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	May 2002 - July 2002 (Many links will be dated) Tuesday July 30 Bush to Sign Corporate Crackdown Bill Reuters History of bull markets rife with folly CBS (Calandra) Raging bull markets, when they crash, always end lower than where they started. Consumer Confidence Falls Nine Points in July CB Global Aftershocks Morgan Stanley (Roach) Rational Saturninity AEI Bull's Rebuttal GoldenBar Why Monday was just another day CNNfn NYT: Qwest Insiders Made Millions Reuters Merrill analyst removal was 'key' to Enron deal FT 3 Brokers Get Jail Terms Newsday All of the brokers were accused of helping to inflate prices of initial public offering and of helping to hide profits in offshore accounts ‘Dow 36,000’ gurus hold fast to belief in market’s potential WSJ Bankrupt: Budget Group Vanguard Airlines Qwest? Auto Market's Strength May Vanish Bloomberg A Pro Gives Wall Street’s Crooks Some Sound Tips NY Post Tech firms balk at expensing options USA Today Tracking the incredible shrinking venture funds Boston Globe Study: U.S. Economic Stability Just Luck Reuters Banking crisis grips Uruguay BBC In Brazil, 'Ill Will' Over O'Neill Washington Post Treasury Chief's Remarks Cause Diplomatic Stir, Weaken Currency Monday July 29 Wall Street gets a bull stampede CBS Rational Pessimism? Contrary Investor No One Need Apply Newsday When Pots Call Kettles Black Bloomberg The days when the U.S. could dictate business ethics to the world are fast drawing to a close Does the stock market lead the economy? TheStar As George Soros expounded in his ‘Theory of Reflexivity’, sometimes perception tends to lead to reality. After the New Economy, Expect the New Recession Bloomberg Qwest Admits Improper Accounting, to Restate Results Bloomberg Markets taking more stock of rating agency decisions Globe & Mail CNBC Struggles Even as Financial News Abounds NY Times (R) Its daily, average audience of 233,000 people in the second quarter was 25 percent smaller than it was during the corresponding period last year. Putting Retirement Off Takes Some Work CTNow Research shows that higher-income workers expect to retire later, at age 65 instead of 63, which was what they thought in 1998. Weekend The Bears Are Starting to Buy Washington Post Bears Call "Time Out" HD Brous Debt fuels US gas and power bankruptcy fears Financial Times Some industry insiders believe the write-offs faced by banks and bondholders could exceed the losses caused by the collapse of WorldCom and Global Crossing Snap-back rally no cause for joy CBS MarketWatch Several of the more important indicators that are found only before major market bottoms are still missing... Lowry 'Dr Doom' sees more market pain BBC Trust Shattered, Wall Street Can't Afford Coincidences NYT (R) How Wall Street could impoverish us all Independent Footsie 'faces fall to 3,000' Guardian Robert Shiller added to the gloom by saying that even after a 40 per cent fall in share prices since the dotcom boom, markets are still overvalued by historical standards. To be in line with historic ratios, “markets have to come down another 40 per cent,” he warned. Keep it simple Financial Sense JPM Derivatives Monster Crashes GoldSeek (Zeal) Worsening Profit Outlook Threatens Gains Bloomberg Clearly, companies are having trouble making money these days Board Takes Up Options Issue Washington Post A Sudden Rush to Declare Bankruptcy Is Expected NYT Got Bear Market Depressive Syndrome? CNNfn Symptoms include insomnia, upset stomach, loss of concentration and a screaming urge to throw all your remaining money into bonds or CDs. 'Stockalypse' Gives Sinking Feeling Reuters Bond defaults hit record $52.1 bln in 2d qtr-S&P Reuters Brazilian real hits new record low against dollar Financial Post Friday July 26 Yen Heads for Biggest Weekly Drop in 4 Months Bloomberg Caution: Energy Trading Washington Post FERC plans to release next week its proposal for standardized power market rules, which could replace the patchwork of different market systems currently used across the county. Last Line of Defense Morgan Stanley (Roach) AOL In Freefall NY Post Hill Set to Change Bankruptcy Laws Washington Post The U.S. Economy Is Not Depression-Proof Ludwig Von Mises Almighty dollar seems like petty cash St. Petersburg Times Absolute disappointment Economist Despite