Finance Investment Banking
Dollar Retailing Seeing Good Times
Jan. 08, 2009
The Dow Jones index took something of a dive yesterday, possibly because of ill tidings from the likes of Time Warner and Intel, or the anticipation of bad job market numbers, or maybe because it was time to yo-yo back to roughly where the market started at the beginning of the year. In any case, the Dow was down 245.40 points, or 2.72 percent, while the S&P 500 lost 3 percent exactly and the Nasdaq lost 3.23 percent.
Pending Home Sales, Factory Orders Dip
Jan. 07, 2009
It isn't clear that the days of yo-yoing equity markets have gone away--just wait until the next international shock or surprise bankruptcy--but for the moment the Dow Jones index seems to have mellowed out. It fluctuated above its starting point yesterday and ended up gaining a modest 62.21 points, or 0.69 percent.
Construction Industry Faces Hard 2009
Jan. 06, 2009
The equity markets dropped considerably Monday morning, but then yo-yoed around for the rest of the day--small fluctuations, really--and ended up slightly down, for the first time in four trading sessions and the first time this year. The Dow Jones index dropped 76.7 points, or 0.85 percent, while the S&P 500 dropped 0.35 percent and the Nasdaq lost 0.49 percent.
Midwest Industry Hit by Recession
Dec. 30, 2008
Various international tempests and other factors, such as uncertainty over the price of oil, seemed to drive the markets down Monday, but only slightly. The Dow Jones index ended 31.62 points down, or 0.37 percent, while the S&P 500 was off 0.39 percent and the Nasdaq was down more--1.3 percent.
3Q GDP Down, 4Q Expected to Be Worse
Dec. 24, 2008
The quarterly report by the U.S. Department of Commerce on the national GDP is something of a lagging indicator. The fact that the U.S. economy contracted 0.5 percent in the third quarter--July to September--might be worrisome, but it only raises the further question of how much contraction will happen in the fourth quarter.
Fidelity National Wraps Up LandAmerica Buy
Dec. 24, 2008
Fidelity National Financial Inc. has closed on the previously-announced acquisition of LandAmerica Financial Group's two title insurance underwriters, Commonwealth Land Title Insurance Co.and Lawyers Title Insurance Corp.. The total price tag of the deal was some $235 million. Fidelity also bought out United Capital Title Insurance Co.
Federal Pension Watchdog Picks Advisors for Shift into Real Estate
Dec. 23, 2008
The federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. has revealed the investment firms that will act as its strategic partners in managing $2.5 billion in assets and supporting PBGC’s in-house investment staff. The firms are BlackRock, The Goldman Sachs Group and J.P. Morgan Chase, all headquartered in New York City.
Detroit Gets a Little Relief
Dec. 19, 2008
The Bush administration has decided not to let the auto industry implode on its watch, doling out $9.4 billion to GM and $4 billion to Chrysler from the TARP program, which has seemed to stray somewhat from the financial industrial bailout it was designed to be. Ford, which didn't ask for an immediate cash infusion, isn't getting anything for the moment.
New SEC Head Faces Tough Tasks
Dec. 18, 2008
President-elect Barack Obama has picked Mary Schapiro to chair the Securities and Exchange Commission. Schaprio was a member of the SEC from 1988 to 1994--originally appointed by President Reagan--and is currently CEO of the non-governmental Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, a post she has held for about two years. She also chaired of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for two years during the Clinton administration.
Morgan Stanley Posts $2.3B Loss
Dec. 17, 2008
Yesterday, it was Goldman Sachs. Today it's Morgan Stanley, posting a $2.36 billion loss in its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended Nov. 30. Much of the loss stemmed from older investments that are still losing money, and reduced revenues unable to balance out these continuing losses, as the company managed to do in previous quarters.
Cole REIT Announces $2.5B Offering
Dec. 17, 2008
Cole Credit Property Trust III has kicked off a public offering of up to 250 million shares of common stock valued at approximately $2.5 billion. Net proceeds from the offering will be primarily earmarked for the acquisition of net leased retail properties.
