Who is the greatest American CEO of the last decade? Jack Welch, who retired as GE’s (NYSE:GE) chief in 2001. He held his job at the head of the world’s largest conglomerate for 20 years. During that time, GE’s stock rose from roughly $1.30 to $40. Revenue at the company moved from $27 billion to [...]
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US mortgage finance firm Fannie Mae asks for another $15bn in state aid after announcing heavy losses. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 6 Nov 2009 | 3:26 am
The world's most powerful finance ministers are in St Andrews for a summit aimed at pulling the global economy out of recession. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 6 Nov 2009 | 3:25 am
Royal Bank of Scotland announces that it lost £2.2bn in the three months to the end of September. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 6 Nov 2009 | 3:19 am
U.S. stocks were set for a lukewarm start Friday, as investors awaited the release of the government's all-important monthly employment report. Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 6 Nov 2009 | 3:13 am
Personal insolvencies hit a record in England and Wales in the third quarter of 2009, with the total up 28% on a year ago. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 6 Nov 2009 | 3:12 am
Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) is not satisfied challenging rivals like Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Target (NYSE:TGT) in the e-book and toy businesses. Its program to take the lion’s share of the modest number of consumers likely to come out during the end-of-recession shopping season has been extended to DVDs.
Walmart.com has started to offer DVDs which are likely to [...]
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The Reserve Bank of Australia says the country is growing faster than it had expected. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 6 Nov 2009 | 3:04 am
French luxury goods group Hermes International posts a 10% rise in third-quarter sales, thanks to strong store sales and consumer purchases of leather goods.
T-Mobile, the Deutsche Telekom-owned cellular carrier in America, is a failure and an abject one at that. The firm lost 77,000 subscribers in the third quarter. Most analysts blame the attrition on a poor line-up of handset products and tremendous competition from Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ)(NYSE:VOD) and AT&T (NYSE:T). Each of the two larger companies added [...]
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British Airways says it will cut its global workforce by an extra 1,200 as it reports a first-half loss for the first time. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 6 Nov 2009 | 2:55 am
One moment will dominant global markets on Friday: when the Mother of all Data meets the Mother of all Carry Trades.Investors were jockeying for position ahead of the release this afternoon of the US non-farm... Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 2:52 am
Chrysler is scrambling to revamp its product line. These are the vehicles that will be critical to its success. Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 6 Nov 2009 | 2:37 am
LONDON (Reuters) - Global stocks and commodities gained on Friday, buoyed by firm U.S. data the previous session, lifting risk appetite ahead of hotly anticipated jobs data which will give more evidence on the state of the global economy.
Reuters - Global stocks and commodities gained on Friday, buoyed by firm U.S. data the previous session, lifting risk appetite ahead of hotly anticipated jobs data which will give more evidence on the state of the global economy.
When was the last time your employer gave you a raise because the company had a little windfall? Don't feel bad if your memory is drawing blanks. Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 6 Nov 2009 | 2:27 am
British Airways shares advance on Friday, leading the broader market to mild gains, as investors react positively to the firm’s latest update on performance.
Flag carrier suffers worst first half results since its 1987 privatisation after reporting a loss of £292m for the six months to the end of September Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 6 Nov 2009 | 2:10 am
AP - Asian markets advanced Friday on the back of Wall Street's rally after upbeat economic figures revived confidence about the state of the American economy. But European stocks were little changed amid caution ahead of a key U.S. jobs report.
London equities were little changed on Friday, as traders absorbed corporate newsflow ahead of important US economic data. The FTSE 100 rose 10 points to 5,135.31 in opening trade, a rise of 0.2 per cent,... Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 2:05 am
Small business owners are still whittling away at their payroll, but the deluge of pink slips on Main Street is slowing down. Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 6 Nov 2009 | 2:01 am
Reuters: The Wall St. insider trading probe lead to another 14 arrests.
Reuters: Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM) lost $19 billion and asked Treasury for money.
Reuters: GM is readying its plans for Opel as some of its workers went on strike.
Reuters: The pay czar says the jury is still out on reforms.
Reuters: Stock exchanges are under pressure to [...]
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The dollar edges down against the yen and British pound in Asian trading Friday, while staying nearly flat against the euro as investors await key U.S. jobs data later in the session.
An army psychiatrist described as being unhappy about being posted to Iraq opened fire at the US’s biggest army base, leaving 13 people dead and 31 wounded, according to Texas officials Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:42 am
TOKYO, Nov 6 Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.7 per cent on Friday as exporters climbed after good news on US jobs renewed hopes about the pace of economic recovery, although profit-taking weighed... Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:30 am
Markets in Asia rose.
The Nikkei was up .7% to 9,790. Mitsubishi UFJ (NYSE:MTU) was down. Honda (NYSE:HMC) and Sony (NYSE:SNE) both gained.
The Hang Seng rose 1.6% to 21,830.
The Shanghai Composite was up .3% to 3,164.
Data from Reuters and MarketWatch.
Douglas A. McIntyre
Posted in Autos Tagged: HMC, MTU, SNE
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LONDON (Reuters) - Royal Bank of Scotland more than halved its operating losses to 1.5 billion pounds ($2.5 billion) in the third quarter as impairments fell, but less favorable trading battered investment banking profits.
Reuters - Royal Bank of Scotland more than halved its operating losses to 1.5 billion pounds ($2.5 billion) in the third quarter as impairments fell, but less favorable trading battered investment banking profits. Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:18 am
LONDON (Reuters) - Royal Bank of Scotland more than halved its operating losses to 1.5 billion pounds ($2.5 billion) in the third quarter as impairments fell, but less favorable trading... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:18 am
British Airways (BA) today announced its worst-ever interim loss since its privatisation in 1987 amid falling numbers of lucrative business travellers and freight cargo, as well as volatile fuel prices.
