>

5. The American people that ARE "on the dole" is only a small portion of the billions in Tax cuts and breaks that are being handed out to these same corporations. Corporate Welfare IS Breaking America, not the money used fo feed America's starving families.

<snip>

Yes. Conservatism. It COULD work. The only problem is that the ones who have been championing those three ideals for the past eight years have been Democrats and Liberals. Go figure, right? It's time to roll up our sleeves and rip the labels off of our shirts. Blue collar, white collar- We will all be affected for the worst if we don't agree on those three ideals, NO MATTER WHO THOUGHT OF THEM "FIRST" and get to work on implementing them in our Country.

America First, Indeed. We need to make our Corporations put our Country Before Profit. It's a start. But we can't afford to waste too many of our country's dwindling dollars on expansionist zeal while we are sinking in debt at home.

<snip>

And THERE IS LESS TIME TO WASTE AS WELL.

I was wondering if these fools were ever going to wake up and see that we are eating our seed corn.

[Roland99]

115. Seems they're waking up. Question is, will they hit the Snooze button?

[UpInArms]

121. 2:03 EST Markets Love a Sick Economy!

Dow 10,750.48 +44.34 (+0.41%)
Nasdaq 2,073.78 +1.30 (+0.06%)
S&P 500 1,222.87 -0.82 (-0.07%)
10-Yr Bond 5.040 +0.79 (+1.59%)

NYSE Volume 1,717,816,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,381,183,000

[Roland99]

123. 2:11pm - Back to the daily highs

DJIA 10,775.13 +68.99 +0.64%
Nasdaq 2,080.53 +8.06 +0.39%
S&P 500 1,226.60 +2.91 +0.24%
Dow Util 403.60 -3.12 -0.77%
NYSE 7,753.59 +33.81 +0.44%
AMEX 1,806.88 -3.69 -0.20%
Russell 2000 676.29 +3.57 +0.53%
Semcond 437.45 +4.06 +0.94%
Gold future 563.00 -3.80 -0.67%
30-Year Bond 5.10% +0.09 +1.72%
10-Year Bond 5.06% +0.10 +1.91%

Market Diaries
Issues: NYSE Nasdaq
Advancing 1,407 1,272
Declining 1,792 1,718
Unchanged 141 117

[UpInArms]

125. Here's the "See, It's Not So Bad!" Blather

2:00 pm : Indices continue to trade in split fashion as buyers struggle to regain upside traction following the recent pullback. Mindful that interest rates will be heading higher, investors may be waiting for the Fed's Beige Book to offer some evidence that things are not as bad as recent inflation data and hawkish Fed speak continue to dictate. DJ30 +42.03 NASDAQ +1.45 SP500 -0.81 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1773/1198/1.36 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1808/1375/1.23 bln

The "investors" (ahem) have decided "it's not so bad"!

:rofl:

[Roland99]

126. That's why Dec lead Adv by a large margin?

:eyes:

[UpInArms]

127. shhhhh! this is LaLaLa Land!

[ozymandius]

129. That's HOPE disguised as a PLAN.

Otherwise known as just plain stupid.

[ozymandius]

128. Pity the bond traders today.

2:42
Dow 10,746.56 +40.42 (+0.38%)
Nasdaq 2,071.31 -1.16 (-0.06%)
S&P 500 1,222.04 -1.65 (-0.13%)
10-Yr Bond 50.56 +0.95 (+1.91%)
NYSE Volume 1,931,517,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,545,564,000

2:30 pm : The bulls send sellers back to the sidelines, for now. Signs that the economy is holding up fine and the absence of anything too disturbing from an inflation perspective in the Fed's Beige Book have helped renew some of today's modest recovery attempts. The Fed noted that, "economic activity continued to expand" in all 12 Federal Reserve districts, "consumer spending continued to increase," "labor markets continued to tighten," and that price pressures were rising in most regions but there was limited success in passing higher prices along to consumers, Bonds, though, have barely budged as the reports were written a little over a week ago so are a bit outdated.DJ30 +58.12 NASDAQ +4.18 SP500 +0.77 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1547/1446/1.49 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1622/1575/1.37 bln

[UpInArms]

133. 3:23 EST Schizophrenic markets head for the close

Dow 10,758.64 +52.50 (+0.49%)
Nasdaq 2,071.59 -0.88 (-0.04%)
S&P 500 1,223.57 -0.12 (-0.01%)
10-Yr Bond 5.050 +0.89 (+1.79%)

NYSE Volume 2,224,804,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,761,447,000