being in a bear market, hedge funds struggle to do well Banks set out to soothe nerves BBC Thursday saw persistent rumours that the banks are now being probed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in addition to Congress. Americans feel worse off than last year USA Today Pension underfunding soars 425% Boston Globe Pensions rocked by market slide (UK) BBC Fat Americans sue fast food firms BBC Nortel sinks 21 per cent to penny stock on NYSE Globe & Mail Bad boys of Wall St. make good TV Globe & Mail IMF officials are now in Argentina demanding that governors trim spending and stop printing money CSM Argentina Says 50% Live in Poverty, Unemployment 22% Bloomberg Thursday July 25 Hold on Superspan . . . for now Times ...we are not yet at the point where the system is on the verge of collapse. US June durable goods orders plunge Census Greenspan Haunted By 1990s Ghosts Bloomberg Don't Bank on Problems Going Away Anytime Soon NY Post Rally Won't Last Comstock If only this were the bottom CBS A slow leak in the balloon Boston Globe The bad news is the mutual fund business could look like a balloon with a slow leak for a long time. Mutual-fund investors shifting, not bailing out AP Blowing Bubbles: U.S. From Across the Pacific Bloomberg Nobody on this side of the pond is even talking about the unsustainable current account deficit Americans are running. Market Cries '98 Tears TheStreet Blame Iacocca Slate How the former Chrysler CEO caused the corporate scandals. As Wall Street goes, so go world markets CS Monitor Wall Street Securities Firms Bracing for New Round of Layoffs Dow Jones Rumbles of double-dip recession CS Monitor Trillions in stock-market losses and sagging consumer confidence threaten to repeat a pattern last seen in 1981. The Only Option (For Stock Options, That Is) Fortune The Revenge of Reality Ludwig Von Mises Neither corporate scandals nor corporate failures are the main causes of the current stock market turbulence; these are just the symptoms of the disease... The Surety Thing CFO Two Lawsuits Add To Citigroup's Headaches Hartford Courant NEC 'retires' 5,000 staff BBC Banking crisis looms over Argentina talks BBC German Business Confidence Drops Bloomberg Wednesday July 24 Who Really Cooks the Books? NYT (Buffett) Analysts see no need for Fed to act MSNBC SEC conducting a ``fact-finding mission'' into AOL Bloomberg SEC Chief Seeks Promotion and Raise Reuters Fed ought to cut rates soon--economist Kaufman Reuters A mad dash over the cliff for Wall St? Business Times Cornered Animal GoldenBar Senate Panel Says 2 Banks Helped Enron Hide Loans WP Chase and Citicorp knew what Enron was doing, assisted in the deceptions, and profited from their actions. Levin Former Adelphia Execs Arrested for Fraud Reuters 3 More Firms to List Options as Expenses Washington Post Program trading rises again WSJ NYSE Sandy’s Bad Year NY Post Bear market likened to slump of 1973-1974 Baltimore Sun Fears grow that this isn't usual bear market Knight Ridder Investors Appreciate Dividends Again AP So far this year, the 350 dividend-paying stocks in the S&P 500 have declined about 11 percent, less painful than the 29 percent drop among those that don't pay dividends. Fed - No comment on market rumors of meeting Reuters Tuesday July 23 C, JPM Tumble on Enron Finance Bloomberg Joe Lieberman’s Cover-Up NRO I Want The President To Certify The Govt’s Books NY Post U.S. Regulators Tighten Policy on Problem Loans WP Investors abandon stock funds CNNfn Market flies in face of 'truths' Dallas Morning News Fall was not without warning Bangkok Post Citigroup Said to Mold Deal to Help Enron Skirt Rules NYT (R) TD accused of helping Enron hide debt National Post Companies Buying on the ‘Cheap’ CFO WorldCom woes ripple across bank stocks USA Today Party at The NYSE (2:00 PM) NYSE Long live dividend yield! CBS MarketWatch Business Lobbyists Lose Clout on Audit Reform WP SEC considers rule on analysts’ picks WSJ Lucent AT&T Tyco Novellus UPS Reuters/Cnn Japan may relax bond cap AFP Asia Pacific: Free-falling MS (Andy Xie) Monday July 22 Dow Jones closes below 8,000 BBC WorldCom Files Record Bankruptcy Case WP NYSE's Grasso: Monday May Be Rough Day Reuters Cracking Denial MS (Roach) US retreat still has a way to go SMH The most important date to remember is August 14... Banking System in Trouble? Gold-Eagle