Lachlan Murdoch has upstaged the visit to Australia of his father Rupert after splashing out A$23m on a Sydney mansion sold by the French government’s former consulate Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:04 am
British Airways on Friday said the company's net loss more than quadrupled to 217 million pounds (242 million euros, 361 million dollars) during the first half of its financial year. ... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:03 am
The victims of the nationwide salmonella outbreak that sickened hundreds and was linked to nine deaths are infuriated prosecutors have yet to bring charges against the company at the center Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am
Once in a while, the sport-wagon version of a great-looking sedan looks even better. In the case of the CTS Wagon, compelling exterior styling and cargo versatility give it the edge. ... Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am
Rob Feckner asks fellow directors not to meet privately with so-called placement agents while the public employees pension fund conducts an investigation of the intermediaries' activities.
The board president of the nation's biggest public employee pension fund is urging his fellow directors to avoid private meetings with go-betweens who help pitch private-equity investments to the fund.
Quarterly earnings are $15 million, or 1 cent a share, compared with a loss of 8 cents a share in the year-earlier period. Revenue declines 1% to $703 million. ... Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am
TOKYO -- Toyota Motor Corp. announced today a surprise profit last quarter and trimmed its projected red ink for the year, underlining the gradual recovery under way for Japan's giant automakers. Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am
The retailers would pay a total of $454,000 in civil penalties and other fines, the California attorney general's office says. ... Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am
One man snapped his cellphone in half and bit the memory card to conceal his actions, complaints allege. Fourteen more are charged in the continuing investigation. ... Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am
TOKYO -- Toyota Motor Corp. announced today a surprise profit last quarter and trimmed its projected red ink for the year, underlining the gradual recovery under way for Japan's giant automakers.
LONDON, November 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ADP, the leading global supplier of payroll and human resources (HR) services, has today announced a strategic partnership... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am
The Los Angeles-based parent of the largest bank focused on the Korean American market loses $59.7 million in the third quarter. Regulators give it till July 31 to raise the needed capital.
Hanmi Financial Corp., which owns the largest bank focused on the Korean American market, reported another large quarterly loss Thursday and said regulators had ordered it to raise $100 million in capital by July or face seizure.
Once in a while, the sport-wagon version of a great-looking sedan looks even better. In the case of the CTS Wagon, compelling exterior styling and cargo versatility give it the edge.
When Italian car-making giant Fiat announced it would be taking over bankrupted, bailed-out Chrysler, I was skeptical. Indeed, I thought the whole plan had ingested powerful hallucinogens. Yet I continue to hope that somehow, one day, I might be able to go down to my local Fiat/Chrysler dealer and purchase an Alfa Romeo 159 Sportwagon. This is a gorgeous Roman lyre of a car, a sleek transporter that -- when painted gloss black and kitted with 19-inch turbine alloy wheels -- will stop traffic like an overturned big rig.
Breeders' Cup at Santa Anita Park could put the online wagering firm back on track for profit.
When the horses break out of the gate for the Breeders' Cup at Santa Anita Park this weekend, online wagering company Youbet.com Inc. will have a big bet of its own riding on the races today and Saturday.
The retailers would pay a total of $454,000 in civil penalties and other fines, the California attorney general's office says.
Three major retailers have agreed to pay nearly half a million dollars to settle a lawsuit stemming from the companies' sale of toys containing excessive amounts of lead, the California attorney general's office said Thursday.
One man snapped his cellphone in half and bit the memory card to conceal his actions, complaints allege. Fourteen more are charged in the continuing investigation.
As an eavesdropping-detection specialist, Kevin D. Murray normally works for companies concerned about possible spying by competitors.
Rob Feckner asks fellow directors not to meet privately with so-called placement agents while the public employees pension fund conducts an investigation of the intermediaries' activities. ... Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am
Major chains report a 1.8% year-over-year gain, the best showing since June 2008 and the second straight monthly increase as shoppers turned to discounters and high-end stores alike. ... Source: RSS feed - channel BNPaperBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 1:00 am
Major chains report a 1.8% year-over-year gain, the best showing since June 2008 and the second straight monthly increase as shoppers turned to discounters and high-end stores alike.
The nation's retailers had their best month in more than a year in October as shoppers turned to discounters and high-end stores alike.
The mortgage giant's move is part of an attempt by lenders to keep a wave of foreclosed properties from slamming a housing market that has shown some signs of recovery.
Mortgage giant Fannie Mae said Thursday that it would throw a lifeline to some people losing their homes to foreclosure by allowing them to lease those properties back for up to a year at market rental rates.
COPENHAGEN, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Danish healthcare products maker Coloplast posted a slightly bigger rise than expected in fourth-quarter operating profit and said it planned to buy back up to 1 billion... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsBusiness | 6 Nov 2009 | 12:54 am
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) swung into a £1.5 billion operating loss for the third quarter after write-offs on bad debts nearly tripled compared with the same period a year ago.
The New Zealand sharemarket rose slightly today after stocks jumped in overseas markets.The NZX 50 closed up 15.656 points, or 0.498 per cent, at 3160.163. Turnover was worth $72.84 million. There were 51 rises and 23 falls among... Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 11:32 pm
The New Zealand dollar traded in a narrow range today, dragged a little higher on the coat-tails of its Australian counterpart.But BNZ Capital currency strategist Danica Hampton said it was a day of consolidation, ahead of the... Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 10:42 pm
The United States imposes high anti-dumping tariffs on Chinese pipes as trade disputes mar the run-up to a bilateral summit. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Nov 2009 | 10:11 pm
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fourteen people were charged with fraud and conspiracy in a dramatic widening of an insider trading scandal that has ensnared hedge fund managers, top Silicon Valley executives and a bevy of white-shoe advisers.
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Starbucks Corp raised its financial forecasts for 2010 in the latest sign a year-long turnaround effort is boosting margins and putting it back on track for growth, sending shares up almost 4 percent.
England's five million housing association tenants will get their first ever rent reduction from April because of deflation. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Nov 2009 | 6:26 pm
DETROIT/RUSSELSHEIM, Germany (Reuters) - General Motors Co on Thursday said it was readying a plan to restructure Opel and could pay off debt due this month as German workers went on strike to protest the automakers decision to keep the European unit.
NEW YORK - Two attorneys and Wall Street professionals were among 14 people charged on Thursday in a widening $US53 million insider trading case that has snared one of America's richest men and shown white collar suspects to be using... Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm
Reuters - General Motors Co on Thursday said it was readying a plan to restructure Opel and could pay off debt due this month as German workers went on strike to protest the automakers decision to keep the European unit.