3:00 pm : Major averages lose their footing and again trading in mixed fashion. Technology paring its gains and subsequently relinquishing much of its leadership into the final hour of trading is contributing to some the market's struggles to retrace early highs. Aside from AAPL (-2.4%) and GOOG (-1.7%) -- two of the more influential tech names -- losing ground, the PHLX Semiconductor Index giving up most of its morning 2.0% surge is also spoiling investors' attempts to scoop up underperforming stocks. DJ30 +44.18 NASDAQ -2.98 SOX +0.2% SP500 -1.46 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1774/1239/1.64 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1785/1421/1.52 bln

2:30 pm : The bulls send sellers back to the sidelines, for now. Signs that the economy is holding up fine and the absence of anything too disturbing from an inflation perspective in the Fed's Beige Book have helped renew some of today's modest recovery attempts. The Fed noted that, "economic activity continued to expand" in all 12 Federal Reserve districts, "consumer spending continued to increase," "labor markets continued to tighten," and that price pressures were rising in most regions but there was limited success in passing higher prices along to consumers, Bonds, though, have barely budged as the reports were written a little over a week ago so are a bit outdated.DJ30 +58.12 NASDAQ +4.18 SP500 +0.77 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1547/1446/1.49 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1622/1575/1.37 bln

[ozymandius]

134. 3:24 update and bye

Dow 10,752.88 +46.74 (+0.44%)
Nasdaq 2,069.84 -2.64 (-0.13%)
S&P 500 1,223.18 -0.51 (-0.04%)
10-Yr Bond 50.50 +0.89 (+1.79%)
NYSE Volume 2,224,569,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,769,166,000

3:00 pm : Major averages lose their footing and again trading in mixed fashion. Technology paring its gains and subsequently relinquishing much of its leadership into the final hour of trading is contributing to some the market's struggles to retrace early highs. Aside from AAPL (-2.4%) and GOOG (-1.7%) -- two of the more influential tech names -- losing ground, the PHLX Semiconductor Index giving up most of its morning 2.0% surge is also spoiling investors' attempts to scoop up underperforming stocks. DJ30 +44.18 NASDAQ -2.98 SOX +0.2% SP500 -1.46 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1774/1239/1.64 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1785/1421/1.52 bln

[UpInArms]

135. 3:39 EST Sailing Higher - Wheeee!

Dow 10,790.18 +84.04 (+0.78%)
Nasdaq 2,079.26 +6.79 (+0.33%)
S&P 500 1,227.00 +3.31 (+0.27%)
10-Yr Bond 5.050 +0.89 (+1.79%)

NYSE Volume 2,351,644,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,858,841,000

3:30 pm : Stocks continue to trade sideways going into the close, as there still isn't a strong sense of conviction on either the bullish or bearish side of the aisle. The market's holding pattern has been further evidenced in the A/D line, as decliners outpace advancers on the NYSE by a slim 9-to-7 margin while those on the Nasdaq hold a 17-to-13 edge. A split ratio of up to down volumes also paints a similarly mixed picture at the Big Board and the Composite. DJ30 +47.52 NASDAQ -0.99 SP500 -0.54 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1743/1305/1.78 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1810/1411/1.66 bln

[stop the bleeding]

136. 20 minutes to go and the DJIA shoots back up to the day's highs

has peterpan and company made an entrance?

[UpInArms]

137. Spin: U.S. stocks rally; Nasdaq poised to end losing streak

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?dist=newsfinder&siteid=mktw&guid=%7B45B67F10%2DACB4%2D4843%2D8C9C%2DEE994FF75F5A%7D&symbol=

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock gains picked up momentum in late-day trading Wednesday, putting the Nasdaq Composite on track to snap an eight-session losing streak, as the market weathered a Federal Reserve report and consumer-price data pointing to pickup in inflationary pressures in the economy.

A broker upgrade for the semiconductor sector and its key player, Intel Corp. and a rally in shares of Boeing Co. gave the Dow Jones Industrial Average a further boost.

<snip>

"We're still getting the flight to quality that we've been seeing the last couple of weeks," said Paul Mendelsohn, chief investment strategist at Windham Financial Services, explaining the outperformance of the Dow versus the other major indexes. "Investors are still moving to large-cap, highly liquid stocks to protect their positions. It is not a good sign for the confidence that investors have in the market right now."

For Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist at Spencer Clarke LLC, the modest gains suggest the market may have anticipated the disappointing inflation data with the heavy sell-off in prior sessions.

"The consumer-price report was certainly disappointing. The year-over-year rate edged higher to 2.4% versus 2.3% last month. Both of these are above the Fed's 2% watch area. The year-to-date rate on an annual basis is now 3.1% while the annualized rate for the past three months has increased to 3.8%.

