STOCK MARKET WATCH, Tuesday April 14

[ozymandius]

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Tuesday April 14, 2009

Bush Administration Officials Under Indictment = 2
Financial Sector Officials Under Indictment = 0
Financial Sector Officials In Prison = 2

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON April 13, 2009

Dow... 8,057.81 -25.57 (-0.32%)
Nasdaq... 1,653.31 +0.77 (+0.05%)
S&P 500... 858.73 +2.17 (+0.25%)
Gold future... 895.80 +12.50 (+1.40%)
30-Year Bond 3.69% -0.07 (-1.84%)
10-Yr Bond... 2.85% -0.08 (-2.77%)

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

Market Conditions During Trading Hours

GOLD, EURO, YEN, Loonie and Silver

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Handy Links

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Read more: du

[ozymandius]

1. Market WrapUp

Get Real
Energy will be increasingly expensive
BY TONY ALLISON

It would be a soothing scenario to wake up one day and know that our country is now powered by vast wind and solar farms, putting out ample clean, renewable energy to run our homes, cars and businesses. Unfortunately, that scenario will remain just a distant dream for now, although I hope it will one day be a reality for my children. In the meantime, we need to get real, as the fundamentals point to higher energy prices and more scarcity in the decade ahead. As with all crises, it will be a time of change, hardship and opportunity.

Those who believe the current weakness in global energy demand is the wave of the future may indeed be right, as long as the “future” applies to 2009. Those with a longer term horizon should prepare for a different reality.

....

The Gap

The crisis arises from the journey of leaving behind our cheap-oil past and embracing our renewable energy future. There is a gap of unknown duration that is heading our way. The gap will be a time of adjustment, and it will likely include much higher energy costs. It will be traumatic for those who do not see it coming. It may also prove to be very profitable for those who recognize that oil will become a much more precious and costly resource in the future.

For all the talk of “clean alternatives,” how are we going to get from 7% of domestic energy supply (mostly hydroelectric and biomass at present) to a significant percentage, say 75%? This investment will cost many trillions of dollars. It will certainly create green jobs, but who will pay for it? Last I checked, we are the world’s largest debtor nation, struggling to borrow enough overseas just to fund our current massive debt.

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

[ozymandius]

2. Today's Reports

08:30 Core PPI Mar
Briefing.com 0.0%
Consensus 0.1%
Prior 0.2%

08:30 PPI Mar
Briefing.com 0.0%
Consensus 0.0%
Prior 0.1%

08:30 Retail Sales Mar
Briefing.com 0.5%
Consensus 0.3%
Prior -0.1%

08:30 Retail Sales ex-auto Mar
Briefing.com 0.2%
Consensus 0.0%
Prior 0.7%

10:00 Business Inventories Feb
Briefing.com -1.2%
Consensus -1.2%
Prior -1.1%

http://www.briefing.com/Investor/Public/Calendars/EconomicCalendar.htm

[UpInArms]

30. U.S. PPI down 3.5% in past 12 months, down most since 1950 - core PPI up 3.8% in past 12 months

01. U.S. March PPI down 1.2% vs. 0.5% dip expected
8:30 AM ET, Apr 14, 2009

02. U.S. March core PPI unchanged vs. 0.1% gain expected
8:30 AM ET, Apr 14, 2009

03. U.S. PPI down 3.5% in past 12 months, down most since 1950
8:30 AM ET, Apr 14, 2009

04. U.S. core PPI up 3.8% in past 12 months
8:30 AM ET, Apr 14, 2009

05. U.S. March PPI energy prices down 5.5%
8:30 AM ET, Apr 14, 2009

06. U.S. March PPI food prices down 0.7%
8:30 AM ET, Apr 14, 2009

[Pale Blue Dot]

31. Retail sales down 1.1%!

That's going to leave a mark.

[UpInArms]

33. someone's gonna getta spanking!

:spank:

[UpInArms]

32. U.S. March retail sales fall 1.1% vs. 0.2% gain expected

06. U.S. March retail sales fall 1.1% vs. 0.2% gain expected
8:31 AM ET, Apr 14, 2009

surprise!

[Dr.Phool]

35. But, I thought we were saved!

We had a recovery, and a turnaround.

I propose a song for today. An oldie from Brian Auger's Oblivion Express.

"Happiness is just around the bend".

[Robbien]

54. Only dropping one percent. Who is doing all this shopping?

With three mil more people out of jobs so far since November, shopping is only down less than one percent so far this year. It is hard to comprehend who is doing all this buying.

[ozymandius]

3. Oil slips below $50 amid weak demand outlook

SINGAPORE – Oil prices slipped below $50 a barrel Tuesday in Asia as traders looked to U.S. bank results this week for signs a severe recession may have bottomed but remained pessimistic that demand for crude can recover in the near term.

Benchmark crude for May delivery fell 38 cents to $49.67 a barrel by late afternoon in Singapore in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract on Monday dropped $2.19 to settle at $50.05.

Oil prices have traded near $50 a barrel for the last two weeks after jumping from below $35 in February as investors struggle to gauge the health of a global economy reeling from its worst slowdown in decades.

....

The market was still mulling a forecast cut by Paris-based International Energy Agency, which said on Friday it now expects global demand this year will likely fall by 2.4 million barrels a day to 83.4 million barrels, or 2.8 percent lower than last year.

....

In other Nymex trading, gasoline for May delivery fell 0.64 cent to $1.39 a gallon and heating oil dropped 0.93 cent to $1.45 a gallon. Natural gas for May delivery slid 3.1 cents to $3.60 per 1,000 cubic feet.

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

[ozymandius]

4. SEC to review if BofA broke the law: report

(Reuters) – The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is reviewing if Bank of America Corp violated federal securities law by failing to disclose to shareholders Merrill Lynch's plan to pay $3.62 billion in bonuses before they voted for the merger of the banks, the Financial Times said.

Mary Schapiro, chairman of the SEC, wrote in a letter to a Democratic congressman that the regulator was "carefully reviewing the Bank of America disclosure" and had not yet expressed a view on whether the bonus plan should have been revealed, the paper said.

Last week, Congressman Dennis Kucinich said in a letter to the SEC that there were "significant questions" surrounding Bank of America's failure to disclose bonus details before shareholders voted on the bank's acquisition of Merrill.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090414/bs_nm/us_bankofamerica_sec

[ozymandius]

5. Citigroup may sell more Japan operations

TOKYO (Reuters) – Citigroup Inc (C.N) has told potential buyers of its Japanese retail brokerage arm that it may also be willing to sell its Japanese investment banking and asset management operations, sources familiar with the matter said.

While a sale would raise cash, Citigroup's capital level could suffer if the bank were forced to sell assets at too low a price, a big negative for a company reeling from more than $85 billion of writedowns and credit costs since mid-2007.

Citigroup put retail brokerage Nikko Cordial Securities up for sale in February. The bank may also sell all or part of its Nikko Citigroup investment banking and Nikko Asset Management fund management units, along with the retail brokerage, the sources said.

....

Japan's Kyodo News, citing banking sources, reported earlier that the three Nikko businesses combined could be priced at 800 billion yen ($7.98 billion).