THE GREAT CRASH OF 2002 part ii 321Gold The Real Price of the Slide Newsweek 'Paper' losses, real-world impact CS Monitor As stocks losses mount – now $8 trillion since peak – tough choices face retirees, colleges, and nonprofits. NASD to take action on Grubman WSJ For the Record Depression.tv A Torrent of Loans Becomes a Trickle NY Times An Excerpt from The Great 401(k) Hoax Business Week The 401(k) represents an implicit promise to middle-class Americans that they can live off the income that they receive from stock ownership. Amazon Watch Out For the Double Slump NY Post Raising Fannie Mae's Shades CS Monitor Retire at 65? Better Change Your Plans Business Week This bear is here to stay, Mobius says National Post Franklin Templeton equity guru says two more years of pain Another fallen idol The Star Fed Chief Now Blamed for Inflating Stock Bubble LA Times (R) Greenspan Shrugged NY Times (R) Q&A: Examining Greenspan’s Legacy Newsweek Weekend Confidence Is Not The Problem Comstock A crash course in Galbraith The Observer There must be some way out of here Economist Q&A: Examining Greenspan’s Legacy Newsweek Wall Street’s slide could tip U.S. back into recession MSNBC Friday July 19 The Angry Bear Market Business Week Still Blowing Bubbles MS (Roach) Wall Street slump brings blues to Main Street IHT (WP) CalPERS: Watchdog under watch CBS MarketWatch U.S. turnaround stalls during June National Post 'Jobless, profitless recovery' continues Magellan assets hit a 4-year low Boston Globe We are in one of the greatest bear markets of all time - the third-worst bear market in stock market history Where Did the Net's Wise-Cracking Stock-Pickers Go? Reuters Cisco, Intel Unlikely to Join Coke, Dole in Expensing Options Bloomberg WorldCom bankruptcy may be near WSJ More gloom hits troubled Ericsson BBC How Pitt Could Make Fraud Less Tempting NY Times Fixed mortgages fall to record lows MSNBC Wall Street hits Nikkei Globe & Mail Thursdsay July 18 Stock Declines Prompt Lifestyle, Portfolio Changes WP ...4 out of 10 Americans said they are not confident they will have enough retirement income and assets -- almost double the number a year ago The Cycles of Financial Scandal NY Times Monitoring The Cycle of Deflation Comstock Bubble Bubbles, Plenty More Troubles... Gold-Eagle Grrr Economist Credit card stocks dive on consumer default fears Reuters Guess what? Investing is hard Globe & Mail Firms face higher jobless fund payouts Boston Globe Dividend Pledge Becomes Hard to Keep TheStreet Lawsuit Says Salomon Gave Special Deals to Rich Clients NY Times Sen. Corzine's Wall Street Sleaze Newsmax Celestica to slash 6,000 jobs National Post 'We have not seen a second-half rebound,' CEO "Everyone Is Selling, No One Is Buying" Business Week Sinking stocks threaten Europe's growth--and the new shareholder culture Bankruptcies possible as airlines' losses continue USA Today Unconventional Transactions Boosted AOL Sales WP Nokia sales take a hit BBC 2Q02 profits at technology giant IBM plummeted 97%... AP Japanese Drop Plans to Invest in U.S. Bloomberg Greenspan Predicts Companies Will Restate Earnings Downward Dow Jones Wednesday July 17 Don’t Buy The Divergence Hype FallStreet Investors dreaming of capitulation could be waiting in vain Globe & Mail The big freefall in October (1929), when the Dow lost more than 20 per cent of its value, took four days -- and the brief spike that followed was just a prelude to another plunge. Disclosure urged for U.S.-backed firms CBS MarketWatch The way I see it, the GSEs are now our savings and loans of the late-1970s. You cannot keep a bubble going on forever. Ron Paul Greenpan's Testimony-- Reading Between The Lines Comstock Options Must Be Treated as Expenses, Global Panel Says WP IASB Stock Options are most prized as an accounting loophole Bloomberg (PDF) Bank One to Count Options as Expense Washington Post Capital One to Boost Bad-Loan Allowances Washington Post Sony Shares Drop on Accounting Questions Reuters Raytheon Faces SEC Charge On Disclosure Washington Post The Bear's Lair: What to do next UPI For students, Accounting Fraud 101 WSJ Bush sets a bad example SF Gate Disbelief at lack of buyers and quality stock Irish Examiner Pitt Blames ‘SoundBites’ For Stock Market Debacle BBC “I believe that if we keep getting the political soundbites that some few