...more...

See??? They "anticipated" all that bad news - and that's good news!

[UpInArms]

138. 3:49 EST Going for the 100 point gain

Dow 10,802.43 +96.29 (+0.90%)
Nasdaq 2,083.18 +10.70 (+0.52%)
S&P 500 1,228.49 +4.80 (+0.39%)
10-Yr Bond 5.050 +0.89 (+1.79%)

NYSE Volume 2,453,870,000
Nasdaq Volume 1,932,895,000

See? They "weathered" the bad news - and so bad is now good!

:crazy:

[stop the bleeding]

139. Praise Jesus we are saved

:sarcasm: - will Thursday be a follow through day?

[UpInArms]

140. closing numbers

Dow 10,816.92 +110.78 (+1.03%)
Nasdaq 2,086.00 +13.53 (+0.65%)
S&P 500 1,230.04 +6.35 (+0.52%)
10-Yr Bond 5.050 +0.89 (+1.79%)

NYSE Volume 2,667,602,000
Nasdaq Volume 2,089,801,000

[Roland99]

141. Pop the bubbly!!

[stop the bleeding]

142. You mean the effing bottle that I had set aside for Rover?

Let's see what Thursday will bring ;)

[Roland99]

143. *sniff* *sniff*

yeah....that one.

:(

[UpInArms]

144. blather

Notwithstanding validation that the Fed will have to keep raising rates to bring inflation rates down to what the Fed deems as acceptable, following a worrisome reading on core-CPI, the indices closed near their best levels of the day as a market due for a technical bounce attracted modest bargain hunting interest. The Dow, a day removed from turning negative on the year, turned in the day's best performance among the majors, gaining 110 points and ending up 1.0%. The Russell 2000 also climbed back into the green for 2006 while Nasdaq snapped an eight-day losing streak and silenced talk of matching its longest losing streak since 1984.

Last month, the market plunged after the core CPI came in slightly higher than expected at 0.3% and led to expectations the Fed would raise rates a 16th straight time to 5.00%; the Dow lost 214 points while the SnP 500 and Nasdaq were off 1.7% and 1.5%, respectively. Today, May core CPI rose 0.3% for a third straight month to leave the annual rate well above the Fed's forecasted range of 1.75-2.00% at 2.4%, paving the way for a 17th consecutive 1/4% rate hike on June 29 and raising concerns that more rates hike are coming. This time around, however, the bulls took a victory lap amid a sense that a worst case scenario was already priced into the market. After all, the Dow, SnP 500 and Nasdaq were down a hefty 6.3%, 5.3% and 7.0%, respectively, since the last disappointing read on core CPI (April) rocked stocks across the board on May 17th. Not even more hawkish commentary from two more Fed officials -- Fed Governor Bies and Dallas Fed President Fisher -- and a Beige Book report showing some signs of a slowdown were enough to prevent bargain hunters from thinking that a short-term bottom has been put in place.

Energy paced the way higher as oil prices recovered some of Tuesday's 2.5% pullback after the Energy Dept. showed a decline in weekly crude supplies. Despite gold futures closing lower for a seventh-straight day, failing to hold earlier gains despite weakness in the dollar, Materials also regained some upward momentum and trimmed more than half of its 3.0% year-to-date decline. Technology, the worst performing sector this year, was the most resilient among the eight sectors trading higher, especially since a rising interest rate environment played into our downgrading of the sector to Market Weight last week. Intel Corp. (INTC 17.80 +0.68) led the charge, soaring 3.6% after Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock, while bargain hunters also scooped up shares of underperforming tech giants like Microsoft (MSFT 21.88 +0.37) and IBM (IBM 77.74 +0.81).

Keeping a lid on even stronger market gains, though, was the absence of leadership from the influential Financials sector. As if turning negative on the year yesterday wasn't enough, the sector continued to lose ground as weakness in Treasuries across the yield curve weighed heavily on rate-sensitive sector banks. To wit, 21 out of 24 components in the PHLX Bank Sector Index (BKX) posted losses; the index is 7% off its historic high of 113.7 on May 8th. The spread between the 2-yr (5.08%) and 10-yr (5.02%) notes shifted deeper into inversion, reflecting concerns about the pace of economic growth and adding to the prevailing sense that today's rebound may be nothing more than a technical rally.BTK +0.7% DJ30 110.78 DJTA +0.7% DJUA -0.7% NASDAQ +13.53 NQ100 +0.88% R2K +0.65% SOX +1.4% SP400 +0.5% SP500 +6.35 XOI +1.9% NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1444/1620/2.13 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1551/1714/1.97 bln