Citigroup spent 1.5 trillion yen ($14.96 billion) to acquire the franchise, so selling the assets at a little more than half that could result in a capital hit.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090413/bs_nm/us_nikkociti_citigroup_4

[ozymandius]

6. U.S. Stock-Index Futures Decline; Goldman Sachs, Exxon Fall

April 14 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock futures declined, indicating the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index may retreat from a two-month high.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. dropped 1.6 percent after climbing 4.7 percent yesterday. The bank reported better-than-estimated earnings after the close of trading and said it plans to raise $5 billion to repay federal rescue funds. Exxon Mobil Corp. slipped with crude oil prices. Investors will also be watching reports on retail sales and producer prices.

Futures on the S&P 500 expiring in June decreased 0.4 percent to 850.20 as of 9:47 a.m. in London. The index closed at the highest level since Feb. 9 yesterday on speculation bank profits rebounded in the first quarter. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures retreated 0.2 percent to 7,978 and Nasdaq-100 Index futures fell 0.1 percent to 1,330.25. European and Asian shares advanced.

....

Citigroup, JPMorgan and General Electric Co. are among more than 30 S&P 500 companies scheduled to announce results this week. Profits probably fell for a seventh-straight quarter in the January-to-March period, the longest stretch of declines since at least the Great Depression.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aG2SD8bKAvjQ&refer=us

[ozymandius]

7. Fed’s Fisher Forecasts Steep Contraction in U.S. GDP (Update1)

April 14 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Richard Fisher said “grim” figures indicate the world’s largest economy shrank steeply last quarter.

“The economic data in the U.S. is quite grim, and I expect a contraction at a very dazzling rate in the first quarter,” Fisher said in a speech today in Hong Kong. He reiterated his prediction that the unemployment rate may exceed 10 percent this year.

The bank president’s remarks come as U.S. policy makers continue an unprecedented campaign to increase the money supplied to the economy. Fisher, 60, is among the most hawkish members of the Federal Open Market Committee, having voted five times last year in favor of tighter policy.

The central bank’s policies are likely to help end the U.S. recession, Fisher said in the speech at a luncheon sponsored by the Asian Society of Hong Kong. He made similar remarks in a speech in Tokyo a week ago.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aDUq7LXUlCkM&refer=news

[UpInArms]

25. More job losses and falling GDP ahead: White House adviser

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE53D2J320090414

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - White House economic adviser Christina Romer said on Tuesday that the United States will experience continued job losses and a falling gross domestic product for several more months.

"We know the economy's still sick. We know we've got several more months of job loss, for example. We know that the numbers on GDP are almost surely going to be very bad for this quarter and next," Romer, the head of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, said on NBC's "The Today Show."

The U.S. economy lost 663,000 jobs last month, driving the unemployment rate to a 25-year high of 8.5 percent. Economists polled by Reuters expect the unemployment rate to rise to 9.8 percent a year from now.

The economy shrank at an annual rate of 6.3 percent in the last quarter of 2008, the steepest decline since the first quarter of 1982.

Economists polled by Reuters expect GDP to contract by 5.0 percent in the first quarter of 2009...

...a bit more...

[ozymandius]

8. GM recalls nearly 1.5 million vehicles

(CNN) -- The possibility of engine fires has prompted General Motors to recall nearly 1.5 million passenger sedans manufactured between 1997 and 2003, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced Monday.

The recall covers certain mid- and full-size passenger sedans under GM's (GM, Fortune 500) Chevrolet, Buick, Oldsmobile and Pontiac brands.

The recalled vehicles all have naturally aspirated 3.8 liter V6 engines -- that is, engines that uses atmospheric pressure to bring in air for combustion rather than a mechanical blower -- according to documents filed with federal regulators by GM last week.

....

The company recommends as a solution for the problem a change in the bracket that holds spark-plug wires, which will be done free of charge. Owners and dealers affected by the new recall will be notified by letter next month with details.

http://money.cnn.com/2009/04/14/autos/gm_recall/?postversion=2009041405

[Demeter]

14. So, Just Don't Drive Your Car For a Month?

while you await further instructions?

[ozymandius]

9. Malls shedding stores at record pace

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Strip malls, neighborhood centers and regional malls are losing stores at the fastest pace in at least a decade, as a spending slump forces retailers to trim down to stay afloat, according to a real estate industry report.

The consequence for consumers: Fewer stores to shop and less product choice.

In just the first quarter of 2009, retail tenants at these centers have vacated 8.7 million square feet of commercial space, according to the latest report from New York-based real estate research firm Reis.

That number exceeds the 8.6 million square feet of retail space that was vacated in all of 2008.

Reis' report shows that store vacancy rates at malls rose 9.5% in the first quarter, outpacing the 8.9% vacancy rate registered in all of 2008, and marking the largest single-quarter jump in vacancies since Reis began publishing quarterly figures in 1999.

http://money.cnn.com/2009/04/10/news/economy/retail_malls/index.htm?postversion=2009041310

[ozymandius]

10. Taxpayer Funded GS Profits (infuriating post with Goldman Sachs snark)

Note: By coincidence, this post was written in International Waters a few miles off the coast of Grand Turks and Caicos. If Goldman Sachs wants to sue anyone over this, send your process server to the wreck of the B-29 bomber, off the north coast, approximately 80 feet below sea level . . .

Karl Denninger notes that a nasty rumor is circulating about Goldman Sachs amongst observers of the Street. Allegedly, GS is about to report their second-best quarter in history, +$12 billion or so…

In this era of finacial disasters, credit crisis, and recession, how is that possible?

Easy. You — and your grandkids — are the ones who paid for it:

“The fact that they (like so many others) are being paid by the taxpayer through AIG’s “conduit” for losses that didn’t (yet) happen at 100 cents on the dollar might be the basic math.

And further (and potentially much worse) there is the repeated statement by Goldman executives that they were “fully hedged” against a potential counterparty default by AIG. One wonders - was that “hedge” to be short the equity on AIG itself, perhaps?

Why is this important?

Because if that’s how Goldman hedged they got paid twice and the taxpayer literally got robbed. Someone in Congress needs to look into this now; there are already rumblings of investigation. Those rumblings need to get a lot louder and turn into subpoenas, not “polite inquiries.”

If in fact Goldman (or anyone else) was “hedged” against a possible credit loss from their CDS with AIG and they were able to collect on that hedge (no matter what it was) those payments through AIG need to be clawed back immediately as nobody is entitled to be paid twice for the same risk and reap what amounts to a windfall profit by quite literally engineering a multi-billion dollar transfer of funds from the Taxpayer to the firm!”

Makes you wonder if having a Treasury Secretary who was a former CEO of Goldman Sachs had anything to do with this.

Indeed, not only was Hank Paulson Goldie’s boy, but he was the same gentleman who so vociferously lobbied the SEC to allow the 5 largest iBanks to drop the net capital rule and leverage up 40 to 1.

more...

[Demeter]

13. Goldman posts $1.7 billion profit, plans $5 billion offer-This Report?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090413/bs_nm/us_goldmansachs_results_3



NEW YORK (Reuters) – Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) posted higher-than-expected first-quarter profit as it took more trading risk and said it planned to raise $5 billion of common shares to help pay back government funds.

The bank also said it lost $1 billion in December 2008, mainly due to trading and investment losses.