have been trying to perpetuate on the investing public, there's no telling how low the markets could go.” Tuesday July 16 Foreign Investors May Be Saying Adios to U.S. Marts NY Post The Bears Still Look Hungry TheStreet Chillingly, even after this year's 30% drubbing, tech stocks must lose half their current value to reach sensible levels. Panic of 1819--and 2002 Von Mises Could the United States suffer as much as Japan has? CNNfn All the economists are saying it's a normal cycle, it's time for the U.S. to recover. They said that in Japan, too. Salary deflation could slow recovery UPI The Senate bill misses the point MSNBC Congress ducked the key accounting issue by not barring the gimmick of treating stock options as ‘assets’ Senate Votes 97-0 To Rein In Firms Washington Post Wild Wall Street Ride Slowed by Main Street NY Times The last eight times they bought the dip, they lost money Dollar sinks to fresh lows Reuters Intel CEO’s planned speech fuels talk of big job cuts WSJ Trust in corporations waning in wake of scandals USA Today (Gallups) Coke's stock-option move pressures others AP J.P. Morgan Denies Liquidity Rumors Reuters In market dip, a calculation of uncertainty for politicians this fall Boston Globe Bank of Canada Raises Rates To 2 3/4% BOC French bank chief to stand trial BBC Monday July 15 Asymmetrical Risks MS (Roach) Bear market could last years WSJ The Earnings Season of Discontent Business Week Coca-Cola to Expense Stock Options as Income Washington Post Buffett Says U.S. Companies Should Follow Coca-Cola Bloomberg Euro powers to parity with dollar CNNfn Is a "Triple-Digit Dow" Inescapable? Business Week Feds stuck with $1 billion in surplus milk powder AP Japanese banks 'exploit accounting loophole' Financial Times Weekend New Reasons to Wonder if the Worst Is Over NYT How much worse could the bear market get? A lot. Stocks' Slide Is Playing Havoc With Older Americans' Dreams NYT Bad Times Get Worse Savings SF Gate Falling stock forces retirees to reassess. No time to recoup Blame The Fund Managers, Too NY Post Bear for the very first time Guardian Market fuels fears of 'double-dip' recession WT Accounts must be brought to book Smithers Flashback: The Risk of a US Liquidity Trap Smithers Study shows 401(k) vulnerability Washington Post Pension, health care funds may see shortfall USA Today Friday July 12 Debt Valley Financial Sense S&P 500 Slow-Motion Crash Zeal Consumer Sentiment at 8-Month Low Reuters Retail Sales Up 1.1% In June Census 0.4% Gain Excluding autos. May retail sales revised lower. Still no panic in Detroit, or anywhere CBS MarketWatch Wall Street uses 'upgrades' to defend withering stocks The earnings investors base their valuations on could be wildly overstated Money Taken for a ride Economist The pay of chief executives can seem ridiculous. Often, it is Drip, drip, drip CBS MarketWatch (Erdman) Head-and-shoulders completed FT Investor Bearish chart pattern suggests 600 point drop on S&P 500 White Collar Crime And The Ongoing Economic Depression Gold-Eagle Breaking Records--For Bankruptcies Fortune Americans are raising the white flag as never before. These 25 companies lost the most money in 2001 Fortune Hedge fund managers run for cover as investors take aim SA Business Report No Shame NY Post Corporate disgrace hasn't cramped the high-rolling lifestyle of Tyco's ex-CEO, L. Dennis Kozlowski. Growing scrutiny of Bush business record CS Monitor Deficit Estimate Goes Up Again Washington Post National debt clock is restarted in New York AP A Month Most Mutual Funds Flopped Business Week “...investors pulled an estimated $21 billion dollars out of stocks in the month of June alone. This month, so far, they've taken out another $15.3 billion.” CBS (Trimtabs) “During the quarter, the company’s U.S. domestic package business experienced declines in package volume that accelerated as the quarter ended...” UPS Thursday July 11 Bear market one of most painful yet MSNBC Forget Enron - Congress is even worse Scripps Howard NS In fiscal 2000 and 2001, the federal government increased total debt to another record high while claiming a surplus... Gold gain points to market meltdown CBS MarketWatch Will the bear maul the economy? CNNfn SEC opens Bristol-Myers investigation Financial Times WorldCom Leased Jet to Director for $1 Washington Post No Cheer in Japan