US authorities have charged 14 more people in the investigation into insider trading at Galleon, the hedge fund founded by Raj Rajaratnam Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 5 Nov 2009 | 5:56 pm
Nearly two hundred years ago the founder of the Rothschild banking empire proclaimed: “Give me control over a nation’s economy and I care not who writes the laws.” Read on for an overview of the ways the Freemasons are said to control business
Many believe the Freemasons are a law unto themselves, a group who has systematically seized control of the power structures of American business over hundreds of years. Read on for
7. Rhodes Scholarships
What they do:
The Freemasons select and indoctrinate the finest minds of every generation by giving them Rhodes Scholarships to Oxford University, where they have access to the best teaching and others sympathetic to Masonic ideology. Rhodes scholars invariably go on to positions of power in finance, law, politics or the media, from which they are able to ensure that Masonic interests are promoted and protected.
How they do it:
Cecil Rhodes himself became a Mason whilst studying at Oxford in the 1870s. After hearing a speech by fellow mason, John Ruskin, calling for ‘a ruling class with a powerful army to keep it in power’, he became obsessed with the idea of bringing the entire world under the rule of the British Masonic elite, and sought to do so through extensive business projects in Africa and the Empire. In his estate Rhodes entrusted Nathan Rothschild with continuing his program of intellectual world domination, and today Rhodes scholars occupy key positions throughout the global business world.
Do they really?
Although the link between Rhodes and the Masons is clear for all to see, it is entirely implausible that such a venerable institution as Oxford University would allow any external political agenda to play a part in its entrance policies. Accepting the Rhodes scholar conspiracy is akin to accepting that the whole academic world is quietly shaping the world – which is probably true in a very obvious, non-sinister way.
6. Federal Reserve
What they do:
Freemasons use the notion of the Federal Reserve as a public institution to trick the public into believing no single group has a monopoly on the production, distribution and manipulation of currency. The Masons control the Federal Reserve, operating it as essentially a private bank. Profit is created by charging 5% interest (according to the Act) on every dollar bill that is issued – 5% of the face value that is – so if a dollar bill stays in circulation for 20 years, we pay back the dollar itself, plus a dollar in interest into the pockets of the Federal Reserve.
How they do it:
The great banking families, such as the Rothschilds, Warburgs and Rockefellers, exercise almost total control over the Federal Reserve. Many of these are directly descended from the Knights Templar and the Masonic European elite. When these families decided to create the Federal Reserve in 1910 they wrote their own domination into the very constitution of the American people, as well as a license to print money from thin air.
Do they really?
The notion that the Federal Reserve is a private institution controlled by any group or individual is probably both right and wrong. The Federal Reserve derives its power from Congress, and is considered an independent central bank because its decisions do not have to be ratified by the President or anyone else in the executive or legislative branch of government. Congress periodically reviews its activities and can alter its responsibilities. On the other hand it’s undoubtedly true that a handful of powerful families exercise an inordinate amount of power – although the amount of political infighting suggests they are far from aligned with each other.
5. The Square and Compass
What they do:
Write into our everyday business and political language tacit signs of Masonic dominance. According to this conspiracy, everyday sayings and names of initiations or processes are actually based upon Masonic ritual and symbols.
How they do it:
One of the most significant Masonic symbols is the mason’s square. In court we say “his testimony doesn’t ‘square’ with the facts of the case”. When you go to jail they give you “3 ‘square’ meals”. Meetings have always traditionally been held at the Town ‘Square’. If you’re not cool, they say you’re a ’square’. Remember to play “fair and square”. Equally, another Masonic symbol, the compass, also codifies the everyday language we use to conduct business. When you graduate college, you receive a ‘degree’ (you are also called an Alumni – for Illuminati, another group connected with Freemasonry), as the Masons set up the institutions of learning in the first place. If you get in their way they give you the ‘3rd degree’, which was, in fact, the highest degree in Freemasonry for many years.
Do they really:
This conspiracy is for those that watch the movie, the Number 23, and then start counting the objects in their room. Masonic codes are no more written into the language of business, politics and education than any other codes we care to find. ‘Working like a dog’, ‘a dog’s dinner’, ‘dog tired’ – shall we conclude that dogs control the business world? No, you morons.
4. US Dollar Bills
What they do:
Further proof that the Masons control US money and the business done with it (and in particular the Federal Reserve) may be seen in the fact that on the back of the U.S. one dollar bill there is a pyramid with the All-Seeing-Eye of God, with the message, “New Order of The Ages” or “New World Order”.
How they do it:
In Europe, occult leaders were told by their Familiar Spirits as early as the 1740’s that the new American continent was to be established as the new “Atlantis”, and its destiny was to assume the global leadership of the drive to the New World Order. By controlling the Federal Reserve and banks the Masons have been able to gradually familiarize us with their symbols to the point we are entirely unaware of them as they surround us. The all-seeing pyramid is a symbol of their dominance, written under our noses into the very currency with which we conduct business.
Do they really:
Short answer – no. Benjamin Franklin was the only Mason on the first design committee, and his suggestions had no Masonic content. None of the final designers of the seal were Masons, and the interpretation of the eye on the seal is subtly different from the interpretation used by Masons. The eye in the pyramid is not, nor has been, a Masonic symbol – the eye of providence is in fact Trinitarian reference to the God of Christianity and considered a solely Christian symbol, and in any case, Freemasonry was only just beginning in England and hadn’t arrived in the US by that time. So that pretty much wraps that one up.
3. Washington DC Street Design
What they did:
Freemasons embedded Masonic symbols into the Washington, D.C., street plan designed mainly by Frenchman Pierre L’Enfant in 1791, writing their codes into the very seat of political power. He hid certain occult magical symbols in the layout of U.S. Governmental Center which, when united become one large Masonic and Luciferan symbol.
How they did it:
The street layout of Washington contains a plethora of Masonic and associated symbols, including the set-square, compass, pentagram, 666, figure of the Godhead and the Eye of Providence. The implication is that the Mason dominance over the US meant that even the origins of its political and financial structures were based in Masonic ideology.