The New York-based bank has managed to sidestep most of the worst of the financial crisis, having posted just one quarterly loss since the middle of 2007, even as competitors posted four or more quarters of losses.

For the quarter ended March 27, Goldman reported net income for common shareholders of $1.66 billion, or $3.39 a share, far exceeding analysts' average forecast of $1.49 a share, according to Reuters Estimates.

Goldman's income came in part because of strong client trading activity in fixed income, currencies and commodities, where the company posted $6.56 billion of revenue.



...The results do not compare directly with Goldman's fiscal quarter last year, which ended on February 29, 2008, but in last year's quarter the bank posted net income for common shareholders of $1.47 billion, or $3.23 a share. Goldman and its rival Morgan Stanley (MS.N) switched this year to a fiscal quarter that matches the calendar year.

A RARE OPPORTUNITY

But the results were not all positive. The bank said its net loss for common shareholders was $1.03 billion in December, a month not included in its fiscal 2008 results and not included in the official results for the first quarter.

"December was a rare opportunity for both Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley," said Brad Hintz, an analyst at Sanford Bernstein. "A single month, without any comparisons that can be made with any other months, so none of us will ever know what goes into the month of December. It's one of those rare opportunities that CFOs dream about."

Between the December losses and the subsequent profit, Goldman's tangible book value per common share was essentially unchanged from the end of November, at $88.02, the bank said. Tangible common equity is a measure of the bank's net worth, ignoring intangible assets such as goodwill.

A measure of the bank's trading risk, average daily value-at-risk, surged to $240 million in the first quarter of 2009, compared with $157 million for the three months ended February 28, 2008. Value-at-risk represents the average possible trading loss on 95 percent of the days in the quarter.

Goldman said it planned to use the proceeds of its share offering plus additional funds to repay the $10 billion of capital it received from the U.S. government under the Troubled Asset Relief Program. The bank would pay back the funds if supervisors permit and the bank is stress tested by regulators.

The bank has been vocal about its preference to repay TARP money as soon as possible. In February, Chief Financial Officer David Viniar said the bank is looking to avoid the restrictions that come with TARP.

"We would like to get out from under that," Viniar said.

Later in February, U.S. President Barack Obama signed a law that placed limits on executive compensation for TARP recipients. Goldman Sachs employees have traditionally been among the highest paid on Wall Street.

(Reporting by Dan Wilchins; Additional reporting by Elinor Comlay and Juan Lagorio; Editing by Andre Grenon)

[ozymandius]

11. HSBC faces crisis over US credit cards

HSBC faces a meltdown at its US credit card operations where around $50bn (£34bn) has been lent to people with poor credit histories, say analysts.

Write-offs at the credit card arm of HSBC Finance Corporation (HFC), formerly Household, a sub-prime lender, could double to $10bn in 2009, according to brokers. Fears are growing that the bank could be forced to ask shareholders for more cash, on top of the £12.5bn it raised during its recent rights issue designed to bolster its balance sheet.

Analysts at Société Générale said that the strong take-up of the share offer did not necessarily "translate into smooth sailing for HSBC over the next couple of years" as it faced the prospect of rising bad debt and sour loans. The bank is not yet out of the woods, added SocGen.

Of particular concern are loans outstanding at HFC's credit card business, which stood at $49.6bn last year - representing around two-thirds of all HSBC credit card loans. The HFC credit card operation wrote off $5.4bn in bad or doubtful loans in 2008, according to the annual report, but made a profit of $520m. But analysts say that the profit will be wiped out this year and the offshoot will plunge into the red.

.....

There is no suggestion that HFC's problems will push HSBC as a whole into loss - its businesses outside the US are highly profitable. But the bank, led by Stephen Green, has admitted that its purchase of Household for $15bn in 2003 has destroyed about $10bn of shareholder value.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2009/apr/12/hsbc-credit-cards-us-business

[ozymandius]

12. John Dizard: Geithner's and Citi's Days Numbered (please!)

Now I will admit my headline overstates John Dizard's current column in the Financial Times a hair, but only a hair. Dizard has a somewhat baroque way of presenting his messages, and the color can take the edge off his communiques. Nevertheless, he has cultivated contacts among central bankers as well as at the major financial firms, so he typically has good intelligence.

The big messages are that Washington simply cannot make all the bank bondholders good, despite its pretenses it can. Citi is going to become a test case sooner than most realize. Dizard also says that the charade that the banks have a liquidity problem not a solvency problem, is wearing thin even on those who have good reason to play along (and as far as I can tell, there is absolutely no Plan B when the world wakes up and realizes what a crock Plan A was).

Dizard's certainty that Geithner and Citi are goners comes through loud and clear even through his elaborate prose.

From the Financial Times:

“That piece of shit up there, I never liked him. I never trusted him... But that’s history, I’m here, he ain’t.” Tony Montana (Al Pacino), watching a colleague hanged from a helicopter.

Scarface (1981)

It’s nearly time for some Washington careers to get the helicopter-noose treatment, particularly among the crowd of unvetted advisers and the tiny group of confirmed appointees at the Treasury Department. Politicos and policy hustlers have a style that differs slightly from Tony’s, but they’re about as sentimental. Secretary Timothy Geithner, not a bad or dishonest person, just a mediocrity who picked the wrong friends and trusted them for too long, can probably hear the rotor blades in the distance. Sadly, the prospective compensation packages for his next career are more modest than they would have been even a year ago…

For the rest of us, the question is who can be the next to take the lead on the national workout. That is probably Sheila Bair, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. But the FDIC needs serious reinforcement of its talent, and a different capital structure, for this to work.

You can pick out the likely geographical spot where the present bail-out wave will recede: 399 Park Avenue, the Citigroup HQ. Already, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp’s resolution planners are circling the holding company’s shareholders, bondholders, and – at last! – top management.

Even other Tarp financed Wall Streeters are getting tired of the pretence that the Treasury and its advisers are brilliant or that their schemes make sense. Vishwanath Tirupattur, a Morgan Stanley credit strategist, said on a conference call last week that “The policymakers think lack of liquidity and leverage is the main problem…they think prices are depressed more for technical than underlying reasons. There are clearly several asset classes where current prices are better explained by collateral performance.”

“Collateral performance” means that the banking system’s real losses, not temporary mark to market losses, are overwhelming the capital injections finance-able by Federal bail-out appropriations. Congress won’t vote for any more, because they want to safely return home to their districts and maybe get re-elected.

more...

[Demeter]

16. Whaddaya Know! Good News at Last!

the Easter bunny must have gotten stuck in a snowdrift.


Good Morning Vietnam!

At least it didn't snow last night---it sleeted a little Monday afternoon, just a jerk-around from Mother Nature or Grandfather Frost..

Hope all you Marketeers find the chocolate egg today!

"http://widgets.dilbert.com/o/4782b1ae641c3eb6/49e46b615657da0e/478cf2052d7472a1/22fb22f7/-cpid/71bc012ffa85d617"

[Dr.Phool]

38. I guess we just had a tornado move through the neighborhood.

The temps were so nice, I set up my laptop on the lanai with my coffee, and all of sudden it seemed like a hurricane was moving through.

It's calmed down a lot now, and we're getting some much needed rain. I hope it rains all day.