over America's Woes Business Week Tokyo Nikkei closes 2.5 pct down in broad decline Reuters Wednesday July 10 Bear market one of most painful yet MSNBC Living With 1999's Evil Twin TheStreet The Cycle of Deflation Comstock Banks to Close NextCard Accounts AP Some of NexCard Inc.'s 800,000 customers may be surprised when they try to swipe their Visa cards Wednesday — federal regulators are closing all accounts as a result of the online credit card issuer's financial failure. The Risk of Financial Accidents Morgan Stanley (Roach) A policy response, which may seem appropriate in the post-bubble era, cannot atone for the blunders that gave rise to the bubble itself. Earnings, Earnings, Earnings Comstock Would You Keep Investing In An Enterprise That Was Just Throwing Parties With Your Funds? Northern Trust Judicial Watch suing Vice President Cheney Reuters Moody's expects pressure on CDO Financial Times Property market takes a beating WSJ Corporate scandals mean problems for landlords The hidden costs of stock options Globe & Mail Hussman Hotline Update Hussman I've noted before that I don't understand why Fannie Mae trades at all... A grim scenario gains currency IHT Dollar's rapid fall must be checked: Shiokawa Japan Times Since there is a (pessimistic dollar) tendency, we must prevent the dollar from reaching that level by all means Argentines protest in 'day of rage' BBC Another Big Charge for AOL? BusinessWeek Stocks do S&P shuffle CNNfn “What did Enron in, and what at least almost did WorldCom in, was the sheer inability to keep paying the bills for huge debts. Accounting tricks were merely a cover-up to buy time (and postpone being fired) by hiding the problems. If we expect too much from accounting, we are sure to be disappointed. When there is a cyclical collapse in profits, firms with big debts go bankrupt...” Alan Reynolds NP Tuesday July 9 Text of Bush Corporate Crime Speech AP If the Fed didn't exist… GoldenBar A central bank is to capitalism what the Trojan horse was to the mythological city of Troy. It's not a safety net, but rather a tool for plunder THE GREAT CRASH OF 2002 321gold The plan to reform Corporate America Financial Post Clean Up Your Act or the Bull Gets It NY Post TO: Wall Street, corporate and Washington fat cats. From: Angry investors. If you want your bull back alive, here are a dozen demands. The Bear's Lair:Exponential or asymptotic? UPI Fed Research Is Window Into Greenspan's Thinking Bloomberg How can a model that never predicts growth in the U.S. correctly predict growth in Japan with another 200 basis points of easing? Pimco's Gross Says Hedge Funds' Sales Hurting Bonds Bloomberg Goldman Says Fed Will Wait Until 2003 to Raise Rates Bloomberg Falling dollar's far-reaching effect CS Monitor Tourists and investors feel the pinch – and home-buyers might soon Support grows for expensing options SF Gate So far, only two companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 index -- Boeing and Winn-Dixie -- expense options. Savings industry faces shake-up BBC UK business failures on the rise BBC The executive piggy bank Miami Herald Merck's Accounting Raises Questions About a Stock Offering NY Times Every Up-Tick Is Not A New Bull Market! Cornerstoni On the Hill, a Taciturn Ebbers WP Former WorldCom CEO's Silence Enrages Some Committee Members Bush to seek jail time CNN Fraud Inc Stewart's Broker Subpoenaed WP 'Telecom Junkie' Is Unmoved WP Grubman Sat In FT Monday July 8, 2002 Numbers game and blame Denver Post We are going to see an avalanche of (financial) restatements between now and the end of the year Dollar Has Steepest Drop in Two Months Versus Euro Bloomberg Merck booked $14 billion that it never collected Bloomberg Noted economist saw this coming Dallas News The Drumbeat of Systemic Risk Morgan Stanley (Roach) With credit spreads widening, battered equities still tender, the dollar under pressure, and the Fed likely to hold its fire, the drumbeat of systemic risk is getting louder by the day. Aim of the game for the Fed is to avoid deflation Independent Central Bankers Are Only Human... Reuters How many WorldComs does it take? Contarian Chronicles (Fleck) The worst isn't over until everyone fears the worst is yet to come. A Rally Crumbles, a Debt-Doomsday Warning Appears TheStreet Fed Focus: Say A Prayer, He Won't Be The Pretender Pimco