Did they really?
It can be said with a high degree of certainty that Pierre L’Enfant wasn’t a Mason, and in any case, what would be the point of laying out street designs in complex geometrical shapes few people would appreciate? Mark Tabbert, a self-confessed Mason and director of collections at the George Washington Masonic Memorial in Alexandria, Virginia, has said that “there has to be a reason for doing such a thing. Dan Brown will find one, because he writes fiction. But there isn’t one.”
2. Monopoly on Recruitment
What they do:
Masons ensure, through programs such as the Rhodes Scholarships, that their members occupy positions of key significance in the business world. Of prime importance are the recruitment departments of the worlds largest corporations – by controlling these the Masons ensure only those who they approve of may find work in the most powerful establishments and only their own can rise to weld such power.
How they do it:
Masons fill the corporations with those sympathetic to their cause by total dominance of human resources departments and ensuring that they have a man on the board of every major corporation. Unless you are one of them or gain approval, you will never rise to any position of significant power. To conceal this fact they encourage the creation of thousands of meaningless bureaucratic positions in business, which fool people into thinking they have authority when in actual fact they are merely pawns.
Do they really?
Recruitment and promotion are under more scrutiny today than ever before, what with equal opportunities and all that. It would be very difficult to mount a huge scale program of selecting by allegiance without attracting attention somehow. Also: the sheer number of HR departments in the country make this a stupefyingly insane proposition. Never in my time have I or anyone I know been asked if I am a Mason at a job interview, or prompted to give a secret sign. Maybe I’m just not in on it though . . .
1. The World Bank
What they do:
The Freemasons use the World Bank as a front for an international banking cabal under their control. They plan to eventually subvert the independence of the U.S. by subordinating national sovereignty to a strengthened Bank for International Settlements with the intent to create a world system of financial control in private hands able to dominate the political system of each country and the economy of the world as a whole
How they do it:
Control of the World Bank allows the Masons to extend their global influence in a similar way to how they control the Federal Reserve. They control the Board of Directors and the recruiting structures and from there are able to dictate policy and ensure that these policies are not objected to.
Do they really?
Although many of the Bank’s practices are dubious the idea it is controlled by one group (other than of course America) is preposterous. The World Bank was created as a result of the complex political minefield that was the Second World War – after such a historically significant event, it was widely held that a radical overhaul of global economics was needed. Some countries are undoubtedly held back within the Bank, but generally it strives for democracy at every turn.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - In closing arguments in the trial of the first high-profile Wall Streeters on fraud charges stemming from the financial crisis, a U.S. prosecutor said two hedge fund managers told "black and white lies," but a defense lawyer attacked the government for "misleading" the jury.
Reuters - In closing arguments in the trial of the first high-profile Wall Streeters on fraud charges stemming from the financial crisis, a U.S. prosecutor said two hedge fund managers told "black and white lies," but a defense lawyer attacked the government for "misleading" the jury. Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 5:40 pm
AP - Fannie Mae is asking for an additional $15 billion in government aid after posting another big loss in the third quarter as the taxpayer bill from the housing market bust keeps rising.
Resins and chemicals maker Nuplex says full year operating profit after tax could rise by up to 78 per cent, while it is also considering whether to remain based in this country.Chairman Rob Aitken told the company's annual meeting... Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 5:30 pm
The US hit China with another big trade action as it slapped preliminary anti-dumping duties on $2.6bn worth of Chinese pipe imports Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 5 Nov 2009 | 5:17 pm
Reuters - Fourteen people were charged with fraud and conspiracy in a dramatic widening of an insider trading scandal that has ensnared hedge fund managers, top Silicon Valley executives and a bevy of white-shoe advisers.
The recovery in UK house prices could be punctuated by a 6.6% drop in values next year, property group Savills forecasts. Source: BBC News | Business | World Edition | 5 Nov 2009 | 5:02 pm
Citigroup is poised to relaunch the unit containing its troubled hedge fund operations after nearly two years of poor performance, internal strife and investor unrest Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 5 Nov 2009 | 5:01 pm
A billion-pound project to develop Europe’s largest gas storage facility in the North Sea is close to collapse because the Crown Estate, the owner of the UK seabed, is obstructing its development, The Times has learnt.
US coffee connoisseurs are starting to spend again, if Starbucks' fourth-quarter figures are any indication. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 5 Nov 2009 | 5:01 pm
Sir John Ritblat, the former chairman of British Land, is tipped to regain control of Merchant Inns, his fledgling pub chain, less than a month after its collapse into administration.
The City may well be less populated nowadays, but Geoff Quinn has not noticed. As chief executive and part-owner of TM Lewin, he has been dressing City boys — and girls — in increasing numbers. Half the tailor and shirtmaker’s 70 stores lie within the M25, with a particularly dense cluster in the Square Mile, but job losses in the financial sector have not yet had an effect. Source: Latest Business News from Times Online | 5 Nov 2009 | 5:01 pm
Workers at the Nissan car factory in Sunderland have endured redundancies, shortened hours and lengthy shutdowns during the recession. But what do they do when the factory is closed, there isn’t enough money in the bank for foreign holidays and they’re bored by day-time television?
The Treasury expects Northern Rock to lose retail deposits worth billions of pounds once the Government removes financial guarantees from the state-owned lender in the spring.
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined UBS £8 million for weak controls that allowed staff in its private bank to make thousands of unauthorised trades with clients’ money and then hide the losses. It is the third-largest fine awarded by the FSA.
Transpower is contemplating a domestic bond issue of around $200 million early in the New Year as it gears up for $5 billion of capital expenditure on national grid upgrades over the next decade.At a financial briefing in Wellington... Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 5:00 pm
AP - Clothing retailer Bebe Stores Inc. said it posted a loss for its fiscal first quarter as its sales plummeted. Source: Yahoo! News: Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 4:36 pm
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fannie Mae, the largest provider of funding for U.S. home loans, said on Thursday bad mortgages and a federal foreclosure prevention program left it with a $18.9 billion loss, forcing it to tap the Treasury again to plug a hole in its net worth.