[Demeter]

40. How's the Immovable Object going, Dr. Phool?

My sister is still stuck in VA, waiting to see if our brother shows up to take over, or if she has to force Dad into the car and take off North....then there is the batty sister-in-law, who may or may not cause more trouble, who is the only one with any family reason to be in VA, and has made noises of moving in, or maybe only moving her kids in, but since she has produced the male heir, she gets priority...sometimes being an orphan has appeal.

[Dr.Phool]

47. I had him ready to move last week. Now it's a maybe again.

I found the perfect place for him in Clearwater. A nice independent-assisted living community. A 1 bedroom unit that was available, for a reasonable price, sitting right on the bay, outside the front door. He loved it. And he thought he might have a buyer for his place.

Now, all that has changed. He's back in SC. Hasn't heard anything from the "buyers". It really shouldn't make any difference. He doesn't have a mortgage, and the place can sell later. He has the income.

I guess I can keep trying.

[Demeter]

51. Good Luck! I'll Keep My Fingers Crossed for You

[sendero]

27. Wow..

.. it's really NOT all gloom and doom!

Though I doubt this guy's prognostications will come to pass, in this case it is ok to dream...

[Festivito]

15. Debt: 04/10/2009 11,169,725,647,724.50 (UP 259,267,716.18) (Small.)

(Both are up by a small amount.)

= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 6,892,886,957,946.75 + 4,276,838,689,777.75
UP 51,156,797.54 + UP 208,110,918.64

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

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 306-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.27 each THAT'S 1B$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.8, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 14 seconds we net gain a another American, so at the end of the workday of this report, there should be 306,140,658 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html
Currently, each of these American's owe $36,485.6.
A family of three owes $109,456.8. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 24 reports in the last 30 to 31 days.
The average for the last 24 reports is 8,804,877,562.59.
The average for the last 30 days would be 7,043,902,050.07.
The average for the last 31 days would be 6,816,679,403.29.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 57 reports in 80 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 0.64B$ per report, 0.58B$/day so far.
There were 132 reports in 192 days of FY2009 averaging 8.67B$ per report, 5.96B$/day.

PROJECTION:
There are 1,381 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 13.1 and 20.6T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
04/10/2009 11,169,725,647,724.50 BHO (UP 542,848,598,811.42 so far since Obama took office.)

Fiscal Year ends: Sep 30
Borrowed in FY1993: (Maybe later.)
Borrowed in FY1994: 281,261,026,873.94
Borrowed in FY1995: 281,232,990,696.07
Borrowed in FY1996: 250,828,038,426.34
Borrowed in FY1997: 188,335,072,261.61
Borrowed in FY1998: 113,046,997,500.28
Borrowed in FY1999: 130,077,892,735.81
Borrowed in FY2000: _17,907,308,253.43 Bill alone
Borrowed in FY2001: 133,285,202,313.20 Bill and George
Borrowed in FY2002: 420,772,553,397.10 All George
Borrowed in FY2003: 554,995,097,146.46
Borrowed in FY2004: 595,821,633,586.70
Borrowed in FY2005: 553,656,965,393.18
Borrowed in FY2006: 574,264,237,491.73
Borrowed in FY2007: 500,679,473,047.25
Borrowed in FY2008: 1,017,071,524,650.01
Borrowed in FY2009: 1,145,000,750,812.10 so far this fiscal year.

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
03/23/2009 -000,116,003,157.82 --- Mon
03/24/2009 +000,222,913,900.31 ------------********
03/25/2009 +000,059,898,960.86 ------------*******
03/26/2009 +007,175,786,187.90 ------------*********
03/27/2009 -000,468,145,936.78 ---
03/30/2009 +000,069,902,880.68 ------------******* Mon
03/31/2009 +079,841,314,678.25 ------------**********
04/01/2009 -001,742,860,350.87 --
04/02/2009 +007,764,243,786.78 ------------*********
04/03/2009 +028,967,677,130.84 ------------**********
04/06/2009 +000,073,808,356.95 ------------******* Mon
04/07/2009 +000,123,552,400.07 ------------********
04/08/2009 +000,050,639,456.95 ------------*******
04/09/2009 +024,055,285,655.59 ------------**********
04/10/2009 +000,051,156,797.54 ------------*******

146,129,170,747.25 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008.
US borrowed $1,505,093,844,465.43 in last 204 days.
That's 1,505B$ in 204 days.
More than any year ever, including last year, and it's 148% of that highest year ever only in 204 days.
And it is over 100% of ANY dismal Bush, for any dismal Bush-year, ONLY IN 204 DAYS NOT 365.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=3828664&mesg_id=3828727

[Festivito]

63. Debt: 04/13/2009 11,169,978,555,115.48 (UP 252,907,390.98) (Small.)

(Both move by a small amount.)

= Held by the Public + Intragovernmental(FICA)
= 6,893,196,397,961.72 + 4,276,782,157,153.76
UP 309,440,014.97 + DOWN 56,532,623.99

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

THINKING IN BILLIONS: Think 3 or 4 dollars per billion in a 306-Million person America.
If every American, man, woman and child puts in $3.27 each THAT'S 1B$.
A family of three: Mom, Dad, Child: $9.8, ABOUT TEN BUCKS for a 1B$ federal program.
I hope that is clear. However, I'd suggest using $3 per 1B$ to underestimate it.
Use $4 per 1B$ to overestimate the cost when thinking: Is the federal program worth it?
Aid to Dependant Children: 2B$/yr =$8/yr(a movie a year) Family of 3: $24/yr(an hour of bowling)

PERSONALIZED DEBT:
Every 14 seconds we net gain a another American, so at the end of the workday of this report, there should be 306,159,172 people in America.
http://www.census.gov/population/www/popclockus.html
Currently, each of these American's owe $36,484.22.
A family of three owes $109,452.66. (And that is IN ADDITION to their mortgage.)

ANALYSIS:
There were 22 reports in the last 30 to 31 days.
The average for the last 22 reports is 8,464,926,034.92.
The average for the last 30 days would be 6,207,612,425.61.
The average for the last 31 days would be 6,007,366,863.49.
There were 252 reports in 365 days of FY2007 averaging 1.99B$ per report, 1.37B$/day.
There were 253 reports in 366 days of FY2008 averaging 4.02B$ per report, 2.78B$/day.
There were 75 reports in 112 days of GWB's part of FY2009 averaging 8.03B$ per report, 5.38B$/day.
There were 58 reports in 83 days of Obama's part of FY2009 averaging 0.58B$ per report, 0.49B$/day so far.
There were 133 reports in 195 days of FY2009 averaging 8.61B$ per report, 5.87B$/day.

PROJECTION:
There are 1,378 days remaining in this Obama 1st term.
By that time the debt could be between 13.1 and 19.4T$.
It could be higher. It could be lower.

HISTORICAL:
President's term begins and ends on Jan 20.
(Guess who might want to hide the Reagan Bush years. Jan 20 data is missing before 1993.)
01/20/1993 _4,188,092,107,183.60 WJC Inaugural
01/22/2001 _5,728,195,796,181.57 WJC (UP 1,540,103,688,997.97)
01/20/2009 10,626,877,048,913.08 GWB (UP 4,898,681,252,731.43)
04/13/2009 11,169,978,555,115.48 BHO (UP 543,101,506,202.40 so far since Obama took office.)