As Fed Slashes Rates, CPI, Housing Starts Drop
Dec. 16, 2008
Though an interest rate cut had been widely anticipated, the Fed made a more extreme move than many had expected today, knocking down its benchmark interest rate to between 0 and .25 percent, its lowest ever level. The markets rallied in the wake of announcement, with the Dow Jones rising about 370 points by late afternoon.
Industrial Output Sags
Dec. 15, 2008
According to the Federal Reserve, U.S. industrial production decreased 0.6 percent in November compared with October, with a number of sectors' output declining, but especially cars. Manufacturing of motor vehicles and parts fell 2.8 percent in November compared with October, when it was down 3.6 percent from. Year-to-date, auto production is down 21.4 percent.
Automakers’ Bailout Hopes Fizzle, World Index Falls in Response
Dec. 12, 2008
The Senate’s refusal to bail out General Motors and Chrysler led to consequences felt worldwide as stocks tumbled around the world and the dollar slumped threatening to deepen the global recession, Bloomberg reported. Treasuries rallied and yields fell to record lows.
Unemployment Flashes Back to Early-80s Level
Dec. 11, 2008
Almost 27 years ago, in early 1982, Ronald Reagan was fairly new in the White House, the Internet was embryonic and a lot of Americans were drawing unemployment benefits. In fact, that was the last time more people were receiving benefits than they are now, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, which pegs the current figure at 4.43 million.
Commercial Mortgage Delinquencies Inch Up
Dec. 10, 2008
Commercial mortgage delinquencies are up, but still historically low, according to the latest numbers from the Mortgage Bankers Association. The 30-plus day delinquency rate on loans held in commercial mortgage-backed securities rose 10 basis points, to 0.63 percent, in 3Q08, compared with the previous quarter, notes the organization's third-quarter Commercial/Multifamily National Delinquency Report.
Automakers May Get Money, New Bosses
Dec. 08, 2008
The White House has let it be known that a deal to bail out the Big Three automakers might come as soon as later today, totaling perhaps about half of what the companies were angling for as recently as last week, or $15 billion to $17 billion in bridge loans.
Morgan Stanley Ups Stake in Struggling General Growth
Dec. 03, 2008
Morgan Stanley has become the second investor to take a large stake in General Growth Properties Inc., the struggling mall operator headquartered in Chicago. Morgan Stanley bought more than 13.6 million shares, upping its stake in the company from 3 percent to 5.1 percent.
More Bad Numbers for Economy
Dec. 03, 2008
The Institute for Supply Management, which released its manufacturing index for November recently (those numbers were bad), has more bad news for the nation today: U.S. service industries, which constitute about nine-tenths of all domestic economic activity, contracted in November.
Fed Says it Still Has Arrows in its Quiver
Dec. 02, 2008
The Federal Reserve has acknowledged that the recession won't be over anytime soon by extending a number of temporary programs designed to deal with the credit freeze and generally unstable financial markets.
Recession is Officially Here, Says Group
Dec. 01, 2008
Who decides when it's a recession? The Business Cycle Dating Committee of the nonprofit research organization known as the National Bureau of Economic Research, that's who, at least as far most economists and parts of the U.S. government are concerned.
Financial Update-Consumer Spending Sees Historic Drop
Nov. 26, 2008
Consumer spending numbers, as expected, are going nowhere but down. The U.S. Department of Commerce is reporting that personal consumer spending among Americans dropped 1 percent in October compared with the month before, which is the largest decline since September 2001. On the other hand, saving is up. Personal saving as a percentage of income rose to 2.4 percent during the same month, up from 1 percent in September.
More Billions for Bailouts
Nov. 25, 2008
A billion here, a billion there: pretty soon it adds up to real money, such as the $800 billion the Federal Reserve has committed to unclog the credit markets for homebuyers, small businesses and consumers.
A New Economic Crew in Town
Nov. 24, 2008
At around noon Eastern Time, President-elect Barack Obama made it official: Timothy Geithner will be U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and Lawrence Summers will be director of the National Economic Council. Interestingly, neither man has ever worked in a major capacity for a Wall Street bank, as have many previous shapers of U.S. economic policy, though Geithner has been an important liaison between the banking industry and the government as head of the New York branch of the Fed.
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