Many Americans love living in university towns, especially ones with big-time college football teams. One of the surprising attractions of these places is that they can be very affordable. Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 5 Nov 2009 | 4:32 pm
Telecom's latest financial results show a strong start for its high-speed 'XT' mobile network. In a release this morning, Telecom CEO Paul Reynolds said the company had seen a net increase of 64,000 mobile customers, with XT subscribers... Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 4:30 pm
Kiwi Income Property Trust has reported a half year loss of $18.2m, but been able to lift distributable profits 3.9 per cent to $29.9 million.A 3.5 per cent or $65.8m fall in the value of the trust's property portfolio, together... Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 4:30 pm
AP - Global exchange operator Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. said Thursday its profit rose as it cut costs and recorded fewer special charges during the third quarter.
AP - A bright forecast from Cisco Systems and upbeat economic news sent stocks soaring Thursday and propelled the Dow Jones industrials back above 10,000. The rally, coming a day before the government's October employment report, showed that investors are regaining their optimism about an economic recovery.
AP - A bright forecast from Cisco Systems and upbeat economic news sent stocks soaring Thursday, propelling the Dow Jones industrials back above 10,000. The rally, coming a day before the government's October employment report, showed that investors are regaining their optimism about an economic recovery. Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 5 Nov 2009 | 4:07 pm
Brazil’s president has challenged other world leaders to attend next month’s climate talks in Copenhagen to break the deadlock in negotiations to cut greenhouse gas emissions Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 5 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm
Giving troubled borrowers yet another way to avoid foreclosure, Fannie Mae said on Thursday it would allow eligible homeowners to rent their own homes. Source: Business and financial news - CNNMoney.com | 5 Nov 2009 | 3:59 pm
NEW YORK (Reuters) - More than half of U.S. retail chains posted October sales that fell short of Wall Street's heightened expectations, raising doubts about a widespread recovery for the holiday season.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Reserve's balance sheet grew slightly in the latest week on increased holdings of government and mortgage agency debt, Fed data showed on Thursday.
Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM) recorded a net loss of $18.9 billion for the third quarter of 2009. Including $883 million in dividends on the senior preferred stock, the net loss attributable to common stockholders was $19.8 billion, or $3.47 per diluted share.
For the third quarter of 2008, the net loss was $29.0 billion, and the net [...]
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Reuters - Toronto's main stock index finished higher on Thursday as U.S. business productivity and weekly jobs data helped to lift investor confidence in the economic recovery. Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 5 Nov 2009 | 3:03 pm
Reuters - U.S. stocks jumped on Thursday, pushing the S&P 500 up for a fourth day, as economic data boosted confidence in the recovery and strong results from Cisco Systems suggested a rebound in technology spending.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks jumped on Thursday, pushing the S&P 500 up for a fourth day, as economic data boosted confidence in the recovery and strong results from Cisco Systems suggested a rebound in technology spending.
This is another in my series of letters to Generations X and Y about their financial outlooks. In the first one here I advised departure. In this one below I say read Treasury's Long Term fiscal outlook to see the scale of the tax... Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 3:00 pm
Xero, the online accounting software provider whose shareholders include MYOB founder Craig Winkler and cashed-up Trade Me founder Sam Morgan, posted a first-half loss on costs to upgrade and expand its systems and bolster... Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 3:00 pm
New Zealand is getting its own Julia Child. Cooking and food writer Annabel Langbein has signed an international licensing deal with international television distributor Fremantle Media Enterprises.The deal starts with a 13-part... Source: nzherald.co.nz - Business | 5 Nov 2009 | 3:00 pm
Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) posted good earnings . Revenue for the quarter ending September 28, 2009 was $2.4 billion compared to $2.5 billion in the same quarter. For the period, EPS was $.20 compared to $.01 last year.
The news that heartened investors was that Starbucks CFO said “we are increasing our non-GAAP EPS outlook for fiscal year 2010 to a [...]
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In 2008, the Boston Consulting Group ran a lifestyle survey of 12,000 women in 22 countries. Their survey findings inform the conclusions in Women Want More, a book that details the burgeoning women’s consumer market.
Each chapter includes statistics, company stories, and anecdotes from individual women. Readers finish the book with an idea of how women behave as consumers, and how to gear their products for success in the female economy.
Authors: BCG Senior Partner Michael Silverstein, who wrote Trading Up (2003) and Treasure Hunt (2006). Co-written with BCG Partner Kate Sayre.
Recommended for: Corporate leaders and marketers who want to tap the growing women’s consumer products sector.
Background
Women comprise a huge potential market for companies. They control almost $12 trillion of the $18.4 trillion in worldwide consumer spending (65%). By 2028, they will control 72%. Over the next five years, they will gain $5 trillion in earned income. The result? A consumer market bigger than China and India.
That’s just the beginning. So far, 80% of unemployment growth has been male, making the term he-cession ring true. Women own 40% of US businesses—and that number is growing. Women make most of the household decisions about travel, cars, and electronics. Many control household finances.
With economic potential like that, companies need to think seriously about catering to discerning females. “Making it pink” just won’t work.
The Survey
After reviewing the results of their survey, the authors came up with some noteworthy findings. Some of it is familiar: People have either researched and concluded it before, or it sounds like common knowledge:
1) Most women are employed.
* 71% of US mothers are in the labor force (2006 stats)
* 56% have children under one year old (2006)
2) At the same time, women still do all the housework.
* 88% are responsible for grocery shopping
* 85% make all the family meals
* 84% do the laundry
* 84% do most of the housecleaning
3) As a result, they’re stressed.
* 47% say that demands on their time are the “big stress in their life”
* 45% don’t have enough time for themselves
4) Finally, in an unrelated vein of womanhood, they don’t feel skinny or pretty.
* 68% think they’re overweight
* 44% of women rarely or never feel beautiful
Sayre and Silverstein also uncover some tidbits that you may not have heard before:
* Women’s happiness, as correlated with age, is a V-shaped curve. That means women are happiest when they’re young and old, but not so much in between.
* Love, health, honesty, and well-being are the four most important values to women
* When asked what makes them extremely happy, women said:
1) Pets (42%)
2) Sex (27%)
3) Food (19%)
Sorry, guys.
The authors claim there are still a lot of first-mover advantages in the female market. Overall, women fell pressured for time and stressed. They’re constantly looking for products that meet their specific needs (unlike men, who are more loyal to brands). If you create a product that saves women time, feel in control of their finances, or offers other key features as defined in the book, you, too, can capture your piece of the femme pie.
Archetypes
To learn exactly how to address women’s needs, you need to consider the archetype your target market belongs to. The authors divide women into six archetypes. They’re based on economic class, age, and family status:
Fast tracker: 24% of population, 34% of earned income College-educated, career-minded, makes a lot of money
Pressure cooker: 22% of the population, 23% of earned income Middle-income, middle-aged, never enough time in the day
Relationship focused: 16% of the population, 13% of earned income Young, single, adopting brands
Fulfilled empty nester: 15% of the population, 16% of earned income Money in pocket, enough time, likes leisure and travel
Managing on her own: 10% of population, 9% earned income Divorced/widowed, making a lot of decisions by herself
Making ends meet: 12% of the population, 5% of earned income Low income, less education. Low-paying jobs or unemployed. Dissatisfied.
Companies need to understand exactly who they’re trying to serve, and refine from there.
Although the archetypes serve the purposes of this book well, they don’t take culture, lifestyle, and other important market aspects into consideration. They’re a starting point for companies, but not a definitive guide for defining a market segment.
Features of Each Chapter
After explaining the archetypes, the book explores different categories of products that women care about. Each chapter is devoted to a category. Food, fitness, beauty, and apparel make up the first four categories. Financial services and healthcare, which women perceive negatively, make up the next two.
The authors cover how women perceive each product category, how they spend their money on it, and how archetypes react to it. Quotes, statistics, and anecdotes about individual women add flavor to the chapter.
The authors also describe commercial opportunities in each category, illustrating them with major corporations that “got it right.” These include Whole Foods, Curves, Olay, Banana Republic, and several other large corporations.
Next, the book talks about women in low- and high-growth global economies. The former include Japan and Europe. The latter include BRIC, Mexico, and the Middle East. Readers learn more about the characteristics of women in those countries, and how to cater to them.
Before concluding the book, the authors detail women’s attitudes towards charity and giving.
Analysis
The book is well-written, even fun to read. The statistics, stories, and quotes in each story engage readers with the subject matter. Some topics might feel familiar—of course women don’t have enough time—but the book adds value to previous assumptions by going into specifics.
Sadly, several of the characters in the book aren’t original. One was sourced from Wikipedia; another came from a blog. BusinessWeek reporters uncovered this irritating fact in September. The authors have agreed to make revisions.
Also note that the book targets leaders of large, consumer-goods corporations (who might, incidentally, read the book and hire BCG consultants). It doesn’t go into depth with regards to service industries, outside of financial and healthcare services. It doesn’t give readers refined tips, or schedules on how to revise their product offerings. One assumes that’s where the consultants come in.
The book provides a general reminder to capture a growing market. It gives a deeper definition of who inhabits that market. And, as far as business books go, it is conventional. It covers established companies and brands. It does not mention burgeoning industries (eg. the green industry) or edgy innovations.
The material is in-the-box and focused on big companies. Undoubtedly, that serves a purpose. Just know that the business wisdom within won’t push many boundaries.
In sum: Useful and fun to read, but not groundbreaking.
"New York City" dayA few former employees are learning that it's a bad idea to poke a Tiger cub. That applies ten-fold to the leader of the pack, the inimitable Julian Robertson.
The Tiger Management founder had a tough 2000. The then-68-year-old shuttered his legendary hedge fund because he didn't understand those newfangled gadgets that everyone on the Street was going so crazy for. Then, the New York State Dept. of Taxation and Finance slapped him with a huge freakin' tax bill, saying he'd spent more than half of the year living in the Big Apple.
Not so, J-Rob countered: He only spent exactly 183 days in the city that year. And he launched an all-out war to prove it. Robertson and his staff spent a ridiculously extraordinary amount of time trying to account for the big guy's every step nine years ago. In the end, it came down to just four days, including, ironically, tax day, April 15.
Today both the AARP and the American Medical Association got behind the House bill on health care reform. But the bill may be a harder sell for the drug industry. Nancy Marshall Genzer explores what Big Pharma stands to lose on the deal. Source: Marketplace | 5 Nov 2009 | 2:33 pm
CareFusion Corp. (NYSE: CFN) rose over 6% to a yearly hight of $24.34 after reporting first quarter earnings of 39 cents per share, beating analyst estimates. The company also increased its earnings forecast for next year.
Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA) rose close to 4% to a yearly high of $31.63, continuing its rise following its earnings [...]
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Reuters - Shares of Starbucks Corp jumped 1.5 percent to $20 after the bell on Thursday as the coffee chain operator posted its quarterly results. Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 5 Nov 2009 | 2:21 pm
The Swiss bank has been hit with the third-biggest fine levied by the UK financial watchdog after senior employees were discovered using money taken from customer accounts to speculate in foreign currencies and commodities Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 5 Nov 2009 | 2:01 pm
Quite a few months back, a couple of former Touradji Capital Management employees sued the hedge fund for some $50 million in unpaid bonuses. Yesterday, in its own lawsuit, Touradji made explicitly clear why it didn't pay Gentry Beach and Robert Vollero the money they think they are owed. And the hedge fund is demanding $250 million for its trouble.
In the 55-page suit, Touradji lays out in exquisite detail what a couple of screw-ups Beach and Vollero allegedly are. A selection:
"Beach and Vollero were responsible for the destruction of millions of dollars of investor capital through a pattern of fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty and utter disregard for the interests of the investors whose capital they were obligated to protect."
Beach's father stole $500,000 from a joint-venture private equity investment with Touradji. "Contemporaneously with these events, on September 26, 2008, Gentry Beach claimed that he was 'forced to resign' from Touradji Capital--even filing a false police report in which he claimed he had been threatened--when in fact he had already set up a competing business well before that time."
After Beach left the firm, "Vollero remaind at Touradji Capital deviously and unethically gathering confidential information about the firm and creating a fraudulent record concerning his compensation...."
Here's some good holiday news: a drop in sales of high end wines this year and a weak secondary market for American grapes, known as the Napa spot market, means some of the best 2009 wines could sell for as little as $20 a bottle, many in time for Christmas.
The US investigation into insider trading in America's hedge fund community deepened as federal agents charged 14 more defendants with running a previously undetected ring and added 13 additional individuals and companies to the original charges against Galleon Group. Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 5 Nov 2009 | 1:06 pm
Alexei Kudrin, the Russian finance minister, travelled to London to woo investors ahead of Russia’s return to international debt markets for the first time in 10 years Source: Financial Times - US homepage | 5 Nov 2009 | 1:03 pm
AP - Shares of Hyatt Hotels Corp. rose sharply Thursday in the iconic hotel chain's first day on the New York Stock Exchange, with investors appearing to dismiss concerns about infighting among its founder's heirs and tepid hotel reservations around the world.
AP - Shares of Hyatt Hotels Corp. rose sharply Thursday in the iconic hotel chain's first day on the New York Stock Exchange, with investors appearing to dismiss concerns about infighting among its founder's heirs and tepid hotel reservations around the world.
Ali Far and Choo Beng Lee, the former hedge fund traders turned government informants in the Galleon insider trading case, have admitted to engaging in illegal insider trading for many years, according to their cooperation agreements.
In the case of Lee, the agreements suggest that he engaged in illegal insider trading while working at Steven Cohen's SAC Capital, the Connecticut-based hedge fund.
In the case of Lee, the alleged wrongful conduct dates back as far as 1994. In both cases, this would suggest the men engaged in insider trading while working at other hedge funds before setting up their own fund, Spherix Capital, in 2007.
Here is the relevant section of Lee's agreement (which, oddly, sounds like something we might write in referring to the mothership-- "a certain hedge fund located in Connecticut." Also, and this is surely a coincidence, we've been told SAC's president is out of the country until Monday. So, it falls to someone else-- YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE-- to call us and defend a certain someone's honor):
UBS has been hit by an £8m fine from the Financial Services Authority FSA - the thirdlargest fine in the watchdog's history - after an investigation revealed four employees of the Swissbased bank had gambled tens of millions of pounds of customers money without permission. Source: Finance and Business. Latest breaking news stocks and shares from the UK and world | 5 Nov 2009 | 12:49 pm
The Senate Environment Committee has approved a climate change bill, thanks to the Democratic vote. Republicans are boycotting the bill, and three moderate senators are trying to cobble together a compromise. John Dimsdale reports. Source: Marketplace | 5 Nov 2009 | 12:12 pm
AP - A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Thursday: Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 5 Nov 2009 | 12:06 pm
The Labor Department says productivity grew at the fasted rate in six years. That means people who still have their jobs are working harder and producing more than they used to. Jeremy Hobson reports. Source: Marketplace | 5 Nov 2009 | 11:58 am
Reuters - A top U.S. securities regulator said on Thursday that she was concerned about naked access, where brokers give high-frequency traders unfiltered access to public markets. Source: Yahoo! News: Stock Markets News | 5 Nov 2009 | 11:56 am
Having just written a book on the subject (When Mooks Fail, currently #15 on the Amazon.com best-seller list), Charlie G. continues his intrepid reporting on the utter shamelessness of Wall Street.
Now, Tom Maheras, the former Citigroup president, is hardly the only person who proves that, no matter how much you lost on subprime bets, you can still raise $100 million for a hedge fund. But Chazzie reports that, despite being forced out at Citi two years ago for obvious reasons, Maheras is basically still working for the firm.
Thousands of workers at the Opel plant in Germany have walked off the job today in what they're calling the first in a series of warning strikes. Kai Ryssdal talks to Dave Legget of Justauto.com. Source: Marketplace | 5 Nov 2009 | 11:32 am
Cash-free transactions may slowly be replacing physical money, but many collectors are still passionate about coins. Cash Peters went to a money show and analyzed characteristics of the common collector. Source: Marketplace | 5 Nov 2009 | 11:30 am
A lot of people who follow sports follow the statistics that go along with them. But not all statistics are created equal. Kai Ryssdal talks to author Simon Kuper, whose book explores the stats of soccer. Source: Marketplace | 5 Nov 2009 | 11:23 am
The government’s many programs to keep the number of mortgage defaults from growing has grown by one. The new Dead for Lease program will allow some homeowners who face foreclosure to turn their homes over to Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM) then rent them for a year with month-to-month extensions. It is not predictable what the level of fraud [...]
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i2 Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: ITWO) is a supply chain management company which has been a takeout stock before. Turns out that is again. In a complicated transaction, JDA Software Group Inc. (NASDAQ: JDAS) will pay some $34 million all said and done in a deal that values the company at $18.00. This was also an [...]
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According to a recent AARP study, unemployment among older Hispanic men has tripled in the past couple of years. Commentator Gustavo Arellano's father is one those suffering from such unemployment. Do you have a job for him? Source: Marketplace | 5 Nov 2009 | 11:01 am
Yes, he's been accused of being the ringleader of the latest alleged insider trading scam, and could conceivably go to prison, but on the bright side a) he's been recognized as a leader in the field and b) for his achievements, been given a pretty great nickname:
SEC says it has caught "Octopussy." SEC enforcement boss Khuzami says that's what people called Zvi Goffer because "he had his arms in so many insider" trading schemes.
Federal authorities announced Thursday they're charging nine more people in the growing Galleon Group insider-trading scandal, bringing to 15 the number charged in the biggest hedge fund-related case in history.
Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara said 14 people, "including attorneys and Wall Street professionals" had been charged "for their alleged involvement in insider trading that netted 20 million dollars."
Seven of the people were arrested Thursday morning, including one in Connecticut and one in New Jersey, according to a spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation's New York office. The arrests follow insider trading charges last month against six people, including the Galleon founder Raj Rajaratnam.
Here at Dealbreaker we like to get to know our accused criminal subjects on a more personal level. Obviously, this involves checking them out on Facebook. While the supposed ringleader of the today's scam, Zvi Goffer, has yet to accept our friend request, Emanuel Goffer (Zvi's younger brother), one of the fourteen lucky ones charged today, helpfully counts himself among one of the last five people on earth with completely public profiles (at least for the next few minutes or so). EG's interests include "Wall Street, Money, Trading, Steak," his favorite quote is one by Warren Buffett that goes "It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it-- if you think about that, you'll do things differently," and he's a member of the group "Traders who need a hug."
The Department of Justice today charged 14 individuals with involvement in insider trading. These include current and ex-employees at the hedge fund Galleon Group, the proprietary trading companies Schottenfeld Group and Incremental Capital, and the law firm Ropes & Gray. The Wall Street Journal has the details:
The complaint alleges former Galleon and Shottenfeld Group LLC employee Zvi Goffer, and at least six other defendants knowingly conspired to defraud, make untrue statements and omit facts, as well as engage in fraudulent and deceitful acts. Mr. Goffer allegedly operated an insider-trading network, obtaining nonpublic information about companies’ planned merger and acquisitions.
Mr. Goffer would then allegedly use the information to execute profitable securities transactions and provide inside information to other conspirators to earn similar profits. It is also alleged that Mr. Goffer provided the co-conspirators with prepaid cellphones so they could reduce the chances of law-enforcement detection.
Insider-trading activity was suspected in the 2007 acquisition of Avaya Inc. Avaya agreed to a merger with Silver Lake and TPG Capital, which were legally advised by Ropes & Gray. The firm also legally advised Bain Capital Partners LLC, which acquired 3Com in 2007.
The complaint alleges there was probable cause to believe Mr. Goffer and his conspirators engaged in insider trading in the acquisitions of Kronos Inc. and Hilton Hotels Corp.
Pouting all the way, MF Global plans to reincorporate in the U.S., abandoning Bermuda for Delaware.
The futures brokerage, formerly part of the Man Group, has recently been whining a whole lot about how unfair and anti-competitive all of those billions in U.S. government bailout bucks to banks have been. We do not necessarily disagree. But such gripes about competitive disadvantages are pretty rich coming from a company based in Bermuda, and for all of the right reasons, we're sure.
"We want to operate in a regulatory environment that benefits from the regulatory reforms discussed in Washington," MF CEO Bernard Dan said. Plus, Delaware has recently been named the bestest damned tax shelter on God's green earth, while Bermuda seems intent on driving out all of its financial firms with potentially ugly new taxes.
The Yankees won the world series last yesterday, thanks in part to Hideki Matsui’s stellar performance. They also top the MLB payroll for 2009. Here’s part of the list, as compiled by the AP:
1. New York Yankees $201,449,289
2. New York Mets $135,773,988
3. Chicago Cubs $135,050,000
4. Boston Red Sox $122,696,000
5. Detroit Tigers $115,085,145
6. Los Angeles Angels $113,709,000
7. Philadelphia Phillies $113,004,048
8. Houston Astros $102,996,415
9. Los Angeles Dodgers $100,458,101
10. Seattle Mariners $98,904,167
Clearly, the Yankees used more than money to win last night. And if payroll is that crucial, what happened with the Mets, the MLB’s second-highest paying team this year?
This chart shows the change in productivity in nonfarm business from quarter to quarter. (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
By Caitlin Kenney
Productivity in the non-farm business sector grew by 9.5 percent last quarter, the largest gain since 2003. The productivity index is calculated by dividing output by the number of hours worked. Productivity has been on a steady climb this year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it rose 6.9 percent in the second quarter. While the increase may sound like good news, economist Howard Rosen, with the Peterson Institute, warns there's more to it:
"In the third quarter, productivity in the non-farm business sector grew by 9.5 percent. This was a result of an increase of output by 4 percent (no surprise here since it was already reported last week that GDP grew by 3 1/2 percent in the third quarter) and a decrease in hours worked by 5 percent. In other words, the strong increase in labor productivity is due to a slight recovery in output and a continued hemorrhage in the labor market, providing yet more evidence that the link between the macroeconomy and the labor market has been broken. The bottom line -- the economy is looking better on paper but not for workers."
When we talked to Rosen about furloughs earlier this year, he said that since the government doesn't keep data on furloughs, the real place to track them is in the productivity numbers.
"What we normally see during a recession, what we saw in the last recession is an increase, a very sharp increase in productivity because we were producing more with less people. Laying off workers and still producing the same amount so productivity went up."
Initial claims for jobless benefits fell last week by 20,000, but the overall number of claims remains extremely high. The economy has lost 7.2 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007, and an untracked number of workers have been furloughed.
Good Morning Planet Money readers: For those of us from Boston, it's not the easiest morning but we still congratulate the Yankees on a good win. Moving on, here's the top-line business news out this morning:
The Bank of England voted Thursday to keep pumping cash into the UK economy by 25bn pounds, a sign that it remains worried about the economic outlook despite early signs of a recovery.
As expected, the Bank left interest rates unchanged at 0.5 percent. Later on Thursday, the Frankfurt-based European Central Bank, which sets monetary policy for the 16-nation euro region, left its key rate at a record low 1 percent.
The move to boost spending by pumping more cash into the British economy, known as quantitative easing, was expected by many economists after recent data suggested the country could remain mired in recession for many more months.
Toyota Motor continued the good news in the global car industry this week, announcing it returned to a profit in the latest quarter and cut in half its estimated annual loss.
Ford and General motors as well as Japanese rivals Honda and Nissan all recently reported rosier earnings just months after the global economic crisis brought the car industry to a standstill.
The better-than-expected sales helped Toyota book a 21.8 billion yen, or $242 million, profit for the July-September period after three consecutive quarterly losses.
After weeks of partisan debate, the Senate voted on Wednesday to lengthen unemployment benefits by up to 20 weeks and to extend the $8,000 home buyer tax credit. The closely watched legislation would extend jobless benefits in all states by 14 weeks. The bill is expected to be passed by the House and signed by the President.
In entertainment, Scripps Networks, the operator of the Food Network and HGTV, announced on Thursday the it will pay $1.1 billion to add the Travel Channel to its stable of lifestyle cable. The takeover offer far exceeds expectations when the bidding began this summer at $600-$700 million.