Fiscal Year ends: Sep 30
Borrowed in FY1993: (Maybe later.)
Borrowed in FY1994: 281,261,026,873.94
Borrowed in FY1995: 281,232,990,696.07
Borrowed in FY1996: 250,828,038,426.34
Borrowed in FY1997: 188,335,072,261.61
Borrowed in FY1998: 113,046,997,500.28
Borrowed in FY1999: 130,077,892,735.81
Borrowed in FY2000: _17,907,308,253.43 Bill alone
Borrowed in FY2001: 133,285,202,313.20 Bill and George
Borrowed in FY2002: 420,772,553,397.10 All George
Borrowed in FY2003: 554,995,097,146.46
Borrowed in FY2004: 595,821,633,586.70
Borrowed in FY2005: 553,656,965,393.18
Borrowed in FY2006: 574,264,237,491.73
Borrowed in FY2007: 500,679,473,047.25
Borrowed in FY2008: 1,017,071,524,650.01
Borrowed in FY2009: 1,145,253,658,203.00 so far this fiscal year.

LAST FIFTEEN REPORTS OF ADDITIONS TO PUBLIC DEBT(NOT FICA):
03/24/2009 +000,222,913,900.31 ------------********
03/25/2009 +000,059,898,960.86 ------------*******
03/26/2009 +007,175,786,187.90 ------------*********
03/27/2009 -000,468,145,936.78 ---
03/30/2009 +000,069,902,880.68 ------------******* Mon
03/31/2009 +079,841,314,678.25 ------------**********
04/01/2009 -001,742,860,350.87 --
04/02/2009 +007,764,243,786.78 ------------*********
04/03/2009 +028,967,677,130.84 ------------**********
04/06/2009 +000,073,808,356.95 ------------******* Mon
04/07/2009 +000,123,552,400.07 ------------********
04/08/2009 +000,050,639,456.95 ------------*******
04/09/2009 +024,055,285,655.59 ------------**********
04/10/2009 +000,051,156,797.54 ------------*******
04/13/2009 +000,309,440,014.97 ------------******** Mon

146,554,613,920.04 Total of 15 above reports.

Heavy borrowing seems to start after 09/18/2008.
US borrowed $1,505,346,751,856.41 in last 207 days.
That's 1,505B$ in 207 days.
More than any year ever, including last year, and it's 148% of that highest year ever only in 207 days.
And it is over 100% of ANY dismal Bush, for any dismal Bush-year, ONLY IN 207 DAYS NOT 365.

For a prettier and more explanatory view of our nation's debt:
http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock

(Debt to the penny keeps changing. Stuff is missing. Best to keep our own history.) LAST REPORT:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=3830266&mesg_id=3830321

[TheWatcher]

17. Will it be another "Fantasy Island" Day in the Markets?

The Futures were down almost -100 overnight, as they have been deep red nearly EVERY night for the past six weeks, and all of a sudden at 3 AM, The Invisible Hand comes in and jams the Futures Green. (On Edit: they are red again after the finishing of this Post. Did Geithner's Prop Brigade go for a Croissant?)

I think I get it now.

The Criminals get to voraciously Rob, Steal, Loot, Pillage, and SURVIVE, and continue their Ponzi Schemes, and the rest of us get to perish either physically or metaphorically.

And the story for Today will be Goldman's "Surprise Earnings"

the only surprise in their earnings is how completely stupid the Public is acting and buying into it all at face value.

As a matter of fact, Goldman MISSED their earnings by a fucking mile, and the SEC and everyone is just sitting there on their asses and letting them report numbers that are PURE Fraud.

How did they do it?

When they "changed" to a Bank this past fall, they switched around their reporting cycle so their fiscal quarters would be in line with calendar quarters beginning Jan. 1.

So according to them, December never happened.

They lost $1 Billion in December. (-$2.15)

Which, if December existed, would give them earnings of 124 vs. the expected 166.

They lied. they reported Pure fraud and no one said anything, and Washington, the SEC, and the Media sit around and smile and giggle like it's so fucking funny and wonderful.

Oh, and Wells Fargo? Oh, THAT. Well, it turns out and was reported VERY quietly yesterday, but they are going to need another $50 billion in new funding. That's so STRANGE since their "Expectations" are for "Record Profits".

So what are the bets everyone is willing to place? Since we have no representation in Government, a Media that might as well be Soviet Lite, Mafioso running EVERYTHING and looting, stealing, robbing, and pillaging at will, and a Public who is so wedded to delusion they'd rather DIE in order to keep beleiving in a lie than face the truth, how long can TPTB keep this going?

How long can they artificially prop the market and brainwash the public into believing everything is good?

Meet The New Fucked Up Country.

Same As the Old Fucked Up Country.

Soon To Be A THIRD WORLD Country.

P.S. Now the word is GM is structuring for bankruptcy by June.

Happy Days!

[Demeter]

18. I Don't Know. I Just Want to Hook Up My Printer

the Younger Kid never connected it when she put the new computer together for Xmas for me.

And then I could hook up my stereo--moved in 11 years ago next month, and never had the time, energy or peace of mind to do it....


Demeter, Inc. needs some restructuring, too. That's my current fantasy, anyway....

[TheWatcher]

19. I'm going to take Prince Mao in for his first Vet appointment today

And then engage in my current fantasy, which is finally getting the brakes on the Taurus Station Wagon fixed. :)

Then it's business stuff for the rest of the day.

Honestly, Demeter I just can't watch this anymore. It's like living in an Orwell Novel, only it's all real, and it's all happening.

I mean, what is there left to say?

Criminals run the country.

End of discussion.

*Sigh*

Maybe I'll blow off the rest of the day after Mao's appointment and just play Half Life, where you actually get to CONFRONT the Evil Government and their Mad Experiments gone wrong.

Oh, Wait.....The Evil Government wins in THAT one, too.

:banghead:

[Demeter]

20. Fixing the Brakes Sounds Like a Good Idea

How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

[TheWatcher]

22. Indeed.

Hope things are going well for you.

I haven't posted in a bit.

I think I am just burnt out on all of this, to be honest.

Everyday, it's just never-ending, relentless, in your face criminality.

[Dr.Phool]

39. It's kind of like watching a train wreck in slow motion.

You know it's going to end horribly, but you can't take your eyes off of it.

[Demeter]

41. All the While Being in the Path of the Train Wreck

and completely unable to move out of the way...

[Dr.Phool]

50. I've been in some memorable ones.

Fortunately, nobody was hurt in any of those. The one happening now, I don't think we'll be so lucky.

[tclambert]

21. That cartoon makes me wonder if Tom Brokaw is working on a sequel to "The Greatest Generation"

called "The Worst Generation." And that would be Us--dope-smoking hippies who lost the Vietnam war, then sold out for Wall Street jobs that impoverished the world, let W play President for 8 years, let the unions shrivel up, basically lost faith in government after Watergate and said, "Why bother trying?" and stood by while the world went to crap.

Excuse me, I have to go apologize to my son.

[Wednesdays]

37. All while pointing fingers at the most powerless of people

for creating the mess.

[54anickel]

43. Wow, just wow...broad brush there tclambert.

[InkAddict]

46. Speak for yourself, of course.

[natrat]

55. it was ez, they (we) just got fed bubbles so they felt rich and didn't complain

[Tansy_Gold]

57. But, wait a minute. It was the "greatest generation" that raised us

The generation that went through "The Depression" and "The War" and didn't learn anything from those lessons except to teach their kids -- us, the dope-smokin', Earth Day, back to the land hippies -- to want all the things they never had.

:sarcasm:

Neither generation was ever in charge, never knew they had the power to effect change. Roosevelt -- one of the elites but an aberration -- made changes, but they didn't stick more than a generation or so. then we got stuck with raygun.

Our CULTURE is rife with father figures and so we follow when one presents itself. We don't have a culture of thinking for ourselves, of recognizing our own power, our own commun-ity, our own interconnectedness and self-inter-independence (if that makes sense).

Don't blame the greatest generation or the boomers or the Xers or the Yers or any of 'em -- blame TPTB. It's their fault. Always has been.


Tansy Gold, who ain't takin' the blame for what the bastards did.

[AnneD]

59. As a peace loving......

lifetime recycling fiscally responsible hippie-there is not a day that goes by when I don't apologize to my daughter. It wasn't suppose to be like this and I taught her better. We have left a sorry legacy-we are no better than locust.

Edited to add....We need a culture of cooperation not competition. We will either learn how to cooperate or perish. I really had a great advantage in having an Indian tradition. It may not seem as strong as it was in my Grandfather's time-but as I grow older-I reflect back on what he taught me. He didn't say much but his words were gold.

[UpInArms]

23. dollar watch

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

Last trade 84.817 Change +0.221 (+0.28%)

USD Finding Bid Tone Ahead of Event Risk

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/bio2/USD_Finding_Bid_Tone_Ahead_1239707981714.html

With little in the way of any event risk overnight, the market was once again left trading on the broader global macro developments. Despite the initially positive market reaction to the Goldman Sachs earnings from late Monday, the market has once again turned back to a risk averse mentality, with the better earnings being taken with less than a grain of salt. We continue to see a divergence from familiar currency correlations with Sterling and Yen outperforming on the day against the USD, while Swissy and Kiwi are the underperformers. Meanwhile, equity futures point to a lower open, while commodities are relatively flat. Heavy cross related selling in the Euro through Eur/Jpy and Eur/Gbp has weighed on Eur/Usd today, along with dovish comments from ECB Orphanides who says that deflation risks have increased somewhat. Fed Fisher was also on the wires overnight saying that US economic data was “quite grim” and that the US unemployment rate may exceed 10% by the end of 2009. Looking ahead, key event risk in the North American session comes in the form of US retail sales (0.3% expected) and PPI (-2.2% expected) due at 12:30GMT. Also due out are business inventories (-1.2% expected) and consumer confidence at 14:00GMT and 21:00GMT respectively. On the official circuit, Fed Evans is slated to speak on risk management at 14:30GMT, followed by the more anticipated Bernanke conference on the financial crisis at 17:30GMT. Fed Stern is also scheduled to speak on risk management later in the day at 20:45GMT. Finally, President Obama is scheduled to speak and traders will look for added insights from the President on the current progress and future outlook for the economy.

...more...

Euro Under Pressure On Dimming Global Growth Outlook, Will U.S. Retail Sales Give Direction For The Dollar?

http://www.dailyfx.com/story/bio1/Euro_Under_Pressure_On_Diming_1239703114082.html

The Euro has come under pressure as global recession concerns have offset the optimism that was spurred by a better than expected earnings release from Goldman Sachs. The euro /dollar fell to as low as 1.3266 in European trading after it ran into resistance at the 20-day SMA at 1.3392. A light economic calendar for a third straight day has left price action at the mercy of the broader themes which may be the case until we see Euro-zone inflation data on Thursday. The only release was the French current account which showed its deficit narrowing to 2.2 billion. We have also seen very little rhetoric from the ECB since committee member Nout Wellink stated last Friday that the central bank could make additional cuts to its benchmark rate. Giving the possibility of future easing and the expectation of an increase in non-standard measures, we may see downside risks remain for the single currency. The 100-Day SMA at 1.3188 will be a key level to watch. A break below support there could leave the pair susceptible to a drop to 1.3000, where we find the 50-Day SMA.

The pound has been supported overnight despite the growing concerns over global growth which sent the sterling/dollar to a low of 1.4827 during overnight trading. The pair reached as high as 1.4922 on the back of the increasing optimism over the banking sector but the dimming global growth outlook has since kept price action choppy. The 1.5000 price level may prove as formidable resistance and we could see downside risk increase if it holds. However, a break above there leaves the 1/8 high of 1.5375 as the next barrier.

The yen has been receiving support overnight on the back of the dimming outlook for the global economy which was based on the Singapore economy shrinking the most since its independence in 1969. Real gross domestic product fell by 19.7% on an annualized, seasonally adjusted basis, from the previous quarter which was much deeper than the 7.5% that was projected. Although we are starting to see yen support, if the earnings season continues to surprise to the upside and the U.S. economy shows signs of recovery, we could see weakness resume as the currency revives its funding status. The 200-Day SMA at 98.99 remains the key level to watch and a break below there would leave the pair susceptible to a significant move lower. However, we are seeing the 20-Day SMA on the verge of crossing the longer term technical indicator which could be a sign of continued bullish momentum.

The dollar has seen fluctuating sentiment as traders try and decipher whether the positive earnings from Goldman Sachs is a reflection of the company’s aptitude or the broader economy. Additionally, there are divergent views on whether a U.S. recovery is bearish or bullish for the greenback over the short-term. Many believe that improving optimism will lead to a reversal of safe-haven flows leading to dollar weakness, while the opposing viewpoint is that an improving economy is beneficial and outgoing flows will be offset by demand for risky assets. Today’s U.S. retail sales report may give us further insight as consumption is forecasted to have risen by 0.3% in March. This would be only the second positive print in the last eight months and after a solid start to the earnings season, it could spark risk appetite. However, markets have been skeptical that we may see an increase in domestic demand as mounting job losses may be too much for Americans to overcome and that has been reflected in equity futures trading lower during the overnight. The positive forecast is based on the fact that tax returns started to hit consumer’s pockets and with their savings rate already above 4% has spurred a consumption increase.

...more...

[UpInArms]

24. NY looks into possible pension kickbacks: report (Carlyle Group involved)

http://www.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idUSTRE53D0RW20090414?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Securities and Exchange Commission and New York state prosecutors are investigating whether investment firms made improper payments of millions of dollars to intermediaries to gain business from the state's pension fund, The New York Times reported on Tuesday.

In the report on its website, The New York Times said two people with direct knowledge of the case said the inquiry involves a number of investment companies, including Carlyle Group, one of the world's largest private equity firms. It said Carlyle manages $1.5 billion of the state's pension assets.

The New York Times quoted Carlyle spokesman Christopher Ullman as saying: "Carlyle has fully cooperated with the New York attorney general's investigation. We understand this is an industrywide investigation and that we are not the focus of the investigation."

The New York Times said it was told by sources the investigators were looking into several firms for potential civil charges. SEC officials and the attorney general's office declined to comment, the New York Times said.

It said the inquiry was looking into the practice of "paying so-called placement agents to gain business managing the pension funds run by states for public employees."

...more...

[Demeter]

26. I found a new website!

http://imgsrv.gocomics.com/dim/?fh=9c0f9387b2012a871fa57be392ec9fa0

[nc4bo]

29. Ha, the kiddies don't look one bit impressed with that monstrosity..

Dad should be ashamed of himself. Doesn't he know by now that kids (and some adults I hope) usually have extremely well tuned bullshit meters?

[DemReadingDU]

28. David Goodnow interviews Martin Weiss

4/13/09
Edit: This isn't me speaking, but Goodnow and Weiss.

My name is David Goodnow, former CNN news anchor, and I am here to interview Dr. Martin D. Weiss, founder and chairman of Weiss Research.

Today, Dr. Weiss is stepping up to the plate to help each of us as individuals prepare for the coming storm — and, at the same time, to launch a remarkable national campaign to help ensure that it does as little damage to America’s economic future as possible.

Dr. Weiss is one of the only ones who specifically named almost every major company to fail in recent years. He is one of the very few who saw this great economic catastrophe coming years ahead of time, warned of it repeatedly in the most public ways possible, and who has helped hundreds of thousands of individuals weather the storm.

In this one-hour briefing, Dr. Weiss will equip you to get your family through this crisis in safety … make your voice heard in Washington in a uniquely powerful and effective way … and get urgently needed help to the most innocent victims of this crisis.
.
.
.
Goodnow: But what about the positive signs we’re seeing on Wall Street right now? What about the rally we’ve seen recently in stocks?

Weiss: It’s a trap. Even after the 1929 Crash, we had rally after rally just like this one — up 30 percent the first time, 48 percent the second time, 23 percent the third time, and more. Each time, my father used those rallies as selling opportunities. And sure enough, after each temporary bounce, the market plunged far further.

Right now, unemployment is getting worse far more rapidly than at the end of a recession. Bankruptcies are still soaring. Credit is still scarce.

And never forget: Three major world organizations — the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the Organization of Economic Development — are unanimously predicting the first global decline since the Great Depression. Plus, they’re predicting even sharper declines precisely in the same area that made the 1930s experience so severe: world trade. Look at this chart!

Goodnow: World trade is falling off a cliff.

Weiss: Yes, it is. The key point is this: No matter how often or sharply the stock market rallies … no matter how much the G-20 countries stimulate their economies … regardless of any near-term bounce in this or that sector of our economy … this decline is the big picture context of the entire globe.

Goodnow: I think most people agree it’s going to take a heck of a lot of stimulus to turn that monster of a decline around.

Weiss: More than anything that any government could possibly afford! So let’s not mince words or sugarcoat this: Right now, the global economy is already sliding into the first Great Depression of the twenty-first century.

That depression is already bringing big cutbacks in industrial production, severe declines in corporate revenues, massive unemployment and bankruptcies. It has already unleashed the most powerful vicious cycle of all time.

Goodnow: Which is …

Weiss: The collapse in credit, which kills revenues … and a collapse in revenues, which kills the credit of millions of borrowers.

Goodnow: Caused by the housing boom and bust in America.

Weiss: Yes, but the roots of this crisis go far deeper than the housing boom or the mortgage bubble. They go all the way back to the 1960s, when my father’s Sound Dollar Committee was finally overwhelmed by events … when Eisenhower’s balanced budget was abandoned … when we began a nonstop climb up a mountain of debt, punctuated, of course, by temporary pauses and recessions.

Goodnow: And now?

Weiss: Now, we’re sliding down the other side of that mountain — and, of course, the decline is also punctuated by temporary pauses like the one you’re seeing in the economy and the stock market … which, by the way, is a godsend for all those who missed the chance to get to safety in 2008.

read the rest of the transcript
http://www.moneyandmarkets.com/major-announcement-33131

[UpInArms]

34. Deere to cut about 200 salaried jobs

01. Deere to cut about 200 salaried jobs
8:39 AM ET, Apr 14, 2009

02. Deere sets new global operating model
8:38 AM ET, Apr 14, 2009

03. Deere sees pre-tax charges of about $25 million
8:38 AM ET, Apr 14, 2009

[54anickel]

36. Ewww, divisive toon today...very divisive. I see the oligarchs have begun releasing the goats.

[InkAddict]

48. Stop picking on Capricorns

Capricorn is one of the most stable and (mostly) serious of the zodiacal types. These independent, rocklike characters have many sterling qualities. They are normally confident, strong willed and calm. These hardworking, unemotional, shrewd, practical, responsible, persevering, and cautious to the extreme persons, are capable of persisting for as long as is necessary to accomplish a goal they have set for themselves. They are reliable workers in almost any profession they undertake. They are the major finishers of most projects started by the 'pioneering' signs; with firm stick-to-it-ness they quickly become the backbone of any company they work for.

Capricornians make of themselves, resourceful, determined managers; setting high standards for themselves and others. They strive always for honesty in their criticism of self, they respect discipline from above and demand it from those beneath them. In their methodical, tough, stubborn, unyielding way, they persist against personal hardship, putting their families and/or their work before their own needs and welfare to reach their objectives long after others have given up and fallen by the wayside. In fact when practical ability allied with the drive of ambition are required in employees to make a project succeed, Capricornians are the people to hire. They plan carefully to fulfill their ambitions (which often include becoming wealthy), they are economical without meanness, and able to achieve great results with minimum effort and expense. Because of their organizing ability they are able to work on several projects simultaneously.

They have a great respect for authority but may not, if they reach high rank, be willing to listen to other opinions on things they are directly responsible for. As the ranking authority figure in a given situation they expect their underlings to be as self disciplined as they themselves are, and to perform every task undertaken to the highest standard.
They are, nevertheless, fair as well as demanding. Among their equals they are not always the most pleasant of work fellows for they are reserved and too conservative, valuing tradition more than innovation, however valuable the latter, and they are often humorless. There is also a tendency to pessimism, melancholy and even unhappiness which many Capricornians are unable to keep to themselves, especially if they fail personally. In the extreme this trait can make them a very depressed individual; ecstatic happiness alternating with the most wretched kind of misery which is so subconsciously buried that he or she should seek help if such emotions become frequent. For the above reason, capable Capricorn should spend many hours in meditation, gathering the strength to control such inner emotions.

more...http://www.astrology-online.com/capricrn.htm

[Demeter]

52. Yeah, Well Dad Is a Capricorn

and while he exhibited all those sterling qualities at times....today is another day!

[tclambert]

62. Nixon was a capricorn.

Just saying.

[DemReadingDU]

70. Elvis - Jan 8

and..
my son, me, granddaughter

[boomerbust]

42. Hey Oz

SMW was my last refuge from all the boomer bashing on DU and the toon today flushed me out. Just kidding. Good toon and have a good day.

[Demeter]

45. It Gets My Goat--Boomer Bashing

The Boomers are such a large group that there are several subcategories. To tar all the Boomers with the sins of a subset such as the Psychopaths, or the Greedheads, is damn unfair.

[54anickel]

53. Thank you Demeter (I think). I don't get the chance to stop by SMW much anymore, usually a quick

glimpse is all I can squeeze in these days. Afraid I couldn't let that toon slide by without at least making a comment.
I hope Ozy will take it in the spirit intended, we go pretty far back...no offense intended or taken regarding the toon.


DFH
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKEZoY-TMG4

[UpInArms]

58. hiya, 54anickel!

:pals:



high-fivin' to another DFH

:)

[54anickel]

61. Hey UIA!!! Miss ya!

:toast:


http://www.flickr.com/search/show/?q=Hippies+Use+Backdoor&ss=2&ct=6

[AnneD]

64. Sign sign .....

every where a sign.

[ozymandius]

76. I thought the cartoon might stir some controversy.

So be it. Thanks for letting me know how you feel about the thing. The cartoon felt it had an important message beyond the generational roles of the two characters.

[Demeter]

44. AOoGa AOoGa! Dive! Dive! Dive!

115 points in 15 minutes....

[Dr.Phool]

49. "Houston, we've had a problem"

[DemReadingDU]

56. Seeking answers in cardboard boxes

April 07, 2009
Meltdown 101: Seeking answers in cardboard boxes
Mike Obel

Whether it's a Big Mac or a Mac computer, nearly everything comes in a cardboard box.

So if you want a gauge on whether people are eating more, buying more clothes, loading tunes on a new iPod or upgrading their computer equipment — in other words, whether they're spending money — it makes sense to track how many cardboard boxes are shipped each month.

That's why, besides crunching numbers on the output of durable goods, auto sales and housing starts, economic experts track shipments of corrugated boxes — containers that are made of cardboard, paperboard or heavy duty paper. And lately those boxes haven't contained a lot of good news about the economy.

Here are some questions and answers about corrugated box figures and why they are important to the economy as a whole.

Q: Where do corrugated box shipment figures come from?

A: The monthly figures are collected by a trade group called the Fibre Box Association. Around the middle of every month the FBA reports how many corrugated containers their industry shipped.

Those numbers are important enough that economists at the Federal Reserve use them, among many other statistics, when they compile reports on the nation's industrial output.

Q: What can these numbers tell us about our economy?

A: Everything from tubes of toothpaste and bottles of aspirin to cat litter and breakfast cereal usually gets shipped in corrugated containers. An increase in shipments of cardboard boxes suggests that factories are looking to ship more goods, which means retailers are ordering more stuff — which usually happens because customers are making purchases. And that's good news for an economy that depends heavily on consumer spending for growth.

Conversely, a decrease in box shipments is bad news for the economy, since it means manufacturers face lower demand from retailers — and, in turn, from the purchasing public.

Q: Are corrugated box shipment figures a good predictor of where the economy is heading?

A: Some experts think they offer a good sign of what's to come — a "leading indicator," as economists say. Others see them as a "coincident indicator," meaning that an increase in the figures happens at the same time that the overall economy is improving, not before a recovery.

Either way, many experts find the numbers to be useful as they try to assess the state of the economy.

Q: What are the latest cardboard shipment figures telling us about our economy?

A: The patient is still sick — and no sign of recovery has shown up in the box numbers so far.

According to the Fibre Box Association, shipments fell 3.5 percent in the second quarter of last year, compared with a year earlier. Then they fell 3.3 percent in the third quarter. After that, the bottom fell out: Shipments fell 9.9 percent in the fourth quarter compared with a year earlier.

This year corrugated box shipments have fallen, on a year-over-year basis, 5.1 percent in January and 8.3 percent in February. The numbers for March will be out in mid-April.

"There has been no improvement relative to the previous three months," Longbow Research analyst Joshua Zaret said. "March should show some seasonal improvement within a context of weak overall demand, but these are very poor numbers."
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/news/ap/us_news/2009/Apr/07/meltdown_101__seeking_answers_in_cardboard_boxes.html

[AnneD]

60. When did this Johnny come lately get a clue.....

We posted card board box numbers last year. THAT WAS ONE OF OUR CLUES!
And look how much money they wasted on vowels:banghead:

I will hasten to add that card board boxes will go up soon......not from sales but from folks commandeering them for houses. You'll know it it a trend that is here to stay when Martha Stewart releases a book on interior decorating and design for cardboard boxes.

[AnneD]

65. FYI

William Colon can sleep late on Saturdays.

Mr. Colon, 53, spends nights in a cardboard box on the sidewalk right outside the executive offices of the huge B&H photography store on Ninth Avenue, which is owned and largely staffed by Jews who close the store on Saturdays to observe the sabbath.

“The other days, I have to get the box out of here before they open, but on Saturdays, I can relax and leave it here,” Mr. Colon said as he put the finishing touches on his latest cardboard shelter, which he has been erecting for years on West 33rd Street, between Eighth and Ninth Avenues.

He methodically fastened the box to a sidewalk bicycle rack, using plastic pull-tight strips from a local hardware store. He spread a neat plastic covering of clear wrap over the top to make a waterproof roof on his flimsy brown home, next to a Dumpster full of demolition trash.








http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/26/he-is-living-in-a-cardboard-box/

[Robbien]

73. There is a huge demand for cardboard boxes in Dubai

Since Dubai has a law that states expats have to leave the country if they lose their jobs, stores cannot keep cardboard boxes in stock. So many people are leaving that cardboard box demand far exceeds moving needs.

http://www.thenational.ae/article/20090414/NATIONAL/484318394/-1/SPORT

[Dr.Phool]

66. Holy shit!

I said this morning, that it seems a tornado came through our neighborhood this morning. OK, no big deal. I was on the lanai, by the pool, setting up my laptop and my morning coffee, when the wind started blowing like a hurricane. I switched on the Weather Channel, and they said a tornado had hit Holiday. Yeah, no big deal.

I guess if I was looking out the front, I'd have seen it hit about a half-mile from the house. Maybe closer.

I just went on the St. Pete Crimes website, and did a mapquest of the area. It hit just on the other side of the river.

Me and the dogs, just sitting here dumb and happy.

[DemReadingDU]

67. Wow, that was close!

and you didn't hear anything loud?
Lucky you, and the dogs!

[Roland99]

69. Yikes! Maybe I should reconsider my move to central FL???

lol

[Roland99]

68. I Can Has Job!!!

I start a new job about 2hrs north on Thursday! It means having to stay at, like, an Extended Stay place Mon - Thur night but it's great pay and a great short-term opportunity. No more unemployment! And I'll save as much as I possibly can and, obviously, keep looking for a permanent job but for now....

Have a phone interview tomorrow morning for a job in Orlando and if that goes well, I'll have to find how to get down there for an in-person interview (Allegiant Air anyone?)




WHEW!!

[DemReadingDU]

71. Congratulations!

Best of luck in the new job!

[Dr.Phool]

72. Congratulations.

Allegiant flies into Clearwater- St. Pete. That's about a 90 min drive to Orlando.

2 Hours north? Where? I have friends in the Citrus County area.

[Demeter]

74. For Roland's a Jolly Good Fellow!

Congrats!

[TheWatcher]

75. WONDERFUL News, my friend.

:hug:

[ozymandius]

77. Splendid!

Good on ya! My heartiest congratulations, Roland! :toast:

...now onward to the Wednesday edition of the Stock Market Watch...

[AnneD]

78. Best of luck to you.....

I hope it goes well. Maybe you should consider the RV life}(

[Roland99]

80. Maybe in a *few* more years.

:)

[Tansy_Gold]

79. Congrats!!!

And, best of luck, Roland, on the new temp job and the continued search!

Sometimes great opportunities come from those short-term slots.

:yourock: